Hello Bobcat Families,

It was wonderful to see the students for a FULL week; they rocked it! All of the students have been working really hard to follow the Bobcat Way in following expectations of being safe, respectful, responsible, and kind throughout their days. We have been handing out many PAWS and class Golden Tickets! It has been wonderful having the opportunity to witness relationships forming, discussions, laughter, smiles, team building, and the learning of new routines as students fall into new structures. Thank you to all of you who came for Curriculum Night on Wednesday; we value and appreciate your support and partnership this school year!

We had our first Spirit Day this week, and the winner of the most Bobcat Pride 3W and 4L (photos below!), even got a visit from BOB the Bobcat delivering the Bobcat Pride Spirit Trophy! We also had our Men of Brookdale today, and we just love having them a part of our day! Be sure to check out the picture below of some of our male role models.

On our Friday Announcements today, we talked about our Brookdale Bobcat Traits. These traits connect to our District 204 Portrait of a Graduate. Each month we focus on one trait, and we talk about how we can all work on these traits! This month's trait for September is Adaptability. With adaptability, we focus on:

• Following directions

• Whole Body Listening

• Following the group plan

• Adjusting to change

You are welcome to reiterate the trait during this month at home as well. Throughout the month, students can receive a Positive Office Referral for consistently going above and beyond in demonstrating and working on this trait! Students can also receive a Positive Office Referral for consistently showing the Bobcat Way in being respectful, responsible, safe, and kind throughout the year.

Thanks for all of your support as we have transitioned into a great start of the year! I hope you all have a wonderful, long weekend ahead. We will see the Bobcats back in action on Wednesday!

Full of Bobcat Pride,

Mrs. Keeley Schmid

Brookdale's Proud Principal

Each season of the school year (Fall, Winter, Spring) we assess students in the areas of math and reading through our universal benchmarking platform called iReady.

We use the results of these tests, along with assessments from the classroom, to allocate various academic supports to ensure we are meeting the needs of all of our students.

Results of these assessments will be available in ParentVUE at a later date to be released. More information on these assessments can be found here.

We hope our Bobcats are ready to smile! It's time for your child's school photograph on Thursday. Classes will be photographed during time slots of 9:20-12:20pm. We did ensure each class is photographed prior to his/her lunchtime to avoid the spills! Every student is photographed for safety purposes even if not published in the school yearbook. A photo form was sent home with your child on Friday, 9/1.

Our Bobcats are so fortunate to be under the care of Nurse Lin!

Kindergarten Students, Students New to Illinois, Students being enrolled in a public school for the first time

- Physical examination on an IDPH School Health Program & Child Health Exam Update dated after 8/24/22 or later with updated immunization complaint with Illinois requirements. DUE by October 15, 2023.

- A vision exam by an eye doctor on an Illinois Eye Exam form dated 8/24/22 or later. DUE by October 15, 2023 (This is different from the vision screening done in school).

- A dental exam on an Illinois Dental Exam form dated between November 15, 2022 and May 15, 2023: DUE by May 15, 2024

2nd Grade Students

- A dental exam on an Illinois Dental Exam form dated between November 15, 2022 and May 15, 2023: DUE by May 15, 2024

Health Forms

Student emergency action plans guide our health care team to provide quality health care in our schools, account for student safety, and protect a student’s rights while reducing any health barriers to the learning environment. These plans facilitate communication between the student’s family, outside health care providers, teachers, administrators, and the school’s health care team to ensure that the student's access to the classroom is maximized in a safe environment. https://www.ipsd.org/Page/2485

Medication During the School Day

All medications (over-the-counter or prescribed) that may be needed during the school day, must have the following form completed by both a physician and parent/guardian. All medication brought in must match exactly as what is ordered on the form. A student may carry and self-administer rescue medication as outlined in the District's policy. Medication may not be shared with other students. Medication Forms

We are so grateful to ALL of our community who said "YES!" to joining Brookdale Team IPEF. Check out all of our runners/walkers below! We have some exciting fundraising events coming up that your Bobcats won't wan to miss (below), including a Running Club for our 3rd-5th graders (Sign up below.). We also will have our 4th Annual Movie Night Mania featuring The Super Mario Brothers Movie! Come join us, Bobcats!

Our common district IAR/DLM score release date to parents/guardians in ParentVUE is Friday, September 15th, 2023. Scores will only show for our current 4th and 5th grade students who took the assessment last school year.

Our school’s highest priority is the safety of our students and staff. In order to maintain a safe environment, it is necessary that we practice our emergency and crisis response plans.

We are required by the Illinois School Safety Drill Act (105 ILCS 128/1) to conduct a minimum of six safety drills per school year to ensure that our staff and students know their role and are prepared to act during a potential crisis. These safety drills are designed to protect students from danger in and around a school.

We do not conduct surprise drills. We teach students that drills are for practice, and we when practicing, we want to learn and grow from these experiences. We will conduct our safety drills on the following days and times this school year:

8/30 @9:30-Evacuation/Fire Drill-Completed

9/12 @2:30-Evacuation/Fire Drill

09/22 @9:30-11:00 (scheduled times)-Bus Evacuation Drill

10/2/23 @10:00-Law Enforcement Drill with NPD School Resource Officer

10/23/23 @9:45-Evacuation/Fire Drill with Naperville Fire Department

11/3/23 @9:30-Severe Weather Drill

3/6/24 @2:30-Severe Weather Drill

Congratulations to our first spirit winners of the 23-24 school year: 3W and 4L! We saw SO much Bobcat pride flooding our halls and classrooms, it was wonderful to see! We reminded our Bobcats to wear their Bobcat Pride every Friday as we just make it extra special on Spirit Days with our friendly competition!

