Please take a moment to read the article "We Won" written by GLS' very own 7th-grade student Jacob Cromwell who summarizes the excitement of the championship game held on Monday night. The girls finished their 2024 season with a perfect 14-0 record. Congratulations to everyone and we look forward to honoring them next Tuesday at our Board of Education meeting at 6:30 pm.

What a great week to be a BRAVE! What a great start to the week as our 8th Grade Girls Basketball Team won the Conference Championship with a nail-biting win over the Park Wolves. If you missed the news article above written by one of our 7th-grade students, please make sure to read it as the author, Jacob Cromwell, did an amazing job summarizing the game and the excitement surrounding the team as they went to finish the season 14-0. Way to go Braves!

Speaking of starting the week strong, what a great start on Sunday as well with our PTO-sponsored Easter Egg Hunt. We had an amazing turnout and the Easter Bunny not only helped to hide their eggs but was also a basketball star as well! See below for some great pictures from not only the Easter Egg Hunt but also our Library Night that was last week. We had two amazing events with such great turnouts and thank you to those who were able to make it for your continued support in joining us.

I am also pleased to announce that we hit our threshold of over 20% of our families completing the 5Essentials Survey! The last month of cartoon numbers will officially be no more and instead, I wanted to include a big "thank you" to everyone who completed the survey. There is still time to complete it if you so choose as the window closes on March 29.

This week we held our IAR tests for grades 3-8. Our students certainly showed their grit and perseverance as they completed the 5 days of state-mandated testing. If your child was absent on any of the days this week, please know we will begin make-ups on Monday. If you have any questions about the makeup and timing, please reach out to either your child's classroom teacher or me and we can certainly help answer any questions!

Last night, Dr. Newby and I met virtually with families to review a new tool that is available to all our students through the Regional Office of Education. This new tool is called Varsity Tutors and your child already has access to the amazing programs and tutoring that is available!

Thanks to an investment by the Lake County Regional Office of Education through June 30, 2027, every student in Grass Lake School now has access to the Varsity Tutors for Schools platform. This access includes:

• 24/7 On-Demand Chat Tutoring

• On-Demand Essay Review

• 100+ Weekly Live Classes

• Recorded Enrichment Classes

• Self-Study & Practice Resources

Here is a pamphlet and a video that provides an overview of the platform's features. Students can go to their Clever Dashboard and select the Varsity Tutors icon to log in to the platform. Any chat sessions students participate in are recorded and posted on their dashboard for future reference. We hope you find this new tool useful and if you have any questions, do not hesitate to reach out to me.

Next week is shaping up to be pretty busy here at GLS, especially with Spring Break just around the corner! It's such an exciting time as the weather gets warmer and our students are looking forward to spending time outdoors and having fun after school.

Just a friendly reminder: while students are allowed to have their cell phones with them, we kindly ask that they keep them in their backpacks or lockers with the sound off to avoid any distractions during class time. Also, if you need to reach your child during the school day, please feel free to get in touch with our front office or their teacher. That way, we can ensure a smooth and uninterrupted learning environment for everyone. Your cooperation means a lot to us! Thank you for your understanding and support!

Thank you for a great week and on behalf of our amazing staff, we appreciate all your help and support. I hope everyone has a great weekend and we look forward to seeing everyone next week!

Sincerely,

Ryan Wollberg

Principal/Grass Lake School

Dear Grass Lake Parents/Guardians,

We hope this message finds you well! We're excited to inform you about a wonderful opportunity for you to share your thoughts and insights about your child's school. Students and teachers all across Illinois, including Grass Lake, are taking part in the eleventh annual statewide Illinois 5Essentials Survey.

This survey is designed to gain valuable insights into the inner workings of your child's school, and we genuinely value your input. As parents/guardians, your participation will help us better understand and improve the key aspects of school effectiveness.

The Illinois State Board of Education has teamed up with UChicago Impact at the University of Chicago to conduct this survey online. It focuses on five critical indicators that can have a significant impact on student outcomes, such as attendance and test score improvements. These five indicators, which influence school success, are:

1. Effective Leaders
2. Collaborative Teachers
3. Involved Families
4. Supportive Environments
5. Ambitious Instruction

Previous research involving over 400 schools has demonstrated that schools excelling in at least three of these "5Essential" indicators were 10 times more likely to enhance student learning in math and reading than those weaker in three or more Essentials.

The survey will be completed by all teachers and students in grades four through eight. To generate 5Essentials Reports for our school, we need our teachers and students to meet a response rate threshold of 50 percent and the results are included in our School Report Card.

