Weekly Update 4/15/24-4/19/24
Upcoming Dates
Monday, April 15: D101 Board of Education Meeting (6:15pm)
Tuesday, April 16: 2nd Grade Field Trip to Morton Arboretum
Tuesday, April 16: Student Council (lunchtime)
Wednesday, April 17: 5th Grade AM Band & Orchestra Rehearsal at McClure (7:30-8:15am)
Wednesday, April 17: 4th Grade PM Band & Orchestra Rehearsal at McClure (3:45-4:30pm)
Wednesday, April 17: FUSION (3:30-5:15pm) (FINAL ONE!)
Thursday, April 18: Cicada Assemblies AM
Thursday, April 18: Chess Wizards (lunchtime)
Thursday, April 18: Choir Rehearsal (lunchtime)
Thursday, April 18: Club Amigos (lunchtime)
Thursday, April 18: BAM Theater (3:30-4:30pm)
Friday, April 19: Sticky Fingers Cooking (3:30-4:30pm)
Wednesday, April 24: Half Day Early Dismissal (11:40am) (AM Kindergarten attends)
Thursday, April 25: Spanish Dance Assembly (10:00am)
Thursday, April 25: PTA Fitness Fest (1:00-3:15pm)
Thursday, April 25: BAM Theater Final Performance
Tuesday, April 30: Devorah Heitner: Navigating the Digital World Parent Presentation at McClure (6:30pm) (RESCHEDULED)
Wednesday, May 8: Half Day Early Dismissal (11:40am) (PM Kindergarten attends)
CICADAMAGEDDON!
Get excited! It’s time to start thinking about the lovely little creatures who will be coming out in the TRILLIONS sometime in the next few weeks. As you can imagine, we’ll have the full range of students–those who are terrified and won’t want to go outside to those who will be trying to eat them. In an effort to get ahead of the "buzz", on Thursday morning, April 18, we have a local “cicada expert” (if there is such a thing!) who is graciously coming to Forest Hills to talk with students about cicadas. Hopefully, this will help even out the energy and alleviate any big fears associated with these special guests.
Eclipses, cicadas... what other natural wonders could we possibly encounter this year?!?! 🤣
Upcoming Safety Drills
Another Spring practice is for us to review our safety drills and procedures. In that spirit (okay, requirement!) we have the upcoming scheduled drills:
Monday, April 22: Fire Drill (10:30am)
Friday, April 26: Lockdown Drill (10:15am)
The WSFD will be on-site for our Fire Drill and members of the WSPD and WSFD will be present for our Lockdown Drill. As always, we take the utmost care in preparing students for these required drills. We strive to strike the right balance of importance of "knowing what to do" in a situation, but in a way that isn't stressful or doesn't elicit fear.
Aside for the usual "first Tuesday" tornado/take cover drills as the alarm sounds, this will conclude our drills for the year.
INFO FROM PREVIOUS UPDATES, BUT STILL RELEVANT...
Class Placement 24-25: Input
This is the time of year when we begin the process of creating class lists for the upcoming school year.
The following parameters will guide class placement:
- All classes at all grade levels will have children representing a broad range of academic abilities, needs, and backgrounds.
- Class placement will be made based upon the development of the whole child --academically, socially and behaviorally.
- Class lists are carefully constructed by current grade-level teachers and staff who work with each student, with final decisions determined by the building Principal. We take class list determination very seriously, weighing the needs of each child and striving to build balanced, productive, supportive classes. A great deal of time, thought, and consideration goes into the creation of class lists, as this is a critical element to a thriving school experience for all.
Knowing that our staff work arduously to build thriving classes, if you wish to share insight for your child’s specific needs, this is the time to do so.
Parents who wish to make a statement to describe their child’s academic, social, and/or behavioral needs may do so in writing via email (rcorrough@d101.org). These comments, focused on your child’s learning style and specific academic/social needs, will then be given consideration as a part of the process.
We cannot accept any requests or avoidances for specific teachers; with (largely) only two sections per grade level, parent input can not limit the child’s placement to a single option and thus are not able to request or choose their child's teacher. Please note that any request for or against a specific teacher will NOT be included in the class placement process.
Please email me with any specific input NO LATER THAN Friday, April 26, for your input to be considered in our placement process. Thank you!
