We hope everyone enjoyed gratitude month! We know it is important for us to take time to focus on things that make us happy and what we are grateful for.  We have had a great month doing this at school, and we appreciate your help in making this a focus at home for students as well.

For the month of November, we will be focusing on social investment.  Investing time in the people around us has proven to be a critical component of success in both work and health.  It can literally add years to your life!  The most successful people respond to adversity by turning to their social networks, hence becoming more productive, engaged, energetic and resilient.  This month, we are going to work on continuing to build our relationships with the people around us to help strengthen our social networks. Students will be receiving a social investment calendar for the month of November that will provide ideas for how to practice this principle with their family at home. You can also refer to page 72 in your Orange Frog Family Reading Guide.

This Wednesday is Aldrin’s annual Halloween celebration complete with a costume parade. The children will be able to change into their costumes at school right before the 1:00 parade. Please be sure your child can get his/her costume on independently since they will not change until right before the party. Keep in mind, children should not bring any look alike weapons to school as part of their costumes. We do plan to parade outside the building, and we love to have our families on the route.  If you plan on watching the parade, please plan to stand in the parking lot in front of the school or off on the sides of the building.  The parade will go down the main sidewalk so you will be able to get a great look at all of the wonderful disguises.  Also, please send your child to school with an extra snack on Wednesday.  The children will have an opportunity to eat it during the celebration.  Finally, we want to thank all the PTA parents who have been busy planning the activities for the event.  We know the afternoon will be loads of fun, and we could not do it without our PTA volunteers.  Only parents on the volunteer list will be able to come into the building to support the parties.

In an effort to stay informed, please click HERE to check out the most up to date information from the Aldrin PTA.  Also, if you haven’t done so yet, please make sure you take an opportunity to join the PTA.  Your membership allows our PTA to continue to bring high quality assemblies as well as agenda planners to our students.  It would be wonderful to have every family join and it only takes a few minutes to do so.

The Windy City Bulls will host a District 54 takeover night on Friday, December 14 at the Sears Centre Arena in Hoffman Estates, and a portion of the proceeds from each ticket purchased will be donated back to the District 54 Education Foundation.  A group of Armstrong staff and their families have purchased tickets in Section 116, Rows 6 and 7.

Click here for more information or to purchase tickets!

The District 54 take-over night will feature District 54 students participating in performances and other on-court experiences before and throughout the game, and a District 54 Special Olympics basketball match at halftime. The Windy City Bulls will host an assembly at the school that sells the most tickets.

Good afternoon,

Wow… I just can’t believe we are headed into October.  The time is going so quickly.  I want you to know, we are so impressed with the dedication our students show each and every day.   Their enthusiasm for learning inspires me to do the same.  I want to thank you for sharing your child with us. We can’t wait to meet with you at conferences so we can plan together how to continue to support your child throughout the year.

Have a fabulous weekend!

Fondly,

Mary Botterman and Kari Frederick

Upcoming Events:

• Wed., Oct. 3 – Hot Lunch – Preordered
• Thurs.,Oct. 4 – Early Dismissal – 11:40 a.m. – Goal Setting Conferences/PTA Book Fair
• Thurs., Oct. 4 – School Board Meeting @ 7:00 p.m.
• Fri., Oct. 5 – No School for Students – Goal Setting Conferences in the a.m./PTA Book Fair
• Mon., Oct. 8  – No School – Columbus Day
• Wed., Oct. 10 – Hot Lunch – Preordered
• Wed., Oct. 10 – PTA Meeting @ 7:00 p.m.
• Wed., Oct. 17 – Hot Lunch – Preordered
• Thurs., Oct. 18 – School Board Meeting @ 7:00 p.m.
• Fri., Oct. 19- Pizza Day – Cash and Carry

At the beginning of the school year, all Aldrin families received a copy of The Orange Frog Family Reading Guide which is a parable based on the foundations of the book The Happiness Advantage by Shawn Achor.  This year we will be bringing The Happiness Advantage principles to life at Aldrin school.

Each month, we will be focusing in on a different happiness principle.  October will be gratitude month! Focusing our attention on things we are grateful for has numerous positive benefits.  We just need to take time to do so. On Monday, you will be receiving a gratitude calendar that will give you great ideas for how you can practice this principle with your family at home. You can also refer to pages 78 and 79 in your Orange Frog Family Reading Guide.

Just a reminder, this Thursday and Friday we will be hosting our annual goal setting conferences.  Please come to Aldrin with your child at the time designated on your conference slip. We are looking forward to working together to support your child as he/she works toward achieving his/her individual goals.  If you have questions about your child’s conference time, please call the office at 847-357-5400.

During conferences, you will be able to attend the PTA fall bookfair.  Please be sure to open the Announcer by clicking HERE to find out the details including how you can order on-line. Also, we are always looking for ways to support our PTA.  They do so much for all of our students including paying for assemblies and agenda planners. The first way to support is to simply join the PTA.  Please know, we do not have any expectation that you volunteer at any PTA events, we just are looking for members to show support. Click HERE to access the membership form.

On Thursday, October 4,  you will receive an email containing your child’s most recent MAP testing results. Please be sure to review this prior to attending your child’s conference. Our staff is looking forward to meeting with you to discuss your child’s academic and social emotional progress thus far.

Last spring, all of our third through sixth grade students took the state assessment called PARCC.  We are excited to announce our students continue to show great growth in reading and math as measured by this assessment. If your child took the assessment last year at Aldrin, you will receive the results on Monday via your child’s backpack.  As always, please let us know if you have any questions.