What a great week! We had an amazing virtual show for all 3rd-5th grade students entitled "Race and Song: A Musical Conversation." The show was created by Grammy nominated musicians and storytellers Alastair Moock and Reggie Harris. Thank you Mr. Jacobson and the PTO for making this possible!
Families who selected in-person learning: By now you should have received a communication regarding our D97 plans for Trimester 3. Click here for the announcement. We are so pleased to be able to maintain a five day, in-person schedule with seat to seat distancing at 5-6 feet! We do recognize that the increase to 80% students on site and sometimes smaller distances between students is a concern for some parents. We will continue to use a layered approach to mitigation and follow all of our current safety procedures. If you have any questions or have decided to change your selection to remote, please just let us know as soon as possible so that we can plan for your child’s needs as well as the physical set up of the classroom. Parents who opted into on-site learning for Trimester 3 are permitted to switch to remote learning at any time. However, we are not currently accepting requests to switch from remote to on-site learning. Thank you!
Our next materials pick up for our remote students is scheduled for grades 1-3 on Friday, March 19th. Grades K, 4, and 5 do not have materials for pick up currently. We will have your child’s materials prepared in a bag labeled with their name, teacher’s name and grade level set up outside our main doors on the designated day between the hours of 8am-4pm. At any time during those hours, you or a designee may come to retrieve your child’s bag of materials. Please wear a mask and adhere to social distancing guidelines during pick up. Thank you!
IAR Assessment:
Beginning Monday, March 15th, our third, fourth and fifth grade students will take part in the Illinois Academic Readiness testing (formerly known as PARCC). Fifth graders will also participate in the Illinois Science Assessment. We are excited that testing will be web-based again this year, which will give students the opportunity to build experience with testing on a computer in a comfortable environment. Students should make every effort to be present and on time to school during the testing window. Should an illness or unforeseen absence occur, the student will participate in make-up testing.
Parents, please assist your child in being prepared for testing. Eating breakfast and being well-rested will help your student to do his or her best. Discussing the importance of the test while minimizing any anxieties your child may be feeling is helpful as well. As is required by law, every student who is eligible to take the IAR assessment will receive a test ticket or test booklet. However, in accordance with our practice, anyone who elects not to take the assessment will be permitted to read a book after the teacher has read the directions to the class and students have begun the testing process.
Students who are remote learners will be invited into the school on the following days for testing, so that they can participate in testing at the same time as their in-person peers. They will be tested in a separate location. The students will be required to wear masks, will be spaced 6 feet apart, must be certified in CrisisGo, and will be required to follow all other safety measures. On days when students participate in two testing sessions, they will have a break in between with a socially distant outdoor snack.
Students are invited to Hatch at the following times:
5th Grade
Monday, March 15th - 8:00am-9:20am
Tuesday, March 16th - 8:00am-12:00pm
Wednesday, March 17th - 8:00am-12:00pm
Thursday, March 18th - 8:00am-12:00pm
Friday, March 19th - 8:00am-12:00pm
4th Grade
Tuesday, March 23rd - 8:00am-12:00pm
Wednesday, March 24th - 8:00am-12:00pm
Thursday, March 25th - 8:00am-12:00pm
3rd Grade
Wednesday, April 7th - 8:00am-12:00pm
Thursday, April 8th - 8:00am-12:00pm
Friday, April 9th - 8:00am-12:00pm
Remote learners will also be given the opportunity to participate in make-up testing the week of April 12th.
If you have any questions or concerns regarding IAR testing, please contact Ms. Winfield at [email protected]
Spring Band and Orchestra Open House Thursday, March 11th, 6 PM: This is the time of year when students and families start thinking about their future in the band and orchestra program. We want you to know that the future is bright and there are so many amazing opportunities for your students. We are offering a virtual open house where we will provide to you information about Intermediate Band and Orchestra (next year's rising 5th graders) and Middle School Band and Orchestra (next year’s rising 6th graders). If you are unable to attend, the event will be recorded and you will be able to view it on our webpage www.op97.org/instrumental-music. If you have questions that you would like for us to address, you can submit questions ahead of time Submit questions here.
You can register for next week’s virtual open house by clicking this link.
D97 Summer Music Camp: We are currently putting the finishing touches on our summer music camp but want you to save the date. This year’s camp will take place: July 26th-July 30th. Times TBA.
Library Book Checkout will continue to run during hybrid learning! Please make sure to fill out this new Google Form for all book requests. Click here to learn all about when and how students will receive their books and how students can return their Hatch library books.
Please be sure to complete this year’s Illinois 5Essentials Survey! This is a unique opportunity to not only provide feedback to the school and district, but to support Hatch on a larger scale. School-level reports will be generated if at least 20 percent of parents respond to the survey. It should only take approximately 10 minutes to complete. If parents have more than one child that attends the same school, they may elect to participate multiple times. For parents with children enrolled in multiple schools, we recommend that they participate in the survey for each school. Thank you for your support!
To take the 2020-21 Illinois Parent Survey Visit: http://survey.5-essentials.org/illinois/survey/parent/
Click here to access and download the QR code for the 5E Survey.
Sarah Mendez
Hatch School Principal
1000 N Ridgeland Ave
Oak Park, IL 60302
(708) 524-3095
D97 Updates:
Next Meal D97 Meal Distribution: Tuesday, March 9: Meals will be provided free of cost this fall to any District 97 student in need. Each bag of food will contain five breakfasts and five lunches. Meal distributions will be held every Tuesday, from 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., at Longfellow Elementary School (for Julian and feeder schools), 715 S. Highland Ave., and Brooks Middle School (for Brooks and feeder schools), 325 S. Kenilworth Ave.
D97 Breakfast/Lunch Menus - March 2021
"Mindful Middle-Schoolers" Program: The Community Mental Health Board of Oak Park Township, Oak Park Elementary School District 97, and DePaul University’s Community Counseling Center have partnered to deliver a vast array of educational and therapeutic services to staff, families, and youth through the “Mindful Middle-Schoolers Program.” Below is a list of upcoming VIRTUAL talks, which will be held via Zoom. Registration via the Eventbrite links below is requested. Once you register, a link will be emailed to you four hours prior to the start of each event.
"Mindful Middle-Schoolers" Community Talk Flyer
Thursday, March 11 (6 p.m.): Mindfulness-based strategies and their applications in academic and home environments https://www.eventbrite.com/e/understandingmindfulness-tickets-141700721673
Wednesday, March 17 (6 p.m.): Understanding and supporting the emotional health of Black children https://www.eventbrite.com/e/understanding-and-supporting-theemotional-health-of-black-children-tickets-141702515037
Wednesday, March 24 (6 p.m.): Understanding depression in youth and strategies for treatment and support https://www.eventbrite.com/e/understanding-depression-inyouth-and-strategies-for-treatment-and-support-tickets-141698771841