Westfield Arrow
Aiming to Keep You Informed
January 14, 2022
From the Office
The window for the 5Essentials annual survey conducted by the Illinois State Board of Education is now open. There are separate links for parents, students, and staff to use to access the survey. Staff receive their link via email. For parents/guardians, please see the next section for information on accessing and completing the 2022 survey. For students, we will share a survey link with them through their classrooms and set aside time for them to individually complete the survey. The 5Essentials Survey measures schools in 5 key areas: Effective Leaders, Collaborative Teachers, Involved Families, Supportive Environment, and Ambitious Instruction.
2022 Illinois 5 Essentials: Parent Survey
The 5 Essentials survey should take about 10 minutes to complete and is phone friendly! We really value your feedback and we encourage you to complete the survey. Thank you!
Link to survey: http://survey.5-essentials.org/illinois/survey/parent/
It will ask you to type in DuPage and Westfield Middle School
The survey closes on March 11, 2022
Revised procedures for Covid+ and Close Contact Quarantining
Please see Dr. Bartelt's Parent Message, sent on January 12th, regarding updated quarantine guidelines.
Reminder - If your child is quarantining at home:
Starting on the 4th day of absence, a Remote Learning Support Teacher (RLST) will provide two and a half hours (2 ½) of daily contact for students using Google Meets.
By the 3rd day of absence, a RLST will email each student and their parent/guardian with the link to join the support sessions.
Students are expected to work independently on their school work in conjunction with the 2 ½ hours of direct contact they receive from our RLST.
- Student work will be made available by each of their classroom teachers.
- Students and their parents/guardians should stay in regular contact with each classroom teacher to determine the best method to access materials and resources.
- Individual teachers may exempt students from portions of the work that is missed or provide alternative activities for lessons that are difficult to recreate at home.
- Students will receive extended time to complete school work upon their return to the classroom.
PTO sponsored trip - Chicago Wolves Hockey
Check out the flyer in today's Arrow to attend a Chicago Wolves Hockey game with other Westfield students on Sunday, March 13th.
Looking ahead
No School on Monday, January 17th in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.....Please see the Revised District 13 Calendar for 2021-2022 for additional important dates.
Have a wonderful extended weekend!
Stefan Larsson
Principal
Amanda Vreeland
Assistant Principal
WARRIOR OF THE WEEK
Each week the staff recognizes students for demonstrating outstanding character based on attitudes or actions that fall under the Character Counts Pillars and our WARRIORS Mission and Vision: ''We are W.A.R.R.I.O.R.S.; our mission and vision for the future are for all staff and students to be Welcoming, Ambitious, Respectful, Responsible, Innovative, Optimistic, Reflective and Successful."
UPCOMING DATES
Please visit our Google Calendar for all activities and schedules!
- NO SCHOOL/Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr Day: January 17th
- NEW! Science Club with Mr. Tuomi: Thursdays 3:40-4:50pm
- FULL DAY OF SCHOOL + Hot Lunch (pre-ordered): January 21st
- End of Quarter 2: January 21st
- Begin Quarter 3: January 24th (check your class schedule)
- Auditions for 'Frozen, Jr.' Spring Play: January 24th & 25th
- Cafe Zupas Fundraiser Night: January 25th (see flyer below)
- Lake Park Freshman Course Selection Forms are due to the Westfield Main Office by January 27th - See the Lake Park Website for more information
WESTFIELD THIS WEEK
Freestyle Drawing in Art
Student Council Leadership Activities at DuJardin
Winter Art Contest Winners!
8th Grade Family Immigration Project Presentations
2nd Quarter Art - What game are students creating?
Science Club - Creating a support bridge without smashing the egg
Grade Level News:
The teams will be updating the links weekly during the school year with news and any upcoming information.
Weather & School-closing information
Remember to check the District 13 website in the event that weather patterns dictate the closing of district schools. The District will also use phone messages and/or email blasts to alert parents of any school closing. Please make sure we have your current contact information.
