Good afternoon,


I hope you are doing well and enjoying this Friday.  Please see below for a few important updates and reminders.  


Have a great weekend,
Katie
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VIRTUAL AUTHOR VISIT NEXT WEEK!
Skinner North K-8 classrooms will have the special opportunity to meet virtually with Zetta Elliott! Dr. Elliott is an award-winning Black feminist author and educator based in Chicago. Her work consists of poetry, plays, essays, novels, and stories for children. Thank you to Ms. Castillo for her planning collaboration with our upcoming, poetry-focused Author Talk on Wednesday, March 30th!
 
Resources to check out with your child(ren) to support the learning:
Poetry Recitation of Pieces in Say Her Name
https://www.zettaelliott.com/bio/why-i-write/
http://www.zettaelliott.com/books/kids/
 
 
Skinner North Family Survey (Thinking to SY23)
Your opinion is very important to us as we plan for the next school year.   You and our students have experienced two years unlike any other with varied schedules and ways to engage (remote, hybrid, flip to remote, in person, etc.).  Your experiences help use better plan and think through the coming year.
 
Please complete this anonymous survey to share your thoughts on what, in your thinking, would be helpful to prioritize for your child(ren) and also best ways for us to engage your family next school year.  The information will help us to further plan for budget allocations in alignment with our CIWP (Continuous Improvement Work Plan) for the coming school year. 
 
The survey will close on Thursday, March 31. Use this link to access. 
 
LSC Candidate Forum – Please see this link for a video of the LSC Candidate Forum which occurred on 3/23.  Elections will take place on April 20 between 6AM and 7PM.
 
Report Card Pick Up – We will have report card pick up day on Wednesday, April 20 from 8:30-3:30. Teachers will be sending sign ups for spots in the near future. 
 
2022-2023 School Calendar – CPS has approved the calendar for the next school year.  Highlights of the 2022-23 Academic Calendar:
·  A school start date of Monday, August 22, 2022 and an end date of Wednesday, June 7, 2023
·  Students complete their first semester prior to Winter Break on Friday, December 22, 2022 
·  176 days of instruction for students
·  12 professional learning days for teachers and school-based staff (this includes2 days more than this school year)
·  1 parent-teacher conference day for both HS and ES students in the fall of 2022 and 1 for both HS and ES students in the spring of 2023 instead of separate days for HS and ES students in both the fall and spring
·  2 weeks of winter vacation and 1 week of spring vacation
·  No student instruction during the entire week of Thanksgiving
 

Good Afternoon,


We hope everyone has had a nice week.  Please read below for a few updates and reminders.

Have a wonderful weekend,
Katie and Derrick
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Local School Council Candidate Forum - Please see this link for our agenda for Wednesday's LSC Candidate Forum.  This is a virtual event that begins at 6.

LSC Principal Report - Please see this link for the principal report from this week's LSC meeting.

COVID Testing - The testing company had to reschedule our testing.  They came today to test.  We will return to our Tuesday schedule next week barring any staffing shortages on their end.

Yearbook Orders - It's that time again! Yearbook orders can be placed by visiting inter-state.com/order and entering our school code: 63617T

Diverse Learners Parent & Caregiver Meet-up
This is a casual meetup to be connected with other parents and to share experiences and questions regarding our childrens’ diverse learning needs.
Friday,March 25, 2022, 8:40am (or directly after drop off)
Passion House Coffee Roasters
Goose Island location at Division and N. Branch
1200 N. Branch St, Chicago 60642

Diverse Learners Transition to High School Virtual Meeting
Calling all High School-bound students, upper graders, parents and caregivers! Save the date for a virtual meeting with High School case managers, answering questions from Skinner North families about IEP and 504 plan implementation and management during High School. 
Monday, April 4, 2022, 6pm
Zoom link to follow

​

​Good afternoon,


Please see this link for today's 3:45PM LSC agenda.  You can access the meeting via this link:   https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85702524400?pwd=R0NqMUZLeUUyR1MwM0UwWDZGak1hUT09

Have a wonderful day,
Katie 

​A huge congratulations to Isaac (8th grader), our school spelling bee champ.  He qualified for the CPS’ Citywide Spelling Bee Championship, which happened yesterday, and won the bee!  This is an incredible accomplishment that required hard work, persistence and determination.  He will now represent Chicago at the Bee in Washington, DC! 

​Happy Friday!  I hope everyone has a restful weekend.  Please see below for a few updates.


Have a great day,
Katie 
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Congratulations to CPS’ Citywide Spelling Bee Champion!
 

​A huge congratulations to Isaac (8th grader), our school spelling bee champ.  He qualified for the CPS’ Citywide Spelling Bee Championship, which happened yesterday, and won the bee!  This is an incredible accomplishment that required hard work, persistence and determination.  He will now represent Chicago at the Bee in Washington, DC! 
 
Masking Policy Change Reminder – As a reminder, CPS announced that starting on Monday, March 14, all schools and offices will move to a mask-optional model.


We know that this will be a big change and it is important to support our students through the transition. Our counselors have presented on the topic and engaged students around their feelings about the change.  There are mixed emotions around the change.  The emphasis is that every student and staff member’s personal choice regarding masking is respected. It is a time to have empathy.  It may be helpful to have conversations with your student around this change.  We do encourage mask wearing, but it is a personal choice. 

