Erickson Express
Family Newsletter
October 19, 2023
Dear Erickson Family,
Teachers will offer conference days/times between November 13-December 1. Parents may choose an in-person or virtual parent-teacher conference. Parent Teacher Conference Sign-Up Link. It is highly encouraged for all families to sign up for a conference with the classroom teacher.
The outdoor PTO Family Pumpkin Night is tonight from 5:00-7:00pm in the school parking lot for families that have signed up to participate. We have over 400 people signed up! Dress for the weather and bring a blanket to sit on. If it is raining or the parking lot is wet from raining, Pumpkin Night will be moved indoors to the gym.
Next week is National Red Ribbon Week. The Red Ribbon campaign promotes healthy, drug free communities. At Erickson, we focus on making healthy choices and each class will complete a project in art class. See flyer below promoting dress-up days for Red Ribbon Week.
Please consider filling out the Erickson Family Survey below. Your feedback is needed! Thank you!
Halloween at Erickson will be celebrated on Tuesday, October 31st. Families are invited to the outdoor parade from 1:30-2:00 for PM Preschool-5th grade students. Students will walk along the sidewalk in the front of the school. The AM Preschool-Kindergarten outdoor parade will be from 10:00-10:15 am. REMINDER: Students are not able to go home and change into their costume. Students should bring their costume to school to change into right before the parade. No weapons (swords, knives, guns, etc.) are allowed. Masks can be worn during the parade and party. PTO will be providing two snacks during the party. Parents do not need to send in any additional treats/halloween bags for classmates. Parent volunteers are discouraged from taking home students at 3:00. All students will dismiss at 3:30.
Coming in next week's issue is Veterans Day information. Veterans are invited to our Veterans Day school assembly at 2:00 on November 10th. MORE INFORMATION TO COME!
If you need to report an absence, please call the school 630-529-2223 or email the teacher and the attendance line: erattendance@sd13.org. If you need to report a change in dismissal for your child and it is after 2:00pm, please call the school.
Please reach out if you have any question or concerns. The best way to reach me would be via email or phone: sjohnston@sd13.org or 630-529-2223.
Have a wonderful rest of your week!
Stacy Johnston
Principal
Important Dates
- October 19: Family Pumpkin Night 5:00-7:00 pm (Outside -school parking lot)
- October 20: Hot Lunch
- October 23- Oct 27: Red Ribbon Week (see flyer below for daily dress-up day activities)
- October 23: Hot Lunch, PTO Meeting 5:30-6:30 in Erickson Library, Team Up and and Tackle Drugs -wear favorite sport team jersey or shirt
- October 24: Bus safety drills, Slip away from Drugs - wear pajamas & slippers
- October 25: Too Fancy for Drugs - wear your nicest outfit
- October 26: Put a cap on Drugs - wear a hat
- October 27: Hot Lunch, School Improvement Day 1:40 dismissal* (PM Kindergarten meets at their normal time), Too Scary for Drugs - wear a Halloween shirt
- October 30: Hot Lunch
- October 31: School Store (during lunch), Halloween Classroom Parties
- 10:00: Kinder/Preschool Halloween Parade (outside)
- 10:15-11:15: Kinder/Preschool Halloween Party
- 1:30-2:00: Preschool-5th Grade Halloween Parade (outside)
- 2:00-3:00: Preschool-5th Grade Halloween Party
*Please note: 1:40 Early Dismissal Days/School Improvement are on FRIDAY. Early Dismissal/School Improvement days are one Friday per month and FULL DAY students are dismissed at 1:40 while teachers are involved in professional development activities. Half-Day PM Kindergarten will attend school at their normal PM times. Preschool does not attend on early dismissal days.
Dear Families,
In our continual efforts to be a leader in the field of education, our school district is striving to ensure parents of our students know their opinions are valued and feel welcome in our schools.
We would like to invite you to complete a 5-minute survey to let us know your thoughts. The online survey is being conducted by our partner, Humanex Ventures®, and will be used to better understand perceptions regarding the school, teachers, principal(s), and superintendent. This survey is completely anonymous and confidential. No individual responses will be reported; rather, the responses will be reported in an aggregate fashion.
