Wildcat E-Notice
Laura B. Sprague School - January 13, 2021
In-Person School Programs Start and End Times
Drop Off Procedures AM Kindergarten to Second-Grade
AM Kindergarten, First- and Second-Grade student drop off is 7:55 to 8:10 a.m. Drop off is located in the EAST parking lot. Enter the lot from Reliance Lane.
Make a right into the parking lot, pull forward to the drop off lane. Staff will be wearing bright colored vests and will hand signal when to pull up in line. When you arrive at the drop off line, put your car into park, a staff member will open the door, your child should be able to independently exit the car, and walk to the sidewalk.
Staff members will then hand-signal for you to proceed forward to exit. Please stay in a line, practice patience, and DO NOT PASS other cars. The line will then exit on to Reliance making a right hand turn. Parents of children that are not independent with seat belts, or are in a car seat, will need to park legally and escort your child to the side walk.
Students who are dropped off after 8:10 a.m. are considered late and will need to be walked to the front doors, and signed in using a QR code located on the outside front door of Sprague.
Dismissal Procedures PM Kindergarten to Second-Grade
Students will be picked up in the Pick Up Drop Off lane beginning at 2:35 p.m. Parents should enter Sprague’s East parking lot from Reliance Ln and pull up to the pick-up area. Staff will be wearing brightly colored vests. Have your child’s name placard in the passengers side windshield.
Dismissal will start at 2:35 p.m. We ask that students who have siblings, stand in line with their siblings so that they can be loaded into their cars together. Please put your car in park.
A staff member will open the door and load your child(ren) into the car. Staff members will then hand-signal for you to proceed forward to exit.
Walking and Biking to School
Children are allowed to bike and walk to school if they live in the neighborhood. We ask that people who are picking up their children wear a mask and socially distance themselves. Students who are being pick-up and walking or bike riding, will also be picked up on the sidewalk adjacent to the east parking lot.
Early Childhood Pick Up and Drop Off Procedures
PM Kindergarten Program
PM Kindergarten Drop off Procedures
Parents will drop off students at the front door at 11:45 a.m. where classroom associates will greet them. Please park your car legally in either the east or south parking lot. Walk your child to the front doors of Sprague. Students can enter Sprague at 11:45 a.m. where staff will be at the doors to greet students. Do not use the bus lane for drop off or pick up. This is for bus use only.
PM Kindergarten Pick Up Procedures
Students will be picked up in the Pick Up Drop Off lane in the EAST Parking lot beginning at 2:35 p.m. Parents should enter Sprague’s East parking lot from Reliance Lane and pull up to the pick up area. Staff will be wearing brightly colored vests. Dismissal will start at 2:35 p.m. We ask that students who have siblings, stand in line with their siblings so that they can be loaded into their cars together. Please put your car in the park mode. A staff member will open the door and load your child into the car. Staff members will then hand-signal for you to proceed forward to exit. Please stay in a line, practice patience, and DO NOT PASS other vehicles. The line will then exit on to Reliance Lane making a right hand turn. Parents of children who are not independent with seat belts, or who are in a car seat, will need to park legally and pick up your child from the parking lot.
Transitioning Back to In-Person Learning
As we transition back into the in-person learning environment, please read this letter carefully. In-person instruction is very different from previous years, specifically because we have to work extra hard to make sure that our students and staff are as safe as possible. I would like to ask parents/guardians to abide by the CDC guidelines for COVID. As a family, wear masks, wash hands, and watch your social distance from others outside your home. If your family has not been following these guidelines, I would encourage you to have your child take a RT-PCR COVID test that can be found at CVS, Walgreens, your physicians, or a Lake County testing site prior to returning to school. Please do the COVID-19 checklist prior to sending students to school daily. If your child has COVID-19 symptoms, do not send them to school. The goal is to continue to remain in-person as long as we can so these little steps can help us achieve this. Please refer to Superintendent’s Scott Warren’s letter on travel.
We believe that communication between home and school is essential. Communication from the building principal is delivered through Sprague’s Wildcat Weekly. District news will be sent via the D103 News, which will also be sent through email. Over the coming weeks, these resources will be essential in sharing pertinent details with families. Your child’s teacher will provide information about their partnership and curriculum through their weekly newsletters and/or website pages. They will also communicate with parents through SeeSaw. Please take a moment to read these messages since it will be our primary mode of communication with families. If you have questions about the school processes and procedures, please contact Principal, Ann Hofmeier at ahofmeier@d103.org.
Bus routes for in-person learning beginning on Jan. 19 have been posted in PowerSchool. If you changed your mind about transportation and would now like it provided for your child, please fill out the Transportation Request/Change/Joint Custody Form.
When students arrive at school, they will have their temperature taken. Any student with a fever of 100.4 or higher, or demonstrating COVID-19 symptoms, will be sent home from school. The school nurse will advise parents of exclusion steps required based on the Illinois Department of Public Health Interim Exclusion Guidance. We also ask that parents begin having children practice wearing masks, socially distancing, and developing hand washing routines so that they are prepared for these same expectations when in-person at Sprague. Please send your child to school with enough masks since they might need to change masks as they become moist. We’d recommend at least 4 masks be kept at school. Please review this article on proper mask wearing.
