Dear Crow Island Families,
Last week was a wonderful week at Crow Island. We came together to celebrate Unity week and got to cheer our our students for the Crow Island Run-a-thon! The PTO, Misericordia, and the students worked hard on making this a fun, exciting, and inclusive event. As a whole school, we ran a total of 373 miles!
Please remember to take the Superintendent Survey listed below. Dr. Tess is seeking feedback on the priorities and work around Winnetka schools. I encourage all families to take five minutes to complete the survey.
Have a great week!
Luke Livingston
Principal
- Tuesday, October 24: Bus Evacuation Drill @ Crow Island
- Tuesday, October 31: Halloween Ghost-walk @ 1pm
- Wednesday, November 1: No School (Institute Day)
- Thursday, November 2nd–Monday, November 6th: Halloween Candy Drive (details below)
- Wednesday, November 8th: Picture Day retakes
- Thursday, November 16th: Kindergarten Sing
- Monday, November 20th–Friday, November 24th: No School - Thanksgiving Break
- Wednesday, November 29th: Crow Island Book Fair (3:30–8:30 PM)
- Thursday, November 30th: Crow Island Book Fair (8:00–10:00 AM)
Monthly Observances: Disability Awareness Month
In October, Americans observe National Disability Employment Awareness Month by paying tribute to the accomplishments of the men and women with disabilities whose work helps keep the nation’s economy strong and by reaffirming their commitment to ensure equal opportunity for all citizens. At Crow Island it is also a time for our learning community to focus on a culture of inclusion and learn more about disabilities. Our Crow Island Library has created a library collection of texts on Destiny our online resource and families can view that here: Disability Awareness Month Collection.
At Crow Island, we have continued our partnership with Misericordia. The Mission of Misericordia is to provide a continuum of care and support for children and adults of all faiths and cultures who have intellectual and developmental disabilities. Each year, Misericoridia Athletes visit Crow Island during our Run-a-Thon to cheer on our students. This year, on top of that, Misericoridia is going to provide a short assembly for 4th grade students about their work (focused on things that make us the same) and a chance for students to get to ask questions. Following the assembly, Misericoridia visitors will play shared games with students faciltiated by our KW team. We are looking forward to that in the coming weeks.
Halloween Celebrations:
We are looking forward to celebrating Halloween at Crow Island. Below are a few reminders about our day:
1pm is the Parade and Ghost Walk:
The entire Crow Island community of staff, students, and families come together to celebrate Halloween.
1pm -Parade begins
Students will parade out the front doors, through the K playground, and down Glendale towards the big playground and blacktop.
Parents can line up on the front lawn, K playground, Glendale, and along the fence near the blacktop to view the parade.
After the costume parade:
Kindergarten will head back into school to participate in their classroom celebrations at 1:20pm.
Grades 1 - 4
Parents/Families - Walk from their parade location to the outdoor amphitheater.
Students - Students will continue to parade through the ghost walk in the woods and go to the amphitheater.
Ghost of Crow Island - Families, students, and staff will meet at the amphitheater and work together to call for the ghost of Crow Island.
Classroom Celebrations:
1:20 - 1:50 pm - Kindergarten
2pm - 1st Grade - 4th Grade
Room parents are invited into classrooms to facilitate class Halloween celebrations. Room parents should plan for the following:
Craft or game(s) to play students in the room
No food or candy should be purchased
Costumes Guidance:
Students can bring costumes to school. They will have time to change into costumes before the costume parade and ghost walk. Please follow the guidelines around costumes:
No fake blood or weapons
Keep the costumes school friendly (nothing too scary)
No masks
Keep in mind students are putting this on by themselves so keep it simple.
You can learn more about Halloween at Crow Island here: Halloween 2023
Understanding Assessment Results
Fall benchmark assessment results have been mailed home. Information to help parents understand the assessment reports are available on the District website. As a community of learners, we are navigating the way through how to best use this information along with the valuable insight gathered on a day-to-day basis in our schools. Thank you for being our partner in this growth process.
