Hawk Talk

Half Day’s Green Team club has collected an estimated 500 pounds of bottle caps over the past couple of years in an effort to help clean up the environment by keeping them out of the landfills, but also to turn them into two benches for their courtyard.

The Green Team now has enough bottle caps to submit to the Green Tree Plastics, of Evansville, Indiana, for its program called ABC Promise Partnership, which allows students to recycle plastic bottle caps and lids into benches for their communities.

Tracy Gordon, Green Team Sponsor, expects Half Day to install the blue-colored benches into the school’s courtyard sometime this spring.

The Green Team’s motto is “All Day Every Day: Reduce, Recycle, Reuse, Repurpose! Create a Sustainable Lifestyle!”

Mrs. Gordon emphasizes with students that they are “stewards of our environment. And, their efforts do make a difference as the team will soon see with two benches made out of bottle caps.”

Half Day's musical this year is “Jukebox Time Machine”. The musical includes songs from different decades including the 50s through the 2000s! Fourth- and fifth-grade students may participate in the musical. For information about the musical, please refer to the musical packet. If your child is interested in being a part of the musical cast, please sign them up by Friday, March 4, through the RevTrak Web Store. Please email Mrs. Smidt at asmidt@d103.org if you have questions about the musical.

Congratulations to Archit Killedar, fifth-grade, who moves on to the regional spelling bee competition, after securing a top spot in the Lake County Sectional Spelling Bee event. The next competition takes place virtually Wednesday, March 16.

Get a signed copy of Author Mitali Perkins' books by purchasing an advanced copy through our RevTrak Web Store beginning Monday, Feb. 28. The author visit is planned for Thursday, April 21 when Mitali will sign books for students so please be sure to include an inscription in your order details if you would like a signed copy. The deadline to order books is Friday, March 18.

The March lunch menu is now available to view.

Half Day needs 30 parents to fill out the Illinois 5Essentials Survey so we have access to their feedback regarding school climate and learning conditions in District 103 through the state-administered, Illinois 5Essentials Survey. We need 20 percent of our parents to take the survey in order to see the results. The chart shows how many Half Day parents have taken the survey to date.

The 5Essentials survey is a great way for D103 parents to provide input into the five indicators from the survey that affect and predict school success:

• Effective Leaders

• Collaborative Teachers

• Involved Families

• Supportive Environments

• Ambitious Instruction

Registration is open for the spring Girls on the Run (GOTR) team for third- through fifth-grade girls.

GOTR is a non-profit, national program that inspires girls to be healthy and confident by using a fun, experienced-based curriculum, which creatively integrates running. The lessons encourage positive emotional, social, mental and physical development.

• Sessions will be held 3:40 to 5:00 p.m. Mondays and 7:30 to 8:40 a.m. Fridays
• Practices will be held both indoors and outside as weather permits
• The season will begin on Monday, April 4, and it will conclude on Friday May 28
• All current state and local COVID safety protocols will be communicated before the start of season and strictly followed
• Cost of the program varies based on household income. Please see the GOTR registration page for the fee structure. The registration fee includes a t-shirt, water bottle, journal and participation medal.
  
• There are limited GOTR spots. They will be allocated on a first come, first served basis through the registration process. Be sure to choose Half Day School as the site.

Please feel free to contact the program coordinators, Cat O’Keefe at seaglass13@gmail.com, or Jen Friedman at azjenf@gmail.com, with any questions.

We are also looking for volunteer coaches – no experience necessary; just a desire to work with girls and have fun! Send questions to Jen or Cat, or go to the GOTR website.

The next Board of Education meeting will occur at 7:00 p.m. March 15. The notice and agenda can be found on the District 103 Board meeting website page. D103 board meetings will be held in-person and live-streamed each month on our YouTube Channel. Members of the community should attend the meeting at 111 Barclay Boulevard, Lincolnshire if they would like to make a public comment. The public can also contact the Board at board@d103.org.

We are back live and in person for the annual D103 PTO 5K! Race day is Saturday, May 21, and takes place at Daniel Wright. Join us to run/walk as a community to raise money for our favorite school district.

Go to the Run for D103 website for more information and to sign up to run and to volunteer. (many volunteer positions still allow you to run the race!)

Did you know family sponsorships are available? For $200, family sponsors receive up to 6 race registrations, your family name on the back of a T-shirt, and a portion of the entry fee is tax deductible!

Registration is now open, with early bird discounts ending April 15, 2022.

*Registration fees do not include RunSignup Processing Fee

The PTO invites parents to an Open House from 6:30 to 8:00 p.m. Tuesday, March 15, at the Lincolnshire Swim Club, 2 Yorkshire Dr, Lincolnshire. Join us as we get together and celebrate a successful year! Meet our PTO Board and explore volunteer opportunities. As we celebrate, we will begin planning for the next school year!

• Half Day Calendar
• Archived newsletters

Principals

• Principal Jill Mau
• Assistant Principal Laura Delagrange