KG November, 2019 Newsletter
Dear KG Parents,
Dear KG Parents,
We are once again excited to celebrate our school’s rating given by the Illinois State Board of Education as a ‘Commendable’ school. This rating demonstrates our growth on the state’s accountability measures which included the Illinois Assessment of Readiness (IAR), the Illinois Science Assessment (ISA), the 5-Essentials climate survey, and our school’s attendance. The staff and students are working toward becoming an ‘exemplary’ school which would put us in the top ten percent of schools in the state. This can be accomplished through a shared responsibility of all stakeholders in the school and making targeted improvements within the school and its programs.
One change is the addition of our breakfast program that started on October 21st. We are hoping to get more students ready for the day with a nutritious breakfast provided by KG staff. Students will enter through door #4 each morning. There will be two service times to accommodate our band students as well. The district is looking to provide more programs this year to support our learners. These are examples of how our district is living its mission statement by, “Making daily investments to empower children to become life-long learners and future leaders.”
November is the month for Parent/Teacher conferences. Kelvin Grove is implementing several new changes with conferences this year. First, students are expected to attend conferences with parents this year. An addition to this year’s report card will be reporting on “Academic Learning Behaviors.” Students are being invited to share with parents their present skill level in areas such as being prepared for class, working cooperatively with others, and showing respect for self, peers, and adults. Another change is the sign up process for conferences. Parents will select times using Parent Square. Teachers sent out invitations on October 24th to cover the two days of conferences. The junior high core teachers (math/science & social studies/English) will be conducting the conferences as a team. Parents will sign up for the team conferences with their child’s science and social studies teacher in grades 6-8. Parents can sign up to see any specials teachers, ie. art, music, technology, PE, band, special education, or accelerated ELA separately.
With the late Thanksgiving holiday, conferences will occur on Monday, November 25th and Tuesday, November 26th. Conferences on Monday will be in the afternoon and evening: 12:30 pm-4:00 pm and 5:30 pm-8:00 pm. Conferences on Tuesday will occur during the morning and afternoon: 8:30 am-11:30 am and 12:30 pm-3:00 pm. Students will not have classes these two days. There will also be no classes November 27th-November 29th in observance of the Thanksgiving holiday.
With the change in daylight savings time approaching, I am always reminded of the change in the seasons as well. The fall weather is always unpredictable but cool mornings and evenings are guaranteed. Please make sure your child has sufficient clothing in the morning as they come to school and if they walk home after a club or activity. Dressing in layers is the best way to combat the changes in temperature during this season. Stay warm and have a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday.
Sincerely,
John Jennings
Principal
A Letter From Our Nurse
During this time of year we tend to see a higher incidence of strep throat, respiratory and gastrointestinal illness.
Wash your hands often with soap and water. If soap and water are not available, use an alcohol-based hand rub.
If sick with flu-like illness, CDC recommends that your child (or you) stay home for a minimum of 24 hours after the fever is gone except to get medical care or for other necessities. The fever should be gone without the use of a fever-reducing medicine for 24 hours prior to returning to school (or work).
While sick, limit contact with others as much as possible to keep from infecting them. Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze. Throw the tissue in the trash after you use it. Wash hands immediately after.
Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth. Germs spread this way.
Clean and disinfect surfaces and objects that may be contaminated with germs like the flu.
In addition to everyday preventative measures, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends for children to get a seasonal influenza vaccine each year. Flu vaccination is recommended for all children aged 6 months and older. The week of December 6-12 is National Influenza Vaccination Week (NIVW), which is a national observance that was established to highlight the importance of continuing influenza vaccination. Making healthy choices can help prevent the flu and spreading flu to others.
As always, please remember any medication needs a medication authorization form (which is available in the office and online) on file in the nurse’s office and the medication must be in its original container. Please contact me with any changes in your student’s medications or the development of any health concerns during the school year. It is important that your student’s health record is kept current.
Finally, with the cold winter weather, PLEASE send students to school with appropriate outerwear including coats, hats, and gloves/mittens. Have a safe and healthy winter.
4th and 5th Grade Guidance
This new school year is well underway and Guidance classes are going well! We have already completed Unit 1: Empathy and Skills for Learning and will be beginning Unit 2: Emotion Management.
