School News
News From Marion Jordan Elementary
Information from Mrs. Grosch
Dear MJ Families,
Hello! I hope everyone is settling into the routine of school, albeit looking a little different this year. Teachers shared information about their classrooms and curriculum last Wednesday evening. In the event you were unable to attend, please reach out to your child's teacher for a brief synopsis.
I would like to acknowledge the tremendous effort our parents, students, and amazing staff have put forth to make the start of this school year as smooth as possible. We are all being challenged in different ways, but I have found great energy in the conversations I've had with parents and staff over the last week. Care and concern for our students is at the focus of our conversations and I continue to be so proud of the MJ community during this challenge.
There are several resources within this newsletter to support families. Please continue to reach out to me, Mrs. Shostachuk, or your child's classroom teacher with ways we can support you and your child.
Fondly,
Jenny Grosch
A Rolling Start to the Year for In-Person Learning - UPDATED DATES
UPDATED AUGUST 21st -REMOTE FOR ALL -WED 8/19 through FRI 9/21
Monday, September 21: Kindergarten and K-8 self-contained special education programs
ACES, Multiple Needs (MN), Early Childhood SIP: Half-day only (9:00-11:30 a.m.); transition to a full- or extended-day starting on Tuesday, October 13
Monday, September 28: Grades 1-2 and self-contained early childhood
Monday, October 5: Grades 3-4
Tuesday, October 13: Grades 5-8 and ECDEC (junior high in hybrid model)
Google Meets and Technology Support
As we embark on the virtual side of technology, we are all troubleshooting through issues as they arise. Here are some helpful tips that might be helpful if an issue arises. Please also know that if your child's screen is slow, frozen or tools are not working while they are in their meetings with the teacher, the home network speed and connection could be the issue.
- Try Reducing the computing requirements on the Chromebooks themselves.
- Capturing and displaying video is actually rather processor-intensive, disabling the camera will help free the resources on the Chromebook and smooth the connection so that the students can see and hear the teachers.
- Improve the wifi connection.
- The camera will actually degrade the wireless signal on some devices (especially older ones). By disabling the camera when not needed, it will allow a stronger Wifi signal to be received.
- Going to the districts troubleshooting website is a great place to start. https://www.ccsd15.net/Page/9811
School Attendance and Remote Learning
This year’s distance learning is more structured and interactive than what students experienced in the spring. Improved structure, minimum direct instruction time requirements, academic schedules, assignments, and grading all make distance learning more similar to the regular school routines.
Attendance requirements during distance learning are also similar to the requirements of regular school. Students must log in and be present at the scheduled start of each school day and attend each subject’s or class’ live teaching that day. Teachers take attendance and record students that are not present during the live teaching portions of the student’s schedule. Although students are required to attend the live teaching portions of the day, students may elect to complete independent school work or assignments during any part of the day.
If your child will be absent, the child’s parents are required to call the school’s absence line and notify the school that their child will be absent. If your student is marked absent and a parent has not reported the absence to the school, an automated attendance call and text will be generated.
Regular attendance is essential and District 15 schools are required to follow their attendance and truancy procedures. If your child is unable to participate in live teaching due to technology problems, parents should contact the school’s attendance line so that your child’s absence can be marked as an excused absence.
If your child's regular attendance is challenging for any other reason, please contact your child's teacher and /or the building administrative team. We want for every student to actively engage yet recognize that we are all working to navigate the nuances of virtual learning, including work schedules, siblings' school schedules, day care, and other special circumstances that present in your family.
Upcoming MAP Assessments
Each year District 15 students in grades 2 through 8 take an achievement test called the MAP test. The MAP test measures a student’s reading and math levels, is taken by the student with a Chromebook, and takes between 20 to 40 minutes to complete.
This year, all students in grades 2 to 8 will take the MAP test during the distance learning portion of the school year. Teachers will be in contact with students to explain and walk them through the virtual MAP test taking process. Schools will schedule a MAP test “dry run” in early September. Students will take the actual MAP test between September 14 and October 1. Your school will provide specific test dates and times to you prior to testing.
Linked below is our parent and student “cheat sheets". You will be provided with another copy closer to MAP testing. Parent/Caregiver Cheat Sheet, Student Cheat Sheet.
Meal Delivery Schedule
District 15 will continue to deliver meals through the distance learning period. Meals were free until August 18. As of August 19, meals will only be available to verified District 15 students.
Meals will be charged to each student’s account upon pick-up. The delivery/bus stop routes are available online. Deliveries will be made Monday-Friday through Sept. 4. A new schedule will be available beginning Tuesday, Sept. 8.
Lunches will be charged at $2.60 ($0.40 for those qualifying for reduced price meals).
Breakfasts will be charged at $1.30 ($0.30 for those qualifying for reduced priced meals).
Nutrition services staff will scan student barcodes on-site upon pick-up to take payment from MealTime accounts. Barcode cards were given to most students during material pick-up. If you have a card, please bring it with you. If you do not have a card, a barcode will be scanned from a master list at the pick-up location.
If you need a replacement barcode card for your student, please call (847) 963-3930 or ask for the sign up sheet on any of the meal distribution buses. Cards can also be picked up at your school office.
Menus will be updated monthly and posted online along with any cooking instructions (if needed).
For questions on the menu, please call 847-963-3928. For questions on transportation, please call 847-963-3909 or 3912.
PTA Membership - Become a PTA member today! Visit the store at http://www.mjpta.membershiptoolkit.com
Hope to "see" you there!
PTA Membership Toolkit
So that you are in the know about all things MJ PTA, log onto the PTA Membership Toolkit and update your contact information, privacy settings, and student information at mjpta.membershiptoolkit.com
From the Health Office
August is National Immunization Awareness Month
SPRINGFIELD (August 4, 2020) – Although school will look different this year because of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), whether it’s remote learning, in the classroom, or a hybrid, kids should still receive their routine vaccinations. Vaccines help protect children from diseases like chickenpox and pertussis, which remain common in the U.S.
“Vaccines are one of the safest and most effective methods to protect children from more than a dozen vaccine-preventable diseases. Make sure your children are fully vaccinated so they can be as healthy as possible while facing the ongoing risk of COVID-19.”
The immunization requirements for the 2020-2021 school year are the same as last year. The requirements can be found on the IDPH website under immunizations.
For more information about immunizations, visit http://www.dph.illinois.gov/topics-services/prevention-wellness/immunization.
Nurse Sherin Thomas
847-963-5502
REMINDER - Health Forms Due
Family Resources
Check out this interesting article - National Association of School Psychologists
MJ Social Work Website
About us
Email: MJAdmin@ccsd15.net
Website: ccsd15.net/MJ
Location: 100 North Harrison Avenue, Palatine, IL, USA
Phone: 847-963-5500