Beye Bullish on the Bulls!

On Friday night, March 6th, Beye headed to the Bulls. 72 of us enjoyed a great game and a great evening. We raised $850 dollars for the PTO and had a whole lot of fun!

Beyestander Column (March)

Beye School is still going green! Our latest effort means that the Thursday packet is now being scanned and posted as a PDF each Thursday. An email will go out each week over our listserv to announce that the new packet is up and available. You’ll also be able to find it from the Beye web site (www.op97.org/beye). After spring break we will only provide a hard copy of the Thursday packet to families without internet access and families who specifically request a hard copy. If we have an email address for your family, we believe you have some means of accessing the digitized packet. If that is not the case, please be sure to let us know you want and need the hard copy. We are trying to kill fewer trees and to make the information inside each Thursday packet more accessible. To that end, you’ll find an index as the first page of each digital Thursday packet. That index gives you a heads up about what’s inside and provides a means of navigating to it. Each item listed is also a hot link you can click on to directly to that document in the larger PDF. We welcome your feedback to help us make this communication tool as effective as possible.

Speaking of our listserv, we recently made a transition to a new listserv server. When we made that switch, we folded in all of the email addresses we have from our directory. That means that some of you who have never received BeyeBytes before suddenly started receiving that PTO update, which is the primary use of our listserv. While you may unsubscribe if you’d prefer not to receive those updates, we hope you’ll stay subscribed and help us make this communication tool even better.

Kindergarten registration begins for prospective Beye students on March 25th and 26th at the administration building at 970 Madison. No appointment is necessary. A list of the documents required for registration can be found on the district website (www.op97.org). Please share these dates with your neighbors as reaching those families can sometimes be a challenge for us.

Thank you for giving us feedback recently via the district’s climate survey and the School Improvement Team’s homework survey. That ongoing look at where we are and how we’re doing is key to our success and so we greatly appreciate the time effort you spent helping us celebrate our successes and chart a course for future improvement.

As the weather warms, more and more of you will want to venture to school with your family pet. Since board policy prohibits dogs on the school grounds, and knowing that we do have some students who are afraid of dogs, I’m reminding you to please wait with fido somewhere other than on the playground. This includes the alley which so many of students traverse before and after school. The east side of the property just beyond the rail fence is a great place to meet if you come with your dog. Thanks in advance for your understanding and cooperation.

Hopefully the weather will also encourage more of us to walk to school as well! When you must drive, please remember our traffic plan and use the north side of the property along Erie st. for drop off. Ontario st. is really only intended for parents of primary students who are parking briefly and walking their child on to the property.

As always, please email, phone or stop by with questions, concerns, ideas or causes for
celebration. Thanks for your partnership and support.

Jonathan Ellwanger
Principal

Beyestander Column (February)

As this school year flies by, you may find it hard to believe that spring break is just around the corner! The second trimester will end on March 6th, and report cards will go home on March 204h. Spring break begins March 30h and ends as we return to school on April 6th.

With winter upon us more days than not, it is imperative that students come prepared for the weather. On most days we still go out for lunch recess. If it’s colder we offer a warming center in the auditorium as a choice for students in addition to playing outside. On the coldest days we all stay in and utilize the auditorium, gym, media center and classrooms as destinations. Boots, hats and gloves or mittens are a must. We also ask that students who wish to play in the field or on, in and under the snow banks have snow pants as well. Students who are not dressed for the weather will find their options limited.

With the cold weather the lost and found is also brimming predictably. Please take a look in the lockers just outside the office and claim what you’ve been missing. Also, to make it easier to reunite kids and their stuff, please scrawl your child’s name somewhere with a permanent marker inside each and every article of clothing you send to school.

For Beye families the first opportunities to register kindergarten students for the 2009-2010 school year will come on March 25th & 26th at the administration building (970 Madison st.). There will be open registration from 9:00 am-12:00 pm and from 1:00-4:00 pm. A list of the documents required is available at:
http://www.op97.org/KindergartenRegistration.pdf or in the school office. Please pass this information on to friends, family or neighbors who may not know how or when to register. There will also be open kindergarten registration for all eight district 97 school on May 19th & 20th.