As you have probably noticed, we are sending homework activities to keep you aware of what we are learning about and to give you a chance to practice the skills being taught with your children so you can reinforce the learning at home. Since the homework pages are not coming back consistently from some students, we have started a homework incentive for students. Students who have consistently completed homework will receive a free day in Guidance class, consisting of outside play time or fun inside activities. In order for the homework assignment to be considered complete, the worksheet should be completed and include the student’s name, date of completion, and an adult signature. Please encourage your child to bring home and complete the homework activities with you to help solidify the important social skills being taught.
Looking ahead, 4th and 5th grade students will be learning about recognizing how strong emotions affect their brains and bodies, steps to help them calm down, and how to manage their strong feelings. As always, if you have any questions or suggestions regarding the Guidance program, please contact me. I would love to hear from you!
PARENT LIAISON, STUDENT INTERVENTIONIST & PROBLEM SOLVING COACH
Help Our Students Change Their Mindset from Fixed to Growth! Educating our students to change their word, can as a result change their minds. Trying helping your students at home by having them re-phrase their statements to a more positive one.
Lindsey A. Burnette
Parent Liaison/Student Interventionist/Problem Solving Coach
Kelvin Grove Middle School
4th & 5th Grade Technology Class- Mrs. Lakics
Students have been working hard in technology class learning the home row and how to use proper typing technique on Typing Club.
-Mrs. Lakics
Technology Teacher
Digital Citizenship Family Activity Topic: Privacy Rules
4th and 5th Grade Physical Education
This November, we will be heading into our basketball unit. We will be learning and practicing the skills of passing, dribbling, shooting, and layups and we will be playing mini games and lead up games to improve our skills.
4th Grade
ELA
Students have been reading the novel, On My Honor. Students should be re-reading the chapters at home for additional practice.
Students should be practicing spelling words for the tests on Wednesdays.
Math
Please work with your child on fact fluency.
Students can use the think central online component of the Go Math Series to practice concepts learned.
Science
Students have been learning about Natural Processes.
Social Studies
Students have been learning about the government of the United States.
Students will soon learn about the nation’s economy.
Please check your child’s agenda, home folder and teacher website daily.
5th Grade
We finished our first novel Hatchet. Students seemed to really enjoy this book. We had wonderful classroom discussions. In math students have been working on decimals. Place value of decimals and adding and subtracting decimals. Please continue to practice basic multiplication facts with your child. In language students have learned about simple and compound subjects and predicates, clauses, simple, compound and complex sentences and common and proper nouns. In social studies students created a diorama of a tribe depicting the life of early Indians. Our next unit of study will be early explorers. In science students have been learning about ecosystems.
Fifth grade will be going to AMC movies in New Lenox on November 17 to see the movie Wonder. We have been reading Wonder as a read aloud in class. Permission slips were sent home several weeks ago, and the money along with the permission slip are due on November 6.
Please continue to check agendas daily to ensure all homework and signed papers are coming back. All graded work goes home every Thursday. Also, be sure you are signing your child’s grade sheets, which come home weekly as well.
6th Grade
This month, the 6th grade is focusing on responsibility. Students are responsible for turning in assignments on time. If an assignment is not turned in on time, the grade is entered as missing, which records it as a zero. That grade remains missing until the student turns the assignment in and lets the teacher know that they have completed the missing assignment. Please check Infinite Campus for up to date missing assignments. Please remember, Trimester 1 ends on November 8th. Be on the lookout for the online sign up for Parent Teacher Conferences on Parent Square. There will be a post from Mr. Lindstrom sent out soon.
6th Grade Technology Class- Mrs. Lakics
7th Grade
Seventh grade students in ELA are working on the novel study for Chains, a story based on a slave girl in New York during the American Revolution. We’re listening to the story in class, discussing the content and answering reflective questions. We are continuing to work on vocabulary and how it applies to our everyday work and language. In science students are exploring the world of cells and the anatomy of the cell through various activities. Students read articles, watch videos and relate the microscopic world of cells to other visuals. In social studies, students are learning about the Road to the Revolutionary War. Students will see how the British rule pushed colonists to rebel and eventually lead to American Independence. In math, we are going to finish up working with proportional relationships and percentages around mid November! Following that will be working with expressions, equations, and inequalities. As always, we are working towards applying these subjects to real world situations.
