The Weekly Update #4

Our students loved the return of Jackson Family Groups this afternoon!

Mrs. Hoffmann and Mrs. Pilarczyk, as the sponsors of Student Council, divide all of our students into 26 groups. In each group, we have students from each of our five grade levels. Our Student Council members plan activities for Family Group time. The fourth grade students in each group are then in charge of gathering the younger students, leading the activities (with the oversight of a staff member), and then returning their Family members back to their classrooms.

We've found this is a great way for students to make friends outside of their grade. It's also impressive to see the care and leadership demonstrated by our older students for their younger peers. Make sure you ask your student about their experience with it.

We are hosting conferences on Tuesday, November 5th, during the eLearning day. If you are interested in scheduling an optional conference with your child's teacher, please click on the appropriate link below and follow the instructions. Please remember that our teachers have a limited amount of time to meet with each family in order to stay on schedule for all of the other families that day.

Mrs. Dilbeck

Mrs. Christian

Mrs. Rekitzke

Mrs. Wszolek

Miss Baltudis

Mrs. JP

Mrs. Sloan

Mrs. Burkus

Mrs. Caudle

Mrs. Tarnowski

Ms. Conway

Mrs. Mattraw

Mrs. Tumbas

Mrs. Hoffmann

Mrs. Pilarczyk

Mrs. Psimos

Because we are a voting site, our related arts teachers will be in the media center rather than in their classrooms. They will be available for drop-in conferences.

Mrs. Urban, Ms. Krieger, and Mrs. Neal will be joining conferences with the classroom teachers as their schedules allow.

The first grading period ends today, Friday, October 18th and report cards will be available on the Skyward Family Access Parent Portal on Tuesday, October 29th at 3 pm.

There will be no school for all Duneland School students on Thursday and Friday, October 24th-25th for fall recess. Classes will resume on Monday, October 28th.

This is the time of year that many families start looking for Halloween costumes for their children. Students will have an opportunity to wear costumes for part of the day on Thursday, October 31st.

As you head to the stores (or search on the Internet from the comfort of the couch), please keep the following guidelines in mind:

Halloween Costumes:

1. The costume must not distract from the educational environment
   
2. The costume must be school appropriate; no blood, gore, weapons/props, or costume make-up
3. Students must be able to change into their costumes without adult assistance; students should not wear their costumes to school, as there is too much risk it will be damaged throughout the course of the regular school day
4. Students must be able to use the bathroom without assistance while wearing the costume

Halloween Parade/Parties:

After lunches are over, students will be allowed time to change into their costumes for the Halloween parade. We will be giving the students the opportunity to show off their costumes to all the other kids in the school. Outside of the parade, festivities will vary by grade-level.

Each grade-level is in charge of how they would like their Halloween festivities to go. Each classroom teacher will determine if they need parent volunteers to help, how many volunteers that might be, and when the volunteers should be at the school. Each classroom will be turning in a list of their selected volunteers into the office; parents not on the list will not be allowed to visit the classrooms during the parade or parties.

Because party days can be chaotic, we are asking that all parents selected as volunteers make sure they have visited the building before October 31 to have their IDs scanned into the system. We ask that parent volunteers remain in the classrooms to which they are assigned. We also ask that parent volunteers leave all siblings not currently enrolled at Jackson Elementary at home when volunteering in the rooms. Siblings are welcome to visit on any day at lunch.

We will be hosting Sara Hoyt from Dunebrook to conduct our annual Body Safety presentations on Friday, November 1st. You should have received information about this previously. If you would like another copy, please click the button below.

Tuesday, November 5th, will be an an asynchronous eLearning day. This will also be the day our teachers offer families the opportunity to come to the building for a parent-teacher conference. Our staff will shift their work day to 11am-7pm to make it more convenient for families to attend conferences. Links to schedule individual conferences are available nearer to the top of this Smore.

Each March, we administer the IREAD assessment. This assessment focuses on a student's ability to demonstrate the competency in reading necessary to achieve academic success in later grades. Students will have an initial chance to pass this assessment in 2nd grade. Those who pass at that time are exempt from future IREAD assessments. Those who do not pass retake the assessment during future testing windows.

