News from Addams 2/25/2015

Dear Addams Community,

We hope everyone is having a fabulous week! It has been wonderful to actually have five days with our students! As with most of us, our students seem to function at a higher rate of efficiency when they are in their normal routine. With Monday being the first day of the third trimester, we brought the 8^th graders down to the gym at the end of the day for a short “expectations” assembly. Mr. Szwed and I stressed the importance of staying focused during this third trimester in order to finish their careers in District 54 on a high note.  Students were excited to hear a little about end of the year celebrations, while being reminded that our academic and behavioral expectations remain constant through the end of the year. Please note that by district policy eighth grade students may not have any missing work in order to participate in the graduation ceremony. Read on for some more noteworthy items.

Family Dinner Night

Please join Addams PTA at Panda Express on Barrington Road for:  Family Dinner Night, this Thursday, February 26 from 11:30 am to 7:30 pm. Panda Express is donating a percentage back to Addams PTA for all dine in and/or carry out. See attached flyer for more details.  PandaExpressFlyer

PTA News- STC Elementary Summer Scholarships

Does your 7th grader attend a camp or enrichment program over the summer?  The Schaumburg Township Council of PTAs offers summer scholarships for students of District 54 who are currently in 1st through 7th grades.

• Scholarships will be awarded for the full cost of the program/camp up to $125.
• The parent/guardian must be a member of the PTA at the school attended by the child applying for the scholarship by March 1, 2015.
• Applications must be turned in to the Addams Junior High office no later than Friday, March 20, 2015.
• See more details in the attached application and hard copies are available in the office.  PTA scholarship application
• Questions? Contact Mikel Eppenbaugh at hairstyle9902@yahoo.com.

A note from Hoffman Estates High School to all of our families

On Sunday, March 1^st, 2015 Hoffman Estates High School is hosting Dr. Samuel Betances and his wife, Dr. Laura Souder, to speak to families.  Dr. Betances is the author of the book Winning the Future through Education and founder of Souder, Betances, and Associates, Inc.  Dr. Betances uses the story of his personal journey, dropping out of high school to graduating with a Doctorate from Harvard University, to motivate students and create awareness with educators.  Dr. Betances was at HEHS all day on January 28^th, meeting with teachers and speaking with students, and he will return to partner with HEHS for two more visits.  Please consider taking time on March 1^st to attend this important presentation.  Flyers are attached to provide you with more information about the event.  We hope that you will be able to attend.
HEHS Betances – English HEHS Betances – Spanish

Report Cards

Friday marked the end of the 2^nd trimester.  Teachers are wrapping up grading so that report cards can be created.  Report cards will be put in the mail the first week of March.

Schaumburg Parent University – March Class

Schaumburg Parent University (SPU) is designed to involve more parents in the life of the school, to strengthen family relationships, and to improve parenting skills that will ultimately result in improved student success academically, socially and emotionally. We will host one evening program for parents in March:  School Related Anxiety at 5:30 p.m. March 12 at the District 54 Professional Learning Center, 522 E. Schaumburg Road in Schaumburg.

District 54 social worker Tricia Johnson will assist parents in understanding the difference between common stress and anxiety disorders and will provide helpful strategies to help children manage stress.

If you are interested in attending this event, please see the attached flyer. Childcare will be available. For more information about Schaumburg Parent University and to register, visit our website at http://sd54.org/spu.    Schaumburg Parent University presents School-Related Anxiety – March 12

Have a great rest of the week!

Regards,

Chris Bingen

Principal

Jane Addams Junior High

847-357-5900

District 54 Summer Band and Orchestra

District 54 Summer Band and Orchestra

Registration for 2015 Summer Band and Orchestra program has begun!

District 54 students who have completed fifth, sixth, or seventh grade and have had lessons on their instrument for at least one school year are eligible to enroll.

Summer Band and Orchestra will take place July 6-23 (Mondays-Thursdays) at Keller Jr High.

Registration forms are available from any instrumental music teacher or at http://sd54.org/music/instrumental/summerprogram.

If you have questions, please contact the band/orchestra teacher at your school or call 847-357-5138.

District #54 Instrumental Music Staff

News from Addams, 2/20/2015

Dear Jane Addams Community:

This afternoon at Addams Junior High School we had a false fire alarm due to a water pressure surge. Because this was not a drill, we evacuated everyone from the building. I am proud of our staff and students, who did an excellent job exiting the building quickly. Despite the cold weather, we needed to wait outside until we knew it was safe.

Once it was verified as a false alarm, we brought students into the cafeteria and gym while we waited for the fire department. Students were outside for less than 10 minutes.

Nothing is more important to us than keeping your children – our students – safe while they are in our care. Should you have any questions, don’t hesitate to call or email us.

A couple other noteworthy items:

5Essentials Survey: If you still have yet to take the 5Essentials Survey, the window is open until March 13^th.  To take the parent survey, please visit https://survey.5-essentials.org/Illinois/ . If at least 20 percent of our parents complete this survey, a parent supplement will be generated. If not, the parent data will not be reported on the State Report Card. We are hoping to meet the target this year.  Currently, only 7% of our parents have completed the survey.Thank you to all our families that have already completed the survey!

Graduation Pictures:  8^th grade graduation pictures will take place on Monday, February 23^rd. While students may choose to dress up for these pictures, it should be understood that all attire needs to fall within the guidelines of the school and District dress code policies.  Failure to adhere to these guidelines may result in exclusion from pictures on that day.  Students will not be allowed to change clothing during the course of the day, so please plan accordingly. Note – students do not have to pay for their pictures at the time they are taken. Payment will come at a later date.