7th Grade Technology Class- Mrs. Lakics
Students in 7th grade technology class have been doing research on famous technology innovators and building an animated presentation using Powtoon.com.
-Mrs. Lakics
Technology Teacher
8th Grade
READING-LANGUAGE ARTS
Sadlier Vocabulary Workshop: https://www.sadlierconnect.com/@1952592
The eighth grade classes begin each class session with either silent reading or journal writing. Vocabulary study continues with the online Sadlier Connect program. Reading short stories from our Literature text will continue during the first trimester and beginning of the 2nd trimester. Final quizzes are given after each story has been discussed and analyzed. Independent Book Projects/ Presentations are assigned and due the week of December 9th.
SOCIAL STUDIES - Discovery Education
Online Textbook: http://www.discoveryeducation.com/
United States History (Civil War to Present)
Students will be exploring and discussing in what ways the American Dream became a reality for immigrants to the United States. Students will begin to understand the trends and factors leading to increased immigration during the late 1800s and early 1900s. They will also evaluate governmental and public responses to the “new” immigration of this time period. We will also cover and discuss the causes leading to urbanization during the late 1800s and early 1900s, as well as how industrialization changed American cities, American society and American politics.
SCIENCE -StemScopes
Online Textbook:http://stemscopes.com/ (login with school email and password)
In Earth Science, we will keep investigating the history of planet Earth and the Solar System. Students will also begin to discover what past geoscience processes can tell us about Earth’s materials and natural hazards.
Math
Online Textbook: https://my.hrw.com/ (login with school email and password)
Students will soon be completing Unit 2 on Linear and Nonlinear functions. Unit 3 will expand the knowledge gained in writing linear equations by working on solving equations and systems of equations.
We will begin by solving linear equations. Students will increase their ability to solve equations with variables on both sides of the equal sign through the isolation of variables. We will then move onto working with rational numbers. Students will then use the distributive property to solve the equations before finally looking at equations that have many solutions or no solution.
Next we will look at solving systems of equations or solving more than one equation with more than one variable. Methods used to accomplish this will be graphing, substitution and elimination. Elimination with multiplication will also be addressed. Finally, students will solve special systems.
During this unit, students will either be given a quiz or a project to measure progress on each section performed. Upon completion of the unit, an overall assessment will be given.
8th Grade Technology Class- Mrs. Lakics
Students in 8th grade technology class have been exploring different technology careers and building a website using Google Sites with the research they have found.
-Mrs. Lakics
Technology Teacher
6th-8th Grade Physical Education
Junior High CAD
We are working on reading comprehension in a variety of stories. We learned about parts of a plant, how roots move nutrients up to the flower and completed 2 experiments to show how this happens. We made a connection to photosynthesis, the changing of the seasons, and followed up with leaf rubbings to display in the classroom. In Math, we worked on coins, time, fractions and word problems. We are using writing webs to begin producing a paragraph. Then we write, practicing writing in paragraph form and editing our mistakes before asking for help. Can’t believe it is November already!
Art
Throughout the fall months, we are working on the following projects:
Our 4th Graders have completed a fall still life with accurate size, shape, proportion, and spacing inspired by the work of Paul Cezanne. We also focused on achieving highlight and shadow through shading with watercolor pencils. Next month, we will explore the simplicity and beauty of landscape silhouettes and create our own original watercolor using warm colors. Our 5th Grade students have completed an enlarged animal eye with oil pastels that places focus on color scheme, achieving texture, and demonstrating emphasis. We also explored the technique of overlap to achieve both highlight and shadow. As we progress in the months ahead, we will begin a unit on painting, the color wheel, and exploring the unique styles of both Claude Monet and Vincent Van Gogh.
The 6th, 7th, and 8th grade art students of first trimester are working toward their final assessment. Students will review all artists, skills, terminology, and techniques prior to this cumulative online evaluation of growth.
Please note the following upcoming Art Club dates:
November 6 & 20th for 4th/5th Grades
November 13th for 6 - 8th Grades
Enjoy the Fall season and wonderful school year.
