Message from the Principal

Dear Virginia Lake Families,

Happy Labor Day! We are SO excited to welcome students to school this week!

Meet the Teacher is scheduled for Tuesday, September 3rd from 1:45-2:30. Families will be welcomed into the building using Doors 1, 4 and 16.

Transportation information is available in the My Ride application. If your family needs assistance with the app, please visit our My Ride help station during Meet the Teacher in the MPR. Our staff will be assisting families with obtaining their busing information from 1:45-2:30 p.m.

The first day of school is Thursday, September 5th! Arrival begins at 9:00 a.m. We will have the Virginia Lake ruler outside of Door 4. This is a nice photo opportunity for families to take a first day of school photo. We will put the ruler out on the last day of school too. Please plan a " Kiss and Goodbye" location with your child on the first day. Parents may not enter the building. Our staff is ready to support our students transition back to school! Staff will be wearing blue shirts and orange or yellow vests. We can't wait for our students to arrive.

Please consider helping Virginia Lake stock the teacher's lounge with snacks and necessities as we begin the school year. We are asking that all food items be individually wrapped/packaged All items can be dropped off in the office starting on Tuesday, September 3rd.

Stock the Lounge Sign Up

We look forward to partnering with your families this year to ensure your child has an incredible school experience.

Let’s make it a great school year!

Warmest Regards,

Patti Van Winkle, Principal

There are new parking restrictions that the City of Palatine has implemented over the summer. Parking is not longer allowed on the east AND west side of Rohlwing Rd. This change is in effect because during arrival and dismissal parked cars and cars waiting in our car rider line have blocked traffic on Rohlwing. Cars are no longer allowed to park on the Rohlwing Rd. during arrival and dismissal. If families prefer to exit their car to pick up their child, they can park in the Palatine High School stadium lot and walk to our property. Cars waiting in the car rider lane should wait alongside the curb to pull into our lot. The photo below provides a visual of the parking restrictions. We thank you in advance for your help in implementing this change.

Arrival begins at 9:00 a.m. and ends at 9:15 a.m. Virginia Lake provides supervision beginning at 9:00 a.m. If families arrive prior to 9:00 a.m., please have your child(ren) wait in their vehicle. Car riders should exit on the passenger's side of the vehicle for your child's safety. Parents, please remain in your cars. Staff members are happy to help your child enter the school building. All vehicles should take a right out of our parking lot. If families walk, students are welcome to socialize on the grass or by Door 4. At 9:00, students should line up by the brick wall by Door 4 to enter the school building. Playing sports is not permitted on school property prior to arrival. We want to ensure everyone is safe.

All of our PreK and Kindergarten students will be greeted by staff and escorted to their classrooms or to line-up with their class.

Students who ride the bus will enter in Door 1 or Door 16. All students participating in our breakfast program will enter through Door 16.

Dismissal begins at 3:55 p.m. Students who ride the bus, will load their bus when the bell rings. Students who are car riders, will wait for their car in between the cones on the sidewalk ( picture below). Students in PreK and K will be waiting with a staff member. Parents should remain in their cars at all times. Students who are walkers can meet their family at a meeting spot ( near Door 4) or begin walking home. Students who are walking must use the cross walks with the crossing guards on Rohlwing Rd.

Did you know? Students with perfect attendance are more likely to excel in their studies. Help us meet our goal of 9 or fewer absences for success! Together, we can make every day count for our children!

This year, Kindergarten teachers in all Illinois school districts are using the 14 readiness measures of the Kindergarten Individual Development Survey (KIDS) to help them understand their students strengths and needs. KIDS is not a test. Instead, KIDS is a tool to help teachers organize and structure how they observe students. KIDS observations occur as the children perform their normal, daily routine. These observations help our teachers learn about each student and his or her strengths, needs, and interests and helps our teachers plan and focus the class’ activities and lessons. If you are interested in learning more about KIDS, please visit the KIDS Families Toolkit at https://www.isbe.net/Pages/KIDS-Families.aspx.

Students in grades 2-8 will participate in MAP Testing in reading and math beginning September 11. MAP tests are unique because they adapt to your child’s responses to measure your child’s skill level. If your child answers a question correctly, the next question is more challenging. If your child answers incorrectly, the next question is easier.

These results provide a more complete picture of what your child knows and is ready to learn — whether it is on, above, or below their grade level. MAP tests measure students’ achievement and growth. Teachers use results to identify students with similar learning needs, tailor classroom lessons, and set goals for students. MAP results will be shared with families in early October.

Supply lists are available online. Please click on the following link for information specific to your child’s grade-level assignment.

Virginia Lake School Supply Lists

District 15 is implementing a new application that will allow families to track their child's school bus. Please download the application here.

