January Newsletter

• January 1-8 - Winter Break
• January 9 - School Resumes
• January 9 - SMS/CIS Wrestling at Coal City
• January 10 - FCS and Cyclone Band Trip
• January 10 - 5/6 Volleyball at Pontiac at 4:30
• January 11 - Spelling Bee
• January 11 - 5/6 Volleyball at Seneca at 4:30
• January 12 - 5/6 Volleyball pictures at 3:00
• January 15 - No School - Martin Luther King Jr. Day
• January 17 - SMS/CIS Wrestling at Central at 4:30
• January 18 - 5/6 Volleyball at home at 4:30
• January 18 - PTO BASH fundraiser from 4:00-7:00
• January 19 - SMS/CIS Wrestling Pictures at Shepherd at 4:00
• January 20 - SMS/CIS Wrestling at Reed Custer
• January 22 - 5/6 Volleyball at home at 4:30
• January 23 - 5/6 Volleyball at Streator at 4:30
• January 23 - SMS/CIS Wrestling at Plano
• January 24 - 5/6 Volleyball at Morris Grade School at 4:30
• January 25 - 5/6 Volleyball at home at 4:30
• January 26 & 27 - 6th grade Volleyball at Spring Valley
• January 27 - SMS/CIS Wrestling at Eureka
• January 30 - 5/6 Volleyball at LaSalle at 4:30
• January 31 - SMS/CIS Wrestling at Central at 4:30

December’s Champions of the Charter were recently chosen by the staff at Central School. This month, these students went above and beyond to practice and help others to feel POSITIVE, SAFE and CALM here at Central School. The champions will be recognized at the board meeting on January 16. We are very proud of the great example they set for their fellow students.

Our choir group, Friendly City Sounds, has been very busy lately. They have performed at Pleasant View Nursing Home, at the radio station for Freezing for a Reason, at their winter concert, and finally at the Kris Kringle Market. We are very proud of how talented our students are, but more importantly, the amazing way they have represented our school! Great job, FCS!

On January 18, Team LEAD visited Pleasant View Nursing home and performed a readers' theater about the Grinch. They also sang Christmas Carols and were able to visit with the residents.

I am in my 3rd year of teaching. I taught one year at Shepherd, and am happy to now be in my second year at Central! I was born and raised in Ottawa where I went to St. Columba until 1st grade. I attended Ottawa Elementary from 2nd to 8th grade and Ottawa High School. I continued my education at Illinois Valley Community College for my associates degree, and Illinois State University for my bachelors in special education. Last year I married my husband Alex. We have a dog named Bentley and a cat named Jax. I love teaching in the community where I grew up. It is an amazing experience working with some of the people who were my teachers. My favorite part of teaching is finding fun ways to learn and build relationships with my students. I love getting to see their personalities and confidence grow and change throughout the year.

My name is Hannah Lehr, and I am in my fourth year of teaching. I was born and raised in Ottawa, and even attended Central Intermediate School from 2008 to 2010. I love teaching at my old school and getting to work with teachers I had as a student. I graduated from Illinois State University with a bachelor's degree in Elementary Education and an endorsement as a reading specialist. I am married to a fellow teacher, Bryer, and we have a sweet cockapoo puppy named Arbor. I love my job because every day is a new experience and I get to work with so many amazing kids!

I have been teaching for a total of 31 years, with 30 of those years being at Central School. I am originally from the Chicago suburbs and moved out here 35 years ago. I have a Bachelors of Science degree from Illinois State University and a Masters of Arts degree from Aurora University. My husband and I have two grown sons. Outside of school, I enjoy spending time running, camping, and watching Chicago sports, especially the Chicago Bears.

I was born and raised in Ottawa, Illinois. After a few years in other communities I moved back to Ottawa to raise my children. I am married and have three grown children. I went to college at the University of Illinois in Springfield where I earned my degree in Child, Family and Community Services. After several years of teaching, I became interested in Special Education. I earned my masters degree from Northern Illinois University in Special Education. I have been teaching for 26 years, and this is my third year at Central School.

I have been teaching sixth grade for 25 years and have been in education for 27+ years.

I graduated from Illinois State University in 1995 with my Bachelor's Degree in Elementary Education and earned my Master’s Degree in Curriculum and Instruction in 2003 from Olivet Nazarene University.

In my free time I love to bake and cook, read non-fiction, spend time outside with my dog Max, and get together with my family as often as I can!

I have been at Central as a Paraprofessional for 20 Years. The teachers I work with are amazing, but the most satisfying part of my job is working with the kids. I have 3 grown children, and when I’m not working I enjoy spending time with my grandchildren.

I am in my thirteenth year of teaching, which has all been at Central Intermediate! I have lived in Ottawa my whole life where I went to St. Pat's Grade School and Marquette High School. I continued my education at Western Illinois University to receive my bachelors in Education and then completed my masters in Educational Leadership through Aurora University. I am married to another Ottawa native, Jimmy, and we have three energetic little boys: Sawyer, Trace, & Hugh. My favorite part about teaching is not only seeing that light bulb moment during instruction, but also teaching the importance of kindness and acceptance.

The week before break, our students and staff had some fun participating in our holiday dress up days. Each day, the best dressed from each house was awarded points in the Cyclone Challenge Competition. The house with the most points at the end of the week was crowned the winner of the Cyclone Challenge and awarded the championship belt. The winner of the Cyclone Challenge was House 5-2. Congratulations!

To add to the festivities of the week, Mr. Czernicki, Mrs. Heaver, Ms. Weiler, and Brennen H. treated students and staff to some wonderful holiday music upon their arrival to school. We are extremely lucky to have such talented people in our district!

To end our week of fun, we held a pie-in-the-face competition. Throughout the week, students voted for a staff member from each house to receive a pie in the face. House 5-1 voted for Mr. Garner, House 5-2 voted for Mrs. Conley, House 6-1 voted for Mrs. Heaver, and House 6-2 voted for Mrs. Thrush. Students were randomly chosen to deliver the pie to each staff member's face. What a fun way to end our week!

We have been busy this first half of the year! In science we have been working on several tasks that require research, teamwork, specific sketches, and creating either a prototype, poster, and/or coming up with a solution to a real-world problem. I have been so impressed with the higher level thinking skills and teamwork I have witnessed with my science classes! Looking forward to the second half of the year!

The Central and Shepherd PTO will be having a fundraiser at B.A.S.H. on Thursday, January 18. The event will take place from 4:00-7:00, with a portion of all dine-in sales going to the PTO.

B.A.S.H. is located at 1012 LaSalle St. Let B.A.S.H. do the cooking for you while you support our PTO!

As the weather is getting colder, we just want to remind students to dress appropriately for the weather. Our students go out for recess most days, so coats and long pants are highly recommended.

If your student is bringing any type of ball to school to play with at recess, it needs to be in their book bag, or another separate bag. We appreciate your help with this.