Post on 19-Feb-2018
Spring is approaching, and this is the time of year we begin to
plan for the next school year. This year, much of our planning is being
affected by external forces.
There’s been so much in the news lately about schools – it feels
as though a day doesn’t go by that we’re not hearing new thoughts on
how to ―fix‖ the state budget deficit. Unfortunately, we’re in a situa-
tion that the fixes are going to impact our students directly. It is
critical, as parents, as community members, and as citizens of Illinois,
that you listen to the debates and express your views.
One recent proposal called for a consolidation of school districts
across the state. Rather than have local school districts, the state
would create one district per county. Local control would be gone.
The bill was not called for a vote, but rather removed until further
conversations can take place. This occurred
because citizens called their legislators to
express their concerns. Your opinions DO
matter. You can find contact information for
your state legislators at: www.lwvil.org (scroll to
Government Guide, Elected Officials). Click on
the link to enter your address. You can call or
email to share your opinion.
There will be a great deal of information in the community this
month regarding important issues on the April ballot. Voting day is
April 5 - please become familiar with the local issues. Our kids deserve
your thoughtful consideration.
Mary Ann Savage
Principal
A Message from the Principal...
Mary Ann Savage
Principal
Melissa Lawson
Assistant Principal
The News at Willow School
District #153
Mission Statement
Willow School
1804 Willow Rd
Homewood, IL 60430
708-798-3720
Inside this issue:
Kindergarten Orientation
Important Dates
VIP Day
Student Council
Reading First
Homewood Foundation 153
PBIS
Box Tops for Education
All Children
Will Learn;
All Children
Will Be Served.
Para los que hablen
espaňol se puedu
llamar a Olimpia
Tienstra con
sugierencias o
preguntas. 647-0088
March 2011
Friday, March 4 Early Dismissal at 11:40 am
End of 2nd Trimester
Monday, March 7 Casimir Pulaski Day - Schools Closed
Wednesday, March 9 Market Day pick-up, 6:15 - 7 pm @ James Hart
Friday, March 11 Report Cards go home
Wednesday, March 16 Kindergarten Orientation Meeting, 7 pm @ Willow
Thursday, March 17 St. Patrick’s Day
Sunday, March 20 First Day of Spring!
Monday, March 21 School Board Meeting, 7 pm @ Hart Media Center
Wednesday, March 23 Kindergarten Registration, 2:30 - 6:00 pm @ Willow
Friday, March 25 VIP Day, 8:30 am - 10:00 am
Enjoy Spring Break March 28 - April 1 Monday, April 4 Students return
Page 2
Important Dates to Remember:
The News at Willow School
Kindergarten Orientation Mark your calendars! It’s time to start planning for the
2011-2012 school year. If you, or someone you know residing in
the district, have a child who will be 5 years of age on or before
September 1, 2011, it’s time to think about Kindergarten.
On Wednesday, March 16, beginning at 7:00 p.m., we invite
parents to attend our Kindergarten Orientation
meeting. You will meet our kindergarten staff,
hear an overview of the kindergarten program at
Willow School, and pick up your registration forms.
This program is designed for parents only.
On Wednesday, March 23, Kindergarten
registration will be held at Willow School from
2:30 to 6:00 p.m. We ask that you bring your
completed forms (the forms you will receive on
March 15), along with all required documents to registration.
We will photocopy and return original documents to you as you
register. Registering early helps us as we make important planning
decisions for the upcoming school year.
Sunday, March 13th
Set your clocks forward
one hour before
you go to bed!
Children must be five
years of age on or
before September 1.
Page 3 The News at Willow School
Homewood Foundation 153
The 6th Annual
Fundraiser and Auction
Saturday, April 9th
6:00 pm to 11:30 pm
Ravisloe Country Club
Buffet dinner
Cash bar
Silent and live auctions
Entertainment
Raffles and games
Tickets are $45 before April 5th and
$55 thereafter.
Contact Shelley Peck at 647-2390
or
Purchase tickets online at
www.homewoodfoundation.org
Proceeds from ticket sales go directly toward
our mission of supporting inspired teaching in the
Homewood School District 153 schools.
2011-2012 Registration
Student registration packets for returning
students will me mailed home on April 8, 2011.
The deadline for registration packets to be
returned to the district registrar office is
Friday, May 20, 2011.
If you have any questions, please contact
Janice Kirschenbaum.
647-2138
VIP Day is March 25th!
8:30 a.m. to 10:00 a.m.
The students
are looking forward to a morning filled
with fun activities!
