May Parent Newsletter

Dr. Malinda McKillip, Principal

Spring Has Sprung

Dear Parents and Guardians,

I hope you are enjoying the beautiful, spring weather this week. It is hard to believe we are already preparing for the end of the school year. Please note the exciting activities and special events listed below. Grade level specific events will be communicated through classroom newsletters. As always, please reach out to me with any questions or concerns.

Sincerely,

Malinda McKillip

Birthday Book Program

Dear FC Parents and Guardians,

We’re excited to invite you to participate in our Library Birthday Book Program — a special way to celebrate your child’s birthday while helping our library grow! Here’s how it works:

*Choose a book from our curated Amazon Wish List (a letter is attached with the link to our wish list).

*Purchase the book and have it shipped directly to the school/library.

We will place a dedication label inside the book honoring your child’s birthday (see the attachment for the message paper).

The book will be added to our library collection for all students to enjoy — a lasting gift from your child to the school community!

This is a wonderful opportunity to celebrate your child in a meaningful way, while also supporting a love of reading for years to come.

Thank you for helping us build a strong and vibrant library!

Warm regards,
Danielle Ponto

FC Librarian

PS. Make sure you "follow" the French Creek Library Facebook Page for all the happenings in the library. We will post a picture of your child with their birthday book on our page.

Birthday Book Program Information & Form

Warm Weather Attire

Now that the weather has started to warm up, it is time to remind families about appropriate warm weather dress. Students are not permitted to wear flip flops, short shorts, short skirts, shirts with exposed midriffs, or tops with spaghetti straps. Exposed shoulder straps should be 2 inches or greater.

Kindergarten & New Student Registration

Kindergarten registration is now open for the 2025-2026 school year! All children who live within the OJR School District, and who will attain the age of five on or before September 1, are eligible to attend school for the 2025-26 school year. We invite you to visit the registration website for the latest information about kindergarten registration and to register your child online.

If you have any questions, or if we can be of any assistance, please don’t hesitate to call Mrs. Alexandra Lewis, Attendance Secretary at 610-469-5710. We can’t wait to have your child join us for the upcoming school year!

Please don't delay in registering your child as soon as possible. It is extremely important that we have an accurate number of expected students for planning and staffing purposes.

School Lunch Hero Day

We will be celebrating National School Lunch Hero Day on Friday, May 2nd by recognizing our AMAZING cafeteria staff. Mrs. Weil, Mrs. Fish, Mrs. Dragone, and Mrs. Taney go above and beyond for our students each and every day!!!

First Friday Fun Day (Vacation Shirt Day)

Students and staff will be celebrating First Friday Fun Day on May 2nd with "Vacation Shirt Day".

National School Nurses Day

Please join me in recognizing Mrs. Deb Weber on Wednesday, May 7th. Mrs. Weber works tirelessly to lead our district's nurses in an effort to provide the best possible care for our students.

Teacher & Staff Appreciation

Please join me in recognizing our wonderful French Creek teachers and staff! Please take a moment to recognize those individuals who make a difference for your child. Many thanks to our French Creek PTA for planning special treats and surprises throughout Teacher & Staff Appreciation Week. (May 5th-9th)

Spring Book Fair

The PTA will be hosting our spring book fair May 5th-9th.

Phanatic About Reading Program

A huge congratulations to all of our readers who participated in the "Phanatic About Reading Program." As a thank you to students who participated, there is an exclusive discounted ticket opportunity for select Phillies home games this season. Each participating student may purchase up to 8 discounted tickets ($8 off per ticket) for select games. Seating locations and game dates are subject to availability and can be viewed using the link below.

https://www.mlb.com/phillies/tickets/specials/phanatic-about-reading?partnerId=it-20250409-13159203-phi-1-A&utm_id=it-20250409-13159203-phi-1-A

To redeem this offer, parents/guardians must use your school's unique password: DIAMOND2025

Thanks for hitting your reading "Out of the park!"

Spring Concert and Art Show

Our French Creek Art Show will be open on Wednesday, May 7th from 6:30-8:30 PM along with our Spring Concert at 7:00 PM. We hope to see you there.

OJR Special Olympics

Our Special Olympians will be competing at OJR HS on Friday, May 9th. Please encourage your child to wear his/her French Creek t-shirt on Friday, May 10th as a sign of encouragement and support. We will once again be gathering as a school community along the front sidewalk to cheer and applaud our Special Olympians upon their return to school.

Kindergarten Round Up

French Creek will be hosting Kindergarten Round Up for all of our incoming Kindergarten students on Monday, May 12th. Parents of incoming Kindergarten students have been sent a SignUpGenius link to self select a session to attend. If you have not received an email, please reach out to Mrs. Alexandra Lewis at 610-469-5710.

PLEASE NOTE:

There will be NO AM or PM Kindergarten classes on this date.

PTA Parent Newsletter

Please click here for the May PTA newsletter. Don't miss out on important information pertaining to end of year festivities and special events that you won't want to miss!

French Creek Fun Fair

Back by popular demand, the PTA is excited to host this well loved event. The Fun Fair will be on Friday, May 16th from 6:00-9:00 pm at French Creek. There will be carnival type games, performers, food trucks, raffle baskets, 50/50, and much more! Admission is free! Game tickets will be available for purchase at the door or in advance via PTBoard.com. This event is a French Creek tradition that you won't want to miss! Please sign up to volunteer and help us make this Fun Fair the best one ever!

National Speech Pathologist Day

Please join us in recognizing Mrs. Krista Hirth and Ms. Jennifer Estright on Sunday, May 18th. Many thanks ladies for all of your hard work in helping students to communicate more effectively.

Memorial Day School Closing

The district will be closed on Monday, May 26th.

PTA General Membership Meeting

There will be a General Membership Meeting on Wednesday, May 28th from 7:00-8:30 PM.

Senior Walk 2023

Former French Creekers of the 2023 graduating class will return on Wednesday, May 28th at 2:15 PM to walk our halls in their caps and gowns for the last time as OJR students! It's truly a wonderful event!

Field Day

Field Day will be on Friday, May 30th. Please look for information to be emailed home in the near future from Mr. Troyan. Our rain date will be Monday, June 2nd. Please click here for the volunteer sign up.

End of Year Early Dismissal Days

Please note Thursday, June 5th and Friday, June 6th will be early dismissal days. Students will be dismissed at 12:10 a.m.

AM Kindergarten will report on Thursday, June 5th (No PM Kindergarten)

PM Kindergarten will report on Friday, June 6th (No AM Kindergarten)

2025-2026 Planning

If you are expecting to move or withdraw your child over the summer, please let us know as soon as possible. 2025-2026 staffing is underway, so accurate student enrollment projections are extremely important. Additionally, if you need to resubmit any type of residency paperwork for the new school year, please reach out to Mrs. Alexandra Lewis at 610-469-5710 as soon as possible.

2025-2026 Homeroom Assignments

Please note that our school has established a comprehensive process for establishing class lists which takes into consideration multiple factors including student academic levels, learning behaviors, peer and adult relationships, special needs, etc. Please understand that requests for specific teachers or friend pairings cannot be accepted. Many thanks in advance for your understanding and cooperation.