Good Afternoon, Ivy Hall Families,
Thank you to all the families who participated in our Spring Family Educator Conferences over the last two days. Your partnership is valued and appreciated. A special thank you to our PTO for providing dinner and snacks for our staff members during conferences!
I wish you a wonderful spring break and I hope you are able to spend quality time with family and friends whether you are traveling to warmer climates or staying in the incredibly inconsistent midwest. We resume school on Monday, March 31. A quick reminder that there is no school on Tuesday April 1 and IAR testing begins on Wednesday, April 2. Please see other important upcoming dates below.
Have a wonderful spring break!
Mike Senatore
*Upcoming Dates*
- Monday, March 24-28 - NO SCHOOL | Spring Break
- Monday, March 31 - School resumes
- Tuesday, April 1 - NO SCHOOL | Institute/Election Day
- Wednesday, April 2 - Tuesday, April 8 - IAR Testing
- Thursday, April 17 - Half Day for Students
- Grade-level Cat Pack Activity
- Friday, April 18 - NO SCHOOL | District Holiday
- Tuesday, April 22 - Early Release
- Wednesday, April 23 - PTO Special Lunch
- Friday, April 25th - PTO Dessert Day
- Wednesday, April 30 - Thursday, May 1 - MAP Testing
NEW *5Essentials for Parents*
It's a race against the clock and Kildeer is our first school to hit our GOAL of 20%! Each school must have 20% of its parent population take the short 5Essentials Survey by March 28th-- in order to receive their results. These results are crucial as all KCSD96 schools use this data for planning for the coming school years. Parents and guardians, please take 5 minutes of your time to complete this survey. Parent identity and survey responses will be kept completely confidential and will never be connected to you or your child.
Please visit https://survey.5-essentials.org/Illinois/ and select the appropriate survey to begin. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact UChicago Impact Survey Support at 1-866-440-1874 or [email protected].
The overall parent response rate is 12% for the 2025 Illinois Supplemental Parent Survey. As a reminder, schools need 20% of their parents to respond in order to receive a report. Also note a school must have a minimum of 8 responding parents in order to receive a report.
Here are the parent response rates for schools in Kildeer Countryside CCSD 96:
- Country Meadows Elem School: 13%
- Ivy Hall Elem School: 11%
- Kildeer Countryside Elem School: 27%
- Prairie Elem School-Buffalo Grove: 11%
- Twin Groves Middle School: 2%
- Willow Grove Early Learning Center: 26%
- Woodlawn Middle School: 5%
NEW *’25-’26 School Year - Parent Input for Class Placement Survey*
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. We take this process very seriously. The process for class list creation is as follows:
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.
Grade-level teachers, principals, 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.
This team of educators creates a draft set of class lists taking into consideration parent input.
Class lists are then revised in August with summer changes for students who move in or out of the district.
Class rosters are never final until they are released to families in August.
This process happens for grades 2-5. Willow Grove creates the class lists for our incoming 1st graders. Our 5th-grade team actively works with Twin Groves 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 that 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 do not 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 Wednesday, April 30th. Please remember, while we welcome your input, specific teacher or friend placement requests will not be honored.
I cannot express enough how important it is that your thoughts are provided through the Parent Survey that is linked HERE. 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, me, and Mrs. Heinrich.
NEW *Library Reminders*
Late slips are going out so that we can give parents and students an opportunity over spring break to have a look around for any missing books. Some books may have been returned, some may be somewhere in the school and some may be genuinely lost. All of the above are okay. We will do our final inventory at the end of the school year and this is just a great opportunity to get a jump on finding missing books before then. We do not have a fee for late or missing books so please don't send money or replacements. Most importantly, have a wonderful spring break filled with fun and, hopefully, a little reading.
NEW *Transition to Middle School for Parents and Guardians*
On Thursday, April 3rd at 7pm, parents and guardians of 5th Graders are invited to attend the “Transition to Middle School,” where they will get answers to questions they may have about their student entering sixth-grade at a District middle school.
This will take place in the Large Gym at Twin Groves Middle School.
This is an informational night for parents/guardians only.
Questions? Contact KCSD 96 Community Parent Liaison Lubna Andrabi, at 847.459.4260, ext. 8136, or [email protected].
REPEAT: *March 4th Student Registration Opens*
Student registration for the 2025-26 school year opens on March 4th. Parents and guardians of new Kindergarten students (who have submitted all required documents) and returning KCSD96 students will be emailed a link to register their child for the 2025-26 school year.
Complete registration by April 15 to receive a $20 Early-Bird discount. Families with returning students who register after April 15 will pay the standard registration fee.
Registering early helps us to plan for the upcoming school year.
Registration fees paid by April 15 for the 2025-26 school year are:
- Early Childhood Blended Tuition: $2,870 (or $335.07 monthly)
- Kindergarten: $90
- Grades 1-4: $110
- Grade 5: $120
- Grades 6-8: $135
Families new to District 96 can find more registration information here: https://www.kcsd96.org/about/registration
If you have any registration questions, please contact [email protected].
REPEAT *IAR Testing*
As required by the State of Illinois, students in grades 3 - 8 take the Illinois Assessment of Readiness (IAR) each spring. This year the district will be administering the IAR to students within a window between April 2nd to April 8th. The Illinois State Board of Education does not offer an opt-out. Instead, it is considered a refusal as this is a required test by the state. Parents and guardians, please note that this test is highly important and is on par with assessments like the ACT and SAT. Additionally, this is an opportunity to build your child's test taking skills prior to attending high school. Please encourage your child to get a good amount of sleep during the window, and continue to eat nutritious and nourishing breakfasts.