Country Meadows Families,
The sunshine this week brought a new energy at school. It was refreshing to have students consistently outside for recess and enjoying the outdoors. We also want to thank our incredible PTO for sponsoring such an incredible Science Fair on Wednesday night and a fun 5th garde party this afternoon. We are so grateful for all of the opportunities are students are provided with, and it was so much fun to hear and see the excitement as students presented their projects!
With only a few weeks left, we are soaking up every drop of the time together with our students. As they walk out of the school doors this year, our goal is that they reflect on this school year and feel proud of their accomplishments. We thank YOU, our families, for your continued support as we wrap up the school year. Enjoy the weekend ahead!
Kindly,
Meghan Bird
NEW *REGISTRATION & TECHNOLOGY*
If you have not enrolled your student(s) for the 22-23 school year and are planning on doing so, we ask that you do so as soon as possible. Accurate and up-to-date registration numbers impact our staffing plan and our ability to prepare for the 22-23 school year.
Students in Kindergarten through Grade 7 will keep their iPads over the summer. If you have enrolled your student(s) for the 22-23 school year already, your student’s iPad will continue to work over the summer.
If you have not enrolled your student(s) for the 22-23 school year and your student is not in summer school or ESY, your student’s iPad(s) will be deactivated after the last day of school and will not function until registration has been completed.
Once you have registered your student for the 22-23 school year, please email [email protected] and include your student’s enrollment information. The district technology department will verify enrollment and re-activate your student’s iPad(s).
NEW *Calendar Reminder*
Tuesday, May 17th is an early dismissal for students at 2:00.
NEW *Response from Ravinia Health Regarding Insurance Explanation of Benefits*
Due to a lack of funding, federal funds for COVID-19 testing and services have come to an end as previously communicated. This sudden change required Ravinia Health to accommodate its patients and clients through an exclusive approach.
In order to maintain public safety, Ravinia Health took extensive measures by collaborating with multiple healthcare entities to make sure COVID-19 testing can continue at no cost to the patients or organizations. Insurance companies are federally mandated to cover the costs of COVID-19 testing for all their policyholders and Ravinia Health is willing to cover the costs for all non-insured patients. Allowing every participant to continue testing at no cost.
We at Ravinia Health thank you for your cooperation and understand the confusion insured patients, parents, or staff members may have when they look at the explanation of benefits (or EOB) provided by their insurance company. We want to ensure there is no confusion and want to use this opportunity to remove any concerns you or any participant may have.
Insured patients that utilize our services may receive an EOB with outstanding balances, however, these notices can be disregarded. Below is an explanation of what you may see on an EOB to help you better understand the program and why no action is needed.
The 2 entities that can be found for these claims are Mobvilvax LLC and/or Alcoa Validations Inc. These entities are used for billing and insurance purposes by Ravinia Health.
Insured patients are covered at no out-of-pocket cost, copay, or deductible. The insured patients will not be charged for any testing service provided by Ravinia Health, as the insurance companies are mandated to cover the costs in full. However, in certain situations, insurance companies will partially cover the costs and expect us (Ravinia Health) to seek the remaining balance from the patients. In these situations, Ravinia Health will not pursue any of its patients for any sort of payment.
Again, the charges on a patient’s EOB by Alcoa Validations or Mobvilvax LLC are due to Ravinia Health’s testing services but should be covered by the insurance company. If not, they may be invoiced to the patient showing an outstanding balance. We want to assure you that Ravinia Health will not expect the patient to make any sort of payment and will also not be put to collections. The patients can disregard these notices.
*NEW* Ticks
As we enter into warmer weather and springtime, there has been a rise in tick sightings. Please take the time to review this information from the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH). The link provides you with reminders on how to prevent ticks, check for ticks, and remove ticks should you find one.
Suggestions listed on how to prevent ticks specifically from IDPH include:
- Wear light colored clothing (long sleeve shirts and long pants) so you can easily see ticks
- Use bug repellent that contains 20% or more DEET, picaridin, or IR3535 on exposed skin
- Walk in the center of trails
- Treat clothing with products containing permethrin (Do not apply permethrin to skin)
NEW *MAP Reports*
NWEA MAP results will be shared with parents via email on Tuesday, May 17th at 3:00pm.
NEW *Band Registration Information*
4th grade parents: The time has finally arrived when your child can consider joining next year's 5th grade band! Read about all the band activities happening before the end of the school year, including how to sign up for band and where to get an instrument.
