Carpenter Courier
September 27, 2018
Principal's Corner
Dear Parents and Guardians,
It's been a terrific start to the school year as always! Time flies by as you are busy and having fun. We are now settled into our routines and all of our beginning of the year activities and expectation reviews are now well-established throughout the building.
Next week, we will be sending you an email to complete a Safety and Climate survey that we'd ask you all to complete next week. Our SEL team here at Carpenter will review the information to help us continue to be the best school that we can be for your children. We look forward to meeting with you for parent-teacher conferences. We've shared the conference sign-up links and they are in the Courier below as well. Our 5th graders will be having their Camp Duncan trip this month and as always we'll close it out with fun school and PTO activities for Halloween. We will also be recognizing Red Ribbon Week in October as well.
UNDERSTANDING OCTOBER
Our monthly theme is month is Understanding October. Throughout our spiraling Second Step Curriculum, our students will have lessons on understanding and respecting differences. Starting in Kindergarten and 1st grade, they begin to identify same versus different. In 2nd grade, they learn about respecting different preferences. In 3rd grade, they learn about accepting differences and understanding perspectives. In 4th grade, students learn about accepting similarities and differences and understanding different perspectives. Lastly, in 5th grade, they'll learn to take different perspectives, accept differences, and disagree respectfully. It is important that we promote that we are all different. We all have different strengths and areas for growth. We talk to our children about how understanding each other is important everywhere, in the classroom, on the playground, and in the lunchroom. Fair doesn't always mean equal. Our children have different academic, social, emotional, and behavioral needs and at Carpenter and in District 64, we strive to give all of the children what they need, and it looks different. In this month of October, we'll utilize the theme of Understanding October in teachable moments to help reinforce this concept. Please join us in having conversations with your children at home about being accepting and understanding of other's differences and BE KIND as we've learned in September.
Sincerely,
Mr. Brett Balduf, Principal
Carpenter Elementary School
CONFERENCE SIGN-UP
Thursday, October 18th
Tuesday, October 23rd
Thursday, October 25th
IMPORTANT HEALTH REMINDER
IMPORTANT HEALTH REMINDER FOR PARENTS OF CURRENT KINDERGARTEN STUDENTS:
Deadline for Health documents for entering Kindergarten
If you have not already done so, this is a reminder that October 15, 2018 is the State of Illinois and District 64 deadline for submitting proof of health requirements for entry into kindergarten. Failure to comply with the deadline will result in your child’s exclusion from school beginning on October 16, 2018.
In addition, students entering kindergarten must also undergo a complete vision examination performed by a physician or licensed optometrist. A Snellen chart vision check completed in a pediatrician’s office does not meet the requirement for a “complete eye examination.” The completed report must be submitted by October 15, 2018. Failure to present proof by this date requires written proof of an appointment for a scheduled eye examination within the next 60 days following October 15th.
Information about these requirements can be accessed on the District website.
If you have questions or concerns regarding these requirements, please contact your school’s Building Nurse directly.
If you have submitted the required documents, no further action is required. Thank you for your cooperation.
Margaret Temari, RN, M.Ed., PEL-CSN
Facilitator, School Health Services
ELF HALLOWEEN HUSTLE PRESENTED BY LAKEVIEW BUS LINES
District 64 Elementary Learning Foundation (ELF) is hosting its Second Annual Halloween Hustle 5k Presented by Lakeview Bus Lines on Saturday, October 27. Starting and ending in beautiful Hodges Park, the loop will allow for a 5k Run or Walk, or a shorter 3k distance in the event a 5k is too far. There is even a Tiny Tike Trot around Hodges Park for those participants aged 5 and under! Wear your Halloween costume!
This family-friendly event is an inter-school competition open to the entire community to see who has the most Halloween Spirit by helping ELF raise money to fund innovative grants that are awarded to District 64 schools. The school with the highest participation percentage will win the highly coveted ELF Trophy. Will it be Franklin again, or will it be one of the other schools? Click Here for Registration Link for ELF Halloween Hustle
Since ELF will not be hosting Casino Night this year, Halloween Hustle is ELF’s BIGGEST fundraiser of the school year so come out for this fun event and support ELF who has supported our local District 64 schools since 1994 with over $790,000 for innovative Grants! Check out past Fabulous ELF Grants Here!
VOLUNTEERS NEEDED
Would you like to volunteer at the ELF Halloween Hustle 5k? We need parents, teachers, families who want to come and cheer on the runners as well as help with the day of event logistics. Click Here to VOLUNTEER for the ELF Halloween Hustle 5k
STUDENT ARTIST NEEDED
Calling all artists! District 64 Elementary Learning Foundation (ELF) is looking for a logo for the upcoming ELF Halloween Hustle 5k Run & Walk on October 27 at 8 am in Hodges Park!
Do you have what it takes to be the featured designer? You can enter as many times as you want. The design can be in color or black and white - anything goes! Design a logo for the event on regular 8 x 11 ½ paper. The winner will receive a complimentary entry into the 5k, and the design will be featured on the flyers, banner, race bibs and other goodies. Student submissions only, please. Good luck!
To enter, submit your design by Sunday, September 30 via e-mail to: district64elf@gmail.com.
Early Halloween Info - Shopping for Costumes?
We will be celebrating Halloween at Carpenter on Wednesday, October 31st. Parties will take place throughout the day based on homeroom teacher discretion and shared later in the month. We will have an all-school parade that will start at 2:20 p.m. Since you may be shopping or creating costumes over the month, we thought we'd share this information now. It is important that your child/ children follow these expectations for our PTO events and Halloween parties.
--- An asterisk indicates both events **
+Children should NOT wear masks. ** (Nothing should obstruct your child’s vision.)
+Costumes should permit students to sit, move around the room and use the bathroom without assistance. 10/31
+All costumes must be of a NON-VIOLENT nature and appropriate for the school setting during the day and in the evening. **
+NO WEAPONS or “look alike weapons” are to be brought to school, even if they are part of a costume. **
+Please do not bring any spray cans to school. **
+When coming to the PTO event on Friday, October 26th, your children must be accompanied by an adult.
+Please do not send food items/candy for your child to share with their class or take home. Other items such as stickers, pencils, etc. are permitted. 10/31
+Latex Balloons/other latex items not allowed.
More information will be shared later in the month regarding the Halloween activities.
Track-a-Thon Donations
Carpenter Families, we need your help!!
Our goal is to raise $29,000 for new furniture in our Learning Resource Center (library). Please help support our fundraising efforts.
Please get your DONATIONS in before this Friday, 9/28, so your child can be entered into the raffle!
Families can donate in two ways this year:
(1) By pledge forms sent home last week.
(2) On www.myschoolanywhere.com. Just go to "our store" and click on "Track-A-Thon" online donation to make a donation. Please remember to add your student's name and homeroom teacher.
AND remember that... students who raise more than $40 will be entered in a general raffle for gift cards/toys and students who raise more than $50 will be entered in the grand raffle for larger gift cards. Gift cards are for places like Play N’ Spin and Sputino’s Pizza, etc. AND students who raise more than $60 will be entered in the raffle for the game truck, game tickets (Cubs/Blackhawks/Northwestern), theatre tickets to Into The Woods, a new bike... and a highly coveted game truck prize!
Science Olympiad
Science Olympiad 2019! Parents and students! If your family includes a third, fourth or fifth grader, now is the time to make plans to participate in this year’s Science Olympiad. Information, along with the ONLINE registration form, are available on the District 64 Science Olympiad Webpage. The last day to register for this great event is Friday, November 9.