The Central Scoop

Dear Parents,

Our first few days of school have been very successful. The students have already made new friends, bonded with their teachers and adjusted to the new lunch and recess procedures. Our students started attending library, technology, Spanish, music, art, and PE classes too! We visited all of the classrooms and can confidently say that all of the students are starting to settle into their academic routines. We are looking forward to a wonderful school year!

~ Becky & Holly

Rebecca Littmann

Principal

Central Elementary School

littmanr@wilmette39.org

Welcome to the 2021-22 school year! We hope that your first week has been filled with smiles and happiness for everyone. We are grateful for all of our teachers, staff members, and administrators who worked tirelessly this summer to ensure that we could safely welcome our students this fall.

Back to School References

Please check out our Back to School 2021-22 website for information on our health and safety protocols, social emotional learning resources and parent education events. You can find a more detailed look at our layered mitigation plan here. Additionally, please check out our updated FAQs and our newly published Family Response to Illness Booklet to stay informed about how you can help us continue to provide in-person instruction for all of our students.

COVID-19 Testing Through Shield Illinois

This year we are thrilled to be partnering with SHIELD Illinois to make COVID-19 testing available district-wide for students, faculty and staff. Registration is strongly encouraged for all students to ensure easy access to testing when and if it is needed. Weekly participation in testing is strongly recommended for all unvaccinated students. Learn more about SHIELD Illinois and all COVID-19 testing options on our COVID-19 Testing webpage.

While we are thankful it didn't rain this week, it has been a bit hot inside the building. As a result, we implemented our hot weather procedures within the school to ensure that our students and staff have options to stay cool. Below are a few of the measures available to mitigate the heat:

• Rotating classrooms through designated cooling areas (air conditioned spaces) available throughout the day

• Continued implementation of our increased ventilation throughout our school buildings

• Using fans inside classrooms and hallways to assist in circulating air

• Decreasing use of overhead lighting

• Limiting physical activity in classrooms and PE classes

• Moving to outdoor, shaded spaces

• Encouraging frequent water breaks

• Monitoring students, faculty, and staff for signs of excessive heat exposure

  
  

As always, the health and safety of our students is our priority and be assured that we are working to ensure that our students are cool and comfortable during this stretch of warm weather.

We provide adult supervision before school each day beginning at 8:20 AM at the doors only. Our playgrounds are not supervised by adults (they are considered public parks before and after school). If you would like your children to be able to play on our playground before or after school, they should have a parent or adult babysitter present to supervise.

After school, please wait until close to the dismissal bell to walk onto school property to retrieve children. Our PE classes are outside until 3:10pm. There will be supervisors on hand at each door to help students locate their caregivers at dismissal.

Please help us promote bike/scooter safety. Children may not ride bikes/scooters on school property. This includes school sidewalks and blacktops. We are simply asking the children to walk their bikes to the bike racks (and scooter racks) when they arrive to school. As a reminder, 3rd and 4th graders may bring their bikes to school. Those in 2nd grade are encouraged to bring their bikes to school once they participate in bike safety training in May.

For more information about school rules and safety procedures, please view our district and school handbooks listed on the front page of our school website.

LUNCH:

• Students can bring their own lunch OR buy a box lunch.
  
• Students will eat outside, in the cafeteria, or in a gym.
• If bringing own lunch: Students are expected to eat lunch on their own without the help of the supervisor, including opening up packages on their own. Please send items students are comfortable with and have used before.
  
• If buying lunch: There will be a monthly menu online. Here is the menu for the month of August. Parents put money into the students account.
• We will try to eat outside as much as possible. Please send a towel to keep at school to use for outside lunch.

RECESS:

• Outside, classrooms (pods) are allowed to interact/play with each other! Students can play with friends from other classes. (Note - this may change depending on the guidance we get from the health departments throughout the year).
  
• Masks must be on while on the playground equipment, Gaga Pit and blacktop areas.
• A mask free zone will be the fields/grass. Students may play games on the field and/or walk around and simply take a mask break.
• Mileage Club will start up again this year! It will begin later in September....more info coming soon!

Make sure all of your health forms are ready to be turned into our nurse, Nicole Meyer. Please contact her at with any questions starting August 18th.

• Kindergarten: Vision, dental, & medical forms
  
• Lechner Early Education Program: Medical forms
  
• All: Medication & health updates

Be sure to read Nurse Meyer's Back to School Health Letter Below

The PTA sends a separate newsletter each Sunday. Here are a few highlights.

