TUESDAY, OCTOBER 23, IS AN EARLY DISMISSAL DAY
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Full-day Kindergarten and structured students dismiss at 2 PM
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Half-day Kindergarten students dismiss at the regular time of 11:50 AM
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Blended: AM hrs: 8:45–10:45 AM; Blended PM hrs: Noon–2 PM
Thank you!
Ice Cream Social was a HUGE success! We love spending time with our families and it was wonderful seeing you!! Thank you for dropping by and spending an evening with us. Thank you to our PTO for giving us this opportunity to share these moments with families, and in such a fun way!
Thank you also for the book donations, going to classroom teacher libraries and Bernie's Book Bank! Truly, your generosity is incredible. You are helping classrooms and so many kids in need with your donations. Every book we put in the hands of a child is magical. I am bursting with excitement for Bernie's to see your amazing donations and our teachers thank you. Our book drive continues through next week, so if you missed the opportunity to donate gently used books, there's still time!
Willow Grove & ELC Cares
It is with great sadness I share that we have a family at Willow Grove who is undergoing the tragedy of losing their home and all belongings to a fire. We are incredibly thankful that all members of the family are safe. The family is in need of assistance, and we know our Willow Grove community is always there to support families in need. They are in need of new or gently used clothing and we are collecting at Willow Grove Early Learning Center in our main office. Please bring donations in over the next few weeks (by November 12) and we will ensure the family receives them promptly.
New or used clothing donations:
Boys - 4T clothing and size 10 or 11 shoe
Girls - 18-24 mo. clothing and 5 or 6 shoe
Women - M/L/XL clothing or size 14-18 and size 8/8.5 or 9.5/10 shoe
Thank you for your donations, thoughts, and kindness as we work to support this family.
Willow Grove Cultural Fair - Calling All Families!
On the evening of December 6th, we’ll be having a fun family event, showcasing the many cultures represented in our school community. We hope to encourage our students to learn about other cultures, to celebrate what makes us all unique and to recognize cultural traits that we share. We cannot do this without your support and are looking for parents who would like to share artifacts and traditions from around the country and globe with our students and families. Parents who are interested can share about holidays, traditions, clothing, games/toys, geographical location and landmarks, music, art, food, etc. Children or families may even choose to do a brief performance in our gym (dance, music, etc.) and we will have a rotating schedule for attendees to optionally visit. Things families choose to showcase are not limited to places outside of our own country. Families can share about areas right here in the USA and what makes their family unique to help us all learn about one another. We are so excited for this event! We hope that you’ll consider sharing with our school community. We would all love to learn from you! If you would be interested in participating, please click here to complete this brief survey. THANK YOU!
Note: You may partner up with others! You don’t have to do your booth alone. We will organize groups based on our volunteers and topics and individuals can feel free to work together, if you choose!
You can take a look at this video from last year's event if you would like to see what types of things families did. Last year was our first annual cultural fair and we had an incredible turnout. It was a special evening that we still reminisce about. We can't wait to make memories with you and your family this year!
More on this exciting event to come. Mark your calendars for the evening of December 6th. This will be fun for the whole family!
YOU MUST STOP!
The Buffalo Grove Police Department reports an increase in motorists passing stopped school buses that are loading and unloading students. Because students’ safety is our priority, officers will be monitoring areas where serious violations such as this are prevalent.
Please review the law:
Drivers must stop before meeting or overtaking a school bus loading or unloading passengers on a TWO-lane roadway (even if there is a raised median dividing the roadway).
Drivers must remain stopped until the Stop arm on the school bus is no longer extended and the flashing lights are turned off (or the bus driver signals the driver to pass).
A driver failing to do so may be charged with the violation and receive a mandatory court appearance. Passing a stopped school bus has a fine of $500–$1200. The driving privileges of a person convicted of passing a stopped school bus will be suspended for 3 months for the first offense and one year for the second offense.
When is it permissible for a driver to pass a stopped school bus?
It is permissible when the driver is on a highway with FOUR or more lanes (at least two lanes in either direction) and is traveling in the opposite direction of the bus.
