Prairie Point Panther Press
Newsletter for Prairie Point Elementary School
Friday, November 6, 2020
Welcome to the Prairie Point Panther Press!
Principal's Letter
Prairie Point Families:
I would like to share a big celebration in our Prairie Point community. Mrs. Niles, one of our 4th grade teachers, was honored with the prestigious Military Patriot Award last month. This award acknowledges an outstanding, currently serving military member who has shown incredible courage and determination to fulfill his/her duties. In addition, this individual works diligently to find ways to assure that services and support systems are in place for all military veterans both now and in the future. Be sure to check out the full story on our district and school website. We are so proud of Mrs. Niles!
Material Distribution
We will have materials distribution for all grades (except 1st grade) on Wednesday, November 11th from 9 - 11:30am and 4 - 5pm. Please pull up to the front of the school with the names of the children you’re picking up for displayed on a paper in the window — this helps us expedite the process. Your child’s teacher will let you know if any specific items need to be returned to school. Thank you!
Self-Certification Acknowledgement Form
Thank you to the many families who completed this form last week. While we are delaying our return to in-person instruction, we are still asking all families to fill the acknowledgement form out at this time.
The e-form is available in Tyler for parents to read and complete. This form needs to be completed for students who chose in-person, as well as students who chose remote by choice by November 18th. Please call the main office if you have any questions regarding the Acknowledgement Form.
Parent Teacher Conferences
Parent Teacher Conferences are scheduled for Monday, November 23rd and Tuesday, November 24th. Students will attend school, remotely, from 9am - 2pm. Tuesday, November 24th will be a non-attendance day for students. Teachers should have reached out to all parents about signing up for a virtual conference. If you have not had an opportunity to sign up for conferences, please reach out directly to the classroom teacher.
Home and School Association
I would like to thank our school community for the continued support, especially our Home and School Association. I have been so impressed with the ongoing enthusiasm and creativity from our H&S. They have provided our teachers, students and families with so many of the traditional events and activities in creative new ways. This afternoon we distributed donut kits for our families so that students are able to have Breakfast with a Buddy at home! As a reminder, our Tuesday Night Dinner at Noodles in Company will take place on Monday night this month. Please visit Noodles and Company on Monday, November 9th from 4 - 8pm and support our Home and School!
Please know that Mrs. Fahey and I are here at school to support your family or child any way that we can. Please do not hesitate to reach out to us. I hope that your family remains healthy. Enjoy this beautiful fall weekend!
Sincerely,
Dr. Jennifer Groves
Principal
Grand Opening of the Oswego Satellite Food Pantry
The Oswego Location of the Kendall County Community Food Pantry will be open the first Friday of each month for anyone to receive food.
November 6th
6:00 pm - 7:30 pm
4175 Route 71
Oswego, Il. 60543
No advanced registration required. Please bring something that has your name and address for on-site registration. You will receive an access card for future visits.
For more information, please visit:
https://www.sd308.org/foodpantry
You may also call us at 630-636-3667
Veteran's Day
Next Wednesday, November 11th, is Veteran's Day. On this special day, we honor Veteran's for all that they have sacrificed through the years. Since we won't be able to get together for an assembly this year, if you have a special Veteran in your life, take time to honor and thank him/her in your own special way. If you would like to write a letter or make a card for a Veteran, you may send it to:
American Legion Post 675
Thank You, Veteran
19 W. Washington St.
Oswego, Il 60543
Thank you for taking the time to honor these courageous men and women!
PRAIRIE POINT ELEMENTARY TEACHER RECEIVES THE MILITARY PATRIOT AWARD
Oswego, Ill. (November 5, 2020) — Oswego Community Unit School District 308 is proud to recognize Cynthia Niles, 4th grade teacher at Prairie Point Elementary School, for having recently received the prestigious Military Patriot Award. This award acknowledges an outstanding, currently serving military member who has shown incredible courage and determination to fulfill his/her duties. In addition, this individual works diligently to find ways to assure that services and support systems are in place for all military veterans both now and in the future.
Cynthia has been in the Air National Guard in Peoria for 27 years, currently as an Aircraft Maintenance Deputy Group Commander. Once a month, during drill weekend, she can be found leading a couple hundred Airmen who work on C-130 Cargo Aircrafts. It was at a very young age, when she first experienced an F-16 Fighting Falcon Aircraft fly overhead, that she developed her passion and realization that she would one day be a part of an organization that flies fighter aircrafts.
She gives much credit for her ability to continue in the military to her husband, also a teacher in SD 308, who looks after everything, including their two children while she is gone. It was during her deployment to Kuwait in 2005 that their then one-year-old daughter became seriously ill. He took her to many of the doctor appointments in search of an answer to her health issues all by himself. Cynthia believes he is her real hero and an integral part to her successful Air Guard career.
“I am very humbled and proud to have received this award,” said Cynthia. “It is a rewarding experience being able to bring two generations (veterans and students) together.” Once a year, Cynthia coordinates an all-encompassing Veteran’s Day Assembly where the veterans feel loved and appreciated. She also has her students write letters to military members through the Writing Without Tears Program, write to deployed members of the Senior Center Veterans, and sing Happy Birthday to a WW2 veteran. She has also been a liaison to three students’ families that have had deployed brothers during the time that they were in her class.
She has relied on her military training to get her through these current tough times and believes you need to rely on your family, friends and most importantly, your teammates. Her focus this year with her students is to build on positive relationships and giving attention to those who need it. “Don’t get overwhelmed with the unknown of how everything will work,” said Cynthia, “but work on building a positive rapport with those around you, including students.”