Mrs. Cravens
Music News
November 2019 MG News
To Contact Mrs. Randolph K-8 Music & KG Chorus Director
Email: srandolph@d91.net PHONE: 815-838-0737 ext. 1140
Parent/ Teacher Conferences: Please sign up through the web. Students are requested to attend conferences with parents/ guardians.
CHRISTMAS PROGRAM: All Students in Grades K-5 & KG Chorus will present “Holiday Road Trip” (a musical featuring songs of the season) on Tuesday, December 17 at 10 am & 1:15 pm in the Kelvin Grove Gym (enter Door # 1). The Kindergarten and First Grade will perform two songs on the stage to open the musical. Second through Fifth Graders and KG Chorus will present the entire musical in the gym on the floor in front of the stage. Auditioned Chorus members will be the cast. Morning Kindergarten will perform during the 10:00 am show and the afternoon kindergarten will perform during the 1:15 pm show. Students are to wear nice clothes for this performance.
WEDNESDAYS (8:05-8:30 am): 3rd Grade FREE RECORDER CLUB to earn stickers to pass assigned recorder songs. Enter Main Door at 8:05. Do not come early. (CHECK WEB PAGE BEFORE YOU COME FOR DAYS LAB IS CLOSED.) No appointment needed. Advanced students will earn recorder award at the end of the year. Advanced students earn the opportunity to use music computers and pianos.
Check the music web page: We are encouraging families to sing along with the videos throughout the D91 music web pages. Click on tabs for each grade for homework, music, class pictures and other information. Grades 4-8 receive email through Google Classroom for homework, and will be using Hapara, Quizlet, Quizstar, and other web sites and youtube videos for students and families to learn and share music together. Students are to put graded worksheets in their music portfolio (3-ring binder) behind Chapter 2 Theory or Chapter 2 History and have homework completed by class time each week ready to be graded. Their portfolio should have five tab dividers labeled: 1- Notes; 2 – Theory; 3 – History; 4 – Classical Is Cool; 5 – Music; and save the portfolio (binder) through 8th grade.
MUSIC CALENDAR:
Parents are needed to help decorate and set-up for the Christmas Program. Please return the form to Mrs. Randolph if you can help! This year we are decorating the stage starting in November.
F. Dec.13 3pm (Old Gym closed until 10pm Dec.17)(Parents & Friends help decorate program)
M.Dec. 16 During school morning Christmas Program practice
T. Dec. 17 10 am & 1:15pm Christmas Program (Grades K-5 & Chorus) KG old gym
MUSIC FUNDRAISERS: Crystal Music Instruments (flute, violin, glockenspiel, drum) $20 Each; $5 Hornet Magnets (c. 125 left); $5 Hornet Fathead Stickers; $20 Hornet Tervis Tumbler (only 1 left); Old Country Western Records. Any left will be on display for sale during Parent Teacher Conferences at Kelvin Grove. Send money to D91 Music (Attn. Mrs. Randolph) to purchase them before conferences.
SAVE TABS FOR MUSIC! Please bring metal tabs from soda and other cans to school in a ziplock bag or large mouthed container and have students put in large white buckets in the hallway.
UPCOMING CONTEST INFO:
Kelvin Grove will be hosting our own Solo & Ensemble Contest on Thursday, November 14 from 5:30-8:30 pm. All students who are participating should have already received their times. Please make sure to be practicing your piece(s)! Parents will be needed to help with room monitoring, handing out medals, setting up, tearing down and other activities. Please make sure you have received all the paperwork that came home the week of October 14! This contest won’t run without the help of the parents.
UPCOMING CONCERT INFO:
Our first concert of the year will be on Thursday, November 7 at 7:00 pm in the Feneli gym. This concert will feature Jazz Band, Intermediate Band, and Concert Band. Concert Band will also be performing for the Veteran’s Day assembly on Friday, November 8 at 9:00 am. The Winter Concert and the first concert that will feature the Beginning Band is Tuesday, February 4 at 7:00 pm in the Feneli gym. Please mark your calendars. A calendar of band events and other information can be found on our website: http://kgband.weebly.com/.
FUNDRAISING INFO:
Remember Ad book ads were due on Tuesday, October 22. Thank you for supporting the band through our fundraisers.
