Dear Prairie Parents,

The summer has flown by quickly as always, and it’s time to get back into the swing of school. On behalf of the entire Prairie School staff, Welcome Back! I hope that you have had an enjoyable summer spending time with your children and creating new memories. My family and I enjoyed an amazing trip to Italy with our extended family.  We visited Rome, Cinque Terre, and Tuscany. We were so fortunate to have forged treasured memories together.

This year your child’s class placement will come to you electronically on Thursday, August 8th at approximately 4:00pm for families that have a designated email address. If you do not have an email address, class placement and bus information will be mailed on Thursday, August 8th. A team of staff members worked diligently to make sure each child was placed in the classroom in which he or she will find continued success. We know you appreciate the fact that, with such careful thought and consideration put into these decisions, including your input, no changes will be made and we thank you for your support. This year’s class lists were developed with the following teaching teams in place to ensure student success.

1st Grade: Mrs. Angel, Miss Furlett, Mrs. Giannos, Miss McHugh

2nd Grade: Mrs. Desai, Miss Elfering, Miss Heuer, Mrs. Stewart~Mrs. Saltzberg through Nov. 1

3rd Grade: Ms. Hulligan, Miss Ramont, Mrs. Souza

4th Grade: Ms. Cotter~Miss Smith through Oct 11, Ms. Schmidt, Mrs. Wood, Mrs. Zaia

5th Grade: Mrs. Davis, Mrs. Hafft, Mrs. Smith, Mrs. Weede

If your child takes the bus, the bus stop location, pick-up time, and drop off time will also come to you electronically at the same time as your child’s classroom placement. Students will receive their bus tags the first day of school from their homeroom teacher. Additionally, students will be informed of their assigned bus seat on the first day of school. Assigned seats apply to all rides to and from school, every day, all year.  All bus routes will have assigned seats. Any changes to bus seats are done through the principal or assistant principal.

The Prairie Faculty and Staff are excited to welcome new educators, specialists, and support staff to Prairie this year.

• Mr. Mike Senatore - Assistant Principal at Country Meadows and Prairie

• Mrs. Melissa Himes - Language Development Coach

• Miss Kaylee Furlett - 1st Grade

• Miss Kaitlyn Elfering - 2nd Grade

• Miss Barb Ramont - 3rd Grade

• Mr. Jack Nickle - Physical Education

Grade Level Changes

• Ms. Cotter is joining the 4th-grade team.

• Mrs. Giannos is joining the 1st-grade team.

• Miss Heuer is joining the 2nd-grade team.

• Mrs. Smith is joining the 5th-grade team.

• Mrs. Zaia is joining the 4th-grade team.

Position Changes

• Mrs. Ok will be joining Mrs. Anderson on our Orchestra Team.

• Mrs. Gord and Ms. Klein will be Literacy Coaches at Ivy Hall and Prairie.

• Mrs. Heinrich, Mrs. Sarlitto, and Mrs. Woods will be iCoaches at Ivy Hall and Prairie.

Support Staff

• Mr. Clint Miller - Instructional Aide ~ Technology

We’re so proud of our well cared for school! We appreciate and thank our custodians, Mr. Adam Goodlow, Mr. José Carreon, and Mr. Héctor Ibarra, who truly go the extra mile to make Prairie sparkle from bottom to top all year long!

This year we are excited that we add to our P. E. curricular tools Lu Interactive Playground. Additionally, all classrooms have been outfitted with new furniture that will enhance collaborative learning spaces, provide flexible seating options, and increase the learning space footprint in each classroom.  We can’t wait for you to see it!!!  

There is a lot of excitement ahead of us with new teachers and friends to meet, new books to read, and new skills to master. The staff and I look forward to sharing in these exciting times with you and your child. As a parent myself, I know how fast time goes by; this year my daughter will be entering her junior year of high school.  

Thank you for your commitment to your child's education. We couldn’t do the work of educating your child without you. I look forward to seeing you in the very near future.  If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me.

Kind Regards,

Dr. Christine Pfaff

Please read the following information carefully as much detail is included for the upcoming school year.

Wednesday, August 7th - District-Wide New Family Meeting

Has your family recently moved to the United States or are you and your student(s) new to this area? On Wednesday, Aug. 7th at 7 p.m., parents of registered students in Kindergarten–Grade 8  are invited to Twin Groves Middle School, 2600 N. Buffalo Grove Rd., Buffalo Grove, for a program to welcome you to our community and introduce you to our District 96 culture.

Learn about and understand our home-school connection, classroom dynamics, patterns of communication to expect from our teachers and administrators, and more. Ask questions and help us understand how we can best support you in acclimating to the culture of a new school district, neighborhood, and community.

While all interested parents are welcome, please note that the focus of this evening is not specifically curricular and general procedural information, which will be shared with all District 96 parents on their students’ designated grade-level Curriculum Nights.  Rather, this is an informational opportunity for parents, who like their students, are experiencing our social customs and practices for teaching and learning for the first time. Questions? Need an interpreter? Please contact the Director of Language and Early Literacy, Katie Sheridan at [email protected].

Tuesday, August 13th - School Supply Kit Pick-Up

Please pick up your school supply kits from 8:00 - 9:00 am in the gym on Meet the Teacher Day. Please leave yourself plenty of time to pick up your kit and meet your child’s teacher.

The PTO is looking for volunteers to arrive at 7:30am and to help distribute the kits. Please sign up on Membership Toolkit if you’re able to help. If you have any questions, please email Ronna Belinky at [email protected].

Tuesday, August 13th - New Family Meeting & Meet the Teacher

New Family Meeting - 8:00am-8:30am

If your family is new to Prairie, parents and their child(ren) can meet Dr. Pfaff in the Library to learn about Prairie and ask questions. After the brief meeting, you will move onto your child(ren)’s classroom and specials area (Art, Exploration Lab, Music, & PE) classrooms as well.

