The Colt Communicator

Dear North Barrington Families,

What a great week at NBS!

We had a great time at the Gallery Night event on January 29th! It was great not only for the arts but also for the Chinese New Year! Thank you again to Sarah Amiran and Becky Phillips for partnering with Mrs. Siddons and to all our parent volunteers who organized the artwork for display. We couldn't have done it without YOU!

Please enjoy photos from this wonderful event below.

Enjoy your weekend,

Dr. Lisa West, Mrs. Sara Jirasek, Mrs. Kalin Lomas, and Mrs. Lisa Neyfeldt

REMINDERS:

Parent Drop off After 8:00 am: As you are aware, we are making strides in improving our attendance at NBS. A vital part of this is punctuality. Our second bell rings promptly at 8:00 am, and your child must be in their classroom to be considered on time. If you arrive at or after 8:00 am, please park your car, escort your child or children into the office, and sign them in. They will then receive a welcome pass and be directed to their class. Please remember, it is not safe to drop your child off at the curb or front door at or after 8:00 am and leave them unsupervised. Rest assured, we have measures in place to ensure their safety. We appreciate your understanding and support in this matter!

MEDICAL/DENTAL EXCUSAL:

If your child leaves school for a medical/dental appointment an excuse note from the healthcare provider is required for the absence to be excused. Please return the note to the building office staff following the appointment. Thank you!

ATTENTION TO ATTENDANCE:

Please click here for D220's Attendance Procedures.

UPDATE TO DISMISSAL (CIRCLE DRIVE):

Please note that if you are having your child go home with another family at the end of the day, please make sure to copy the office in your communications. The communication MUST reach the office by 2:15 pm for the change in transportation to be updated. For safety, we must know where children are at all times.

Please note that you can reach Dr. West, Principal, at lwest@barrington220.org, Mrs. Jirasek, Assistant Principal/TOSA, at sjirasek@barrington220.org, Mrs. Kalin Lomas, co-PTO president, at kalin413@gmail.com, and Lisa Neyfeldt, co-PTO president, at lneyfeldt03@gmail.com. We would love to connect with you! Our joint newsletter will be distributed through Infinite Campus on Fridays at 3:00 pm.

Social Media:

Instagram: northbarringtonpto

Facebook: North Barrington School PTO (run by the PTO) & North Barrington Elementary School (run by the school)

Twitter: @NBSPTO (run by the PTO), @NBES220 (run by the school) & @law281 (Dr. Wests’ account)

Are you a family with an incoming Kindergarten student? Do you know a family that will have an incoming Kindergarten student for the 2025-2026 school year? Please check out our D220 Kindergarten webpage and video below. There is also a button to complete the preregistration questionnaire. The Kindergarten Round-Up informational meeting for general Kindergarten is on Monday, February 3, 2025 at 6:00 pm here at NBS.

Calling all D220 incoming Kindergarten families! Please mark your calendars for Thursday, February 6th at 6:00pm - 7:00pm at Countryside Elementary to learn more about the Chinese Immersion program. You will learn details about curriculum and hear from parents with students in the program.

Please reach out to Erin Lales (erin.v.lales@gmail.com) with questions.

Help us raise some money from the comfort of your couch! Money raised will support students and staff with supplies and activities, such as assemblies. This year, we are auctioning off some of our most popular prizes, including VIP parking spots, principal for the day, VIP seats for 5th-grade graduation, police and fire truck rides to school, and extra gym time & lunch with our fabulous gym teachers. You can’t win if you don’t take a chance! This ONLINE-ONLY Auction will start on Friday, Feb 7th, and end in the evening of February 13th! Click the link to view the auction items before it starts: https://e.givesmart.com/events/GjA/i/

Our Kindness party will be on February 13th from 1:30 to 2:30. Your child's room coordinator will reach out for donations of items to celebrate Kindness. Please adhere to the approved snack list shared. Classrooms are nut-free. Children are allowed to bring Valentine's to share. They should bring one for each child in the classroom, no candy or treats but they can pass out small erasers, pencils, or friendship bracelets if they'd like. Children can also make homemade Valentines if they would prefer to not purchase store-bought ones. Wear PINK to represent KINDNESS and share our school spirit.

The PTO will be offering a fun line-up of February Mini Courses after school on Tuesdays and Thursdays. An email was sent on Sunday, January 26th at 6:00PM with the sign up link.

Get ready for an unforgettable night of basketball, fun, and memories! The PTO is hosting a Family Fun Night at the Windy City Bulls game on February 8th at 7:00 PM—doors open at 6:00 PM, so come early to get settled in!

This is your chance to bring everyone in your family for an evening of excitement and community. The best part? All NBS families will be seated together in a special section, creating a fun, energetic vibe just for us!

What to Expect:

• Tickets are just $25 per person, and $5 from each ticket goes right back to support our PTO programs!

