Skokie Home Scoop

Dear Families:

We are looking forward to seeing so many of you this Thursday for our Halloween celebrations. Please see individual class newsletters and communication from PTO for notes about the celebrations for your child’s advisory. As a reminder, for health and safety purposes, snacks and food treats are not incorporated into school-based parties.

Friday is a non-attendance day for students. We hope the children enjoy a day of sleeping in and sorting candy. Beginning on Monday, November 4th we will be participating in a local Halloween candy drive hosted by Shoreview Orthodontics to benefit Lurie Children’s Hospital. Last year students from our schools collectively donated 1,050 pounds of candy resulting in a $600 donation to Lurie Children’s Hospital.

Follett Book eFair

I’m excited to announce that our school is hosting a Follett Book eFair! From November 1-15th, 2024, you can shop online for your home library while enhancing the school and classroom libraries at The Skokie School! Those of you who had/have a student(s) at our elementary schools know how much fun the book fairs have traditionally been. When I moved from Hubbard Woods to Skokie, I was shocked to learn that we could not host a traditional book fair due to our more than a century-old building layout. The vendors simply couldn’t get the books up our many flights of stairs with no elevator. So, when I learned that Follett would be hosting virtual ‘e-Fairs,’ I was THRILLED!

Here are the details:

• A Follett Book eFair is an online book fair.

• After you browse and shop online, the books ship to our school for free when the online book fair ends. It’s so easy!

• For every dollar, our Book eFair earns, our school receives 20% back as a credit. We can use this credit to purchase books and resources to enhance our school library.

• Students and teachers can create Wish Lists. Students can share it with family and friends, and teachers can share it with their classroom parents. This is a great way to help ensure that you help them get the books they really want!

• You’ll find a wide range of titles at affordable prices, from new releases to popular fiction and nonfiction. Be sure also to check out the Mega Sale section!

• Anyone can support our Book eFair. Share staff and student Wish Lists with your family, friends, neighbors, and co-workers. They can also purchase Follett Book eFair eGift Cards to gift to their student(s), donate to the school, or support students who might not otherwise be able to purchase new books.

We are hosting two eFairs at the same time. Due to our nature as a fifth—and sixth-grade school, we fall right in the middle of Follett's two options. I like this fact because it allows us to purchase books from the entire Pre-K through 8th-grade catalog. This is an incredible chance to buy books for the whole family! To browse some of the titles being offered (thousands more titles are available on the book fair site) please visit these two links:

Pre-K through 5th Grade Book Offerings

6th through 8th Grade Book Offerings

You can begin placing your orders on November 1st, 2024. After the fair has ended, the books will be delivered for free to the school. We will then distribute them to the students and teachers in their classrooms.

To place your order starting on November 1st, go to these two links:

Pre-K through 5th Grade Titles

6th Graade through 8th Grade Titles

All staff members have the opportunity to create wish lists for their classrooms. Each teacher will have a code for both fairs that you can use to help grant their ‘wishes’ for their classroom. They may send them to you directly via email. I will collect codes for teachers who want me to share them in one document.

I plan to send out those codes early next week. Stay tuned!

We find Follett amazing to work with. As a librarian, I have used them for most of my library purchases because of their professionalism, fair pricing, and free shipping. I can’t wait to use our proceeds to further enhance the learning for all students!

Why Host a Follett Book eFair?

Numerous studies show that having access to books at home profoundly impacts children by increasing comprehension skills, accelerating learning, and the likelihood of progressing further in secondary education, and has an immediate and long-term impact on social and emotional well-being. With Follett Book eFairs, you can expect a carefully curated selection of titles from a wide range of publishers. These are the books your kids want to read.

Please let me know if you have any questions. We’re very excited about the opportunity to have our first book fair, possibly in more than one hundred years! Thank you in advance for supporting the students and staff at the Skokie School!

Sincerely,

Todd Burleson

School Librarian

Also, all sales benefit our school, so please help us spread the word! If you or a local business would like to support our online book fair by donating or purchasing an eGift card, please contact me at toddburleson@winnetka36.org

One final note: If you are a visual person like me, this e-Fair Website I created is a fun way to see the offerings, too! Just tap on this text to access it.

Technology Communication Design (TCD): Students are creating original digital animations using different technology tools. After writing the beginning, middle and end of a short story, students set a background scene and utilized clip art or customized graphics to symbolically tell the story with visual movement. Students will then compare the different applications and constructively review the features and limitations of the tools.

Literacy Integrated with Technology (LIT): Our 5th-grade students have been busy exploring Halloween traditions from around the world using a fun choice board activity. Over a couple of sessions, they learned about the history and meaning of Halloween in different cultures and then tested their knowledge with interactive activities. Learning about these customs helped students understand global traditions while making learning fun and engaging.

New Trier Math Program

Here is a letter detailing the New Trier Math Program process. The testing process is available for 6th graders within the township, and those students who qualify for the program begin participating as 7th graders.

The initial assessment will be administered to participating 6th grade students in school during the AM Instructional Block on Tuesday, November 19.

If you prefer that your child not participate in this assessment, please let your child’s math teacher and advisor know by Monday, November 11.

Clubs

The Student Library Advisory Board is live on the District Web Store. Registration opens at 9am on Tuesday, November 5th.

Math Counts Club: Attention Mathematics Enthusiasts!