Classroom student size has been capped at 12 students for our K-2 Classes. Early Childhood classes are only taking students who qualify for Individual Education Plans at this time and are no longer accepting community peers into their program in order to assure there is room for students who turn three and need early childhood services with an IEP.
Kindergarten through second-grade children will have their own individual desks and will not sit at tables with multiple children. Students are spaced 6 feet apart. Common furniture and supplies have been removed from the classrooms and students will now need to use their own individual materials. Please send your child’s supplies to school on the first day of in-person. Classroom teachers should communicate with you the materials they would like students to bring to school.
Each day, students will now bring their iPads and chargers back and forth to school. We ask that parents help students to charge their ipads nightly so that they will be ready to go when they arrive at school. iPads should always be in the student’s backpack and can even be charged in backpacks. The reason for iPads going back and forth is there is the potential for rooms, or the school, to go back into quarantine. We’d like students to have the tools they will need to be successful if this is to occur. Having their iPad will be critical to engaging in curriculum.
First- and second-grade students will have a 30 minute lunch and a 30 minute recess. Lunch will be eaten in the classroom. New this year, QUEST will be providing a free hot lunch to all students. Beginning, Tuesday, January 19, students are encouraged to take advantage of the Quest free lunch program offered to everyone. Please complete this form if your child has specific food considerations Dietary Restrictions Form. Students are able to remove their masks and utilize the plexiglass divider that can be placed on their desk while eating. Students will not be able to eat their lunch in the office, so if a parent does not send their child’s lunch to school, and brings it later, they must sign out their child, supervise their child’s lunch, and then sign them back into school.
In the event of indoor recess, we ask that parents pack a bag of individual toys in a gallon size ziploc bag for their child. Items in the bag can include crafts, Legos, books, stuffed animals, dolls, anything that can be used for single use play. We ask that no electronic games be sent to school. When outside, students can take off their masks and play group games like Simon Says, Red Light Green Light, Shadow Tag, and other games where students can socially distance and still be active. Students can also bring their bag of crafts, books, and Legos, outside for use. At this time, the playground equipment will be closed.
Students will have opportunities throughout the day to take mask breaks. These supervised breaks can occur multiple times throughout the day. Students might be taking walks, engaging in curriculum outside, or doing an active staff led activity. These activities will be needed since wearing masks will take students some time to adjust to.
Sprague’s office will be open from 7:30 a.m. to 3:45 p.m. daily, however only staff is permitted inside the building. If a parent needs to speak with the office, staff can be reached at 847-945-6665. Parents can drop off and pick up materials in the front vestibule. Those areas are labeled for parents. If you are leaving materials for your children, please make sure to label the students name, grade, and teacher.
This year, we will not have a lost and found. Please do not send expensive water bottles, clothing, or other items that would be upsetting to lose. Labeling clothes, water bottles, and other student material is important.
We also ask that students bring a filled water bottle to school with them daily. Students will be able to keep their water bottles in a safe area within their assigned classroom space and they will also be able to use our bottle filling stations throughout the school. Having a filled water bottle will eliminate the need to use the hallways as we are trying to limit multiple students in the hallways at a time.
Sprague bathrooms will have social distance guidelines. We ask that students social distance, use the bathroom, wash hands and always leave their masks on. Our custodial staff will be cleaning restrooms throughout the day to help them stay clean. The bathrooms will also have stalls and urinals blocked off so that students are able to socially distance.
Classes that are on an AM/PM schedule will receive a mid-day cleaning. The custodial staff will sanitize desks, chairs, doors, counter spaces, and anything that might have been used by students. They will also be doing a mid-day cleaning of Early Childhood bathrooms.
Sincerely
Ann Hofmeier
Principal of Laura B. Sprague School
District News
Board of Education Meeting
The next regular Board meeting will occur on Tuesday, Jan. 26, 2021 at 7:00 p.m. The notice and agenda can be found on the District 103 Board meeting web page.
Partnership News
How to Raise a Socially Conscious Child
What does it mean to be anti-racist? How do you raise a socially conscious kid? D103 PTO Parent Education experts will share a virtual presentation on how parents can better prepare children to tackle issues of racism, equity, and social justice; how parents can go on their own anti-racism journey; and what steps families can take to build stronger communities through anti-racist work. RSVP for the virtual Webinar on How to Raise Socially Conscious, Anti Racist Kids at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2021.
Community News
COVID-19 Vaccine Coming to Lake County
Year-Long Events
Laura B. Sprague School
Assistant Principal Jennifer Arroyo
Email: ask103@d103.org
Website: www.d103.org/sprague
Location: 2425 Riverwoods Road Lincolnshire, IL 60089
Phone: 847-945-6665
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LauraBSprague/
Twitter: @district103