October 2025 Newsletter

PANTHER PRIDE

Fernwood Elementary October 2025

A woman with long, graying hair smiles at the camera.

From the Principal

Dear Fernwood Families,

It was wonderful to see so many families during our curriculum night. Being able to greet and make those connections with so many of you contributes to the strong sense of community for which Fernwood is known! For everyone’s reference and review, you can find the link to our presentation here. Your child's teacher will have also shared their information within their newsletters. As always please reach out with any questions, concerns or ideas for our ongoing strengthening of our Fernwood community and support of students. We often speak of the partnership we value with all our families and community. This year we want to strengthen that partnership through a variety of ways.

One way we look to strengthen that partnership is through our PTSA. Our PTSA is an invaluable support of Fernwood’s instructional and enrichment programs that support students and staff. From after school enrichment classes, field trips, community events, to those planners that our older students use to develop organizational skills, PTSA makes that possible. You can support PTSA by becoming a member and learning more about how your partnership makes a difference for your child.

We also are reviewing and revising our Vision and Mission statement for Fernwood. While we continue to uphold our current Mission, as we grow, we take time to reflect on how our mission reflects our belief in the work we are doing to create a learning environment that is rooted in belonging and inclusion with rigorous instruction for all students’ success. Your partnership in this work is essential in representing different perspectives and experiences. If you are interested in sharing your voice around revising Fernwood's Vision and Mission statement, you can find the link to express your interest here. We will create our first listening sessions in November and will connect with those expressing an interest through our survey as a first step.

Finally, this year we are intentionally staying Rooted in Joy. There is so much Joy to be shared in a learning community. Our children are constant reminders that Joy can be found in the smallest moments. I recently talked with a second grader after her library class, who joyfully exclaimed, “I get to check out chapter books now!”. It was like she had been given the greatest gift. We hope you partner with us in being Rooted in Joy this year. We would love to hear from you what is sparking joy. If you have a joyful moment you would like to share, you can use this link. It would bring us Joy!

With appreciation,

Cassie Morton, Principal

MARK YOUR CALENDAR

October

10/6 - Health Screening

10/7 - Cross Country Meet @ Ruby Bridges

10/14 - Cross Country Meet @ Maywood Hills

10/21 - Cross Country Finals @ Canyon Creek

10/23 - Picture Retake Day

November

11/11 - No School - Veterans Day Observed

11/18 - Early Dismissal for Conferences @ 12:30pm

11/19 - Regular Dismissal @ 2:20pm

11/20 - 11/26 - Early Dismissal for Conferences @ 12:30pm

11/26 & 11/27 - No School - Thanksgiving Holiday

COUNSELOR CONNECTION

During the first month of school, all students participated in a classroom lesson introducing them to their school counselor and hearing about this year’s school counselor program. Students in grade 5 also heard information on how to serve as a Panther Resolution Seeker (PRS Team) leader. PRS is a volunteer leadership opportunity for trained students to assist younger students during their recess. We are continuing this program from last school year, but we are only working with 5th grade leaders at this time. 5th graders have until October 10th to complete the application. Applications which are available to students in their classrooms.

Fernwood Families, please know that Lunch Bunch for grades 1-5 begins the week of October 13th and will conclude the week of January 12th. Lunch Bunch is optional and participating students will participate in activities, socialize, and strengthen their relationships while eating lunch with others in their grade level. Kindergarteners will have the opportunity to attend Lunch Bunch near March. We know our students enjoy Lunch Bunch, and I love the opportunity of connecting with each of our students in this special way!

Also in October our school will be celebrating Unity Day, which has been sponsored by PACER’s National Bullying Prevention Center since 2011. This is a day when we send a unified message that bullying is not acceptable anywhere. We unify as a school community by wearing the color orange on Unity Day, which is schedule for Wednesday, October 22nd 2025. We will also be pledging ways we can be kind and spread kindness across all corners of our school. We can’t wait! There will be so much orange to see on Unity Day! (Parents are encouraged to wear orange too!)

This month we will be officially kicking off our Kelso’s Choices and Bullying Prevention Units. These learning units supplement our core SEL (Social Emotional Learning) Second Step curriculum. To learn more about the school counselor’s role in supporting this supplemental curriculum, we encourage you to view this slide show. Meanwhile during the month of October, we will be returning to all classrooms to teach a review lesson on centers upon friendship skills while addressing skills in self-awareness, self-management, and social management.