1. Download My Ride K-12 from the Google Play Store or the Apple App Store.
2. After the app installation is complete, open My Ride K-12.
3. If you do not already have a registered email, click Register.
4. To register, enter your email address, password, and name.
5. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email. Click on the link in your email to confirm your registration through the My Ride K-12 website.
6. Log in, then find your student by going to My Students and clicking Add Student.
7. When prompted to find your school district, search for Community Consolidated School District 15-Palatine.
8. Find your student by going to My Students and choosing the + button. This will present the Add Student screen.
9. Enter your student's ID number. (Please be sure to use your student's school ID number, not to be confused with the state ID number. The school ID can be found on their Infinite Campus profile on the "today" tab.)
10. Next, select your student's school name from the drop-down list, and click Add Student, and then Back to Students. Repeat this step to add additional students.
11. Once you have linked to a student, click on that student’s profile to see all relevant transportation information.
12. Press the Share button to share a student link with someone else. Enter the email of the person you would like to share with. That person will receive a confirmation email that will automatically link them to the shared student(s). Recipients must register with My Ride K-12, if they have not already done so, to access the student information.
13. Regularly check for updates to ensure that your device is running the latest version of the app.
14. Remain logged in to the app to receive district notifications, even when the app is not actively running.

We look forward to welcoming our students and their families on Tuesday, September 3rd to Meet the Teacher, from 1:45-2:30 p.m. Families are encouraged to bring their child’s school supplies to this event.

We will be hosting our Parent Orientation Night on Wednesday, September 11th. Our schedule for the evening is listed below. We look forward to sharing our learning plans and expectations for the upcoming school year. This is an informational evening for parents/guardians ONLY. Thank you for saving the date!

6:30-7:00 p.m.- Preschool -2nd Grade

7:10-7:40 p.m.- Grades 3-5

We are located at 925 N. Glenn Dr. Palatine, IL 60074.

Our main office phone number is 847-963-7100. Our Absence Line is 847-963-7101.

Principal: Mrs. Van Winkle 847-963-7105 vanwinkp@ccsd15.net

Assistant Principal: Ms. Viviana Reyes 847-963-7104 reyesv@ccsd15.net

Assistant Principal: Mr. Rodriguez 847-963-7121, rodrigj2@ccsd15.net

Elementary Secretary: Ms. Tejeda 847-963-7100 tejedar@ccsd15.net

Office Clerical: Ms. Pereyra pereyrac@ccsd15.net

School Nurse: Ms. Mendez mendezs@ccsd15.net

We are quickly approaching the first day of school and wanted to remind you to renew your PTA Membership for the 2024-2025 year!

The pricing for standard memberships remains the same this year.

Single Adult Membership $10

Faculty/Staff Membership $8

Two Adult Family Membership $16

New this year are Booster Memberships! Get all the same perks as the standard membership with an additional donation included. Booster Memberships include up to two adults, a bonus item as a thank you and a donation that goes directly to the PTA to help support activities and events at the school. The levels are as follows

Silver $25 - (receive up to two memberships and a VL window cling perfect to display your support for the PTA)

Gold $50 - (receive up to two memberships, VL window cling and a stuffed dolphin)

Platinum $75 - (receive up to two memberships, VL window cling and a dolphin baseball hat)

Diamond $100 - (receive up to two memberships, a VL window cling and a VL tumbler cup)

All funds raised are used to sponsor school programs, events and resources for our students. Homecoming is the first PTA sponsored event on Friday September 6th!

A reminder that we ALWAYS appreciate the support you provide however that comes. Joining does not require any commitment of time and you do not need to volunteer if unable.

Please follow the link to get signed up!

https://www.virginialakepta.com/membership#ghUtwZ

We need volunteers for the Homecoming Event on Friday September 6th from 5-7pm! This is also a great way for high school students to earn volunteer hours!

Sign up here https://m.signupgenius.com/#!/showSignUp/10C0F4FA9AD2DA3FCCF8-51054925-virginia

Tuesday, September 3rd- Meet the Teacher- 1:45-2:30 p.m.

Thursday, September 5th- First Day of School ( All Grades)

Friday, September 6th- PTA Homecoming- 5:00-7:00 p.m.

Tuesday, September 10th- PTA Meeting- 7:00 p.m.

Wednesday, September 11th- Parent Orientation - PreK-2- 6:30-7:00p.m./ 3-5- 7:10-7:40 p.m.

Monday, September 30th- Picture Day

Email: vanwinkp@ccsd15.net
Website: https://www.ccsd15.net/VL
Location: 925 N Glenn Dr, Palatine, IL, USA
Phone: 847-963-7105