The Halloween parade will begin at 1:45 p.m. on Fri., Oct. 30. The afternoon kindergarten class will lead the parade and grades 1 through 5 will follow. Parties will begin immediately following the parade. The morning kindergarten parade will be at 10:10 a.m. with the parties following at 10:30 a.m. If participating in Halloween activities, morning kindergarten students should come to school wearing their costume.

If weather permits, the parade will be outdoors. Children should be dressed for the possible cold outdoor temperatures. During the parade, each class will stop to line up along the sidewalks and watch the parade so that the kids have the opportunity to not only parade but watch the rest of the school parade as well.

If weather is poor, we will parade throughout the school. The gym and multi-purpose room will be reserved for parents and family members to view the parade. If inclement weather requires us to parade indoors, the parade will begin with the PM and ADK kindergarten classes. Each class will sit in the hallway outside their class and watch the parade. As the parade passes each class, that class will stand and join the parade. Parents who wish to view the indoor parade are required to enter Door 3 or 4 and sign in at the table. Everyone must sign in. No one will be allowed on school grounds unless he/she has properly signed in. All parents and family are welcome to watch the parade in the gym, not outside classrooms or in hallways.

Please keep the costumes simple. With 440 students in school, we ask that children be able to put their costumes on by themselves.

All participating students must follow the following costume guidelines:

• All costumes should be non-violent. Please eliminate all weapons. TOY KNIVES, AXES, GUNS, BLOOD ETC. are not allowed.
  
• Sharp objects should not be part of the costume.
  
• Costumes should not demean or poke fun at any group of people. They should be respectful of all people.
  
• Students should not wear masks that inhibit vision during parade and party.
  
• Students often bring handheld props to school, then mistakenly leave them here at night. Keep this in mind.
  
• Parents that choose to dress in costume may do so without hiding their identity.
  

Students may bring their costume to school in the morning. They may put them on after the lunch/recess hour. Madison will keep a regular school schedule during the morning hours. Students not in attendance in the morning will miss valuable instructional time. Any student going home for lunch MUST have a written note with parent permission.

If you do not want your child to participate in the Halloween activities, please notify your child’s teacher and the office so that we can provide an alternate activity.

We look forward to a safe and fun Halloween! Thank you for your support in making Halloween festivities safe and fun for all. As always, if you have questions, please call, email, or stop in to see me.

Sincerely,

Tim Callahan, Principal

Madison Elementary

You can now place an order for the 2015-2016 Madison Paw Prints. A yearbook costs $17 and will be delivered to the student before the end of the school year.

Use the following link to order and pay with credit card (Visa, Mastercard, Amex, or Discover) or check. Save 10% by ordering before Oct. 31.

www.treering.com/validate?PassCode=1014308585474714

Please contact Dawn Draus at yearbook@madisonschoolpta.org or 630-221-1514 with any questions.

The PTA will be providing dinner for the Madison staff the evenings of the Parent/Teacher conferences on Oct. 27 and Oct. 29. Can you help by donating a side dish, dessert, beverage, or cups/dishes/silverware? The staff, and their stomachs, would greatly appreciate it! Please email janineshimp@yahoo.com.

Don’t miss the "Monster Book Fair: Reading Is So Much Fun You’ll Get GOOSEBUMPS" from Oct. 26 - 29.

The Book Fair will be open:

Mon., Oct. 26: 1 p.m. – 4 p.m.

Tues., Oct. 27: 9 a.m. – 8 p.m.

Wed., Oct. 28: 8 a.m. – 4 p.m.

Thurs., Oct. 29: 9 a.m. – 8 p.m.

We are looking for volunteers to help, both during the day and Tuesday and Thursday evenings. If you are interested, please email stephbrown04@yahoo.com as to what day/times work for you.

We invite all Madison families to join us for our special breakfast event, “Monster’s & Muffins” on Wed., Oct. 28 from 8 a.m. – 9 a.m. Muffins and coffee will be served as parents and students explore all our monster fair has to offer.