There are changes with this process that we want to share with families. Per the IDOE:

To ensure students have a solid foundation in reading before being promoted to fourth grade,

Senate Enrolled Act (SEA) 1 (2024) prohibits third grade students from being promoted to fourth

grade if they do not pass IREAD after multiple test administration opportunities (second and

third grade, spring and summer).

We would particularly like to point out the guidance the IDOE is providing on retention:

Exceptions to the new retention requirement, which will formulate the new criteria for Good

Cause Exemptions (GCEs effective for the 2024-2025 school year), include:

• Special Education: The student has an intellectual disability or the student's individualized education program specifies that retention is not appropriate, and the student's case conference committee has determined that promotion to another grade is appropriate.
• English Learner (EL): A student who is an identified English learner (EL) who has received services for fewer than two years and has an Individual Learning Plan (ILP) committee that determines promotion to the next grade level is appropriate.
• Math Exceptionality: A student who passes the ILEARN Mathematics assessment.
• Retained Twice & Received Intensive Intervention: A student who was retained twice in K-2 and has already received intensive intervention for at least two years.
• Previously Retained: A student who was retained once previously in third grade.

In order to ensure students master foundational reading skills, any student who does not pass IREAD (including students who qualify for a GCE) should continue to receive reading instruction aligned to science of reading and will participate in IREAD spring and summer retest administrations until they pass or upon completion of sixth grade.

If you should have any questions about this, please feel to reach out to Mr. Marshall or Mrs. Fairbairn.

Per the Indiana Department of Education, students should be in attendance for at least 94% of the school year. Given that we have 180 school days per year, this asks students to be absent for 10 or fewer days across the entire year. See below for our progress toward that goal.

If you need details about the attendance policy, please see the below graphic or refer to the student handbook.

We are looking for a qualified candidate to fill an open position at Jackson Elementary: exceptional learning aide. The position is listed on the corporation website; click the button below for more information. If you know someone that meets the qualifications, please encourage them to apply.

We are working with students to help them learn what is expected of them in the various settings they encounter during their school day. We are focused on three big ideas: we want students to be safe, be respectful, and be responsible.

We know the power of partnering with our families and caregivers. We encourage you to speak with your child about the expectations in the "Everywhere" column, as this language will become a daily part of your child's experience at Jackson. We welcome support in helping students see the importance of these behaviors not just in school but in every other context of their lives.

Spirit wear items are available for purchase throughout the school year. Families may order at a time that suits them; the store will remain open all school year.

This year, we are experimenting with our related arts schedule. Kindergarten students will attend related arts with their classroom group. In grades 1-4, students are attending related arts with a mix of students from the other classrooms. We think this is a great way for students to get to know others at school, which builds a stronger sense of community. The groups they attend are named after universities in Indiana: Ball State, Indiana State, IU, and Purdue. If you ask your child their group, then the below schedules will help you know which related arts class they have each day.

Each day is assigned a color (Maroon, Gold, White, Black). That color corresponds with a particular spot in the rotation. All classes rotate in the same direction: music moves to art, art moves to PE, PE moves to media, media moves to music.

Once again, Hurst Orthodontics, PC will collect Halloween candy in our schools to be donated to a non-profit organization called Supporters of the Military (SOM). For the last 22 years, the candy has been shipped to US soldiers serving both domestic and abroad. This year, many Indiana veterans will also enjoy the candy. Many of the candy recipients have been Indiana National Guard members, as well as members of the US Army, Air Force, Navy and Marines.

Last year Hurst Orthodontics, PC, with the help of local schools, other community organizations and the public collected a total of 632 pounds of candy for the troops.

Candy donation boxes will be placed in each school beginning on Tuesday, October 29 - November 7. Donations from the public are welcome. Letters and cards for the troops from the students would be very welcome as well.

The Duneland Exceptional Learning Department will host its first quarterly Parent Ambassadors meeting for the 2024-2025 school year on Tuesday, October 22 from 6-7:30 p.m. at the DSC Administration Center, 601 W Morgan Avenue, Chesterton. This free, informative meeting is open to all Duneland School parents.

