The Skokie Home Scoop
November 7, 2022
November 7, 2022
Dear Skokie Families:
We hope you are having a wonderful start to your week! As you will note below, we have two weeks before we break for a full week for Thanksgiving Break. We are looking forward to opportunities to connect in the coming weeks through concerts, coffees and parent institutes!
Important Dates:
Tuesday, November 8: No School - Election Day
Friday, November 11: Principal/PTO Coffee at Washburne
Friday, November 18: End of Trimester One
November 21-25: Thanksgiving Break
Candy Drive
Our candy drive has been extended by two days. We will be collecting through Wednesday, November 9th. Candy will be brought to McClellan Orthodontics to raise funds for Lurie Children’s Holiday Wish List. Thank you to all who have participated!
Principal Coffee
Coffee and Conversation with the Principals- please join the PTO on Friday, November 11th from 9-10am at Carleton Washburne school for the opportunity to talk with Washburne and Skokie Principals and Assistant Principals.
Pop Tabs Donations
The Lions of Leadership, in partnership with Marla Goldberg, are bringing back a fundraiser that Skokie has historically participated in. We will be collecting pop tabs in advisory classrooms from now until the end of May and donating them to United Scrap Metal with all the proceeds going to the Ronald McDonald House. There’s more detail in this Pop Tabs Letter if you’d like to know more.
Lockdown Drill
We will be holding our lockdown drill on Thursday morning. As you may remember from September, we postponed our lockdown drill and focused on our fire drill and severe weather drill routines. Our teachers have talked with students about the process and will revisit this ahead of Thursday, with a focus on safety and an awareness of the worries and stress that can be associated with drills. If you would prefer to have your student opt out of this drill, please indicate this in the Lockdown Drill Exemption Form.
Exploring Skokie
Orchestra:
The 5th and 6th Grade Orchestras are continuing to prepare for their upcoming holiday concert on Dec. 6.
As a reminder, ALL orchestra students will need to attend a rehearsal on Monday Dec. 5 at 730 am in the Skokie Auditorium to prepare the concert finale. Also, now is probably a great time to check the closet to make sure that everyone has concert attire that fits!
As a reminder, concert dress is:
White shirt/blouse
Black pants/skirt/capris
Please, no leggings or jeans!
Dark shoes/dark socks
Please, no gym shoes!
Looking forward to seeing everyone at the concert on Dec. 6, 7pm in the Skokie Auditorium!
-Mrs. Nussbaum
Band:
The 6th Grade Concert Band is still preparing for the Winter Concert that will take place in the Washburne Gymnasium at 7:30 PM on December 8th, 2022. We will have a dress rehearsal on Wednesday, December 7th at 7:30 AM in the Carleton Washburne Band Room. During this dress rehearsal, both the 6th Grade Concert Band and the 7th and 8th Grade Symphonic Band will combine for a shared performance. Please refer to the email sent to you by Mr. Chester and Mr. Vowles for exact timing and locations.
The 5th Grade Cadet Band will have its first performance on January 12th, 2023 alongside the Washburne Jazz Ensemble. This concert will incorporate some of the first sounds that the students made on their instruments and will progress towards more difficult music as they perform some of the seasonal selections we will be working on during the month of December. 5th Grade Cadet Band parents - please be on the lookout for an email from us in the near future containing more information related to the January 12th performance.
Both ensembles will be required to perform in "concert dress" (our version of a team uniform) for their performances. Now is a great time to start assembling the uniform for the upcoming year of concerts. 6th Grade families, please double check that everything is fitting properly from last year.
Here is the Concert Dress for Band:
- white collared dress shirt or blouse
- black skirt, dress, or pants
- dark socks and dark dress shoes
- IF wearing a collared dress shirt, a long tie of any color.
If you have any questions, please reach out to Mr. Vowles or Mr. Chester.
Kinetic Wellness:
KW classes have been enjoying some wonderful weather to finish off our outdoor units! Simon, from Scottish Soccer, spent a week at Skokie School involving students in activities addressing soccer skills, cooperation, strategy that ended small-sided game play.
These past two weeks, KW classes have been split into teams to take part in our annual handball tournament. While handball is not as well known in the U.S., it is a popular professional team sport in Europe. This week teams finished their seeding rounds and next week will bring our double elimination portion of the tournament. Keep your fingers crossed for good weather and wish your student’s team luck!
Upcoming units
Basketball
Team Building
Fitness/Wellness
Upcoming Clubs
The Skokie School’s Rainbow Club works to create a school community where all students feel welcome, safe and supported, regardless of their identity. We will provide a safe and welcoming space for any student who wants to talk about issues related to their identity and expression. We will play games, do team-building activities, watch age appropriate videos (Common Sense media or other child approved YouTube Clips) on specific topics, eat snacks, and talk about what’s going on in our lives. Everyone is welcome to come, regardless of identity.
This club will run Fridays after school (December 2nd-June 2nd), from 3:30-4:00pm. The club will be live for registration on the website on November 15th at 9am.
2022 Downsized Capital Improvement Plan: Referendum
The 2022 Downsized Capital Improvement Plan: Referendum, was adopted as a resolution by the School Board on August 16th and will be on the ballot Tuesday, November 8th. You may view the screencast of the Informational Sessions here. For additional details, visit the District website at www.winnetka36.org.
Fall Winnetka Parents Institute Schedule
The District is offering an array of upcoming educational sessions for families and community members. Click here for a complete list of session dates and more information. Fall sessions include SEL-related topics and technology tips for parents regarding maneuvering the ever-changing landscape of technology, social media, and phones. Up next:
Technology Survival Skills for Parents
Patrick Dawson, Instructional Technology Coordinator
Maneuvering the ever-changing landscape of technology, social media, and phones for students is a daunting task for any parents. This session will increase parent awareness and provide basic skills of how to maneuver through platforms, identify warning signs to look for, and hopefully reduce the stress of parenting students online in addition to in-person.
November 14, 2022
1:00 PM-2:00 PM
Resource Center at Washburne School
Interested:
Online Registration Opens November 16 for Incoming Kindergarteners & New Students for the 2023-2024 School Year
Registration for incoming Kindergarteners and students new to The Winnetka Public Schools in 2023-2024 opens on November 16, 2022. Children who will be five-years-old on or before September 1, 2023, are eligible to enroll. More information will be shared in the coming weeks.
Sincerely,
Michelle Cooney and Larry Joynt
Principal and Assistant Principal
The Skokie School