DAY
Willow’s first and second grade Student Council members helped organize the ―Pennies
for Patients‖ program this year. During the month of February, all the students and staff at
Willow School were encouraged to collect change to benefit The Leukemia & Lymphoma
Society. Over $1,600.00 in pennies, nickels, dimes and quarters, or more, was donated. The
Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s mission is to cure leukemia, lymphoma,
myeloma and Hodgkin’s disease and to improve the quality of life of
patients and their families.
Student Council continues to set a good example teaching students
how to help their peers, their school and their community. Thank you to all
for your generosity.
Page 4 The News at Willow School
Student Council
Willow parent, Tina Moore,
recently contributed book sets to each
of our classroom libraries through the
Wells Fargo Reading First Program.
Reading First is an initiative fully funded
by the company to support reading in the
prekindergarten through
second grade classrooms.
Each one of our classrooms
benefited this year from
the program, which has
donated over one million
books to schools since its
inception in 1997.
Thanks so much, Mrs. Moore!
Wells Fargo’s Reading First Program
Dental Health
February was Dental Health
Month and Dr. Lynn Malone, D.D.S. and
Robyn Marchi, dental hygienist, from
The Center for Dental Excellence
gave presentations to all our first and
second grade students on February
16th. Our school nurse says … Brush
your teeth regularly!
Mrs. Moore shares one of the books with
Mrs. Klupchak's kindergarten class.
Page 5 The News at Willow School
School-Home Connections: Family Literacy Bags Foundation 153 is proud to fund the Family Literacy Bag project that is
ongoing in several Willow kindergarten classrooms. Participating teachers
designed the program to help "promote positive attitudes toward learning,
connect home and school, promote oral language development, support learning,
and keep students engaged." So far, these creative activity bags have been a
big hit with both parents and students. The children are really excited to
receive their bags every week, and the parents give the literacy bags rave reviews as well.
They like the range of topics that come home, the variety of activities included in the bags,
and the pride their children exhibit when demonstrating a new skill. Family Literacy Bags
enable parents to be actively involved in their children's learning, without having to spend
extra money on supplies or take time off from work to be in the classroom.
WILO Radio: Playing All The Latest Hits! Foundation 153 is also delighted to purchase sound equipment and
book bins for Miss Rost's WILO Radio project. Each week, children put
on a radio show that teaches them valuable research skills, allows them
to practice reading fluency, and seeks to improve their overall reading
skills. Please visit www.Foundation153.org and click on "Video Theater"
to see an engaging video of these budding broadcasters in action.
PBIS: Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports
Willow students enjoyed watching a Disney sing-a-long movie
and eating fruit snacks as this month’s school-wide celebration.
Classes attend these monthly celebrations by redeeming 10 Wildcat
Wow Certificates which they earn by following the Willow Way;
Be Safe, Be Caring and Be Ready.
The PBIS program rewards students for positive behavior and
making good choices.
Page 6 The News at Willow School
Congratulations to Mrs. Wallace’s second grade class for winning the Box Tops contest!
They submitted a total of 705 Box Tops. Each student will receive a Culver’s card for a FREE
cake cone or dish of frozen custard. Way to Go!
It has been another successful collection period at Willow School. Our next check from
the Box Tops for Education program will be approximately $960.00. Our school collected this
amount during November through February. That is awesome!
The January and February winners are:
Please keep sending in your monthly collection sheets. Remember to check expiration
dates as we do not get credit for expired Box Tops. Also, please attach only 10 (ten) Box Tops
to each collection sheet. Additional Box Tops are always welcome—just send them to school in
a Ziploc baggie or envelope labeled with your child’s name and classroom teacher.
Due to the overwhelming participation in the contest, we will re-run the contest from
now until May 27th. The classroom that turns in the most Box Tops from now to May 27th, will
win Culver’s cards for each student.
Thank you for your continued support in this program.
Kristin Sline,
Box Tops Coordinator
Box Tops for Education
EC and PreK
Grace Cairo
Ethan Redd
Micaiah Abramczyk
Carmella Abramczyk
Kindergarten
Blake Lopez Graham MacLeod
Abigail Roberts Phoebe Bosch
Danavan Wright Diego Rosales
Emily Wendt Savannah Roberts
First Grade
Logan Bernath Erik Dedo
Madelyn Zirbel Kameron Box
Rowan Moxley Katelyn Bava
Gabriel Tienstra Madison Skowronski
Makaela Miller Lucas Bouchie
Chad Ganshirt Sam Starkenburg
Jeanette Kouassi
Second Grade
Lily Bosch Isaac Perez
Patrick Hutton Colby Lomaglio
Ellery Homrich Jayla Schnackenberg
Paul Crecco Adam Freeman
Chase Bethea Eddie Wilson
Antonio Cipolla J T Senzel
Riley Brooks Christina Turovsky
Charlie Franc Andrew Gaughan
Julia White