Dear Families,
Can you believe we are three weeks into the school year? Even with a shorter week, we were full steam ahead with learning. I had an opportunity to make virtual visits to classrooms this week and it was incredible to see how remote learning continues to evolve. Our educators place an emphasis on high levels of student engagement as well as prioritizing time for social-emotional learning and class building.
The quote from Brene Brown rings true in our current reality: I am a traveler, not a mapmaker. I am going down this path the same as you and with you.” We continue to appreciate our partnership together so we can do great things for our kids!
Let’s hope for some sunshine this weekend. Enjoy!
Kindly,
Christine Pfaff
NEW *Material Pick-Up Info-Monday, Sept. 14th*
Don’t forget to mark your calendars for Monday, September 14th for our second round of materials pick-up. During the hours of 11:30 a.m.- 6:30 p.m., please drive up to the front circle drive by the main entrance. Remember that Brandwyn Lane is currently a one-way street and that you must enter from Aptakisic Road.
Please make TWO COPIES of a sign that follows this example.
- Dark black font
- Large letters
- Hand one copy to a staff member, keep one copy in your car.
A staff member will take one of the copies and gather your child’s materials. Keep the second sign in the window of your car so staff can easily get your materials to you and place them in your trunk/hatch area. You do not need to exit your vehicle. Staff will be wearing masks and gloves. Please wear your masks while getting your materials as well. We recommend leaving plenty of room in your vehicle because there are many items for each student.
During this pick-up, your child will be given materials for literacy, math, P.E., music, art, as well as an external keyboard. Once we are able to resume school in-person, you will be asked to return the materials.
As always, if you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out to our front office!
*We will once again have boxes for you to donate food items for the ELC! Please only bring non-perishable food items. Thank you!
NEW *Welcome Office Essig - School Resource Officer*
Officer Michael Essig joins District 96 as our School Resource Officer this year. Officer Essig has been on the Buffalo Grove Police Department for two years and has been a police officer for a total of seven years. He is a member of the BGPD Peer Support, Bike Patrol, and Honor Guard Teams. He shared that his hobbies include avid reading, running and biking, and gardening. He looks forward to developing strong and positive relationships with our students, families, and staff members.
NEW *Early Release Reminder*
This is a friendly reminder that Tuesday, September 15th is an Early Release for students. Please view the ELEMENTARY EARLY RELEASE SCHEDULE for the day. Elementary hours are 8:30-2:00. If you have any schedule specific questions, please reach out to your child’s classroom teacher.
NEW *Fall Conference Sign-Up*
Fall conferences are rapidly approaching! Families will have an opportunity to sign-up the week of September 21st for a conference in October. Be on the lookout for more information from your child’s homeroom teacher.
As a reminder, conferences will be held virtually on Thursday, October 8th from 5:00 p.m.-8:30 p.m. and Friday, October 9th from 10:00 a.m.-1:30 p.m.
Conferences were moved to October in order to provide teachers and families the opportunity to discuss action steps for improvement before the reporting period closes.
NEW *School Pictures*
Students will be able to get their school pictures taken on Thursday, October 8th from 2:00 pm - 7:00 pm at Prairie. Please watch for further details in the Principal's Message.
NEW *1st Virtual Prairie Schoolyard Scamper Fun Run!*
Nothing can stop us! Our Prairie Pumas participated Friday in the “1st Virtual Prairie Schoolyard Scamper Fun Run”! As they jogged/walked through the circle, up Brandywyn Lane, right on LaSalle, through the bike path, past the buddy park and back to school the students were motivated by a real-time video of the route, energetic music, and entertainment by Mrs. Lehtman and Mr. Nickle! We are so proud of our students and look forward to when we can all celebrate the beginning of the school year and lifelong fitness together in person. Way to go Pumas!
REPEATING *MAP Testing Information*
Remote NWEA MAP Testing will take place over the next few weeks for your child. Our teachers and instructional coaches will serve as test proctors and will work to build and encourage student engagement during the test and respond to the needs of students in real-time. In addition, they will be watching student engagement closely to ensure that students are working through the test in a timely and typical manner. Students who are working too slowly or too quickly are tagged by NWEA and proctors are alerted.
Overall, the remote test-taking experience is nearly identical to its onsite counterpart, with changes mainly in proctor communication and the log-in process. However, the item bank, interface, and test management tools remain the same. From start to finish, the process is straightforward and easy to use.
See information in the box below regarding MAP growth, and this link provides further information for families.
What is MAP Growth?
MAP Growth helps teachers understand what students know today, so goals can be set to improve growth throughout the year. Students cannot pass or fail this test.
This test will not affect grades. In fact, it’s normal for students to only answer about half the questions correctly. Please don’t help them!
Given the challenges of learning from home, MAP Growth test results are especially helpful for us this year. These results will help us know what students are ready to learn.
Please see the important Copyright Information from NWEA MAP below:
NWEA MAP assessments, including test questions, are copyrighted, and may not be copied or reproduced in any form, including but not limited to taking photographs, video and/or audio recordings. Any copying or reproduction of NWEA MAP assessments constitutes copyright and/or other intellectual property infringement and is a violation of NWEA’s Master Subscription Agreement. NWEA MAP assessments, including test questions and answers, are the proprietary information of NWEA
The schedule for Elementary Remote MAP testing is as follows:
*All testing will take place in the morning
**Schedules are subject to change
September 14: All 5th Grade Students Districtwide
September 15: All 3rd and 4th Grade Students Districtwide
September 16: All 1st and 2nd Grade Students Districtwide
September 17: All Kindergarten, 3rd and 4th Grade Students Districtwide
September 18: All Kindergarten, 1st and 2nd Grade Students Districtwide