IG PARENT NEWSLETTER
DECEMBER 2018
Indian Grove Elementary School
Assistant Principal: Mrs. Amy Veytsman
Email: mcannata@rtsd26.org
Website: http://ig.rtsd26.org/Home
Location: 1340 North Burning Bush Lane, Mount Prospect, IL, USA
Phone: (847) 298-1976
Facebook: www.facebook.com/IndianGroveSchool
Twitter: @IndianGroveEdu
Our Life Rules: Be respectful, Be responsible and Be ready to learn!
Message from the Principal
The holiday season is a busy time both in and out of school. There are festivities planned at Indian Grove such as the Gingerbread House Night, Holiday Boutique, concerts, charity drives from our GCSG kids and historical lessons about how various cultures celebrate events in December. It can be quite hectic but also exciting at the same time. Please make sure your child attends school the entire month up until winter break begins on December 22.
With this last month of 2018 upon us, we look forward to this time along with starting the 2019 calendar year at IG with some engaging learning experiences. Field trips take place during these winter months as do outdoor recess periods! Please make sure to bundle up your kids for their outdoor adventures in December and January. There is an article this month about weather-related school closings and recess guidelines and what is expected in District 26. We have already had one snow day. Let's hope we don't have too many more!
On behalf of the staff at Indian Grove, I want to wish each and every family a very warm and wonderful holiday season! Thank you for all that you do to make Indian Grove School a great place to learn and grow.
Respectfully yours,
Mrs. L. Fisher
Principal
DECEMBER EVENTS
Tuesday - Dec 4 - Kindergarten Field Trip to the Marriott Lincolnshire
Thursday - Dec 6 - Late Arrival
Friday - Dec 7 - Linda/Michael Program for fifth graders.
Monday - Dec 10 - Kindergarten Field Trip to the Library (Frew/Larson)
Tuesday - Dec 11 - Kindergarten Field Trip to the Library (Miller)
-Board Meeting at River Trails Middle School - 7PM
Wednesday - Dec 12 - Kindergarten Field Trip to the Library (Duda/Klawans)
-4th Grade Fire Safety
-PTC Meeting - 7PM
Thursday - Dec 13 - Late Arrival
-School-wide hard lockdown DRILL with MPPD
Friday - Dec 14 - PTC Holiday Boutique during PE classes
Wednesday - Dec 19 - 1st Grade Purple Asparagus Program
Thursday - Dec 20 - Late Arrival
-Winter Chorus Concert (3rd-5th grade) - 2:15PM & 7PM
Monday Dec 24th - Friday Jan 4th - NO SCHOOL - WINTER BREAK
Monday - Jan 7 - Classes Resume
Teaching Children To Give
This year, create a new holiday tradition with your family — get involved in a charitable activity. It's an ideal way to teach your child values such as generosity, compassion, and gratitude, and prevent her from coming down with an annual case of "the gimmes." The months of November and December are a great time to get involved, as there are a plethora of opportunities to suit your family's interests and availability. It's also a chance to try out several different types of activities and find one your family can get involved in all year round. We've got a number of ideas to get you started but to find more options and specific opportunities in your neighborhood, visit volunteermatch.org.
1. Host a Coat or Food Party
Drumming up donations is a great way to start a tradition that not only helps your community but also strengthens bonds within it. It's great to give some canned goods or your family's old coats to a charity, but making it a party takes it up a notch. For a coat party, have guests bring coats that are used but still in good condition. If you want to have a food party, ask for canned and dried food and have kids help pack it up for food banks and shelters.
2. Sing and Dance for Joy
If your child is the type to surprise you with impromptu puppet shows or sing from dawn to dusk, consider harnessing that energy to put on a play (or other performance) at a nursing home or community center. Involve everyone in the family in making costumes and sets, and recruit other families and friends to play parts.
3. Help Furry Friends
For animal lovers, helping out at a pet shelter is an easy choice. Donate a few days or just an afternoon to give the regular staff a break and fill in for vacationers. Even during the holidays, dogs need to be walked, cats need petting, and all animals need to be played with, fed, and have their cages cleaned. If you have young or sensitive children, a no-kill shelter is a good option (especially if you don't want to come home with a new pet!).
4. Serve a Senior Citizen
If your child is unable to spend time with his grandparents this season, consider reaching out to an elderly person. The winter and holiday months are often the hardest on the elderly and a little help will be much appreciated. Help your child connect with past generations by visiting with seniors in a retirement community or nursing home. Your child can give manicures or makeovers, deck the halls with boughs of holly jolly décor, help wrap gifts, or read to the hard-of-sight.
