**Holiday Food Allergies Reminder**

Dear Staff, Room Parents, Parents, Guardians, and Students

As the Winter Holiday Season approaches, we are preparing for Winter Concerts and anticipating the joys of the season. This is a fun and enjoyable time for all, however, it can be a time of worry for children with food allergies and their families. In order to provide a safe celebration environment for the students at Irving, ALL classroom celebrations will be NUT FREE with a focus on healthy snacks and treats for the children.

As always, fresh fruits and veggies are welcome and should be promoted. It is recommended that room parents and teachers communicate before their scheduled Winter Holiday Party to identify the foods/treats that will be provided for each classroom celebration. Please inform Nurse Jamie of the food items that will be served. A good ratio of treats to healthy foods should be 1:3: One treat option for every three healthy food options.

Foods are required to have an ingredients list. Foods that are made in factories that may process nuts should not be served due to the potential for cross contamination. Please consider labeling the food items for easy identification by students. Teachers can confidentially alert room parents of any other dietary restrictions and or food allergies in the classroom so that an alternative treat can be provided for inclusion. Additionally, non-food treats such as stickers, pencils, and activities are always welcomed and enjoyed by all of the children.

Here is a link to a web site for Peanut/Nut/Egg safe food items

http://snacksafely.com/snacklist.pdf

Thanks to the entire Irving Community for helping to make this a safe and enjoyable holiday season for all. Please feel free to contact Nurse Jamie for any questions or concerns at jpeterson@op97.org or 708-524-3089.

Julian’s CAST Festival of Plays
Julian Middle School’s CAST theater program will feature a festival of three separate plays on Dec. 11, 12, 13 & 14, all of which continue with this year’s theme, “We are more alike than we are unalike.”
“Translations” will be presented at 7:30 p.m. on Dec. 11 and 12.  A play about language, “Translations” concerns the British government’s making of a map of Ireland in the late 1800s and attempting to re-name the landscape of an entire culture.
“Home on the Morning Train” will be presented at 7:30 p.m. on Dec. 13.  It portrays the plight of Jewish children, in hiding from the Nazis, who find inspiration from reading a first-person account of young black slaves trying to make their way to Canada in search of freedom.
The festival will conclude with a presentation of “Daisy Pulls it Off!” at 7:30 p.m. on Dec. 14.  Daisy Meredith, an impoverished girl, faces snobbish prejudice and pranks from wealthier students while she and her best friend search for a missing treasure that could save the exclusive Grangewood School for Young Ladies.
All of the performances will be at Julian, 416 S. Ridgeland Ave.  Tickets are available in advance through the CAST website, www.op97.org/CAST, or may be purchased at the door.  For more information, please contact Kathy Simon at 708-524-7848 or at ksimon@op97.org.