October 22, 2021

October 22, 2021

Dear Families,

We are so proud to announce that Ivy Hall has been ranked #62 in elementary level schools in the state of Illinois by U.S. News & World Report.  U.S. News & World Report has ranked high schools, colleges, and universities for many years, but this is the first time the organization has ranked elementary-level schools.  Six of the District's seven schools made the list.  There are no qualifying metrics for the early childhood level, therefore, our early learning center was not ranked.  

I could not be prouder of our entire Ivy Hall School community.  With the strong support we receive from our families, we are able to teach to the highest levels of performance.  Thank you, parents, for partnering with us in your child's education.  Teachers, do dedicated and remarkable work with our students every day, and this national recognition is well deserved.

Proudly,

Bob Hanrahan - Principal

New *Attendance at School*

​​Attendance is one of the most powerful predictors of academic achievement and having your student in their seat, ready to learn, for the entire school day will benefit them, their classmates, and our whole school community. Let’s work together to make sure your child has great attendance and can get the most out of their learning opportunities this school year.

OUR PROMISE TO YOU

We know that there are a wide variety of reasons that students are absent from school, from health concerns to transportation challenges. There are many people in our building prepared to help you if you or your student face challenges in getting to school regularly or on time. We promise to track attendance daily, to notice when your student is missing from class, communicate with you to understand why they were absent and to identify barriers and supports available to overcome challenges you may face in helping your student attend school. Our parent handbook reflects legislative updates from the state and is ready for you to review.

WHAT WE NEED FROM YOU

We miss your student when they are not at school as we value their contributions to our school community. If your student is going to be absent, please contact the school in advance. If an absence was unplanned, please contact the school office as soon as possible.

HOW WE CAN WORK TOGETHER

Send your child to school unless they are truly sick, such as fever, vomiting, diarrhea, contagious rash or showing any other COVID-like symptoms.

Avoid appointments and travel when school is in session.

Keep track of your child’s attendance.

Set a regular bedtime and morning routine (including limiting how late your child may use any electronic devices) and finish homework and pack backpacks the night before.

Have a backup plan for getting to school in case something comes up (this could be alternative bus routes, roads, or a plan with family members, neighbors, or other parents).

Communicate with the school about how we can work together to support your child’s attendance.

OUR DUTIES UPON A STUDENT’S ABSENCES

If your child has five unexcused absences we will reach out via phone and follow up with an email.

If your child has seven unexcused absences we will schedule a conference with you and your child to create a student success plan and help continued support.

After 10 days of unexcused absences, and our supports and interventions haven’t helped get your student to school consistently, we are required to file a petition and you will be notified by formal letter that the case will be forwarded to the truancy department and the Lake County ROE, alleging a violation of Illinois’s mandatory attendance law.

WHAT IS EXCUSED AND WHAT IS UNEXCUSED:
Excused: Medical appointment, illness, quarantine, death in the family, mental health day, religious holiday

Unexcused: Most other reasons for absence include: vacation, sporting event, missing the bus, sleeping in, the day before a special occasion.

NEW *FAMILY READING NIGHT....Mark your calendars!*

Our annual Family Reading Night takes place on Thursday, November 18 from 6:30-7:30 pm. Our goal is to provide families with a fun night out where you can experience two different rounds of literacy-related activities (i.e. flashlight reading, reading for two voices, Sora eBook app) in partnership with the Student Council. While walk-ins are welcome, please consider using THIS Google Form to RSVP if you would like to attend and indicate your ideal preferences for the evening activities. It will help us plan for the event and do our best to make a match for your choices. We look forward to seeing you at the event!

NEW *PTO Blog

  • PTO BLOG Contents: https://www.kcsd96.org/ih/pto/blog 

  • Ivy Hall Yearbook Cover Contest - November 1-15 (NEW-COMING SOON)

  • November Special Lunch Form - Signup Opens on Oct 22nd! 

  • Ice Cream Wednesday - Reminder to purchase your punch card!

  • PTO will be selling ice cream novelties at lunch each Wednesday. 

  • Buying your Halloween candy this weekend? Earn money for Ivy Hall by grocery shopping!

  • Please check out the: PTO Link Tree: https://linktr.ee/ivyhallpto


REPEAT *Halloween Costumes* 

October is here. Please help us with the following costume procedures and guidelines for October 29's Halloween celebrations. Students will change into their costumes after their lunch period. Costumes must be appropriate for school.

  • Please no masks, blood, super scary stuff, general iciness, or weapons
  • Please no cigars or cigarette items
  • Please no bare tummies
  • Please keep hair coloring and make-up simple

*** Students may change at home during lunch/recess.

REPEAT *Home for Lunch Halloween Costume Change* 

Students are able to be picked up to go home during their own grade level lunch period. See below for specific times and details. Students will meet their parent(s)/grandparent(s)/family member(s) outside the front office foyer. Please write a note stating that student(s) will be going home for lunch to change into his/her Halloween costume. Students will give their “going home for lunch” note to the staff members who are supervising pick-up and returns. Students need to return to school by the end of their lunch/recess period. Below this schedule is a form that I would like to request that families fill out to help support the check-in and check-out procedures. As mentioned above, students can, of course, still change at school.

