We hope today's Week at Windsor finds you enjoying the weekend. The month of September is off and running!

Curriculum Night

Many thanks to all our parents who were able to attend our Curriculum Night last week. Below is the video we presented introducing this year's Windsor team along with some other resources. Here is a link to a Windsor Curriculum Night survey. We would love your feedback to assist with next year's planning, as we want this evening to meet as many needs as possible.

Windsor PTA Reminders

This Tuesday, September 10th at 7:00 PM is the first PTA meeting of the school year in the Commons. Additional reminders include:

• Our PTA is selling Windsor spirit wear and the sale ends tomorrow, Monday, September 9th.
• Their Fall Harvest and Taffy Apple Sale is also underway. Sales end this Friday, September 13th.
• All proceeds from both sales help to support our Windsor PTA!

Music for Youth

Music for Youth will be performing this Wednesday afternoon for grades K-4 Windsor students. Here is a link with more information about Music for Youth. This performance is their kick-off to the school year. We wish all our performers well!

More information and highlights are featured below.

We are enjoying getting to know your children as well as getting further into the routine of school. We look forward to a great week ahead!

Warmest regards,

Piper Boston, Principal

Lindsay Anastacio, Assistant Principal

Our Windsor team Believes in the Power of Yet and above is the video we presented to introduce this year's staff members.

We'd love your feedback on Curriculum Night. Here is a link to a Windsor Curriculum Night survey.

Here is a link to our middle session presentation slides. Below are additional specific links on the following which were referenced in the presentation:

• District 25 K-5 Literacy,
• Being a Writer,
• Elementary Standards Based Progress Reports,
• and Windsor's focus on Growth Mindset.

We appreciate your partnership and are excited for the year to come!

We like to minimize disruptions to the school day and protect children's instructional time as much as possible.

If your children have left something at home, we ask you to always weigh carefully whether it is something you need to bring to them during the school day. If the answer is yes, we have bins located in the front office for each grade level.

• Please note your child's first/last name, Homeroom teacher, and time they need the item by prior to coming to the office.
• You can place the item in the correct grade level bin.
• We will deliver all items to classrooms at convenient times.

The Food Service Department offers safe meals for students that have food allergies or sensitivities. If you are interested in a safe meal menu for your child, please contact the food service office via email and we will send you the documents that need to be completed. Please send your email to chinesnewell@sd25.org.

This year we are offering dessert with school meals that are purchased on Fridays. Families of students with peanut/tree nut allergies need to be aware that we do offer items that are produced in facilities that also produce items that contain peanuts and tree nuts. Please review labels on the website for more information. Labeling regulations for food service items are different than retail packaged items and companies are not required to post this statement on bulk cases of product.

Regular attendance at school is an essential part of the educational program of each student at Windsor Elementary School. You should contact our office whether the absence is for the morning, afternoon, or the entire day. This procedure not only helps us fulfill required attendance monitoring obligations but also helps to ensure the safety of our students.

Absence Voicemail Hotline

For your convenience, families can now just call our main number (847) 398-4297 to report your child's absence from school. After dialing, the "operator" will prompt families to DIAL 1 to report an absence. The system is operational twenty-four hours a day, so you can call anytime BEFORE 9:15 AM on the day of the absence. .

Absences must be reported before 9:15 AM if you are using the attendance line. As you leave a message, please include the following information:

• Student's name, please spell the last name

• Student's teacher's name

• Length of absence

• Reason for absence

• Requests for homework can be made on the third consecutive day of an unexpected absence.

**NEW** Online Absence Form

New this year, we also have an online attendance form. It can be accessed at the following link. https://forms.gle/Yo8h1JgfSK3P2dSR6 (The link will soon be featured on our web page for easy reference.)

This form will be checked between 6:45 AM and 9:00 AM each school day. After 9:00 AM, please call the school office.

Contacting the Office before 9:15 AM

If the office has not received a voicemail message or online notification by 9:15 AM, a parent will be called, as Illinois law requires us to contact a parent if the child's absence is not reported to us. Home numbers will be phoned first. If no response, a parent's work number will be called. If the school is unable to reach a parent, the person listed on the child's Emergency Form will be called.

