The Franklin Flyer

Mark Your Calendars:

November 5: No School

November 8: PTA - Fall Donuts w/ my VIP @ 8:00 - 8:40 a.m.

November 20: Report Cards Emailed at 4:00 p.m.

November 25 - 29: Thanksgiving Break - No School

December 4: Holiday Sing

December 5: PTA Meeting @ 7 p.m. (Virtual only)

December 23 - January 3: Winter Break - No School

January 20: No School

February 12: Open House - 6:00 - 7:30 p.m.

February 14: No School

February 17: No School

February 27: Spring Conferences - 4:00 - 7:00 p.m.

March 24 - 28: Spring Break - No School

April 18: No School

May 26: No School

Absences

Please call in or email absences by 8:45 AM. You can call our student absence line (847) 318-4390 (ext 1) is available 24 hours a day, or email Mrs. Linda Berleth at lberleth@d64.org.

If the absence is illness related, please also make sure to include Franklin's nurse, Mrs. Queta Karstens, at qkarstens@d64.org.

Franklin Office Hours
School office hours are from 8:00 am - 4:00 pm, Monday through Friday.

School Hours

School Hours (M, T, Th, F): 8:50 am - 3:30 pm

Kindergarten, 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Grade Lunch: 11:35 - 12:30

4th and 5th Grade Lunch: 12:05 - 1:00

Wednesday School Hours: 8:50 am - 2:40 pm

Wednesday Kindergarten, 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Grade Lunch: 11:05 - 12:00

Wednesday 4th and 5th Grade Lunch: 11:35 - 12:30

Half-Day Kindergarten Hours

Kindergarten Hours (M, T, Th, F): 8:50 am - 11:35 am

Kindergarten Wednesday: 8:50 am - 11:05 am

Franklin's Holiday Sing program will be held on Wednesday, December 4th. We will have performances by grade. Our performance schedule is as follows:

9:00 a.m. - Kindergarten & 1st Grade

10:00 a.m. - 4th & 5th Grade

1:30 p.m. - 2nd & 3rd Grade

All concert attendees will enter through Door 3 (circle drive) and exit through Door 5 (exterior gym door to the blacktop) for the safety of our school and students. There will be no exceptions. Seats can not be saved between concerts. We appreciate your support to keep the remaining grades learning and school running smoothly during the performances.

When Entering The Building

When a parent or guardian arrives to Franklin with or for a student, dropping off items or for a meeting, when ringing the doorbell, please state your name and your student(s) names to support our safety procedures.

All visitors to Franklin must have a valid state ID or driver’s license. Identification is entered into the Raptor identification system. This process only takes a short time to complete. Once you have clearance, the office staff will print a visitor pass for you and attach it to a lanyard you must wear throughout the building. The office will hold your ID until you return to the office and return the lanyard. We appreciate your support as we proceed with this district-mandated safety procedure for the safety of our students.

Arrival Procedure Reminders

As a reminder, our doors to school open daily at 8:42 a.m. for student arrival. The doors close at the 8:50 a.m. bell. All students outside the building at 8:50 a.m. will need to come to the office to be signed in.

Issues with A School Device?

If you have are having issues with your student's device at home, please complete a ticket.

https://d64.incidentiq.com/guest/NPV6SRUK/d64-family-tech-support-ticket#top

Payments to School - My School Bucks

Park Ridge-Niles CCSD 64 employs My School Bucks as its payment platform for families. Most

purchases for students, including field trips and student orders. Directors can be found here.

Please send a change of clothes with your children for all K-5 students. It is helpful to have a change of clothes in the event of spilled water, accidents, or an unexpected incidents. Clothes should be labeled with your child's name and can be kept in your child's locker. We encourage you to make sure your child's name is on each article of clothing.

For the health and safety of our students and community, no pets are allowed on school property. We realize the beautiful weather increases the amount of families who are walking to and from school. However, we ask that you please leave your dog or cat at home. Properly identified service animals are always permitted.

Please take a moment to review the contacts section of your ParentPortal. Any adult who has approval for after school pick-up or emergency pick-up for illness/injury should be listed. Franklin staff will not release students to adults who are not listed on the ParentPortal.

Drop-off of Student Items/Lunches

If your student forgets something at home, an adult may drop off items at the Franklin front office. Our front office staff will message the classroom for your student to pick up these items during a break in student instruction. The teacher will send the student to the office when it works best in the classroom schedule.

Student-Parent Handbook

Franklin Elementary School and all District 64 schools follow policies and practices reviewed and implemented by the District 64 Board of Education. Please review the D64 Student-Parent Handbook before the start of the school year.

