Cool Thoughts: November 12, 2009

Calendar of Upcoming Events November 12, 2009 Friday, November 13 3:00-4:00 PTA Market Day Pick Up Monday, November 16 11:40-12:35 Chorus for Grades 4, 5 Meeting in Aud. Tuesday, November 17 11:40-12:35 Math Club Meeting in LRC 4:00-8:00 Parent Teacher Conferences as Scheduled Wednesday, November 18 11:40-12:35 Battle of the Books for Grade 5 Thursday, November 19 PTA Cultural Arts Presents: 9:00 Grades K-2 “Responsibility Counts” 10:00 Grades 3-5 “Ease the Tease” 4:00-8:00 Parent Teacher Conferences as Scheduled

THANKSGIVING BREAK NO SCHOOL Monday through Friday, November 23 - 27

Table of Contents

Calendar Page 1

From the Principal’s Desk Page 2

PTA Box Top Thank You Page 3

PTA Family Fun Night Thank You Page 3

PTA Entertainment Books Info. Page 4

PTA Healthy Living Committee Page 5

Winter Closing Guidelines Page 6

PTA Sally Foster Gift Winners Page 7

H1N1 Flu Vaccination Update Page 8

Superintendent Search Open Forums Page 9

Monday, November 30 8:50 a.m. School Resumes 11:40-12:35 Chorus for Grades 4, 5 Meeting in Aud. Tuesday, December 1 4:00-8:00 Fifth Grade Parent Teacher Conferences as Scheduled Thursday, December 3 “Franklin Flyer” Distributed on line Wednesday, December 16 FRANKLIN HOLIDAY SING 9:45 AM Kindergarten, First, Third and Fifth Grade Students Singing 12:30 PM Kindergarten, Second and Fourth Grade Students Singing

Request for Parent Input for Superintendent Search Page 10, 11

School Sound Abatement Page 12

EIS/RtI Page 13

PTA Minutes Page 14

Franklin Holiday Sing Info. Page 15

Make A Wish Music Festival Page 16

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KEY NOTES from the Principal Parent Teacher Conferences Tonight we will be kicking off the first of three evenings of our scheduled parent teacher conferences. The remaining evenings will be November 17th and 19th. Safe Routes to School DVD This week we just started distributing the Safe Routes To School DVD to Franklin Families. Please take the time to watch the DVD with your child and discuss the safety precautions and how to make safe decisions when dealing with traffic. We are concerned about the safety of our students and feel this DVD to be very important information we want all our families to have. Once you have viewed the materials, please return them to school so we can distribute them to other Franklin Families. Dress for Colder Weather This has been a mild beginning to November, but the temperatures will be dropping and typically that can happen in a matter of hours. Please send your students prepared for these dramatic climate changes. Warm jackets, hats, gloves are a necessity. We will also enforce that students MUST have snow pants and boots in order to play in the snow. (if you prepare it may not come) I recommend getting them now if you need a pair. They can be difficult to find after the first snow. As you are outfitting your children for the cold months, please put their name on their hats, gloves, coats and boots. This is very helpful in getting things returned to their owner and also keeps the lost and found manageable. H1N1 There is updated information on H1N1 vaccinations included in this newsletter. Please take the time to read the information regarding the more specific details about procedures and scheduling. Science Olympiad THIS FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 13 is the deadline for turning in Science Olympiad forms. Franklin had an excellent showing last year and it would great to continue being a contender in this fun, team driven activity.

Dan Walsh [email protected]

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*** H1N1 Flu Vaccination Update *** November 12, 2009 As previously announced, District 64 is cooperating with the Cook County Department of Public Health (CCDPH) to offer H1N1 flu vaccinations at school to children who have not received the vaccine from their own health care providers. CCDPH is visiting communities on a zip code basis. Please note the following important updates: ! District 64 has been informed that our schools in the Park Ridge 60068 zip code only are tentatively scheduled for the CCDPH vaccination visit on Wednesday, December 2. District 64 schools in the 60714 zip code – Emerson and Jefferson – will be visited at a later date, as yet unannounced. ! Within the next few days, expect to receive both Phone and EMail Alerts with instructions, parental permission forms and other information about the vaccination program. ! Due to the Thanksgiving break, fully completed, signed permission forms will be due no later than Friday, November 20 in the school offices (except Emerson and Jefferson). ! This is a voluntary program and the vaccine is administered at no charge. Please visit the District 64 H1N1 Flu Information Center via a link from your school or District 64 Web site for helpful Q & As and other resource information.

