Week at a Glance
February 20-26, 2023
What's Happening This Week
Monday, March 20
Tuesday, March 21
SFCP-Prairie Talks for Parents: "Raising Readers"
World Down Syndrome Day - Wear Your Crazy Socks!
Wednesday, March 22
NEF's 30th Annual Building a Passion Breakfast
Thursday, March 23
Friday, March 24
This Week's Prairie Club Meetings
Monday, March 20
PAWS for Reading, 9:00-11:00 AM
Sticky Fingers Cooking class, Lounge, 2:35-3:35 PM
Peer Buddies, 2:30-3:00 PM
Ripple Effect Club, Room 116, 2:30-3:15 PM
Impact ART! Club (2nd Grade), Art Room, 2:35-3:35 PM
Tuesday, March 21
PAWS for Reading, 9:00-10:40 AM
Sticky Fingers Cooking class, Lounge, 2:35-3:35 PM
Chinese Ladder in Room 108, 2:35-3:35 PM
Spanish Ladder in Room 115, 2:35-3:35 PM
Impact ART! Club (2nd Grade), Art Room, 2:35-3:35 PM
Wednesday, March 22
Battle of the Books, 7:30 AM
PAWS for Reading, 9:00-10:40 AM
Young Rembrandts in the Art Room, 2:30-3:30 PM
Thursday, March 23
PAWS for Reading, 8:45-10:00 AM
Friday, March 24
PAWS for Reading, 10:00-11:00 AM
Upcoming Events
Monday, March 27 to Friday, March 31: Spring Break
Monday, April 3: National Assistant Principal's Week
Tuesday, April 4: e-Learning -- Election Day
Friday, April 7: NO SCHOOL
Monday, April 10: Pro-Kids Daytime Assembly and Family Night Show
Tuesday, April 11: Home & School Meeting, 9:00 AM
Friday, April 14: Prairie Adult Social, Naperville Country Club, 7:00 PM
Wednesday, April 19: Junior High Parent Orientation, 7:00 PM
Friday, April 28: "Coffee with the Principal" and H&S Executive Board, 8:15 AM
Wednesday, May 3: Band and Orchestra Concert at WJHS, 7:30 PM
Tuesday, May 9: FINAL Home & School Meeting, 9:00 AM
Wednesday, May 10: 5th Grade Fine Arts Night, 7:00 PM
Thursday, May 18: Prairie Day (rain date: May 19)
Thursday, May 25: 5th Grade End-of-Year Pool Party (more details to come)
LAST CALL TO COMPLETE 5ESSENTIALS SURVEY
DEADLINE: MARCH 31, 2023
The final day to complete the survey is Friday, March 31, 2023
Please complete this survey to help improve our school.
The Illinois State Board of Education invites you to participate in a school improvement survey for parents. In this survey, you will be asked to provide feedback about your child’s school. Please consider your child’s current experience at school (i.e. 2022-2023 school year). This survey is designed to help school and district leadership improve their understanding of the parent/school relationship.
All responses are completely anonymous. Responses to anonymous surveys cannot be traced back to the respondent. Additionally, your responses will be combined with other parents from your child's school and summarized in a school report to further protect your anonymity. Your participation in this survey is voluntary and you have the right to discontinue participation at any point.
To access the survey, please click here https://survey.5-essentials.org/illinois/and select “DuPage” as the County.
FEEL FREE TO JOIN US FOR OUR PARENT EDUCATION EVENT IN THE PRAIRIE LC THIS TUESDAY!
CLICK HERE TO RSVP
RSVP not required but appreciated! Don't miss this valuable information.
Celebrating World Down Syndrome Day
“Knock Your Socks Off”
World Down Syndrome Day is celebrated on March 21, 2023
This is a symbolic date to celebrate those individuals with Down syndrome as it represents Trisomy 21, the medical term for Down syndrome, which is the third replication of the 21st chromosome. We wanted to encourage staff, students, and families to take part in the “Knock Your Socks Off” campaign that is celebrated around the world. Everyone is encouraged to wear crazy socks (brightly colored, mismatched, printed, layered, etc..) to give awareness to the syndrome.
Wear your socks on Tuesday, March 21, 2023 to show their acceptance, respect and the inclusion of those with Down syndrome.
Coin Wars Fundraiser for Childhood Cancer March 13-23
Student Council will be beginning our spring project soon!
The Swifty Foundation wants to thank Prairie School for once again hosting the Coin Wars Fundraiser for childhood cancer on March 13 through March 23, 2023. The Swifty Foundation was founded by Michael Gustafson who was diagnosed with brain cancer as a 4th grader at Meadow Glens. Unfortunately, Michael did not survive his cancer and started Swifty to help future diagnosed children have better outcomes. Cancer is now the leading cause of death by disease for children in the U.S. so funding research for this devastating disease is more important than ever. 100% of all donations to Swifty will fund this much-needed research.
Michael’s mom, Patti, went to Prairie School back in the 70’s and is always so touched and gratified by the generosity and kindness of the Prairie School community. Please contact Jeni Rogers (5th grade teacher) or Morgan Olsen (4th grade teacher) with any questions.
NCHS Summer Camps Are Now Open For Registration
To register, go to NCHS 8to18 Registration and go to Browse Camps.
Please continue to check the summer camps, as more will be added. Grades entering 1-8 can attend either high school (NCHS or NNHS) camps. Grades entering 9-12 need to attend only summer camps at their respective high school.
PRAIRIE FUNDRAISER
SPRING COOKIE KITS – ORDER BY APRIL 2, 2023
Prairie is partnering with The Sweet Room for Spring Cookie Kits!
