Thompson Friday Forecast

February 26, 2021

From the Principal...Steve Morrill

School Improvement Day

Today our teachers are participating in various virtual professional development sessions. This time is a great opportunity that our district provides our educators as they support on-going learning. Our language arts and social studies teachers at Thompson are pleased to be welcoming notable educational author Kelly Gallagher who is considered by many to be one of the leading voices in literacy education. We value the time given to improve our craft and learn from experts in our fields which will ultimately benefit students.

i-Ready Update

At the middle schools, we are now shifting i-Ready expectations for students from minutes completed to lessons passed. From now on the expectation is that all students successfully pass 1 reading lesson and pass 1 math lesson per week. Previously the District’s expectation was that middle school students would complete 50 minutes of reading and 50 minutes of math personalized pathway learning in i-Ready each week.

Dangerous Apps

Our police liaison officer relayed to us that the police department has been seeing a rise in cases with two apps in particular which are designed to enable child predators. Omegle’s tagline is “talk to strangers.” Children press a button and then they video chat with a stranger from any location of whatever age.

https://www.omegle.com/

Among Us is currently a very popular game where “imposters” have to kill members of a group and then they get together to talk about what they saw and vote on the identity of the imposters. The app has text and voice chat capabilities in the “lobby” while waiting for games to start. There are several examples of people meeting and exchanging SnapChat or other contact information in the lobby. https://innersloth.com/gameAmongUs.php

The end of the 3rd Quarter is quickly approaching!

Friday, March 12th marks the end of the third quarter. Please have a discussion with your child to make sure that this date is on his/her “radar.” It is important that students are aware of this date so that action can be taken to ensure that all assignments and activities are completed and turned in before the end of the quarter. Please contact your child’s teachers or counselor if you have any concerns or questions.

Enjoy your weekend!

~Steve

Important Parent/Guardian Survey

Every year we gather input from parents and guardians, staff, and students via the Illinois 5Essentials Survey in order to improve communication, find ways to engage students at a higher level, and improve student learning. Participation in this survey is important as the results will identify areas where Thompson is doing well and areas where we need to improve.

We are asking parents/guardians to complete this survey which should not take more than 10 minutes of your time. Please visit https://survey.5-essentials.org/Illinois/ and select the appropriate survey. At the conclusion of this process, the tabulated results will be posted on the Illinois State Board of Education website, www.ISBE.net. Thank you in advance for participating and providing your feedback!

PTO Thompson Spiritwear - Click Here

Order your PTO Spirit Wear by April 2nd! Orders will be delivered to Thompson by April 26th.

Saints Tutoring Thunder 2020-2021

The Saint's tutoring Thunder (STT) club provides students with an opportunity to receive help on homework, projects, and/or comprehension of material that they are learning in classes. The Saint's tutoring Thunder (STT) club is available for both students attending in-person or remotely. This club meets on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Parents can sign their child up for this tutoring and/or students can sign up themselves!

STT allows students to meet virtually with a Thompson club supervisor and a St. Charles East Sophomore tutor from 4:15 until 5:00 pm. The Thompson club supervisor will facilitate the after school support while supervising the high school students tutoring our students.

Sign-ups are available Thursday-Monday for the following week. This ensures that we have the correct amount of tutors for our students. You can click here to sign up for Saint's tutoring Thunder club. Once your student has been signed up, they will receive an invite link in their email.

Yearbook Pictures Wanted!!

What does home/remote learning look like for our students? We want to capture those pictures in our yearbook! Please upload your photos by clicking on this tab or emailing them to Robert.Harmon@d303.org.

A reminder from the school nurse…

State legislation requires that all Illinois children in sixth grade will have a dental examination. A licensed dentist must perform the examination, and he or she shall sign the form. Dental offices should have the form available, but it is also available online at www.d303.org under Departments, then Health Services, then “Health Documents and Forms”. Each 6th grade student must present proof of a dental examination by a dentist prior to May 15, 2021. The exam must be dated within 18 months prior to May 15, 2021. If your child has had an exam already, you can ask your dentist to complete the form for the exam.

The Illinois Department of Public Health has established a waiver for children who show undue burden or lack of access to a dentist. Parents or legal guardians who object to the dental examinations on religious grounds shall present to the school a signed, detailed statement of the objection.

The deadline is quickly approaching! Please submit this if you have not already done so. If you have any questions, please contact the TMS nurses.

Diane Isbrandt RN, PEL-CSN

Sherri Esposito, RN

Amy Kashuba, RN

Thompson Middle School

331-228-3104

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D303 Remote Learning Resources for Students and Parents

All students have the opportunity to engage in optional learning experiences by visiting the D303 Remote Learning Resources page. There are a variety of learning experiences in the areas of math, digital citizenship, English Language Arts, college and career, virtual field trips, STEM, and social emotional learning. Students may engage in these experiences at any time.

Chromebook Device Exchange

The IT device exchange takes place at the Haines building (305 South 9th Street), Door #2, between 12:00 - 4:00 pm Monday - Friday. You do not need to make an appointment. If you need assistance with a broken device, please contact the live chat service during business hours or visit the IT Technical Resources site for information.

Wake Up Call Presentation

The Wake Up Call presentation, a program of Your Choice, on February 2, 2021 provided practical information on current drug trends, a walk-through of a teens' bedroom with more than 20 red flags that could indicate substance abuse, and proactive parenting strategies to keep your child substance free.

The presenters, all with lived experience, combined their personal stories, experience working with students and families, and shared things they wish they would've known into an engaging, real and unique presentation. If you were not able to attend, please click on this link to view the presentation.

Thompson PTO

Check out the Thompson PTO website by clicking on the button above!