FRIDAY FOLDER january 17

Highlights from the Week:

Congratulations to the North Tustin JH Boys Basketball Team!

The junior high boys basketball team at the North Tustin campus has gone 5-1 so far this season!  We are very proud of how hard the team is working and of your excellent teamwork and sportsmanship.  Keep up the good work!

Ready OC! Emergency Planning

This week Officer Reed taught the students at the Anaheim Hills Campus about planning for emergencies.  He used his puppet "Foxy" with the younger students to help them learn the importance of being ready for earthquakes, fires, floods, etc.  Officer Reed talked to them about starting an earthquake kit and told them what items they should have in it.  It is always a good time to create an emergency plan with your family!

Officer Reed speaking to AH students about Emergency planning.

Historic Anaheim's Science Presentations - Preschool Campus

On Wednesday, January 22 at 9:00 A.M., Wild Wonders Inc. will be on campus for a special science presentation.  A traveling scientist will present six live animals and will teach students about the characteristics animals have that help them survive. We're looking forward to sharing photos of this exciting presentation in next Friday's post!

Historic Anaheim's Grade Level Information Meeting

During the months of January, February, and March, the Historic Anaheim Campus offers a series of meetings featuring information about each grade level. These meetings are designed to help parents find out more about what to expect for the upcoming school year at that grade level. Parents can meet the current teachers, learn about curriculum, study trips, specialty classes, and daily life.  There is also a question and answer period. Meetings are offered in the evening at 6:00 P.M. and repeated the next morning at 8:30 A.M. (Wednesday meetings will be at 9:00 A.M.) Please click on our newsletter link below to see dates and times! We look forward to seeing you all there!

News + Announcements

NO SCHOOL--Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

School will be closed Monday, January 20th in observance of Martin Luther King Day. 

Weekly E-Newsletters 

AnaheimHills Campus

HistoricAnaheim Campus

NorthTustin Campus

January Lunch Menus

Anaheim Hills Menu - 2nd-8th Grade

Anaheim Hills Menu - P-1st Grade

Historic Anaheim Menu - 1st-8th Grade

Historic Anaheim Menu - Kindergarten

Historic Anaheim Preschool Menu

North Tustin Menu - 1st-8th Grade

North Tustin Menu - P-K

Contributed by Valerie, Fairmont Private Schools

A TO Z organizing kids rooms

Urgh, you know the feeling. The toys have been piling up since the holidays.  Worn and outgrown clothing is taking up valuable closet and dresser space. Art and school work is stuffed here and there.  Dust-bunnies have moved in under the bed.  It's time to get organized. 

Try as we might to get our kids to clean their rooms on a more or less regular basis, there comes a time when mom (or dad) needs to step in for some hard-core organization.  Here are some tips from Organized Home to help get you going in the right direction:

Take a child's eye view

Get down to your child's eye level to help him or her get organized. Look at your child's space, storage, furniture and possessions from his or her vantage point. Adult furniture and organizing systems don't translate well to children's needs. Sticky dresser drawers are hard for small hands to manage. Folding closet doors pinch fingers and jump their rails when pushed from the bottom. To organize a child's room, solutions must fit the child. For younger children, remove closet doors entirely. Lower clothing rods and invest in child-sized hangers. Use floor-level open containers to hold toys, open plastic baskets to store socks and underwear.

Bring the child into the process

Resist the urge to wade into the mess alone, garbage bags flying. Gritted teeth and threats of "You will keep this room clean!" don't touch the root of the problem: teaching children organization skills and maintenance methods. Partnered with your child, you stand a better chance of devising an organization scheme and system that makes sense to him or her. If they're involved in the effort, children are better able to understand the organizational logic and maintain an organized room.

Sort, store and simplify

Begin with clothing: sort it out! Store out-of-season or outgrown clothing elsewhere. Finally, simplify! Does your son really wear all 27 T-shirts crowding his drawer? Remove the extras so the remainder can stay neat and orderly in the available space.  For younger children, a toy library is the answer to over-abundant toys. Using a large lidded plastic storage container, large box or even plastic garbage bag, entrust a selection of toys to the "toy library." Store the container in an out-of-the way place for several months. Some rainy day, bring out the toy library, swapping the stored toys for other playthings that have lost their savor. The stored toys will have regained their interest and freshness--and they won't have been underfoot in the child's room.

Contain, corral and control

Contain toys and other belongings before you store. Use plastic shoebox containers for smaller toys (Barbie clothes, Happy Meal give-aways), larger lidded bins for blocks, trucks and cars, light-weight cardboard records boxes for stuffed animals. Use specialty organizers to corral magazines and comic books, video games, or CDs and cassette tapes.  A bonus: containers help parents control the number of toys out at any one time: "Sure, you can play with the farm set, just as soon as the Matchbox cars go back into their home!"

