Message from the Principal
Week of October 7, 2024
Message from the Principal
Dear Virginia Lake Families,
The Comprehensive Health Education Act often referred to as “Erin’s Law” was passed by the Illinois state legislature on January 24, 2013. This law requires that age-appropriate sexual abuse and assault prevention education is included in grades pre-kindergarten through 12.
Before winter break, your school will provide age-appropriate lessons on personal safety awareness and prevention. There will be a classroom-based lesson informing students about how to protect themselves from being a victim, identifying people you can trust, handling unsafe situations, and dealing with methods abusers use to keep victims silent.
To provide you with information about the law, parent information about the topic and a preview of what your student will learn in class, materials including the PowerPoint lesson to be used in class are available on the district website. There will also be copies of the classroom lesson materials available in the school office. These can be emailed to you at your request. Please contact your school’s office to request an electronic copy of these materials should you wish to review them.
If you do NOT wish your child to participate in the “Erin’s Law” lesson, please email your child’s teacher and indicate as such. If we do not hear from you, we will assume your child has permission to participate in this program.
Please feel free to contact me If you have any questions or concerns about the “Erin’s Law” lesson. Thank you for partnering with us as we continue to provide learning opportunities to improve the safety and well being of our children.
Sincerely,
Patti Van Winkle
REQUEST TO OPT-OUT OF ERIN’S LAW PRESENTATION
In your email, please include the following by October 18th
Student Name:
Parent Name:
Today’s Date:
NO, I do NOT give permission for my child, to participate in the Erin’s Law classroom-based presentation for the 2024-25 school year.
Estimados Padres y Tutores:
El 24 de enero de 2013, la legislatura del estado de Illinois aprobó la Ley de educación integral para la salud, a la que a menudo se hace referencia como "Ley de Erin". Esta ley requiere que la educación para la prevención del abuso y la agresión sexual apropiada para la edad esté incluida en los grados de prekinder a 12.
Antes de las vacaciones de invierno, su escuela proporcionará lecciones apropiadas para la edad sobre prevención y conciencia de seguridad personal. Habrá una lección que informará a los estudiantes sobre cómo protegerse de ser una víctima, identificar a las personas en las que puede confiar, manejar situaciones inseguras y lidiar con los métodos que usan los abusadores para mantener a las víctimas en silencio.
Para brindarle información sobre la ley, información para los padres sobre el tema y una vista previa de lo que su hijo aprenderá en clase, los materiales que incluyen la lección de PowerPoint que se utilizará en clase están disponibles en el sitio web del distrito. También habrá copias de los materiales de las lecciones disponibles en la oficina de la escuela. Estos se pueden enviar por correo electrónico a su solicitud. Comuníquese con la oficina de su escuela para solicitar una copia electrónica de estos materiales si desea revisarlos.
Si NO desea que su hijo participe en la lección "La ley de Erin", envíe un correo electrónico al maestro de su hijo e indíquelo como tal. Si no tenemos noticias suyas, asumiremos que su hijo tiene permiso para participar en este programa.
No dude en ponerse en contacto conmigo si tiene alguna pregunta o inquietud sobre la lección "La ley de Erin". Gracias por asociarse con nosotros mientras continuamos brindando oportunidades de aprendizaje para mejorar la seguridad y el bienestar de nuestros niños.
Atentamente,
Patti Van Winkle
SOLICITUD PARA EXCLUIRSE DE LA PRESENTACIÓN DE LA LEY DE ERIN
En su correo electrónico, incluya lo siguiente antes de 18 de Octubre
Nombre del estudiante:
Nombre del padre:
Fecha:
NO, NO doy permiso para que mi hijo participe en la presentación de Erin’s Law para el año escolar 2024-25
Health Forms
Any medical forms and questions should be directed to Nurse Sasha Mendez, our school nurse, at mendezs@ccsd15.net and/or 847-963-7102. Forms and information can be found below for your review. Please contact her directly related to any medical matters. Thank You Health Exams Forms.
Students in kindergarten or new to Virginia Lake, must have their physical and immunization forms submitted by October 15th. After this date, students will be excluded from school. If you need support with making an appointment, please contact Mrs. Mendez.
Vision and Hearing Screening
Hearing screening must be provided annually for preschool children 3 years of age or older in any public or private educational program or licensed child care facility, and for all school age children grades kindergarten, first, second and third; are in special education class; have been referred by a teacher; or are transfer students. These screening services shall be provided in all public, private, and parochial schools. In lieu of the screening services required, a completed and signed report form, indicating the child had an ear examination by a physician and an audiological evaluation completed by an audiologist within the previous 12 months, is acceptable.
Vision screening must be provided annually for preschool children 3 years of age or older in any public or private educational program or licensed child care facility, and for school age children in kindergarten, second and eighth grades; are in special education class; have been referred by a teacher; or are transfer students. Such screening services shall be provided in all public, private and parochial schools. In lieu of the screening services required, a completed and signed report form, indicating that an eye examination by a doctor specializing in diseases of the eye or a licensed optometrist has been administered within the previous 12 months, is acceptable.
