News From The Nest

Dear Falcon Families,

Parent Conference week is this week, March 9th - March 13th. ALL students will be dismissed at 1:15 pm every day during conference week. When meeting before or after school for a conference, you can go directly to the teacher's classroom. You do not need to check in at the office.

It is also Spring Picture day on Tuesday. See below for more information about picture day.

Congrats to Paulina Kim for winning our Yearbook cover contest! Thanks to all our Falcons who submitted an entry.

Spring Break is next week, March 16th-20th! School will resume for students on Monday, March 23rd.

Go Falcons! 💚

Warmly,

Mrs. Lucas

Mark Your Calendars:

March 9th-13th ~ Spring Conference Week, 1:15 pm dismissal all week

March 13th ~ ELAC Mtg, 11 am via Zoom

March 13th ~ LUNCH WITH A LOVED ONE

March 16th-20th ~ SPRING BREAK

Please send your order form in, there are more available in the office, or order online if you'd like to have your child's spring picture taken. ONLY students with an order form or an online order will have their picture taken this Tuesday. See the code below to order online.

ALL Sixth graders will have their picture taken on Tuesday for Promotion.

Bring your best smile, Falcons!

We are excited for our final Lunch with a Loved One event on Friday, March 13th. Families are invited to join our Falcons for lunch from 12-1 pm on our blacktop and field. Please plan to bring your beach chairs, blankets and lunches to enjoy lunch. Students will head back to class at 1:00 pm, then end of LWALO to be dismissed by their teacher at our 1:15 pm dismissal. For safety, non-school age students are not permitted to play on the playground. All students MUST play on their designated playground.

Jersey Mike's and Panda Express are partnering with us for a dining for dollars, donating money back to our PTA. Use the flyers below to participate.

Please order your yearbook NOW! We do NOT order extra so be sure to get your order in

by APRIL 10th.

See all the flyers below. Submit your pictures for the yearbook by clicking on the

appropriate QR code.

6th Grade families, be sure to submit your dedications now!

Falcons, see the opportunities below to be a part of our annual district wide FSD Fest at CSUF

on April 18th!

Have a passion? Are you a filmmaker? Sign up below to showcase your talents!

Falcons, do you have a passion? Are you a filmmaker? See the flyers below to register to show off your passion or talent at our annual FSD Fest on April 18th!

We are excited to launch this year’s Harvest of the Month Artistic Contest with the grade-specific entry system to promote fairness in the selection process.

Grade-Level Entry Categories:
To provide an equal opportunity for all students, we will be judging entries within the following grade-level groups:

• PreK–2 (Primary)
• 3–5 (Upper Elementary)
• 6–8 (Middle School/Junior High)

Each grade category will be judged separately to promote fairness, giving younger students an equal chance to have their artwork featured alongside their peers.

Guidelines: For contest guidelines click here.

Submission Deadline: May 1st
Submit to: Nutrition Services kitchen or send via District Mail

Attendance is key in student achievement and success at school.

Thank you for ensuring your Falcon attends school on time every day that they are healthy.

If your child will be absent, please use this google form to clear their absence. You may also call the school attendance line to clear an absence. Independent Study MUST be requested on THE DAY of the absence. For vacations, parents must request Independent Study TWO weeks before the absence.

Each week we hold a raffle for class attendance. Each day, if the class has 100% attendance, the teacher sends a raffle coupon up to the office. On Friday's we draw a primary and upper grade class winner. The winning class receives 3 class Gotcha's, a 10 minute extra recess and has the Falcon mascot in their room for the week.

This week's winners are:

Primary - Miss Mitchell

Upper grades - Mrs. Holbrook

As we head into the winter months, students are often home ill. If your child is absent, you can request Independent Study to make up the absence on their attendance. You MUST request it on the first day of the absence. There is a spot on the google attendance form to request this. If your child is absent, you MUST clear their attendance with either the ABSENCE google form or a call to our office attendance line so that the absence does not become a truancy. TY!

Here is our March update from Student Council. Read carefully to see the latest spirit dates.

We have many Lost & Found items. Please have your students check for items that belong to them. Our L&F is set up right outside our MPR. Please take some time at our upcoming Movie Night and Lunch with a Loved One to check for items that belong to you. All items will be donated at Spring Break.

Link to FSD website Nutrition Page

Lunch and breakfast will continue to be free for all students daily. We will still do a lunch count daily so please discuss with your student the importance to take a correct lunch count. Some students bring a lunch to school and then at lunchtime go get a school lunch. This results in some lunch shortages of the choice meal that day. Lunch options are still available and all children will be fed but often when this happens, the "lunch of the day" runs out. Please review with students the importance of this an accurate lunch count.

📚Read With A Loved One dates for the remainder of the year: 📚

An important reminder to drive SLOWLY and SAFELY through our parking lot and on Fern Drive. Cars are driving too fast through our parking lot and students are also exiting cars in the drive through lane. This is not safe and we need to follow our drop off/pick up protocols. Students are only permitted to exit their car on the SIDEWALK side of their car in the drop off lane, NOT the drive-through lane. A reminder that adults are not permitted to exit the car. Students should be ready to exit when their car pulls into the drop off lane. As cars pull away, please be sure you are driving SLOWLY and cautiously. Drive slowly on Pico and Fern Drive as well. Thank you for your attention to this matter. Our students, families and staff should be safe at all times.

Month of March PTA update.

Each month, be sure to take a look at the latest news and events from PTA.

Save the date! Our Hawaiian Luau Spring Festival is April 10th!

We have the following PTA Board positions open for the 26-27 school year. Please consider grabbing another Fern Drive parent and jumping into one of these positions. Your time, service and dedication are greatly appreciated and add to the success of our kids' elementary experience! Please reach out to the PTA Board at ferndrpta@gmail.com if you have questions.

Submit your self nomination here for a Board position. When you click on the link, you will see the positions and their responsibilities.

Our 25-26 Foundation Board Members

President, Kristen Jones

Vice President, George Benfit

Secretary, Nanette Roller

Treasurer, Joe Conti

• The PowerSchool Parent Portal will be live beginning Fri, 8/8. If your child took the state test last spring, you can find their CAASPP test scores there.
• Fern Drive School Handbook
• Fern Drive Website
• FSD Website
• Follow us on Instagram and Facebook

Follow Fern Drive on IG: fern_drive_falcons

Follow our PTA on IG: ferndrivepta

Follow our Foundation on IG: ferndrivefoundation