Forest Elementary Newsletter

We hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving and a well-deserved break! I know our staff will be taking time to rest and recharge, and we hope that your families get the chance to do that too. This has been a month of being grateful. I am very grateful for our Forest family, and I thank you all for the hard work you put in to make our school and community the best! We have amazing students, staff, and families. Thank you for all that you do to make that a reality!

Please remember our primary form of communication is either text/email blasts and Schoology. If you do not have Forest Elementary listed as one of your groups in Schoology you are not receiving important information. Add group code X685-T2NZ-5PVHB to make sure you are not missing out on important school information.

Please make sure your child brings cold weather gear such as gloves, hats, ear muffs, scarves, etc. as we enter into December. They will be going outside for recess up to three times per day. We want them to be prepared for the coldest days that seem to have arrived. Snow boots are also a must if they wish to play in the snow at recess.

As always, if you have any questions or concerns, call the office at (734) 479-2550 or email myself (gmeli@riverviewschools.com) or Ms. Annie (aprusakiewicz@riverviewschools.com).

Happy Thanksgiving!

Gianina Meli

DECEMBER:

12/9 & 12/10 - Santa Secret Shop

12/10 - Parent Club Meeting @ 6:00 PM

12/12 - FPC sponsored Santa's Workshop 6-8 PM

Holiday Spirit Week:

12/15 - Holiday Color Day - Wear festive colors that represent the season

12/16 - Candy Cane Day/Red and White Day - Dress in red and white

12/17 - Tacky Shirt Day - Wear a funny or unattractive sweater or shirt

12/18 - Winter Hat/Headband Day - Wear a holiday or winter-style hat, or headband

12/19 - Holiday PJ's/Holiday Pattern - Wear your coziest pajamas

12/22 -1/4/26 - Winter Break

JANUARY: Happy New Year!

1/5/26- Classes resume

1/14 - Parent Club Meeting @ 6:00 PM

1/15- 2nd Grade Music Concert 6:00 PM // Forest Gym (Students should report to

music room at 5:30 PM)

1/19 - Martin Luther King Jr. Bday - No School for Students

1/21 - Mentoring 9 AM

• Classroom teacher-classroom concerns, peer-to-peer or friendship concerns, classroom behavior concerns, playground or hallway concerns, and grading concerns

• Office Staff-attendance (absences, early releases), health needs (medications, illnesses), school events, volunteers and Watch DOGS, general school questions: Annie Prusakiewicz (734) 479-2550, APrusakiewicz@riverviewschools.com
• Transportation Department-Bussing and transportation concerns: Derek Campbell (734) 285-3900, Option #1; DCampbell@riverviewschools.com
  

• Grounds/Maintenance -Building/facility concerns, cleanliness, grounds concerns: Sharon Mathews- (734)285-3900, ext. 2 (secretary to Gary Kennedy) or GKennedy@riverviewschools.com
• Student Services-enrollment questions, please contact Julie Karl at Central Office JKarl@riverviewschools.com or 734-285-9660, option 9

• Principal- major safety concerns; policy concerns; request for 504 services; concerns already addressed by the teacher, yet still not resolved. GMeli@riverviewschools.com
• School Social Worker- Social/emotional support and concerns. Stacy Woggon, SSW SWoggon@riverviewschools.com or call the office to be connected.

Students are expected to be in class on time and to remain at school for the entire school day.

There are three types of attendance infractions: absent, tardiness, and early departure. These incidents cost the student valuable instructional time and disrupt classroom instruction. Tardiness and early departure will be classified under the same criteria for absences.

ABSENT: Student is not physically present in class.

TARDINESS: Student is not in their class when the bell rings.

EARLY DEPARTURE: Student leaves or is removed prior to the dismissal bell.

These attendance infractions can be documented, called-in, or unexcused.

DOCUMENTED ABSENCE • An absence that is accompanied by a third party/professional document. • Documented absences are the only absence which will not count toward truancy.

Please make sure you are scanning the QR code when your child arrives late or needs to leave early.

CALLED-IN ABSENCE • Any absence that is called in by the parent or legal guardian but is not accompanied by documentation as listed under documented absences. • Called-in absences are included in truancy. • Attendance record will show “C”.

UNEXCUSED • Any absence that is not called-in by the parent or legal guardian and is not accompanied by documentation as listed under documented absences. • Unexcused absences are included in truancy.

Parent Notification and Truancy Early notification and intervention provide the greatest opportunity to improve student attendance. Monitoring and addressing your student’s attendance is a direct way to show that you consider their education important and worthwhile.

Mrs. Sandefur - Ben P.

Mrs. Peterson - Aiyana B.

Ms. Schock - Avery R.

Mrs. Coleman - Tristan S.

Mrs. Uhse - Aaliyah P.

Mrs. Masters - Gwen M.

Mrs. Taft - Kora S.

Mrs. Avery - Connor N.

Mrs. Kissel - Ben G.

Mrs. LaFehr - Ben M.

Mrs. Curry - Julian O.

Mrs. Grunwald - Kendall P.

Mr. Snyder - Cora M.

Mr. Newland - Griffin H.

Ms. Fraczek - Zack Z.

Mrs. Gajewski - Everly B.

Forest Elementary 5th grade students had an exciting day learning about future career opportunities during Career Day!

High school students from a variety of Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs visited to share their skills, experiences, and insights. Presenters represented classes including Accounting, Culinary, Welding, Horticulture, Cabinetry, Education, Auto Tech, Business, Auto Body, and Health Science.

Our 5th graders loved getting a hands-on look at what these programs involve — from exploring how engines work to decorating cupcakes, learning about plant care, and even trying out tools used by professionals in different fields.

This event gave students a glimpse into the many exciting paths available to them in the years ahead and helped spark ideas for their future goals.

A big thank you to the high school students and teachers who made Career Day such a fun and inspiring experience!

President - Amber Fagerman

Vice President - Kristie Cannon

Secretary - Sarah Dorchak

Treasurer - Emily Blankenship

Sunshine Rep - Alicia Campbell

Parent Club meetings are held the second Wednesday of every month at 6pm in the library. Please join us.

An elementary parent club is a group of parents that support their school and their children's education. Parent clubs can:

Improve communication: Parent clubs can help improve communication between parents, students, and staff.

Support school projects: Parent clubs can help develop and carry out projects and activities at the school.

Raise funds: Parent clubs can raise funds to support school projects and activities.

Host events: Parent clubs can host events for families, the community, and staff.

Maintain relationships: Parent clubs can help maintain a working relationship between parents and school staff.

Are you receiving email/text blasts from Forest Elementary School? Are you receiving Schoology messages from Forest Elementary school? If you are not, you are NOT getting valuable school information.

For Schoology - add the Forest Elementary Code listed above to your Schoology app.

For email/text blasts - Log into PowerSchool, make sure your current email address and cell phone numbers are correct and flagged to received SMS messages. You can also make any updates to your emergency contact list as well.

Your support is greatly appreciated

Our Lost and Found rack is overflowing with found items. If you feel your child has lost any items, please feel free to check out the items located in the vestibule at the main entrance before or after school.

Any item left after Thanksgiving will be donated to Goodwill.

https://shop.dadsofgreatstudents.com/shop-all/