No School Monday, September 2 ~ Labor Day!
2019 Prairie Schoolyard Scamper Fun Run!
Prairie School is looking forward to all students participating in the 24th Annual Prairie School Yard Scamper Fun Run, which is scheduled for Friday, September 27th at 1:15 p.m! The Scamper is a 1.2-mile run/walk through the neighborhood to promote lifetime participation in physical activity. We encourage family members to join us for a little exercise and great fun! We would also love for parents to volunteer! All students need a consent form for this all school event. Scamper Fun Run Consent Forms with Volunteer information should be submitted by Friday, September 13th. In the event of bad weather, the Scamper will be held on Friday, October 4th. Mrs. Lehtman and Mr. Nickle look forward to seeing you there! Please click HERE to sign up!
Assigned Bus Seats
As a reminder, all students who ride the bus have assigned bus seats. Students are to be seated in their assigned bus seat to and from school. Any changes to assigned seats are conducted in the principal’s office. Please remind and encourage your child to sit in their assigned seats. Thank you for your help.
SIGN LANGUAGE CLUB!
Have you ever wanted to talk to someone without saying a word? Well you can, we have a Sign Language Club here at Prairie School! Registration is open for students in 3rd through 5th grade. Sign Language Club meets weekly on Friday mornings at 7:45 am. Students will meet weekly to learn American Sign Language (ASL). Students are introduced to ASL including the alphabet, vocabulary (family members, colors, numbers, etc.), basic sentence structure, negatives, questions, and directional verbs. Elements of Deaf Culture are woven throughout each lesson. Students will learn to sign simple sentences and convey meaning from basic everyday conversation. There is a limit of 20 students. Please see Prairie's Clubs page for more information and to sign up!
Library News
Dear Parents,
Next week Prairie students will begin to check out library books. These books will be checked out for two weeks. If your child has finished reading his/her library books they can be returned early.
In addition to book check out, students also practice handwriting/cursive during their library time. Therefore, children will check out books every two weeks. The other two weeks a month, children will be practicing their handwriting/learning cursive.
In our library, we do not charge fines for late books. However, we do charge for book damages. These may include replacing the book. If the book is lost, we charge the cost to replace the book.
In honor of your child's birthday, you may wish to donate a book to the Prairie Learning Center. Your child may choose a new book from the Learning Center that will have a special bookplate inscribed with your child's name. Please return the attached form and check if you are interested! You do not have to wait until your child’s birthday to sign up. You can fill out the form now and on their birthday, we will celebrate!
I am looking forward to sharing my love of reading and books with your child. To see what is happening in Exploration Lab and the library, go to our website by clicking the link below. Be sure to check out our Student Superstar tab. If you have any questions, please contact me.
FOLLOW US ON TWITTER TO SEE THE LATEST IN EXPLORATION LAB AND THE LIBRARY!
@mrsspivack
#inspire96
Sincerely,
Lanie Spivack
@mrsspivack (twitter)
ECO CLUB
Calling all students who are eager to save the planet!
Prairie's Eco Club will meet every Tuesday Morning from 7:45-8:20 to empower our students to become leaders who optimize health and sustain the environment. We believe our students are powerful and capable of leading social change and transformative action.
Please fill out this form for more information.
We are asking for $20 to help support our club efforts! These funds will go to buying supplies for fun activities. If this causes a financial hardship, or you have questions please send an email to [email protected]. This can be paid via cash or check made out to "Cash" on the first day of our club
Mrs. Spivack
Ms. Sauer
MAP Test Information
We made the decision this year to turn off the ability for students to see their RIT score immediately upon submitting their test. In past years, this feature has been turned on. Instead, students will receive their scores through an individual discussion with their teacher at some point following the MAP testing window. In addition, MAP score reports will be emailed to parents on Friday, September 6th beginning at 3pm.
The main reasons for this decision are as follows:
We believe it is best for students that their results are shared personally. Teachers can help put student results into context and discuss areas for further growth and areas of strength. A RIT score in isolation does not communicate this level of detail and simply becomes a number to compare themselves to others.
Some of our students have demonstrated a high level of anxiety with the level of sharing that occurs when the RIT scores are shown upon test submission. This change will allow students to simply take the assessment and not be concerned about the immediacy of the feedback.
Sign Up for Culture Crew!
Who: ALL STUDENTS ARE WELCOME to join Mrs. Just, Mrs. Pawlow, and Mrs. Cho
When: Friday mornings 7:45-8:15 AM (Starting Friday, 9/6)
***There will be no club on Friday mornings that we are not in school.
Where: Prairie Elementary School Library
Why: Prairie’s Culture Crew will explore and promote an increased understanding of the various cultures of the world. It is a time to come together, learn about other cultures and have fun meeting new friends!
What: Some activities include:
*Pen pals with people from other countries
*Guest speakers (Please indicate if you would like to be a parent volunteer to share your culture on the permission slip. If you check “yes” we will be in contact with you ASAP!)
*Cultural celebrations
*Service project
***SIGN UP ENDS Friday 8/30/2019 at 6:30 PM***
Dates of Future MAP Tests
Our teachers have received several inquiries about our winter and spring MAP testing dates due to vacation planning. The dates are listed below.
Fall 8/19-8/28
Winter 12/9-12/18
Spring 4/27-5/6 ~ subject to change due to Illinois Assessment of Readiness (IAR) dates
Prairie Puma Leadership Council
Attention 4th and 5th graders!
Join us for a PPLC information meeting on September 5 after school from 3:00-3:30pm. We will be meeting in Ms. Heuer’s room (red pod, room 6). Please bring a note from your family regarding how you will get home at 3:30pm. Parent pick-up will be on the Kingsbridge circle by the art/music doors.
If you are interested in being a student leader this year, you must attend this meeting. You will receive information on the application process and different leadership opportunities that will happen throughout the year. If you have any questions, please see Ms. Heuer, Ms. McShane, or Mrs. Yutakis
We hope to see you there!
2019 TALENT SHOW - AUDITION SIGN-UP
Attention all Prairie students! Do you have a special talent you would like to share? Prairie School has a talent show every year! The talent show will be on Friday, December 6th. Auditions will be held in October this year!
Sign-up here for an audition! The form will be open for one week.
Please read the specific information below:
-
All students are welcome to sign-up for an audition.
-
Each performance needs to be 2 minutes or less. (No exceptions)
-
Students can only be in one act.
-
If you are performing with a group, only one parent should sign up the group! Please coordinate this!
-
Results will be sent out by November 11th.
PTO News
Please see the Prairie PTO Sept. 2019 BLOG for all the exciting upcoming PTO events. You will learn more about the Friday, 9/6 Back-to-School Bash by clicking the PTO link above.