NEW *Assistant Principal for the Day*
I had the absolute pleasure of spending the morning with one of our 3rd graders as he fulfilled the role of Assistant Principal. This opportunity was won as a part of the CM PTO Fall Fest auction, and we made sure that the experience was a positive and fun one! Here are some of the things my new Assistant Principal and I did with our time together:
- Visited classrooms and left feedback and positive notes for staff and students
- Effectively used the walkie talkie to talk with custodial and office staff
- Toured the campus including secret "admin only" locations
- Visited Woodlawn and met Mr. Grana and Mrs. Garlick
- Brainstormed some ideas for change that would make CM a better place to be (i.e. hallway speed limit signs and a more efficient delivery system for notes, books, and items)
- Supervised 1st grade recess to ensure students were safe and showing expected behaviors
Words can not describe how much I enjoy this part of being a principal. This particular 3rd grader and all of our studnets at Country Meadows are my "reasons". They are the reason I am motivated to come to work every day, and I cherish the time and experiences I get with each of them!
NEW *Courtesy Cub Countdown*
We are so excited to begin our Courtesy Cub Countdown next Wednesday, May 18th! It is such a fun way for us to celebrate our last 12 days of the 2021-2022 school year! See the fun we have planned for these next few weeks!
NEW *Music Talent Show Week*
From Mrs. Murray:
I am always amazed by the level of musical talent here at CM! Many students take it upon themselves to create their own music, take lessons to master another instrument, or even just practice on their own to learn a favorite song. There isn’t always time for me to celebrate the individual accomplishments of all my students so I am giving everyone the opportunity to perform for the class. Next week, the week of May 16th, I want to offer up music class time for any student to perform something musical for their class. I have a piano, guitar, and ukuleles in my room for anyone who wants to showcase their talent but if a student plays a different instrument that I do not have, they will need to bring their own to school on one of their music class days. If you have any questions, feel free to reach out to me via email at [email protected]!
NEW *PTO Update*
END OF YEAR PARTY May 19th 5:30-7:30pm: A big celebration for all students and families to enjoy. Games (including a dunk tank with some of our own school staff!), snacks, crafts, and music are all free. Kona Ice will also be available for purchase.
REPEATING *Last Call for Library Books*
Parents if you happen to see any school library books at home please return them to school as soon as possible. With school drawing to a close for the year we need to begin cataloging and checking the inventory for the school library.
REPEATING *Kindergarten Visit to Country Meadows*
On Tuesday, May 17th at 9:30 am, Willow Grove Kindergarten students who will attend Country Meadows Elementary School in the fall will be visiting our campus. During the visit, students will meet their new principal and assistant principal, visit our specials classes & meet specials teachers, and finish with a visit to our first-grade classrooms and do an activity, meet the first-grade teachers! Courtesy Cub is also known to make a fun appearance as students load the buses. If you know of any registered incoming 2022-2023 first-grade students who do not currently attend Willow Grove, please make them aware of this opportunity. Parents can call the office at 847.353.8600 to register their child for the tour.
REPEATING *Curriculum Home Connections*
New Resource Page Designed, with Parents in Mind
In response to some parents' questions about how to best support their children with academic work at home, the district’s Instructional Coaches designed a one-stop resource that equips these families in doing just that.
The resource is a new District web page ~ the “Home to School Connections'' ~ designed for parents and filled with invaluable links to internal and external Technology and Curriculum Resources. Under the Technology Resources heading, for instance, parents will find the usual District resources used for assistance with iPads, frequently used apps, TeacherEase, SeeSaw and Schoology.
The page also features Curriculum Resources, which presents a wealth of resources ~ sorted by grade/grade levels ~ for help with literacy, math, and the other subject areas, and links to the District’s pacing guides (which indicate what a child is expected to know at each grade level).
Families will find resources to practice high-frequency words, strengthen their mastery of math-word problems or help them write more descriptively. There is also information on supporting a multilingual student at home and 10 of the best questions to ask your student to elicit more than a ‘yes,’ ‘no’ or ‘maybe’ response about what they’re learning or experiencing at school.
Families will find resources to practice high-frequency words, strengthen their mastery of math-word problems or help them write more descriptively. There is also information on supporting a multilingual student at home and 10 of the best questions to ask your student to elicit more than a ‘yes,’ ‘no’ or ‘maybe’ response about what they’re learning or experiencing at school.
