January 13, 2014 From the Principal’s Desk Dear Longfellow Families, Welcome back to a New Year at Longfellow School! I hope everyone had a restful break as we transition back to a focus on learning! Last week was a bit quiet…I think everyone was tired from a fun break with two extra days! This time of year is busy with many assessments. Some of the assessments are mandated by the state of Illinois and others are our district and classroom assessments. Assessments provide summaries of learning, provide information on learning progress, diagnose specific strengths and weaknesses in an individual’s learning, and motivate further learning. English Language Learner students will be taking the Assessing Comprehension and Communication in English State-to-State, (ACCESS) tests over the next couple weeks. All students will be taking local assessments in language arts and math which measure student progress related to District curriculum. Then, of course, the Illinois Standards Achievement Tests, (ISAT) for grades 3, 4, 5 will be here before we know it! A reminder for our parents of 3 rd , 4 th and 5 th grade students that our Illinois State Testing will begin on March 3 rd through March 14 th . Please make every effort to have your child in class during the testing period. Of course, if they are very ill we want you to keep them at home. Scheduling make- up testing in a very short window is difficult and we appreciate your support in this way. We are beginning our planning for next year. Coming home this month is a letter for prospective kindergartners for 2014-15. If your family is sending us a kindergartner, please return this form ASAP. Pass it along to any neighbors or friends in a similar position. The date for Kindergarten Round Up has been set for Thursday, February 27 th . More details will be forthcoming. We appreciate your help in spreading the word as we build our new group of Longfellow Patriots! Included in this newsletter is information regarding testing for the PACE Gifted Program for the 2014-2015 school year. Both teachers and parents are able to identify students for testing who they believe may qualify for the Gifted Program. If a parent would like to recommend their child for testing, you will find the referral forms on the District 200 website www.cusd200.org under Educational Services or you may call the Gifted Office at (630) 682- 2010 and you will be mailed a referral form. Testing is scheduled for March and will be conducted during the school day at Longfellow School. Testing is for any current 2 nd , 3 rd , 4 th , or 5 th grade student and it is for placement in the PACE Gifted Program for the 2014-2015 school year. I would also like to take the time to thank the many, many parent volunteers at Longfellow School. Your gifts of time and talents are strong contributors to our success as a school community. We have many wonderful volunteer events coming up including the PTA Fun Fair (my favorite) and the Spring Fling. I hope you will consider helping out at one of these great events! Please mark your calendars for no school on January 17 th and 20 tht . We will host a teacher work day on Friday and be commemorating the life and contributions of Martin Luther King Jr. on Monday. And finally, did you know that per the United States Flag Code, all persons or entities covered by the Flag Display Act are to fly the American & Illinois flags at half-staff on designated days such as specific holidays (Peace Officers Memorial Day, Memorial Day, Patriot Day, and Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day) and to honor the passing of fallen soldiers, police officers, firefighters, and certain elected officials. To further honor fallen Illinois soldiers, Governor Quinn has ordered that flags are to be flown at half-staff from sunrise to sunset on the day of the funeral of every fallen Illinois soldier and two days preceding that day. Fondly, Mrs. Dianne Thornburg
Transcript
January 13, 2014
From the Principal’s Desk
Dear Longfellow Families,
Welcome back to a New Year at Longfellow School! I hope everyone had a restful break as we transition back to a focus on learning! Last week was a bit quiet…I think everyone was tired from a fun break with two extra days!
This time of year is busy with many assessments. Some of the assessments are mandated by the state of Illinois and others are our district and classroom assessments. Assessments provide summaries of learning, provide information on learning progress, diagnose specific strengths and weaknesses in an individual’s learning, and motivate further learning. English Language Learner students will be taking the Assessing Comprehension and Communication in English State-to-State, (ACCESS) tests over the next couple weeks. All students will be taking local assessments in language arts and math which measure student progress related to District curriculum. Then, of course, the Illinois Standards Achievement Tests, (ISAT) for grades 3, 4, 5 will be here before we know it! A reminder for our parents of 3rd, 4th and 5th grade students that our Illinois State Testing will begin on March 3rd through March 14th. Please make every effort to have your child in class during the testing period. Of course, if they are very ill we want you to keep them at home. Scheduling make- up testing in a very short window is difficult and we appreciate your support in this way.
