Grand Prairie Elementary School

 Grand Prairie to report an absence.  Please send a note upon return to school.  If your child is late, he/she MUST stop in the office before going to class.  Tardy or early release that is after/more than 15 minutes is recorded on attendance record as a half-day.

 Bus Riders will be dropped off in front of the school.  Please wear the name tag/label to school for the first week.  First day: Teachers will greet them in the front of the school. Day 2 +: on designated playground.  Every morning, the children will be directed to a playground sorted by community until the day begins or stay in designated areas if indoor recess.  Students will exit according to their bus numbers along with 1 st and 2 nd grade.  Car Riders will be dropped off in the East parking lot.  They will need to enter through the side door near the car rider drop off.  Teachers on car rider duty will bring children to the car rider line at dismissal.  PLEASE do NOT get out of your car. This will help with the flow of traffic. They will find you.  Please do not the teacher regarding bus/car rider changes. Please let the office know.

 A WRITTEN NOTE is required for any change of transportation at the end of the school day!  If you are picking up your child early, you will need to sign him/her out in the office.  Please notify the office at least 30 minutes prior to the end of the school day.  PLEASE attach your child’s bus tag to his/her backpack as soon as possible. 

 A supervised lunch and recess will occur daily.  If you would like to volunteer to help with the entire lunch time you received an blast from. Please feel free to contact her to volunteer! We are always looking for clean-up helpers!!  All Kindergarten classes will have lunch first (11:20- 11:40) and recess second (11:40-12:00).  Please be sure to LABEL your child’s lunch box, and/or water bottles with his\her name.

 Your child’s birthday will be celebrated in his/her classroom.  Invitations will only be passed out at school if there is one for everyone, all boys or all girls.  For safety reasons, we do not give student addresses and/or phone numbers for invitations.  For the safety of all, we only allow non edible treats.  No pizza parties are allowed.

 Students will have a brief snack break each morning.  Please pack a healthy snack of fruits or veggies each day.  You may send your child to school with a water bottle but no juice for snack time, please.

 Your child’s take-home folder will come home each day and should be sent back to school each morning.  Please check all correspondences and clean it out each evening.  Weekly newsletters will be available on the district website and/or ed to you each Friday highlighting important events and dates to remember.  Please access the Virtual Backpack through our district website for important information. (See parent handbook)

 Please be sure to label any and all removable clothing.  An EXTRA complete change of clothing should be sent to school in a bag labeled with your child’s name on it.  This helps us be prepared for accidents and spills throughout the school year.

 Please send in a Frankfort Library card for your child to check out books from the bookmobile that makes a visit once a month.  Teachers will store these cards here at school.  A Bookmobile schedule will be sent home for the entire school year.  Kindergarten students will have the opportunity to check out books from the Grand Prairie Library once a week. Books will need to be returned a week from the check-out date. Check your child’s newsletter!

Music Once a week for 35 minutes. Art Once a week for 30 minutes. Computers Once a week for 35 minutes. Physical Education Daily for 30 minutes. * Gym shoes needed to participate.

 3 or 4 field trips.  A permission slip will come home each time prior to the trip.  Volunteers will be determined at that time. It is usually first come, first serve.  You may only attend one trip for the school year.

 Please do not allow your child to bring toys to school unless a specific request has been made by the classroom teacher.  The school is not responsible for lost/stolen toys brought to school.

Kindergarten

 Correct letter formation  Tripod Grasp  Letter Size Matters Series  Capitalize first letter in name, lowercase letters to follow  Spacing between letters and words

 Meets the needs of all learners  Oral and written language  Phonics\phonemic decoding skills  Comprehension strategies  Whole group, small group, and one-on-one instruction  Shared and independent reading\writing

 1 st Quarter  2 nd Quarter  3 rd Quarter  4 th Quarter

Daily (40-45 minutes) Writing will be stored in writing folders until the end of each unit. Three parts: Mini-lesson Write, write, write Share

 Phonemic awareness and phonics sorting activity each day  Differentiated Instruction  Letter-Sound Connections  Routines include: sorting with the teacher, independent practice and application, a selected poem highlighting sort feature, and partner games

 Read to Self  Read to Someone  Work on Writing  Listen to Reading  Word Work

Sorting/ClassifyingCountingPatterns Number Recognition Number writing Problem Solving AdditionGeometry SubtractionCalendar Fact Fluency Position/Location

Illinois adopted Common Core National Standards along with 47 other states Created newly aligned curriculum in English Language Arts & Math Old standards were very broad & not challenging Written for K-12 College & Career readiness Rigorous skills, reading more complex text, higher level thinking and problem solving Math instruction will focus on the 8 Mathematical Practices

New resources: Many new titles and genres that kids will be reading Some new Math resources & manipulatives Hands on approach to Math where kids will be spending a longer time going into depth with math skills Kids will be writing more frequently about their reading of both fiction as well as informational text

District office tab Curriculum tab ALL curricular expectations are listed for parents

For the school year all three schools will report grades to parents on a quarterly basis.

 Tier 1: Flexible, small group, differentiated, research-based core curriculum. Assessments 3x year for progress.  Tier 2: Not making progress with curriculum, additional interventions in reading and math will be provided (support services). Closer monitoring of progress.  Tier 3: Additional, targeted supports, increased and intensive instruction, one-on-one throughout school day.  Parents: BIG PART of process. Please communicate with us throughout the school year!

 Monday, November 23rd or Tuesday, November 24 th.  Sign up tonight!!!!!  20 minutes  Set-up alternative day if traveling this week due to Thanksgiving holiday

 Grand Prairie check-out  One book/week  Class scheduled time  Due back following week  Your child’s teacher will remind you of library day!  Learning Centers  Bookmobile cards by Sept. 17 th !!

Computers Physical Education Music Word processing Word processing Gym shoes every day Gym shoes every day Explore and make music Explore and make music Keyboarding Keyboarding Box Tops for Education Box Tops for Education Rhythm patterns and beats Rhythm patterns and beats Internet and games Internet and games Variety of instruments Variety of instruments

 Weekly practice of skills and high frequency words  Reinforcement of classroom work  Fluency book bags daily  Varies by teacher

 MISSION : Raising funds throughout the year to fulfill teacher written grants for the classroom. Over $2 million granted to date.  GRANTED TO : Grand Prairie, Chelsea and Hickory Creek  FUNDRAISERS : Annual Dinner Auction, Golf Outing, Coin Drive, Frankfort Fall Fest BETA Tent  RECENT GRANTS:  SMART BOARDS in 20 classrooms at Chelsea  Rebecca Caudill, Blue Stem and Monarch Book Programs  Electronic Signage at Chelsea  Razkids and Math Fact Programs at Grand Prairie  Hickory Creek guitars, music, green screen and PE Equipment  Netbooks and Tablet PCs at Hickory Creek  For more information and volunteering opportunities visit our website at

The FSP is the Parent Teacher Organization for District 157-C. Our mission is designed to strengthen the partnership between home and school through parent volunteer opportunities, student enrichment activities and family fun events. Some of the ways that we have enriched and supported the curriculum include: Funding for field trips Sponsoring special assembly programs Providing scholarships Providing curriculum enrichment funding to each school Coordinating volunteers for all our events and programs Each year we also hold FREE family fun events such as: Family Fun Night and Creative Arts Showcase at Grand Prairie Exploration Night and Family Fitness Night at Chelsea Come visit our table at Curriculum Night and visit us at Like us on Facebook at Contact us via at