9/13/19
TGIF…Twin Groves it’s Friday!
What’s Happening in the Classrooms?
Spanish
In 6th grade Spanish, students have been studying the countries where Spanish is spoken. We have also practiced the alphabet and greetings/farewells.
In 7th grade Spanish, students have been working on interpretive reading skills through the theme of school.
In 8th grade Spanish, students have been learning about pastimes and places.
Orchestra
We have had a fantastic start to orchestra so far! 6th Grade orchestra students are working on a new rhythm. In 7th Grade Orchestra, we are working on shifting to 3rd position. In 8th Grade Orchestra, we are working on 2 octave scales!
Band
The band has had an exciting beginning to our year. Tonight 8th grade students are going to Stevenson to participate in the marching band experience. Next Saturday, several of our band members will be trying out for the District 7 Honor band. They are practicing hard for this very tough audition. The pep band has had a couple of practices and will be playing at four of the basketball games during the fall. Jazz band will start October 4th. The Honor Band will be playing for our 2nd annual Veteran’s Day concert on Monday, November 11th during the day at Twin Groves.
Currently we are reviewing, in all grades, practicing scales, and reading through a lot of music.
Parents Delivering Lunch for Students
If a parent is bringing a student his or her lunch, it must be dropped off in the office and labeled with the student’s name and grade. Parents may bring food only for their own child. School offices cannot accept lunch deliveries from restaurants or lunch delivery services.
Middle School Activity Period
An Activity Period will be offered from 2:30 to 3:15 p.m. at the middle school level. A variety of interest-based clubs, as well as study halls and rehearsals for the band, orchestra, and chorus, will be held during this time. Interscholastic sports and pompons will begin after the conclusion of the Activity Period at 3:15 p.m. Limited bus service from the middle schools to neighborhood stops will be available after the Activity Period. No bus service is available after interscholastic sports. Parents will be responsible for transporting their child home from those activities.
Students and parents are not allowed to order food deliveries from restaurants or any outside deliver service.
Students participating in any activities that start after 3:15 PM MUST be signed into an after school activity or study hall.
Charity of the Year Suggestions
Colt’s Council is currently accepting suggestions for our yearly charity. Please send any suggestions, along with a charity mission statement, and explanation to Mrs. Barnes OR use this LINK to submit your suggestion.
All suggestions are due by 2 pm on Friday, September 20th.
What Parents Need To Know About Vaping
Please take a look at the resources below regarding Vaping and E-cigarettes.
What parents need to know
A Tip Sheet for Parents
E-cigarettes and Vaping
Info-Graphic- Teachers and Parents: That USB Stick Might Be an E-cigarette
Kildeer Countryside CCSD 96 ~ Thought Exchange Partnership
Now seeking parents to fill open positions on our district Thought Exchange Partnership. If you are looking for a way to get involved, be a voice for Twin Groves, and learn about the wonderful things happening in District 96, please consider joining. If you are interested in this opportunity, email me to express interest by September 13th! Please know this will be a lottery for open spots. I will contact everyone to let you know if you have been selected! The first meeting is scheduled for September 26th in the evening.
Purpose:
1. To share with parents information regarding district goals and initiatives, curricular and instructional innovations, programs and other informational topics. (i.e. District Goals, MAP and PARCC Results)
2. To review school board or school code required topics (i.e. Handbook, Discipline Policy, Grants, Calendar)
3. To understand parent perceptions and solicit feedback on school district topics to assist the district in communication and planning.
Membership:
Members serve a two-year term on a rotation basis. Once any two-year term is served, new members will be identified. Unless a parent has children at WG for both years of their term, they will serve as a representative for their elementary school for the final year if they are able. If all parent review positions are not filled, members may serve additional terms to fill parent review roster. In this manner, each committee member can receive information about a greater number of topics and share feedback over the two-year period and committee composition is more stable than reforming the entire committee annually.
Committee Composition Includes:
● Two to four parent members-at-large for each school and any PTO member.
● One special education district representative.
● One ELL district representative.
● One Bilingual district representative.
● One Board of Education representative and alternate.
● One representative appointed by the Board of Education.
● Teacher Representative(s) – to be invited based on agenda topic.
● Administrative Representative(s) – to be invited based on agenda topic.
Roles of the Members:
1. Active participant sharing opinions, questions, suggestions and feedback in positive ways
2. Act as district ambassadors to promote the district in the community
3. Direct other parents to the appropriate district personnel and resources as needed
4. Invite other parents to attend district sponsored meetings and events including identified
Thought Exchange Partnership meetings Administrative Chairperson:
Mrs. Jeanne Spiller, Assistant Superintendent for Teaching and Learning Community
Parent Liaison: Lubna Andrabi
Examples of Potential Discussion
Topics:
Topics Aligned with current District goals
Discipline Procedures/Student Handbook/Bully Plan
Communication Norms Transition to Middle School and High School
PARCC/School Report Card Data District Committee Reports
MAP Testing/Growth
Data/Goal Setting
District Communication with Stakeholders
Health/Wellness/Social Emotional
D96 Learning Targets
Collaboration between Stevenson and D96
Common Core Standards and Assessments
Transition to Middle School and High School
This committee meets at Ivy Hall in the MAT Room from 7:00 to 8:30 PM on: 9/26/19, 10/24/19, 12/05/19, 01/30/20, 2/13/20, 4/23/20
STEM Conference for Girls
The STEM for Girls Conference for Lake County is September 14th, 2019, at Round Lake High School. This conference is for girls in grades 6-8 and will engage each participant in several sessions with a presenter who works in the field. Registration is required and will be open until September 8th. Sessions fill quickly so please register early by visiting our webpage at: EYH Lake County.
Missed MAP (Measures of Academic Progress) Scores Sent Sept. 6?
Some parents have reported they did not receive their student's MAP scores sent by email last Friday afternoon, Sept. 6.
Delivery by two identified email service providers proved to be problematic, with reports of that specific email going directly to a spam folder.
If you did not receive the email–which included links to info about understanding student growth, RIT scores, and general info about the MAP assessment–please contact Assistant Superintendent of Teaching & Learning Jeanne Spiller at [email protected].
Daily Announcements
The Daily Announcements will be posted daily. Please see Twin Groves website for up to date school announcements. The announcements let you know what exciting activities and clubs are going on at Twin Groves. Please click HERE to access the Daily Announcements.
PTO
Upcoming Events:
9/18- Dessert Day
9/25- Special Lunch
10/23- Dessert Day
10/25- Fall Bash 3-5PM
10/30- Special Lunch
11/13- Dessert Day
11/20- Special Lunch
11/25- Book Fair
11/26- Book Fair
12/11- Dessert Day
12/18- Special Lunch
Please click HERE to access the Membership Toolkit. All items for sale from the PTO will be available on this website.