January 2025 Banner Tracks

As we embark on a brand new year, we are filled with excitement and enthusiasm for the second half of the school year. Our teachers and staff are dedicated to providing your child with a supportive learning environment both academically as well as emotionally. We strive to foster a lifelong love for learning.

Your continued support is invaluable in supporting your child's education. Your encouragement and guidance make a significant impact on their confidence and overall health. Try to commit to some of the following:

• Read to your child every night
• Have your child read to you every night
• Help your child with his/her math facts
• Ask your child questions about what they learned at school. Be specific with them or they will say, "I don't know." 🙂
• Talk with them about how they can show kindness

Together, let's make 2025 a year of accomplishments and continued growth/success! Thank you for being a vital part of the Banner Community!

~Mr. Fairchild

"YOU BELONG HERE!"

The word of the month for January is PERSEVERANCE! Our next "Bobcat Family Event" is scheduled for Friday, January 10 where students will discuss what perseverance means and how they can grow in this area.

EARLY DISMISSAL NOTE: We have school up through Friday, December 20 where students will be dismissed at 1:45 PM. Please note this is one hour early.

Winter Break begins Saturday, December 21 and concludes on Sunday, January 5. Students return to school on Monday, January 6.

Upcoming PTO events:

• PTO Math Night - Thursday, January 9 (time TBA) . More information coming soon.
• PTO meeting - Tuesday, January 21 at 6:30 PM via Google Meet (link will be emailed)

We are collecting old toys for our Old Toy Recycling Drive Jan 13-17! Help us raise money for Banner by recycling your old toys. Thanks!

School will be closed on Monday, January 20 in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

As the weather gets colder, we encourage parents to make sure students are properly clothed to go outside for recess. We typically have two recess periods per day and will go outside if the temperature (including windchill) is 15 degrees or above. Also, please make sure you label your child's clothing clearly. Thank you and happy colder weather!

A HUGE shoutout to our Banner families!! Our total collections were just over $6,100!! The outpouring of generous donations (no matter how much) was simply overwhelming! The Children's Home was so appreciative of our efforts! You all truly made a difference in the lives of so many children that are living in circumstances beyond their control. This was special!

STAR Winter Assessments (reading and math) - January 6 - 22

• All students

CogAT (Cognitive Abilities Test) - Week of February 3

• 2nd and 4th grade students (as well as new 3rd and 5th graders)
• Want to practice? Here are some practice tests if interested.

I.A.R. (Illinois Assessment for Readiness) - April 7 - 18

• 3rd, 4th, and 5th grades

Illinois Science Assessment - Week of April 21

• 5th grade only

Our 4th and 5th graders are currently determining their classroom spelling bee winners. Those winners will compete in an all-school Spelling Bee on Thursday, January 16! Best of luck to our spellers!

Parents - if you have questions about BIST at Banner and how it could be applied at home, check out this Home-to-School Connection Guide. It is lengthy, but full of great information on the following topics:

• Household expectations
• Caring confrontation
• Protective planning
• Outlasting the "acting out"
• De-escalating behaviors
• Avoiding power struggles
• ....and more!

Teachers recognize each child's birthday within the classroom, so treats from home for birthdays are not permitted. Thank you for understanding!

Each classroom has a time built into their schedules where students may have a snack. Don't forget to send your child with some sort of snack. One that is healthy is preferred. We do have snacks for those who are unable to purchase on their own, but it is very limited and we tend to run out quickly. These snacks are typically reserved for those families who cannot consistently afford them.

In January/February, your child will participate in the ACCESS for ELLs 2.0 test (“ACCESS”). ACCESS is an English language proficiency assessment administered to Kindergarten through 12th grade students who have been identified as English Language Learners (“ELLs”). ACCESS is required by the state of Illinois and it is given annually to monitor students' progress in acquiring academic English. It is aligned with the WIDA English Language Development Standards and assesses each of the four language domains of Listening, Speaking, Reading, and Writing. It is important that your child be in attendance at school to take this test. Please note that even if your child is waivered, he/she still needs to take the ACCESS test annually until he/she scores high enough to officially exit the ESL program. If you are interested in learning more about the ACCESS test or wish to view the practice materials, please visit the following website:

https://wbte.drcedirect.com/WIDA/portals/wida

In an effort to maintain the safest environment possible for our children, security measures have been implemented in all buildings throughout the district. All school doors, including the front entrance, will be locked during school hours. Visitors to the school will need to press the buzzer located to the right of the main entrance and wait to be let in by office staff (you will hear a "clicking" sound to signify the door is unlocked). A drop area will be located in the foyer outside the main office for items that need to be dropped off or picked up. Please call to alert office staff (309-243-7774) ahead of time if you have an item to drop off and be sure to clearly label the item with your child's name and their teacher. Upon entering the building, visitors will be asked to present a US government issued ID such as a Driver’s License, which can either be scanned or manually entered into our electronic sign in system. Once entry is approved, a badge will be issued that identifies the visitor, the date, and the purpose of the visit. Upon exiting the school, visitors will be asked to give their visitors badge to the office staff when checking out. Meetings with teachers should be pre-arranged with the classroom teacher ahead of time. We hope our families understand and appreciate our efforts in maintaining a safe school environment.

School volunteers are important to the success of our school district. If you are interested in volunteering for our school and working with the students, please complete the volunteer approval process. This process involves completing the online application, being fingerprinted, and providing fingerprinting confirmation. While the process from start to finish does take some time, volunteers will only need to complete this process once.

• Step 1: Complete the online application. After application completion, an email will be sent regarding the fingerprinting process. This email comes from Dunlap District office staff, not Banner office staff.

• Step 2: Get fingerprinted. Follow instructions found in the previously mentioned email.

• Step 3: Provide fingerprinting confirmation to either the Dunlap District office staff or the Banner office staff.

• EARLY DISMISSAL - Friday, December 20 - students dismissed at 1:45 PM
• Students RETURN from Winter Break - Monday, January 6
• School Spelling Bee (4th/5th) - Thursday, January 16 at 1:00 PM
• PTO Math Night - Thursday, January 9 (time TBA)
• Report Cards issued - Friday, January 10
• School Board meeting - Thursday, January 15 at 6:00 PM at DHS
• Martin Luther King Day - NO SCHOOL - Monday, January 20
• PTO meeting - Tuesday, January 21 at 6:30 PM via Google Meet
• Band and Orchestra Concert - Tuesday, January 28 at 6:30 PM at HGES