OLHMS Weekly 9/26/23

Did you know that D123 Family Conferences is right around the corner?

We look forward to D123 Family Conferences on October 12th and 13th! Conferences are a great opportunity for scholars to express their progress through student-led conferences! Families will schedule meetings with advisory teachers, along with choosing encore teachers and/ or clinicians.

Fall Family Family Conferences 2023

• Oct. 12 from 5:00pm - 8:00pm & Oct. 13 from 11:30am - 6:30pm

Oak Lawn-Hometown School District 123 Family Conferences will be completely scheduled online via Skyward and families will have the opportunity to select either an in-person or phone conference.

• K-5 families will have the opportunity to schedule conferences with their student's grade-level teacher, encore staff, and specialists.
• 6-8 families will have the opportunity to schedule conferences with their student's advisory teacher, encore staff, and specialists.

Beginning on September 28 at 10:00 am and Ending on October 9 at 11:59 pm families can log into Skyward Family Access and pick their family conference time and date. Below you will find a series of resources to answer any questions you may have about Skyward Family Access. As always you can contact your school office if you have any additional questions about scheduling or a family conference.

• VIDEO DIRECTIONS
• WRITTEN DIRECTIONS (English)
• WRITTEN DIRECTIONS (Spanish)
• ADDITIONAL INFORMATION on D123.ORG
• SKYWARD LOGIN

Mustang Families,

Congratulations to all the staff, students and families who participated in the 6K race this past Saturday. We had over 130 runners, raising $3,295 for clean water projects in Africa!

Continue to remind our scholars to follow our Mustang Musts- Be Safe, Be Responsible and Be Respectful!

We were able to show some appreciation to each grade team demonstrating these Mustang Musts with our ID contest! Congratulations to Team 6B, 7A and 8A for returning those IDs and receiving a cookie on the house this past Friday!

Safety Drills: We will practicing safety drills over the next couple of weeks. Please speak with our students about the importance of being prepared in the event of an emergency and the reality of taking each of these opportunities seriously. We will be performing an evacuation and relocation drill on Wednesday morning. If you do no want your student to participate in the walk to Sward, please contact the office.

Individual Student Reports: We have completed the Fall NWEA MAP Assessment. Student scores can be found on Skyward.

The following documents are generally available in the "Portfolio" section of Skyward.

• "Latest NWEA MAP Report"

• "D123 Report Card"

• "D123 Student User Name & Password"

Illinois Assessment of Readiness(IAR): We have distributed last Spring results to all students. Here is the letter LINK accompanying these results.

MTSS: School District 123 defines Multi-Tiered Systems of Supports (MTSS) as a framework consisting of academic, social-emotional, and behavioral supports. All D123 students’ developmental needs are met through high quality, research-based instruction and interventions tailored to his or her unique learning style. In addition to tailoring instruction to unique learning styles, School District 123 strives to implement the MTSS Framework in a culturally responsive and systemically consistent manner. Ultimately, the goal of D123’s MTSS framework is to meet the needs of all unique learners, and in doing so, identify students who are struggling and intervene quickly. The MTSS framework consists of three tiers of instruction. Additional information is LINK here with this Family Letter.

SAEBRS: The Illinois State Board of Education has adopted learning standards for children’s social and emotional development, in addition to academic standards that already exist for each grade. All schools in Illinois are charged with the responsibility of teaching children how to manage their emotions, get along with others, and make good decisions. Three times a year, staff engage in this process for our scholars. The first window of engagement begins this week. Additional information is LINK here with this Family Letter.

Working Lunch: We are very excited about our start to the year! As we move forward in our year, we will maintain high expectations for our scholars! We have implemented a plan for scholars to finish work during lunch. Working lunch will be used to support work completion and behavioral reflection. Students assigned to working lunch will be given a bagged lunch if they did not bring one.

First Student Bus Company: We will continue to work with our bus partners to elevate efficiency and timely communication. Typically, this will take 3-4 weeks to balance out. That said, we still have a couple routes that continue to be a work in progress. As we receive communication from First Student about route delays, messages will be sent to families. We have also learned that new drivers for the bus company should be ready to drive beginning in October.

Student Device Insurance

Families of students in all grade levels can sign up for this insurance program by adding the optional “Student Device Insurance” fee through Skyward Family Access. You have until September 30th to purchase device insurance every year. Additional information about the student device insurance program and deductibles can be found at: https://d123.org/about/technology/student-device-insurance/

Please view either the written or video tutorial on how to add Chromebook / iPad insurance to your student's account.

Health Examination and Immunization Requirements

There are specific requirements for students entering preschool, kindergarten, second grade and sixth grade, as well as for all new students. Visit our Health Forms & Guidelines page for more information. Please note that these vaccinations and/or health examinations are required by state law.

• All incoming 6th Graders must have a physical and dental report on file.
• Current 7th and 8th Graders will need sports physicals to try out for teams.
• We have begun reviewing student records to ensure compliance.

Graduation Expectations

Our 8th grade scholars and parents have been given this Parent Letter. These expectations have been discussed with scholars and families during open house. As the year progresses additional information will be provided for our graduates!

Arrival and Dismissal

Parking lots are for staff parking only. All parent/student drop off and pick up takes place in the back of the school on Oak Center Dr.

• Main Entrance: Bus entrance only!

• Oak Center Drive: One-Way moving West to East for morning and afternoon drop off and pick up.

• Parents dropping off and walkers enter the building in the back of the school on Oak Center Dr. Parents please be patient, follow guidance from support staff and do not block the driveways of our neighbors on Oak Center Dr.

• 6th Grade scholars use Door 4

• 7th Grade scholars use Door 6

• 8th Grade scholars use Door 5

Please make sure students are using designated crosswalks!

• • OLHMS PTSA

    • Membership is $6.00 per student and $10.00 per adult

    • PTSA Meeting- October 2, 2023 at 7:00pm

    • PTSA Facebook

  • All parents/ guardians/ staff & students are highly encouraged to join the PTSA and attend meetings. This is an incredible opportunity, partnership and fun way to support our scholar’s experience at the middle school!

We need your support! Please spend some of your precious time with us volunteering for our scholars as they have some fun with friends! Our PTSA Open Gym will be from 6-7:30 pm on Thursday, September 28th. Volunteers would be needed from 5:45-7:45pm. Use this LINK to let us know we can count on your time to volunteer to supervise and play some games with our wonderful students!

9/27/23: Evacuation and Relocation Drill

9/27/23: D123 Parent University: School Safety Update (6:30pm)

9/28/23: PTSA Open Gym

Make Your Calendars

10/2/23: PTSA Meeting

10/4/23: D123 Late Start

10/9/23: No School

10/10-10/13: OLHMS Book Fair

10/12 & 10/13: Family Conferences

10/16/23: D123 Unity Week

10/19/23: Fall Picture Retakes, OLHMS High School Fair

2023-24 School District Calendar

CLICK HERE TO VIEW CALENDAR