Twig 1/11/13

Holiday Thank You
The entire office staff would like to thank all of you for thinking of us this holiday season.  The many cookies, candies, and sweet treats were enjoyed by all! Thank you!


Lunch Shift Change
Let’s give a mid-year cheer… lunch shift switch time is here! January 28th will be our official lunch shift switch day. The students are very excited to experience either lunch or recess at a new time of day. Those students who have had lunch at 12:15 p.m. will now be eating at 12:45 p.m. and will go out to recess first. Those students who had lunch at 12:45 p.m. will now be eating at 12:15 pm and will go out to recess afterwards. We are looking forward to this change and the opportunity for our students to experience the lunch period from a new perspective.  


Coffee & Conversation with the Principals
Mrs. FitzPatrick and Mrs. Perri will be hosting the second in a series of informal coffee meetings for parents, on Friday January 25th, from 9:15 am to 10:15 am.   The topic of this meeting will be fiction/nonfiction book pairings.    As parents, we all want to foster a love of reading in our children.  We would like to expose them to a variety of literature, yet help them develop reading skills.  Does your child tend to check out one type of book (either fiction or nonfiction) from the LMC?  Would you like to see your child expand his/her selections?  If so, come and hear this informative talk about pairing good fiction and nonfiction books given by Mrs. Brown, Olive-Mary Stitt School’s LMC Director.  Dr. Jerome, District #25 Superintendent,  will also  be joining us at this meeting to answer any questions during the open Q & A portion of the meeting

Please Click HERE to RSVP for the 1/25/13 Coffee and Conversation with the Principals

 Middle School Bullying Presentation
Thomas and South Middle Schools would like to extend an invitation to the Olive Community to attend a presentation given by  Dorothy L. Espelage, Ph. D. on Bullying @ the Middle School on January 16th from 7:00 - 8:00 pm at Thomas Middle School.  For more information, please see the attached flyer in this weeks Twig.  


Robert Crown Parent Information Night
Parents of 5th grade students: On Tuesday, January 15 at 7:00 p.m., the District will be hosting a parent information night regarding the health programs presented by the Robert Crown Centers for Health Education. The programs focus on puberty and the reproductive system.  For more information about these programs and the parent information session, please reference the Robert Crown e-flyer on the District website.

World Language Open House
Included in the Twig this week is a flyer for the District #25 World Language Open House at South Middle School on Thursday, January 24th from 6:30 - 8:00 pm.  This is a great opportunity to learn about the many world language offerings made available to our middle school students and the unique characteristics each of these languages offer.


Census Reminder
 More than 75% of you have helped us in our planning for the 2013-14 school year by completing this quick online census. If you have not yet had an opportunity to do so, please use the link below to help us with this very important information gathering task!

                                Click HERE to Access the OMS census

Please click HERE to view the 1/11/13 Twig

Health Reminder

FROM YOUR SCHOOL NURSES

Since this time of the year tends to be a season for colds, flu and other illnesses, we feel that it is an appropriate time to review good health practices for you and your children.

The best way to prevent the spread of disease is to keep children home from school if they exhibit any of the following symptoms:

1.    A temperature of 99.5 degrees or above.  Following any illness, the temperature should remain normal for a period of 24 hours without fever reducing medication before the child returns to school.

2.    Sore or red throat, earache or swollen glands.

3.    Any undiagnosed rash or skin eruption.  Children cannot attend school with a rash unless we have a doctor’s note informing us that the rash is not contagious.

4.    Nausea, vomiting and/or diarrhea.  Do not send a child to school until 24 hours have elapsed since the last episode of vomiting or diarrhea.

5.    Eyes that appears reddened and/or crusted, unless we have a doctor’s note that it is not a communicable conjunctivitis.

6.    Acting listless or drowsy, complaining of headache, appearing flushed, or has a lack of appetite.

7.    Coughing, sniffling, or runny nose.   Many communicable diseases begin with these symptoms and are most contagious at this time.