Does your child have a passion for MATHEMATICS? They should join our district MathCounts Team! MathCounts is a competition where students Grades 6-8 compete for a chance to go to the State, and even the National Math Competition. Each week we will learn new skills, play games, and do challenges to prepare for the competition. This club will meet on Thursdays from 3:45-4:45 pm at Carleton Washburne School Room S204. The regional competition will be on 2/1/25. Skokie families will find the sign-up in the webstore under Carleton Washburne Clubs Non-Sports. Hope to see you on November 7th, 2024.

The Math Counts Club is live on the District Web Store under Washburne Non-Sports. Registration opens at 9am on Tuesday, October 29th.

Leader Round Table Follow-Up (Feedback Requested by Friday, November 1)

Thank you to those families who were able to join our leader round tables, hosted at all five buildings. We’ve included a link to the slides as well as a link to a feedback form including questions that were asked at the event. Feedback will be synthesized and shared out in an upcoming principal newsletter. We will then follow-up leading up to Fall Conferences in a subsequent newsletter with ways we are being responsive to the feedback.

Crow Island Slides and Google Form

Greeley Slides and Google Form

Hubbard Woods Slides and Google Form

Skokie Slides and Google Form

Washburne Slides and Google Form

Season 3 of “Winnetka Voices” Launched!

October is National Principals Month and the Illinois Principals Association (IPA) observes Principal Appreciation Week October 20-26, 2024. To highlight the the contributions of our building Administrators, the first five episodes of Season Three of the District’s podcast Winnetka Voices, feature Ms. Ivory Ajavon (Principal of Hubbard Woods School), Ms. Lindsay Kopinski (Principal of Greeley School), Ms. Michelle Cooney and Mr. Larry Joynt (Principal and Assistant Principal of The Skokie School), Dr. Andrew Fenton and Mr. Ben Horwitz (Principal and Assistant Principal of Carleton Washburne School) and Dr. Luke Livingston (Principal of Crow Island School). Winnetka Voices is a podcast hosted by The Winnetka Public Schools, featuring candid conversations on issues relevant to education and shared resources to support our students and families.

Listen here:

Apple Podcast

Amazon

Spotify

iHeart

Winnetka Parents Institute

The District offers regular sessions for families to learn more about a variety of topics. View the entire 2024/2025 schedule here.

Up Next:

AI Literacy Lessons for Grades 5-8

November 13, 2024

9:30 A.M.

Location: Carleton Washburne School Cafeteria

UNESCO, in their 2021 report entitled AI and education: Guidance for policy-makers stated that:

“AI is said to be a key enabler of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (Industry 4.0)…A recent global estimate suggests that 30% of work activities could be automated by 2030. Up to 375 million workers worldwide could be affected...Meanwhile, however, AI and other frontier technologies are increasing the range of high-skill jobs that require unique creative and analytical abilities and human interactions. In short, many workers’ jobs might disappear, and they will need to develop new skill sets – upskilling or reskilling – to enable them to enter the new occupations made possible by AI. Education ministries and training providers need to anticipate these changes, equipping today’s workers and preparing new generations with the necessary technical and social job skills, to smooth the transition to a world dominated by AI, while ensuring social sustainability.”

Artificial Intelligence is “out of the toothpaste tube” and is not going back in. In response, we’ll share with parents the steps we’re taking to increase the literacy of our students of Artificial Intelligence and how we’re preparing them to be responsible users of this tool.

Interested:

RSVP here

If you missed it, view videos from past sessions:

Insights on K-8 Literacy Programming in The Winnetka Public Schools

What to Know About the Otus Parent Portal

Message from the School Nurses

During this time of year, we are seeing an increase in illnesses including strep, colds, flu, and other viral infections. Additionally, Pertussis (Whooping Cough), pneumonia, and strep are prevalent in the community right now.

Here are some steps we can take together to help keep our school community healthy:

1. Stay Home When Sick: If your child is experiencing symptoms such as a persistent cough, fever, or difficulty breathing, please keep them home and consult a healthcare provider. This helps prevent the spread of illness to other students and staff. You can reference our district Health Guidelines here.

2. Encourage Good Hygiene: Remind your children to wash their hands frequently with soap and water, especially before meals and after using the restroom. Using hand sanitizer can also be effective when soap and water are not available.

3. Promote Cough Etiquette: Teach your children to cover their mouths and noses with a tissue or their elbow when coughing or sneezing. Dispose of tissues properly and wash hands afterward.

Your support in reinforcing these practices at home is invaluable. Together, we can help ensure a healthier school environment for everyone.

Remote Learning Practice Day

Practice Remote Learning Activity on November 7, 2024:

To ensure our students are prepared for any potential shift to remote learning due to multiple days of inclement weather, we have planned a proactive practice activity. This practice session is an important step in ensuring that our students remain connected and ready for learning should inclement weather occur.

• Date for Device Take-Home: On Thursday, November 7, all students will bring their school-issued iPads home.

• Objective: The goal is for each student to connect their device to their home Wi-Fi network and ensure they have access to the necessary tools and platforms.

• Return of Devices: Please ensure that the devices are returned to school with your child on Friday, November 8.

• Communication: Additional communication and reminders, as well as a form to record any issues your student experiences, will be sent closer to this practice event.

October Dimension of Belonging: Invited

Definition: The way people are invited signals their value and fosters a sense of belonging.

Essential Question: How are we pursuing all staff and students’ presence and actively extending new invitations?

Monthly Observances and Celebrations - October 2024

Click here to find October’s edition of the newsletter Belonging Means…

Sincerely,

Michelle Cooney and Larry Joynt

Principal and Assistant Principal

The Skokie School