Country Meadows Principal's Message - March 22nd

Country Meadows Principal's Message - March 22nd

Country Meadows families,

We have definitely taken advantage of the last full week of students before our spring break begins!  It was so nice to see the students enjoying the seasonal weather at recess, and I can only hope this weather is here to stay!


NEW *Spring Break Reminder* 

Students will not be in attendance March 25th to April 2nd.  Students will return to school on Wednesday, April 3rd.  This is a friendly reminder that there will not be a Principal's Message on March 29th during the week of Spring Break.  


NEW *Raise a Reader* 

Parents wanting to raise a life-long reader will appreciate strategies shared by D96 literacy coaches from literacy expert Pernille Ripp. For straightforward advice about nurturing readers in your home, please take a moment to read Parents: Create Joyful Reading Routines at Home.


NEW *Lockdown Drill* 

On Monday, our students successfully completed our 2nd lockdown drill of the year.  Students took the drill seriously, were able to answer the discussion questions appropriately, and continue to amaze me with their growth and excitement for learning!  I am proud of each and every one of our students, and wanted to make you aware of the fact that we had practiced our lockdown safety drill this week.


NEW *Remote E-Learning Experience* 

As indicated in Mrs. Schmidt’s Superintendent’s Message on 2.28.19 all District 96 students will partake in an E-Learning experience to make up one of our cold weather/snow days for this school year.  Parents should have received a separate email that included information regarding Remote E-Learning information and activities for each grade level.


NEW *Coming in April: IAR Assessment for Grades 3-8* 

The Illinois Assessment of Readiness (IAR) is the new English/language arts and math state assessment for Grades 3–8 students in Illinois public schools. 

The IAR replaces the PARCC assessment given the previous few years and is, in fact, very similar.

The testing window is designated as Apr. 8–26, but our students do not test every day during that period. 

Read more info about the IAR, including our Testing Schedule, the impact of participation, and more.

As your building principal, I'm happy to answer any questions you have about the IAR assessment. Please call our school office or send me an email.


NEW *PTO Update* 

Find more information in the COUNTRY MEADOWS PTO BLOG!


NEW *Parent Input for Class Placement* 

Creating balanced class lists that meet the needs of all students is a tremendously difficult job that takes many hours of thoughtful dialogue between classroom teachers, administrators, and specialists. At Country Meadows, we take this process very seriously. The process for class list creation is as follows:

  1. Teachers think about the social and academic needs of each of their current students while recording pertinent information to assist in the decision making process.

  2. Grade level teachers, the principal, specials area teachers, and specialists meet together to form class lists that are balanced in terms of academic, social, and emotional needs as well as considering friendships. This is no easy task and often takes several meetings. This team of educators considers each child’s personality, academic needs, friendship patterns, etc. as they make a match for each individual child.

  3. This team of educators creates a draft set of class lists taking into consideration parent input.  

  4. Class lists are then revised in August with summer changes for students who move in or out of the district.

  5. Class rosters are never final until they are released to families in August.

This process happens at grades 2-5. Willow Grove creates the class lists for our incoming 1st graders.  Our 5th-grade team actively works with Woodlawn to provide data and input related to placement decisions at the middle school level.

We strongly believe that this detailed and collaborative process creates learning environments that benefit all students. It is a delicate balancing act which takes much consideration and thought by professionals who know and care about your children. Our goal is to create balanced class lists that promote the success of each child. Please know that your child is placed in a classroom for very specific reasons. The process benefits all students.  Because of the input and thought given by teachers, specialists, parents, and the principal, we are very reluctant to make changes once this process occurs, as removing or moving one child can disrupt the balance of an entire class, impacting all students.

I welcome any insight you wish to share about your child’s strengths, needs, and learning style. I will take into consideration pertinent information received on or before FRIDAY, APRIL 26th. Please remember, while we welcome your input, specific teacher requests will not be honored.

I cannot express enough how important it is that your thoughts are provided through the Country Meadows Class Placement Input 2019-2020 Survey.  As you can imagine, we receive a lot of parent input, and verbal information is impossible to track.  The information you provide in the survey will remain confidential between you and me.


REPEATING *Author Visit Book Order Information* 

Country Meadows is fortunate to have Jeff Weigel visit our school in May. He is an illustrator, author and designer of children’s books, graphic novels, and comics. He is currently the artist for the Sunday newspaper comic strip, The Phantom.  Books will be available for purchase and autographs. If you are interested in purchasing a book, please send this form to the Country Meadows office by April 9th.

ORDER FORM FOR JEFF WEIGEL BOOKS


I hope everyone enjoys their spring break, and we look forward to seeing students back in school on Wednesday, April 3rd. 

Warmly,

Meghan Bird - Principal