Take Home Tuesday

Greetings Sward Families:

As we progress through the school year during a pandemic, there are times when your child may not be feeling well, have a sibling or family member in the house who is not feeling well, or may have been deemed in close contact with an individual who has tested positive for Covid. During these times, your child will be placed into quarantine for their safety as well as the safety of those around them.

Thank you, in advance, for your partnership during these times by staying in contact with your child's teacher and keeping the lines of communication open with the Sward main office. Your child's teacher will be able to let you know if they have school work waiting in the office to be picked up so they can keep up with their classwork. Additionally, we will have a teacher on hand virtually most days from 3:30-4:30 in order to lend a helping hand to your child with any homework questions they might have. While it may not be your child's teacher, it will be a Sward teacher. If your child is in quarantine, and you would like the link for them to connect to the teacher "on virtual homework help duty," please email me at ckramer@d123.org and I will be able to get the code to you. The earlier you send for the link, the better.

Have a super Tuesday!

Your partner in education,

Mrs. Candy Kramer

Sward School Principal

Van Gogh will be here tomorrow to take our school pictures. This year, ordering will take place online or over the phone. Steps to order school pictures:

• Log into ordervgil.com and click on the green icon "Before or on picture day."
• Enter your student's information and school event code 20076001
• Choose your package and background.
• Complete checkout and your order is placed.

To order by phone, please contact customer service at 1-847-382-2282.

If your child will be absent:

• Please call the Sward main office to report an absence (708)423-7820. There will be questions that must be asked during this time of pandemic protocol.
• Keep in close contact via email with your child's teacher. They will be able to inform you of the work your child will miss during the absence. They might provide links for your child to access on their device, a packet to pick up in the office, or a mix of both.
• Many days, there will be virtual homework help opportunity for the absent children from 3:30-4:30. Please email ckramer@d123.org for additional information or a meeting link.

Physicals need to be turned into the Health Office by October 15th. Physicals are needed for Preschool, Kindergarten and new transfer students. A vision exam and a dental exam are also required for Kindergarten. Please remember to fill out the health history portion of the physical form. If forms are not in by 10/15 students will be excluded from school starting 10/16 until forms are received. If you have any questions please contact the Health Office.

Come for a meal at Culver’s and help raise money for our Sward PTA!

Where: Culver’s at 107th and Cicero
When: Wednesday, September 29th 5-8 pm
Dine in or Drive-thru.

Just mention “Sward School” to the cashier and Culver’s will automatically donate 15% of your purchase to our PTA!

The funds raised will go towards our school events this year including: the pumpkin contest, the book fair, 5th grade end of year event, teacher appreciation week, and many more activities for our students!

Hi Sward families! September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month and marks a special day for one of our Sward Eagles, AJ: he’s finishing up his cancer treatment! AJ is a second grader in Mrs. Opiola’s class and has bravely battled leukemia since 2019.

On Saturday, September 18, we will be participating in a car parade to celebrate AJ beating cancer and invite you all to join us!

Meet us at the St. Linus parking lot at 1:30 PM. Feel free to decorate your cars with gold, the color to commemorate Childhood Cancer Awareness month, or Sward blue!

Please reach out to Blanca at 708-577-9768 with any questions. Feel free to share the event with all Sward families.

Last year was lots of fun, so this year will be the 2nd annual Spooktacular celebration. Please click HERE for information. This will be held on Saturday, October 23 at OLHMS. More details will be coming later on in September. If you are interested in helping to plan or have a fun, spooky display, please contact Teresa Shane at tmshane@gmail.com

• Please remember to send your child to school each day with their Chromebook charged and ready to go. Technology is an integral part of our learning everyday.
• Families have until September 30, 2021 to register for Chromebook insurance at the cost of $25.00 per child. Repairs to the Chromebooks can be quite costly and the insurance will definitely help to keep the cost down. This can be completed through Skyward Family Access. If you have any questions, please call the Sward main office at (708)423-7820.

First Student is looking to hire school bus drivers. Please click HERE for additional information.

If you would like to opt your child into the SHIELD Program, you can do so within the Skyward Family Access System. Click here for details and instructions. To learn more about the SHIELD Program, click here.

At this year's Fall on the Green (September 11 and 12), there will be a Live Like Abby tent. Please click HERE to view the flyer for the event. Proceeds from this year's Fall on the Green event will be donated to Live Like Abby as well as 2 additional causes. Volunteers are needed. Please click HERE if you would like to register to volunteer.

Please remember dismissal time is at 3:20. Children get nervous when they do not see you as they come out of the door. The children who have not been picked up come to the office for a phone call home. The office has been very crowded after school everyday so far and this is only the beginning of the school year. Please remember FLASH is an affordable option if you need a place for your children to go after school.

• Wednesday, September 8- Sward School Fall Picture Day
  
• Friday, September 10- Please consider dressing your child in red, white, and blue to honor Patriot Day
• Tuesday, September 28- PTA Meeting 6:30 p.m.
• Wednesday, October 6- Districtwide Late Start: School begins for Sward students at 9:30 a.m.

Website: d123.org/sward
Location: 9830 Brandt Avenue, Oak Lawn, IL, USA
Phone: 708-423-7820
Twitter: @d123sward

Email: ckramer@d123.org
Website: d123.org/sward
Phone: 708-423-7820
Twitter: @MrsKramerD123