Make it easier to put away, harder to get out

The premier rule for efficient children's storage? Make it easier to put something away than it is to get it out. For example, store picture books as a flip-file, standing upright in a plastic dishpan. The child flips through the books, makes his selection, and tosses the book in the front of the dishpan when he's done. Compare a traditional bookcase, where little fingers can pull down a whole shelf faster than they can replace one book. Build the effort into the getting out, not the putting away.

Organize bottom to top

Befitting a child's shorter stature, start organizing from the bottom of the room, and work to the top. Most used toys and belongings should live on lower shelves, in lower drawers, or on the floor. Higher levels are designated for less-frequently-used possessions.  Working bottom to top, the best-loved teddy bear sits in a small rocker on the floor, while the extensive Grandma-driven bear collection is displayed on a shelf built 6 feet up the wall.

Label, label, label

When it comes to keeping kids' rooms organized for the long haul, labels save the day!

Image credit: AMM blog on Flickr
Contributed by Danyelle, Fairmont Private Schools

SNACK TIME immunity boosting foods

Getting sick when you're a kid is a part of growing up. On average, children have six to eight colds per year. Children develop their immune system by battling a series of germs and viruses. But there are healthy eating habits children can adopt that may enhance their immunity.

Eat colorful vegetables and fruits every day (the rainbow diet). Carrots, squash, broccoli, oranges, berries, etc. all contain immunity-boosting phytonutrients such as vitamin C and carotenoids. Phytonutrients may increase the body's production of infection-fighting white blood cells and interferon, an antibody that coats cell surfaces, blocking out viruses. Try to get your child to eat five servings of fruits and veggies every day!

Add Probiotics and Prebiotics. Probiotics, such as Lactobacillus acidophilus or bifidobacteria, are living microorganisms that change the bacterial balance in the gut wall. Adding probiotics or prebiotics to children’s diets may have some potential in treating viral diarrhea, preventing antibiotic-associated diarrhea and boosting immune function.  About 85 percent of our immune system is located in the gut or digestive wall.  The type and amount of microbes in the gut flora can impact the forms of immune cells the body produces.

Try fermented foods. Historically, cultured and fermented foods have a long tradition in many cultures and are found all over the world. Our ancestors somehow knew they were good for us! See below for an international cuisine of fermented foods that naturally contain probiotics.

Sauerkraut, a traditional food of Germany, contains the probiotics leuconostoc, pediococcus, and lactobacillus. The spicy Korean dish, Kimchi, also contains sauerkraut. Miso, the fermented bean dish originating in Japan, reportedly contains antioxidants, B vitamins and more than 100 bacterial strains. Kefir, a creamy yogurt-like beverage that dates back to the shepherds of Eurasia’s Caucasus Mountains, contains both probiotic bacteria and some strains of yeast.  Naturally fermented sour pickles, sourdough bread, and buttermilk also contain beneficial probiotics.

Prebiotics, such as fructo-oligosaccharides (FOS), nurture and support the growth of probiotics. Foods such as banana, asparagus, oatmeal, and Jerusalem artichoke naturally contain prebiotics.  Banana and yogurt anyone?

Common Sense Caution:

Probiotics or prebiotics may offer some benefits to healthy children and infants, but they should not be given to children who are chronically or seriously ill or who have compromised immune systems.

Cook with mushrooms.  Mushrooms may strengthen your immune system because they are rich in antioxidants, vitamins C and D, and beta-glucans--a type of fiber with antimicrobial and antioxidant capabilities.  The beta-glucans in mushrooms (especially Reishi, Shiitake, King Trumpet and Maitake) are notable for their ability to activate the immune system.

Eat smart, stay strong!

Image credit: www.jillbruhn.com
Submitted by Leslie Kay-Getzinger, MS RD

Regional Dietitian for Nutrition Management Services Company

FRIDAY FOLDER january 10

   

Mr. Jackson Shares the History of Fairmont Private Schools

   

On Tuesday, all of the third graders at the Anaheim Hills Campus attended a special presentation of Fairmont's history from guest speaker Mr. David Jackson, Fairmont's President.  Mr. Jackson shared how Fairmont Private Schools has changed and grown with Orange County. This history lesson is especially important to the third graders because their Open House theme is Orange County History.  Students learned words such as "entrepreneur" and "perseverance" and were left with a sense of pride about how much work and dedication it took for Fairmont to become the amazing school it is today.

