Welcome to the District Digest for Glen Ellyn School District 41.  This email will be sent to you periodically and will include district happenings and updates.


Ebola Information

District 41 takes public health news seriously. District nurses and staff are in communication with local health department agencies regarding Ebola. Currently, there are no confirmed cases in Illinois. However, the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) is preparing in the event of a confirmed positive Ebola case. The IDPH is assembling an Ebola task force and has set up an Ebola hotline, (800) 889-3931. District 41 will continue to monitor the Ebola crisis. As always, please encourage hand washing within your families to prevent the spread of all viruses. Also, if your children are sick, please keep them home from school until they are fever free for 24 hours. You can contact your school nurse HERE with any questions or concerns.

Please see the below links for information about the Ebola virus:
- Illinois Department of Public Health
- Illinois School Board of Education
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Chicago Tribune Features District 41 

District 41 was featured on the front page of the Chicago Tribune newspaper on October 15, in the story "In ISAT's last year, math scores up, reading down." The reporter came to the district office and interviewed Superintendent Gordon and Assistant Superintendent Karen Carlson and sent a photographer to two 5th grade math classes. From the article:
    In DuPage's Glen Ellyn School District 41, 89.7 percent of fifth-graders passed the math ISAT - up from 81.3 percent the year before and the highest passing rate across all reading and math tests in the district. Superintendent Paul Gordon and Assistant Superintendent Karen Carlson said they were pleased, given that ISAT tests have changed dramatically in the past two years. Carlson said the district began to revamp its curriculum three years ago to meet the Common Core standards in math. District 41 used math coaches and created small groups in class, much like reading groups, to focus on what students needed to work on.
District 41 was also mentioned in another Chicago Tribune article on October 8, "Foreign language push features new state credential."
    Glen Ellyn School District 41, which sends children to Glenbard 87, last school year launched a foreign language program that offers 30 minutes of Spanish instruction daily in first grade at all four elementary schools. This year the program was extended to second grade, said Katie McCluskey, head of bilingual and English language learner programs.

    The district also offers a popular Spanish dual language program for kindergarten and first grade students at Churchill Elementary School. Half of them speak English, the other half Spanish.



U.S. Department of Education Visit

Last Thursday, District 41 was pleased to welcome Julie Ewart, Office of Communications and Outreach, Great Lakes Region, US Department of Education. She came to learn more about how our Problem-Based Learning environment is having a positive impact on our ESL students. She spent the morning at Ben Franklin and then participated in the PBL field experience on the topic of Monarch butterflies at the Wildlife Center. In addition, a reporter from Trib Local attended the Monarch field experience and is working on a story about the US Department of Education visit and our PBLs. Julie interviewed Superintendent Gordon, Assistant Superintendent Karen Carlson, and ESL/Bilingual Director Katie McCluskey at the end of her day and shared how impressed she is with what we are doing in District 41. The US Department of Education is planning to highlight District 41 in their communications in the near future. A special thanks to Ben Franklin ENL teacher Teresa Shea for making this connection and hosting Julie during her visit!



Fall Festivities for D41 families

jack-o-lantern.jpg Hadley presents a Spook-tacular Haunt Activity Night this Friday, Oct 24. All 6th graders are invited to attend from 3:45-5:15pm and 7th/8th graders from 6-8pm. The event will feature a DJ, snacks, sports, and a chance to be with friends! Students are welcome to wear appropriate costumes for some Halloween fun. For entry, each student should bring school ID, and a nonperishable food donation (or $1.00) to the event.

The Ben Franklin Pumpkin Fest will be held this Friday, October 24 from 6 to 9 p.m. Come and enjoy food, games, bounce house, a cake walk, photo booth, and other Bootique activities. Wristbands are $8 in advance and $10 at the door. Adults and kids under 4 are free.

Churchill's Fall Fest is this Friday, October 24 from 6 to 8:30 p.m. Join Churchill families for a night of fall fun including pizza, Blackberry Market Pumpkin whoopie pies, games, prizes, facepainting, bounce house, fortune teller, lollipop pull, and more. Wristbands are $8 per child in advance (or $20 per family) and $10 per child at the door (or $25 per family).

It's Socktober at Abraham Lincoln. This student organized "sock" drive provides gently used shoes and other clothing to those in need. Students in the homeroom that collects the greatest number of shoes and socks will be participating in a "Sockball" fight against the principal and other staff. Lincoln will also hold a food drive on October 31st. All food will be donated to the Glen Ellyn Food Pantry. The Abraham Lincoln Annual Halloween Parade will take place on October 31st starting at 1:45pm. The parade begins at Door 4.  

18th Annual Pumpkin Parade at Forest Glen will take place on Halloween, Friday, October 31 at 1:45 p.m. Students will march out of the east doors (Door 15). Families are invited to come and enjoy the parade!

Thanks to all of the PTA parents, volunteers and staff for making these events possible!
 
STAY CONNECTED WITH DISTRICT 41 ON FACEBOOK AND TWITTER

Like us on Facebook   Follow us on Twitter