We hope everyone has an enjoyable, safe and warm weekend!

Regards,

Chris Bingen and Dave Szwed

Principal

Jane Addams Junior High

847-357-5900

Wrestling news

Attention all wrestlers: Bring all of your gear to practice on Monday!

“Call of the Wild”

8th grade LA students’ survival skills and knowledge will be tested as they read through a portion of “Call of the Wild” to see how the dog, Buck, survives the harshness of winter.

News from Addams 2/19/2015

Dear Addams Community,

Please enjoy the latest edition of the Addams Apple.  We have rescheduled the PTA meeting for this coming Tuesday, February 24^th at 6:30 pm in the Addams teacher’s lounge. We hope you can join us. Among other topics, we will begin to discuss preparations for the 8^th grade dance and 8^th grade activity day. Finally, I would like to highlight the information in the Addams Apple regarding our next PTA fundraiser at Panda Express on Barrington Road. Join the Addams PTA for Family Dinner night on Thursday, February 26 from 11:30 am to 7:30 pm. Panda Express is donating a percentage back to Addams PTA for all dine in and/or carry out.   Apple 2015 Feb Web      PandaExpressFlyer

Regards,

Chris Bingen

Principal

Jane Addams Junior High

847-357-5900

News from Addams 2/19/2015

Dear Addams Community,

The Addams PTA meeting scheduled for this evening is canceled. We have rescheduled the meeting for this coming Tuesday, February 24^th at 6:30 pm in the Addams teacher’s lounge. We hope you can join us.

Regards,

Chris Bingen

Principal

Jane Addams Junior High

847-357-5900

School closed 2/19/2015

All District 54 schools will be closed tomorrow, Thursday, Feb. 19, 2015. The National Weather Service has issue a wind chill advisory until noon Thursday, which calls for wind chill values as low as -26.

Our number one priority every day is keeping children safe. We have about 8,000 students who ride a bus. The other 6,500 students either walk or get a ride to school. We cannot assume that all students can get a ride to school on a cold weather day. We also can’t assume that all children will be dressed appropriately for this weather.

All after-school and evening activities at schools are canceled as well. The Rafferty Administration Center will be open and the School Board meeting scheduled for 7 p.m. will be held. Thank you for your understanding and support.

The District 54 Choral Festival scheduled for 7 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 18, will still occur. The event is located at Frost Junior High School.

Child Care

The Hoffman Estates Park District, Schaumburg Park District and YMCA have announced that they will be offering child care for elementary school students when schools close for cold weather days. For more information, visit the websites below.

http://www.campanelliymca.org

www.parkfun.com

Hoffman Estates Park District

News from Addams 2/13/2015

Dear Addams Community:

We hope that you had a wonderful week! As we gear up for the end of the 2^nd trimester, Jane Addams continues to be hopping with new learning opportunities both in and out of the classroom. We took advantage of the half day this past Wednesday to introduce our latest Key to Success – Integrity. The staff facilitated a lesson on leading a life of Integrity and we followed up by awarding students and staff at our monthly Be Addams assembly.

At the assembly special recognition was given to the classes and individuals who excelled in our latest fundraiser sponsored by the Student Ambassadors. The school collected an amazing 2553 food items for the Schaumburg Food Pantry. We are so fortunate to have such a kind and generous group of students! It speaks volumes to the guidance they must be receiving from home. As a result of reaching our building goal, students got to tape Mr. Szwed to the wall during the assembly. What a sport!

End of the Trimester and Missing Assignments: February 20^th is the end of the second trimester.  Please encourage your child to complete their work prior to this date.  Please note that eighth grade students may not have any missing work during third trimester in order to participate in the graduation ceremony and end-of-year activities.

8^th grade Graduation Pictures:  8^th grade graduation pictures will take place on Monday, February 23^rd. Students received a reminder flyer today at school.  While students may choose to dress up for these pictures, it should be understood that all attire needs to fall within the guidelines of the school and District dress code policies.  Failure to adhere to these guidelines may result in exclusion from pictures on that day.  Students will not be allowed to change clothing during the course of the day, so please plan accordingly. Note – students do not have to pay for their pictures at the time they are taken. Payment will come at a later date.

PARCC testing: We are beginning to prepare for the PARCC assessment.  The assessment window is from March 9th – 20th.  It is essential that students are present at school during this time.  Please keep these dates in mind when scheduling appointments or vacations.

Addams PARCC Schedule:

March 9th, 10th, and 11th – Literacy (all grades)

March 12th, 13th – Math (all grades)

Community Readiness Survey: The Schaumburg Township Community Coalition for Positive Youth Development wants to hear from you. District 54 is a member of this coalition and is therefore supporting its efforts to reach out to our community. We are looking for all community members, whether you live and/or work in the community, to give you input on what issues you think the community faces, and what the community’s priorities should be in addressing these issues.  Please take our brief online survey at http://goo.gl/forms/MHu1Xetyii.

Also, remember there is no school this coming Monday in honor of Presidents’ Day.

Have a great long weekend!

Regards,

Chris Bingen and Dave Szwed

Principal

Jane Addams Junior High

847-357-5900

The Bet

While reading  a story from Russian literature called “The Bet,” 8th grade LA students debate which would be a worse punishment: Capital punishment or life in prison.