Oak Grove News

It's that time of year again that Jack Frost will be joining us outdoors for recess! Please be sure your children are dressed properly to go outside for mask breaks during class & 20 minute recess time. We will continue to go outside daily, as long as the temperature is 10 degrees or above.

Please remember that when having your child tested for Covid-19, the school will only be able to accept a Rapid or PCR test that was done through a lab. The school cannot accept an at-home test. If you need assistance finding a lab-based testing center, please contact Nurse Callie or Nurse Jen.

Offerings of Gratitude

I just wanted to take a moment to share my sincere gratitude for all the support EVERYONE at OGS has offered during this First Trimester!! Our busing situation continues to challenge us, and still our families offer patience and understanding as we look for solutions. After a year split between @home and @school, we have had much to readjust to, coming back together under one roof, lunch overflow areas, continuing to socially distance and wear masks, and yet, we have found new ways to enjoy each other’s company during Family Fest, this week’s in-person Book Fair, and our upcoming Winter Market. During my first four months at OGS I have been lucky enough to experience what Dorothy learned in Oz, “There’s no place like home!” As we head into this season of Giving and Gratitude, I wish for you all the chance to rest and rejuvenate with family and friends!

Parent Teacher Conferences Sign Ups (Reminder)

Conference sign ups are now available! Sign ups are open 8 AM on Monday, 11/15 through noon on Friday 11/19. Parents can log in to ogs.meettheteacher.com to schedule conferences.

Conference Dates:

Monday, 11/22

1-3 PM - IN PERSON

3-6 PM - VIRTUAL

6-8 PM - IN PERSON

Tuesday, 11/23

8-noon - VIRTUAL

Bus Update

Be on the lookout for more news about route changes later this week.

AM Traffic - REMINDERS

Traffic around the upper lot was much smoother this morning. Thank you to everyone who waited safely and patiently in their cars to pull around and drop students off along the Door 18 sidewalk side. Believe it or not, the line of cars moves more slowly when parents leave gaps and drop students off by the dumpsters and Jr High Gym. Please remember to have students remain in the car until your car is pulled up as far as possible against the Door 18 sidewalk along the building. We appreciate your patience and diligence in keeping our students safe!

SEL at Oak Grove

The theme for the month of November is generosity. Please take a few minutes to view the November page of our website to see what is coming up this week for Erin’s Law.

Please click here to access the Oak Grove SEL website.

Mental Health Minute

November - Stress

If you need support or are looking to support someone else please visit Safe2Help Illinois and/or our website for valuable information.

Important Dates

• Nov. 15-18: Elem Book Fair in JH Library

• Nov. 16: Committee of the Whole Meeting 6:00pm, Regular Board Meeting, 7:15pm in the Rubber Gym

• Nov. 22-23: Parent Teacher Conferences - No School

• Nov. 24-26: No School - Thanksgiving Break

School Board Members Day
Today, November 15, is designated as "School Board Members Day" in Illinois. This day serves to recognize the outstanding efforts of nearly 6,000 elected school board members across our state, including the seven dedicated members of the OGS Board. On behalf of our administration, staff, students, and their families, I want to thank our Board members for volunteering their time to serve in this role. Board leadership matters, now more than ever, and is essential to bringing forth the voices of the community to realize the vision for their schools. A special thank you to each of you -- Krysia, Cathie, Tony, Raabia, Emily, Henry and Kim.

Veterans Day

Thank you to all those that were able to attend the Veterans Day celebration and those that were watching via live stream. The 8th grade students, our 8th grade team and many other staff members that made this possible are greatly appreciated. If you were unable to attend, please take a moment to view the ceremony using this link. Thank you to our camera crew: Dr. Meltzer, Luke Angelos, Andrew Heunnekens, Matthew Liu, Pablo Moya and Adam Shaikh as well as our post-production video editors, Evan Dietz and Thomas Teixeira for all of their work.

Report Cards

Report cards were sent via email on Friday, November 12th to all families. Please note that the teachers for grades K-5 specials only shared progress on student work habits for trimester 1. They will be reporting out content standards and work habits during trimester 2 and trimester 3. These teachers see students on a rotating basis and at this time, did not have enough information on specific skill areas to give a grade on their content standard. If you do have questions in regards to your child’s progress in a specific area, please contact the teacher.

Wow! This has turned out to be a very popular club. At this point, all slots are filled in both the K-4 and 5-8 groups. The club sponsors will be in touch with the details for each group. Also, we will let you know if your child is on a waitlist since there are only 20 spots available for each group. Thank you for supporting our new club!

Oak Grove Wrestling is an IESA program open to all 5th-8th grade students. Our Co-Ed program focuses on the fundamentals of wrestling to prepare for competition. Practices are after school. Competitions are during the week and on Saturdays.

OGS Wrestling Parent Meeting

Monday, November 29 · 5:30 – 6:30pm

Video call link: https://meet.google.com/pnw-vjnt-ixw

**Parents/Students are STRONGLY encouraged to attend the meeting to get all information in regards to the start of the season, team apparel store, covid protocols and more.**

First practice will be held on January 10th. Physical must be on file to participate!