Always a crowd pleaser, these fully equipped kits take the work and the mess out of baking and leave the fun for kids and adults alike. In addition to the cookie kits, The Sweet Room is also offering delicious and equally easy cinnamon rolls if you want to wait a few days after pick up. Instructions for storing the kits are included.
Both the kits and cinnamon rolls are available via The Sweet Room website (thesweetrm.com). A portion of the sales will go directly to the school. All items must be ordered by Sunday, April 2, 2023 and will be available for pickup at at 699 Sterling Ct. (very close to the school) on Thursday, April 6, 2023 between noon – 7:00 PM. If you have any questions, feel free to contact Kim Vigue.
ADULT SOCIAL WINE PULL
The Adult Social committee is organizing a Wine Pull for the Prairie 2023 Adult Social!
If you are interested in helping out with a wine donation, please reach out to Michelle Shufelt or Sharon Velkovich via email. Donations can be any varietal of wine with a retail value of $20-25 or greater please. Thanks in advance! 🍷
Earn Free Tickets to See the Kane County Cougars!
CALLING ALL READERS!
The Cougars Reading Program is 8 weeks long (starting on March 6, 2023 and ending on April 30, 2023). You can print out the necessary form ("The Game Plan") to record your child’s reading. To earn free tickets:
- After every 2 weeks, sign the form indicating your child has done the reading. There is no need to fill out specific information on books or cut out the slips. Just your signature and child’s name is needed!
- At the end of the 8 weeks, have your child return the form their teacher with all the completed signatures.
- It is suggested for students to read 4-5 days per week for 15-30 minutes.
There will be two options for baseball games to attend (further communication will be sent about ordering tickets):
Saturday, May 20, 2023 at 6:30 PM
Monday, May 29, 2023 at 1:00 PM (Memorial Day)
Please contact Tia Claffy or Anne Walker for further questions.
OPEN COMMITTEE CHAIR POSITIONS FOR NEXT YEAR
The following Prairie Committees do not yet have a Chairperson for next year (2023-2024):
Author Visits
Family Connections/Lost and Found
Movie Night
Prairie Day
Yearbook (3rd co-chair needed)
The Description for each open position is linked HERE.
If you are interested in volunteering for any of the open positions next year, or simply want more information about the committees, please contact Stuart S. Hong, H&S Vice President.
YEARBOOK UPDATE
The 2022-23 yearbook is complete and has been sent to our publisher! We will receive the printed copies before the end of the school year, which will allow for in-school distribution. If you have questions about yearbook sales or distribution, please contact Tia Claffy at yearbookprairie@gmail.com.
The yearbook chairs, Tia Claffy, Karen Kuhn, and Colleen Troupis, would like to give a big thank-you to the yearbook volunteers for their dedication to this project: Beth Bartkowicz, Holly Blastic, Carolyn Buckingham, Amity Caile, Margaret Conley, Lisa Crisup, Claire Cuevas, Sabha Fatima, Katherine Franco, Nikki Genthner, Daniela Geraldi, Kasey Gilliam, Dana Hall, Kelli Heeley, Stuart Hong, Jessica Jamrosz, Allison Kellogg, Lisa McCloskey, Erica Minella, Christine Navea, Megan Pagnucci, Audrey Pollard, Stacey Rizzi, Gabby Rodemeyer, Shelley Scarbrough, Preeti Singh, Kim Vigue, Elaine Wendorf, and Laura Wirtz. We would also like to thank the Prairie staff and teachers for their involvement and input.
News From the Health Office
REPORTING ABSENCES
District 203 asks that all parents call their school’s attendance line or use the parent portal to report absences. While it is okay to also notify your child’s teacher or the Health Tech/School Nurse by email, we still need you to call the attendance line or use the parent portal to report your child’s absence. The main reason for this is that your child’s teacher could have a substitute or there could be a substitute in the health office and your email will go unseen. The attendance line is available to take messages 24 hours a day/7 days per week and is the same number as the health office. Please call (630) 420-6350 to report absences, or use the parent portal.
Click here to log into your Infinite Campus:
- https://infinitecampus.naperville203.org/campus/portal/naperville.jsp
- Watch this short video for step-by-step directions, or get help at Infinite Campus Portal Help.
Donations Needed
Have your children outgrown their clothes?
Have you started to do some spring cleaning?
The Health Office is much in need of pants of all sizes. Elastic waist or easy pull-on are much appreciated.
Home and School provides a school supply kit service, in partnership with School Tool Box, to give parents/guardians a convenient way to buy school supplies in a comprehensive kit compared to purchasing independently. From markers to notebooks to even paper towels and wet wipes, all of the teacher requested classroom supplies are included in these kits.
To purchase your kit, visit www.schooltoolbox.com (or scan the QR Code above), select the zip code and then select our school - ‘Prairie Elementary.' Orders will be accepted until June 18, 2023.
**If you do not see email confirmation of your order, please check your spam folder.
School supply kits will be ready for pickup before the start of the school year, so once you purchase online, your student(s) are covered! Please remember to order the supply kit for the grade your child will be entering for the 2023-2024 school year.
If you have any questions, please contact Carolyn Buckingham or Anne Walker.
PRAIRIE PET OF THE WEEK
Who are we?
We are PAISLEY AND RANGER! We are 3-year-old Australian Shepherds brothers who were born on a farm in Marengo, Illinois.
Who is our owner?
Our mom and dad are Prairie Art Teacher, Mrs. Anderson, (a.k.a. Mrs. A) and her husband, Mr. Anderson!
Why our family loves us?
Since spring of 2020, Paisley and Ranger have brought so much joy to the Anderson family. The pups love to run and play, go for walks in all kinds of weather and chill out with their family.
Please contact Stuart Hong with any questions, changes or submissions for the WAAG. Submissions for the following week's WAAG are due by noon on the prior Wednesday.
Here are some links you may find useful: