Shark Tales
Southbury Elementary
September 2020
Administration Letter
Dear Southbury Sharks!
Welcome to the 2020-2021 school year! The beginning of this school year was unlike the beginning of any school year yet! We have been so PROUD of our Sharks and how we have adapted to a remote start!
Since we started full remote, under the district‘s RemoteLearning 2.0 plan, we have had a chance to connect with all of our Sharks remotely. We have definitely enjoyed our first month of school and we are so excited to see each of our Sharks through Google Meets! Each of our students have had a chance to build up their own digital literacy skills through connecting with teachers and using new apps and extensions in order to learn!
We loved welcoming back all of our Sharks virtually, as well as, meeting all of our new Sharks who have joined the family this year!
Here’s a look at the exciting things happening in October:
10/1-10/16: Star Test Window
10/8: Culver’s Night
10/12: Columbus Day (Holiday-- No school; District Closed)
10/31: Halloween
Additionally, please remember to call 630-551-9801 whenever your child will be absent. This line is open 24 hours, you can call anytime.
Be sure to keep up-to-date on all the wonderful things going on at Southbury Elementary School by visiting our website https://www.sd308.org/southbury and our Facebook page. We have been trying to post on our Facebook page, even while remote!
Here’s to a successful school year – Goooo Sharks!
Samantha Sinovich
Principal
Jack Olson
Assistant Principal
Read. Write. Think. Grow. Southbury: A Community of Learners.
Home and School Organization Happenings
HSO September News!
Thank you to all of our families who have logged into Membership Toolkit and updated their information for the current school year. If you have not done so yet, please do as we wouldn’t want you to miss any of information that we send out through the site. The website is southburyparents.membershiptoolkit.com. Remember this also serves as a directory for our school. We have also collected our yearly $10 dues from multiple families and that will really help us this year as we are not currently collecting any money from fundraising.
Last call for ordering a fabulous yearbook from last year. If you are interested in ordering a 2019-2020 yearbook, please contact us at sbhomenschool@gmail.com and we can coordinate with you. We only have a limited number left!
Thank you to those families who supplied treats and beverages for a sign up genius we organized to stock the pantry for the staff at school. The sign ups were filled up fast and we are sure the teachers and staff all appreciated the extra treats. Be on the lookout for another stock the pantry in the coming weeks as this is one way we can easily spoil our staff.
If you do not follow us on Facebook, please do. Look for Southbury Home and School.
If you have any questions or comments, feel free to reach out to us at
Sarah Brown and Kristy Stith
HSO Co-Presidents
Kindergarten
1st Grade
It has been a very unusual and amazing start to this school year. We spent the first few days getting to know our students, build our classroom community, and learning about Remote Learning Expectations.
Here is a preview of upcoming topics.
ELA
- Story elements
- Identifying facts
- Informational writing
Math
- Number talks
- Addition and subtraction within 10
Science
- Becoming scientists
- Studying plant and animal defenses
Second Step
- Listening Skills
- Focusing Attention
Mark your calendars, First Grade Culver’s Night is February 11th.
GOOOOO Sharks!
2nd Grade
Hard to believe that we have completed our fifth week of Remote Learning! The Second Grade team misses having your children in person! The past five weeks have been very busy. The first two weeks were spent establishing remote learning routines, creating effective spaces and the most important, establishing relationships with your children.
Reading/Writing
We have covered Unit 1, module B in our reading series. We just completed the text, Friends Around the World. We used the text to compare and contrast children from different countries and compare them to our own. We also used the text to identify main ideas and how authors use supporting details to support the main idea of the text. We will end the unit with our first Performance Based Assessment (PBA.)
Math
In math we have been reviewing/introducing strategies for single digit addition and subtraction. We have also covered missing addends and two step word problems. Flashcards were sent home with the second materials pick- up. Please have your child cut these out and begin to practice these at home. Our next chapter will consist of Number Patterns, focusing on even and odds, skip counting and repeated addition.
Science
Over the past 5 weeks we have studied animal and plant relationships and how the two are connected. We also had our first “AG in Classroom” via Google Meet, with a member from the Kendall County Agriculture office. She discussed how apples grow in different seasons and the importance of pollinators. The presentation included a read aloud on apples, and an activity to learn how pollinators complete their job and what happens if they don’t. This presentation tied in perfectly with our current unit of study!