 
Please note there will be some situations where masking is still required.  See this infographic for further information.

​*Should CDPH determine that community transmission is MODERATE or HIGH, CPS will revert to a Universal Masking policy, and all individuals will be required to wear masks again.

 
 
Local School Council Elections – Thank you to everyone who is running for a position on our LSC.  We look forward to the election.  Please see Letter 2 that includes information on the candidate forum on Wed., March 23 at 6PM.  This is a virtual event and the sign in information is: 
LSC Candidate Forum
Wednesday, March 23 · 6:00 – 7:00pm
Google Meet joining info
Video call link: https://meet.google.com/pyc-ukop-xvz
Or dial: ‪(US) +1 216-755-4587 PIN: ‪737 277 957#
More phone numbers: https://tel.meet/pyc-ukop-xvz?pin=2925014246685
This link has a list of the candidates.

Good afternoon!  I hope everyone is doing well and enjoyed the nice weather on Saturday.  Please read below for a few updates and reminders.   



Sincerely, 
Katie and Derrick
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We have a number of families who are either from Ukraine or eastern European countries and recognize how difficult this time is to process what is happening and feel the impact so directly.  The Diversity Committee has put together some resources to support (see below).  We also want to recognize there are other groups around the world impacted by other humanitarian crises including Syria, Afghanistan, South Sudan, Myanmar, etc. that are causing numbers of refugees to increase. You can learn more at https://www.unhcr.org/refugeebrief/latest-issues/.  Also, please feel free to reach out to the Diversity Committee if you are interested in sharing more perspectives to enhance understanding/raise awareness.
 
Diversity Committee - We would like to offer Skinner North families resources about how to emotionally support our children as they learn about and mentally process the ongoing conflict between Ukraine and Russia. Here are a couple articles for you to explore:
 
How to talk with younger kids (PBS)
 
How to talk with older kids (NY Times)
​

We also have a note to share from a fellow Skinner North parent. Please see her message below and click on the link to ways your family might consider contributing to locally-managed Ukraine relief efforts.
 
​Skinner North students wrapped up Lunar New Year celebrations with a lion dance virtual lesson offered by Yu's Lion Dance Sports Association of Chicago. Thank you to Mr. Popowich and Ms. Gleason for their collaboration and energy guiding the lessons during gym classes! Click here to practice the dance steps more at home.
 
 

Thank you, SN families, for brightening days and warming hearts with ongoing Monday Sunshine efforts-- 9 weeks and counting! Your staff appreciation and meaningful community-building enthusiasm is valued. To pick up an open date to donate goodies, please sign up here. Contact sndiversity@gmail.com with questions or suggestions.


LSC Candidates - We recently found out that the application window has been extended to Wednesday, March 9 at 3PM.  (It was initially Friday.) Applications can be submitted to the main office.  Here is a link to the application documents.  Find out more about LSCs at https://www.cps.edu/about/local-school-councils/lsc-elections/.

 
From the District - Help Us Improve Equity in our Admissions Process for Selective Enrollment Schools
As part of our District’s ongoing commitment to equity, we are committed to giving every child a fair opportunity to earn admission to our District’s selective enrollment schools. We’ve already made significant progress on making these schools more equitable and more diverse:
·  Every CPS 8th-grader had the opportunity to take a high school admissions test in 2021
·  Last school year, we increased the percentage of seats allocated to our District’s diverse learners and subsequently, we nearly doubled the number of selective enrollment offers going to these students.
We will be engaging parents and community members over the coming weeks and months to look at how we can make the selective enrollment admissions process more equitable. As part of our efforts to inform the public of these changes and solicit feedback, we are launching a microsite to share policy information and provide families and interested stakeholders the opportunity to take a short poll and submit questions to CPS leadership. Additionally, the District will  host information sessions with parents including a webinar on Thursday, March 10, from 6 - 7 p.m. Click here to RSVP for this event.
 
CPS to Move to Mask Optional Model Starting March 14 - Chicago Public Schools (CPS) will move to a mask-optional model for staff and all students, pre-k through grade 12, beginning Monday, March 14. While CPS will continue to encourage the use of masks, the shift will give families and employees a choice about whether or not to wear a mask at school, outside on school property, and on school buses. 
CPS will continue to encourage the practice of wearing masks in schools, especially in schools with lower vaccination rates and among those students and staff who feel most comfortable with a face covering. The District will also support those members of its school communities who choose not to wear a mask, and will provide tools that teachers and parents can use to guide conversations with students about the importance of honoring and respecting everyone’s personal choice.  (To learn more about the decision making process for this change, please read this message from CPS.)  We currently have an 86% vaccination rate among students.
​ 
The decision about whether or not to wear a mask is a deeply personal one. Some children and staff will continue masking because they feel it is what’s best for their family. That decision should never be judged, nor should the removal of masks by those who take that step be celebrated in our schools. Every person’s choice must be valued just as they themselves are valued, and we will need your support to ensure we have peaceful environments that are built on positivity and compassion. We will be supporting students in understanding this.