News de Nous – 2/20/19

February 20, 2019
97, 98, 99…
 Bonjour – Welcome to FASTB Day 99 ! Big school-wide celebration on tap for tomorrow as we hit triple digits – more on that in our class updates; plus a recap and video from our first Suzuki concert last Friday, Butterfly Madness, Crafts & Crêpes, Bourse Deadline, Camp FASTB and more…
Family Craft & Crêpe Day – March 2
All families are welcome to join us Saturday March 2nd from 10-noon for our first-ever Family Craft and Crêpe Day!
The Krepelicious food truck will be on hand to make crêpes of your preference that you can purchase and enjoy in our shaded picnic area. Not only that, the artists from Tony the Balloon Guy will be here to paint faces and bring smiles to faces with their amazing balloon creations. Our playground will also be open to all and if anyone wants to peek inside the school to look around, we can make that happen too!
You don’t need to know French to come to this event – but you’ll get a hefty dose of la langue Française, so there’s a good chance you’ll pick up a little while you’re here! Please RSVP to admission@fastb.org or on our Facebook event page so we can make sure the Krepelicious folks bring enough yumminess. See you March 2nd!
Suzuki Concert Hits Right Notes
Bravo to our Suzuki musicians who performed at our first-ever Suzuki Concert last Friday after just 6 weeks of group lessons! Under the leadership of our instructor Jennifer Diedrich, students put on display their knowledge of their violins, proper positioning & handling of the instrument and 4 renditions of the piece they prepared, with each student taking a turn leading the group.
With a crowd of supportive parents, teachers and fellow students looking on, our musicians handled themselves very well in their first performance – if there were nerves, they didn’t show!
FASTB - First Suzuki Performance
Elementary Class – Papillon Pandemonium!
The world’s Monarch butterfly population grew by 3 this week thanks to a couple days of chrysalis-busting in Claire’s elementary class. The first emerged Monday and immediately went for our Director’s nose (below), as sympathetic students observed from a safe distance.
Before we knew it, one became three and it was time to release them to the world – not before getting to know them a bit. Having the wonder of life unfold before our students’ eyes was amazing.
Claire’s class wasn’t on a strict butterfly education diet, however – there was work to be done to prepare for tomorrow’s Célébration des Cent Jours (100 Days Celebration) and she incorporated art, math, vocabulary and even Valentine’s Day hearts into one comprehensive lesson!
Deadline Today – Bourse Scolaire for French Citizens
The deadline has arrived to apply for the Bourse Scolaire, a need-based financial aid program administered by the French government for citizens with educational expenses at accredited French schools outside of France. Beginning in 2019-20, FASTB is eligible to receive this scholarship so if you have not done so, please click here for application instructions and call the Consulate. The deadline to apply is today.
2019-20 Enrollment: Steps To Apply
We are in the middle of our enrollment period for 2019-20, so if you are thinking about applying (or know someone who may be interested), please consider a visit and tour – we have had a lot lately! Below is the sequence of events for our application process:
  1. Inquiry: Submit the Application Inquiry Form on our web site and we will contact you to set up a school visit to give you more information about FASTB and answer questions
  2. Apply: Print, fill out and mail our Enrollment Application and fee
  3. Interview: After receiving the completed application we set up a parent or guardian and child interview to assess readiness and ability to benefit from our program
  4. Acceptance & Enrollment: Upon acceptance, an Enrollment Contract must be signed and deposit paid to secure a spot for the upcoming year
Please visit FASTB.org and click on the Admission tab for more on the process, tuition, financial aid and more – we look forward to hearing from you!
Pre-K Class – Hearts and Hundreds
Back to back weeks of celebrations had our preschoolers hopping, first with Valentine’s Day (above), where students brought gifts for teachers and made gifts for parents and classmates.
Never ones to sit back and say, “we’ve done enough, let’s relax,” the Pre-K class transitioned quickly to preparations for our first 100-Day celebration tomorrow (below). Lots of great artwork and fun will be on display in both classes tomorrow and News de Nous promises in-depth, team coverage for you next week!
Camp FASTB – Coming This Summer!
We are pleased to announce that Camp FASTB will debut this summer for ages 5 and up! Beginning June 10, we will offer up to 6 weeks of French Immersion camp broken down as follows:
  1. Full Day – 9am-3pm $300 per child, per week
  2. Half Day – 9am-Noon $200 per child, per week
Extended care will be available at an additional cost. We are targeting the weeks beginning June 10, June 17, June 24, July 8, July 15 and July 22. If you are interested, please contact us by replying to this email with the following information:
  1. Your name and contact information
  2. Your child’s or children’s name and date of birth*
  3. Number & dates of the weeks you intend to enroll
* Must be at least 5 years old before 9/1/19
Ultimately, enrollment will dictate what we will be able to offer so please let us know as soon as you can.
We are also accepting applications for French speaking camp counselors so if you or someone you know is interested, please let us know – merci!
Music & Me Singing Along
Our friends at Music & Me have an upcoming event at Cage Brewery called Sip N Sing, an old style family sing-a-long, Sunday February 24th at 5pm and would love to have our FASTB extended family join them! To find out more, you can visit their Facebook event page – hope to see you there!
FASTB Calendars 2018-19 AND 2019-20
We have released our academic calendar for 2019-20 and you will note that the timing is more in line with area schools (no construction project thissummer!). To access the new 2019-20 calendar, click on the image below left and you can download a pdf. For this year’s calendar, click the image below right. Please also check the Events tab on FASTB.org periodically for more specific information on certain events. Merci !
Maine Winter Rolls Along
To keep tabs on activities of our hearty friends up north, don’t forget to visit the Blog and Instagram of our school in Maine, L’Ecole Française du Maine – Year 18 is rolling along!!
All of us on the News de Nous staff wish you a great week and a Happy Valentin’s Day – Merci!
Meet The Founders
The French American School of Tampa Bay, (FASTB), founded in February 2017 by Elizabeth and Willy LeBihan, offers a unique immersion school experience to students from Early Childhood through grade 12.
Inspired by their successful creation of L’Ecole Française du Maine: The French School of Maine 18 years ago, the Founders decided to put their experience and devotion for education to work in the Tampa Bay area they have grown to know and love.
2100 62nd Ave N, St. Petersburg, FL 33702
Telephone: (727) 800-2159
Dan Hannigan: School Director dan.hannigan@fastb.org
Elizabeth LeBihan: Founder and Admission Director admission@fastb.org
Willy LeBihan: Founder and Head of School director@fastb.org
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2100 62nd Ave N
St. Petersburg, FL 33702

Email: office@fastb.org
Tel: (727) 800-2159

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