Student-Based Budgeting & Enroll Jeffco
January is the time of year that we set our budgets for the next school year. Fairmount’s budget is based on an estimate of how many students we expect to be enrolled next school year. This budget will be adjusted up or down next fall based on actual enrollment at the October count. It is important for us to have the best possible estimates so that we can plan for the ideal number of classrooms, teachers, and open-enrolled students! We also would like to avoid an unexpected budget loss next fall that would occur if we overestimate.

How do families help with this budgeting process? To help us determine the number of continuing students, it is important for all families to let us know if their child will be returning to Fairmount. Please visit Enroll Jeffco and let us know by January 15th! You can access the site from the school website. If you have any questions, need to use the school computers, or need assistance with the program, please call or come to the office between the hours of 7:30-4:00.

In-Person Learning
We are so happy to return to in-person learning on January 19th! We will continue to follow our safety protocols to keep everyone healthy and to limit classroom quarantines. We ask that parents continue to keep their students home if they exhibit any of the Covid symptoms or are just not feeling well. The most prevalent symptom our students who have tested positive have experienced is upset stomach – so be on the lookout for that! If you suspect your child has been exposed to someone with the virus or if anyone in your family is being tested, your child needs to stay home until those results are known.  

If you have a question, comment, or suggestion, please call the office or email me at Sally.Mills@jeffco.k12.co.us

Join us for a drive-thru fundraiser at Bliss Frozen Yogurt for $3 cups of your favorite flavors on January 15. This is a cash-only fundraiser where you'll stay in your car to pick up your sweet treats! More information is in the flyer. 

Make sure to mention Fairmount when you're there!

It was another successful year for our Mount Vista Community Project, and 9News was there to film our 51st year of this incredible tradition! 

Fairmount families donated enough gifts for all 139 residents! It was a tough year, especially for those isolated in nursing homes, but as shown in the 9News segment, joy was delivered with each gift.

Thank you to all who participated and brought smiles to the residents. We are so proud of your Fairmount community! Also, thank you to Janna Wertz who organized and handled logistics for this project. Your hard work is noted and appreciated! 

The Virtual Fairmount Firebird 5k Chase planning has started! If you would like to help with this event, please contact Laura Warren, PTA Vice President. 

No race or running experience necessary!

To view other open volunteer positions, click here. 

Spelling Bee
The Fairmount Spelling Bee for 4th and 5th graders will be held on Tuesday, Jan. 26th from 2:00 - 3:30. The location is TBD and there will be an online option if it’s not fully online. There will be a pretest beforehand to identify the qualifiers for the school Bee. Study lists are a great way to prepare. 

Hour of Code
For the past 7 years, students at Fairmount have participated in an Hour of Code. It looked a little different this year since they were not at school, but students were still able to practice computer coding in a kid-friendly way. Besides supporting our district’s technology standards, the activities provided by code.org, CodeCombat, bee-bot, kodable, and codeSpark gave students a chance to try coding and hopefully it sparked their interest. Go to our library website to find more information. If your child has not had a chance to try it, it’s not too late!

Battle of the Books
Many of our 5th-grade students are preparing for our Battle of the Books competition, on Wednesday, February 24th. Battle of the Books is a trivia-based literacy program. Students read from a list of ten books from different genres and then compete against other teams to answer questions about the books. This friendly competition will provide opportunities for teams to compete within our school and then a Final Battle between other teams around the Jeffco school district. 

Digital Citizenship for January
During the month of January, our students will engage in digital citizenship learning related to Media Balance & Well-Being. These lessons focus on agency, not addiction, and quality time, not simply total screen time. 

At home, you can support your child in understanding Media Balance & Well-Being by

• Having regular communication about internet safety

• Setting up family rules

• Helping them identify emotions around device use

Media Balance & Well-Being Family Activities: 

• Kindergarten  English 

• Grade 1  English

• Grade 2  English

• Grades 3-5  English Spanish

December STEM Fridays

K - December was a technology month for Kindergarteners as they explored ChatterPix and Quiver. Readers retold story plots with a new twist! They took selfies and recorded their own versions through the Chatterpix app. Personalities shone with pizzazz! Using the Quiver app, artists brought pictures to life, adding to the magic of December.

1 - First graders put themselves in emperor penguin shoes (or flippers) where they had to transfer an “egg” to their partner through the "snow" and "wind." While the read aloud, A Mother’s Journey, was informational, empathy was emphasized during the difficult simulation. Taking on an engineering role, first graders used biomimicry to design a pillbot. Based on the pill bug, or roly-poly bug, these robots go places that humans shouldn’t complete dangerous tasks. 

3 - Third graders compared three different measuring tools and decided the best means to measure specific objects. They then tested their knowledge with a fast-paced Kahoot quiz. These mathematicians took to the kitchen, converting the cookie recipe measurements and baking chocolate chip cookies. Mathematicians also had to unlock five locks by solving a series of problems, including multiplication facts, word problems, multiplication arrays, and even a jigsaw puzzle. 

4 - Fourth graders continued working on their design challenge project. Students used their specification sheets and prototype sketch to build their cardboard models. Engineers thought about potential ways to test their products. I am not exaggerating when I say we have some future engineers in our midst!

5 - Fifth grade toymakers worked on bringing some much-needed joy to 2020 by innovating or redesigning the “It” toy of the season. After brainstorming ideas and designing their prototype in Tinkercad, these toymakers will present to an authentic audience of kids who will vote on their favorite toy. One toy per fifth-grade class will be printed on the 3D printer. Stay tuned for the winners!

All students participated in STEM day, Imaginative Inventions. Students had to redesign an everyday object to improve or enhance it. After reflecting on the original product, students found ways to make it more fun, useful, or convenient. Engineers found inspiration (or at least entertainment) by watching Ms. Pardoe and Mr. DeWinkle toss three different types of frisbees; the original pie tin, the famous plastic frisbee, and the advanced Aerobie Orbiter Boomerang. Marketing products required an image and helpful consumer information. Creative engineers included the optional slogan and/or jingle. Creators turned into consumers for the second part of the assignment as they were tasked with toy-testing, a child’s dream job.