Woodbury Weekly Update for Families

Welcome to our weekly update! We are thrilled to keep you informed about the happenings at our school, celebrations & achievements and upcoming events, ensuring you're an active part of your students educational journey. In each update, you'll find some quick highlights of the past week and a preview of what's to come. Our hope is to foster a strong sense of community and collaboration between the school and our cherished families. Most weeks will be brief, but at times there is important information or updates that help support us in your involvement in our little school. Thank you for taking the time to read it!

We honored our December & January Core Values- RESPECT & COLLABORATION. It's always a great when we get to highlight our students and staff for working on all the parts of that not only make us great scholars and educators, but great people too! Our CORE VALUES are the things we strive to work on for a lifetime!

This week was a busy one! Between the 100th day (and the 101st!), music instrument presentation, core values and more, we had a busy week! This week will be a bit quiet with Valentine's Day celebrations the week following. Winter keeps us in a bit more so we can all get a little stir crazy. There has been quite a bit going around in terms of illness, so please take some time to wash lunch bags, water bottles, winter coats and more. We hope everyone is able to get or stay healthy in the coming weeks ahead.

Heart Health:

February is American Heart Month! Here are some links to ways your family can increase their daily heart-healthy activities:

Motivating Kids to be Physically Active

From KidsHealth.org - Tips for motivating school-age kids to be physically active.

Move Your Way

From U.S. Dept of Health and Human Services - An interactive way to meet the goal of 60 minutes of daily activity for kids ages 6-17.

The Heart Truth

National Institutes of Health - Heart-healthy lifestyle ideas.

Dental:

February is National Children's Dental Health Month.

Reminder: Completed Proof of School Dental Exam forms are required for current Kindergarten and second grade students by May 15, 2025. If you are unable to obtain the required dental exam, please complete the Dental Exam Waiver Form

Dear Parents:

Each year, the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) gathers information from a representative

sample of parents with a child receiving special education services to determine the degree to

which schools throughout the state are facilitating parent involvement in their child's education.

Parents from each district in the state are surveyed once every six years.

If you are the parent of a student with an Individualized Education Program (IEP), you may

receive a survey in the mail from Measurement, Incorporated, the current contractor

administering the ISBE survey. If you do receive the parent survey, please take a few minutes to

complete it. Your opinions are very important to us. No one from the school district will know how

you answered the survey questions. Aggregated results of the survey will be reported in the State

Performance Plan/Annual Performance Report on the main State Performance Plan, Data, and

Accountability webpage.

For more information or if you need assistance with completing the survey in English or Spanish,

please contact Measurement Inc. at ISBEParentSurvey@MeasInc.com or toll-free at (877)

881-7077.

Sincerely,

Crystal Swan-Gravatt

This February, at Woodbury Elementary, we’re focusing on the core value of Empathy! Empathy means understanding how others feel and showing kindness and care. It helps us create a friendly and supportive school where everyone feels welcome. In our classrooms, we’ll learn how to listen to our friends, help when someone needs it, and celebrate what makes each of us special. Whether we’re working together in groups, offering a hand to someone who needs help, or simply being kind to others, empathy will guide the way we treat each other. With your help, we’ll make our school a place where everyone feels happy, safe, and understood!

Celebrating the 100th day of school in Miss Looten's Kindergarten Class!

The music department presented to students last week to further their understanding of instruments and instrument families. This is a continued effort by the music team to inspire and engage our youngest students and continue to build an excellent music program into the older grades.

We celebrated both 100 AND 101 days of learning!!

Parking Reminders:

To ensure a smooth and safe pickup and drop-off experience for everyone, we kindly ask that you follow these guidelines:

• Please use the lane on 2nd Street for both drop-off and pick-up, and pull up as far as possible to help keep the flow moving.
• If you need to park, please use an adjacent street and walk to the playground to drop off or pick up your child.
• For a quicker process, allow your child to exit the vehicle independently when possible.
• To avoid congestion, please refrain from dropping off or picking up at the Lafayette gate, as well as blocking staff parking spaces.
• For safety reasons, please do not let your child out of the car directly onto the street.
• Kindly avoid driving down 3rd Street when orange cones are in place and especially when busses are present.

Thank you for your cooperation in helping us keep everyone safe!

ELECTRONIC DEVICES: A friendly reminder regarding our policy for phones & smart devices as we see a decrease in students with phones & watches.

Cell Phones and Other Electronic Devices:

The possession and use of cell phones and other electronic devices are subject to the following rules:

• They must be kept out of sight and in an inconspicuous location, such as a backpack, purse, or locker.
• They must be turned off during the regular school day unless the supervising teacher grants permission for them to be used or if needed during an emergency.
• They must not be used in any manner that will cause disruption to the educational environment.

Dress for the weather: As we head into colder weather, we want to remind you to dress your student appropriately for the conditions. In addition to any before-school time, students also have a 30-minute recess after lunch, and they will be outside unless the "feels like" temperature is below 10 degrees. Please ensure that your child is wearing warm clothing, including jackets, hats, gloves, and scarves, to stay comfortable and safe during outdoor activities. Layers are always a great choice to help regulate their body temperature throughout the day. Thank you for your support in keeping our students warm and ready for both learning and play!

Personal Items: Please do not send personal items to school with your student. We are not responsible for lost or stolen items. Unfortunately, these items can often become a distraction to the learning environment.

Absences: Please be sure to call our office when your student will be absent. Student absences need to be called in by 8:15 am (815-786-6316) on the day of the absence for the safety of your student. There is a voicemail to leave a message, so you can call at any time to let us know if your student will not be present. If your child is not at school and we have not been contacted we will send out reminder messages. If contact cannot be made, please note that the absence will be considered UNEXCUSED.

We Need Substitute Teachers and Substitute Paraprofessionals! Do you want to make your own schedule? Do you have at least 60 credit hours or an Associate's Degree?

You can be a Substitute Teacher and would be making a significant impact on our school with your support!

As a Substitute Teacher, you would make $120 daily or $140 after a total of 10 days in the district.

Here is the link to the DeKalb ROE for a Substitute Teacher packet.

You can easily become a substitute Paraprofessional as well with just a High School diploma and earn $14 an hour. Here is the link for the DeKalb Paraprofessional licensure.

Attention Preschool Families! This series is designed to empower families with practical strategies to support young children's development and set them on a path for lifelong learning. Join us to connect with other parents, gain insights into early childhood milestones, and explore ways to create a nurturing learning environment at home.

Our Parent Pathways sessions are designed to provide a supportive and interactive hour for families. Each session begins with 25-minutes led by our parent educator, where parents can learn valuable insights and strategies, while preschool students are supervised and engaged in play in classrooms. Following the parent session, families will enjoy a 25-minute activity to practice new ideas together.

These are the dates of our Parent Pathways events from 5:30 - 6:30 pm.

February 18th

March 18th

April 15th

May 20th

We kindly ask that non-preschool children have pre-arranged supervision at home, though infants may stay with parents if necessary. Please note that no diapering services will be available during play supervision.

Each month we will send a Google Form to inform you of the upcoming event's topic and ask for your RSVP.

The following core values are embedded in our Woodbury Way recognition and are goals for our students and staff. These are great skills to discuss with your students as we will be emphasizing them throughout each month.

September: OVERVIEW