Starting on November 4, the Band and Chorus will be starting our Poppin Popcorn sale. We will have all sorts of flavored popcorn for sale in resealable half gallon and gallon bags! Remember that Christmas, New Years and sporting events are great times for some popcorn! All orders and money will be due on Friday, November 22. No late orders will be accepted.
RECOGNITION:
Congratulations to Delaney Coleman and Evelyn Moan for being selected to perform at the ILMEA District I Band Festival. They will be performing at Joliet Central High School on Saturday, November 9. Students from all around the surrounding area audition and only a fraction of students who audition are selected to participate in this festival. It is quite an honor to be selected. Congratulations!
As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact Mrs. Plagman at (815)838-0737 x1139 or nplagman@d91.net.
PTO News
Don’t forget to keep clipping AND scanning those Box Tops! November 1st is the beginning of the second classroom Box Tops contest. If you have any questions on the new scanning process just email us a d9.pto.info@gmail.com. Every little bit that you clip helps towards supporting our children throughout the year! On November 2nd we will be having a Family Freesale day at Milne Grove from 9am to 2pm. Children’s clothing, shoes, and outerwear as well as baby clothing and maternity clothes will be available. We are taking donations of these items that are in good and usable condition right up until the event! As the weather is getting colder we still want to have fun and we’ve planned some events that we can do indoors so mark your calendar for our Chuck E. Cheese night on November 8th and our BINGO afternoon at Kelvin Grove November 16th from 11am to 2 pm. Both of these events are enjoyable for the whole family to participate in so look for more information to come! Just in time for the holidays we will be sending home a new fundraiser for the Metropolis Coffee Company on November 13th. For yourself or for gift giving this fundraiser offers a variety of products to purchase including our own special Hornet’s blend! Orders will be due when we return from our Thanksgiving Break on December 2nd. If you have any questions please contact zofia.pto.d91@gmail.com. Also as an early reminder when we return from the break we will be having the Holiday Shop at both schools during the week of December 2nd to December 6th. The students enjoy coming thru the shop every year to buy their own special gifts for their family and friends and we wouldn’t want anyone to miss out! November 20th is our PTO monthly meeting which will be held at Milne Grove at 6:30pm....and don’t worry about having to cook dinner that night and miss it because it’s also our Mangia
Pizza night! A lot of our events involve lots of planning and volunteers and we would love to hear your thoughts and opinions! We sent a survey out to our D91 families during the last school year and many requests were for Winter Wonderland. This event will be happening on December 14th at Milne Grove. This event is a great opportunity for our students and their family members to have a lot of fun with raffles, games, crafts, and prizes! If you have students looking for volunteer hours this is a great way for them to earn some so please let us know! We will also be grateful for any donated baskets, gift cards, etc for our raffle prizes. If you have any suggestions, questions, or comments please contact us at d91.pto.info@gmail.com!Fall is in full swing in the LRC and November brings lots of reading fun and activities using CENTERS for hands-on skill sets and activities based on the Illinois Learning Standards and local curriculum. Students also have been introduced to eRead Illinois - an eBook subscription service purchased by the district in conjunction with the Illinois State Library and RAILS (our library consortium).
All Parents/Guardians are invited to participate in the KG Parent Library Challenge during Parent/Teacher Conferences. It's easy, its' fun . . . and if your student's homeroom has the highest parent participation, they win a special Popcorn MakerSpace party in the LRC. See the flyer for details.
You can always visit Mrs. Bruemmer's LRC website at kgcyberlibrary.weebly.com to see what's happening in the Learning Resource Center.
HORNETS WITH HEARTS
KG students continue to work on adding to the Kelvin Grove LRC
HORNETS WITH HEART initiative. Adjective selfies and cards are completed and November will bring formal letter writing, with finished letters being delivered to our Will County seniors and older residents who live by themselves at home, in skilled nursing facilities, or senior housing units and hospice. #HornetPride
Students will learn about bread-making (yes, we will be baking bread in the LRC) and student will make their own butter before we leave for Thanksgiving break). We will also experiment with making "snow" and discover the principles behind Charles' Law.
Remember: DON'T BE A TURKEY! READ!
Happy Thanksgiving from Mrs. Bruemmer!
LRC Coordinator / Webmaster
Kelvin Grove Middle School
808 Adams Street
Lockport, IL 60441
@cyberlibrary
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