Furthermore, our district is offering an optional parent survey to help supplement. If at least 20 percent of Grass Lake parents/guardians take part in this survey, we will receive a parent report. Please note that the parent data will not be included in the State Report Card. Your participation in the parent portion of the survey will provide invaluable insights into the conditions at Grass Lake Elementary School and help guide our improvement efforts. Rest assured, your identity and responses will remain completely confidential and will never be linked to you or your child.

We kindly ask you to click the link below to complete the survey. Your confidential responses are greatly appreciated as we work together to continue making progress at Grass Lake Elementary. For additional information about the Illinois 5Essentials Survey please visit https://www.5-essentials.org/illinois.

Thank you for being a valued member of our Grass Lake community, and for your important contribution to the future of Grass Lake School as we continue this year and in to the coming years as well!

I also wanted to take the time in today's weekly update to talk about school safety and partnering with our GLS families to ensure the safety and well-being of all our students, staff, and families at Grass Lake. If you have not heard this from me yet, I wanted to remind everyone that safety is and will continue to always be my number one priority. Recent events in the past many years and continuous news coverage/social media posts about school safety have understandably heightened concerns among students and families alike. We must address these concerns together, ensuring our school remains a safe place for every one of our students to learn and grow.

I'm reaching out to encourage an open dialogue with your children about the gravity of making light of serious issues, such as school violence. Our students need to understand that certain words or "jokes" can have far-reaching consequences, not only for themselves but for the entire school community. Furthermore, 80% of school shooters tell someone about their plans, but too often people think they are "just joking." Some specific examples of "joking" include:

• The gunman who killed 10 children and 2 adults in Rob Elementary in Uvalde, Texas texted a peer stating they were going to "shoot up an elementary school right now."
• The gunman who killed 17 people at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School introduced themselves as "a school shooter" and posted pictures on social media glorifying violence with captions such as "I want to kill people."

We want to prevent any misunderstandings or situations that could lead to unnecessary fear or disciplinary actions hence the purpose behind this message and explanation of why even "joking" about violence can lead to severe consequences. Therefore, please discuss with your children the importance of thoughtful communication and the potential consequences of making inappropriate comments. You can also follow this link to learn more about talking to your children about this important topic and why "joking" should be and is taken very seriously. This includes how making a "joke" or a comment directed towards a peer or adult about hurting or killing someone can lead to severe consequences including but not limited to:

• Parent meeting
• Creation and implementation of a safety plan
• Temporary suspension or potential expulsion
• Missing out on school activities and cherished GLS events
• Involvement of local law enforcement, which could lead to further actions including but not limited to:
• police reports with the student's name included
• further police presence for a period of time.

As a parent and school principal, my goal is to protect and educate our children, helping them navigate their words and actions wisely. By fostering an open and respectful dialogue on these serious topics, we can guide our students toward understanding their impact on their community.

Your support in this matter is invaluable. By working together, we can ensure a secure and positive environment for all our students, free from the shadow of misunderstanding. I am also including a helpful link to the National Association of School Psychologists that may be of interest to some of our families as you continue or even possibly are just beginning to have these types of conversations. For more information, please follow this link.

Thank you for taking the time to discuss this critical issue with your children. Together, we can make a significant difference in maintaining the safety and integrity of our school community.

As we are deep in the cold and flu season, I continue to have conversations with families about when to send their children to school and when to keep them home. I have included a visual reminder from a neighboring school that is helpful as you are making the tough choice to either send your child or keep them home. Grass Lake encourages you to send your child to school every day, unless they are exhibiting one or more of the following symptoms:

1. The student has a temperature consistently above 100 even when taking medication in the last 24 hours.
2. The student is throwing up or experiencing diarrhea in the last 24 hours.
3. The student has pink eyes that are crusty and not receiving medication for them for 24 hours.

While this list is not all-inclusive your help is appreciated as even missing 2 days a month equates to missing almost 10% of the school year. Also, as a reminder, any absence due to illness which lasts for more than three consecutive days may be verified by a medical note, which must be produced within two days of the student’s return for the absence to be considered excused. Thank you for your help!

We are thrilled to offer our Summer School program from June 3 to June 21, with a break on Juneteenth (June 19), to ensure that every student has the opportunity to excel. Our program will run daily from 8:30 AM to 11:30 AM, focusing primarily on enhancing reading and math skills and transportation will be provided. In the afternoon, Ms. Juszczyk has already started talking to our GLS coaches and will once again hold summer camps for those interested in participating in sports camps. Sports Camps will run from 12:00-1:30 Monday through Friday as well.