We are beginning our planning for next year. Coming home this month is a letter for prospective kindergartners for 2014-15. If your family is sending us a kindergartner, please return this form ASAP. Pass it along to any neighbors or friends in a similar position. The date for Kindergarten Round Up has been set for Thursday, February 27th. More details will be forthcoming. We appreciate your help in spreading the word as we build our new group of Longfellow Patriots!
Included in this newsletter is information regarding testing for the PACE Gifted Program for the 2014-2015 school year. Both teachers and parents are able to identify students for testing who they believe may qualify for the Gifted Program. If a parent would like to recommend their child for testing, you will find the referral forms on the District 200 website www.cusd200.org under Educational Services or you may call the Gifted Office at (630) 682-2010 and you will be mailed a referral form. Testing is scheduled for March and will be conducted during the school day at Longfellow School. Testing is for any current 2nd, 3rd, 4th, or 5th grade student and it is for placement in the PACE Gifted Program for the 2014-2015 school year.
I would also like to take the time to thank the many, many parent volunteers at Longfellow School. Your gifts of time and talents are strong contributors to our success as a school community. We have many wonderful volunteer events coming up including the PTA Fun Fair (my favorite) and the Spring Fling. I hope you will consider helping out at one of these great events!
Please mark your calendars for no school on January 17th and 20tht. We will host a teacher work day on Friday and be commemorating the life and contributions of Martin Luther King Jr. on Monday.
And finally, did you know that per the United States Flag Code, all persons or entities covered by the Flag Display Act are to fly the American & Illinois flags at half-staff on designated days such as specific holidays (Peace Officers Memorial Day, Memorial Day, Patriot Day, and Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day) and to honor the passing of fallen soldiers, police officers, firefighters, and certain elected officials. To further honor fallen Illinois soldiers, Governor Quinn has ordered that flags are to be flown at half-staff from sunrise to sunset on the day of the funeral of every fallen Illinois soldier and two days preceding that day.
Fondly, Mrs. Dianne Thornburg
Save the DateJanuary 2014 14 PTA Meeting 7:30 pm LLC 15 Cooks’ Night Off – Barone’s Glen Ellyn 17 NO SCHOOL Teacher work day 20 NO SCHOOL Martin Luther King Day 24 Market Day pickup 3:00-4:00 pm
31 Jump Rope for Heart February 2014 8 Fun Fair 11:00 am-2:00 pm 21 International Night
P.T.A. HappeningsPresident’s Message
PTA Thanks you
Celeste Gaither for planning and organizing the Holiday Story time with Mrs. Thornburg! Jill Cankar, Celeste Gaither and Stacey Schmitt for putting together the 4th/5th Grade brunch! All of the students had a great time and enjoyed the yummy food! Technology & Our Kids PTA Meeting, Jan.14, 7:00 pm Tweeting, Flashmobs, Creeping, Geo-caching, Google-stalking, Tagging, Sniping, KIK, Snapchat, Campers, Claymores, Reddit, Plus 1 .... There’s a whole new dictionary and a whole new world of opportunity to share with your kids!
Join us as we welcome District 200 technology expert, Eric Slaughter, as he familiarizes us with some of the more popular new tech terms, pointing out both the benefits and possible pitfalls they present for you and your teen. And stay for our regularly scheduled PTA meeting to find out what is going on in and around Longfellow!
Longfellow Fun Fair
Mark your calendars . . . the Longfellow Fun Fair is almost here! Fun Fair is scheduled for Saturday, February 8 from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Watch for more information. Fun Fair Bake Sale is coming. It is that time of year again where we are looking for any donations of baked goods for the fun fair bake sale on February 8. Cakes, cupcakes, brownies, cookies, or any other delicious treats are welcome. Remember that all proceeds go right back to our school and the bonus is you get a yummy treat too! Please contact Stacey Bredehoeft at [email protected] if interested in helping out. Drop off times will be posted at a later date.
Patriot Express Email Blast Have you seen it...? Have you opened it...? Have you read it...? The Longfellow Patriot Express. The PTA is trying to reach out to parents in a whole new way with a quick email blast once a week with important information and reminders for the upcoming week. Watch for it to hit your inbox on Sunday nights! Just another way to facilitate parent and school communication. We hope you like it!
International Night Returns! Great news! International Night will return this year on Friday evening, February 21. We need our Longfellow families to provide information, crafts, artifacts, and/or food for a table featuring a country of your choice. For example, the Baseners will provide the China table (glad to have help, though!)
We need other great countries/tables - for example, Mexico, Lithuania, Russia, Ireland, etc. Please contact Jan Basener at [email protected] or (630) 690-1743 if you would like to provide a country table.
