8/6/21
TGIF…Twin Groves it’s Friday!
I am very excited to post my first Principal’s Message of the 2021-2022 School Year!
The Principal's Mesasge will come out each Friday at 2:30PM.
I hope that you have all had a safe and healthy summer. The entire Twin Groves staff is looking forward to a fabulous 2021-2022 school year!
We are Twin Groves Strong!
New Faces at Twin Groves
Please join us in welcoming the following new faces to Twin Groves.
-Katherine Casey- Psychologist in the SLC Program
-Lauren Delahanty- Assistant Principal
-Aubrey DeMuth- Interventionist
-Rebecca Himelstein- 6th Grade Language Arts
-Kayla Hussey- 6th Grade Science
-Daniel Johnson- Custodian
-Anna Kopacz- 8th Grade Science
-Monika Kordek- Counselor Intern
-Jack Maddox- Social Worker
-Mark McHaley- Support Staff
-Anne Root- Support Staff
-Jessica Weir- Instructional Coach
District Information
Please see information below from the Superintendent’s Message.
On what will be a “journey towards normal,” we are excited to share the following layers of mitigation that will not be necessary to open the 2021-2022 school year.
-No longer requiring daily self certification. Rather, by signing and returning the district acknowledgement form, sending your student to school each day is certifying that your student is symptom free
-Moving from 6 feet of distancing to 3 feet of distancing, accommodating an additional 1,000 students
-Resuming normal food service operations
-Resuming special lunch and dessert day activities
-Resuming locker and “cubby” assignments
-Reopening of locker rooms for student use
-Removing restrictions on “shared material”
-Resuming all clubs, activities, and sports with mitigation measures in place.
-Eliminating classroom relocations when a student or staff leave with symptoms.
-No masking outdoors (regardless of vaccination status).
-Using the “Test to Stay” option in order to minimize in-person learning disruptions (view the linked video for more information).
For up to date information, please click on the link below to access the Superintendent’s Message from the most recent board meeting.
Superintendent’s Message from 7/31/21
LINK to all Superintendent’s Messages
Student Schedules, Bus Information, Locker Assignments
Student schedules, bus information, and locker assignments will be available electronically on Thursday, August 12th. Please look out for an email from the district on the 12th.
Lunch
There will be free lunch available for all students this year. More information to come.
PTO
Please log onto Membership toolkit (MTK).
ALL PTO sales and sign ups must go through Membership Toolkit (MTK).
You can use your Prairie and Ivy Hall logins, but you MUST update your family information!
Parents will need their child’s homeroom teacher to update MTK. Please note you will not be able to do this until the teacher assignments come out on August 12th.
Homeroom teachers are the following:
6th grade- 2nd period teacher
7th grade- 1st period teacher
8th grade- 1st period teacher
It is VERY IMPORTANT to update your family and student information before starting any forms. This will not be possible until the teacher assignments come out on August 12th.
If you are new to the district, please set up an account via THIS LINK. Please note you will not be able to do this until you have your child's teacher assignments.
Committees for the 21-22 School Year
Please go to Membership Toolkit to check out the open committees for the 21-22 school year. We are looking for volunteers for Special Lunch and Dessert Day.
We would LOVE your help!
Welcome Back Staff Breakfast- Volunteers Needed
We would love your help to make the first day back for our amazing staff at Twin Groves extra special. We are looking for breakfast items to be donated for our welcome back breakfast. All donations will need to be dropped off at Twin by Friday, August 13th at 3PM.
Please head over to Membership Toolkit and sign up to donate.
Thank you in advance!
Spirit Wear
All Spirit Wear sales will be through Membership Tool Kit.
More information to come. This will be uploaded on Membership Toolkit in the near future and advertised in the Friday Principal Message.
Locker Set Up Day
Locker Set Up Day will be Tuesday, August 17th from 4:30 PM-6:00 PM.
This is a fully masked event for all participants.
During this time, the school will be open for students to set up their lockers and walk through their schedules. Classrooms will be locked but the building will be open for students to walk their schedules. This is a great time to practice locker combinations.
The PTO will be set up on the stage in the Cafeteria. There will be a few laptops available if you are unable to create and set up a Membership Toolkit account for your child if you need assistance creating an account.
Gym Uniforms and Locks
The PTO will have a table set up at Locker Set Up with samples to view. Parents and students can take a look at the samples for sizing purposes. There will NOT be an opportunity to try on gym uniforms.