Please always help us know your child is at home by contacting our front office (847) 398-4297.

Teachers have been reviewing crisis procedures for Evacuations, Shelter-in-Place, and Soft/Hard Lockdowns. (Defined below.) We practiced a Hard Lockdown drill on Friday. This week we will practice another Evacuation (postponed due to rain last week) and Shelter-in-Place.

• Evacuation-When we need everyone to immediately exit the building, such as in the event of a fire. Each teacher reviews procedures/exits for their space. (We will have an announced school-wide evacuation drill early this week. We will practice an unannounced drill with the Arlington Heights Fire Department sometime in October and conduct another one in spring.)

• Shelter-in-Place-When we need to have all students and staff safely away from windows and crouching in areas of shelter, usually in anticipation of a violent storm or tornado. All staff members review their shelter locations with students. (We will practice an announced school-wide shelter-in-place drill this week and conduct an unannounced drill later this year.)
• Hard Lockdown-A hard lockdown alerts students and staff there is a potential/actual threat in the building. Most often, teachers will lock doors and direct students to a spot in the classroom where they can be out-of-sight and away from the door. Increasingly, we are teaching children they must remain quiet and be ready to respond to teacher direction, whether that means hiding or evacuating, as staff assess the safest scenario. (We will practice one announced drill this week. We will conduct an unannounced drill with the Arlington Heights Police Department later in September. We will do another hard lockdown drill in the spring.)
• Soft Lockdown-A soft lockdown alerts students and staff there is no threat but everyone needs to stay in classrooms/spaces. It is usually in response to a medical emergency or spill/clean up in a specific part of the building, where we do not want any movement in hallways, calls to the office, etc. (We will not practice this as a drill.)

The reason we practice crisis drills is so that everyone can remain calm and have an understanding of what to do in an emergency situation. Each drill experience also allows us to reflect on current practices and refine procedures and plans as needed.

We will notify families on days that we will be conducting unannounced drills with the Arlington Heights Police and Fire Departments later this month and into October.

We appreciate all that our Windsor PTA does to support the school!

Here is another link to the Windsor PTA's Windsor Spirit Wear sale going on now through September 9th. https://windsorpta.org/2019/08/21/spirit-wear-2019/

Order Fall Harvest items online from 9/1 to 9/13 for pick-up at Windsor on Sept 26! Support Windsor PTA and make it a win-win!

The first PTA meeting of the school year will be on 9.10.19 at 7:00 PM. Parents/guardians can still sign up for the PTA or to volunteer in serving on different committees. See link below to learn more!

Here is a link to a letter previously shared with families to begin the school year regarding District 25 assessments and testing windows.

Second grade began Fastbridge testing last week and will continue into this week. (Many thanks to our parent volunteers for assisting with escorting students to/from our staff proctors.) Fastbridge testing for intermediate grades will be this week.

We will also be giving the MAP assessment to any new students or students being progress monitored as part of RtI or SPED in grades 3-5.

Many of us love pets of all kinds, including the Windsor administration and staff! Bringing pets onto school property, however, can cause some concerns. We do have students who are allergic to different types of animals and pets. We also have students who are very afraid of dogs. If you do need to bring a pet with you to drop off or pick up your child, please keep dogs leashed and maintain a perimeter of space around your dog to keep all safe.

Our District 25 Parent-Student Handbook is always shared as part of each year's online registration process. Typically, we will highlight sections throughout the school year. Here is a link for families to reference anytime. https://www.sd25.org/cms/lib/IL01904427/Centricity/Domain/24/2019-2020%20-%20UPDATED%207-23%20936am.pdf

We value our Windsor community that is strengthened by diversity, inclusion, and a growth mindset.

• We believe in a kind, safe and responsible community because our students are important.
• We believe in designing lessons that promote inquiry, academic risk taking, and flexible thinking.
• We believe in supporting cultural, emotional, social, and academic diversity.
• We believe in working collaboratively as a school community for continuous improvement in a trusting environment.