Otus: Student Progress for 6th & 7th Grade Parents
How Parents Can Log in to Otus:
- Sign in to Otus (if you have not set up your family account, please follow the directions in this video or this article to do so.)
- PLEASE READ FIRST: Your student already has an Otus account from the school district. To avoid confusion, it's best to use your own name rather than your student's name when creating the Family account. Both the video and the article have the same information. Please view whichever is more convenient for you.
- (If you have created your family account, but need to connect your student's code, have your child log in to Otus and click Edit Profile. Their student code is located at the bottom of that page.)
- To check your child's progress on Otus, click on Gradebook, then choose which class you would like to see progress in.
- To check your child's completed assignments on Otus, click on Gradebook, then click the three dots in the top right corner to change the "Grading Scale" to "Completion Scale."
STUDENT INFORMATION
Order a Westfield Yearbook Today
Yearbooks will be delivered in May 2022. Students can get signatures from teachers, friends, etc. the last day of school in 2022.
If you need a School Code: 1014041382501890
PARENT INFORMATION
Info for Parents: 24/7 Online Student Tutoring
1. Parent Webinars [English | Spanish] - 45-minute live sessions for parents
2. Parent Handout PDF - helpful to print and handout at parent meetings
3. Pre-Recorded YouTube [English | Spanish] - helpful resource for parents
Live-Streamed Webinar for Parents
LIVE YOUTUBE LINK for 1/25/22 at 6:30pm
New Year, New Gear!
Questions? Email Linda Korbel at sasha0708@yahoo.com
NEW MENU ITEMS FOR HOT LUNCH!
Please use this link for ONLINE ordering information:
- HOT LUNCH INFO & ORDERING
- Questions? >>Email Linda Korbel at sasha0708@yahoo.com
Students Will Need Their P.E. Shirt for Gym Class Every Day
- Students are required to wear their uniform shirts for P.E. class each day. This year, the students are only required to change into a P.E. shirt. However, they do have the option to purchase P.E. shorts, bring their own athletic shorts, or simply wear the pants/shorts they wear to school that day. [Students now have their own gym lockers with locks.]
- P.E. shirts and shorts are $10 each and can be purchased throughout the school year by writing a check to Westfield Middle School or paying with $10 cash and having your child give the payment to their PE teacher.
FROM THE WESTFIELD NURSE
FROM WESTFIELD TECHNOLOGY
Chromebook Trouble?
If you need assistance from the Technology Department, please have your student use this link to request support:
Students: Please log out of your Chromebook and log back in daily
See this video on how to log in and out of your chromebook.
Get the Parent PowerSchool App
Similar to the PowerSchool Parent Web Portal, parents can download the PowerSchool Mobile App from the App store on your iOS device or the Play Store on your Android device. Simply search for “PowerSchool” to find and install the mobile app on your smartphone or tablet.
- After downloading the mobile app to your device, connect the Mobile App to the correct PowerSchool server for Bloomingdale School District 13, by entering our unique, four-character code: G M K T
- You can also search for Bloomingdale SD13 by district or school name.
- The PowerSchool Mobile App will display your child(ren)’s schedule and assignments.
- PowerSchool Mobile app users can also enable Push Notifications to receive alerts when attendance is recorded or a final grade changes. To setup notifications within the app: Tap Account, then tap Notifications to configure the notifications you want to receive. Use the slider icons to turn the notifications on or off.
- Note: Parents must have a PowerSchool Parent Web Portal account created and students linked to their account before using the PowerSchool Mobile App. Click here for instructions on how to create a parent Portal account.
'How-To' for Parents/Guardians:
FROM THE WESTFIELD SOCIAL WORKER
Want to give someone a shout out?
Teenage Depression and Anxiety
Reminders
Social-Emotional Supports
If you feel that your child is struggling on a social-emotional level, please do not hesitate to contact our Social Worker, Mrs. Sheila Zagotta,
Monitoring Social Media
We believe that it is extremely important for parents & guardians of middle school age children to frequently monitor their child's texting and social media usage and continuously review the expectations for appropriate use of electronics and social media accounts. We encourage parents and guardians to assist us by limiting or restricting access to texting and social media accounts if students are not using them appropriately.