This first meeting, Mental Health in Our Schools, will focus on mental health issues impacting students as well as local resources and district initiatives that are in place to support students with mental health needs. District leaders will also present district data from the school counselors; provide information about district and community resources; and discuss the new state law regarding the restriction of personal device use during the school day and allowable accommodations. CHS School Counselors, Amy Snyder and Gretchen Arthur, will join in this presentation.

Learn more about the Duneland Early Learning Classes at the the HUB. Click on the image below to enroll.

To make an appointment please call 219-763-8112. Let NorthShore know you are a Duneland School student or staff member and that you would like to make an appointment at the Duneland School Clinic located at the old CMS.

We are excited to be hosting a Ready, Set, Kindergarten class at Jackson. The Jackson class will meet 11:30am-1:30pm on Fridays in the high ability classroom. See below for more information on registration.

Information regarding student bus transportation for the 2024-2025 school year is available on DSC website under the Transportation Department.

The Duneland School Corporation Department of Transportation has now made My Stop available to our families.

My Stop is a web-based application which will allow parents to access live bus GPS information using a smartphone, tablet, or computer and securely view the current location of your child’s bus on routes. The system also provides the bus’s estimated time of arrival at your child’s bus stop.

Please read the attached letter to parents for more information on how to use My Stop to track your child's bus.

The school meals program is funded by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). The Duneland School Corporation will process free or reduced-price meal benefit applications for those students who apply and are approved. Those students not qualifying for free or reduced-price meals will be charged the paid meal price for breakfast and/or lunch.

Meal prices for the 2024-2025 school year are available on the DSC Child Nutrition website.

The DSC Child Nutrition Department utilizes NutriSlice as its menus program. This app is available for iPhone and Android through your mobile app store. Parents can also access the full website for Duneland Schools on a computer via this NutriSlice link.

This app will allow parents and students to view the menus as well as the nutritional info for each menu item at any of the Duneland Schools. This program will be developed further incorporating images of the actual food items being served at each of the Duneland schools.

Duneland School Corporation offers MyPaymentsPlus, a state-of-the-art online service that provides you the convenience and information you need to manage your student's meal account. This system speeds up serving lines in the cafeteria, eliminates the need to send physical payments to school or worry about lost or forgotten lunch money and ensures that your child will receive a nutritious meal.

At no cost, MyPaymentsPlus allows any family to: Create a FREE, secured account to manage all your student’s accounts, check your student's current account balance, and create settings to receive email notifications when the account reaches a low balance.

Also, at no cost, MyPaymentsPlus allows any family to make a prepayment into your student's meal account using a check, credit card, or debit card at MyPaymentsPlus or by calling 1-866-441-9125. Funds deposited through MyPaymentsPlus are usually available for student use within a matter of minutes. Create settings to automatically replenish your student's account when it reaches a low balance.

The Duneland School Corporation encourages all parents (even if you do not prepay for your student's meal account) to create an account at no cost. To create a new account, follow the on-screen directions and register your student using their Student ID number. Student ID numbers can be obtained by contacting customer support at: 1-877-237-0946.

Contact the Duneland School Corporation IT department via one of these methods:

1. Open a IncidentIQ ticket by sending an email to: helpdesk@duneland.k12.in.us
   
2. Log into IncidentIQ and submit a request duneland.incidentIQ.com

Families without internet due to financial hardship have access to programs from two local providers.

Comcast Internet Essentials:

• Families that qualify for public assistance programs such as the National School Lunch Program, Housing Assistance, Medicaid, SNAP, SSI and other programs may also qualify for the Internet Essentials program from Comcast.

• This program offers internet at a low cost per month.

• Additional options and services are also available

• More information is available at this Comcast link

Frontier Lifeline Program:

• Families that qualify for public assistance programs such as the National School Lunch Program, Housing Assistance, Medicaid, SNAP, SSI and other programs may also qualify for the Lifeline Program from Frontier.

• More information is available at this Frontier link