Lincoln Families,
Happy Last Week of School!
What a ride it has been. Here we are just inches from the finish line of a remarkable and unprecedented year at our Fine Fine School. Way back on August 29, 2019, no one could have predicted the adventure and the journey this school year would take us on. A journey that began fairly typically took an abrupt detour about two-thirds of the way in, and well… I guess the rest is history.
However, perhaps that detour is just what we all needed. A swift, uncomfortable nudge that pushed us all outside of our personal realm of comfort. A call to action to be more kind and empathetic to each other and more creative and innovative in our work, and most importantly a humble reminder that we are all equals. So instead of reflecting on everything this school year wasn’t, be sure to celebrate everything that it was and the opportunities it has presented us with to become better in all that we do!
As we close the book on the 2019-20 school year, the “Three Lincoln School Matriarchs” – Ms. Mayer, Ms. Halter and Ms. Moriarty – close the book of their storied careers. Over the years they have taught and inspired thousands of children and, like most teachers, they will never know the infinite impact they have had on humanity. Please see the attached for a special Godfrey-style farewell message I’ve recorded for Barb, Karen and Pam. It is safe to say that their legacies will live on forever within the halls of our Fine Fine School, the village of River Forest and beyond. So Long, Farewell Ms. Mayer, Ms. Halter and Ms. Moriarty
While the efforts of our kids and teachers have been celebrated often over the past few months, I also want to celebrate each of you. The Lincoln School mothers, fathers, grandparents, nannies, neighbors, etc. The majority of you don’t hold any type of professional teaching credentials, yet you rose to the occasion and literally became teachers overnight. Somehow you managed your household, your career and homeschooling over the past few months with no training or manual. So yes, our teachers and kids deserve a round of applause, but SO DO YOU! If you didn’t get your fill of teaching over the past few months… Lincoln is always accepting substitute applications!
Although it will look quite different than years past, Mr. A, Ms. McDermott and Mr. Peters have been collaborating to plan a celebratory “Virtual” Field Day on Wednesday, June 10. Look for Field Day events to be posted on Seesaw beginning at 9:30 AM on Wednesday.
Also on Wednesday morning, I’ll release the much anticipated 4th Grade Celebration video as a Vimeo Link on Seesaw during my morning message.
Like all other school activities, our Fine Arts Night was unable to take place how we’d expected. However, that didn’t stop Ms. Kozbur and the Lincoln School artists from creating their masterpieces! This week on Seesaw, Ms. Kozbur will be sharing an incredible gallery of “virtual” art created by our eagle artists!
As one chapter ends, so another begins. Looking ahead to the 2020-21 schoolyear, there are a few adjustments to our staff and some new faces we are excited to welcome to the Lincoln Family.
I’ll be at Lincoln on Tuesday, June 9 from 8:30-3:30 for any families still needing to pick up their student belongings. Please let me know if you’ll be coming by. I’ll be happy to coordinate another time for anyone unable to come on Tuesday.
Finally, thank you for your ever present support of Lincoln School. This year we’ve proven that even in the most challenging of circumstances, there’s no school in the land quite as special as our Fine Fine School! I look forward to the day when your kids again fill our school and bring it back to life, but until then, I wish you and your family a happy, healthy and safe summer! Lincoln Love to you all!
CG
Monday, June 8
Tuesday, June 9:
Wednesday, June 10: LAST DAY OF SCHOOL!!
WOW! Lincoln’s REALLY Got Talent! Thanks to everyone who submitted a talent. This was a labor of love and I truly enjoyed compiling this treasure of your kids unique gifts! Here again is a link to view the show: Lincoln’s Got Talent
We have a limited number of yearbooks remaining after our pre-sale. The Web Store is now taking orders for the remaining books until Friday June 12 or until the books are sold out – whichever comes first. Books are $30 and include a souvenir pen. Order today – you won’t want to miss out!
Oh the Places You’ll Read!
Attached is a checklist of various ways and places to read. It encourages them to read a lot over the summer and to do it in a fun way. You can print out and keep in a safe spot over the summer. If they return the checklist at the beginning of the next school year, they will receive a small prize.