There are several ways in which you can protect yourself and your children from communicable diseases:

           

1.    Good hand washing, especially before eating and always after using the bathroom, prevents germs from entering our mouths.

2.    Getting plenty of rest helps avoid stress to the immune systems.

3.    Eating three nutritious meals each day enhances our immune systems.

4.    Not sharing food or drinks prevents the spread of germs.

5.    Covering mouths when coughing or sneezing and disposing of tissues in a lined wastebasket helps to prevent the spread of infections.

These same simple practices will also help to prevent the spread of more serious diseases.  If you have questions or concerns about the spread of infection, please feel free to contact the nurse at your child’s school

District 25 Health Services Staff

Twig 12.21.12/Holiday Storytime

Happy Winter Break! We had quite a day at Olive today. Mrs. Perri & Mrs. FitzPatrick spent the day reading holiday stories to all of the grade levels. With a cozy fire in the background, we enjoyed stories of snow and gingerbread men. We also enjoyed a visit by Mary Stitt who just arrived back from her trip to Nigeria where she helped to provide Polio vaccinations to young children. Capping off the day was an assembly full of wonderful performances by students and staff and an all school sing-a-long.

Oh, what fun it is to go to school at Olive-Mary Stitt!

Thank you from the office:  Many of you have generously donated gift cards in our names to the Wheeling Township Food Pantry. We very much appreciate your kindness and willingness to join us in supporting our local families in need. We feel so fortunate to be part of such a caring and supportive community.

More than anything, we cannot thank you enough for allowing us to spend each and every day of the week with your wonderful children.   May your families be blessed with many happy memories and joyful laughs this winter break.  From our OMS family to yours - Happy Holidays and A Happy New Year! 

Be sure to scroll down to view past blog posts and 

click here to view the 12-21-12 Twig!

Click HERE to Access the OMS census

Have you seen the Gingerbread Man?

During the month of December, the kindergartners read and compared many different gingerbread stories. In some of the stories the gingerbread man got eaten and in others he got away. As a culminating activity each class baked their own gingerbread man. While the kindergartners were away, their gingerbread man ran away. You'll see in the video that the kids are following clues to find the gingerbread man. 

**If you see him, please let us know!

ABC/25 Grant

ABC/25 Membership Incentive Drive - Thanks to the generosity of so many of our families and staff members, OMS will be receiving an ABC/25 Membership Incentive Grant.  Twenty-nine percent of our school families and staff members joined the ABC/25 Foundation, which put us over our 25% membership goal and awarded us $2,500.  Thank you ABC/25 for funding so many worthwhile projects in our school!

2012 Illinois School Report Card

Click Here to view the 

Olive-Mary Stitt 2012 Illinois School Report Card

We are very proud of our students and teachers for their hard work and high levels of academic achievement.  In order to make (AYP) Annual Yearly Progress, at least 85% of our students must meet or exceed standards in reading and mathematics for every group.  Although Olive did not make Annual Yearly Progress (AYP) this year in all subgroups, we have taken a close look at the data and are focusing our school improvement efforts to help students in those subgroups obtain higher academic success.  For more detailed information about ISAT testing and our AYP status, please join us at the next PTA meeting on January 8th at 7:00pm where a more thorough look at our ISAT data will be presented.

OMS Census

Olive-Mary Stitt Census:

*Required to be completed by all OMS families

We are beginning to gather the names of ALL children (kindergarten and other ages) who will attend Olive-Mary Stitt School for the 2013-2014 school year. This helps us project the number of staff needed and invite families to register. After the names have been gathered, information regarding the details of registration will be sent to each family. 

Please complete the form below: 1) indicate (to the best of your ability) if your own children will continue at Olive; 2) list any child in your family who will enter Olive for the first time in the fall of 2013 and his/her grade; 3) indicate any friend or neighbor’s child who you think will enter Olive this fall and his/her grade; 4) if you are unaware of any new children, please indicate that and hit SUBMIT. 

NOTE: To enter the public kindergarten this fall, a child must be 5 years old on or before September 1, 2013. If you are not sure of the age, but think the child is old enough to be accepted, please include them on the form. 