As a school, we strive to promote and encourage positive and respectful interactions among students both at school and in the community. As part of our social and emotional learning program we work daily with students to educate them on appropriate social skills, appropriate technology usage, responsible decision-making, respectful interactions, problem solving techniques, and conflict resolution.
Academic Supports
Paper is academic support that connects students in grades 1-8 to a live, human tutor in that content area via chat. Please see this video for Parent Information on Paper tutorial for more information. (Papel para Padres en Español)
Daily Attendance
Please contact the Main Office at 630-529-6211 or email Laurie Spejcher to report any student absences. This will help us to keep accurate records of every student present in our building. Thank you!
Quarantining due to Close Contact
A Close Contact is anyone with whom the confirmed COVID case had close contact, within 3 feet, for at least 15 minutes throughout the course of 24 hours. Exposure on a bus must include everyone who sat within 3 feet of the confirmed or probable COVID case for 15 minutes or longer. At lunch, with masks removed, close contacts are anyone within 6 feet for 15 minutes or longer.
Westfield Middle School does not have to exclude all students in a classroom from attending school because a student in the classroom tested positive for COVID...Only those students who were Close Contacts with the confirmed student will be required to quarantine according to the current IDPH and ISBE guidelines. It is important for students to wear a mask & maintain 3-feet of social distance from others at all times.
If your child is quarantining at home:
A Remote Learning Support Teacher (RLST) will provide two and a half hours (2 ½) of daily contact for students using Google Meets.
By the 3rd day of absence, a RLST will email each student and their parent/guardian with the link to join the support sessions.
Students are expected to work independently on their school work in conjunction with the 2 ½ hours of direct contact they receive from our RLST.
- Student work will be made available by each of their classroom teachers.
- Students and their parents/guardians should stay in regular contact with each teacher to determine the best method to access materials and resources.
- Individual teachers may exempt students from portions of the work that is missed or provide alternative activities for lessons that are difficult to recreate at home.
- Students will receive extended time to complete school work upon their return to the classroom.
The Glenbard Parent Series
Join other parents, high school and middle school students, and professionals to learn about issues facing today’s youth such as Student Social Skills and Anxiety, Rethinking Parental Pressure.
The Glenbard Parent Series engages top experts, parents and school staff to become proactive and informed in pursuit of the mutual goal to strengthen our communities. Programs are free and open to the public.
Local Food Pantry at Bloomingdale Church
Roselle Community Food Pantry
WESTFIELD'S PARENT TEACHER ORGANIZATION (PTO)
Board Contacts for Westfield PTO
Vice-President: Linda Baker, parent of a 6th grader sasha0708@yahoo.com
Secretary: Loriann Hoyle, parent of a 6th grader hoylefamily04@hotmail.com
Treasurer: Ranna Kothari, parent of 6th & 8th graders ranna3@yahoo.com
Want to Volunteer at Westfield?
- Westfield Parents and Guardians! Sign up to volunteer for school year 2021-2022.
- CLICK HERE to fill out what you would like to do.
- Questions? Email Loriann Hoyle or Linda Baker for information.
Volunteer to Help at Hot Lunch
PTO Membership Dues
- All-school parties
- Teacher appreciation
- Scholarships
- Field Trips
- Student awards
BLOOMINGDALE PUBLIC LIBRARY
Upcoming Library Programs
WESTFIELD SOCIAL MEDIA COMMUNICATION
How-To Videos
Gmail:
- How to delete all email (6th grade)
- How to appropriately write an email
- You can only email other sd13.org email addresses
- Creating Bookmarks
- Starring and snoozing Emails
Google Classroom:
- How to Join Classroom(with Code)
- How to Join with Teacher Invite
- Check Stream and classwork page
- How to Turn in assignments
PowerSchool: Coming Soon
- Logging in
- Checking grades
- Seeing assignments
- Comments from Teachers
FlipGrid:
Chromebook: