Dear Kildeer Families,

Just like that, it's December! Mr. Higgins and I had the pleasure of reading to our 1st graders this week. We chose a book called The World Needs Who You Were Made to Be by Joanna Gaines. The message was to love yourself for who you are and to be kind to yourself and others. It's a simple message, yet an important one. A little kindness goes a long way and I've seen countless examples from students, staff, and our community throughout the school year. 

I also loved the theme of celebrating the differences in humanity. In the book, it highlighted various differences and how beautiful it is to have unique gifts. This is something we continue to discuss and prioritize when we engage in buddy classrooms or for our I AM ME...WE ARE KILDEER family celebration coming up!

Our first-graders definitely brought us joy and huge smiles. We even had a student ask for a sneak peek for the joke of the week. Well played first graders, well played. 

NEW *Monthly Asynchronous Wednesdays *

Once per month, beginning in December, students will participate in asynchronous activities for a portion of their school day.  The dates for each of these asynchronous Wednesdays are identified below.  You will notice that each date is identified as either AM or PM.  If for example, AM is indicated, this means that students will participate in the asynchronous activities during the morning or AM portion of the school day and then transition to their regularly scheduled school day in the afternoon or PM.  Specific times are indicated below with each identified date.  Teachers will communicate with students to be sure that they understand the expectations for each of these days.  

These monthly asynchronous days were created to give students the opportunity to participate in topics that will enhance our current curricular content, and so that teachers have time to collaborate and plan with each other to determine the best way to approach future instruction.  

Asynchronous Wednesdays will take place on the following dates.

• December 16:  PM Asynchronous
• January 13:  AM Asynchronous 
• February 24:  PM Asynchronous 
• March 17: AM Asynchronous 
• April 21:  PM Asynchronous

SPECIFIC INFORMATION ABOUT THE FIRST ASYNCHRONOUS WEDNESDAY:  DECEMBER 16th

The asynchronous portion of the day will take place in the afternoon or PM portion of the school day for all.  The asynchronous focus for this day is digital citizenship.  Students will be engaging in a variety of Digital Citizenship See specifics below for each grade. 

1st-5th Grade:  Students will engage in instruction as they typically would until 12:45pm.  At 12:45pm, the asynchronous portion of the day will begin and continue through the end of the school day.  Students in grades 1-2 will access the asynchronous work in SeeSaw and students in grades 3-5 will access the asynchronous work in Schoology.  Teachers will communicate with students to be sure that they understand the expectations and communicate where they should access the asynchronous work for each of these days.  While we prefer that the asynchronous work is completed during this designated time, timing can be adjusted based on what works best for your family as long as the work is completed before the next school day begins. 

NEW *Guess Who?*

In order to get our students, staff, and community excited about our I AM ME...WE ARE KILDEER virtual family celebration we are including a new addition in our weekly blog. 

Take a moment this weekend to see if you can guess which staff member identifies with the following information. The big reveal will happen weekly in the morning announcements!

Guess Who?

At different points in my life, I have worked as a janitor, receptionist, teaching assistant, waiter, busboy, library page, tutor, teacher’s aide, stock boy, basketball coach, bandleader, babysitter, teacher, nurse, intern, door-to-door salesman, and public relations professional.

WHO AM I? (Watch the morning announcements next week to find out!)

Now that you are curious, won't you sign-up for our event below?!

We are excited to announce this year’s I AM ME...WE ARE KILDEER virtual family celebration on the evening of Thursday, January 14, 2021! The purpose of this evening is to learn from and about our Kildeer families. 

Would your family like to....

• Sign up to host a live virtual booth/performance via zoom?
• Submit a short video performance to play on our virtual stage?
• Submit a short video teaching others about a family tradition (i.e. family travels, a game, a dance, a recipe, etc.)
• Just RSVP that your family will attend?

Please CLICK HERE. The link has a lot more information for how YOUR FAMILY can get involved for our third annual I AM ME...WE ARE KILDEER family celebration on Thursday, January 14th  from 6:00-8:00 p.m. 

*LAST CALL TO SIGN-UP to attend by Monday, December 14 at 3:00 p.m.*  

Video submissions will be due at a later time.

NEW *REPORT CARDS*

You should have been able to access your child’s Trimester 1 report card beginning at 3pm yesterday, and if you have not yet done so, please CLICK HERE for instructions on how to access your child’s T1 report card.  

Repeat *TOYS FOR TOTS ANNUAL TOY DRIVE*

In partnership with the U.S. Marines Corps, Kildeer is kicking off the Annual Toy Drive to support Toys for Tots! This year more than ever Toys for Tots needs our help. Drop off new unwrapped toys for less fortunate children between Nov. 23 and Dec. 11. Collection boxes will be located in the main doorways at Kildeer starting Mon., Nov. 23.

Repeat *MAP Testing Updates*

Given the pandemic and our current full remote setting, students in Kindergarten through Grade 2 will not participate in Winter MAP.  Students in these grades will participate in MAP testing in the Spring.  

Students in grades 3-8 will participate in remote MAP testing on the following dates: 

• Grades 5-8 will test on December 3 & 4 
• Grades 3-4 will test on December 8 & 9

Repeat *November Book Talks from the Vernon Area Public Library*

1st grade: 1st-grade favorites

2nd grade: 2nd-grade favorites

3rd grade: 3rd-grade favorites

4th and 5th grade: 4th and 5th-grade favorites

Repeat *Access Report Cards Online on Dec. 3*

Your student’s report card will be available for you to access online on Dec. 3 AFTER 3 PM. If you need assistance, please CLICK HERE for instructions to view your student’s report card, to switch between your children’s report cards, and more.

Repeat *Free Meals for Pick-Up for ALL D96 Students*

D96 is pleased to offer free meals for pick-up for ALL students (age 18 and younger), thanks to the Summer Food Service Program from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA).  

All District 96 families were sent an email on Mon., Nov. 16 (Subject Line: Fr Sch Dist 96: Free Meal Preordering and Pickup) with information about preordering free breakfast and lunch meals for their students.

Parents/guardians of all District 96 families may preorder and pick up meals at Twin Groves or Woodlawn Middle Schools for their children through age 18* on designated weekdays from 11 AM–2 PM. 

The first step is for families to create an account online and add each child receiving meals to the account. Please see this webpage for details and brief instructional videos of the account set-up and preordering process. 

Please direct questions to the public information coordinator: [email protected].

Repeat *Gifts for Staff*

It's that time of year when families are thinking about gifts for staff.  Staff may or may not be in the building and therefore may have limited opportunities to retrieve anything left for them at the school building. If you make the decision to provide a gift, it is recommended that you consider a virtual gift that can be delivered to their email. Thank you for your understanding!

Repeat *Library Book Drop Off*

If your child still has library books that were checked out in the  2019-2020 school year, we are still collecting them!  Books can be dropped off in the main area vestibule on school days between 8 and 3.

If you are curious about if/what books/titles your child needs to return to our school library, please contact [email protected] for details.

Repeat *Updated COVID-19 Metrics*

This UPDATED COVID-19 METRICS is the information “dashboard” that maintains transparent and open communication around COVID-19 metrics. As a user of the dashboard, the District has access to COVID-19 data as recommended by the Illinois Department of Public Health and the Northern Illinois Public Health Consortium. We review this data daily, update the dashboard weekly, and consider this data in making many decisions.

Repeat *Tech Hub*

KCSD96 Family Technology Hub! The District 96 Family Technology Hub is designed to guide families through technology tools related to Enhanced Remote Learning. On this site you can find links to the recordings and the corresponding Slides decks for the parent/family informational sessions from last week. You can also find tutorials on how to use  ZOOM, Schoology, Seesaw, Clever, Notability, and other iPad essential tools for student learning. Additionally, there is a link to email the technology support desk. Please save or bookmark this site. It will be updated with tools, resources, and tutorials through remote learning to better support your family.

Please email [email protected] with any tech-related support needed.

***  PTO News ***

*NEW....and super exciting for the family*

• PTO GIFT ---LIGHT UP STEM CARD KITS ARE HERE!

LIGHT UP your holiday season with a Light-up Card Making Stem Kit purchased by the PTO for all Kildeer students. They can explore the STEM of circuits and create a unique greeting card for a loved one. Kits are available for pickup at Kildeer School inside the main entrance from 8am-3pm (M-F) while school is in session. Please note: Only 1 per student. 

• TEACHER HOLIDAY GIFTS

Together Let's Show Our Teachers How Much We Care! This year in Lieu of classroom collections, we are asking for general donations for teachers' holiday gifts. Funds raised will be used to purchase Holiday gifts for ALL Kildeer Teachers. If you would like to recognize an individual teacher, we ask that you coordinate that on your own. Please go to Membership Toolkit to donate by December 16th: https://kildeercountrysidepto.membershiptoolkit.com/form/m/132971

• COMING SOON!

Look out for our PTO BLOG starting next week with more fun from the PTO and what we are planning for our students. Trivia Nights in Place of our Grade Movie Nights...Cookie Kits...and more!

Today marks my grandma's 82nd birthday. She makes a profound impact on my life and has always offered me solid advice. When I think of kindness, I think of her. My grandma's encouragement over the years has helped me to become who I am today and one of my favorite lessons has been, "Never say no to a good opportunity". 

Well, I'm not sure she had this particular opportunity in mind, but my family and I decided to adopt a new furry friend into our home. 

Kildeer, please meet Minnie. Let the puppy adventures begin!

Fondly,

Mrs. Vail Kieser

Principal