Multicultural Day is quickly approaching! Big plans are underway for this amazing day. Please consider helping our students learn about other countries and cultures.

Multicultural Day (MCD) is Thurs., Nov. 12. This year classes will travel through Mexico, Asia, Europe, the Pacific Rim, Latin America, and Africa, learning about the world.

It takes many hands to make this day a success and volunteers are needed at all grade levels. We are currently seeking volunteers to help with the following:

1) Decorate and set-up classrooms the evening before MCD. We start setting up at 3:30 p.m. on Wed., Nov. 11. Child care is provided through BASP for all Madison students.

2) Help out in one of the classrooms at your child’s grade level the day of MCD (Nov. 12 from 9 a.m. – 12 p.m.)

If you are available to help out, please send an email to mcd@madisonschoolpta.org with the following information:

Name:

Contact Number:

Email Address:

Child(ren) Name and Class:

How you can help:

The students look forward to this day with great excitement and it would not happen without all of our volunteers. Thank you so much for all your support and enthusiasm for the day.

If you have any questions, please email your Multicultural Co-Chairs, Kristin Olson & Julie Ippolito at mcd@madisonschoolpta.org.

All Madison students (K-5) are welcome! Chess club meets on Thursday evenings from 6:30-7:30 p.m. in the Art room. Enter at Door 2. Our first meeting is Thurs., Nov. 5. There will be a short informational meeting for parents of Chess Club members at the first meeting.

Questions? Please contact Jennifer Denson (jmsuth@yahoo.com) or Samuel Hurtado (hurts1@yahoo.com).

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Our district partners with Family Tree’s community voucher program. With every donation you make in the name of your CUSD 200 school, Family Tree donates vouchers to your school. Your social worker distributes these vouchers to families in need at your school, who then go to Family Tree and shop for FREE. Family Tree Resale's Wheaton store is located at 310 E. Geneva Road.

Madison picture retake day is Mon., Oct. 26 at 9:30 a.m.

If you are unhappy with your child's pictures and would like a retake, you MUST send back the original pictures and forms to your child's teacher. These pictures will be destroyed.

If your child was absent and you would like to order pictures, there are additional order forms in the office that can be filled out and brought back to your child's teacher.

If you have any questions please contact Dawnelle Muff (dawnelle3@gmail.com) or Anne Nigrelli (anigrelli@sbcglobal.net).

Lost and Found is now located in the main office. There are many very nice clothing items, lunch boxes and light weight coats. As the weather becomes colder it fills with many more wonderful articles. Please stop by and check it out (parent/teacher conferences is a good opportunity) or encourage your child to look for missing items.

All items will be donated to Goodwill if not claimed.

The PTA offers both daytime and evening meetings to accommodate all of our members.

The noon meetings will be held in the music room and our evening meetings will be held in the LLC. Hope to see you there!

Nov. 19 at 12 p.m.
No meeting in December
Jan. 21 at 12 p.m.
Feb. 18 at 12 p.m.
Mar. 17 at 12 p.m.
Apr. 21 at 7 p.m.
May 19 at 12 p.m. (new officer installation)

Madison teachers have found many ways for refurbished iPads/other tablets /handheld devices to complement the curriculum. Simply take your old device into Madison’s office during school hours of 9:15 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., and the staff will make sure it’s put to good use in the classroom. Please let your friends and relatives know too! Donations are tax-deductible.

Click on the calendar on the Madison section of www.cusd200.org to view upcoming dates. See below for some highlights:

Oct. 26: Picture Re-take

Oct. 26-29: Book Fair

Oct. 27 & 29: Parent Teacher Conferences

Oct. 30: Halloween Parties at 2:15 p.m.

Nov. 12: Multicultural Day

Nov. 13: No school

Nov. 19: PTA meeting at noon

Nov. 23-27: Thanksgiving break

Jan. 23, 2016: Pancake breakfast

View the 2015-2016 school calendar here.