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Park Ridge-Niles School District 64 SUPERINTENDENT SEARCH

LEADERSHIP PROFILE ASSESSMENT Your response to the following questions will help the Board develop a profile of leadership qualities for the new superintendent. Please return your completed form no later than Friday, December 4; see the ways to return your form on the reverse side. PLEASE CIRCLE THE GROUP YOU REPRESENT: Faculty

Parent Support Staff w/child in school

Community

Administrator

Board

Student

1.

What do you consider to be the two or three most significant strengths of District 64?

2.

What do you consider to be the two or three most important challenges or issues facing District 64?

3.

Please share two or three characteristics that you would like to see in the new superintendent.

- MORE -

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C OMMUNITY C ONSOLIDATED S CHOOL DISTRICT 64 Park Ridge-Niles 164 S. Prospect Avenue

Park Ridge, IL60068-4079

(847) 318-4300

FAX: (847) 318-4351

November 2009

Park Ridge-Niles School District 64 Winter School Closing Guidelines The decision to close schools is based on a variety of factors including: ! Weather and road conditions in the community and region ! Forecast for the day ! The safety of students traveling to schools ! The safety of staff traveling into schools and the availability of substitute teachers ! The ability of school bus drivers to report to work, drive buses into/through the area, and run school bus routes ! The ability to heat schools and maintain safe conditions around the buildings District 64 coordinates decision-making with other Maine Township school districts. Superintendents of Districts 62, 63, 64 and 207 typically make contact the day before any severe weather is forecast, and then again in the early morning hours of the school day. Each Superintendent is assigned a particular area of responsibility (on a rotating basis each year) to collect current information to share with the group. A decision is then made before 5:00 a.m. so that communication can begin. In District 64, parents and staff are notified using the Alert Now phone system to call homes when a decision is made to cancel school. The call is typically made before 6:30 a.m. An announcement also is: posted on the District 64 and school Web sites; recorded on school phone messages; and, shared with www.weatherclosings.com. Although we would prefer not to cancel school, District 64 does have four emergency days built into the school calendar. We utilize these days to ensure that the safety of all students and staff is not compromised when severe winter weather or other hazardous conditions occur. Sally Pryor, Superintendent

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EIS/RtI PARENT NEWS All
Elementary
parents
should
be
receiving
DIBELS
score
reports
from
the
fall
screening
assessments.

As
stated
in
our
last
 message,
these
are
coming
to
you
later
than
we
wanted
due
to
the
fact
that
the
data
management
system’s
updates
created
 some
difficulties
in
getting
 our
reports
in
the
format
that
we
had
previously
shared
with
parents.


Please
consult
your
classroom
or
literacy
support
 teacher
if
you
have
any
questions
about
the
results.

 
 Many
students
at
the
elementary
level
and
a
few
at
the
middle
school
level
may
receive
extra
instruction
for
reading
during
 some
other
class
time,
i.e.,
social
studies,
foreign
language,
etc.

We
feel
that
it
is
important
to
help
the
student
attain
grade
 level
reading
skills
as
quickly
as
possible
in
order
that
they
may
experience
success
in
these
other
areas
of
instruction.

As
a
 result,
it
may
be
difficult
for
teachers
of
the
classes
from
which
students
are
pulled
to
provide
grades
for
students.

Those
that
 miss
these
classes
completely
will
receive
N/A’s
(not
applicable)
on
their
report
cards.

Students
who
do
not
miss
all
of
the
 instruction
in
these
other
areas
may
be
graded
for
only
that
in
which
they
participate,
or
the
teacher
may
choose
to
provide
a
 narrative
statement
about
the
performance
of
the
student.

