It’s hard to believe that yesterday was the last official day of summer. Ivy Hall Wildcats celebrated with an evening of ice cream sponsored by our PTO this past Wednesday. Thank you to the PTO for planning a fun family event. The students loved previewing and purchasing books this week at the Book Fair. Thank you to all of our volunteers who helped make this year’s Book Fair a success!
We sure have lucked out in the weather department. Students have enjoyed playing outside at recess and participating in P.E. outdoors. My hope is that we can keep the nice weather just a little bit longer! As always, the best part of my day is being with students and staff in classrooms and outside at recess. It is great to see students working hard on academics as well as building relationships with peers and focusing on social-emotional learning. In just a few short weeks our staff will have the pleasure and opportunity to update you at conferences! The conference dates are Thursday, October 6th from 5:00 PM to 8:30 PM and Friday, October 7th from 10:00 AM to 1:30 PM.
NEW *No School on Monday, September 26, 2022*
There is no school on Monday, September 26. All district buildings will be closed.
NEW *Fire Drill Next Week*
On Friday, September 30th, Ivy Hall will be conducting a Fire Drill. Students will be evacuating the building during the drill. If the weather does not cooperate, we will reschedule the drill and communicate the rescheduled drill date.
NEW *Band and Orchestra Reminder*
Band and orchestra lessons are well on their way. If your 4th or 5th grade child is in band or orchestra, it is important that they are prepared for the lesson, including having their instrument. Thanks for your support.
NEW *PTO Blog*
Our PTO maintains a weekly blog that has useful information for opportunities to get involved in the Ivy Hall School community. Their latest blog post can be found here, below are this week’s highlights.
- Book Fair Recap
- Restaurant Fundraisers
- Wildcat Wizardry - Save the Date
NEW *Attendance Visibility in TeacherEase*
District 96 is helping to support families by giving easier access to attendance information for elementary students. Please follow this link that will show you how to access student attendance information at primary and elementary schools in District 96.
REPEAT *CONFERENCES*
Fall Family/Educator Conferences are right around the corner. The conference dates are Thursday, October 6th from 5:00 PM to 8:30 PM and Friday, October 7th from 10:00 AM to 1:30 PM.
We will be using Meet the Teacher as an electronic sign up for conferences. A School Messenger email will be sent to families on Monday, September 19th at 6:00PM with a link to sign up for conferences.
Conferences will be held virtually using Meet the Teacher’s video conferencing platform unless parents request an in-person conference using the instructions below. After you have scheduled your conferences, you will receive an email from Meet the Teacher with a link you will use to access the video conferences.
Elementary parents will have the option to sign up with the classroom teacher as well as specials teachers and any related service providers their children see.
If you are unable to schedule a conference with a specific teacher, please remember that conferences are not the only time to communicate with teachers. Please feel free to reach out any time.
REQUESTING AN IN-PERSON CONFERENCE
If you want to have an in-person conference with the teachers, you must notify the teachers via email by the end of the day on Tuesday, October 4th.
REPEAT *Classroom Parties*
As always, we are looking forward to celebrating at holiday classroom parties with our students. Parties will continue to be food free. All classroom food must be checked through our nurse and it is not feasible for our building nurse to manage this, along with the day-to-day responsibilities to ensure student safety and wellness. Students will enjoy crafts and games to celebrate the festivities.
REPEAT *Student Birthdays*
Teachers recognize student birthdays. Although it is not necessary, families may choose to send something for the class. We do not, however, allow food to be passed out in classrooms or sent home with children. Appropriate non-food items are allowed, such as a pencil or stickers. Please keep the age of our children in mind for the appropriateness and safety of the item.
REPEAT *Dogs on Campus*
As a general rule, dogs are not allowed on the school campus or grounds during school hours when children are present. The exception would be any time the assistance of a dog is required by a person’s disability. In all other cases, written permission must be obtained from the building principal before a dog is allowed on school grounds.
REPEAT *SMART Watches*
SMART watches are starting to show up here at the elementary schools. Many SMART watches have similar capabilities to SMART phones (game, voice, and text capabilities). If a SMART watch becomes a distraction or is used for communication, it may be confiscated and stored in the office to remove the distraction from the learning environment. Essentially, we will treat the SMART watches like a cell phone. Confiscated equipment may be picked up in the office at the end of the day by the student(s). If a pattern of distraction occurs, parents may be asked to pick up the technology.
REPEAT *Letters to Veterans*
With Veteran’s Day just around the corner, we are inviting D96 students to write thank you notes or letters to veterans. These letters will be included in individualized care packages that will be given to veterans who attend an upcoming recognition event in Lake County. If your student is interested, please have them return their letter or thank you note to the front office no later than October 13th to ensure we are able to mail them in enough time to be included in the Lake County project.