Happy Friday Cougar Families,

We have had another great week here at Kipling. Our students are engaged in fun, challenging activities in their classes and the commitment we have made to the social and emotional needs of each student is evident throughout our school. I especially enjoy the dynamic of our lunchrooms this year with older grade levels being paired with younger ones. It is awesome to see how many siblings look to find each other, share a quick hug, and get back to their tables. I know you might not see affection shown exactly like that at home, but deep down they do really care for each other. In addition to siblings, our Buddy classroom system achieves the same goal. Our older buddies are checking-in on their younger peers and our younger buddies are always looking for their older partner to give a quick high five, special handshake, or embrace.

Our staff’s commitment to your children and their SEL development is second to none and your partnership is invaluable in this process. We are all very lucky to be a part of this incredible community and I am proud to be a part of it.

All my best to you and your families over the weekend!

Respectfully,

-Matthew

Mr. Matthew O. Lombardo, NBCT

Principal

Kipling Elementary School

Please visit https://kiplingpto.membershiptoolkit.com/home for all things PTO. Please also note these important upcoming dates:

9/20: Portillo’s Fundraiser

10/6: PTO Meeting, 9:30am in the Teachers' Lounge

10/14: Pumpkinfest @ Kipling, 11am-2pm, Sensory-friendly time: 10:30am-11am

Please feel free to email ptokipling@gmail.com for any questions!

Parents, we have been reviewing bus expectations with our students who ride the bus. Can you please talk with your students at home to reinforce these directions?

-They should be seated with their seatbelt fastened at all times.

-They should not be yelling to ensure all students can hear the driver.

-All Kindergarten and 1st grade students must sit at the very front of the bus.

-And most importantly, they need to follow these expectations so the driver can focus on driving and not get distracted.

Thank you for partnering with us to ensure every child has a safe and positive experience on the bus.

Bus passes are still being assembled and distributed across the district. We will let you know the date that drivers will begin checking for these. If you have any questions or issues, please contact transportation@dps109.org.

Hi Kipling Families!

We appreciate your patience as we get Destination Imagination ready for this school year. The original interest meeting we had planned for Thursday, September 21st for parents, will now be for students only and we will be meeting in person at 8am in Room 32 (Ms. Guest's classroom). If your child is interested but cannot attend, please reach out to Laura Koterbski (lkoterbski@dps109.org) and Krista Guest (kguest@dps109.org), and we will send you all the information from the meeting.

Again, thank you for your patience! We are looking forward to a wonderful year of Destination Imagination. -Laura Koterbski & Krista Guest

Mark your calendars! Parent-Teacher Conferences will be held on Thursday, October 26th from 1:00-4:00pm & 5:00-8:00pm and Friday, October 27th from 8:30-11:30am. All DPS109 schools will hold in-person parent-teachers conferences this year with an option to Zoom for parents/guardians who are not available for an in-person conference.

Parents will sign up for a conference using Sign-Up Genius. I will share links for all teacher sign-up forms on Thursday, September 28th, at 5:00pm.

It is best practice to hold one parent conference per child, to ensure that both parents receive the same information regarding their child’s strengths and needs. Therefore, I ask that parents sign up for one joint conference per student.

Conferences are a discussion between parents and teachers. At this time elementary conferences do not include students and therefore we ask that children not attend the parent-teacher conference.

Kipling is composting! We are excited to be rolling out a lunchtime recycling and composting program during the Kindergarten and 2nd grade lunch period. And soon, we will be expanding our composting efforts to the other two lunch periods as well!

We are looking for daily parent volunteers to help students as they learn our new routine. Parents can sign up for a once a week, once every other week, or monthly slot. If you aren't familiar with composting, we promise it's easy. We will provide training and the kids will catch on quickly. This is a great chance to help the planet and see your Kipling kids in action. Please email Sandra Merrill at SandraKMerrill@gmail.com or Jessica Lorber at Jzindell@gmail.com or Jessica Cohen at jessicabrody12@gmail.com for more information about volunteering. Sign up to volunteer here.

30-Day Reminder To Turn In Health Forms!

It is very important that we have the most up to date health information for your child.

PHYSICALS: All new students, Early Learners, kindergarteners, and 6th graders must have an updated health form on file by October 15th or they will be excluded from school.

EYE EXAMS: Kindergarteners and new students must have an updated eye exam on file by October 15th or they will be excluded from school.

DENTAL EXAM: All new students, kindergarteners, 2nd graders, and 6th graders must have an updated dental exam on file by May 15th of this school year.

CLICK HERE TO SUBMIT FORMS

Park District Before and After Care

The Deerfield Park District runs all of our before and after school care programs. Please contact the Park District, 847-945-0650, if you have questions.

Park District After School Enrichment Information

Sharing on behalf of the Deerfield Park District: registration is open for fall enrichment programs. To see a brochure of programs and get more information, visit https://www.deerfieldparks.org/programs/youths-teens/.

If you have any questions, please contact the park district directly as they run the programs.

-Wed 9/20: Portillo's PTO Fundraiser!

-Mon 9/25: No School

-Thurs 10/5: Picture Day

-Fri 10/6: PTO Meeting in the Staff Lounge, 9:30-10:30

-Mon 10/9: No School, Indigenous People’s Day

-Sat 10/14: Pumpkinfest @ Kipling, 11am-2pm, Sensory-friendly time: 10:30am-11am

-Thurs 10/26: ½ Day of School Student Dismissal at 11:40am

-Thurs 10/26: Parent Teacher Conferences, 1-4pm and 5-8pm

-Fri 10/27: Parent Teacher Conferences, 8:30-11:30am

-Tues 10/31: Halloween Parade! More info coming soon…