JFK Elementary School
December 22, 2023
Hawks’ Herald
SOARing through the Week at JFK
Hello JFK Families!
I’d like to take a moment to thank all of our families for the prompt pick ups on Monday afternoon with our unanticipated early dismissal day! We just finished up our holiday sing along and what a joyful way it was to close out the week! The students sang winter songs together, many of them wore winter/holiday clothing, and the staff put on an impromptu winter themed“Readers Theater.” What fun!
I am closing out the year with a heart full of gratitude towards our JFK community. Thank you for welcoming Darlene and I into the Hawk family this year. We look forward to an exciting rest of the school year and being a part of your children’s education.
We wish all of our families joy and peace in this holiday season. We will see you back on 1/2/24!
In partnership,
Amy E. Rizzo
Amy E. Rizzo, Principal
Follow me on X (formerly Twitter) @JFKPrincipalRIz
Important Dates & Information:
Trimester 1 Report Cards are available on PowerSchool
***Welcome back on 1/2/24!***
Crazy Hair Day 1/5
Early Dismissal on 1/10
JFK PTO Meeting 1/10 @ 6:30pm
No School 1/15
Early Dismissal on 1/24
Kindergarten Registration for the 2024-2025 School Year
The December assessment appointment window is closed for those families that have requested a waiver for their child to enter into Kindergarten for the 2024 - 2025 school year. If you requested a waiver, but did not have the opportunity to schedule a December appointment, you will receive a communication in the near future to make an appointment for the next Kindergarten Waiver assessment. The online Kindergarten registration will remain open, if you have not had the opportunity to register, please do so.
❤️🩹News from the Nurse
Hello families!
With cold/flu season upon us please remember to be diligent with handwashing and notify the school nurse of any communicable illnesses. There is a copy of the illness guidelines on the MPS JFK website under the nurse's office tab.
Reminder - all PreK students need a flu shot by the end of the year.
Remember to make sure your student has a winter coat for outdoor recess.
With the weather changing a lot of children have been getting very chapped lips, send in chapstick if possible.
The school health office will be continuing to conduct hearing and vision screenings.
Change of Clothes - If your child comes home with clothing from the Nurse’s Office, please wash the item and return it to school as soon as possible so it is available for other children when needed. We do encourage parents of our students to pack a change of clothes in their child’s backpack.
Community Connections News - This week's CCC News contains information and links for a mix of resources & fun seasonal activities. Among the community services you will find links for the CT FoodShare's Mobile Pantry and Bridges Care Coordination program. For childcare options check out The Y Vacation Club and Milford Park & Recreation"s Acting Classes.
For Family fun you'll find several links to activities all around Connecticut!
Remember that the CCC Website is updated with links to community resources.
To locate the CCC’s web page go to Milford’s main page and click on the Menu tab & scroll down under district Information to find the Community Connections Centers!
Have a Safe & Happy Holiday Season! See you in the New Year!
Mary-Kathryn Williams, Coordinator
Milford Community Connection Centers
203-882-6094
Specialist Spotlight - Music
Music sounds are filling the halls here at JFK! We have been busy learning winter songs for our all-school Winter Sing-Along! Every JFK member sang their hearts out to celebrate winter this afternoon, and it was a great way to close out the week. Ask your child to sing their favorite song for you–and sing along! (You can find them all in my Google Classroom.) Beyond our winter songs, we are continuing to work on many other aspects of music learning. The younger grades are working on keeping a steady beat in various tempos. Grade 3 will soon finish their survey of the four instrument families, and will then do a group presentation to the class with their new knowledge! Grade 4 is learning about the musical form “ballet”, as they study “The Nutcracker”. Grade 5 performed beautifully in their Winter Concert earlier this month, and will begin more in-depth music reading and writing practice in January to prepare for a composition project later in winter.
Enjoy your vacation, and the very best of the holiday season to you all! Please reach out with any music questions to tvoss@milforded.org.
News from the JFK PTO:
Be sure to check out the Newsletter from the JFK PTO this week that includes important information on upcoming events, programming and fundraisers! When you support the PTO you are directly supporting our school community.
Join us for our next PTO meeting on January 10th, 2024!
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A Glimpse at the Week:
Click here to view pictures of some of the HAWK-SOME learning and events that happened at JFK this week!
JFK: A Community Where ALL Learners SOAR!