Thank you very much to our returning community members who have helped model the arrival/dismissal procedures for our new families! We are appreciative of your patience as students fall into new routines this school year. As a friendly reminder, cell phone usage is not allowed in a school zone while operating a vehicle. This is for the safety of our students.

You may choose to park and walk to come get their child. Please be sure to check out this link where you can park when picking up your child. If parking in a designated parking zone, please help out fellow community members by parking as close to the curb as you can. Naperville Police Department will begin patrolling periodically after Labor Day and writing tickets for illegally parked/standing cars during the school's arrival/dismissal time.

Picking your child up by car and don't want to get out of the car? The only option if picking up your child while staying in the vehicle is via our carline that begins on Bainbridge and wraps onto Redfield Road.

It takes a team to ensure all students get to and from school safely, and we appreciate you following these procedures.

We have continued with one of our School Improve Goals connected to Attendance this school year. We want to continue sharing the importance of attendance and being here when school begins. It sets your child up for success!

If we do notice students are having multiple absences or tardies, we will reach out to see how we can support your family in getting your child to school. When they are at school, we can do our job in helping them grow! We are in this together, so if you are in need of support, reach out to us.

If your child does need to be absent, you can report the absence on ParentVUE. Just add a note for the reason of the absence as we have to record it for state reporting.

We are so grateful to all of our Veterans who have served this great country! We are hosting a Veteran's Day Assembly on November 10th for our 3rd-5th graders, and we would love the opportunity for them to hear from our Veterans in our community!

Please complete this form if you are interested in speaking at our assembly or know a Veteran that would be willing to join us!

"A book is a present you can open again and again."

The Birthday Book Club program invites students to donate a book of their special choosing to the LMC during the month of their birthday. One day each month all students who have chosen to participate in the program will go to the LMC after morning announcements to choose his or her book. A photo of the student will be taken and placed in the book on a special bookplate indicating the donor and his or her birthday. The book will then be checked out to that student. This is a great way to give a lasting gift to the school and celebrate your birthday at the same time.

Click here to learn more! Birthday Book Club

Brookdale PTA makes it easy to submit photos all year long to the school yearbook. Simply email your favorite school pictures to brookdaleyearbook@gmail.com so we can build an archive of images for our annual school yearbook. Please only send ONE picture of each memory to help us avoid duplicates.

Send your Bobcats in with spare change to shop this small collection of school supplies and fidgets. The Busy Bobcat store is run by Fifth Grade students who learn how to manage money, plan inventory and develop leadership skills while earning funds to benefit their end-of-year class party. This is an optional shop for kids to enjoy browsing that appears in the LMC roughly once per month.

The PTA is an organization of parents, staff, and community members committed to enriching the school experience for all students and staff at Brookdale. With exciting programming, events, and tons of resources offered to our Bobcats each year, we work hard to ensure that Brookdale stays at its best!

Joining the PTA gives you the opportunity to make a difference in your student's time at Brookdale. Plus, meet new people and get to know the staff in a fun environment. The PTA will connect you to important school happenings and resources that benefit your child. And importantly, joining the PTA strengthens our community - we need your unique perspective to make a difference! Yearly membership is $20 for a single adult and just $30 for a family membership (two adults). All proceeds go back to benefit Brookdale! Sign up today! http://www.brookdalepta.org/membership/

Morning Greeter – Volunteers Needed

Help support Brookdale Elementary by volunteering as a Morning Greeter! The greeter is a friendly, welcoming face who directs adult visitors to the office, assists students who arrive late, and delivers items to the classrooms. The time commitment is only 30 minutes from 9:00 – 9:30am (9:10-9:45 on Wednesdays). Help is needed each school day – you can sign up for a single day, choose a day per week, or select as many days as you can to help keeping Brookdale mornings running smoothly! SIGN UP HERE

Men of Brookdale – Volunteers Needed

Calling all enthusiastic and caring male role models (dads, grandfathers, uncles, etc)! Ignite a positive impact in your child’s educational journey through our remarkable Men of Brookdale (MOB) program. Join in on the playground and in the lunchroom and help play games, open containers and have fun with your child and peers. Please sign up at the link below and timing is flexible. There are two sessions each day: 11:00am-12:25pm (Grades 2/1/5) and 12:15pm-1:50pm (Grades 4/3/K). Volunteers can sign up for one or both sessions. Dates are available a couple Friday’s each month – it’s fun, simple and rewarding! SIGN UP LINK If you have any questions, email Tim Phelan at timphelan15@gmail.com.

Monday, September 4

No School – Labor Day

Tuesday, September 5

No School-School Improvement Planning Day

Wednesday, September 6

Fall Benchmarking Begins

Thursday, September 7

School Picture Day

Friday, September 8

Bobcat Running Club @7:45-8:45am

TA Meeting @ 8:25am

Busy Bobcat Store @ 8:30-9:00am

Bubble Gum Sales Begin @3:35pm

Upcoming dates in September:

9/11 School Board Meeting

9/12 PTA Committee Chair Kick-Off 6:30pm/PTA Meeting @7:00pm/After PTA Meeting @8:00pm

9/13 Family Dinner Night Fundraiser: Lou Malnati’s

9/15 Men of Brookdale/ Movie Night Mania @5:30pm

9/20 Project Arrow PTA Meeting

9/25 School Board Meeting