Literacy Pilot Underway
Last year the District strategic plan goal to realign the K-1 literacy program was updated to entail a full curriculum review of literacy programming K-8. The goal of the curriculum review is to ensure there is a guaranteed and viable literacy curriculum based upon current research that builds from Kindergarten through Grade 8. In the spring a group of educators that comprised the District’s Literacy Leadership Committee identified literacy programs to pilot this year and 60 classroom teachers volunteered to participate in the pilot. Participating in the pilot means that the teacher has been trained in the program and will select one existing unit in the literacy curriculum to replace with the pilot curriculum. Your child’s classroom teacher may have shared this information during the recent Go To School Night events, as well as through their classroom newsletters. While the student learning outcomes in literacy may remain the same this year, the programming, materials and sequence used may be different in classrooms where the pilot is taking place. More information about the pilot will continue to be shared through District communications and regular updates during School Board meetings. A special thank you to the Winnetka Public Schools Foundation Board for approving funding that was used for a large majority of the pilot training that occurred during September.
Bullying Awareness Month:
Click here to view a message from Carleton Washburne students.
Bullying affects everyone: those exhibiting bullying behaviors, the bullied, and the bystanders. The District's Bullying Response and Prevention Plan creates awareness of what bullying is with “child-friendly” language that illustrates the difference between mean, rude or bullying behavior; establishes and communicates to students, parents and staff methods for reporting incidents related to bullying behavior; develops communication protocols for investigating, notifying and resolving incidents reported; and, builds an ongoing dialog with students on bullying awareness and prevention.
The District 36 approach to bullying is “pro” solution rather than “anti” problem to foster a change of culture through kindness, compassion, respect, reaching out, and helping others. Every October, students discuss bullying prevention in their classrooms/advisories where they are reminded of methods available to them to speak with an adult about their concerns. Students in grades 5-8 are able to report an incident or indicate that they want to talk to an adult from a form on their ipad. Students K-4 are able to report an incident to any adult in whatever form is most comfortable for them. A reporting form is also accessible from the District’s website, along with information on text4help. Click here for additional information.
2023/2024 Calendar
To view the calendar for the 2023/2024 school year, please click here.
From the Superintendent: SURVEY OPEN THROUGH NOVEMBER 18
Please take approximately five minutes to provide your feedback by Friday, November 18. Last year’s survey findings led to numerous improvements in the areas of curriculum & instruction, communications and human resources. It is my hope that our responsiveness will continue to be witnessed in our efforts to provide the very best educational experience for the students of The Winnetka Public Schools and excellence for the community-at-large.
Reminder of Covid-19 Guidance for Students/Staff:
Per the Illinois Department of Public Health, it is recommended that a person isolates for at least 5 days from symptom onset if symptoms are present or 5 days from positive test date if no symptoms. Day 1 starts the day after symptom onset/positive test date. They can return on day 6 if fever, vomiting, and diarrhea cease for 24 hours and have improvement of symptoms. It is recommended to mask day 6-10.
Winnetka Parents Institute
The District offers regular sessions for families to learn more about a variety of topics. Please view the fall schedule here.
Coming Soon:
The Middle School Experience, AKA “Why is my child acting like this?” Please help.
November 3, 2023
9:30 - 10:30 A.M.
Washburne Resource Center
Join Principal Cooney and Assistant Principal Joynt (The Skokie School) and Principal Fenton and Assistant Principal Horwitz (Carleton Washburne School) for an informational session focusing on the ins and outs of the growing middle school child. We will share the neuroscience behind the changes that occur in 5th-8th grade children, and offer suggestions on how to support children both academically and socially-emotionally as they navigate the middle grades.
Skokie and Washburne families are encouraged to join us for an engaging, encouraging and educational hour together.
Interested:
Recordings of previous sessions:
Want to monitor your child's school device at home? Set up the JAMF Parent App!
If your student brings their school device home (grades 4-8), consider setting up the JAMF Parent App! The JAMF Parent app will allow you to allow & restrict apps, enable an app lock, set device and location rules, etc. All you need is the JAMF Parent App on your device (Apple/Android) and your student's iPad in front of you. Follow the instructions in this brief tutorial from JAMF on how to set it up and interact with the platform. Additional resources can be found here.
Introducing The Winnetka Public Schools App
Download the District’s app by searching “The Winnetka Public Schools” on the Apple App Store and the Google Play Store. The app will serve as a convenient way to report absences, view and manage your school calendars, and see at-a-glance District news.
Follow us on Social Media!
Please follow the District via the following social media platforms in order to see day-to-day happenings and more.
Facebook and Twitter: @Winnetka36
Instagram: @WinnetkaPublicSchools
Contact Us
Email: christinedemas-hall@winnetka36.org
Website: https://crowisland.winnetka36.org/
Location: 1112 Willow Road Winnetka, IL 60093
Phone: (847)-446-0353
Twitter: @CrowIslandD36