I shared in an email with you last week a link to updated health guidance posted on the Illinois School Board of Education (ISBE) website: https://www.isbe.net/covid19. We are reluctant to share a single "pdf" document, as this guidance changes frequently. Instead, this website will contain all recent and archived guidance since the start of the pandemic.

A Note of Caution:

Whenever guidance is updated, there is a brief learning curve for the IDPH, the LCHD, and our nurses to interpret the new information and operationalize it appropriately. With almost two years under our belt through the pandemic, we know that as the weeks pass following the distribution of updated guidance, the health departments provide districts with greater clarity in how to implement what is written. Therefore, while these documents are a good reference point for you, our nurses (in tandem with the LCHD) will provide you with the MOST up-to-date information when you call them directly.

In addition, we have also learned that every familial situation is unique and we want to ensure we provide the best guidance to a family based on their specific situation. Therefore, we cannot stress enough to contact our nurses if you have a question regarding any guidance or have a symptomatic child(ren). We know that when COVID-19 impacts a household -- it is unsettling! We are here to walk you through the guidance via a brief conversation.

Finally, please keep in mind our school must continue to follow the ISBE school code directive for remote learning (July, 2021), which specifies that remote learning for COVID-related situations is only an option for students under "official" quarantine as specified by a certified health official.

Thank you all for your continued support through these interesting times -- and please stay well.

A summer of imagination awaits at Oak Grove School!

Camp Galileo for Pre-K – Rising 10th Graders

Camp Galileo engages kids in hands-on, STEAM-based learning that captures their imaginations and builds lasting skills. Supported by an inclusive environment and the boundless talent of the best staff around, kids get inspired to turn their big ideas into reality—and have the fun-filled summer of their lives.

Every week brings a new adventure, with activities tailored by age and wrapped up in a whimsical theme:

• AMUSEMENT PARK ADVENTURE: Step right up to a playful park of your own design.

• CASTLES AND QUESTS: Embark on an epic journey to medieval times.

• DINOSAUR DIG: Unearth an adventure of prehistoric proportions.

SEL at Oak Grove (Updated Weekly)

The theme for the month of January is commitment. Please take a few minutes to view the January page of our website to see what’s happening in SEL. Please click here to access the Oak Grove SEL website.

If you have any questions, please contact Susie Kiefer at skiefer@ogschool.org.

Mental Health Minute (Updated)

The Mental Health team at Oak Grove, consisting of our School Social Workers, our School Psychologist, and the Social Emotional Learning Coordinator, will be providing you information on several social emotional topics throughout the 2021-22 school year. Twice a month, we will provide you with a brief overview of a topic as well as at least one resource for additional information. Please feel free to reach out to Ryan Murray, SEL Coordinator, if you have questions or need help finding more information. Please click on the link below for this week’s issue.

January - Anxiety

*If you need support or are looking to support someone else please visit Safe2Help Illinois and/or our website for valuable information.

Important Dates

• Jan. 18 - Committee of the Whole Board Meeting 6 PM, Regular Board Meeting 7:15 PM in the Junior High Library
• Jan. 19 - LHS Jazz Festival
• Jan. 25 - Jazz Band Concert, 6:30 PM

MLK, Jr. Day Of Service

If your family participated in Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service, the PTO would love to share pictures of your work on our Facebook page! Email photos to PTO@ogschool.org.

Spots Open! Feed My Starving Children

OGS families will be packing meals at Feed My Starving Children in February. If you'd like to be involved, please register before February 1st.

*Helpful tip* When you go to the FMSC page, the dates read “full” because they are reserved for OGS. Please scroll to the bottom where it states “Looking for a Specific Group?” and enter the codes below to access our dates.

● Thursday February 10th from 4:30-6:15 use code 738VYE to register– 25 spots open

● Saturday February 12th from 7:00-8:45 use code WXW9YX to register – 10 spots open

● Monday February 14th from 7:00-8:45 use code KLDN72 to register - 73 spots open

For safety reasons, children under age 5 are not allowed to participate.

PTO Volunteers: Order Your Winter “PTO Crew” Shirts & Sweatshirts

“PTO Crew” long sleeve shirts and sweatshirts orders are due by this Friday, Jan. 21st. To order, click here: Sports 11 Online OGS Shop. When the shirts are ready, Sports 11 will call you to pick up your shirt in store. (Note: The long sleeve t-shirts are unisex Gilden shirts and run true to size. The writing is OGS royal blue–in case your monitor displays it differently.)