Cooks’ Night Off It is finally here, BARONE’s is this month’s Cooks’ Night Off. On Wednesday, January 15 from 5:00 to 10:00 pm, Barone’s will be giving 20% of all sales to Longfellow PTA; that is for dine in or take out. Please just let them know you are from Longfellow and give the server or the driver the flyer. If you are thinking about what to serve at your Super Bowl 2014; order some frozen pizzas in advance and pick them up the night of the event! Remember Longfellow families, Barone’s is a great place for any dietary need, so everyone in the family will be happy at Barone’s! Thank you for supporting Longfellow PTA
Becky Lewis
Battle of the Books Congratulations to the Longfellow Battle of the Books team. They scored a perfect score of 79 points at their first Battle meet of the season on Wednesday, January 8. Way to go Patriots!
Longfellow's Battlers this year are: William Cankar, Tyler Gillenwater, Landon Glavich, Andrew Lamb, Brendan Noland, Marissa Phillips, Deven Rea, Kyle Schauer, Amanda Scornavacco, Ellie Stetina, Micah Syswerda, and Yvonna Tica. Longfellow is currently in first place.
Spring Fling Trivia Night March 22, 2014 This annual fund raiser Trivia Night will be held on Saturday, March 22, from 6:00 to 11:00 p.m. at the American Legion Hall at 570 S. Gary Avenue in Carol Stream. Spring Fling donations are needed for Trivia Night decorations. We are searching for any empty and cleaned out pasta jars or mason jars, and any white Christmas tree lights. If you have these items and are willing to donate please contact Stacey Bredehoeft at [email protected] or call 630-260-0589. We are in need of about 80 jars and several strands of white lights. Thanks for any help. There will also be a box to drop off these items in the school office starting January 10.
Chess Club News Congratulations, Sam Wakeman! Sam took 1st place in the elementary division at the DuPage County Chess Tournament. Kudos to William Cahill as well. William held his own in the U800 division missing 2nd place by one match!
Just a reminder about the All-Wheaton Chess Tournament - it will take place on Saturday, March 1st at Wheaton Christian Grammar School. This is a great event and a fun-filled day for all of the kids - it gives them a chance to put everything they have learned over the year to good use and spend the day hanging out with their chess club buddies - don't miss out. Our club always makes a great showing, and I would love to see the tradition continue.
For more information about the All-Wheaton Chess Tournament please contact Chris Cicmanec: [email protected].
Calling all Kindergarteners 2014-2015 school year We are looking to enroll all 2014-2015 kindergarteners! Please call the school office at 682-2080 if you have a kindergartener to enroll for next school year. Registration information will be sent out to the names that we have received. Mark your calendars for Kindergarten Round Up to be held at Longfellow School on Thursday, February 27 at 6:30 p.m. to turn in forms. Program will begin promptly at 7:00 p.m.
Conceal and Carry The Firearms Conceals Carry Act, 098-0063, that becomes effective on January 1, 2014, prohibits any licensee from carry a weapon in, “Any building, real property, and parking area under the control of a public or private elementary or secondary school”. In addition, the Act requires that schools post a sign to that extent on its entrances. After the winter break, you will see signs on our schools doors that comply with this requirement. The signs are uniform and were established by the State. The signs will look like this:
PACE Elementary Testing In March, 2014, the PACE (Program of Accelerated Curriculum and Enrichment) Office will host testing for currently-enrolled 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th grade students. This testing will qualify elementary students for participation in one of the following 204-2015 classes:
3, 4 and 5 grade PACE Mathematics 3, 4 and 5 grade PACE Reading 6 grade Fast Paced Mathematics 6 grade Fast Paced Language Arts
Please Note – Students currently in PACE Program classes do not need to re-test for 2014-2015. Students may be recommended for testing by their teacher and/or parent. The deadline for a parent to request PACE Testing is Friday, January 24, 2014. Students currently attending a private school and/or home schooled, but reside in the District 200 attendance area, are also eligible for PACE Program Testing. Testing will take place at each elementary school around the middle of March, scheduled around mandatory ISAT testing and Spring Break. Parents who register their students by the Friday, January 24, 2014 deadline will be notified by mail about specific testing dates and times prior to testing. Parent Testing Referral Forms can be found on the District 200 website: www.cusd200.org under Departments > Student Learning > Gifted Education > Parent Referral Forms. Please contact the District 200 PACE Office at (630) 682-2024 with any questions