The resource was debuted at Thursday night’s Thought Exchange Partnership (TEP) meeting. Check it out for yourself:
REPEATING *Registration Reminder*
A big thank you to those of you who have already registered your student for the 22-23 school year. For those of you who haven’t yet, we need your help! We staff our buildings based on completed registration. We like to keep class sizes low so that students have the best possible experience and the only way we can do that is by having the most accurate information. If you have not registered yet, please take a few minutes to complete this important process. If you have any questions or need assistance, please contact the school office and we would be happy to help.
REPEATING *Summer 2022 iPad Information*
All Buildings:
- Students in grades K-7 will keep their iPad and all peripherals over the summer unless they are not returning to D96 for the 22-23 school year.
- Any non-returning students will need to leave their iPad (inside of the case), charging cable, charging brick, and Logitech Crayon, with the building Tech Aide for collection.
- Families who exit out of D96 after the last day of school will need to return all of their technology to the District Office over the summer. Any device not returned will be placed in lost mode and will not function.
- Over the summer, some apps and services will continue to work at the student’s 21-22 grade level. Apps and websites like Dreambox, Lexia, Typing Agent, (etc) will be available to use over the summer but are not guaranteed to work at all times. The technology department will only be supporting the use of these apps in ESY or Summer School.
- As we get closer to August, we will roll-up student data and new services. Apps will also become available to them relative to their 22-23 grade level.
Willow Grove Specific:
- EC iPads will be collected at the end of the year. We ask that devices and peripherals (charging cable, charging brick, and case) that are kept at home be returned to Willow Grove and made available for collection no later than Wednesday, May 25th. Note that EC students do NOT receive Logitech Crayons.
- Current Kindergarten students will keep their iPads over the summer. New grade-level content and services will be made available on their iPads sometime in August.
- Any non-returning students will need to leave their iPad (inside of the case), charging cable, charging brick, and Logitech Crayon, with the building Tech Aide for collection.
Middle School Specific:
- 8th Grade iPad collection will happen on Wednesday, May 25th. Students will be expected to turn in their iPad (inside of the case), charging cable, charging brick, and Logitech Crayon.
- Any non-returning students in grades 6 and 7 will need to leave their iPad (inside of the case), charging cable, charging brick, and Logitech Crayon, with the building Tech Aide for collection.
REPEATING *5th Grade: 4 Chord Concert*
Our Country Meadows 5th graders have been learning about music through playing ukulele and singing various styles of music. We have found that there are so many songs that have been written using only 4 chords. We wanted to showcase our hard work by having a concert to celebrate the 5th grade and all they have learned in music at Country Meadows on Monday, May 16th at 5:30 in the cafeteria. More details will follow when it gets closer to the concert so stay tuned but if you have any questions in the meantime, feel free to email me at [email protected] and I will do my best to answer!
Thank you!
Sarah Murray
REPEATING *Reproving Residency (K & 5th)*
In KCSD 96, each year, parents of current Kindergartners and 5th graders are required to reprove their district residency.
To re-prove residency, parents are asked to provide three items to the Administrative Assistants at their child’s current school:
- a current monthly mortgage OR lease statement OR property tax bill OR Warranty Deed AND
- a current utility bill (e.g., water OR electric OR waste collection) AND
This Proof of Residency Form (completed and signed)
For the email address for your school’s Administrative Assistant, and to learn information for other questions, please visit https://www.kcsd96.org/about/registration/the-requirement-to-re-prove-residency.
REPEATING *2022-23 REGISTRATION IS OPEN*
Registration now open for the 2022-23 school year!
Registration is now open for the 2022-23 school year. This week, parents and guardians of returning students and pre-registered Kindergartners were emailed Notification letters with a SnapCode to start their registration process.
Register today to avoid the $20 late fee (per child) to be charged on registrations completed after April 15.
If you have questions about the 2022-23 Registration Notification email, please email [email protected] or call 847-459-4260, ext. 8022.
For information on registering a new student, visit https://kcsd96.org/registration.
REPEATING *Covid Metrics*
To stay up-to-date this school year on local metrics, please visit the COVID DASHBOARD for District 96. Our priority remains to keep our students safe and follow guidance from the CDC. If your student is identified as a "close contact", you will be notified individually through the contact tracing process.