The survey will be available to complete online beginning October 12 - November 6. Please plan to complete the survey in one sitting, as the page will time out if left inactive, requiring you to start over.
Please join us in our efforts to provide the best quality education for students in our school district!
PTO NEWS
PTO NEWS:
See you all TONIGHT at Pumpkin Night from 5 pm-7pm in the school parking lot. We will also be having the Erickson PTO Silent Auction today also.
Our next PTO meeting is Monday, October 23rd in the library from 5:30-6:30 PM. All are welcome and we would love to see you there!
The PTO directory will be emailed to those families with PTO dues that were paid for the 2023-2024 school year.
If paying for membership for PTO, please write a separate check for PTO membership dues and not with school registration fees as the district office has indicated that it is necessary to have a separate check for PTO so there is no confusion. We appreciate it!
PTO FUNDRAISERS
Our next dine out night is October 24, 2023 at Culver’s in Bloomingdale from 5-8 pm. Please see attached flier for more info.
Thank you all for your support with our Fall Fundraiser for Cherrydale. We sold a total of $28,435 worth of items and that raised $12,651 for Erickson Elementary PTO!! This has been the biggest amount raised with Cherrydale and we could not have done it without you!
PTO UPDATES
For PTO updates:
Follow us on Twitter: @PTOerickson
Facebook: Erickson Elementary PTO
School Improvement Goal Update - Positive School Climate
Each year Erickson staff set academic and social learning goals for students. This year our school goals will revolve around reading, math, truancy (school attendance), and building a positive climate/bully prevention goals. I will share goal updates throughout the school year.
Goal Statement: Develop a positive school climate for all students at Erickson.
2023-2024 Erickson Positive School Climate Update
Each year, students in Kindergarten-5th grade take the Connection Card Survey in the fall and the spring. The questions on the survey are:
1) Do you have friends at school?
2) Is there a teacher or grown up in the building that you can talk with? A teacher or grown up that will listen to you and help you while at school?
3) Do you feel like you belong or are included at Erickson?
4) Do you know what it means to SOAR at Erickson?
5) List a KIND behavior you see at Erickson.
6) List an UNKIND behavior you see at Erickson.
7) What do you like about Erickson?
8) What would make Erickson better?The School Improvement Team and classroom teachers will use the data collected from this survey to develop goals for students and the school. Last year, through the survey, we found out that some new students were stating that they didn't feel like they belonged at Erickson. So we developed a Student Ambassador program to help new students feel more comfortable at Erickson. A few years ago, students stated that they would like new playground equipment. The Student Council partnered with the PTO to purchase the Gaga Pit in response to the survey.
During the 2023-2024 school year, one of our focus areas in developing a positive school climate will be on KIND and UNKIND behavior: What are the unkind behaviors students are stating? How can we improve students' behavior? How can we celebrate students who are showing KIND behaviors?
School Hours / Lunch Hours
School Hours:
Grades 1st-5th: 8:40-3:30
Kindergarten AM: 8:40-11:30
Kindergarten PM: 12:40-3:30
Preschool AM: 8:50-11:20
Preschool PM: 12:50-3:20
Student Arrival:
Kindergarten-5 grade students can begin arriving at 8:25. Students should gather in the front of the building. Doors open at 8:30. Students should arrive by 8:40
Lunch Hours:
1st, 2nd & 3rd Grade Lunch: 12:00-12:25
4th-5th Grade Lunch: 12:25-12:50
Dropping off lunches from restaurants (ie- McDonald's, Wendy's, Panera, etc.) as well as using food delivery services to drop off food (ie -GrubHub, Door Dash) is not allowed. Students should bring their lunch in the morning to school each day. Safety is our number one priority and we would like to limit visitors.
Erickson Elementary School
Email: sjohnston@sd13.org
Website: sd13.org
Location: 277 Springfield Drive, Bloomingdale, IL, USA
Phone: 630-529-2223
Fax: 630-893-9849