Congratulations, Cynthia Niles, on this achievement!
Tuesday night dinner is on MONDAY!
Make sure to mark your calendars for the change of date.
Noodles and Co is MONDAY November 9th from 4-8pm
Holiday Shop @ Penguin Patch
Dear Parents,
We know that so much about this school year looks different, but we're so excited that our school will be participating in an online Penguin Patch® Holiday Shop to spread holiday cheer!
Penguin Patch® Holiday Shop is a fun way for students to shop for family members and experience the spirit of giving while learning to earn, budget, and save! Our online shop will be open from Nov 1 to Dec 4.
To log in to our school's secure shopping platform, please use this link:
shop.penguinpatch.com
Your student will have over 100 delightful gifts to choose from, all ranging in price from $0.50 to $12. This is an amazing opportunity to empower your student to choose, purchase, and give gifts to their loved ones!
All gifts will be shipped straight to your home for a small flat-fee. They'll arrive in festive "Special Delivery" packaging, with wrapping supplies included! We're excited to create this new holiday tradition and spread good cheer with you!
Happy Holidays,
Celebrate with a Great Book!
We have some very exciting news about a new partnership with the Oswego Public Library District! This partnership has been created to give all students in SD308 access to the digital resources available through our public library. Some of our SD308 students don't live within the boundaries of the library district, so they have not had access in the past. This new partnership will give all students access to the amazing resources our public library has to offer! There are many wonderful databases and ebooks that students may use for research, homework, classwork and personal enjoyment.
Getting access to these resources is EASY! Just fill out the attached Library Google Form. (even if you already have a library card). After you complete it, Mrs. Seiple or Mrs. D will contact you with access instructions and the library card number. IT’S THAT EASY! :) The library card number will be active as soon as you receive it, and will expire on June 1, 2021. Please be sure to complete the form for every child in your household who attends Prairie Point, so that we may give each child her/his own library card number.
In the upcoming weeks, Mrs. Seiple will be showing students how to access resources during her Wednesday Go Live! sessions. She will also post videos with further directions. In the meantime, please fill out the form and start exploring the wonderful resources on your own!
Jessica Seiple
Library Media Specialist
Prairie Point Elementary School/ Boulder Hill Elementary School
(630) 636-3603
Home & School - Konstella
Join us on Konstella!
Prairie Point Elementary's Home and School Board is changing from Membership Toolkit to Konstella!
Unfortunately, with everything that has been going on, your Home and School Board has decided to change our school management software again. This decision did not come lightly to us. We did not want to change to a new software again, when you just signed up for Membership Toolkit, but we needed to make a change for the better. This decision impacts our finances as well as how we manage the events. We think it will be easier for all. Please follow the link below to begin the new sign in. Thank you again for being so cooperative with us.
https://www.konstella.com/cd/0UJE2V
Sincerely,
Your 2020-2021 Home and School Board
Angela McCumber, President
Erin Szostak, Corresponding Secretary
Coreen Sedlacek, Treasurer
Other Ways to Earn for Prairie Point Home & School Organization
Chess Scholars/After school Enrichment
: • Live, interactive weekly sessions with expert instructors o Chess and STEM live sessions are divided by grade level.
• Video lessons with step by step instructions to complete hands-on projects • Project workbooks to reinforce learning concepts
• Access to online Chess tournament play with other Chess Scholars students
Our live class times are held both in the morning and afternoon throughout the week to accommodate your schedules.
Video lessons are available 24/7. Learning is Fun with these engaging enrichment programs!
To learn more, please visit: afterschoolenrichmentsolutions.com ———————————————————————————————————————–————–———— Course Days: Weekdays, October 19th - December 18th, no class 11/23 - 11/27 (8 Weeks)
Live Course Times (both sessions): Weekly live, 30-minute lessons available during morning and afternoons for each course. (Spanish is a 60-minute lesson. All other subjects are 30-minute lessons.)
A weekly schedule will be sent to enrolled participants the Friday prior to each week of the session.
To sign up, please visit https://www.learningmeansfun.com/signup.
Late registrations are welcome!
All-Access Pass Price: $136.00
All-Access Pass Course Code: AES20
Young Rembrandts
CHECK OUT THE ART WE HAVE PLANNED FOR NOVEMBER ! Only $8 per class/household! Drop-in on your favorite day/lesson OR register for all 4 weeks for $32 per household. Each virtual drawing lesson is appropriate for ages 6+. REGISTER NOW FOR YOUR FAVORITE DAY AND TIME! Class sizes limited. Week 1: Fruit Fitness Week 2: Kawaii Animal Friends Week 3: Turkey Expressions Week 4: Fun with Thanksgiving Foods Get a jump start on the December holidays!
Prairie Point Care Closet
If you are in need of any items please send your message to the following confidential email PTCares@sd308.org
News from the Nurse's Office
Kindergarten students:
A completed physical and immunization record (dated after 8/24/2019) is due by October 15th 2020.
A completed vision exam form and dental exam form are due in March of 2021.
2nd grade students:
A completed dental exam form is due by March of 2021.
We can accept any of these forms at any time. They may be emailed (dacuff@sd308.org), faxed (630-636-3612), or left on the drop off table in the school’s vestibule.
Voluntary 24 hr Student Accident coverage plan for the 20/21 school year
"Peachjar" Communication
Oswego CUSD 308 has launched a new communication tool called "Peachjar." School-approved flyers will now be sent to you electronically and posted on the school website. Simply click flyers you receive via email or on the Prairie Point homepage click Digital flyers then Peachjar flyers.