3rd Grade
Hello 3rd Grade Families!
Time is moving fast, and we are accomplishing so much!
Since the start of remote learning we’ve only gotten better and better at learning, participating, navigating, and encouraging each other to do our BEST even when things are challenging. We couldn’t be more proud of our 3rd graders! In the last 6 weeks we’ve tackled Narrative Writing, Foundational Skills, Levels of Questioning, and explored Fiction and Nonfiction texts. Already learning place value, how to round to the thousands place, and adding and subtracting 3 digit numbers has us feeling almost ready to start multiplication and division soon! Did we mention that we have been learning how there are push and pull forces all around us that make any object move or stop? Our big assignment as student scientists has been to discover how these forces make the floating train work.
As you can see, WE ARE BUSY! Remote learning has not slowed us down in any way. Thank you, parents, for all your help and support on the homefront. We appreciate you!
Mrs. Elliott
Mrs. Feliciano
Miss Morgan
Mrs. Rieser
4th Grade
Greetings to all of our fourth-grade families! We have absolutely loved getting to know your amazing children this past month. Although the beginning of the school year looks markedly different than in years past, we have still been able to forge connections as a class and start the process of truly becoming a classroom community. Your children have shown such perseverance throughout the whole process, and we’ve been amazed at how their technological and problem-solving skills have grown in just one short month. We can’t wait to see how they will continue to grow in these areas as the school year progresses.
Over the past month, we have been busy reviewing skills from 3rd grade as well as introducing new ideas and concepts. In ELA, we read an informational text called Skeletons Inside & Out, which helped students learn about informational text features, how authors communicate main ideas and details, and informational text structures such as description, compare and contrast, and more. In the next few weeks, we will wrap up this module by creating an animal infographic that incorporates main ideas from research. In Math, we reviewed the extremely important concept of place value, which is truly the foundation for all of the operations students will use throughout the school year. We will be shifting our focus to addition and subtraction over the next few weeks before turning our attention to multiplication. Finally, in Science, we have taken on the role of marine biologists exploring how mother dolphins are able to communicate with their calves over long distances. Over the next few weeks, we will delve deeper into how sound waves actually work through the use of computer simulations, books, and videos.
Before we end this month’s update, we want to take a moment to sincerely thank all of you for your support and guidance at home. We know that this is a learning process for everyone, and we appreciate you taking the time to help your children navigate remote learning while also balancing many other responsibilities at the same time. As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please continue to reach out to us, and we’ll be happy to help. We look forward to updating you on our learning in October!
5th Grade
Stars
ESL
Important Reminders:
- Please remember to have your child attend their ESL GoLive! Sessions twice a week.
- Students need to complete ALL assignments within their ESL Google Classroom.
- Before submitting your assignment, complete your work or attach a photo of your completed work.
- Videos and Slideshows are posted in the ESL Google Classroom to support student learning. Please make sure your child is watching these.
We are excited to be working virtually with our students during Remote Learning!
If you have any questions or concerns, please contact your child’s ESL teacher.
Kristen Serio
Alyssa Ahlstrom
Gifted Education
September has been an amazing journey of learning, not only in GE Math but also remote learning overall! Your children have transitioned extremely well and are pressing on with grit and brain growth! Thank you for everything you are doing at home for your children, including reaching out and letting me know what is working well and when you have questions.
Two themes for September in fourth grade GE Math have been patterns and multiplication. We started the year by talking cents! Talking place value and how it relates to money can improve place value number sense as we move to the right of the decimal point. Understanding our base ten system encouraged us to investigate relationships and patterns when comparing digits’ values in a number. The next step was comparing two numbers with digits in the thousandths, then we leveled up to three or more numbers! Your mathematicians also learned to grow trees...factor trees. Using this strategy helped them look for more patterns! Patterns in exponents, patterns in zeros, and patterns when multiplying and dividing by powers of ten. We finished with learning about partial products, area models, and multiplying by one-digit numbers.
Fifth grade GE math started the year with a week of review of important core math concepts from the prior grade level. We launched into our 6th grade standards by learning about LCM and GCF and applying those to real-world situations. The middle of September was devoted to “all things decimal,” meaning all four operations using decimal numbers! We discussed the why’s and the how’s and developed our fluency in adding, subtracting, multiplying, and dividing, never losing track of those tiny decimal points. Ms. Devol had to put her glasses on for those lessons. (We also learned to distinguish decimal points from periods at the end of a sentence. Now that can be confusing!) September drew to a close with multiplying fractions. Hmmm...aren’t fractions just decimals in disguise?