Best Regards,

Jennifer Brisbine jbrisbine@nsd.org and 425-408-4572

To learn more about these curriculums, we encourage you to explore the resources below:

Kelso’s Choices Parent Information

3rd Grade Bullying Prevention Unit Family Letter

4th Grade Bullying Prevention Unit Family Letter

5th Grade Bullying Prevention Unit Family Letter

Additional Resources:

Child Mind Institute Free Webinars

Student Self-Care Calendar

*The SEL Calendar is shared with families to promote students' self-care practices to help create healthy habits.

IN THE KNOW

VISION AND HEARING SCREENING AT FERNWOOD

Each year in Northshore schools, students in grades Kindergarten, 1, 2, 3, 5, and 7 receive hearing and vision screenings. We are currently scheduled for vision and hearing screenings on Monday 10/6/2025. If you would like to exempt your child from either of these health screenings, please contact the school nurse at jchristensen@nsd.org

It is important to understand that these are basic screenings, and are designed to identify students who may require further testing. They are not intended to replace regular exams by qualified health care providers. A student who does not pass any screening will be rechecked in a few weeks, and you will be notified only if there are concerns after the second screening.

Vision screening uses the PlusOptix. The PlusOptix is an autorefractor that takes a measurement of the refraction of the eyes. The result is a baseline refraction measurement. The illumination technique used by Plusoptix, is totally harmless to the child's eyes. If your child wears glasses or contact lenses for distance or near vision, please be sure they have them on the screening day.

If your child has a hearing loss and is being followed by a healthcare provider or specialist and you do not wish for them to participate in the screening, please let the school nurse know. If you have concerns about hearing loss and school accommodations, contact your student’s teacher or the school nurse.

October Spirit Day

On Friday, October 31st, we will have our first Spirit Day of the school year: Costume/Character Day. Students can dress up in a costume they already have, put one together from materials at home (maybe come as the teacher), or dress up as a storybook character (Pinkalicous or Where’s Waldo).

Here are a few guidelines for this spirit day:

Students will need to wear their outfit to school. There will not be an option to change as this would make the restroom areas too crowded given our safety protocols.
Limit accessories. Students can wear glasses for example, but we ask that accessories that would get in the way of student learning or interactions with others remain at home (face masks, plastic weapons, wigs that become itchy, etc).

If you have specific questions, please email your child’s teacher.

A calendar for November 2025, highlighting school events and holidays.

Fall Parent Teacher Conferences

Parent- teacher conferences will be held in November. This is an opportunity for teachers and parents to engage in conversation around the growth and progress of their student(s). The schedule has changed from previous years. Please refer to the table pictured and in the

DISTRICT INFORMATION

Volunteering in Northshore

All persons interested in volunteering in the Northshore School District must complete their volunteer application and background check online. Family members of students and community members who volunteer at more than one school will only need to complete the application once a year. Once approved, applications will be available for all school office staff to access districtwide. Volunteers can learn more and complete an online application here.

Please note: The District has two levels of background checks. A Level 1 Background Check, or Washington State Patrol Background Check, is required of all classroom volunteers that will only have interactions with students while District staff is present. If a volunteer plans to chaperone, serve as an athletic volunteer, drive students in their own car or another role that could require the volunteer to be alone with a student(s), the District requires a Level 2 Background Check, or National Background Check, which has a cost of $12.95. A Level 2 Background Check is only required once during the duration of the volunteer's time in the District. In subsequent years, the volunteer will renew with a Level 1 Background Check. For more information, please visit www.nsd.org/volunteer.

POP Keeney Sports Reminders

Middle school and elementary students must be accompanied by an adult when attending football and soccer games at Pop Keeney. The ratio is one adult to three students. Adults and students need to pay an entrance fee. Please do not drop off students and leave the premises. They will be turned away at the gate. Ticket takers will ask unaccompanied middle school and elementary students to leave the premises. Thank you for your cooperation.

PTSA INFORMATION

Math Challenge

As we ease into the new school year and academics pick up, we’re excited to launch this year’s Math Challenge Program! 🎉

📌 Details: Math Challenge Program – https://www.mathinaction.org/fernwood-elementary.html

📝 Submit your answers here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1CHJmCllz1gFN6Z7ewImN0pjz_tq0HJpo3GS234jACQ0

⏳ Remember, each challenge has a submission deadline.

We look forward to seeing our math enthusiasts participate and enjoy!

Renew Your PTSA Membership

One way to support Fernwood Elementary is to join the PTSA. Remember, you must renew your membership every year - your support means the world to us.

Make A Donation

Looking to do a little more for your child’s school? Consider making a one-time donation to ensure the continuation of all of the programs supported by Fernwood Elementary PTSA. We cannot do it without you!

Yearbooks On Sale NOW!

Please find the flier with all the information linked here

FIND The PTSA:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FernwoodPTSAOfficial

Instagram: fernwood_ptsa