• Bring your favorite items for autographs—players often stop by our area for a meet-and-greet, so don’t miss your chance to get an autograph from your favorite Windy City Bull!

• Enjoy great food, exciting basketball, and the chance to cheer on our local team alongside your NBS friends!

Ticket Deadline:

• Tickets are available until February 6th.

• HERE is the link to buy your tickets.

Questions? Email Jackie Kardesh at jackiewetzel@gmail.com.

Let’s make this a night to remember! We can’t wait to see you there—bring your family, your spirit, and your energy for a fantastic time at the game.

Do you have a budding chef at home? Sticky Fingers Cooking School is offering after-school classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Please see their website for registration information.

We will have outdoor recess unless the "feels like" temperature is below 0 degrees. To keep students as warm and dry as possible, children should have snow pants, a warm coat, hat, gloves/mittens, and snow boots. When there is snow on the ground, students without snow pants and boots must remain on the blacktop. Ensuring students wear proper winter clothing items will support the fun they have at recess on our amazing playground and sled hill when there's snow.

As we head into winter, we would like to remind families of Barrington 220’s inclement weather protocol. In the event of inclement weather, the Superintendent of Schools will implement one of the following three scenarios:

School Canceled

All school buildings will be closed and students will make up the inclement weather day at the end of the school year.

Early Dismissal

There may be some rare occasions where it will be necessary to dismiss school early. On these days, middle and high schools will dismiss first. Elementary school students will be released at their regular dismissal time.

eLearning

All school buildings will be closed, however students and staff will complete the school day from home. This would eliminate the need to make up days at the end of the school year. Teachers will check their usual electronic communication methods throughout the day during regular school hours, to support students.

• Elementary Schools/ELC: Early childhood through fifth-grade children will have access to their assignments through their teacher’s usual electronic communication method of See-Saw or Schoology. Additionally, kindergarten through fifth-grade students will receive assignments for Specials (art, music, physical education, library, and STEM) that they would typically have for the day from their teachers.
• Middle/High School: Students will have access to their assignments through the normal electronic method of Schoology. They should have an assignment/learning experience for each class.
• Barrington Transition Program: Students will follow their daily schedule, including alternative activities in place of the community components of the program. BTP staff will communicate electronically with students.

Inclement Weather Communication

School closings due to inclement weather or other unusual circumstances will be announced on the district website, Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), and Instagram pages. Families will also receive a text, phone call, and email through the Infinite Campus automated emergency notification system.

Barrington Children's Charities hosts Packs of Plenty (POP) every Thursday at Sunny Hill Elementary School, and we’re looking for NBS parents to help!

What do you do? Show up at Sunny Hill from 9:00-9:45am on a Thursday and join several other Barrington community members to pack food bags for students from under-resourced homes in Barrington. After packing food, one NBS volunteer drives the food to the front office at NBS so food can be passed out to students for the weekend.

It’s a great way to meet others and help kids in our community! Grab a friend and choose a day or to show up!

If you would like to sign-up to be a NBS volunteer, sign up HERE. If you have any questions or would like to be a permanent NBS volunteer for this program, please contact Ashley Samz at AshleySamzPTO@gmail.com or (847) 644-9163 (call/text).

ALLERGIES:

At North Barrington, we continually focus on safety. Part of those safety procedures is allergy awareness. Sending group snacks or lunches to the classroom is not allowed. This includes birthday treats, trinkets, balloons, and candy.

Children can bring individual snacks to eat during their snack time and their classroom teacher will share information with you about snack. Sharing any extra foods is not part of our approved procedures and is a safety risk to our friends who have an allergy. If there is a Colt Pride celebration, teachers will work with administration and the school nurse and access the approved food list as well as notify families of students with allergies. Please do not bring or send snacks for the entire class.

PARTIES:

Our parties will have food from the approved list, and the room coordinators will work with the administration, classroom teachers, and the PTO to ensure safety.

NBS will have two parties and end-of-year events.

Our February Kindness party will be on Thursday, February 13th from 1:30 to 2:30.

More information about our parties will be shared with Room Coordinators.

• February 3 - SAVE THE DATE - - Kindergarten Roundup at NBS - 6:00 pm

• February 5 - SAVE THE DATE - Kindergarten Lab Program Roundup at BHS - 6:00 pm

• February 6 - SAVE THE DATE - Chinese Immersion Roundup at Countryside - 6:00 pm

• February 8 - D220 STEM Day event; Windy City Bulls Game (evening event)

• February 10 - SAVE THE DATE - Spanish Dual Language Roundup at Lines - 6:00 pm

• February 13- Kindness party

• February 14 - Teacher Institute Day - Non-student attendance day

• February 17 - President's Day - Non-attendance day

• February 20 - Author visits in the NBS library