Eat at Panera and Help Support Central School!

Monday, August 30th | 4:00 pm - 8:00 pm

Let Panera take care of dinner on Monday evening and a portion of the proceeds will be donated back to Central! Order online at www.panerabread.com and enter code PRFUND at checkout. You can also bring THIS FLYER or show a digital version to the cashier when ordering at the cafe.

Skyline Theater is Returning to Central this Fall!

Is Under the Sea where you want to be? Then join Skyline Studios and Central School to see. The Little Mermaid Jr. is coming to you. Lights, Camera, Action on Ariel, Sebastian and crew. Don’t be a Poor Unfortunate Soul. Become part of our world in this exciting show, make new friends and shine like a pro! Registration is open to 3rd & 4th grade students and classes will be held on Thursdays from 3:15-5:00 in the auditorium starting Sept. 16th. The cost will be $355. Register HERE

Looking to get involved this year? The PTA needs your help!

The PTA is currently in need of volunteers to fill the following two positions. Please reach out to Jencurchin@gmail.com if you are interested in learning more.

Civics and Safety (2 volunteers): Attend district Civics & Safety meetings on behalf of Central; Organize Bike Safety Day for 2nd graders!

Assistant Communications : Serve as a part of the core team that fosters communication from school to home on all PTA matters

Please join us for a welcome back ADULTS ONLY ice cream social on

September 2nd at 7-7:30pm in the tent behind WJHS.

Following the social, we will be meeting at VALLEY LODGE in Wilmette for food and/or drinks. There has been a private room reserved for "Pass39".

What is PASS39?

The Parent Association for Student Services in District 39 (PASS39) is a parent organization committed to supporting parents of children with learning, behavioral, emotional, and developmental challenges.

Can I join? Your child doesn't necessarily have to have an IEP or 504 to be part of this organization. If your child meets the criteria

above, please join us!!

We hope to see you there!

PASS39

Our Back to School site contains more "Back to School Information" including teacher welcome letters and school supply lists.

Click HERE to meet our new staff!

ARRIVAL

• Classes are assigned separate doorway entrances.
• Doors will open at 8:30 with the first bell and students can walk to their classrooms. There will be staff in the hallways to help children find their classrooms.
• The tardy bell rings at 8:35 and if your child
• A child arriving after 8:40 will need to come to the front office to sign in as tardy.
• Students must wear a mask to enter the building. Please make sure they have one ready when they get to school.

DISMISSAL

• Please make sure that your child knows where to meet you after school.
• Students will exit from the same entrance as arrival.
  

We have new hours for school this year. ALL students in grades 1-4 and kindergarteners that have KEEP39 will attend school from 8:30am-3:15pm, Monday-Thursday.

Grades 1-4 School Day: 8:35-3:15, Monday-Thursday

Kindergarten: AM 8:35-11:10 and KEEP39 11:10-3:15

Early Release Fridays: 2:15 for all students, K-4, including KEEP39

LINK: http://www.wilmette39.org/news/community_events

• Wilmette Food Pantry is open every Tuesday 10:30-11:30 am at Trinity United Methodist Church.
• Covid Catch Up Tutors has rebranded to "Best Step Tutoring”. Free online tutoring for PreK-12 grades. beststeptutoring.org
• A new Girl Scout Troop for 1st grade girls. Email centralgirlsscouts@gmail.com to learn more about registration. Parent meeting will be held on September 25th followed by the first Girl Scout Gathering on October 23rd.
  

Monday, September 6th

No School ~ Labor Day

Tuesday, September 7th

No School ~ Rosh Hashanah

Thursday, September 9th

Central 2021 Virtual Curriculum Night. Save the date!

• 5:30-6:00 - Fourth Grade
• 6:00-6:30 - 3rd Grade
• 6:30-7:00 - 2nd Grade
• 7:00-7:30 - 1st Grade

Thursday, September 16th

No School ~ Yom Kippur

Central School is on Twitter!

• We have TWO Twitter accounts. Please "follow" us at Twitter.com! Explore Central 39 (with our actual "handle" as @explorecentral). With this account, we mostly share student activities that are completed in the Learning Commons (but other activities are often included as well). We are also providing this Twitter feed on our Central School homepage.

• There is also a principal page @BeckyLittmann where you can follow a variety of school happenings including all-school events, classroom activities, PTA enrichment, and school goals.