No
students
should
ever
be
required
to
make
up
work
for
the
time
 they
are
pulled
for
extra
reading
support.

 
 Due
to
differences
in
the
way
elementary
and
middle
schools
are
scheduled,
there
may
also
be
some
differences
in
ways
 progress
is
communicated
to
parents
of
students
receiving
additional
reading
instruction.

At
the
elementary
level,
schedules
 are
much
more
flexible,
so
support
teachers
can
move
in
and
out
of
classrooms
working
with
classroom
teachers
as
well
as
 providing
some
short
pullout
kinds
of
interventions
throughout
the
week.

More
often,
there
is
ongoing
communication
 between
those
providing
service.
Because
of
this,
progress
will
be
shared
at
conferences,
most
often,
with
progress
monitoring
 graphs
and
charts.

Middle
school
schedules
are
fairly
set.

Because
of
this,
much
of
our
support
instruction
is
presented
as
a
 trimester
class.

Teachers
of
these
classes,
most
often,
will
provide
a
grade
on
the
report
card.
As
we
move
through
the
 implementation
process
in
middle
school,
we
will
also
be
able
to
share
student
growth
using
the
same
graphs
and
charts
that
 we
use
in
the
elementary
schools.

 
 This
year,
for
the
first
time,
we
are
screening
all
students
in
grades
1
through
six
with
the
SSIS
(Social
Skills
Improvement
 System).

This
is
a
class-wide screening of key social and motivational skills. This universal screening instrument helps us assess and document the performance level of all students, not just those in greatest need of intervention. We primarily focus on prosocial behaviors and student motivation to learn. Teachers complete a short checklist on each child. Grade level teams, along with the social workers and psychologists, review the data to determine the types of supports and direct instruction needed in these two key areas for classes as a whole, groups of students, and individual students. Stephen Elliott, Vanderbilt Peabody education and psychology researcher and co-author of The Social Skills Improvement System— Classwide Intervention Program, says, "If we increase social skills, we see commensurate increases in academic learning. That doesn't mean that social skills make you smarter; it means that these skills make you more amenable to learning," In the authors’ research, they found that elementary students and teachers value cooperation and self-control. When one teaches and increases those behaviors, we can reduce problem behaviors and maximize learning time. Although screening social/behavioral needs is part of the response to intervention process, we view it as an extension of our District 64 civil behavior efforts. This tool can provide additional information to use in creating a more positive learning environment and achieving the greatest success for our students.

Lynne Farmer District 64 Director of EIS/RtI [email protected]

