Peterson's News

Good Evening,

I hope everyone is enjoying their long weekend!!! It was such a great week!! Thank you to all of you for your patience with dismissal on Friday. I appreciate everyone's flexibility and understanding!

I am very excited about our Peterson Parent Pathways evening on Wednesday, September 4th from 5:30 pm-7:30 pm. Below you will find information, a schedule for the evening, and an RSVP form. Please note, this evening is for adults only!

The Curriculum Slides for grade levels, specials, AIM Program and our Project Arrow program are below These slides are meant to inform you of the curriculum that will be taught to your child(ren) this year. The last session on September 4th will be a question and answer session with classroom teachers.

Best,
Alli Landstrom

Our School Improvement Plan (SIP) helps us to improve our effectiveness in academics, behavior, and social-emotional learning. It's a roadmap that guides us to identify areas of strengths and areas of improvement, set goals, and implement strategies to achieve the school's and district's vision and mission. Peterson Parent Pathways is on Wednesday, September 4th. The evening will begin at 5:30 pm and will end at 7:30 pm. Everyone will start in the gym. Then, adults will be divided by car numbers and move to one of three places LMC, MPR, or stay in the gym. Our presenters will be rotating and adults will remain in their area for each of the three sessions. The fourth session will have adults moving to a classroom teacher's room, where they will have an opportunity to ask questions about the curriculum and specifics related to the grade and teacher. Please see the schedule for the evening below:

• 5:30-5:50 Welcome and SIP Review
• 5:50-6:00 transition
• 6:00-6:20 Session 1
• 6:20-6:25 transition
• 6:25-6:45 Session 2
• 6:45-6:50 transition
• 6:50-7:10 Session 3
• 7:10-7:15 transition
• 7:15-7:30 Optional Q&A

I recognize that this structure can present our parents with multiple children with some difficulty. I have two suggestions. One is that parents could go to the teacher of the oldest child and the other is to attend the session with a teacher that is new to your family. Rest assured this isn't the only time, you will interact with your child's teacher. My staff recognizes the importance of communicating and partnering with families and knows that this is ongoing, not reserved for only one evening.

We want to ensure that we have enough seating for this event. Please complete the short RSVP form below! I am very excited to see many of you on the 4th.

Please use the links below to view the various presentations.

• No school on Monday, September 2nd in observance of Labor Day.
• There should be NO cell phone use in the circle drive when picking up or dropping off students.
• Please make sure that once you pick up or drop off your student, you pull away from the curb and go immediately into the left lane. This helps our car line to move more efficiently.
• We do have families that have a "Fast Pass". There are a variety of reasons why families may have this. These families are allowed to use the left lane and pull up to where the orange cones are on the east side of the drive. The families will be receiving a bright green to sign to indicate this privilege. Please be respectful and if you have a question about this, you are welcome to reach out to me!

Our school’s highest priority is the safety of our students and staff. In order to maintain a safe environment, it is necessary that we practice our emergency and crisis response plans, which include law enforcement lockdown drills. We are required by the Illinois School Safety Drill Act (105 ILCS 128/1) to conduct a minimum of six safety drills per school year to ensure that our staff and students know their role and are prepared to act during a potential crisis. These safety drills, including the required law enforcement lockdown drills, are designed to protect students from danger in and around a school. Lockdowns are intended to secure a school and to keep out a threat.

The types of emergencies that could require a school to lockdown include the possible presence of an intruder, dangerous situations taking place in the vicinity of the school, hazardous materials spill or fire, or other type of accident that could pose a threat to the safety of staff and students.

We will be conducting this year’s first law enforcement drill on Friday, September 6th and may add additional drills throughout the school year. A few notes about the law enforcement drill:

• Before the drill, teachers will use age-appropriate lessons with their classes and talk the students through the procedures. This review and practice will help to alleviate unnecessary stress or anxiety.
• On the day of the drill, we will announce reminders prior to the actual drill to ensure that all students/staff feel prepared. No simulations that mimic an actual active shooter event will occur during the drill, and parents and guardians have the opportunity to exempt their child from participating in the drill.
• During the drill, no one will be permitted in or out of our school. This closure may last for 10-15 minutes.
• The lockdown drill is meant to be practice only, and not stressful or scary in nature. At your request, your student may be exempt from participating in the law enforcement drill.
• Teachers will reflect upon the drill with students after it has been completed.
• Members of the District/School Safety Committee and our School Resource Officer will be observing the drill and debriefing with staff following its conclusion.

When talking with your children at home about safety drill procedures, you don't have to be specific about the types of emergencies that require a lockdown; you can just explain to your child that this is one of the safety drills all schools are required to practice. Indian Prairie School District utilizes standard language throughout the district for situations within the school (Hold in Place and Teach) that require everyone to stay in place until the situation is resolved. For situations occurring outside of the school (Secure the Building and Teach), the school will be secured, and no one will be allowed to enter/exit the building.