Lunch/recess periods are as follows:

  • 1st grade: 10:40am -11:20am
  • 2nd grade: 11:30am -12:10am
  • 3rd grade: 11:50am -12:30pm
  • 4th grade: 11:00am - 11:40am
  • 5th grade: 12:10pm-12:50pm

Please fill out this form if you intend to come to pick up your child for costume change on October 29, 2021, please fill out the COSTUME CHANGE PICK-UP FORM HERE

REPEAT *October 29 Halloween Parade at approximately 1:35 pm*

Our Parade Route begins at approximately 1:35 pm outside of door 6, also known as the buffalo door. The parade route is counterclockwise around the building. Please keep your fingers crossed that we have great weather!  In case of inclement weather, we will have an indoor parade for teachers and students only. Again, if it is raining, we will not host a public parade inside the school, however, we will record and release the parade ASAP. Thank you for understanding.;

REPEAT *October 29th Halloween Parties*

Parties will begin on October 29, 2021, at approximately 2:00 pm and end at approximately 2:45 pm. Only PTO-approved parent party volunteers may attend classroom parties. Please see more party volunteer information below.

REPEAT *IMPORTANT NOTES FOR PTO PARTY VOLUNTEERS*

Parents attending the parties may not bring additional family members, other children, etc.  We need everyone to abide by this and will have to ask you to leave if you come with other attendees.  

Every PTO volunteer approved to come into our school MUST have their license or ID scanned through our security system to enter.  You have to bring this with you or you will not be able to enter. There is typically a very long line at this first party, so please anticipate this. We highly encourage PTO room party volunteers to swing by Ivy Hall Elementary prior to the parties to have a license scanned, which will speed up the entry process.  The more people who come and complete this early, the shorter the line will be on October 29, 2021. You may also come on the day of the Halloween party BEFORE THE PARADE to have your license scanned.  

All volunteers must have followed our procedures for verifying vaccination or have proof of a negative Covid test. Call the office with questions (847)-459-0022. All volunteers must wear a mask at all times and remain socially distanced.

REPEAT *Arrival and Dismissal Reminders*

As the weather begins to cool we are seeing more and more students being dropped off and picked up via car.  If you are dropping your student off in the morning or picking your student up after school, please use and follow our parent drop-off and pick-up procedures in the South lot near the playground.  Safety for all is our number one priority.  

Parking or pulling off to the side of the road on the streets immediately surrounding the school (Penny Lane, Ivy Hall Lane, and Clohessy Lane) can cause dangerous and unsafe situations for students.

Additionally, if your student rides their bike to or from school, please review bike safety with him or her.  Please help your students keep themselves and others safe when riding their bicycles.

REPEAT *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. 

https://ecriss.ecragroup.com/strategy/Home/Indicators?Dashboard=KIL096

REPEAT *Food Service*

FREE MEALS IN SCHOOL:  Under the waivers to USDA Nutrition Programs currently offered, the District is able to provide free meals to all students.  One reimbursable daily meal will be provided free of charge to each student that chooses to participate on school days.  

SNACKS FOR PURCHASE IN SEPTEMBER: Snacks will start being offered at the beginning of September.  If you wish your child to be able to purchase snacks at that time, please be sure to have their account prepaid on the K12PaymentCenter.  This site will allow you not only to monitor balances but also transaction history.  There are no transaction fees related to this account.  To create an account you will need your student's 7 digit ID number, which will be emailed to you this evening with the subject line of D96 Food Service Information.

ORDERING PROCESS:  Each morning, students will tell their teachers which entree they will order and those numbers will be shared with the food service staff.  Please encourage your students to take the entree they ordered to ensure that all students receive the desired meal.  Menus can be viewed on the District website.

REPEAT *Arrival & Departure Procedures* 

There are many rules and procedures regarding arrival and dismissal. This can be challenging to get acquainted with and even frustrating. However, these procedures have been developed with student safety as the driving factor. These plans and procedures were developed in conjunction with our Facilities Director (Sam Miranda) and the Buffalo Grove Police Department. The Buffalo Grove police and District 96 appreciate your patience and understanding as we have established these routines in the interest of safety. The first few dismissals can be slow due to staff and students learning their routines. Please be patient. The picture below denotes all the forms of transportation that we have here at Ivy Hall. Please observe the picture and note areas where walkers, bussers, and private transportation arrival and depart from here at Ivy Hall.

REPEAT*Daily Snack*

All students should bring an individual daily snack. It is required that snacks are only from our District Approved Snack List for the safety of students. Please label snacks with your child’s name.

Approved Snacks: What Parents Need to Know

The District has revised the APPROVED SNACK LIST. The items the list includes are free of the Top 8 allergens: milk, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts, fish, shellfish, soy, and wheat.  This list includes the foods that are approved for students' Daily Snacks.  Daily snacks for your children must be from this list or they will be sent home.  

IMPORTANT: All items for Daily Snacks, with the exception of fruits and vegetables, MUST be prepackaged to allow staff to easily check that snacks meet the approved requirements.  

Director of Educational Services Amy Gluck also has provided responses to FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (FAQs) about foods approved for daily snacks/special events.

For your convenience, find links to the District 96 Approved Snack List and Approved Snack List FAQs on the homepage of the District 96 website and the homepage of each school.

Lunches packed from home may contain anything and do not need to be from the Approved Snack List.  If your child is bringing in lunch, snacks must be packed separately from lunch. Please label lunch bags and snacks with your child’s name.