WELCOME TO EARLY LEARNERS!
August 26, 2022
Dear Early Learners Families,
It has been a fun and exciting week for our Early Learners! Our students are learning expectations, navigating new experiences, and are quickly growing accustomed to their new classrooms.
Thank you for your partnership and we look forward to hosting Curriculum Night on Tuesday, August 30th.
Have a wonderful weekend!
Sincerely,
Marcia Klita
WHAT'S HAPPENING IN EARLY LEARNERS?
This week we continued with our Back To School Unit. Students have been working hard to learn the classroom routines and expectations. For math, classes are focusing on recognizing numbers one through ten. We continue to listen to stories about school such as, “All Are Welcome Here”, “Our Class Is A Family” and “How Do Dinosaurs Go To School”. Our 3 year old classes have started their weekly groups and our 4 year old classes have started having Specials.
Next week we will wrap up our back to school unit with a focus on our students names. We look forward to seeing you on August 30th for Curriculum Night and sharing more with you about your child’s school day!
Speech with Ms. Nathanson
SCHOOL HOURS
1/2 Day PM: 12:30 - 3:00 Monday through Friday
Full Day: 9:00 - 3:00 Monday through Friday
**Reminder - Early Childhood does not have Early Release on Wednesdays!
You can download our Early Learners calendar with program specific events HERE.
DROP-OFF AND PICK-UP PROCEDURES
Please share our procedures with any adult who may be involved in transporting your child to or from school so that they are familiar with our process as well!
Drop-Off and Pick-Up Times
AM Students are dropped off at 9:00 AM and picked up at 11:30 AM.
PM students are dropped off at 12:30 PM and picked up at 3:00 PM.
Drop-Off and Pick-Up Location
Students in Ms. Fink's and Ms. Weis' classes: Drop-off and pick-up both occur in the east parking lot off of Birchwood. Please pull through the lot to the area where the diagonal lines are painted and wait for your child's teacher. We use the right lane for both pick-up and drop off while the left lane is used as a passing lane. Please help us keep traffic flowing by keeping the left lane clear at all times.
Students in Mrs. Kibort's/Ms. Vitorla's, Ms. Armstrong's, and Mrs. Smith's classes: Drop-off and pick-up will both occur in the front circle drive off of Hackberry. Our full day students along with students in Mrs. Kibort/Ms. Vitorla's class will enter the building at Exterior Door #15 - adjacent to the driveway just north of the school. Our buses will also be loading and unloading in the front circle, so please exercise caution when pulling through. When dropping students off, please stop at the driveway adjacent to the circle drive in order for buses to safely pass through.
Drop-Off and Pick-Up Procedures
We ask that adults stay in the car during drop off time while teachers help your child in/out of the car to keep the process moving along, while also minimizing separation challenges during this routine. During pick-up, our teachers will buckle your child into their car seat for you. We load/unload about 4 cars at a time to minimize how far children must walk through the parking lot. If the cars in front have pulled away and you are next in line, you can (carefully) pass to go to the front of the line.
Curbside Conversations
We try to keep conversations to a minimum during pick-up and drop off times. Our staff does not want to appear inconsiderate, but the primary focus during these times is the safety of our students. Please feel free to email, call, or set up an in-person meeting if you ever have any questions or concerns.
Thank you so much for helping us make drop-off and pick-up times safe and efficient for all of our students!
LUNCH - FULL DAY FAMILIES
Our Early Learners students will each lunch from 11:30 - 12:30 each day in our Multipurpose Room. You will need to provide lunch for your child each day. If you would prefer to order lunch through the South Park PTO, please click here for information on how to order lunch.
Please be sure to send your child to school with a water bottle for them to drink from throughout the day and at lunch. Students will be able to refill their water bottles using the drinking fountains throughout the school.
TUITION AND FEES
Tuition for 2022-23
- Half-Day Program $5,250
- Full-Day Program $9,950
Flexible payment plans and pro-rated tuition for students who start mid-year are available.
Tuition and fees are done through our district office. Please see the video below for information on how to pay tuition for the 22-23 school year.
If you have any questions regarding tuition, please contact Rosa Castillo in our business office at rcastillo@dps109.org.
SCHOOL HEALTH FORMS
A reminder that all new Early Learner students must submit a "Certificate of Health Examination." If you have any questions please contact
Mary Phelps RN, PEL-CSN
District 109 Lead Nurse
847-945-1075 ext 4181
Students Entering Early Learners (Pre-Kindergarten)
According to The School Code of Illinois, the following are required:
Health Exam and Immunization Records
Any child who has not returned the required documentation of a health examination will be excluded from school on October 15.
- Health Exam Form
- In lieu of the immunization and health examination, parents may submit the: Illinois Certificate of Religious Exemption to Required Immunizations and/or Examinations Form
- Parent signature required
If you join the program after 10/15/22, health forms will need to be submitted within the first few weeks of attendance.
Upcoming Events
August 30th- Curriculum Night- We will hold two identical presentation sessions for our Early Learners families. This approach has made scheduling the evening easier for families with multiple children in our school. Our Student Services Team will also be available during this time to answer your questions. Please choose to attend one of the sessions listed below:
- Session 1: 5:00-5:20
- Session 2: 5:30-5:50
September 5th- NO SCHOOL- Labor Day
September 6th- Picture Day
September 10th - 9:30-10:30 PTO Bike Rally
September 25th- Regular Board of Education Meeting at 7:00 pm
September 26th- NO SCHOOL
October 5th- NO SCHOOL
**Reminder - Early Childhood does not have Early Release on Wednesdays!
KEEP IN TOUCH
Assistant Principal
South Park Elementary School
Early Learners Program Coordinator
Phone: 847-945-5895 x2105