August 9, 2024

Dear Orrington Eagle Families,

On behalf of Orrington Elementary School educators, we want to welcome you to the 2024-25 school year! Our first day of student attendance is on Thursday, August 22nd. We can’t wait to meet new and returning Eagles! We will be hosting our Popsicles on the Playground on Tuesday, August 20th, and we can't wait to meet with you all! Together our mission is to focus on the whole child, support collective responsibility, and collaborate with one another to engage in shared decision-making.

We are looking forward to connecting with families and partnering together to support our all our students to soar higher! Please feel free to email or call if you have any questions about the upcoming school year.

Sincerely,

Orrington Admin Team

Dr. Alison Schoeffmann, Ed.D.

Principal

847-859-8570

schoeffmanna@district65.net

Mrs. Sarah Yoo

Assistant Principal

Yoos@district65.net

• Student arrival is between 8:50-9:00 am. School doors will open at 8:50 and students will proceed directly to their classroom. Please use the below map to determine the entry that your child(ren) will be using.

• Breakfast will be available to students Monday-Friday, if purchased by the family or if the family qualifies for free meals at school. Breakfast will be available in the gym upon arrival to school at 8:50AM.

• Lunch will be eaten in the gym. Hot lunch and milk will be available for purchase each day.

• Snack time will be once a day in each classroom. Students may bring their own allergen free snack.

• Check out the Nutrition Services webpage for more information including menus, meal prices payment options, and more!
  

District 65 is committed to providing nutritious meal choices for our students! All schools serve breakfast and lunch daily. Elementary students place their lunch orders in their morning homeroom classes. Middle schoolers make their meal choices as they come through the lunch line in the cafeteria. Students may also bring their own lunches from home.

If you do not wish for your student to purchase meals at school, please communicate that expectation with them. For our younger learners, it may also be beneficial to express your wishes to their teachers.

Free and reduced-price meals are available to families who qualify based on certain income or eligibility requirements. Meal applications are available on our website. All families who believe they may qualify are encouraged to apply. Benefits go beyond school meals and may include free or reduced school fees, summer programming, internet access, and more!

Menus for school breakfast and lunch are available on our website. Did you know that school meals can be paid for online through MySchoolBucks?

Additional information

The Free/Reduced Meal Application is now available! Please follow THIS LINK to complete the application at your earliest convenience.

A NEW meal application must be submitted every school year. In order to ensure benefits are received by the first day of school, Thursday, August 22, families are required to submit a completed online meal application by Thursday, August 15, 2024.

There are students who will qualify for free meals without an application. If you receive an email from us confirming your student’s meal status for this school year, you DO NOT need to submit a meal application for the upcoming school year. Your student(s) will automatically receive free meals. Please ensure that each of your students are listed in the emailed letter that you receive. If you notice a discrepancy, we ask that you call the D65 Nutrition Services office (847-859-8130) as soon as possible.

In District 65, we believe in neighborhood schools and most of our students live within walking distance. For those students who live 1.5 miles or more from their attendance-area school or walking would constitute a serious safety hazard, transportation is provided by the District at no cost to the family. Service may also be provided if required as part of a student’s Individualized Education Plan.

If you believe your child is eligible and you would like to request transportation for the 2024-2025 school year, please email transportation@district65.net and include the child's name, school, grade, phone, home address, and pick up/drop-off address (if different from home).

Additional information

Walking and Biking Safety

With increased truck traffic on Central Street and Sherman Avenue, talking to your children about how they can take precautions and be safe during their travels to and from school is an important step to take prior to the first day of school. Please see walking and biking safety tips below. Orrington crossing guard postings with be shared with families shortly.

Walking Safety Tips

· Choose the safest route to school with the least amount of crossings

· Practice what each street sign means on the route to school

· Observe what it is like to cross the street at the eye-level of your child

· Walk where there is good visibility for your child to see traffic and be sure the drivers can see your child

· Practice the walk together

· Ensure they stick to safe routes and not text while walking

Biking Safety

The National Center for Safe Routes to School provides tips for families to help their children learning how to safely get to and from school on their bicycles. They highlight the importance of doing a helmet check to ensure a proper fit, how to assess the build biking skills, and the importance of planning a route and trying it out before school starts. Below is a link with more detailed information that can help you start the conversation with your child(ren).

Bike Safety Tips

Teacher assignments will be available in PowerSchool's parent portal early next week when instructions come from the district. (More information under #6 on THIS letter) The staff dedicates significant time to developing class lists, taking into account parent input submitted last spring.

Having a diverse mix of students in each room is crucial. We aim to balance the number of students in each class and take into account learning and behavior characteristics such as ability level and social skills. We strive to align students' learning styles with teachers' teaching styles.

Our primary goal is to create a balanced and productive learning environment in each classroom. Student placements are final, as they reflect the extensive time and effort invested by our teams of staff members.

Kindergarten teachers will be reaching out to students' families in their classes to arrange a personal 1:1 meet and greet! This is the perfect opportunity to receive a tour of the school, meet the teacher, and ask any questions.

This year, these meetings will be on Wednesday, August 14th and Friday, August 16th during the daytime, but if you need a different time slot, please reach out to your child's teacher.

Orrington has a “no food or drink” birthday celebration practice. We want our students to know other ways to celebrate birthdays besides treats.

If you want your child to bring something in for their birthday, we encourage you to donate a book to your child's classroom teacher or you can also send school supplies such as pencils, erasers, stickers, bookmarks, etc.

Please do not send paper birthday invitations to school. The use of electronic invitations through our PTA directory is suggested.

School-Parent Communications

Orrington Elementary employs various methods to keep parents informed about their child's learning and progress:

• Community Night: Held at the beginning of the school year, this event focuses on sharing curricular information with parents as well as a community building time.
• Conferences: Scheduled twice a year, in October and February.
• Report Cards: Distributed in December, March, and June.

Equally important is the communication from parents to the school. Any factors that might impact a student's academic or emotional progress should be discussed with the teacher. Teachers are available via email from 8:50 a.m. to 3:35 p.m. daily. Please note that during teaching hours, classroom phones are turned off. Voicemails can be left for staff members. Open communication benefits everyone.

Student Smart Devices

We understand that some students may bring electronic devices, such as smartwatches, to school. These devices should be silenced and kept in the student’s locker throughout the day. Misused devices may be confiscated and kept in Dr. Schoeffmann's or Ms. Yoo's office.

We know that families need flexibility and support beyond the regular school day. Parents/guardians have two options for before- and after-school childcare for students in kindergarten through fifth grade. These include our D65 School Age Child Care (SACC) program and Right at School (RAS). Both offer high quality programming, flexible care options, and competitive pricing.

For convenience, both programs are offered on-site at all D65 elementary and magnet schools so that students may seamlessly transition before and after the school day. Please note: Transportation is not available for either program. Registration is now open for currently enrolled D65 students!

Special Note on Enrichment Programming: In partnership with Right at School and community providers, District 65 offers on-site before- and after-school enrichment programs like cooking, martial arts, basketball, chess, and dance for K-5 students. Registration opens September 2, and more details will be forthcoming!