Any other questions, please contact Head Coach Chris Duenas (duenas@ogschool.org)

Last Tuesday, the junior high singers attended the Junior High Choral Festival at LHS. It was an abbreviated version of the annual festival but the students still had a great time. There were small group sessions where the high school students spoke with the junior high singers about joining the choir and the big group also sang a few songs that all the schools had prepared. It's always so wonderful to see all the former Grovers who now sing at LHS. It was a great day!

Congratulations to the Concert and Symphonic Bands for a terrific performance Friday during the Veterans Day Ceremony. You all did a great job in some tough weather! Now it's time for some new music on Tuesday! Woohoo!

Jazz Band- Our Jazz in the Gym concert is next month. Please save Thursday, December 16th, for an evening of jazz in the Junior High gym. More information will be coming out as we get closer to that date.

Beginning Band- All students should be working through pages six and seven this week. There are two very useful charts on page five and at the top of page six for all students who are new to reading notes. We want your child to be successful and excited to play for you and your family these next few months.

Please make sure to have your child practice daily for fifteen minutes or more using the Essential Elements interactive website. This is vital for their development as musicians. You may have to help your child find a time and place in the house to make regular practice a routine.

We are still waiting on PPE (face masks & bell covers) to arrive in order to start full band rehearsals together. These are required for all wind instrument students (percussion students do NOT need these). Please double check your order and make sure you have these items ordered. If not, please purchase equivalent items from Amazon or another supplier. Thank you!

Elementary Book Fair This Week!

The fall elementary Scholastic book fair starts today! Students in Grades K-5 will have the opportunity to shop the book fair November 15th through the 18th in the Junior High library. Family Night will be held on Tuesday, November 16th from 6:00pm-8:00pm in the Junior High library. Click Here to book your 20-minute shopping time slot for Family Night. Family Night is your chance to win 1 of 3 awesome raffle baskets and please note that parents cannot attend the book fair outside of family night.

Remember to check out Scholastic’s eWallet tool which provides students a safe, cashless way to shop the fair. eWallet funds are easy to set up and are immediately available for use at the fair. Set up eWallet for your student here. Visit the OGS Scholastic homepage for links to eWallet and an interactive book list. Families in need of financial support during the book fair can contact Jennifer Barnabee at barnabee@ogschool.org.

Haven House Thanksgiving Donation Drop Off

If you signed up to donate items to the Haven House Thanksgiving service project, please drop them off November 15th-20th at Brooke Schamber's house in Saddle Hill: 1681 Wilton Court. She has set up a covered donation spot with coolers outdoors! If you need a reminder of what you signed up to donate, see the linked Google Sheet. Don’t forget to encourage your students to include a picture or a hand-made decoration to share Thanksgiving cheer with the residents. If you have questions, please contact Brooke Schamber at Brooklee5@gmail.com.

Visit the OGS Winter Market on December 4th

The PTO is excited to bring back the OGS Winter Market including the popular Secret Shopping Village for students to shop for their family and friends for any giving occasion! This year the Winter Market will be held outdoors on the Jr. High blacktop; it’s sure to be a fun and frosty event!

• Secret Shopping Village: This is an opportunity for students to shop in “secret” and have a real surprise for someone special. Gifts for any occasion and recipient will range in price from $2-$8. Older students will be available to help the younger ones shop if need be and volunteers will help wrap items with OGS-themed trimmings. Cash will be accepted and, new this year, our gift vendor partner will also offer pre-paid vouchers .
• Stan’s Donuts & Coffee: We are very excited to announce that Stan’s Donuts will be available at the Winter Market! You can pre-order your delicious donuts for pickup at the market or purchase from the truck on-site. Even if you don’t plan to stay for the market, please pop by to pick up your donut order! Stan’s is giving back 10-15% of sales to the PTO depending on how many orders are placed, so please order indulgently to support our PTO programs! Follow this link to place your pre-orders. Be sure you select one of the Oak Grove pick-up times!
• Gift Vendors & More: Take-and-Go spirit wear will be available for sale and the Boy Scouts will be selling s’mores! There will also be gift vendors on-site and we’d love to have more. If you are a maker, crafter, or seller and would like to have a table at the event, please contact Shellie Fahy at shelliefahy@gmail.com. We are also putting together a vendor flier to support local vendors, so even if you cannot attend the event please get in touch so we can include you!
• Volunteers & Donors Needed: We will need MANY volunteers to help make this event successful: set-up, pay stations, wrapping gifts, selling hot beverages, clean-up, and more! Please share an hour (or more!) of your time with us by signing up here. We are also looking to borrow a few festive inflatables for the Winter Market such as a snowman or penguin to add to the wintery decor. Please email pto@ogschool.org if you have one we can borrow the day of the event.

Volunteers Needed - Junior High Lunch Room

The PTO needs Junior High Lunch Volunteers to distribute Marla’s Lunch Catering meals. Time slots are 10:45 am - 12:30 pm each day. The lunch program is one of the PTO’s biggest fundraisers, and we appreciate all the volunteers that help make it possible! https://signup.com/go/zfYZEqW

Our annual Toys for Tots collection will run from November 22- December 16. The toys will be picked up by a service member on December 17. Please consider dropping off an unwrapped gift for a child ages 0-12. Toys for Tots does not accept the following items as gift donations: toys that look like weapons, real food, and stuffed animals. We appreciate your generosity and look forward to collecting toys with our local Marines this year.

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