When we partner with you to protect our children, these drills become a smooth practice that develops into a habit, supporting fast, efficient procedures in emergency situation. We hope that we will never have to utilize this procedure in a real situation, but it is important for us all to prepare for and practice the process of staying safe at school. If you have any questions, please feel free to call me!

Indian Prairie School District 204 administers i-Ready benchmark assessments in the fall, winter, and spring to students in kindergarten through eighth grade. The i-Ready assessments evaluate student academic performance and growth in the areas of reading and mathematics. Peterson students will be taking the i-Ready Assessment beginning on Tuesday, September 3rd and ending on Wednesday, September 11th.

i-Ready is an online, computer-adaptive test that matches the difficulty of test questions to the

proficiency level of each student. As students answer questions correctly, they will get more

difficult questions. As students answer questions incorrectly, they will get easier questions. The

assessment adapts to find the precise proficiency level of each student in the quickest, most

efficient way possible. The purpose of this is not to give your child a score or grade but to

determine how to best support their learning. Many students will see material teachers haven’t

taught. This is an intentional part of the design of the adaptive assessment. Students may see

above-grade level material and below-grade level material. The assessment is designed for

students to get about 50% of the questions correct and 50% incorrect to help identify their

proficiency on a range of skills in reading and math.

Individual student scores will be available through Parentvue. The assessment results are used

by teachers and administrators to assist with instructional planning and differentiation at the

grade, classroom, and student level.

Should you have any questions regarding i-Ready, please contact the school principal.

Regards,

Charles Sprandel

Executive Director of Research and Assessment

Indian Prairie School District #204

Thank you to those of you who have filled out the Arrival/Dismissal form below!! We still have more than half of our families who have not. Please do so as soon as possible! We are asking families to fill out a form for each child. We ask that if your child's dismissal plans change on a consistent basis to please fill out the again, so that we can have the most up to date information. Below is the link to form.

Please join us on the lawn on Friday, September 13th from 6:30pm-9:30pm for our outdoor movie night. Golden Paw Members are free as this event is included in your membership. For Family Membership holders and non-PTA members, tickets are $5/ child and adults are free. This is not a drop off event. Concessions will be available for purchase. Please bring your chairs, blankets and snacks to make yourselves comfortable for the movie. The movie will be announced next week! Please use this link to RSVP and buy tickets.

Don't forget to join the PTA for the 2024-2025 school year! We encourage every Peterson family and staff to join the PTA! Joining the PTA is a donation to support school wide events and activities, support our teachers, promote school spirit, and so much more. The PTA is entirely funded through memberships and other forms of donations. All families that join the PTA will receive access to the Peterson school directory. There is no volunteer commitment and no time obligation required when joining. However we of course are always looking for volunteers, so if you are looking to get involved we would love to have you. The prices have remained the same as last year and we still have three tiers for memberships: Faculty, Standard, and Golden Paw.

Golden Paw Membership: $130.00

The 2024-2025 Golden Paw Family Membership gives one family member voting privileges at all PTA meetings and all family members access to most events*. This membership also gives you access to the School Directory. Admission to PTA events is included with this membership for your entire family for the 2024-2025 school year. *This does not include any fundraiser events.

Standard Membership: $35.00

The 2024-2025 Standard Membership gives one family member voting privileges at all PTA meetings and all family members access to events. This membership also gives you access to the School Directory. Admission to PTA events is not included with this membership; however, you are invited to participate for an additional fee per event, per child.

Connect with us on Facebook - search Peterson Elementary PTA or click here

Connect with us on Instagram - search Petersonpanthers (all one word) or click here

If you have questions or want to find out more about getting involved, reach out to us at petersonpantherspta@gmail.com.

As in years past, our school district will continue to follow a late start time for every student on Wednesdays. This time is critical to our school and district professional development. The school day will begin at 9:15 a.m. This late start delays both school drop off and morning bus schedules. It does not change our dismissal time of 3:35.

Wednesday Morning Schedule:

• 9:00 a.m. Doors open
• 9:15 a.m. School Starts

It is very important to have clear behavior expectations. Having clear behavior expectations allows all of our students a safe environment for social, emotional, and academic growth. Our Panther Pledges are the expectations for all students to follow. The Panthers Pledges are Be Respectful, Be Responsible, and Be Safe. We continually promote positive behavior by recognizing when our panthers are respectful, responsible, and safe. A variety of building-wide and individual classroom recognitions are in place. “Pledge Points” will be given to students who make positive choices. In addition, our students will celebrate together when we have collectively met our pledges of respect, responsibility, and safety. Our work is based upon the framework called Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) to support our students' behavioral, academic, social, emotional, and mental health. Please see the following link for the presentation that our teachers share with students.

