Good afternoon Prairie families,
It’s hard to believe that summer is officially over. We celebrated our incoming fall season with our School Yard Scamper today. This fun school-wide event marks the 28th year of our school fun run tradition. A huge thank you to Mrs. Lehtman and Mr. Nickle for all the planning and organization that went into this event. Thank you also to all of our staff who joined in the fun and cheered on our students. Everyone had an awesome time!!
In just a few short weeks you will have the opportunity to meet with you at Family Educator Conferences. The conference dates are Thursday, October 5th from 5:00 PM to 8:30 PM and Friday, October 6th from 10:00 AM to 1:30 PM. See the information below for more details on how to sign up.
Have a wonderful three-day weekend,
Ms. Lauren Delahanty
Important Upcoming Dates
- Monday, September 25 - No School - District Holiday
- Thursday, October 5 & Friday, October 6 - No School
- Family Educator Conferences (see below) - 10/5 - 5:00 pm - 8:30 pm
- Family Educator Conferences (see below) - 10/6 - 10:00 am - 1:30 pm
- Monday, October 9 - No School - District Holiday
- Tuesday, October 24 - Early Release
NEW *Fall Family/Educator Conferences*
Fall conferences will open at 6:00pm on Tuesday, 9/26. They will close at 4:00pm on Wednesday, 10/4. You will receive an email from School Messenger with the link to Meet the Teacher that will allow you to access the scheduling platform. After scheduling the conference, you will receive a confirmation email from Meet the Teacher that contains the link you will use to access the virtual conference. If you wish to have the conference in-person, you must notify the teacher by October 3rd. If the teacher does not receive notification, he/she will expect the conference to take place virtually.
The conference dates are Thursday, October 5th from 5:00 PM to 8:30 PM and Friday, October 6th from 10:00 AM to 1:30 PM.
Elementary availability:
- Classroom teacher
- Related service providers (if applicable)
- Music/PE teachers (Grades 1-3),
- Art/Expo Lab teachers (Grade 4-5),
- Band/Orchestra teachers (current rosters)
Middle school parents will have the option to sign up with one core content teacher (see below) and pertinent exploratory/PE teachers. Please note: Students on the A Day schedule will have their Spanish teachers available during this round of conferences. Students on the B Day schedule will have this opportunity in the spring.
Available Middle School Core Teachers
- 6th Grade: 2nd Period Teacher
- 7th Grade: 1st Period Teacher
- 8th Grade: 1st Period Teacher
If you are unable to schedule a conference with a specific teacher, please remember that conferences are not the only time to communicate with teachers. Please feel free to reach out any time.
REQUESTING AN IN-PERSON CONFERENCE
If you want to have an in-person conference with the teachers, you must notify the teachers via email by the end of the day on Tuesday, October 3rd.
NEW - *Halloween Costumes*
Our Halloween festivities will be here before we know it. We look forward to students dressing in their Halloween costumes for our Halloween Parade and classroom parties on Tuesday, Oct. 31st. Please help us with the following costume guidelines. Students will change into their costumes after their lunch period at school. Please ensure that your child can get the costume on with no or minimal help.
Costumes must be appropriate for school. If costumes are not school-appropriate the student will be asked to remove their costume.
- Please no masks, blood, super scary stuff, general ickiness, or weapons
- Please no cigars or cigarette items
- Please no bare tummies
- Please keep hair coloring and make-up simple
NEW - *SMART Watches*
SMART watches are starting to show up here at the elementary schools. Many SMART watches have similar capabilities to SMART phones (game, voice, and text capabilities). If a SMART watch becomes a distraction or is used for communication, it may be confiscated and stored in the office to remove the distraction from the learning environment. Essentially, we will treat the SMART watches like a cell phone. Confiscated equipment may be picked up in the office at the end of the day by the student(s). If a pattern of distraction occurs, parents may be asked to pick up the technology.
REPEAT *Student iPads*
Students use their iPads each day at school. Please ensure that your child is charging their iPad each night so they are prepared for the learning activities they will be engaging in the following day. Thank you for your cooperation in this.
REPEAT - *Library News*
District 96 has added the Sora app to student iPads. This allows students to check out books from our online library. It should already be downloaded, but if it is not, then it can be found in self-service.
Please encourage your child to check out books only if they are going to actually read them. There are preview pages with each book allowing students to see if the book is something they are interested in reading. Books are purchased per checkout, so if the book is checked out without being read, that is one less checkout that can be enjoyed by the children in our district.
Most students have been taught to use the app during their time in the learning center. As a reminder, please use our district name (Kildeer Countryside) to log in, NOT Prairie School. Feel free to contact me if you have difficulty with the app. The Sora app is so easy and convenient. Think of it as a Kindle library for kids!
-Mrs. Spivack
REPEAT - *Art News*
In art class we are using an app called Artsonia. The app creates a digital portfolio of their artwork. Every time a student finishes a work of art they take a picture of their artwork and post it to the site. Please look for an email from Artsonia, so you can sign up for your child’s fan club and get an email notification when your child creates a new artwork. Artsonia is also a great way for grandparents, aunts and uncles to see their artwork too!
-Mr. Morris