Felix A. Williams Elementary School

🏵️CELEBRATING HISPANIC HERITAGE🏵️ Felix A. Williams Elementary staff recently enjoyed celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month by sampling homecooked food prepared by Paraprofessional Ana Ocasio! Ana generously shared her heritage with her colleagues by making family recipes such as Pigeon Peas and Rice, Pork Shoulder, Elbow Salad, Chicken Rice Soup, and Flancake! She also set up a display in the media center with artifacts from various Hispanic cultures for all students and staff to explore and enjoy. #ALLINMartin👊 #PublicSchoolProud

Celebrate Lunch Week!

👋💚💙START WITH HELLO💙💚👋 This past week, students, staff, and families at Felix A. Williams Elementary celebrated Start with Hello Week! During Start with Hello, the goal is to teach the children how to be more socially inclusive and connected with each other. The Start with Hello initiative asks students, educators, parents, and community members who interact with children to take steps in the classroom, the lunchroom, recess, and other times in their day to be intentionally inclusive and connected to each other. In other words, to make each person seen. To celebrate a great week and to encourage students to continue to “Start with Hello,” FAWE welcomed the Jensen Beach High School Band and JBHS Student Government Leaders Friday morning. Every student was greeted with a hello, a high five, a wave, a smile, and some amazing music, thanks to the incredible JBHS band! The week ended on a "high note" and with a full circle moment. Many of the JBHS students who visited are FAWE alum, leading by example. Not only were they alum, but some were also part of the very first Start With Hello Week initiative eight years ago! It was a beautiful and joyous display of our district’s efforts to be #bettertogether. 💙💚 #ALLINMartin👊 #MCSDBetterTogether💫 #StartWithHello

🍎SCHOOLS CLOSED🍎 All Martin County School District-operated schools and offices will be closed on Monday, September 25. View our complete instructional calendar for the 2023-2024 school year: https://martinschools.org/page/calendars For all of our employees and families observing, we wish you a meaningful Yom Kippur. #ShanahTovah! #ALLINMartin👊

🇺🇸CELEBRATE FREEDOM WEEK🇺🇸 The Florida Legislature has designated the last full week in September as "Celebrate Freedom Week." During this special week, the Martin County School District will proudly incorporate meaningful activities and lessons to reinforce the principles our nation was founded on. 🇺🇸📖 Celebrate Freedom Week highlights the significance of the Declaration of Independence. Through our social studies classes, students will participate in an age-appropriate in-depth student of the intent, meaning and importance of the Declaration of Independence. Each morning throughout the week, students will recite the following words of the Declaration of Independence: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. That to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.” Families that do not wish to have their child participate in the oral recitation of the Declaration of Independence must provide written notice to their school no later than Friday morning, September 22. #ALLINMartin👊 #CelebrateFreedomWeek2023

🇺🇸CELEBRATING CONSTITUTION WEEK🇺🇸 The first 10 amendments to the Constitution were ratified together in 1791, and are called collectively the Bill of Rights. Students at Pinewood Elementary learned about the Bill of Rights today from Judge Alan Forst, of the Fourth District of Appeals Court in Florida. At Felix A. Williams Elementary, students voted to make all Mondays an optional school day as they discovered more about the Constitution and how a bill becomes law. Jon Eberst and Donna Demarchi from the Eberst Law Firm taught this fun lesson! J.D. Parker Elementary School students explored the differences between the three branches of government with Erin Kirkwood from Erin Kirkwood Law. It's been a great first day so far celebrating the 236th anniversary of the signing of the United States Constitution! #ALLINMartin👊 #ConstitutionWeek #PublicSchoolProud