Student Ownership Attribute–Critical Thinker/Problem-Solver
This month, our Student Ownership Attribute is Critical Thinker/Problem-Solver. We want to encourage students to embrace challenges, think deeply about situations and empower them to solve problems they encounter. These could be experiences both inside and outside of the classroom and school setting.
Our D101 definition of Critical Thinker/Problem-Solver is: Able to focus on a problem, identify its root, generate reasonable alternatives, & determine a path towards the best possible solution.
Some of the components we discussed at the various grade levels were:
What do you do when you when your first idea/solution doesn’t work?
Iteration is an important part of life and learning
Having a growth mindset helps us embrace challenges and become great problem-solvers
Looking at a situation differently than others can be a really good thing!
We’ve discussed these talking points in connection with the following grade level texts:
Kindergarten: Can I Play Too?, by Mo Willems
1st Grade: Solutions for Cold Feet, by Carey Sookocheff
2nd Grade: Going Places, by Peter and Paul Reynolds
3rd Grade: The Most Magnificent Thing, by Ashley Spires
4th Grade: What Do You Do With A Problem?, by Kobi Yamada
5th Grade: Mr. Ferris and His Wheel, by Kathryn Gibbs Davis
Although this is our collective focus for the month of April, we always look for ways to practice being great Critical Thinkers and Problem-Solvers in our lives.
Register NOW for the Annual WS-OTSC Circle of Friendship Party
Who: All D101 and Off the Street Club students, Grades K-5
Where: The Corral - LTHS South Campus, 4940 Willow Springs Road
When: Saturday, April 27th, 12:30-3:30 PM
Why: The Circle of Friendship Party is an afternoon of brotherhood between D101 and OTSC kids. WS students will pair up with a buddy from OTSC to form a new friendship while enjoying games, DJ Maximus, pizza, cotton candy and more!
Learn more about the event and REGISTER HERE!
We are also in need of volunteers to make this event run smoothly - please register using the links below:
Adult Volunteers Register HERE
High School Volunteers Register HERE
Junior High Volunteer Register HERE
Last but not least, we are collecting donations for Off the Street Club's Camp Closet. OTSC has a summer camp located in Wheaton, IL, and most kids do not have the means to arrive at camp with the essentials (think sheets, swim suits, sunscreen, etc.). Therefore, the club hosts a “Camp Closet” where the kids can go shop for items needed for camp.
CLICK HERE for the OTSC Camp Closet Amazon Wish list.
Door Dash/Uber Eats Lunch Deliveries
We've had a very significant increase in the number of student lunches being delivered via Door Dash or Uber Eats. While we all enjoy a special treat once and awhile, meals being delivered via this method are becoming an issue.
Delivery drivers are often unfamiliar with the location of the school's main entrance and sometimes try to access other doors. (One driver told me his map routed him to the FH parking lot as I was redirecting him to the front of the building.) We are vigilant about keeping all doors locked at all times, but the extra unfamiliar visitors are an unnecessary situation.
Additionally, we've had numerous instances where students have mistaken someone else's delivery for their lunch and eaten a lunch that didn't belong to them. This has left others without a lunch and has taken quite a bit of the office's time to sort out the situation.
Now that you're aware this is becoming an issue and that food deliveries are not preferred, we ask for your partnership in helping with this issue. Parents, caregivers, or familiar adults are welcome to still drop-off special lunches (that are clearly labeled with the student's name), but we ask that you only utilize an external delivery service as a last resort or in a dire pinch.
Thank you for your understanding and support.
District Calendar 2024-25
The District 101 Board of Education will officially approve the 2024-25 school calendar at it's January meeting, however, it is "public" as of today. I know a number of families are anxiously awaiting the release as those summer vacation itches are already happening! Please find the calendar attached below.
Culture of Appreciation Reminder
Send a message of gratitude to staff HERE!
Word From WSFEE
Clubs/Activities Sign-Up
Sticky Fingers--Spring Enrollment
2023-24 School Calendar
Have a lovely weekend!
Rachel
Rachel Corrough
Email: rcorrough@d101.org
Website: www.d101.org
Location: 5020 Central Avenue, Western Springs, IL, USA
Phone: (708)485-5184
Twitter: @corrough