Speech and Language
Hello Shark Families! The speech department is excited to be back and looking forward to a successful school year. This year we are fortunate to have three full time speech/language pathologists working at Southbury. We are enjoying meeting our students both in person and virtually. Feel free to reach out to one of us if you have any questions or concerns related to your child’s speech/language development. Go…..sharks!
Mrs. Debbie Convey
630-551-9851
Mrs. Kelly Okel
630-551-9891
Ms. Lauren Paver
630-551-9872
LRC
Did you know that the Southbury LRC is now offering eBooks? That's right, our students can check out a digital copy of some pretty amazing titles including; Monarch and Bluestem nominees while we are remote learning. Checking out an eBook is as easy as 1-2-3.
- Visit the Southbury homepage and click on LRC. Scroll down to Quick links and click on Follett eBooks
- Click Log In (top right corner) on the Destiny Discover
- Enter your students 8 digit student number and password sb
- Select the eBook and click Checkout
Just a reminder that Fridays are our LRC class video time and we meet every Wednesday for our live sessions. In September we have spent time exploring our virtual LRC, reviewing different story elements, read some pretty amazing stories and have been introduced to the Monarch and Bluestem nominees. Speaking of our 2021 State nominees, Monarch (K-3rd grade) and Bluestem (4th and 5th grade) reading logs were sent home in our last material pick-up. Please track all of the nominee books that your child has read this year. Students who read a minimum of 5 books from the list can vote for their favorite and help to pick the 2021 winner.
Thank you to everyone who has turned in library books from the spring. We are asking that you please return any books that your child still has checked out. Books can be returned to the vestibule just inside Door 1 in the blue bin labeled LRC Books. Fines will be issued for any outstanding books. Thank you for your cooperation!
From the Reading Department
Learning Apps: Helping Your Child Learn Reading Skills
If you are looking for ways to help your child with reading skills at home, then a learning app may be a good choice for your family.
First, decide which skill area your child will need extra support. Is it phonics? Reading comprehension? Organization?
Next, head to the Reading Rockets website: readingrockets.org.
Then, scroll to the bottom of the page until you see the Learning Apps icon.
Finally, find an app that works for you and your family. Download and enjoy!
Art
First, I’d like to tell my students that I miss them so very much. It brings me such joy to see your smiling faces each week. I’d also like to thank parents who have reached out in encouragement. This means so much to me and I greatly appreciate your support. I am working so hard and often feel defeated. Kind words from parents and students really lift me up.
I’d also like to thank all of my students and parents for working so hard with me. Technology has been tricky for me and we are all learning together. I absolutely adore all of the artwork being turned in!!! Please turn in your art whichever way is easiest for you. I try to comment on as many as I can. Please know that I see your hard work and appreciate your dedication to practicing our art skills.
I have had many parents concerned with project grades. Although I do check for understanding through project-based learning, the projects are not themselves graded. Students will be graded on the standards I presented in the curriculum night video.
Please reach out if you have any questions or concerns. I am so proud of all of my young artists!
Mrs. Chee
Music
Hello Southbury families!
While things look very different, we are having a wonderful start to the school year in music class! I love seeing all of the students’ smiling faces and eagerness to participate!
In September, we started music with get to know you activities and class expectations. We also started working on two main concepts: rhythm and music listening. Students will have a listening assessment at the end of 1st Trimester, so we have been prepping for that by listening to different genres and styles of music!
In October, we will continue to do music listening while incorporating musical terms such as tempo and dynamics. Students will use these terms to analyze the music and reflect. We will continue to make music and have fun!
If you ever have any questions please feel free to contact me at mmcwethy@sd308.org.
Physical Education
News from Nurse Sara
Hello Shark families! I hope this finds you all well. Even though our school year started off different, we can still keep one another updated with the monthly newsletters. I will share important information with you in this format. Please read through as some of this information may pertain to your family.
2020-2021 Health Requirements
There has not been a change from the state, as far as due dates for health requirements.
The following link will guide you through what, if any, paperwork the health office will be needing this year: Chart of Requirements for 2020-2021
In short, all kindergarten students will need to have a current physical with proof of immunizations, a dental examination and a vision exam. The deadline for this is Thursday, October 15, 2020. If you have any questions, please contact me at (630) 551-9802 or skarantonis@sd308.org, I am in the building Tuesday-Friday.
