WELCOME TO THE 2021-22 SCHOOL YEAR!
It is with great excitement that the Willow Grove staff welcomes you to our school. At Willow Grove, we take great pride in serving Kildeer Countryside School District’s youngest learners and starting them on the path of lifelong learning. We are eager to welcome your child and family into our community. Our partnership in your child’s education is of the utmost importance to us.
This is our weekly Principal's Message, which is the place to keep up with everything going on in our school. You'll find that this, along with your child's teacher updates, will be a main channel of communication, and it's delivered to your email box each Friday. We have all sorts of things to share with you so you are aware of opening events and the workings of our school.
Teachers and administrators have been working tirelessly over the summer months to prepare for this school year participating in curriculum development, technology tools workshops, social-emotional learning workshops, professional book studies, and so much more. I could not be prouder of our staff for their dedication in preparing for this school year.
The staff and I are looking forward to seeing all our students in person. We deeply value our partnership with you and are so appreciative of your support. Please never hesitate to reach out with questions. It is our goal to help your child have a positive and learning-filled year!
Kindly,
Jenny Smith, Principal
Reminder to Complete the Consent Forms
This is a friendly reminder to complete your Consents and Acknowledgements by Monday, August 9th. The acknowledgment of sending your child to school symptom-free is required for all students.
This is a friendly reminder to complete your acknowledgment forms by August 9th. It is required that each family acknowledge they will send their child to school, symptom-free, every day.
Each family has received the following Consents and Acknowledgements:
Consent to participate in weekly screening using the RT-PCR nasal swab at home (not required)
Consent to test on campus when symptomatic or when identified as a close contact (not required)
Acknowledgments include that by sending a student to school parents are certifying that they are symptom-free (REQUIRED).
Class Placement Information & Bus Information
This year your child’s class placement and bus information will come to you electronically on Thursday, August 12th. A team of staff members worked diligently to make sure each child was placed in a classroom to create balanced class lists where each child can find success. We know you appreciate the fact that, with such careful thought and consideration put into these decisions, including your input, no changes will be made and we thank you for your support.
If you do not receive a notification, please email our administrative assistant, Mrs. Lundeen, at [email protected], or give us a call in the office.
Alternate Dismissal Arrangements: At Willow Grove, all kindergarten students are assigned a bus route, which will be provided by email just before the start of the school year. If you are planning on routinely picking up your child from Willow Grove or have alternate arrangements other than our bus, please complete our ALTERNATE DISMISSAL PLAN. If you do not complete this, we will assume your child will be taking the bus home every day. We need this information by this Sunday, August 8. Call the office right away if you have missed the August 8th deadline and need to update us. Again, complete the Alternate Dismissal Plan ONLY IF your child will not be taking the bus home daily. Alternate arrangements must be consistent week-to-week, meaning you can have a different plan on different days of the week, but it needs to be consistent every week.
Questions or changes in the schedule? If the information you provide should change prior to or during the school year or you have any questions, contact the Willow Grove Office at 847.541.3660.
Blended Early Childhood: Busing is not an option for families of tuition-based students. All tuition-based students (non-IEP) must provide their own transportation.
Meet the Teacher - Tuesday, August 17
Meet the Teacher is for all students and caregivers to attend - Kindergarten, Blended AM/PM, and Structured. The event is on Tuesday, August 17th. Please note, in an effort to control traffic of the event and maintain social distancing practices, families are assigned to a half-hour window during the event, according to the first letter of the student's last name as follows:
10:00 AM - 10:30 AM - A-L families
10:30 AM-11:00 AM M-Z families
Everyone must wear masks regardless of vaccination status.
Please be aware of social distancing.
All children must be supervised by their caregiver for the duration of the event.
At the Meet the Teacher event, parents and kids will meet their teacher, see their classroom, and while there, may tour around our building. The PTO will also be there and you can check out all the things they have to offer. Families should bring their child’s supplies to drop at school this day. Click here for the school supply list. If you ordered from the PTO, those will be shipped to your home for you to bring in. We will also have parents confirm dismissal plans and once confirmed, you’ll receive an ID/Bus tag that your child will need to have attached to their backpack prior to arriving for their first day of school. It’s used for us to ID your child right away and during arrival and dismissal procedures. If you’re unable to attend the Meet the Teacher event, your child will receive their Bus tag on their first day of attendance. Please make sure your child’s backpack very clearly has their name somewhere so we can identify each child as they enter the building.