FRANKLIN SCHOOL PTA MEETING MINUTES 13

November 5, 2009 I. INTRODUCTION Leah Zamora called the meeting to order at 7:02 p.m. There were 16 people in attendance. The October 2009 minutes were reviewed and approved. II. PRINCIPAL’S REPORT Mr. Walsh has been attending weekly meetings related to the District’s strategic plan. The plan will be shared in June 2010 and will encompass plans for D64 schools for next 5 years. Mr. Walsh reminded everyone to review the District's web page for the latest on H1N1. He noted that attendance has been steady and reasons for absences have been varied. Parent Question: Are kids encouraged to wash their hands? Mr. Walsh: Yes, there is focus on universal precautions and the germy gel is used frequently. On Monday, November 9, the 5th grade will go to Camp Duncan (new location). Camp Duncan’s program is designed around team building. Veterans’ Day will be November 11. The Veterans’ ceremony will again include the children placing flags around the flag pole and saying the Pledge of Alliance. This ceremony has become a Franklin tradition and is a very meaningful day. Next week will start fall conferences. Report cards will be distributed on November 11. A waste free lunch day is planned for November 12. More on this event will be coming home soon. Nest week a DVD from the Safe Routes to School grant will be distributed. The DVD addresses safe driving around schools. Franklin is the 3rd school in the District that will use the DVDs. In the last month, playground equipment has been getting abused. The District is repairing the equipment. However, the abuse to the equipment is not typical wear-and-tear. If anyone sees any abuse of equipment on school property, please call the police. III. TEACHER SPOTLIGHT: Colleen Carlson (music teacher) noted that 4th and 5th grade chorus has begun. The chorus signs at the Holiday Sing, a concert in April, and the Schaumburg Flyers game in July. This year the Holiday Sing will be on Wednesday. We are going back to the old way of doing the Holiday Sing. Kindergarten, first, third and fifth will be in the morning and second and fourth will be in the afternoon. The music teachers are working in the auditorium and are team teaching for 1st and 4th. Mrs. Carlson wanted to thank the PTA for everything. Parent Question: Do the children try out for chorus? Mrs. Carlson: No, anyone can join chorus. Allison Benedetti is a literacy teacher for 2nd and 3rd grades. She is currently working with small groups of children that are pulled out of the classroom. Mrs. Benedetti also goes into the classroom and has co-teached in 3rd grade. The literacy teachers recently hosted a literacy tea for all parents in the literacy program. Parent Question: How do you determine which kids get pulled out? Mrs. Benedetti: The children’s scores plus classroom teachers input determines who gets pulled out. The program is fluid and groups can change all the time. Mrs. Benedetti is also requesting a grant this evening for the purchased of materials to supplement the program in comprehension. Mrs. Mustari has found this material very helpful. Parent Question: Are the materials that we purchased being used? Mr. Walsh: Yes, the items have been used or are repurposed. IV. TREASURER’S REPORT Nancy Manolis (Treasurer): All fundraisers appear to be down. Profit estimates for Spuntino’s and wrapping paper have been lowered. We are still in good shape but we must try to keep to the estimates for expenses. As planned, we will end the year with $8000 in our bank account. Request for Funds – Teacher Grants: . 1. As mentioned above, the first grant is for the intermediate Literacy team. They would like to purchase materials to supplement the program in comprehension. The grant would be for approximately $1100. 2. The second grant is for the first grade team. They would like to purchase colored squared rugs that are currently being used in the kindergarten classrooms. The grant would be for approximately $1300. Nancy Manolis explained that there is enough money in the budget for these projects. However, if we approve both grants, we will not have any other money for any additional teacher grants. Question for Mr. Walsh: Do you know of 14

any additional teacher grants out there that have not yet come to the PTA? Mr. Walsh: There is nothing else that I am aware of. The PTA members voted on the teacher grants and both were approved.

V. COMMITTEE REPORTS Cultural Arts: Vickie Mellema mentioned that the first cultural arts presentation was Donna Washington (a storyteller). Last week, the Committee helped in Spanish class to make sugar skulls for Day of the Dead. The Committee is working on another presentation from the Imagination Theater. They would do two presentations about responsibility and teasing. The Committee is trying to get the Poetry Guy and a group in Chicago that talks about Chicago history and immigration. The PTA has also been paying for science presentations for every grade from High Touch, High Tech. Mr. Walsh is very appreciative. Family Fun Night: The night was a huge success. The event netted a profit of $1216. Healthy Living Month: Missy Vacala would like to implements healthy eating into the take-home. In April, there will be a survey about adding a “Fresh Friday” (an organic option) for Healthy Living Month. Anyone who wants to volunteer to help on this committee please let Missy know. Missy has some other ideas for Healthy Living Month, such as, a parent information night on kids’ nutrition and/or a family fitness night. Entertainment books: The books went home this week. The letter was not very clear. If you want the book, send in $20 to the PTA. If you do not want the book then return it. You can sell more than one. VI. None noted.

NEW BUSINESS

There was a motion to adjourn the meeting. The motion was seconded. Leah Zamora adjourned the meeting at 7:50 p.m. The next PTA meeting is scheduled for January 2010. Minutes submitted by Jennifer Meyer (Recording Secretary)

FRANKLIN’S

HOLIDAY

SING

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 16 9:45 a.m. Students in Morning Kindergarten, First Grade, Third Grade and Fifth Grade Singing 12:30 p.m. Students in Afternoon Kindergarten, Second and Fourth Grade Singing

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