The parent or legal guardian of a student may object to hearing or vision screening tests for their children on religious grounds. If a religious objection is made, a written and signed statement from the parent or legal guardian detailing such objections must be presented to the local school authority. Virginia Lakes Elementary Screening Date is October 9, 2024. All students who fall under the state-mandated screening requirements will be screened unless we have a recent vision or audiological examination or religious objection on file in the health office. Please refer to your school's health office with any questions.
Highlights from Virginia Lake
Chicago Bears Mini Monsters Clinic
Did you know? Missing just one day of school can take up to three days to catch up on lost learning.
Parents, this year District 15 is prioritizing student attendance. While some absences are unavoidable, others can be prevented, such as vacations, staying home when not ill (except for Illinois-allowed mental health days), or missing school for non-essential reasons.
To help, we’re sending a monthly attendance update for each student, so you can track your child’s attendance and see how it compares to district trends. These updates will be sent via text and email, and you can unsubscribe anytime. Our goal is to reduce unexcused absences and keep students engaged in learning.
Each month, we’ll also share tips to support strong attendance. This month’s tip, found in the flier linked HERE, helps clarify when to keep your child home and when it’s safe to send them to school. We hope this helps as we enter the fall and winter seasons.
If you have any questions or need support with your child’s attendance, please contact us. We’re here to partner with you for your student’s success!
Trunk or Treat Volunteers Needed- Friday, October 25th- 5:30-6:30 p.m.
Our Halloween Trunk or Treat event is one of our students favorite events. We are in need of families to host a car for the event. Please sign up if you are interested.
PTA Fundraiser
The Virginia Lake PTA fall fundraiser is well underway, and students have the opportunity to earn cool prizes by selling cookie dough, gift wrap and other gifts. The money raised from the fundraiser goes directly to the PTA to fund events and activities at the school and provide resources for students and teachers. The fundraiser runs through October 18th.
If you haven’t registered yet please use the steps below to sign up today!
It's as simple as 1, 2, 3!
1. Register at https://www.shopfund.com/
2. Click on "seller and parent" to setup an account
3. Share custom student support links with family & friends.
4. Student Goal: 5 Online Supporters.
REGISTER-SHARE-WIN: Sharing gets you tickets for chances to win over $100,000 in instant prizes.
Fundraiser Links:
* How To Videos - (https://vimeo.com/showcase/8752027)
* Kick-Off Videos - (https://vimeo.com/showcase/11299106)
* Parent Letter - (https://grpsvcs.link/YqMOT5)
* Prize Program - (https://grpsvcs.link/FyIeuP)
Materials went home in your child's backpack!
Thank you so much to everyone that has already renewed their PTA membership for the 2024-2025 year! If you haven’t signed up please join today!
The pricing for standard memberships remains the same this year.
Single Adult Membership $10
Faculty/Staff Membership $8
Two Adult Family Membership $16
New this year are Booster Memberships! Get all the same perks as the standard membership with an additional donation included. Booster Memberships include up to two adults, a bonus item as a thank you and a donation that goes directly to the PTA to help support activities and events at the school. The levels are as follows
Silver $25 - (receive up to two memberships and a VL window cling perfect to display your support for the PTA)
Gold $50 - (receive up to two memberships, VL window cling and a stuffed dolphin)
Platinum $75 - (receive up to two memberships, VL window cling and a dolphin baseball hat)
Diamond $100 - (receive up to two memberships, a VL window cling and a VL tumbler cup)
All funds raised are used to sponsor school programs, events and resources for our students.
A reminder that we ALWAYS appreciate the support you provide however that comes. Joining does not require any commitment of time and you do not need to volunteer if unable.
Please follow the link to get signed up!
PTA Website and Calendar
Want to know PTA upcoming events? There’s a calendar on the VL PTA site under resources. Please check out the VL PTA website for all things VL PTA!
Bilingual Parent Advisory Committee (BPAC)
District 15 Parent Workshop
Important Dates
Tuesday, October 8th- PTA Meeting- 7:00 p.m.
Wednesday, October 9th- Hearing and Vision Screening
Monday, October 14th- No School- Indigenous People Day
Friday, October 25th- PTA Trunk or Treat- 5:30-6:30 p.m.
Thursday, October 31st- Halloween- Parade- 2:20 p.m./ Parties- 2:50 p.m.
Tuesday, November 5th- No School- Election Day
Tuesday, November 12th- PTA Meeting- 7:00 p.m.
Wednesday, November 20th- Reading Night- 5:30-7:00 p.m.
Monday, November 25th and Tuesday, November 26th- Parent Teacher Conferences
Wednesday, November 27th-Friday, November 29th- No School- Thanksgiving
Virginia Lake Elementary School
Email: vanwinkp@ccsd15.net
Website: https://www.ccsd15.net/VL
Location: 925 N Glenn Dr, Palatine, IL, USA
Phone: 847-963-7105