Greeley Greeting

August 20, 2024

Week of September 16, 2024

Principal's Message

Dear Families,

This newsletter is filled with many exciting announcements, including the annual Monarch Migration for our new kindergarten students, as well as the dates for our Winter Sharing, Strings Concert, and Spring Sings. These dates have also been added to our Greeley Public Calendar, which you can subscribe to using the button below. This makes it simple to ensure that you have every school event date at your fingertips.

Please also see below for important information about Fall Benchmark Assessments, Picture Day, and registration deadlines that are coming up soon.

In partnership,

Lindsay Kopinski

Principal, Greeley School

Subscribe to the Greeley Public Calendar

Upcoming Dates

September

9/17 Pokemon Club and Sports Club registration opens at 9:30am-Register here
9/23 September Birthday Lunch with Mrs. Kopinski
9/25 Picture Day
9/26 Go to School Night, 6pm-7:30pm

October

10/3 No School
10/4 Greeley Spiritwear Day
10/25 Kindergarten Butterfly Migration
10/30 Picture Retake Day

New Information

Please hold the following dates for exciting events at Greeley School:

Friday, October 25th Kindergarten Monarch Migration at 9:15am

Wednesday, December 18th Winter Sharing

9am for families with last names A-H
10:30am for families with last names I-Q
1:00 for families with last names R-Z

Wednesday, April 23 Strings Concert at 6:30pm

Tuesday, May 6th Spring Sing

Grade 1 at 6pm
Grade 2 at 7pm

Wednesday, May 7th Spring Sing

Grade 3 at 6pm
Grade 4 at 7pm

Fall Benchmark Assessments Begin This Week!

Benchmark assessments are valuable tools that provide a snapshot of student progress at a point in time. These assessments help teachers to identify areas where students are excelling and where they may need additional support. They can also inform instructional decisions by providing data that can be used to tailor teaching to meet each student's unique needs and strengths. Benchmark assessments are an important component of progressive education, which recognizes that students learn in different ways and at different rates. By using benchmark assessments to inform instruction, teachers can provide a more individualized approach to learning that supports each student's academic growth and personal development.

This year students in Grades K-8 will participate in academic benchmark assessments of literacy, math and social emotional learning starting September 16th. After the close of the window at the end of the month, results will be available online for parents via Otus.com, a digital portal. Assessment reports will not be mailed home. Information about how to access information on Otus.com will be shared with parents at the close of the benchmark window.

New K-8 Literacy Program

This week teachers are beginning to use the newly adopted literacy curriculum. This new curriculum includes the following key features:

Systematic phonemic awareness and word recognition instruction and assessment
Knowledge-building framework to provide content for applying reading and writing skills
Classroom-based data to inform student learning goals and differentiate instruction
Consistent implementation of current best practices in literacy instruction

The Winnetka Parent Institute Event on September 11 provided a deeper look into the new program. The recorded event and slides are available on the District website; click here for direct access.

Drop off Lane and Parking

At Greeley School, we have a very well-managed arrival and drop off line with adults ready to assist children for a quick entry and exit. This line can only continue to run smoothly with your cooperation. Please do not park and exit your vehicle at any time in the drop off lane.

If you need to park, please note that parking in the area around Greeley School is very limited, and police will ticket violators. Legal parking during drop off is located on Walnut Street between Ash and Cherry Street as well as on Cedar Street between Ash and Cherry Street if you require parking.

Thank you for your cooperation so we can ensure that student arrival and dismissal is safe and efficient.

Deadline to Register for Optional Fees, Programs or Services is September 30th!

These include:

Kindergarten Stay & Play
iPad Insurance
Elementary and Skokie Milk Fees
Central PTO Dues

ALL optional fees, programs or services are accessed via RevTrak https://winnetka.revtrak.net/.

Bus Registration Reopens on Monday, September 16th and will close on September 30th with the rest of the optional fees!

ALL optional fees, programs or services are accessed via RevTrak https://winnetka.revtrak.net/.

Go To School Night

Please join us on Thursday, September 26th as teachers share classroom information and curriculum highlights with families.

In order to provide a more comfortable environment as well as accommodate families with multiple children, we have organized our session offerings by your child's last name:

6:00 - 6:40 p.m.

Grades K-2: Child's last name A-L
Grades 3-4: Child's last name M-Z

6:50 - 7:30 p.m.

Grades K-2: Child's last name M-Z
Grades 3-4: Child's last name A-L

If you need to attend a different session, please contact your child's teacher to make arrangements. We look forward to seeing you there!

Greeley’s Fourth Grade Chorus

Mr. Urquhart is excited to announce that Chorus will be starting soon for fourth graders.

Do you love music? Like to sing, dance, and be creative with your friends? Fourth Graders, we are talking to you! Greeley’s Fourth Grade Chorus will be starting our year at the beginning of October with weekly morning rehearsals on Tuesdays before school from 8-8:30 in the Greeley Music Room.

Chorus will challenge your student to perform as a group with their peers to make one harmonious sound. We will perform at the District Chorus Fest in the Spring of 2025, sing for our fellow students at Greeley, and perhaps be able to do some community performances depending on how quickly we learn our songs!

There is no prior knowledge or talent to be able to join this group. All that is asked from students is to come in with a willingness to try their best and work well with their friends.

4th Grade Chorus will have its first morning rehearsal Tuesday October 1st at 8 am.

Information on drop off for parents and students will be shared upon enrollment. Parents, be on the lookout for a permission slip coming home soon!

Reminders from Last Week

Pokemon Club

Ms. Cornyn and Ms. Schaefer are excited to host a Pokemon Club again this year. Please see the flyer below, and register at the District Webstore starting September 17th at 9am for the fall session.

Greeley After School Sports

Mr. Dunafin is excited to announce that the Fall Session for After School Sports for 3rd and 4th graders will be starting soon!

Registration will open Tuesday, September 10th at 9 am on the District Web Store.

The activities will include Kinetic Wellness's favorite games and new exciting activities specific to this class. We will meet each group once a week after school for nine sessions. This class will run on Wednesday for 4th grade and Thursday for 3rd grade from 3:15-4:00 p.m. We look forward to another fun season of sports!!

Fall Session Dates

4th Grade Dates:

9/25, 10/9, 10/16, 10/23, 11/6, 11/20, 12/4, 12/11, 12/18

3rd Grade Dates:

9/26, 10/10, 10/17, 10/24, 11/7, 11/21, 12/5, 12/12, 12/19

After School Clubs

Greeley School is thrilled to partner with Right at School to bring after-school opportunities to our students. These electives will be available this fall, with registration opening online on September 2nd. See the flyer linked below for more information.

9/20: Registration closes

Week of 9/23: Clubs begin