First Day of School & Hours
Please make sure you have noted important dates indicated on our school calendar. You’ll find information on all student attendance days, such as our daily program hours, days off, early release days, and district half-days.
Our first day of student attendance is August 19th, which is a Half-Day.
Release Times for Half-Day Attendance:
Kindergarten & Structured program dismisses 11:45 AM; ONLY Blended AM attend (8:30-11:00) and these alternate between the AM and PM classes throughout the school year (see District 96 Quicklist Calendar).
Regular School Hours & Daily Drop-Off Times if Your Child Does NOT Take the Bus:
Kindergarten: 8:40 AM-3:00 PM. Parent drop-off starts at 8:25 AM and is located at the main entrance. If you’ve elected the half-day for kindergarten, dismissal is at 11:55 AM daily, unless it is a District Half-Day Attendance, when dismissal is at 11:45 AM.
Blended AM: 8:30 AM-11:00 AM. Parent drop-off starts at 8:20 AM and is located at the main entrance.
Blended PM: 12:30 PM-3:00 PM. Parent drop-off starts at 12:20 PM and is located at the main entrance.
Structured: 8:30 AM-2:30 PM. Parent drop-off starts at 8:20 AM and teachers will provide instructions for location.
Food & Willow Grove
Daily Snack for All Programs (Kindergarten, Blended, and Structured)
Children have daily snack time in their classrooms. Snacks must be from the Approved Snack List. There are particular guidelines you must follow. The Approved Snack List will be linked on next Friday's message. Abiding by this helps to keep our environment safe for all students to do their best learning. Any items not on the Approved Daily Snack List sent to school will be returned home.
Kindergarten & Structured Program Lunch
Unlike snack, where you must pack items from our Approved Snack List, students may bring anything in for lunch, as lunch is out of the classroom. We have safety measures in place during lunch for children with allergies. If you have questions, please contact our school nurse by calling our main office. Additional details about lunch are included in the video and Frequently Asked Questions.
Birthdays
We do not allow food to be passed out to children for birthdays. It is not required to send anything for your child’s birthday to share with the class. If you choose to send something in, it must be a non-food item. Examples include a sticker or pencil.
Curriculum Night
More information will be forthcoming. Please save the date:
Willow Grove - Monday, August 23: 6:30pm - 7:30pm
Health Form Deadline
The district website lists today as the deadline for immunization forms. All immunizations should be completed to avoid school exclusion. Please refer to the D96 Student Health website for more information.
Kindergarten Parent Resources
Here are some resources to support you and your child as you begin the school year.
Willow Grove Kindergarten Welcome Video
Kindergarten 101 & Parent Frequently Asked Questions - This will give you plenty of information to get you off on the right foot! (Spanish link to same doc)
NOTE: We recently have transitioned from Lourdes Albrecht in the office to Mel Lundeen and these forms have the old contact information. Mrs. Lundeen is your smiling office support, along with Mrs. Kathleen Brady, our nurse, Mrs. Bri Holtz, and myself, Jenny Smith, Principal.
PTO News
We look forward to seeing you at Meet the Teacher! Visit our table in the learning center and near the cafeteria to see all the exciting things you can sign up for.
The PTO is hosting a back-to-school "Boohoo/Yahoo Parent Breakfast" on the first day of school (Aug. 19th) from 9:00-10:30 AM at Deerfield's Bakery - 201 N Buffalo Grove Rd! We'll be up in the loft. Please wear your mask in consideration of others. And bring some cash as we'll have our limited edition Willow Grove Water Bottles for $8 a piece. Hope to see you there!
Be sure to make a Membership Toolkit (MTK) account to see what opportunities are available, and sign up! The Dessert Day order form is on your MTK account...So, don't forget to sign up for those monthly lunchtime treats Deadline is Aug. 27th!
Check out our BLOG for additional details on these things and more, and on Facebook. We also post regular announcements on the "Willow Grove Kindergarten Parents 2021-2022" Facebook page.