Meet the Teacher - 8:30am-9:30am

Parents and students are welcome to visit classrooms, meet teachers, and drop-off school supplies from 8:30 am – 9:30am on Tuesday, August 13th. If you ordered school supplies from the PTO, you will pick them up in the Gym. Our Specials teachers: Miss McShane/Music, Mr. Morris/Art, Mrs. Spivack/Exploration Lab, and Mr. Nickle and Mrs. Lehtman/Physical Education are excited to meet with you as well and will be in their classrooms also. Please keep in mind that this hour is not a conference time. If a conference is needed, please schedule an appointment with the teacher via email.

Thursday, August 15th - 1st Day of School - Half Day Dismissal at 11:45am

Line up outside on blacktop on this day only. Teachers will meet students at their line. Each line will have the teacher’s name posted alphabetically by grade level at the front of the line with 1st grade classrooms starting at the entrance door with 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th grades lined up moving toward the wooded area.  

Friday, August 16th - 2nd Day of School

Students will line up inside of school today and for the remainder of the school year. There will be line markers inside and staff will be on hand to help students get into the correct line. Parents do not enter the building.

School Hours

• Arrival time: 8:10am - 8:20am

• Tardy bell: 8:25am. *If your child will be tardy to school on any given day, please come to the office and sign your child in.*

• Regular Dismissal: 3:00pm

• Regular Day: 8:25am – 3:00pm

• Half Day: 8:25am – 11:45am

• Early Release Day: 8:25am – 2:00pm

Bus Service

Bus service will begin on Thursday, August 15th. Please be patient during the start of the school year as the fine-tuning of routes and times are revised to provide the best bus service for all our students. Students will receive their assigned bus seats and bus tags on the first day of school. Teachers will assist students in securing the bus tag to the backpack where it should remain for the entirety of the school year.

If you received a bus route assignment and your child will NOT be riding the bus for any reason, please notify our administrative assistant, Mrs. Johnson via email at [email protected]. This information will help us maintain accurate bus rider data.

Drop-Off & Pick-Up Procedures

Parent Vehicle Drop-Off

Parent vehicle drop-off is at the Brandywyn Lane circle at the main entrance. 8:10am is the earliest drop-off time, as this is when adult supervision starts. During drop-off, please remain in a single file line, pull up as far as you can, and release your child(ren) curbside. This is a “drop and go” procedure with parents staying in the car. Please do not drop children off on the street.

Parent Vehicle Pick-Up

Pick-up is at the Brandywyn Lane circle drive at the main entrance. Please do not arrive before 2:45pm. Please pull up to fit in as many cars as possible while leaving a reasonable amount of space between vehicles for pulling out. Overflow traffic will wait on the west side of Brandywyn Lane circle drive accumulating toward Aptakisic Road so that a right turn only is made into the pick-up circle. Please do not turn left into the pick-up circle, however right and left turns are permitted leaving the circle. With student safety in mind, we ask that you utilize the parent pick- up line if you will be picking up your child from school and not park on side streets.  Our pick up line moves quickly and, on typical days, all cars are through the line in 10 minutes or less.  

Parking Lots

Please do not use the parking lots for picking children up from school. Please follow the procedures for Parent Vehicle Pick-Up noted above.

Lunch

• Lunch begins on Friday, August 16th

• Lunch - $2.60, milk or juice - 75¢

• Menus can be found on the district website under “See Menu”

• Lunch payment – please write a check made out to District 96 (no cash) for multiple lunch purchases. The money will be applied to your child’s lunch card. In the memo area, please include your child’s name, grade, and teacher name. You may also prepay for lunches online HERE.

Allergen-Free Table

If you would like your child to sit at the “allergen-free table” in the lunchroom for medical reasons, please contact the school nurse, Ms. Strom. Students who are not allergen restricted may sit at the “allergen-free table” only if they have purchased a school lunch.

Curriculum Night – Wednesday, August 21st

• Grades 1-2: Principal’s Presentation in the Gym 6:15 – 6:30pm, Teacher Presentation 6:30 – 7:15pm

• Grades 3-5: Principal’s Presentation in the Gym 7:00 – 7:15pm (Same as Gr. 1-2.), Teacher Presentations 7:15pm – 8:00pm

**This night is for parents only. Please keep in mind that this is not a conference time. If a conference is needed, please schedule an appointment with the teacher via email.  More information will be available as we get closer to the date.

General Reminders: Dogs, Birthdays, & Snacks

• Dogs are not allowed on school grounds. Please see Section 2.13 of the Parent-Student Handbook for further information.

• Birthday Party Invitation Guidelines – Staff members cannot share contact information of families. Please see section 2.5-b of the Parent-Student Handbook for full guidelines around distributing invitations at school.

• Birthday Treats – Food items from the Approved Snack List are allowed and non-food items are encouraged, instead of food. Please check with the classroom teacher around non-food items to ensure that they are non-disruptive and safe for the school environment. Full details can be found in section 2.5-c of the Parent-Student Handbook.

• Approved Snack List – Please refer to the Approved Snack List for requirements around sending snacks to school for your child’s personal consumption, birthday treats, and seasonal classroom parties.

News from the Prairie PTO

The Prairie PTO is looking forward to an exciting 2019-2020 school year! We have a ton of great events planned this year to bring us together as a community, as well as to raise money for our school! Please be sure to check out the Prairie PTO Blog for events and information. Our first event is the Back to School Bash on Friday, September 6th from 6:30pm - 8:30pm.  More information will be out soon about this fun evening.