You can find frequent updates or snapshots from our days at Franklin on Facebook and Instagram! Follow us at

Facebook: facebook.com/FranklinD64

Instagram: franklin.d64

Appreciation Spotlight

It’s been a busy few weeks, and we have lots of volunteers to thank!

• We’re grateful to Dana Bozeday, Shushana Padiak, and Roxanne Bejarano for coordinating Trunk or Treat. It was a great success! It wouldn’t have been such a treat without all of the families who brought so much creativity to their trunks.

• Colleen Russell for her dedication, organization, and persistence towards the massive task room parent coordinator, making sure we have enough room parents for the ENTIRE school and ensuring a successful Halloween celebration.

• Thank you to the countless headroom parents and Halloween party parents for taking the time to plan and facilitate activities to celebrate on Thursday.

Trunk or Treat Committee, Thank Yous!

The Trunk or Treat Committee Chairs want to thank all the families who hosted a trunk at our Annual Trunk or Treat event. There was such talent on display, and the kids had a great time! We had over 15 trunks, which really helped to make the event a super success.

We had prizes donated from many businesses in the area. Please make sure to Shop Local and visit these Franklin Supporters:

Bub City/Joe's Live (Franklin Family)

Easy Street (Franklin Family)

Harp and Fiddle (Franklin Family)

Lemon Tiramisu (Franklin Family)

Nonna Silvia's (Park Ridge Family)

Triple Scooped (Park Ridge Family)

Goldfish Swim School

Dave and Busters

The Field Museum

Sky High Sports

Glamor Skin (Franklin Family)

Donut Worry, Be Happy

From Halloween candy to donuts! Students can bring one special person to join them for breakfast before school at Donuts with my VIP on Friday, November 8th, at 8 AM. Enter at the doors located by the circle drive. Donuts (regular, gluten-free, and tree nut-free) will be served. Coffee and juice will also be served.

We can still use a few volunteers to make this event run smoothly! Sign up on the PTA website, and contact Ashley Thielsen (ashley.thielsen@gmail.com) with any questions.

Book Club 2025 - Volunteers Needed!!!

It is hard to believe that we are already planning for the new year, but we are in need of parent volunteers in order to make the Book club a success! Volunteers lead book discussions during the lunch hours on Fridays, beginning January 10th and ending March 14th.

No teaching experience is necessary—just the desire to share your enthusiasm for reading with others! Parents can lead a class on their own or partner with another parent to co-lead a group. Parents who volunteer are guaranteed space for their children in the program. Interested in being a leader? Please visit the membership toolkit and sign up today! Sign-up will be open from November 4th until November 27th.

Have questions or want to know more before you volunteer? Contact: Susie Dordek (sdordek@icloud.com), Jezebel Esparza (jezadanny@gmail.com), Irene Prittis (iprittis@gmail.com)

Toys for Tots: Chair needed!!

Calling all Franklin Falcons, we need your help! We are in need of a chair for this event in order for Franklin to continue to participate this holiday season in the Toys for Tots Collection Drive!

Please reach out to Tania Wygonowski at tania1234@aol.com if interested and for more information.

Staff Lunches

The PTA offers teachers and staff members an option to purchase lunch on Mondays from Spuntinos via franklinpta.membershiptoolkit.com. Families are always welcome to show their appreciation for a staff member by purchasing a Monday lunch on their behalf. If this is something your family is interested in doing, please consider the following before purchasing.

1. Please email your staff member prior to ordering to confirm what they would like to order. The options include 10 inch Pizza with 1 Topping Choice, Hamburger/Cheeseburger and Fries, Italian Beef and Fries, Grilled Chicken Salad, Caesar Salad, Grilled or Fried Chicken Sandwich and Fries, BLT Sandwich and Fries, and Penne Pasta with Vodka or Marinara Sauce and Side Salad. Options to customize are available on the form.

2. The form is only available for the upcoming Monday lunch. Ordering for the following Monday will close the Friday before 9:30 am.

3. Please confirm with the staff member what day you purchased their lunch.

Questions about teacher and staff lunches can be directed to rebeccavanpoucke@gmail.com.

Yearbook Updates!!!

Attention 5th Grade Parents!

November 1st is the deadline for 5th grade baby photos to be submitted to the yearbook. Please upload to TreeRing or email to franklinyearbook@gmail.com if it is easier. Please also send your words of encouragement to franklinyearbook@gmail.com and include your student's name. We currently have 63/111 5th grade baby photos.

Yearbook Committee Needs photos!

We are looking for photos from Trunk or Treat Email to this address

We are looking for photos from Halloween Class Parties

Please, please please log into TreeRing via the app or online and upload photos from Halloween Class parties to the correct grade folder within the Halloween Class parties folder. There is a folder per grade. The Yearbook Committee tries very hard to include as many kids and classes as possible, but Halloween makes it extra challenging with kids in costumes.