If your child is new to our school and from out of state, I will also need to have up to date records (physical, proof of immunizations, dental, and vision examination). The deadline for this is 30 days from when your child was enrolled.
Hearing and Vision
Any completed hearing or vision referrals from last school year can be faxed to (630) 551-9897 or scanned to me @ skarantonis@sd308.org
Annual Health History Forms
These forms were included with this year’s registration process online. If your child has had any medical changes or you did not submit one, you can do so now via this link: Annual Health History Form for New and Returning Students
The information is shared with paramedics in the case of an emergency. It is important for health service personnel to be aware of children's medical needs.
I look forward to speaking to you and our students, hopefully soon!
Stay well,
Nurse Sara
Social Work
How You Can Create an Emotionally Safe Space
Safety exists in many forms, from physical safety to emotional and psychological safety. Your child’s sense of safety, or lack thereof, can have a powerful effect on how and what your child learns. In this section, we will focus on:
- Understanding physical and emotional safety: what is it, why does it matter, and how can you make sure your home is safe for your child?
- Using this information: what strategies can help you create a safe space at home?
- Things to look for: what is normal and what may be a potential warning sign that something needs more attention?
- Resources: what materials should you consult to explore this topic in greater detail?
As you read through these resources, remember: Every family is different. Everyone’s individual circumstances are different. Everyone brings their unique set of strengths to address life’s challenges. The information we are sharing here is designed to be flexible and adapted in the ways that work best for you.
Understanding Physical and Emotional Safety: Physical Safety—which includes preventing injury, protecting against violence from others or self-harm, and safeguarding against weapons and threats—is one of the most basic human needs. When someone does not feel safe, they will seek out ways to feel safe in their environment before they can attempt to meet any higher level of survival, like connecting with others or learning new skills.
Emotions trigger responses in our brain that affect how we feel and behave, and these emotions have a powerful effect on learning. For example, it is harder for us to learn when we are worried, angry, anxious, grieving, or humiliated because these emotions limit attention and concentration. When we feel emotionally safe—that is, when we feel calm, happy, and supported—our brains are better at taking in information, learning new things, and being productive.
It is also important to remember that children’s needs will be different based on their developmental age, race/ethnicity, gender, their strengths and needs, family expectations, and previous experiences with school. Your family’s culture and community norms will also influence your child’s needs.
These differences will affect how children express themselves and how you respond to them. For example, younger children and children who have experienced trauma (for example abuse, divorce, or the loss of a loved one) may express anxiety by physically acting out or becoming more “clingy.” Adolescents, on the other hand, have great needs for respect, autonomy, and how they maintain their newly developing senses of their identity. As a result, they may react by working harder to protect their freedoms during this time of limitations, or by acting out with belligerence or withdrawal.
Using This Information: Children need a physically and emotionally safe place to learn. There are three main ways families and caregivers can support emotional safety at home:
- Proactively create the social and emotional conditions for learning—that is, take the steps to create a space that is physically and emotionally safe from the start
- Respond to emotions, behaviors, or challenges in an emotionally safe way
- Make sure your child is experiencing safety in other settings (for example, if your child is learning online)
To proactively create the social and emotional conditions for learning:
- Make sure that YOU are ready to provide the physical and emotional safety your child needs. Review the first section on readiness to learn more.
- Seek help to prevent conflict or violence in your home (which could be caused or exacerbated by the COVID-19 situation). Make sure that conflict or violence does not involve or impact your child.
- Make sure your child has their own physical space to learn where they are safe from fear, humiliation, or high levels of stress. Too many distractions can add to our stress, especially when we are trying to learn something new. Try to set aside a specific space—either a separate room or in a shared room—for your child’s learning time and work. If you have multiple children in the home, this may mean alternating space and resources like computers or other devices, so having a plan can help to minimize conflict.
- Accept your child for who they are and build on their strengths. Although all children will vary in their academic strengths and sense of who they are, it is essential that they develop a positive self-image. You play a critical role in helping them to develop that.
- Establish predictable routines at home. Doing so can prevent emotions like stress and can help your child’s brain to work better because they’ll know what to expect. Involving your child in creating the routine or schedule can not only teach them about time management, but also will help them to feel a sense of control.