We need a 100% return rate on these information sheets. Please submit this electronic form ASAP or no later than Friday, December 21st. Thank you!! 

*If you are having difficulty accessing this form, try to open the blog using a different web browser.  Sorry for the inconvenience.  

 Click HERE to complete the Olive Census Survey

 

Twig 12.14.12

Be sure to scroll down to view past blog posts and 

click here to view the 12-14-12 Twig!

Twig 12.7.12 / Parking Lot Reminders

Coming soon to Olive will be the addition of a NO LEFT TURN sign at the exit of our parking lot.  This new traffic rule will be in place to increase safety measures for our students during arrival and dismissal.  The Arlington Heights Police Department has been working closely with us to ensure a safe implementation of this new traffic pattern.  We anticipate this sign being posted and the NO LEFT TURN rule going into effect after winter break.  At that time we will have an increased  police and administrator presence to help with the transition.  Please start planning your new routes now so that you are prepared once this goes into effect.  Thank you!

Parking Lot Reminders

• If our parking lot is full, you may park in the church parking lot across Olive Street.

• If you do park in the parking lot, please accompany your child to school using the sidewalk and designated crosswalks. There are a lot of cars pulling in and out, so we want to ensure that your child arrives safely to the school building. The parking lot may NOT be used to bypass the drop off line, as students are not allowed to exit cars that are not in a designated spot

•  Parents dropping their students off on the Belmont Avenue cul-de-sac must stay in their car and travel through an organized line to approach school on the east side of Belmont, turn to drop-off, and then exit along the west side of Belmont. If you would like to park your car and walk with your student(s), please use one of the parking lots. 

•  If you are picking up your AM kindergarten student or dropping off your PM kindergarten student midday, you may temporarily leave your car unattended in the parkway to walk your child to the kindergarten doors.

• We appreciate that the line for dropping students off in the parkway can become long, particularly on inclement weather days. To ensure that the line continues to move smoothly, we ask that you continue to pull forward so that your child(ren) may exit your car on the driver’s side. To prevent traffic from backing up, we also ask that students not exit cars until you are parked along the sidewalk where the playground fence ends. Cars must not be left unattended in this area.

• As indicated by signs, a portion of Olive Street is designated as a drop-off/pick-up area. Please make sure that you do not leave your car unattended between these signs during the designated times.

•  Our crossing guard continues to be a great enhancement to our arrival/dismissal process. Please make sure that you and your child(ren) cross with the crossing guard in the designated crosswalk.

Together we can set a good example as we drive and walk in our school zone area. Thank you for your support!

Be sure to scroll down to view past blog posts and 

click here to view the 12-7-12 Twig!

Cents for Sandy

Thanks to the Service Club's Cents for Sandy collection, OMS will be donating $1127.50 to the American Red Cross to support those impacted by Hurricane Sandy. Thank you to everyone for your generosity!

Author Visit at OMS

This afternoon, our K, 1, & 2 students had the privilege of meeting with children's book author, Jennifer Ward. Jennifer has written twenty books for children and their parents, including the award-winning There Was a Coyote Who Swallowed a Flea, and, There Was an Old Monkey Who Swallowed a Frog, recipient of the IRA/CBC Children's Choice Award, and a #1 ebook best-seller. She showed our students some samples of her writing from her elementary school days and encouraged our students to write, sometimes just for fun!

Twig 11-30-12

Winter Coat Reminder
Brrrrrrrrr it is getting cold out there!  It is time to break out the hats and gloves and prepare for yet another Midwest winter!  We will be taking the students out for recess unless the temperature drops below zero degrees Fahrenheit or is excessively icy.  Please be sure to dress your children in coats, boots, gloves, hats, scarves, and snow boots as appropriate.   Any practice our younger students get at home in zipping up hats and wiggling fingers into gloves is also greatly appreciated by their teachers!!!

5th Grade Band Performance
Our 5th grade band students will be presenting a concert at Thomas Middle School on Monday, December 3rd at 7:00 pm.  Help us celebrate the talents of our students and join us for this evening of musical delight!

