November 3, 2024

A Note from the Director

Dear Families,

Throughout November, we will celebrate IvyCares Month and our Ivymount community of students, families, staff, and partners. We are fortunate to work together to create achievements, opportunities, and kindness. Please take a look below for more on what the IvyCares spirit means to us.

We have been having a lot of fun at Ivymount. Scroll down to see the fun moments created by students and staff as we celebrated Halloween this past week. A big shoutout to the Ivymount School PTA for organizing such an awesome family movie night! It was a wonderful time for the more than 70 people who came out.

We have multiple other events planned for November, including a Music for Autism concert, a sibling night and a webinar on trauma-informed care. Click on the orange buttons below to register now.

Enjoy your evening,

Susan

News you Need!

Dates to Remember

November 11

Professional Day

No School for Students

November 16

Music for Autism Concert

November 20

Sibling Night

November 21

Trauma-Informed Care Webinar

November 27 - 29

Thanksgiving Holiday

No School for Students

PTA News

December 11

PTA Meeting via Zoom

7 pm

Scroll down to the PTA section to see more photos from movie night

Share Your "I Can" Story

We're gathering stories of how Ivymount students, families, and staff embody the "I Can!" spirit. By sharing, we hope to inspire our community to recognize all they can achieve. We invite you to take a moment and share a sentence or two about a success that your student or family have felt through the programs and events of Ivymount School or Ivymount Outreach. SHARE YOUR STORY

We Celebrate IvyCares in November

Please join us as we invest in our culture of kindness through our IvyCares Initiative!

Every November, Ivymount celebrates our community values through our IvyCares Initiative. Through IvyCares, we emphasize caring as a priority by creating opportunities for our students, staff, and community to:

Reflect on the positive impact our actions can have on others and practice gratitude and kindness to others
Show care and kindness for ourselves.
Value our relationships with each other and invest in these friendships and partnerships.
Embrace diversity by appreciating qualities and experiences that are different from our own and celebrating our differences.
Expand our circle of care by making positive changes in our community.

Through IvyCares, we are establishing traditions that contribute to our positive, diverse, and inclusive culture.

Happy Halloween Hoopla!

Halloween at Ivymount was a spooktacular success! Staff worked creatively to plan and host engaging events, wear creative costumes, and give students opportunities to practice various skills.

Elementary and Middle School classrooms held class parties to celebrate the spooky holiday. The parties were filled with sweet treats and fun. Thanks to the parents and families who contributed to the fun!

Meanwhile, High School students enjoyed a Halloween Dance. It was an afternoon of the cha-cha slide, treats, games and fun. Students enjoyed time with friends and bonding with classmates and teachers.

Thanks to the parents and families who contributed to the fun!

November Events for Everyone!

Music for Autism

Saturday, November 16

1 pm at Ivymount

Ivymount Outreach is happy to partner with Music For Autism to present the Linden Piano Quintet! This acclaimed ensemble has performed throughout DC/MD/VA and is excited to share some of the greatest piano quintets in the literature.

With a program featuring Dvorak, Brahms, and Shostakovich, the quintet can’t wait to share the artistry of this fun, engaging and inspiring music.

RSVP for Music for Autism Concert

Sibling Night Rescheduled

Wednesday, November 20

5:30 - 7:15 pm at Ivymount

The previously announced sibling night is now planned for Wednesday, November 20. The mental health department invites siblings of Ivymount School students aged 6 and older to participate alongside their parents.

Participants will engage in group discussions designed for their developmental age, focusing on their experiences as children with a sibling who has unique learning needs or a disability. Additionally, there will be a separate group for parents to share ideas on how to cultivate healthy relationships with all their children and promote positive interactions between siblings. Pre-registration is required to ensure a meaningful experience for the siblings, with at least three participants in each age group: early elementary, late elementary/middle school, and high school.

RSVP for Sibling Night

Professional Collaborative Webinar

Thursday, November 21

online 1 - 2 pm

This session is tailored for professionals but caregivers are also invited to join this online session through our Professional Collaborative: An Introduction to Trauma-Informed Care for Individuals with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities.

The growing recognition of the impact of trauma on health and behavior has led to increasing attention on “trauma-informed care,” an overarching term used to indicate practices that recognize and consider the experiences of traumatic events in individuals and families in all aspects of service delivery.

Learning Objectives

Define trauma and the 4 R’s of a trauma-informed approach: Realization, Recognition, Response, and Resisting re-traumatization.
Understand how the brain is impacted by trauma and how trauma can then impact behavioral responses in future situations.
Learn how relatively common situations and experiences of autistic youth can be viewed through a trauma lens.
Learn specific interventions and strategies to assist autistic youth who have potentially experienced trauma in regulating their emotions.

RSVP for Webinar

Thank You For Celebrating

NDEAM With Us!

"We all have places where we need help raising ourselves up, we all have strengths...that's something that benefits everybody, not just students with disabilities." Watch our video to hear from Issie Resti, School to Work program Assistant Director, on how diverse workplaces enrich communities and transform organizational cultures.

Join us in pledging to champion "Access to Good Jobs for All" year-round!

PTA NEWS AND UPDATES

Family Movie Night

The PTA was excited to bring Ivymount School families together to watch the movie "Inside Out 2" at our Family Movie Night. We had a great turnout of more than 70 people and we hope all Ivymount School families will consider joining us for these wonderful free events. It would be great to see everyone there!

The PTA would like to thank Ivymount staff PJ Corr, Xavier Holmes, Jennie Kampf, Desmond Lowe, Issie Resti, and Carolyn Woodham, who helped set up and generously came on a Saturday night to make the event possible. Also, thank you to Gillian Economou, PTA VP of special events, and to all the parents who volunteered.