When responding to emotions, behaviors, or challenges:
- Make sure your child knows that they can express their feelings and share emotions with you. This may include, for example, worries about COVID-19, financial situations, the health of family members – for instance, if you or another family member work in the health sector, or have been designated as “essential workers” that are required to work outside of the home – or academic frustrations. If it is hard for you to share your thoughts and feelings in a healthy way when your child is expressing what they are thinking or feeling, ask for help. Reach out to your child’s school social worker or counselor, or ask your child’s pediatrician for a referral.
- Let your child know that it is OK to make mistakes, especially right now when they are trying to learn new things in new ways. (This applies to you, too!) It’s important to remember that mistakes are how we learn. If your child makes a mistake, it can be helpful to talk through what might have gone wrong and what they could do differently next time. Encourage and reward persistence over perfection. Avoid punishing failure.
- Listen, acknowledge, and affirm your child’s feelings. Give them the space to feel however they may feel and let them know that it is OK to feel that way. Then, help them identify what they or you can do to help them feel better.
- Discuss what is outside of your control and identify ways to deal with frustration. Many families are experiencing slow internet or other challenges with technology (or lack thereof), for example. You can help your child to understand what they can and cannot control while acknowledging how they feel.
- Soothe children in ways that work for them. If you don’t know what works for them, have a conversation to learn more about what would work for both of you. Ask them about what helps them to calm down. If they don’t know, try different strategies together (like hugs, taking deep breaths, coloring a picture, or taking a walk) and talk about what was helpful.
- Prepare in advance for how you will respond to your child’s anxiety about COVID-19 and its aftermath. Be honest but calming. Use science and facts to share information, highlighting what we know about the virus and the ways in which we can stay safe. For example, tell them that you are practicing regular handwashing to prevent the spread of germs.
- Share information with your child about how to protect against COVID-19. Make sure that they wash their hands regularly, wear appropriate personal protective equipment if they go out in public, and always cover coughs and sneezes.
- Monitor your child’s time online, in developmentally appropriate ways. Whereas younger children may need more support from an adult – thus making it easier to check on them – older youth and teenagers may want more privacy. Ensure that your child doesn’t experience bullying in their new learning setting.
Things to Look For: While children may tell you how they feel in words, they may also show signs in other ways. Please note that these signs won’t necessarily mean there is a problem. Knowing what to look for can help you to decide if you need to explore this more deeply or seek additional support. These signs will be different based on age, culture, and your individual experience. Here are a few examples:
- Preschoolers may show you they are anxious through new or more thumb sucking, bedwetting, clinging, sleep disturbances, loss of appetite, fear of the dark, acting as if they were younger, and withdrawal.
- Elementary school children may show new or more irritability, aggressiveness, clinginess, nightmares, school avoidance, poor concentration, and withdrawal from activities and friends.
- Adolescents may reveal they are having problems by new or increased sleeping and eating disturbances, becoming more irritable and getting into more conflicts, physical complaints (for example, having a stomachache or headaches), delinquent behavior, and poor concentration.
If you notice any of these signs or other new behaviors, it will be important to respond in a supportive way. Make sure your child knows that you are there to help them and that you will help them in a way that works for them.
Resources
These resources will help you to create emotionally safe spaces for learning at home:
- Webinar from Turnaround for Children about supporting children during COVID-19
- Warning Signs and Risk Factors for Emotional Distress from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA)
- Coronavirus Adds to Many Other Stressors for Latino Students. Here are Some Past Mental Health Blogs and Resources to Help, from UnidosUS
- Crisis Text Line: Text HOME to 741741 to connect with a Crisis Counselor 24/7.
- National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 1-800-273-8255: The Lifeline provides 24/7, free, and confidential support for people in distress, prevention and crisis resources for you or your loved ones, and best practices for professionals.
- National Domestic Violence Hotline: 1-800-799-SAFE (7233). Advocates are available 24/7 and speak more than 200 languages. All calls are free and confidential.
AMERICAN INSTITUTES FOR RESEARCH | AIR.ORG
Building Positive Conditions for Learning at Home: Safety
Copyright © 2020 American Institutes for Research. All Rights Reserved. 11403_04/20
Southbury Elementary School
Website: https://www.sd308.org/southbury
Location: 820 Preston Lane, Oswego, IL, USA
Phone: (630) 551-9800
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/southbury308