🛤️RAIL SAFETY WEEK🛤️ Sept. 18-22 is Rail Safety Week, and with GoBrightline starting service from Miami to Orlando on Friday, this is an opportune time to remind families how to be safe near railroad crossings. 🚅 Drivers, pedestrians and cyclists should be aware that rail traffic runs in both directions. 🚅 Stay off the tracks and NEVER go around crossing gates. 🚅 Only cross the railroad at a designated crossing. 🚅 NEVER stop on the tracks. 🚅 Avoid distractions. Brightline trains can travel up to 110 mph. With service starting to Orlando, more high-speed trains will be passing through Martin County. Let's all be on board and stay safe near train tracks! Share this post and spread the word! Watch the safety video here: https://youtu.be/EE-kMQpjR6E #ALLINMartin👊 #RailSafetyWeek #MCSDBetterTogether💫

🇺🇸CELEBRATING CONSTITUTION WEEK🇺🇸 Celebrate Constitution Week with the Martin County School District! The Martin County School District is proud to commemorate the special occasion of the signing of the U.S. Constitution on September 17, 1787. That means this year, we are celebrating the 236th anniversary of the signing of the United States Constitution! Did you know that in 1956, President Dwight D. Eisenhower officially declared the week of September 17-23 as Constitution Week to honor the document laying the foundation for our great nation? 🇺🇸 Stay tuned throughout the week here on Facebook to see how our schools are celebrating! Local judges and attorneys will visit schools to enhance students' appreciation for our nation's founding document all week. Read the School Board's Constitution Week proclamation, which was drafted in partnership with the Daughters of the American Revolution - Halpatiokee Chapter: https://bit.ly/3Ro05ig #ALLINMartin👊 #MCSDBetterTogether #PublicSchoolProud

🇺🇸CELEBRATING CONSTITUTION WEEK🇺🇸 Celebrate Constitution Week with the Martin County School District! The Martin County School District is proud to commemorate the special occasion of the signing of the U.S. Constitution on September 17, 1787. That means this year, we are celebrating the 236th anniversary of the signing of the United States Constitution! Did you know that in 1956, President Dwight D. Eisenhower officially declared the week of September 17-23 as Constitution Week to honor the document laying the foundation for our great nation? 🇺🇸 Stay tuned throughout the week here on Facebook to see how our schools are celebrating! Local judges and attorneys will visit schools to enhance students' appreciation for our nation's founding document all week. Read the School Board's Constitution Week proclamation, which was drafted in partnership with the Daughters of the American Revolution - Halpatiokee Chapter: https://bit.ly/3Ro05ig #ALLINMartin👊 #MCSDBetterTogether #PublicSchoolProud

📚BOOK OF THE MONTH📚 Florida Department of Education Commissioner Manny Diaz, Jr. recently announced his picks for Commissioner’s Book of the Month for September! Commissioner’s Book of the Month is a monthly reading challenge to promote literacy and reading engagement in K-12 schools. Books of the Month for September: 📙Pre-K: "Rin, Rin, Rin/Do, Re, Mi" by José-Luis Orozco 📕Grades K-2: "Amigo" by Carlos Zamora 📗Grades 3-5: "A Taste of the Mexican Market - El Gusto Del Mercado Mexicano" by Nancy María Grande Tabor 📘Grades 6-8: "Julieta and the Diamond Enigma" by Luisana Duarte Armendáriz 📙Grades 9-12: "The Last Train to Key West" by Chanel Cleeton #ALLINMartin👊

🏵️CELEBRATING HISPANIC HERITAGE🏵️ ¡Feliz mes de la herencia hispana! From September 15th to October 15th, we honor the rich and diverse cultures, histories, and contributions of Hispanic and Latino communities that make our community so special. Families, don't forget! Martin County School District students have the opportunity to commemorate Hispanic Heritage Month while also having a chance to win a college scholarship! Students can participate in the Florida Department of Education and Volunteer Florida's 2023 Hispanic Heritage Month art, essay and educator contests. This year's theme is “Celebrating Florida’s Hispanic Heroes and their Contributions to Freedom.” Head to our website for more information: https://www.martinschools.org/article/1205626 All entries must be received by 5 p.m. (ET) on Monday, September 18, 2023. #ALLINMartin👊 #MCSDBetterTogether💫