From the Office Staff
Your warm wishes, greetings, and the love and support of our school are our holiday gifts. We, in the front office, truly appreciate all you do to make Olive-Mary Stitt a great place for students to be. In lieu of personal gifts, we would like to continue inviting you to donate to a charity of your choice or to the Wheeling Township Food Pantry. Gift cards are needed and best suited to serve the needy in our community. We are able to collect these in the front office until December 21st. We so value your modeling this spirit of giving to your children on our behalf.

Be sure to scroll down to view past blog posts and 

click HERE to view the 11-30-12 Twig! 

Proud to be Olive - MARY STITT!

We are proud to be Olive-Mary Stitt ....and why wouldn't we be with our namesake still making her mark on the world.  If you didn't catch the Daily Herald article or the ABC 7 news coverage this week, click the links below to see the amazing things our very own Mary Stitt is up to these days!

Click Here for the ABC News Coverage 

Click Here for the Daily Herald Article

Staff Dinner

Thank you so much to all of the parents that provided a delicious dinner for the staff during parent/teacher conferences. Everything from the Olympic theme, to the delicious food, to the generous raffle prizes were so appreciated. We are so privileged to work in a school community full of parents that are kind, generous....and great cooks!

Lost & Found

Does any of this look like it is missing from your house? If so, please come by to retrieve it or encourage your child to do so by Friday, December 14th . Additional items are located in the storage bin next to the clothes rack. Any items that are not retrieved by this date will be donated to a local charity. Thank you!

Twig 11-16-12

Thanksgiving is a time to slow down our busy lives and take a moment to think about those things for which we are truly thankful.  We are so grateful to work in such a supportive school community!   We value and embrace the forward thinking vision of our district where we are WIRED for success and understanding.  The caring and talented Olive teachers and staff enrich our lives and make it a delight to come to work each and every day.  But most importantly, "Olive-us" are thankful to you for sharing your precious children with us.  Their joyous spirits brighten our days and are truly the reason we love being educators! As we approach this extended break from school and very busy time of year, we hope that you enjoy these precious moments with your families, friends, neighbors, and especially your children!

Important Dates:
     11-19-12  Parent Teacher Conferences
     11-20-12  Parent Teacher Conferences
     11-22-12  Thanksgiving
     11-26-12  School Resumes

Be sure to scroll down to view past blog posts and 

click HERE to view the 11-16-12 Twig! 

Art Newsletter

Please click HERE to read Mr. DeMarco's 

Art Adventures Newsletter.

Service Learning Club

Over the last two weeks the Service Learning Club worked to promote and collect holiday letters for United States Soldiers who are serving our country.  We also collected spare change in each classroom in our “Cents for Sandy” campaign to collect money for the people on the East Coast who were affected by Hurricane Sandy.  We promoted the letters and change drive during the morning announcements and made posters for our school hallways for both collections.  We decorated and distributed jars for our coin collections, and we wrote sample letters to soldiers for the classroom teachers.  This week we collected the letters and put decorative stickers on them and tied them with ribbons for the soldiers. Service learning club works together to help people all over the world. For example the club helps people that were effected by powerful weather, people that can’t afford enough food to feed their family, and they send caring letters to the soldiers who are protecting our country.

Written by 5th grader Claire S.

Twig 11-9-12

Thanks to the Student Service Learning Club, the Olive students and staff have been collecting "Cents for Sandy."  If you have any spare change, we are asking that our school community open up their hearts and pockets and give what they can to the relief efforts supporting the victims of Hurricane Sandy.  Collections are being taken in each individual classroom, during lunch,  and in the main office.  The collection will continue through the end of next week.  

Be sure to scroll down to view past blog posts and 

click Here to view the 11-9-12 Twig!

"Olive-Us" Filled The Nest

 

We are very proud to share that the Olive community collected more than 400 bags of food during our Fill The Nest Food Drive.  Thank you to each and every family who donated to this service project and to the PTA Character Counts Committee for organizing such a successful event!