Oak Grove News

Happy Monday, Oak Grovers!

We thought we would send out a small Oak Grove News just to revisit our normal routine. Thank you, Ms. Pickard for arranging this for our families today!

I speak on behalf of the entire Oak Grove faculty and staff when I say that we hope you, all of your family and friends are in safe health and doing well.

Certainly, our small community, as well as our entire nation is in the midst of very challenging times. There are so many unknowns and it is easy to get lost in the “bad news.” Information is everywhere and often changing by the minute. It can be difficult to sort it out and even more confusing trying to determine what is accurate. We thank you for your cooperation, flexibility, and patience as we navigate these challenging days together. I could not be more proud to be a part of the Oak Grove community.

Later today, you will be receiving a lengthy update from the District administrative team. Friday night, we received recommendations from the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE). We have worked all weekend to sort the materials out and use the guidance as we plan for the foreseeable future. It is also our goal to summarize many of the messages we have been sending you, incorporate the recommendations from ISBE, and explain our Remote Learning Plan.

In our webinar with ISBE on Sunday, State Superintendent of Schools, Dr. Carmen Ayala, listed her top three priorities for our schoolchildren….in this order: 1) Make sure they are safe, 2) Make sure they are fed, and 3) Help them learn. She is very, very concerned about the social emotional well-being of our kids in these unprecedented times. She knows they cannot effectively focus on their lessons if they are anxious, worried, and/or hungry. As we move forward, our staff will do all that we can to keep things as “light, happy, and fun” as we can for your sons and daughters. We will do our best to provide an appropriate amount of teaching and learning, while realizing your family needs balance.

We understand the current realities of our families. We know that many of you are working from home while supervising young children. We understand that some families may be experiencing financial hardships due to the Governor’s stay at home order. We are here for you if you need emotional support. We know that you are doing the very best you can, given extremely difficult circumstances.

The admin team wish you and your family a great week ahead and success with your remote learning. Be safe!

With Oak Grove pride,

Dr. Lemon

We hope that everyone is doing well. We miss you and we are continuously working to best support you moving forward. We prioritize supporting the whole child and want to ensure that our students’ mental, emotional, and social needs are being met.

If you are in need of support, please reach out to our mental health professionals. Take care and #StayHomeStaySafe

Oak Grove School is in the process of determining kindergarten enrollment for the fall of 2020. Having correct enrollment numbers is important to us as it impacts the number of sections, teachers, and classrooms. If you have a child who is 5 years old on or before September 1, 2020 and is planning to attend kindergarten in the fall, you can click the "19-20 Pre-registration" link from the main page of the Oak Grove web site, or simply go

to www.ogschool.org/kindy to pre-register your child. You will be asked to enter the following information:

• Your child’s name, birthdate, and gender
• Parent names and address, phone number and email address
• Names of siblings attending Oak Grove School

If you have neighbors who do not have children at Oak Grove and do not receive the Oak Grove News, please share this information with them. We would also like to hear from you if you have a child that will be attending 1st grade at Oak Grove next year and is not currently attending kindergarten at Oak Grove this year.

Thursday April 30th, 6-7pm

***Event location TBD: Junior High Cafeteria OR Online***

Sign up at the link below:

(First 25 Teams Accepted)

https://forms.gle/hWKxrnKouzhL98h17

Hosted by: Jina Rappaport & Kimberly Wesley

Hello Oak Grove Community,

In light of the remote learning implementation, the Governor’s Order from March 27th has suspended all State assessments for the spring of 2020 including: the Illinois Assessment of Readiness (IAR), the PE Fitness assessment, the Illinois Science Assessment (ISA), SAT, DLM-AA, and the Constitution exam. This means we will not be conducting these assessments if and when we return to school this spring. For 8th grades who will be attending high school in the fall, Oak Grove will work with Libertyville High School to determine what that means in regards to the Constitution testing requirements. As we gain further guidance, you will be kept informed.

On another note, please continue to share positive feedback or suggestions for improvement with your teachers regarding the remote learning plans. They are all taking great care in crafting engaging activities and lessons to help your children continue to learn and grow as students, even while at home. If you feel the questions are more school-wide, we will be sending a “Week 2” feedback survey out on Friday, April 3, to gain additional insights to help our continuous improvement.

Stay well!

Spring Sports

We do not have start dates for track or golf at this time. We are hopeful track and golf will have seasons, but we are not able to commit to anything now.

Our track meets are held at neighboring high schools. We anticipate we will lose some of the tentative dates that have been secured for middle school meets, because the high schools will be desperate to make up lost practices and meets.

Golf courses and driving ranges remain closed until at least April, 7th.

We will communicate more to parents and students when we have a better picture of what will be happening. We also need to realize both track and golf could be cancelled this spring.

The health, safety, and security of all community members continues to be our highest priority.

4th and 5th Grade Intramural Basketball

The season has concluded. Thank you to all who came out and participated.

Speedstacks is extending the $10 sets offer to OG students so they can get the equipment at home. As a reminder this is a 50% discount off standard pricing so we are limiting this offer to two sets per household. This offer is being extended through April 12th.

We hope this can ease a bit of the economic strain while still accomplishing your remote learning goals. Use the link below to redeem this offer. We have also made this offer public so feel free to share this link with your family and friends. The coupon code is ATHOME.

speedstacks.com/store/retail/speed-stacks-sets/?coupon=ATHOME

Camp Invention is still scheduled for June 15th-19th, 2020 at Oak Grove! Imaginations will soar this summer in the all-new Camp Invention® program, Elevate! Campers in grades K-6 will team up to play hybrid hover ball games, tackle environmental challenges and become confident entrepreneurs designing the next great invention! Local educators will lead fun, hands-on STEM activities building collaboration and creative problem-solving skills. Go to invent.org to register today, and see our flyer in the virtual backpack.