5. Feed the Needy
The most familiar way to volunteer is still a perfect one: help out at a soup kitchen or food bank. The holidays are the busiest time at shelters, and they need help setting up, serving, and cleaning up. If your older child is interested in cooking, he can don an apron and help prepare food in the kitchen.
District 26 Food Drive
First Place Winner is from Indian Grove!
"Look. Listen, Learn, Be aware; Fire Can Happen Anywhere" was the theme for the 2018 Fire Prevention poster contest sponsored by the Mt. Prospect Fire Department. Any student in Mt. Prospect may submit a poster depicting this theme.We had many posters submitted and one of our students took first place in the contest. Natalia Strugacz, grade 5, was honored at a Village Board meeting in November for her poster which was voted the best of all the fifth grade posters in the village! Ths picture is from an article in the Mt. Prospect Journal. Congratulations to Natalia for this great honor!
Winter Weather
As the weather becomes colder, let me remind all parents that our students DO go outdoors for a 25-minute recess every day. Students remain indoors only if:
● Air temperature is below 15 degrees (street patrols stay indoors)
● And/or the "real feel" temperature is below 15 degrees (street patrols stay indoors)
● There is heavy rain or snow coming down
● Shortened recess (10 min) may occur if the temperature is just below 15 degrees
If the weather gets really inclement, the CLOSING OF SCHOOL will be announced during the early morning hours. The district has an automated calling system for the cancellation of school. Parents/guardians of District 26 students will receive an early morning call announcing the closing of school Our school office doesn’t open until 8:00 AM and our phone system can’t always accommodate the volume of calls on bad-weather days! Thanks for your cooperation.
Emergency School Closing Information
As we enter the winter months, River Trails School District 26 would like to update you on some of the factors that contribute to closing school in the event of a weather-related closing and when you can expect to be notified. We have taken your feedback into consideration and thought it productive to share this information with you in advance of any occurrence of severe weather.
The District has been engaged in collaborative and substantive discussions with our surrounding school districts and meteorologists. The District is committed to a process that ensures decisions are made wisely and in a timely fashion regarding the safety and well-being of our entire school community.
The District will follow these general guidelines when closing schools for winter-related closings:
● Schools will be closed if there is a forecasted sustained wind chill of -30 degrees Fahrenheit or colder, or when the actual temperature is a sustained -15 degrees Fahrenheit or colder between the travel times of 5:30 a.m. and 9:00 a.m. and/or 2:30 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. The District will use forecasts provided by the National Weather Service.
● For snow, ice, or other weather-related closings, the District will monitor the current conditions, the forecasted conditions between the travel times listed above, the ability of our staff to plow parking lots and sidewalks, as well as the ability of local municipalities to plow and make streets passable. The District will also be in contact with its transportation carriers to assess their ability to safely run buses. In these situations, the District will be in contact with local and State officials, along with meteorologists in order to make the most appropriate decision with the facts known at that respective time.
● If school will be closed, the District will make the notification by 5:30 a.m. the day of the closing knowing that you may need to arrange for childcare or other schedule changes. If the District is able to make the determination the night before to close school – meaning the forecast undoubtedly warrants closure – the District will attempt to notify you between 6:00 p.m. and 9:30 p.m.
● Typically, the District does not send out an automatic phone notice after 9:30 p.m., as the system can sometimes take up to an hour or so to complete all calls. The District will update its website, social media accounts (www.facebook.com/RTSD26 and twitter: @RiverTrailsD26), and the Emergency Closing Center Website (www.emergencyclosingcenter.com) as soon as a decision has been made. However, in the event the decision to close school is made after 9:30 p.m., the District will wait and send out automatic phone notice by 5:30 a.m. the following morning.
● In the event of severe weather, information regarding afternoon and evening co-curricular activities, athletics and community education classes will be updated by 1:00 p.m. or whenever practicable on the District website at www.rtsd26.org.
● The District will follow the same procedures as noted above in the event of a weather related late start. ● School Code, and District policy, allows parents to call their student out as excused in the event that the
district keeps schools open and the family has concerns about the student safely traveling to or from school.
As always, the safety and security of our students and staff remains a top priority of our District, as they are for you as well. Thank you for your support and consideration in this matter.
