Harper Happenings
January 29th - February 2nd
What's Happening?
Monday, January 29th
- Dr. Kick's January Birthday Lunch
- Harper Open Gym, 6:30-8:00 pm
Friday, February 2nd
- Early Release Day, 1st-4th 11:55, am kinder 10:00, NO pm kinder
Coming Up/Reminders
Monday, February 5th
- Harper Open Gym, 6:30-8:00 pm
Wednesday, February 7th
- View your child's report card online
Monday, February 19th
- No School--President's Day
Saturday, February 24th
- Special Board of Education Meeting, MEC, 8 am - 12 pm
Dr. Kick's Corner
We have all had time to adjust to the Friday early dismissal for grades 1-4. Managing the logistics has been challenging across the District, and at Harper too. So, we are initialing a change for next year. We know this may mean some additional planning for a handful of parents, so we wanted to give you plenty of notice.
With the start of the 2018-2019 school year, 2:15-3:15 supervision for our Friday Early Dismissal will be offered only to families who meet the one of following criteria:
Your child attends the Park District After School Recreation Program and takes the 3:15 bus from their elementary school to the Wilmette Park District Recreation Center.
You have a child in grades 1-4 who has a sibling in PM kindergarten.
As we did last year, we will send out material in the summer for you to sign up your child, if eligible, for the Friday supervision.
- Open House will be held on February 28th from 6:30-7:30. Come see your child's work! Your child is your guide on this wonderful evening.
- We have 67 kindergarten packets that have been returned. At this time, we will have three sections of kindergarten. I will keep you updated about the status of the sections.
- Students have been more appropriately dressed for the weather! Thank you for assisting with this!
- Thank you to the Winnetka Book Stall for sharing author Eliot Schaefer with our 3rd and 4th grade students! Students loved hearing about his book The Lost Rainforest: Mez's Magic. (Please note the picture next to coming/up reminders.)
Announcements
- SO MANY MEMORIES, SO LITTLE TIME! Order your student's yearbook today.
This is the last week to buy yearbooks at the $25 price. And make it truly yours by adding a name and icons to the cover.CLICK HERE TO GET STARTED!
- Show your Harper spirit! Every Friday is Spirit Day (unless otherwise noted) so please encourage your children to come to school wearing their Harper gear. Go Harper Dolphins!
- BOX TOPS SUBMISSION IS RIGHT AROUND THE CORNER - END OF FEBRUARY! If every child at Harper collects and turns in 15 BOX TOPS, we can reach our goal of raising $1000 for the school! Please see the attached list of participating products. Keep in mind when clipping that the expiration date must be visible and not expired. There is a collection box in the front entrance of Harper - purchase the product, clip the Box Top, check the expiration date, and turn in to the school. Thank you and keep on clipping!
- Looking to get involved next year on the Harper PTO?? The Nominating Committee is looking for volunteers to join a Committee! If you are interested in being on the PTO Exec Board or any other position on the PTO, please contact Arielle Heneghan at ariellelariviere@hotmail.com. Or if you are currently on a Committee and would like to stay on next year- let us know!! Feel free to look at the link at ways to get involved- http://harperpto.com/committeechairsexecutive-board/
- Girls on the Run IS BACK! If you have a 3rd or 4th grade girl interested in setting goals, making new friends, and running her first 5K, this is the activity for your daughter. We're gauging interest right now so we can figure out the number of GOTR coaches needed. If you're considering signing up, please email Ali Wenzke at awenzke@gmail.com. GOTR will start in the spring.
- Will you have a child at Highcrest next year? The HMS PTO is currently in the process of setting up the nominating committee to assist with the exec and general boards slates for the next school year. We need 2 reps from each of the elementary schools as well as Highcrest. The PTO is also looking for volunteers for positions on the general and exec boards. If you or someone you know are/is interested in a position on the nominating committee, please contact Lisa Hirschle at nominating@highcrestpto.org by January 31st. If you are interested in general or exec board positions or just want to learn more about them, please also contact Lisa Hirschle at nominating@highcrestpto.org.
- The Yearbook Committee wants your Holiday Party Photos! If you haven’t tried the ReplayIt app for uploading photos to Yearbook, it’s so easy. Below is a guide on how to set it up. Download the app and give it a try www.replayit.com (password is HarperRocks). Please contact soniaesler@gmail.com with questions.
- What to do on these cold winter nights? Open Gym is happening at Harper! Mondays, 6:30-8:00 pm 1/22-3/19. Harper Students only (no non-Harper siblings, sorry!) Limit 30 students, there will be a door monitor keeping a list. Clean shoes must be brought in for the gym. Students may not go to their lockers so you must bring shoes from home. A parent needs to stay with their child(ren). This is not a drop off. The gym program will be run by D39 gym teacher, Mr. Chris Toy! He is awesome and the reason we have to cap our number at 30. First come/first serve. See you there!
Community Service
- Today is the LAST DAY the Community Service Committee is collecting unused children's pajamas for Housing Opportunities for Women. Students can wear their PJs to school today to celebrate! Please consider donating and visit http://www.how-inc.org for more information about HOW. Thank you! The PJs are assigned per grade as follows:
Did you know that through Connections for the Homeless there are ways you can continue support our neighbors who are homeless or threatened with homelessness at home with your children? Click here find out more. Please also check out these January Headlines from Connections, including a thank you to Harper Elementary for our continual support.
K - size 3/4 (XXS)
1st - 5/6 (XS)
2nd - 7/8 (S)
3rd - 9/10 (M)
4th - 12 (L)
Enrichment
Congratulations to the families of Margaret Whittle and Sam Candido! They won the raffle for a mindfulness bell for their homes.
Upcoming date(s):
- 2/7--Trip to Shedd Aquarium for 4th graders
- 2/6 through 3/20--1st grade yoga program
4th grade trip to Shedd Aquarium: Mark your calendars for Wednesday, February 7th. This day long trip will be an exciting adventure and includes exploration of the aquarium and an aquatics presentation. Please send a brown bag lunch from home. This incredible event is made possible by the generous donations made to Ignite.
From February 6th to March 20th, 1st grade classes will participate in a yoga program led by Lisa Weber E-RYT with Heaven and Earth Yoga in Evanston. Lisa will hold a 30-minute session for each class every Tuesday, for a total of seven sessions. The program will teach students techniques to help them calm their minds, and it will build upon the growing research showing the health benefits of a mindfulness practice. This program is brought to you by IGNITE!
Thank you for your contributions to iGNITE!
Community Events
- Link to community events: http://www.wilmette39.org/news/community_events/
- Wilmette Historical Museum celebrates African American History Month February 11th 2:00 - 3:00pm
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We’re reaching out to let you know of an event being planned called the New Trier Innovation & Tech Expo. This free event is an opportunity for parents to attend and hear about how technology is being used throughout the township. All New Trier Township schools will be participating in this joint mini-conference taking place Saturday, April 28, 2018. It will be held at New Trier Winnetka Campus, 385 Winnetka Avenue, Winnetka, IL, from 8:30am to 12pm.
In addition to saving the date, if you have something of interest to present, parents are welcome to submit proposals to the committee. Click here to submit your proposal by February 9, 2018.
All announcements to be included in the Harper Happenings should be sent to Adriane McKnight via the Communication Request Form by Mondays at 9 am. If you do not receive an email response within 24hrs, please send an email to adrianemcknight@gmail.com to confirm your Communication Request Form was received.
For more school information, visit the Harper PTO website.
For additional D39 community events, visit wilmette39.org