🇺🇸CELEBRATING CONSTITUTION WEEK🇺🇸 The Martin County School District is proud to celebrate #ConstitutionWeek next week! Constitution Week is observed annually from September 17 to September 23. This year, we are celebrating the 236th anniversary of the signing of the United States Constitution! On August 15, 2023, the Martin County School Board approved the 2023 Proclamation for Constitution Week, which was drafted in partnership with Ms. Portia B. Scott and the Halpatiokee Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution. Click the link to learn more about the history of Constitution Week and some of the activities our students can look forward to participating in to celebrate the historic document: https://youtube.com/shorts/iUoaA5StcLc #ALLINMartin👊 #MCSDBetterTogether

🇺🇸WE WILL NEVER FORGET 🇺🇸 The Martin County School District proudly joins our nation in honoring those who were wounded or perished at the World Trade Center and Pentagon, as well as the passengers and crews of flights 93, 77, 11 and 175. We honor the first responders in NYC and the Pentagon, including our own Chief of Security Francesco Frangella, as well as the citizens of our country who were called into action to bring goodness out of evil on September 11, 2001. We will never forget. #ALLINMartin👊 #NeverForget #PatriotDay🇺🇸

Hope to see you there!

📚🌍 CELEBRATING LITERACY🌍📚 The Martin County School District is proud to celebrate International Literacy Day! This year's #LiteracyDay theme is "Promoting literacy for a world in transition: Building the foundation for sustainable and peaceful societies." Literacy is the foundation of education, empowerment, and progress. It opens doors to opportunities, fosters understanding, and sparks creativity. Together, let's celebrate the power of words, knowledge, and the incredible gift of literacy that connects us all. Take the time to read with a child in your life and help inspire the love of reading! #ALLINMartin👊 #MCSDBetterTogether

🍎PLANNING FOR THE FUTURE🍎 Martin County Families, IRSC - Indian River State College's Open House is just around the corner! On Sept. 30th at the IRSC Campus in Fort Pierce, learn more about the college experience that is closer to home than you realize! Questions about FAFSA? Want to know more about the more than 100 programs that can lead to Bachelor's degrees, Associate degrees, technical certificates, and Career Training? Stop by the Open House at IRSC! #ALLINMartin👊 #MCSDBetterTogether💫

Hope to see you there!

"Genius is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration." - Thomas Edison. Happy #LaborDay, Martin County! #ALLINMartin👊 #MCSDBetterTogether

🍎SCHOOLS CLOSED🍎 All District-operated schools will be closed on September 4 in observance of #LaborDay. View our complete instructional calendar for the 2023-2024 school year: https://www.martinschools.org/page/calendars We wish all of our Martin County families and employees a safe, relaxing Labor Day! #ALLINMartin👊 #MCSDBetterTogether💫

Hurricane Idalia is rapidly approaching the west coast of Florida and is expected to bring powerful winds and storm surge as it approaches Category 3 strength. While Martin County is not currently operating under any storm-related watches or warnings, our area is expected to experience heavy rains and wind gusts from the storm. Any time severe weather has the potential to impact our area, the Martin County School District works closely with national, state, and county management officials, including the Martin County Emergency Operations Center, to determine how operations may be impacted. Our top priority is to ensure the safety of our students, employees, and families. We will continue to monitor the path of the storm and will provide updates as needed through our mass notification (callout/text) system, website and social media channels. We encourage families and employees to make necessary preparations that will help ensure their safety during severe weather conditions, such as reviewing emergency plans and stocking up on essential supplies. We encourage you to take advantage of the Florida Disaster Preparedness Sales Tax Holiday, which began this past weekend. It lasts until Friday, September 8. We appreciate your patience, understanding and support as we continue to monitor local weather conditions.