Entrance to the School
Visitors must STOP IN THE OFFICE TO SIGN IN BETWEEN 7:50 AM & 4:15 PM. All doors into the school will be locked at all times including the main entrance. Visitors can be allowed in by buzzing the office outside of Door #1. This policy is not intended to discourage parents from visiting Indian Grove School, but it is simply intended to provide an additional measure of safety and security for our children. Please do not drop children off before 8:20 a.m. There is no adult supervision until 8:20 a.m. Also, if you need to drop off anything to your child after 8:40 AM, bring it to the office for delivery. Please DO NOT bring it to the room yourself. The front door will be locked by 4:30 PM each day. If you or your child needs to pick up a forgotten item, please do so before 4:30 PM.
Safety First
We all know to be careful in the parking lot during drop off and pick up times. But parking lot safety must be followed AT ALL TIMES. We still have drivers doing U-turns after dropping off children at Kid Squad before 8:00 a.m. or they are not paying attention to pedestrians in the lot when driving. There are NO U-TURNS allowed in the lot at any time. As stated before, dropping off and picking up students must be done by door #6 and not any further east. Let's all work together so that our students, staff, and parents stay safe on the school campus.
Picking Up Students at 4:15 PM
There are many after-school activities, classes and clubs that meet from 3:30 - 4:15 P.M. Students who stay after school must either take the activity bus home (free of charge), walk or be picked up by an adult. All walkers and bussers should exit Door #1 by the main office. All students getting picked up by an adult must exit by Door #6. Drivers must wait in line by Door #6 for their students. Please do not park in the pick-up line and leave your vehicle. Staff members will be by both locations directing students.
School Absences
Remember to call the office when your child is absent from school. Calls can be made 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to our attendance line. Just dial 874.298.1976 and press 1. By doing this before the school day starts, it saves our staff time in trying to find out if a child is present that day. Excused absences are given for illness, doctor visits and family emergencies. All other absences are considered unexcused.
In addition, if there is a change in how your child will be getting home from school, please call the office by 3:00 PM. It is very difficult to get a message to a homeroom teacher when a parent/guardian calls after 3 PM with a change of plans. We appreciate your cooperation in helping our office staff take care of our students!
Purple Asparagus Program for First Grade
Please mark your calendars for the monthly Purple Asparagus program. Once a month, the 1st graders will learn about nutrition and healthy eating. The dates and topics of each Purple Asparagus class during the year are:
· December 19 – Oranges
· January 16 - Chocolate
· February 13 – Beans
· March 13 – Roots
· April 17 – Herbs
· May 15 – Berries
Preschool Screenings Information
RTSD26 will offer preschool screenings to all District 3 and 4 year olds suspected of having a developmental delay. In addition, we will also be screening students to see if they are eligible for the ECDEC preschool program and our Bilingual Spanish Preschool program. To be eligible for these programs, families must meet specific criteria, such as speaking a second language in the home, income level, or other criteria that can be explained to you at the screening.
If you are concerned that your child has a delay in vision, hearing, motor, speech, language, cognition and/or social functioning, call 224- 612-7308 to set up a screening time. All screenings are done by appointment only and take place at Parkview. Screenings are held on Thursdays and are once a month through April.
If you are unsure if your child is developing appropriately, please consult with your child's preschool teacher or pediatrician for advice. The Center for Disease Control offers the following information: http://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/actearly/milestones/index.html
Your child must be at least 3 years old at the time of screening. Screenings are staffed by educational professionals and therapists who will make recommendations for further action to parents. All screenings are at Indian Grove and by appointment only. Translation services are available. To make an appointment in Spanish, please call Mrs. Perez or Mrs. Santiago at 224-612-7402
SCREENINGS DATES: (2018/2019): 12/13, 1/10, 2/14, 3/14 & 4/18
Board of Education
Your district’s Board of Education meets on the 1st and 3rd Tuesdays of every month at 7:00 PM. Meetings are held either at a school or the Education Service Center (ESC), 1900 East Kensington Road, Mount Prospect. The ESC is the administration center adjacent to Park View School. At one of the semi-monthly meetings, an education report is presented. These reports highlight something special happening in the district.
You are cordially invited to attend, ask questions, and learn about the district. Copies of the Board’s agendas and minutes are posted on the district’s web site at http://www.rtsd26.org. Please contact the Superintendent’s office (847) 297-4120 x 7301 for information concerning Board meetings.
If you want a Board member to contact you, please call the Superintendent’s office and leave your name and telephone number. A Board member will return your call.