Peterson Elementary is delighted to welcome New York Times bestselling author/illustrators Brad and Kristie Montague on Tuesday, September 10th. Mr. and Mrs. Montague will talk with all students about their careers and discuss their new book, Fail-a-bration. The theme of this book is important for students of all ages (and even adults)! It teaches us to celebrate the way failing actually means you tried and learned something. Failing doesn’t have to be bad! It’s just part of the process of learning to do something better. Students will be able to order autographed copies of the book. Order forms will be sent home soon!

As the summer sun shines brightly, our school vegetable garden is bursting with life! The tomatoes are ripening, the green beans are crisp and green, and the basil is fragrant and ready to be picked. This garden is a testament to the hard work and care of our students, teachers, and community.

This incredible growth wouldn’t be possible without the dedication and hard work of our amazing volunteers: our Boy Scout – Yuvan K and Jothi, Megan Northcutt, Cherice Hohmann, Brenda Grahn, Payal Patel, Anna Roedin, and Chantal Barentine. Whether you’ve spent hours watering or simply lending a helping hand, your efforts have truly made our garden flourish. We can’t thank you enough for your time, energy, and passion for this project:

Whether you’re tending to your own garden at home or enjoying the fresh produce from ours, remember that every seed we plant is a step towards a healthier, greener future. Let’s continue to nurture our environment and celebrate the joys of growing our own food. Wishing you all a bountiful new school year filled with sunshine, growth, and delicious garden-fresh meals!

Happy Gardening! 🌻

Peterson School Garden Coordinators

We will continue to have our buses drop-off and pick-up on the side by the staff parking lot and have our car riders drop-off and pick-up in the front of the building. Walkers will be able to enter through Doors 2 and 3, which are in the front of the building and Doors 4, 6, and 10, which are in the back of the buildings. Biker riders will enter using Doors 4, 6, and 10. Please see the following link for more information: https://www.ipsd.org/Domain/818

I am happy to share that we will be continuing to have our birthday lunches! Peterson parents/guardians are invited to come in and eat lunch with their child(ren) one time a year on their birthday, half birthday, or a day of their choosing. Parents/guardians will sit with their child at a table in our MPR. Students will be able to ask 3-5 friends to join them.

You are welcome to bring a special lunch for you and your child; however, we ask that parents do NOT bring lunches for other children. This presents a problem for the school staff in that we do not know that other parents have approved the lunch or food. Please do not bring balloons and gifts. Please note that this special lunch is for the birthday boy/girl and their parents/guardians only. Younger siblings are unable to attend this special lunch. Parents are welcome to stay for recess if they’d like. If you can’t attend and would like to bring a special lunch for your child, you may bring it and put it in the “I Forgot” bins.

Parents/Guardians will need to come into the office, present their license or passport, and receive a badge before going to the lunchroom. Due to safety procedures, parents/guardians will not be allowed into the building if they do not have a license/passport. We can only accommodate two adults due to space constraints. Thank you for following the guidelines above and we look forward to seeing you on your child's special day! Please sign up below.

24/25 Lunch/Recess Schedules

-2nd Grade: 10:45-11:20

-1st Grade: 11:15-11:50

-5th Grade: 11:45-12:20

-3rd Grade:12:15-12:50

-4th Grade: 12:45-1:20

-Kindergarten: 1:15-1:50

For information about the district's hot lunch program as well as to view menus, please see the link below!

Bus routes and your child's stop information were posted on Friday, August 16th in ParentVUE.

To access, log in to ParentVUE. Select "Student Info." Scroll all the way down to find "Transportation Information."

MyStop Bus App

• Allows parents/guardians and students to view the bus stop time, location, and projected arrival time. This feature is available during scheduled route times only.
• Updates approximately every 5 seconds and adjusts the scheduled arrival time as the bus is traveling along its route.
• Will show if the bus has already passed the assigned stop. To learn how to access and use the MyStop Mobile App, view the My Stop User Guide.

Click here for more information on MyStop.

• September 3rd - i-Ready Assessment begins
• September 4th - Peterson Parent Pathways 5:30-7:30 pm
• September 10th: Author Visit
• September 11th: i-Ready Assessment ends
• September 12th - PTA Meeting - 9:30--10:30am (MPR + virtual option)
  
• September 13th - Family Movie Night - 6:30-9:30pm
• September 18th - Sharko's Dinner Night
  
• September 21st - Fall Festival 12-4pm

Email: allison_landstrom@ipsd.org
Website: http://peterson.ipsd.org/
Location: 4008 Chinaberry Lane, Naperville, IL, USA
Phone: (630)428-5678
Twitter: @allilandstrom