Any 7th grader who is currently a student council member who may want to run for office, please check our Google Classroom page for more information on elections.

CogAT results will be sent home on Monday, March 30th for all students in 3rd and 5th grade. We will continue to keep families updated regarding when and how additional TAG testing will take place as we know more about the unfolding situation. Please email Lilli Melamed melamed@ogschool.org, with any questions.

Hello Friends & Families!

I heard something today and it was amazing. We are not asking our students to socially distance or disengage with each other, but to physically distance ourselves. This past week we have found many ways to connect with friends and family members and we hope you have too! You and your children will be experiencing MANY different emotions over these next few weeks. There will be some anxiety for all of us. It is so important that you take time to speak to each member of your family about what they are feeling. Now more than ever we need to be able to name our feelings. It is only when you identify your feelings that your brain can begin to access tools to help you focus, calm down and solve problems.

Don't forget to take time for yourself to just breathe and celebrate the successes happening in your home! Your children are learning one of the most valuable lessons right now. It's the perfect time to focus on my FAVORITE STANDARD ~ Use social-awareness and interpersonal skills to establish and maintain positive relationships. Pay attention to your own feelings, notice the feelings of your children and let them know that it is OKAY to have strong feelings about what we are going through right now. Find a way to maintain positive relationships! My children were sad they couldn't see their neighbors so decided to play Charades from across the street. We had to be at least 30 feet apart, but the kids had so much fun! We are getting outdoors more as a family and setting goals. Send letters to grandparents, FaceTime with cousins or just make time to share a strong feeling that each of you had that day.
We will get through this together and we will be stronger as a result of being there for one another!

Good luck navigating working from home, homeschooling and finding time for you and for joy! As always, feel free to email me if you have any concerns or questions!

Sincerely,

Mrs. Kiefer

Social Emotional Learning Teacher K-5

Hello Oak Grove Community!

While each family is navigating this new way of living in their own ways, we are united as a community. We hope you are enjoying WISHTREE and our Oak Grove Reads program! Everyday your students in grades K-5 receive a chapter that they are able to listen to on their own device on SEESAW. All students and families Grades K-8 have access to these chapters on EVERY remote learning page. When you click OAK GROVE READS link, you will see the links to every chapter read by different faculty members. You can choose to listen to these chapters anytime you wish! Each family has a book and you can choose how your family would like to enjoy the book. We hope you are finding the discussion questions interesting as well! We may be physically distant from each other but we hope you feel united as we are all reading the same book together at the same time! We look forward to some whole school activities in the coming weeks!

Here are some questions for this week to discuss with your family:

• Do you have a place you like to go when you the world to quiet itself? (K-8)
• When Red says, "Trees are the strong, silent type. Unless we're not," what do you think he means? Is it better to stand up for what you believe in if it breaks the rules? (4-8)
• Have you ever done something that was wrong but you believed it to be right? (4-8)
• Does time really heal all wounds? (3-8)

Feel free to send your responses/family discussions to any of these questions to Mrs. Kiefer skiefer@ogschool.org and we will share them with our community!

In response to the current COVID-19 situation and school closure, the next PTO Meeting scheduled for April 1st has been cancelled. At this time, it will not be rescheduled. The next PTO Meeting will take place on Wednesday, May 6th at 9am.

The PTO Board is also monitoring impacts to upcoming PTO related activities and events in April including, but not limited to the Variety Show, Elementary Book Fair, and rescheduling the 5th Grade Mother & Daughter Tea. Decisions will be made and shared as more information is known over the upcoming weeks. The health and safety of our OGS students, families and staff will be the priority.

While this is an unprecedented, unpredictable time, we must continue to stay strong, be positive, and support each other within our OGS Community.

Please feel free to email us with any questions at julieCkovach@gmail.com and sandersL7@hotmail.com.

Thank you for your continued support and please take care.

Our community has always been a strong supporter of Oak Grove School. Now, more than ever, they need our support. Many shops and restaurants have found creative ways to continue operations and keep with social distancing through curb-side pick-up and deliveries. They are combining forces to offer complete at-home meals, using for Zoom for at-home Workouts & Lessons, and sharing merchandise on social media.

Support Local
Follow “Mainstreet Libertyville” or your look up your favorite Libertyville locations on Social Media to learn more about what they are doing. Give them a call and purchase a gift card to use later. Every little bit helps. If you are able to find a way, please Support Local. We are all in this together!

Dear Oak Grove Families,

We are all missing Oak Grove and looking forward to the day we can come back. During this isolated time, we want to do something that makes us feel strong and connected as a community.

In what started out as a “rainbow scavenger hunt”, neighborhoods around the country have been displaying rainbows in their windows as a symbol of hope, positivity, and solidarity.

We want to encourage you to create and display a rainbow in your window using any materials that you have available. People have used paint, markers, window paint, tissue paper, pipe-cleaners etc… This could be a fun activity for the kids, or something to do as a family. Get creative with it!

Here is a more in-depth article about the rainbow displays with some photos for inspiration.

https://www.chicagoparent.com/learn/crafts/quarantine-rainbows/

After displaying your rainbow take a picture and send it to Oak Grove School’s social media page. socialmedia@ogschool.org

Make sure to walk around the neighborhood and be on the lookout for other houses with rainbows!

Please click HERE to view the flyers in our virtual backpack. Flyers are updated weekly, so please check back often so you won't miss any of the events going on in our community.

Click HERE to view Board Agenda and Minutes

Email: boe@ogschool.org
Website: www.ogschool.org
Location: 1700 S. O'Plaine Rd. Green Oaks, IL 60048
Phone: 847.367.4120