DeMotte Elementary School

February 2nd: PTO Glow Dance | DES Gym/Cafeteria 5-7pm

February 7th: DES PTO Meeting | 4:00pm DES Library

February 16th: Possible Make Up Day (No school if not necessary)

February 19th: President's Day - No School!

February 26th - March 1st: DeMotte Elementary School Book Fair

February 29th: Book Fair Family Night and DES Art Show | 4:30-6pm

March 4-15th: IREAD-3 Window Open

March 6th: DES PTO Meeting | 4:00pm DES Library

March 13th: End of Q3

March 18th: 2nd Grade Music Concerts | 5:30 & 6:30pm DES Gym

March 25-29th: Spring Break - No School!

We will get an extended weekend this month with President's Day Weekend! No school from Friday, February 16th through Monday, February 19th. Students will return to school on Tuesday, February 20th.

Our Book Fair is ONE MONTH away! Mrs. Wright, our Media Aide has been working hard to prepare and plan for this year's "Pop In for a Good Book" themed fair!

We need great parents and family members to serve as volunteers. Thanks to the help of parents and families like you, we have had much success!

To learn more about this year's Book Fair, which runs February 26-March 1st, AND to sign up as a volunteer, please visit:

https://bookfairs.scholastic.com/bf/demotteelementaryschool

It's time to order a yearbook! They are $15. You can place your order by returning the order form to school or going online at www.strawbridge.net and use code: YB28899. The deadline to order is March 8th.

Just a reminder that our After School IREAD Tutoring sessions for third graders begin this month. They are held on Tuesdays and Thursdays. The first session is on Tuesday, February 13th. This is only for students who were identified and who registered to come. If your child is attending, please arrive on time at 4:30 pm to pick them up. Thank you!

All of our 2nd and 3rd graders will be taking IREAD during the week of March 4th. For those students who are absent, we will complete make-ups the following week.

Parents: Please help us by trying to avoid scheduling appointments during this week. Please keep your routines as normal as possible with good bed times and a good breakfast. We appreciate your support in advance!

Transportation

All changes must be made through the school office before 1:00. Please send a note or call the school office, 987-2789. Please do not call or message bus drivers without directly reaching out to the front office!

Attendance

If your child is absent for any reason, please notify the school office before 10:00.

School Hours

School begins at 8:55. Doors open at 8:40. Students arriving after 8:55 need to be accompanied to the office and signed in by an adult.

On 'Late Start Wednesdays', school begins at 9:25. Doors open at 9:10.

We are in the heart of our winter season! You will receive information on delays and cancellations by receiving a call, text, and/or email from Skylert. You can check the settings for how you get your alerts in Skyward Family Access. Please read KVSC's Guidance for eLearning Days HERE.

We also post about delays and cancellations on our Facebook Page and Class Dojo.

All eLearning days will include live instruction equal to at least 50% of our daily instructional minutes. Teachers will deliver instruction via Zoom and each school has developed a schedule for students to follow.

eLearning Model

Teacher Office Hours: After 9:00 a.m. /anytime not on Zoom Meetings

Teacher Lunch: Teacher will communicate with students/parents lunch time.

Classroom Expectations

• Teachers will schedule a Zoom session from the hours of 9:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. Teachers will schedule a Zoom Session between 1:00-3:00 pm to check-in with students and offer support that students need.

• Reading & Math lessons will be live.

• Following the grade-level’s schedule, students will complete Reading, Math, and lessons in Art, Music, or Gym. In addition to whole group lessons, students will also work with their teacher in small group lessons and there will be some opportunities for a student to check in 1-1 with their teacher.

Classroom Morning Session Time

• Teachers will schedule a Zoom Session for Live Instruction from 9:00-11:30 am

Specials Teachers Session Time (Art, Music, & P.E.)

• Specials Teachers will meet with their scheduled classes that they are regularly scheduled to meet with.

• Specials Teachers will teach a lesson on Zoom with their classes.

Classroom Afternoon Session Time

• Teachers will schedule a Zoom session between the hours of 1:00-3:00 pm to check-in with students and assist as needed.

Attendance

We are responsible for 180 days of instruction. Therefore, attendance will be taken daily, Monday-Friday. Teachers may use discretion on due dates.

Consider being a part of the DES PTO this year! They will be meeting on the first Wednesday of each month at 4pm in the Media Center! Please consider being a part of this team to discuss all of the exciting things coming up at DES!

We had a great turnout last month! Join us on March 6th for our next meeting!

Parents are such a pivotal force in the success of a child's education and the state of Indiana has created an vast resource hub for families to help provide materials, websites and more!

Visit the Parent and Family Hub to find grade level appropriate resources for your family!

Parents of 2nd & 3rd graders may be interested in the IDOE's Released Item Repository for IREAD and ILEARN! (As an educator and parent of a 2nd grader, I recommend taking a look at the IREAD released items in preparation for March's IREAD-3 Testing!)

Kankakee Valley Developmental Preschool Peer Applications for the 2024-2025 school year will be available in the main office of DeMotte Elementary, Wheatfield Elementary and Kankakee Valley High School on Thursday, February 1, 2024. Completed applications will need to be returned to the main office at Kankakee Valley High School no later than Friday, March 1 2024. If you have any questions about the preschool program, please contact our Preschool Teacher, Rosie Van Syoc at rvansyoc@kv.k12.in.us

Do you or someone you know have an Incoming Kindergartener for the 2024-2025 School Year?! You (or They) can pre-register during the month of April!

Stop by our DES School Office during the month of April to get your packet and complete the necessary paperwork!

Have you "LIKED" our DeMotte Elementary School Facebook Page yet?!

We post A LOT of great things on our Facebook Page!!!

Click HERE to do so: https://www.facebook.com/DeMotteElementary