Junior High Book Fair

Anderson’s Book Fair Co. is coming to Oak Grove February 1-3 for the Junior High Book Fair! All 6th, 7th & 8th graders will attend the fair during the week with their ELA classes. Cash & credit card will be accepted. Stay tuned for more information in the next two weeks! Any questions? Please contact Melissa Sallmann at melissagroner@hotmail.com. Click here to check out some of the selections Anderson’s will be bringing to our school!

Hot Lunch Volunteers Needed

We still need volunteers in the lunch rooms to help distribute Marla’s Hot Lunches. It’s super easy, yet essential, that we have volunteers EVERY day. Click these links to sign up to help in the elementary or Jr. High lunch rooms. Thank you! We love our volunteers!

Hello band parents! Please be aware of a few schedule changes this week due to the Jazz Festival tomorrow, Wednesday Jan 19th. (Details below)

Jazz Band rehearses Wednesday & Friday morning.

Concert and Symphonic Bands rehearse again on Thursday morning.

Beginning Band:

The bands are sounding great! We would like to record our first song as a band to send you this week. So please have your child practice #25 Lightly Row to get it ready for the recording, and we are moving into pages 8&9 in our lessons. Have your child use the E.E.Interactive online recordings for guidance to help with the new material. Please note: Blue Beginning Band will not have rehearsal and there will be no alto saxophone lesson tomorrow (Wednesday, Jan. 19) due to Jazz Fest. Trumpets will still have their lesson in the afternoon.

Concert/Symphonic Bands:

The bands are sounding great with their new music! We will have to cancel Wednesday morning's rehearsal (and all 6-8 lessons) for the Jazz band festival. If your child is in Jazz Band, you will still come tomorrow morning. Our regularly scheduled rehearsals will resume on Thursday, January 20.

Jazz Band:

Tomorrow is the Jazz Festival at LHS!

We will rehearse in the morning. After homeroom, it’s time to board the bus. Students will rehearse and participate in a clinic with a professional jazz musician/teacher. After words, a pizza lunch will be provided. If your child wishes to opt out of the pizza lunch, they should bring their own cold lunch. Then each of the participating schools’ bands will perform their music for each other. We will return to school by 2:00 p.m.

Jazz students will need the instruments, Jazz music, playing masks and bell covers.

Jeans are recommended over sweats/athletic wear as each student will wear an orange LHS Music T-shirt (handed out tomorrow). A long shirt to wear under the shirt is recommended as it is often a bit cool in the auditorium.

TAG Advisory Council Appeal Requests Due January 24th

Parents requesting participation in the TAG program appeal process are required to complete the Parent Inquiry Form, also on pg. 22 in the TAG Handbook. Forms must be completed and emailed to Leslie Weber at weber@ogschool.org no later than Monday, January 24th. Parents will be notified via email regarding the follow-up steps and final decision of the committee.

Please note, the appeal process may only be utilized once per calendar year.

TAG Identification Webinar

There will be an informational webinar in regards to the identification process for TAG and the TAG program. This webinar is open to all families, but will be focused on the identification process for current 3rd and 5th grade students. If you would like to attend the webinar, please register here. You will be sent a link to the webinar once you have registered.

Calling all LHS seniors! Are you an OGS alum? Be sure to apply for the OGEA Eagle Scholarship!

The Oak Grove Education Association is proud to offer the seventh annual Eagle Scholarship which is given to an Oak Grove alum who has demonstrated excellence in academics, character, extracurricular activities, and service. The OGEA represents the certified staff at Oak Grove School. Our educators are committed to the success of all current and former students.

Applications are due February 16.

Check out our previous Eagle Scholarship recipients!

We are overwhelmed with the amount of school supply donations for our Fill a Heart 4 Kids MLK Jr. collection drive. We were able to fill about 40 bags to be distributed to school children in surrounding communities. However, we have about 30 more bags that are in need of 3-subject notebooks.

We are asking the community’s help in filling the rest of these bags. If you are willing, 3-subject notebooks can be dropped off at the main office through this Friday 1/21. We appreciate the support from our Oak Grove students, parents, staff and community! Thank you!