Dear Elmwood Families,

We hope everyone has had a safe and wonderful Spring Break! The teachers and students will be working hard over the next 7 weeks (38 days…but who's counting?) to ensure that every student is ready for the next grade level. It is more important now that kids are at school and on time every day!

As you have noticed construction is underway at Elmwood Elementary. As a reminder, arrival and dismissal doors may have changed so please be sure to check with your classroom teacher if you have questions. This past week they started excavating for the boiler room in the alley and the new addition in the courtyard, removed asbestos, and put up a temporary wall in the courtyard. We will be sending out a monthly newsletter in detail on what is going on but in the meantime, check out the district website that includes more information as well as pictures of the construction projects. https://www.epcusd401.org/construction

This month we have the Trunk or Treat at EPHS on Sunday April 10th! We also have our Spring Book Fair coming the week of April 18th-22nd along with a movie night on April 22nd for all students! Want to know more, take a gander down below and check it out.

IAR Testing:

Every year our 3rd-5th grade students take the Illinois state test called the Illinois Assessment for Readiness. Elmwood will be taking in on April 8th-April 14th. Please be sure that your child gets to school on time, gets a good night’s sleep, and also eats breakfast! The kids will take 3 math assessments and 3 reading assessments. Want to learn more about it: https://www.isbe.net/iar

If you have any questions or need anything please don’t hesitate to reach out to Mr. Lerner, lernerm@epcusd401.org or Mrs. Hagins haginss@epcusd401.org! We look forward to a wonderful week and weekend!

Sincerely,

Mr. Lerner & Mrs. Hagins

Thank you to everyone who purchased tickets and who participated in our Pie in the Face Assembly. A special thank you to the 16 staff members who volunteered to get pied in the face for a great cause! We were able to raise over 800 dollars for the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation and to Cal's Angels! Great job Elmwood School!

Join us on Friday, April 22nd for family movie night! Bring a blanket and your own snacks and enjoy Sing 2 in our gymnasium. Doors open at 6:15 and the book fair will be open during the first half of the movie. All students who attend must be accompanied by an adult.

Our 5th grade students are invited to take part in this year's color extravaganza at Elm Middle School. Please see below for details.

Thank you to an Allstate volunteer for empowering people and our community. Sharon Ceaser gave her time and helped us to receive a $500 Allstate Foundation Helping Hands Grant. The Allstate Foundation supports the causes that Allstate agency owners, financial specialists and employees care about most by providing Allstate Foundation Helping Hands Grants to nonprofits where they volunteer their time to help communities thrive.

• Registration for full and half day kindergarten is now open as of Monday, March 14th, 2022.
• To register, students must be 5 years of age on or before September 1, 2022.
• Any homeless child shall be immediately admitted to District 401, even if the child or child's parent/guardian is unable to produce records normally required to establish residency. District 401's liaison for homeless children is Director of Student Services, Dr. Kari Smith. You can contact Dr. Smith by sending an email to: smithk@epcusd401.org

Elmwood Park Community Unit School District 401 is offering residents of Elmwood Park the opportunity to bring their young children who will be at least 3 years old during the 2022-2023 school year and no more than 5 years old as of September 1, 2023, to Elmwood Park School District 401 for a Preschool Screening.

The purpose of the screening is to identify children who may benefit from a range of programs and services provided to preschoolers at our school. Children who participate in the screening will complete a series of activities to assess their development and readiness for school. Each child will be evaluated in the areas of:

• Language

• Communication and Speech

• English Proficiency

• Social Skills

• Cognitive Skills

• Motor Skills

• Hearing and Vision Screening
  

The complete screening will take approximately forty-five minutes.

If you have a child who will be 3 or 4 years old during the 2022-2023 school year, please attend our in-person preschool screening.

WHEN: Friday, April 29th 8:15am-12:00pm

WHERE: John Mills Elementary School - 2824 N 76th Avenue, Elmwood Park

To confirm your interest in your child to be screened and for further information, email ramirezm@epcusd401.org

Please leave a message and someone will return your call. You may also leave a message in Spanish or Polish.

COST: FREE!

Please share this information with your friends and neighbors who may have preschool children who reside in Elmwood Park.

Tuesday, April 5th- Family STEM Night- "Building on a Dream" at EPHS at 5:00 PM.

Wednesday, April 6th- Board of Education Committee of the Whole Meeting- 6:30 PM @ EPHS Library.

Sunday, April 10th- Easter Trunk Hunt- Elmwood Park High School @ 1:00

Tuesday, April 12th- PATT Meeting @ 6PM in Cafeteria

Friday, April 15th- No School

Monday, April 18th- Friday, April 22nd- Book Fair

Wednesday, April 20th- Board of Education Meeting @ Elmwood Park High School 7 PM

Friday, April 22nd- Family Movie Night! Sing 2 @ 6:15 PM

Tuesday, April 26th- Title 1 Night- Celestial Voyage

Friday, April 29th- Early Release- All students dismiss at 1pm

View all of our upcoming district events by visiting our district calendar.

View all of our upcoming school events and activities by visiting our school calendar.

As a reminder, if your child is sick or has flu-like symptoms, keep them home and send an email to our attendance clerk. The Elmwood attendance email is ewattendance@epcusd401.org . Please include the following information in your email:

• Your child's first and last name
• Your child's grade level and teacher
• Your child's ID number
• Reason for absence and duration of absence

Email is preferred, but you can still call our absence line at 708-583-6260

Absence calls and emails must be received by 8:30 AM. Thank you for your cooperation!

The nurse and/or office clerk will help you navigate through the COVID protocols if necessary. We all need to do our part to ensure that the kids, staff and community stay safe!

If you or someone you know is interested in learning more about becoming a substitute teacher in District 401, please share this information with them. All our open vacancies can be seen on our district website. Start your day with a purpose and join our team!