Please order PE uniforms and PE locks through MTK. (Please click HERE to access the Membership Toolkit.) At this time, we are asking that parents only order 1 PE uniform.
PE uniforms and locks will be delivered to the PE classes once school starts.
No PE uniforms or locks will be distributed at Locker Set Up Day.
New to the District? Please read for a parent opportunity
Has your family recently moved into the district?
On Tuesday, August 17th from 3:45 PM to 4:30 PM, parents that are new to the district and have students at Twin Groves are invited for a new family orientation.
This is an opportunity for parents to meet the Twin Groves administrators and learn about Twin.
Please meet in the Learning Center at Twin Groves.
Locker Set Up Day will immediately follow the new family orientation.
Opening Day
Opening Day will be Thursday, August 19th, 2021 from 7:45 AM - 11:10 PM.
Please note, this is a HALF DAY for students.
The first full day of school will be Friday, August 20th, 2021 from 7:45 AM - 2:30 PM.
HERE is the D96 Calendar for the 21-22 school year.
Arrival Procedures for Walkers or Parent Drop Off
Parent drop off will start at 7:30AM. Students will be dropped off near Door 4 located in the back of the cafeteria. Please see the map below.
Dismissal Procedures for Walkers or Parent Pick Up
Students will exit the front entrance of the building at 2:30 PM.
Arrival Procedures for Bus Riders
Students who ride the bus to school will be dropped off at South Entrance (doors by the athletic entrance near gyms). Students will exit the bus and wait in the Large Gym until 7:30 AM.
All students must wear a mask on the bus at all times.
Dismissal Procedures for Bus Riders
Students who ride the bus will exit the building through the South Entrance (doors by the athletic entrance near gyms). Buses leave Twin Groves around 2:37PM.
All students must wear a mask on the bus at all times.
Activity Bus Dismissal Procedure
Starting on Monday, August 23rd, the Twin Groves Activity Bus routes will begin.
Students board the buses starting at 3:15 PM. The buses typically leave at 3:22 PM. This has changed for the beginning of the year. Please read the bolded section below.
All students must wear a mask on the bus at all times.
Activity buses are available for the students who qualify for busing during the school year. If students are NOT a bus rider to and from school, the students are unable to take the activity bus.
**Please note that due to bus driver shortages in Illinois, we are unable to guarantee the activity buses will be available to start the year or that the activity buses will be on time. At this time, the bus company is estimating that the buses will be leaving Twin Groves up to 30 minutes late. This means that students will not be leaving Twin until 3:50 PM.
***It is highly recommended that parents arrange for rides if a student is staying for clubs, activities, and study halls.
Clubs, Activities and Study Halls
Information on our 21-22 clubs, activities, and study halls will be updated on the Twin Groves Website by August 20th.
Activities and Study Halls will start on Monday, August 23rd.
The activity period for clubs, activities and study halls is from 2:30PM-3:15PM.
There will be buses available for the students who qualify for busing during the school year. If students are NOT a bus rider to and from school, the students are unable to take the activity bus.
**Please note that due to bus driver shortages in Illinois, we are unable to guarantee the activity buses will be available to start the year or that the activity buses will be on time. At this time, the bus company is estimating that the buses will be leaving Twin Groves up to 30 minutes late. This means that students will not be leaving Twin until 3:50 PM.
***It is highly recommended that parents arrange for rides if a student is staying for clubs, activities, and study halls.
Picture Day- Save the Date
Picture Day will be Tuesday, August 31st. More information to follow.
Curriculum Night- Save the Dates
6th Grade Curriculum Night, ILC Curriculum Night, and SLC Curriculum Night: Tuesday, August 24th.
7th and 8th Grade Curriculum Night: Thursday, September 2nd.
More information to come.
Attention 7th Graders in Orchestra and Band
In the past, 7th grade students in Band and Orchestra have had the opportunity to elect to take Art, Music, or TASOL as an independent study class. This independent study took place during the second half of the Flex period.
Starting this school year, students in Band and Orchestra will no longer have the option of a 20-minute independent study period. This change is new to the 21-22 schedule. This will allow more consistent availability to receive support from their teachers during the Flex period.
Daily Announcements
The Daily Announcements will be posted daily starting on August 19th. 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 starting on August 19th.