Weekly E-Newsletters 

Anaheim Hills Campus

Historic Anaheim Campus

North Tustin Campus

January Lunch Menus

Anaheim Hills Menu - 2nd-8th Grade

Anaheim Hills Menu - P-1st Grade

Historic Anaheim Menu - 1st-8th Grade

Historic Anaheim Menu - Kindergarten

Historic Anaheim Preschool Menu

North Tustin Menu - 1st-8th Grade

North Tustin Menu - P-K

Contibuted by Valerie, Fairmont Private Schools

FAIRMONT FIVE holiday hygge

In spite of the bitter cold and only six hours of daylight in the winter, the people of Denmark are some of the happiest and most prosperous on the planet.  One reason may be their appreciation of hygge (hue-gah) a word which is tough to translate but loosely refers to a feeling of warmth, coziness and togetherness.  Danes create hygge by burning fires and candles throughout the winter, cuddling with loved ones under warm blankets, and making time to connect with friends and family over coffee or simple meals.  

Here in America, we talk about “unplugging” and “being present”—something that is nearly impossible when we are busily preparing for holiday celebrations.  It can be so hard to make time for the simple things, but it’s so important.  Our children will forget the fabulous meals and expensive gifts, but they will remember the time they spent with you.  

This winter break, create some hygge at your home by:

1. Enjoying a cup of warm cocoa with your child
2. Playing puzzles or blocks near a warm fire
3. Watching a favorite family movie together
4. Staying in your pajamas and making pancakes together
5. Building an indoor fort and telling stories past bedtime

Photo credit: Joannagoddard.blogspot.com

Contributed by Danyelle, Fairmont Private Schools

SNACK TIME healthy holiday snacking substitutions

Want to make some wonderful, holiday treats, but still keep it healthy and enticing? Focus on size, color and shape.  Making simple substitutions to traditional family recipes can deliver a nutritional boost without sacrificing taste.

Recipe Substitution Tips:

Substitute whole wheat flour for white flour. Replacing half of the white flour with an equal part of whole wheat flour will increase the fiber content and trace minerals such as zinc and magnesium. Works well with cakes and muffins!

To reduce calories and fat in a recipe, substitute half the fat (a recipe with 1 cup of oil would use 1/2 cup oil and 1/2 cup applesauce). If you can't tell the difference, try substituting a bit more of the fat each time. Applesauce adds moisture and should not change the flavor of the recipe.

Use prunes for butter. No kidding! In brownies and other dark baked goods, prune puree makes a perfect butter substitute while cutting more than half the calories and fat. Combine 3/4 cup prunes with 1/4 cup boiling water, and puree to combine. Substitute in equal amounts in most dark baked good recipes.

Fortify to boost nutrients.Toss in some nuts or ground flax seed meal to a recipe to boost fiber, B vitamins and omega-3 fatty acids. Spices such as cinnamon, cardamom and ginger contain antioxidants and other compounds that may boost health.

Choose bite-sized vs. super sized. Holiday snacking is part of family tradition and fun. Bringing balance to the table might alleviate some guilt without foregoing flavor. Celebrate using traditional family recipes, but cut into smaller pieces or use holiday-shaped cookie cutters to create a more festive feel. Bite-size desserts such as mini-tarts and cookies automatically act as calorie monitors. Focus on quality not quantity.  

Healthy holiday snack suggestions:

• Bite-size sandwiches in the shapes of holiday characters offer fun and intrigue. Fill with lunch meat, hummus, lite-cream cheese or peanut butter and jam.  
• Mini-muffins with whole grains, pumpkin, dried fruit or nuts.
• Hot spiced tea brings flavor and warms the body.
• Cranberry, Tangerine and pomegranate punch packs flavor and even more phytonutrients!

Happy Healthy Holidays!

Image credit: littlenummies.net

Submitted by Leslie Kay-Getzinger, MS RD

Regional Dietitian for Nutrition Management Services Company

SHORT STORY 14th annual choc toy run

Santa says thanks to Fairmont's "elves"!

Fairmont celebrated a beloved holiday tradition on Friday, Dec. 13 with the 14th annual CHOC Toy Run. Bikers from the Orange Coast Harley Owners Group (OCHOG) arrived at each of our campuses to pick up Fairmont's toy donations, meeting with students and teachers before revving up their Harleys and heading on their way.  Fairmont's donations will be delivered to CHOC hospital on Christmas Eve and will bring cheer to the children hospitalized at CHOC throughout the coming year.  Thank you to the entire Fairmont community for your generosity!

Mrs. Calabria gets in the spirit!

Contributed by Valerie & Danyelle, Fairmont Private Schools