Send us a Reading Photo
You can send in a photo of your child reading and I will post it on the library website and in the library. The photo can be in an exciting place like Paris or in your own backyard. Doesn’t matter where – we’d just love to see them reading.
Bluestem Challenge List
Attached is the Bluestem Challenge list for 3rd and 4th graders. They are able to get started reading from the list this summer through the public library. (Don’t read Ambrose Deception / Hope in the Holler / Van Gogh Deception during the summer – may not be on the Lincoln list)
Stories and Reading and Books, Oh My!
Think of reading like playing an instrument or a sport – three months without practice and you can fall behind. Some quick and easy tips to keep reading:
The end of the school year is upon us, and remote learning for students will be ending on Wednesday, June 10. Though District 90 will not be able to provide our traditional summer enrichment classes through our summer school program, we are pleased to offer additional learning opportunities for our students during the summer months:
Summer Book Clubs: 5-8 Summer Book Club 2020 Information Flier.pdf
District 90 has partnered with the River Forest Public Library to conduct Summer Book Clubs from Tuesday, June 23 – Thursday, July 16. Book clubs will be facilitated by D90 teachers through weekly live discussions with groups of up to ten students. Book clubs are organized by rising grade level. For example, if your child is attending second grade next year, he or she should sign up for a second-grade book club. River Forest Public Library will facilitate the registration process, which will be open from May 27 – June 5. Teachers will reach out to their book clubs with links to the live discussion and additional details about reading schedules and related activities once registration closes. Most elementary school titles can be accessed through students’ District 90 Epic account on their iPads. River Forest Public Library will provide additional information related to book distribution for the Roosevelt Middle School book clubs if there is no online option. For example, a newly released titled will require a hard copy.
To register your child for a D90 Summer Book Clubs, please follow this link and scroll down to the week of June 23: https://riverforestlibrary.librarymarket.com/events/month/2020/06.
Book clubs are organized by day, time, grade level, and teacher. You only need to sign up once on the day and time of your choice to be enrolled for the four-week program.
Summer Math Opportunities
Summer is a wonderful time for students to continue exploring mathematics in meaningful, authentic ways. To facilitate students’ summer math explorations and to provide a bridge to new learning in the fall, District 90 is providing four weeks of optional math activities for students to investigate independently. Students will have the opportunity to engage in activities, such as games, skill reinforcement, and problems of the week. In addition, these tasks focus on different aspects of mathematics and require few or no materials. Organized by grade level, these activities will be posted on the District 90 website for open access by families. Links will be sent out at the beginning of each week from June 15 through July 13. Answer keys will be posted at the end of each week so that students can check their work. We hope that your student will delve into this opportunity!
STEM Activities
Students may also continue to independently explore the world of coding and other STEM activities over the summer months. STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) engages students in an integrated approach to making sense of problems, gathering information, evaluating evidence, and testing ideas. Organized by grade level bands, students will be able to select activities that build on their current knowledge or dive into something new based on their interest. The summer math opportunities and STEM activities will be posted to the District website by Monday, June 22. Website links will also be shared each week with families for efficient access.
While the coronavirus precipitated the need to suspend our normal summer school programming, these summer learning opportunities are designed to help students maintain their learning trajectory. We invite your student to participate in these summer learning opportunities to help minimize the effects of summer learning loss. For more information, please contact hawleya@district90.org.
Lincoln Elementary participated in the CAN Do Community challenge benefiting Beyond Hunger. Our school raised $2,539 which is enough to provide 7,617 meals! What an amazing impact this community has when it comes together!
The campaign page is still open if you’d like to make a donation.
Get ready to (finally!) send them back to school in the fall! Teacher-approved kits from SchoolKidz available for purchase, starting Friday, May 1st.
www.shopttkits.com
Enter account number 20848 in the green box.
Sale site will be open from 5/1/20 to 6/21/20.
All SchoolKidz supply boxes will be mailed to your home the week of August 16th (before the first day of school on 8/26/20). Supplies will come in plain cardboard boxes – no “carry handles.”
Here is the 5th grade supply list for reference!