PTO News
It was great seeing everyone at our events this week! Thank you to all our volunteers who made them possible.
Can you never find the right card for an occasion? Check out our blog for a way we can help you and you can help the school.
The following is repeat information from last week's blog, but still current. You can skip this if you already reviewed last week's message.
Picture Day
Retakes available on Tuesday, November 13th. Just a tip from yours truly...not so perfect smiles, missing teeth, bumps on the head, timid looks, those are some of the best pictures to look back on! Consider that in your choice to do retakes. Of course, you absolutely can if you'd prefer. If there is anything with the quality of the pictures you have concerns about, please call the picture company directly. Thank you!
Book Drive! Out with the old, in with the new! October 15th-26th
We are collecting gently used books for two great causes during our Scholastic Book Fair (see PTO blog for details)! Classroom teachers take a peek at donated books as they are often just perfect for classroom libraries. Remaining books, of which there are always MANY, go to BERNIE'S BOOKS! Bernie's Book Bank collects and donates books to at-risk children. It is a fantastic program. If you'd like to learn more, click here. The book fair will be running within this time, so this is a great time to clean out those bookshelves and make room for some new finds from our book fair! You may send books in with your child to donate between October 15th-18th or bring them into our office yourself. We'll also be collecting your donations at our Ice Cream Social where the Scholastic Book Fair will also be taking place.
Halloween
Can you believe Halloween is getting so close? Halloween has always been one of my favorite holidays. I especially love watching your children in all of their excitement!
9:35 AM - Parade - Parents may stand on the front sidewalk to view our parade! If there is rain, we will need to cancel the outdoor parade. We cannot allow parents in the school to view the indoor parade, for obvious security reasons. Let's cross our fingers for a beautiful fall day!
10:05-10:50 - Party - Only approved PTO parent volunteers may enter the building for the classroom parties. Our room parents put together a fun celebration in each classroom! Please note: parents attending the parties may not bring additional family members, other children, etc. We need everyone to abide by this and will have to ask you to leave if you come with other attendees. For your sake and ours, please do not put us in this situation. We have many individuals entering our building for the party and cannot accommodate additional individuals. Every PTO volunteer approved to come into our school MUST have their license or ID scanned through our security system to enter. You have to bring this with you or you will not be able to enter. This takes a little bit to do with such a large crowd. We highly encourage PTO room party volunteers to swing by Willow sometime in the month of October before October 31st to have your license scanned, which will speed up the process.
Blended Program - Blended will have 2 parties (one for AM and one for PM). Details will come from teachers. Blended p.m. parents may bring their child in just for the parade if they'd like, and the students' PM party will be at the end of their regular day. Parents must provide transportation to and from the school parade if they are doing that. Students must leave after the parade and come back when their typical program starts.
Costumes - As you are choosing or creating a costume for your child, please keep them school appropriate. No blood or gore and no bare tummies in school. Children may not wear masks. Weapons, real or pretend, are NEVER allowed on school grounds. I can't wait to see what you come up with!
Halloween Candy for Heroes - Wondering what to do with all that candy being collected in a couple weeks? Willow Grove does an annual candy donation drive! The candy goes to Deployed Troops and First Responders.
Family Educator Conferences
To ensure all parents see this notice, the following was also shared directly through an email.
Please click this Willow Grove Conference Sign-Up Link to sign up for fall conferences with your child's educators. Please remember, you are signing up for ONE, 15-minute appointment per educator, per student. All educators who work with students in any capacity also have sign-up slots available in Sign-Up Genius. If you would like to, you may sign-up to see any educator listed who works with your child. As a reminder, if you are unable to attend these conferences on these dates, please email the educator you are interested in speaking with to set up a 15-minute phone conference.
In addition to individual conferences with educators, parent education opportunities will be provided both days in our school. More information will be shared in the near future!
Conferences take place:
-November 19, 2018 - 5:00pm-7:00pm
-November 20, 2018 - 2:00pm-7:00pm
If you are having trouble signing up, please contact the front office.
We look forward to seeing you at conferences!
Warm regards,
Jenny Smith, Principal
Follow me on Twitter @JennySwanSmith