It's important to note that participation in our Summer School program is not a reflection of your child's intelligence. Rather, it's an opportunity for them to strengthen their academic foundations and thrive in a supportive learning atmosphere. Our dedicated staff is here to guide and support each student on an individual basis, tailoring their education to meet their unique needs. We believe that every child has the potential to succeed, and our Summer School program is designed to help them reach their full potential. If your child qualifies for our program, we encourage you to take advantage of this opportunity to further their education and set them up for success at GLS and beyond!

Invitations for Summer School will be sent in the coming days.

"No school can work well for children if parents and teachers do not act in partnership on behalf of the children's best interests" - Dorothy H. Cohen

In order to continue to move Grass Lake School forward, please let us know any ideas you have on how we can continue to improve our school! We will be checking this suggestion box periodically- if you would like a more immediate response, please call or email Ryan Wollberg directly.

The musical is fast approaching. Please plan to come see "Seussical Jr!" on April 12 and/or April 13. We will enter the wild and wacky world of Dr. Seuss as we follow Horton and Jojo, an unlikely pairing, through adventures and trials. Please reach out to Mrs. Neihengen with any questions.

Also, check out the pictures below to see what our students have been up to in art this past week! Thanks, Mrs. Moe for a great week and our 5th graders did an amazing job creating origami in their classes this past week.

All fifth through eighth-grade student-athletes, please follow the button below to view this month's newsletter from Ms. Juszczyk our athletic director.

Please follow the button below to be directed to our GLS website for more details related to our Breakfast/Lunch menus and ordering information. If there are any questions, please contact our main office. As a reminder, our lunch fees have increased from $3.50 to $3.75.

Grass Lake School hours of attendance are 7:45 a.m. until 2:45 p.m. on regular schedule days and 7:45 a.m. until 1:15 p.m. on early release late-start days. An answering machine will take messages during the hours when the school office is closed. When reporting an absence please indicate the reason for the absence and if it is due to illness, please report symptoms including if your child has a fever, cough, or sore throat. This will assist the district in assessing when a student will return and whether it must comply with any reporting or notice requirements.

The telephone number to report absences is: (847) 395-1550 or via email attendance@gls36.org.

We have created an email address to allow you to "email" attendance information. This is an alternative to using the Attendance Hotline phone number or using the Infinite Campus portal. We wanted to create yet another option to allow busy parents the opportunity to report absences. Please email all pertinent information to attendance@gls36.org. If you choose to use this option, pertinent information would include your child's name, date, grade, and reason for the absence, late-arrival or early-dismissal. Please choose the option that works best for you, whether that be email, phone or IC portal.

If the school has not heard from you and your child is absent, you will receive a call to verify the absence. School code provides that parents/guardians/other persons having legal custody of a child provide telephone numbers at the time of enrollment to enable the school to notify the parent/guardian/other person with legal custody of the child’s absence from school. Accordingly, this verification of absence call will be made to the numbers provided at registration and not necessarily the parents’ places of employment.

By now all GLS families should have received an email with information related to their individual child(rens) bus stop information. We also have posted the information on our website which you can access by following this link. As a reminder, the first couple of days the buses may be running approximately 5-10 minutes off schedule so we do ask for your patience. Also, all Kindergarten families please plan on meeting your child at the bus stop as the drivers will not release them unless an adult is present to meet them for safety purposes. We appreciate your help and cooperation.

Below you will find a map for your convenience as it relates to our drop-off and pick-up procedures. If you plan on picking your child up early from school, we kindly ask you to email your child's teacher as well as Cristina Monroy, our administrative assistant. When you enter the building for early pick or late drop off this should all be done through our main entrance. Make sure to have your ID when picking your child up as we want to make sure we are sending your child home with an approved individual.

When your child is dropped off they will enter through our gymnasium doors and in the afternoon they will exit through those same doors (yellow box below). Please wait in your car and we will release students to you as fast as we can. Again, I do ask for your patience in the beginning of the year but I promise you, it will continue to get faster and faster. Also, please do not drop off your child until the gymnasium doors open at 7:30am.

GRASS LAKE SCHOOL

26177 W. Grass Lake Rd. Antioch, IL 60002
Phone: (847) 395-1550 | Fax: (847) 395-8632

Email: rwollberg@gls36.org
Website: www.gls36.org
Location: Grass Lake School District 36, West Grass Lake Road, Antioch, IL, USA
Phone: 847-395-1550