Today marks our 100th Day of School! Happy 100th Day from our 1st Grade Team!
Good afternoon Prairie Families,
The month of January certainly threw us a curveball with unexpected cold and snow days disrupting our usual routine. I extend my sincere appreciation to our resilient families, dedicated teachers, and hardworking students for their commitment to education during these days! Your flexibility has not gone unnoticed. As we bid goodbye (hopefully) to the unpredictable weather, let's look forward to a month of consistent learning, growth, and collaboration. Thank you for your ongoing support and dedication to the education of our students.
Have a wonderful weekend,
Lauren Delahanty
NEW *Upcoming Dates*
- Friday, February 16 - HALF DAY | School Improvement Day
- Only Blended PM attend (8:40 ~ 11:10 a.m.)
- Monday, February 19 - NO SCHOOL - District Holiday
- Friday, February 23 - Report period ends, EC-Grade 8
- Tuesday, February 27 - EARLY RELEASE DAY
NEW *5Essentials Student Survey*
Beginning the week of February 12th, District 96 students in 4th-8th grade will be administered the Illinois 5Essentials Survey. This 25-minute survey is based on over 20 years of research at the University of Chicago and asks students about their experiences in school with the purpose of providing school leaders with critical student input to help develop school improvement plans. Students’ identities will be completely confidential, and teachers and administrators will never see individual responses to survey questions and will only receive aggregated information.
Please be aware that under the Protection of Pupil Rights Act. 20 U.S.C. Section 1232(c) (1) (A), you have the right to review a copy of the questions asked of your student(s). Survey questions can be found at the UChicago Impact Support Center. (https://impactsurveys.my.site.com/s/article/illinois-5essentials-survey-questions)
If you do not want your child’s input to be considered for school improvement purposes, please contact Lauren Delahanty ([email protected]) by February 9th.
NEW *5Essentials Survey for Parents/Guardians* (Please run through 3/28)
Beginning January 30th through March 29th, District 96 invites you to share your thoughts on the inner workings of your child’s school. On behalf of the Illinois State Board of Education, the Illinois 5Essentials Survey will be administered online by UChicago Impact at the University of Chicago.
As a parent, this opportunity will allow you to share your thoughts on the important elements of school effectiveness in a survey about your child’s school. Your participation will help us understand the conditions at your child’s school and guide our improvement. Parent identity and survey responses will be kept completely confidential and will never be connected to you or your child.
Please visit http://survey.5-essentials.org/illinois/survey/parent/ to begin the parent survey. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact UChicago Impact Client Services at 1-866-440-1874 or [email protected].
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 your student has a SMART watch, it must be placed in airplane/off mode during the school day. 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. If students need to call home, we encourage them to ask their teacher if they can come to the office to use the 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.
NEW *WOW Winners!*
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NEW *Parent Event: 'Addressing Toxic Achievement Culture’*
On February 7, District 96 co-hosts the Parent Network Program "Addressing Toxic Achievement Culture.” In this virtual session, author Jennifer Wallace will talk about how we can "teach our kids to strive toward excellence without crushing them.”
This session begins at 7 p.m.
To register, go to http://tinyurl.com/VAPLDToxicAchievementCulture.
“Addressing Toxic Achievement Culture” is hosted in collaboration with District 102, District 103, and District 125, and the Vernon Area Library.
REPEAT *Valentine's Day*
Valentine's Day will be celebrated during PTO classroom parties at all elementary schools on Wednesday, February 14th. Your child's teacher will send home any classroom-specific information related to Valentine's Day. Valentines are already popping up in stores. If you choose to send valentines to school and include an item with your child's valentines, please note for the safety of our students only non-food items are permissible. This practice is consistent for all classrooms in District 96 elementary schools.
REPEAT *24-25 Kindergarten Registration Open*
Are you the parent of a kindergarten student or friends with someone who is? Please help us get the word out! Kindergarten registration is now open for the 24-25 school year. Families who complete registration by April 30th may attend Kindergarten Kick-Off in May at Willow Grove Early Learning Center and receive a free t-shirt while at the event! Kindergarten Kick-Off is an exciting event designed to welcome and introduce incoming kindergarten students and their parents/guardians to Willow Grove, supporting a successful transition into school and kindergarten. Please follow this link to learn about the steps to register. Fully registered families will receive additional information about Kindergarten Kick-Off and more in early April.
If your child is already attending Willow Grove in the early childhood program, you will automatically receive a registration link in March for kindergarten. Please wait until you receive that link to proceed with registration. You will still want to complete the registration process by April 30th to receive your child's free t-shirt and attend Kindergarten Kick-Off.
Please note that your child must be 5 years old by September 1st, 2024 to attend kindergarten for the 2024-25 school year.
https://www.kcsd96.org/wg/kindergarten-registration
Repeat *ACCESS Testing*
The State of Illinois requires identified English Learner (EL) students to annually participate in the ACCESS testing to determine current English language proficiency in Listening, Speaking, Reading, and Writing. Our ACCESS testing window will occur from 1/17/24-3/5/24. Each school’s testing schedule is unique and will only impact students who take the ACCESS test. Students taking ACCESS do not need to prepare anything ahead of time.