Thank you for your cooperation and support as we made the transition to Trimester 3! Bringing 80% of our students on site 5 days a week was no easy task, and we appreciate your help! Our remote students and families have been patient and kind as we adjust once again. Our in-person families were considerate of our teachers in following the safety protocols and new procedures. Again, every day we will get better and better at this new normal. Time after time, our Hatch community has come together to make things work!
Here are a few reminders for in-person families to help us improve our procedures and keep everyone safe:
- As a reminder, all hybrid learning students must be self-certified every morning NO LATER than 7:15 am using the CrisisGo form sent to your email. If you habitually do not certify your child for entry, your child may be asked to return to remote learning. Please let the office know if your child is staying home on a particular day, but complete the form every day to prevent them being flagged in the system. Thank you!!
- Please allow your child to line up independently. Only staff and students are allowed in the line up areas for both entrance and dismissal. Please stand across the street or away from the line. Thank you!
- We are unable to accept visitors currently, so please do not drop off forgotten items. We will make adjustments for students in the classroom as needed.
- Playground will be closed in the morning and at dismissal to maintain the integrity of our classroom pods.
- If using the drop off lane on Harvey, please wait until you reach the end of the cones to let your child out and only use the curb side for your child to exit the vehicle. Please drive slowly and do not block crosswalks.
We thank you in advance for your cooperation. Mitigating the spread of Covid-19 will help our schools stay open. Working together toward this goal is the best way to support our students and staff!
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 by April 1st. 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.
To celebrate all the hard work the students have done during Second Trimester, the PBIS team has planned an all school BINGO celebration on Friday, March 26th at 11:10 AM to 11:30 AM. This will take place over the speaker at Hatch and the remote learners will be able to participate through their classroom teacher's zoom.
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.
The Hatch PTO is happy to once again offer the Kids Kreations Art Fundraising Activity - A fun way to treasure your child’s artwork. This is an entirely optional fundraiser. This year we are going virtual. Since we were unable to send in physical art for Kids Kreations to scan, you and your child get to choose from any old or new pieces of their art that you have at home. They may, alternatively, choose to create something special for this occasion. You may also choose to use a favorite photograph, photo collage, or special logo. You still have the opportunity to order a wide array of 50+ products with your child's art on it. Hatch PTO will still earn up to 35% profit on anything that you choose to order. The simple uploading of art, photo, or logo will be done by you and the ordering will be online (https://www.kidskreations.us) only. Shipping will be directly to your home, with a flat $8 shipping rate, regardless of the monetary amount ordered. Please see the attached flyers for easy step-by-step directions on how to complete this process. Thank you for supporting Hatch School! Any questions? Please contact Sharon Morgan [email protected] or Kids Kreations directly at 866-652-3770.
Equity and Social Justice at Hatch: District 97 seeks to disrupt societal and historical inequities arising from institutional racism and white supremacy in our schools and eliminate disparities based on student status so that all our students will benefit and reach their potential. This is a collaboration between all stakeholders, including the Department of Equity, Teaching and Learning, & Communications. As part of this work, Hatch kicked off our anti-racist curriculum which began teaching lessons within this curriculum in January.
For some background knowledge, our culture and climate coaches and curriculum coordinator, in collaboration with classroom teachers, librarians, the diversity council and our instructional coaches, compiled resources and developed units using the Learning for Justice Social Justice Standards (formerly Teaching Tolerance). Learning for Justice provides a road map for anti-bias education for grades K-12 and the standards are divided into four domains--identity, diversity, justice, and action. These standards build on each other and develop students’ knowledge and skills related to both prejudice reduction and collective action.
Our staff were introduced to the Learning for Justice Social Justice Standards this fall and we used the first trimester for anti-racist curriculum development and professional learning. We have begun embarking on the identity standards, which help us understand who we are, and the diversity standards, which help us understand that we are all different and we should appreciate this diversity. Next year we will introduce the justice standards, which shine a light on when identities are not valued, and the action standards, which help us know what to do when there is no justice. Please note that this curriculum is one piece of our social justice work. The social justice standards are embedded in all we do with our students, such as the books we select and how we talk to each other.
At Hatch we are teaching this curriculum during morning meetings and then embedding the standards and content throughout the day and week. Thank you for your support of our continued work towards social justice and equity!
Hatch Spirit Wear Sale Through Sunday, April 11th. Purchase your Hatch Spirit Wear now through April 11th at https://holycowsports.printavo.com/merch/hatchtigers. Congratulations to Zoe B. in 5P who created this year’s winning design for the 2020-2021 Hatch Love shirt, which everyone can now purchase and wear along with other spirit wear options. A portion of each sale comes back to the Hatch PTO to support our students and teachers. There is a minimum order by design/item so orders will be shipped out approximately two weeks after April 11th. Please contact [email protected] with any questions.
This year's planting season will be an "Adopt-a-Bed" at the Hatch Patch model again. Just like last year, a family (or two) can sign up for planting, caring and harvesting their own garden bed at Hatch. All crops are donated to Beyond Hunger. The Hatch Patch team will assign an area depending on what gardeners would like to plant. Most beds are full sun, all have great compost soil and access to water. There are seeds available from the PTO, but gardeners can also bring their own. Families also have the option to buy plants if they’d like to try something else. All Hatch Patch crops must be planted and cared for organically (no sprays etc). The garden soil is so good! So many living creatures to entertain all summer long! Participants must continue to follow state social distancing guidelines, visiting the garden one family at a time and wearing masks. The Hatch Patch team will be available to offer guidance or advice as needed. Sign ups begin later this month, but in the meantime, send email with questions to the Hatch Patch team at [email protected].
Sarah Mendez
Hatch School Principal
1000 N Ridgeland Ave
Oak Park, IL 60302
(708) 524-3095
D97 Updates
Expectations for D97 Students and Staff Who Travel Out Of State
With spring break approaching in just a few weeks, we know that many families are finalizing plans to spend the week together. Avoiding unnecessary travel remains paramount to maintaining the health and safety of our students, staff, families, and the broader community—particularly when students are attending school in-person. In cases where travel is necessary, it is expected that students and staff will adhere to the revised travel quarantine guidelines.
Click here to view a summary of the district's expectations for students and staff.
SAVE THE DATE: D97 Virtual Summer Step Up Program
District 97 is holding a Virtual Step Up Summer Program for students in Grades 1-8 (students who are in kindergarten through seventh grade during the 2020-21 school year). The program will run July 26 through Aug. 5, 2021 (8:30 a.m. - 11 a.m. OR 12 pm. - 2:30 p.m.). Summer Step Up is designed to support any District 97 student that could benefit from revisiting grade level standards from the previous year. Additional information and sign up forms will be shared by schools in May 2021.
Next Meal D97 Meal Distribution: Tuesday, March 23 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
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