As you come for your February conferences, you’ll have two chances to give us feedback to help us grow, improve and celebrate. The first will be a couple of questions from our SIT about how homework is going at your house. The second will be a longer satisfaction survey that is going out to all parents in district 97. Most of you will want to fill that survey out online, and you can find a link on the Beye School home page (www.op97.org/beye). If you don’t have a computer, you may use one of ours in the computer lab when you come for your conference, or you can pick up a paper copy in the office. The more people we hear from, the clearer the picture will be of where we are and where we need to go. Thanks in advance for taking the time to contribute your perspective. Along with our district’s strategic plan and our own school improvement plan, it will definitely help us as we make plans for the future.

As always. please email, phone or stop by with questions, concerns, ideas or causes for celebration. Thanks for your partnership and support.

Jonathan Ellwanger
Principal

Beyestander Column (January)

HOW WILL YOU SHINE IN 2009? That was my question to the 399 students of Beye School as we returned from winter break to begin our New Year together. At an all-school assembly I challenged them to choose a few things they’d like to do better with and to think about what it will take to make those things better throughout the New Year. We seldom improve on accident. It requires focus, commitment and effort to really do better. That will be our goal in 2009.

As we approach parent-teacher conferences the week of February 9th-13th, we look forward to that same process of reflection, goal setting and strategizing. This conference marks the half-way point in the second trimester, and is the perfect opportunity to chart a course for a successful last leg of the school year. Babysitting will once again be provided by the PTO on Thursday, February 12th from 4:00-7:00 pm.

During conference week we will be asking you to complete the district’s satisfaction survey. The district has worked hard to revise the survey based upon feedback you’ve provided over the past few years. You’ll find a “short-form”, that allows you to give quick, general feedback along with the opportunity to provide more detailed information in any area you choose using a “longer form”. You will also have the opportunity to provide open-ended comments. It is crucial that we hear from you to know that the adjustments we are making are in response to the needs of the entire school community. The survey will be available online and computers will be available at school for anyone without a connection at home.

Last year’s survey identified homework as an area where clearer communication would benefit all of us. To see how we’re doing and to help focus our planning moving forward, teachers will be asking you at your conference to provide some quick, direct feedback about how homework is going at your house, for you and your learner. That information will come back to the School Improvement Team (SIT) who will help us continue to improve clarity of expectations and communication about homework in each homeroom, across homerooms at a given grade level and across all the grades at Beye.

We had fabulous performances galore just before winter break. Our first and second graders did a wonderful job under Mrs. Friesen’s direction presenting “Songs for the Soul” and Mrs. Rosenblum, Ms. Korelc and Mrs. Lyons did a great job leading the band, orchestra, chorus, jazz band and gospel choir in the Winter Festival. Thanks to all who contributed and attended.

BOOST (Building On Our Strengths Together) began just before winter break and will continue through March on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays after school. 3rd -5th grade students gather to hone their reading, math and test-taking skills. Everyone has things they are good at, and if we can maximize our strengths and minimize our weaknesses we’ll learn more and be more enthusiastic about the entire process. Homework Club also continues to meet on those same days in the media center for 3rd-5th graders who need a consistent, structured setting to complete their homework.

The Beye Green Team has really taken off in the past few months! Parents, teachers and students helped us look at the waste we produce as we conducted our first ever waste assessment on Dec. 16th. That data will help us determine strategies and goals for minimizing our impact on the world around us. To help us rev up our engines, the entire school has been thinking of cool ways we could make this a greener place, and the best of those ideas will be rolled into a video we’re submitting as part of the “Green My School Contest. The penthouse kicked off the effort with back to back Good Morning Beye episodes, and students across the school have been thinking about how to convey their ideas in song, dance, poetry or prose.

As always. please email, phone or stop by with questions, concerns, ideas or causes for celebration. Thanks for your ongoing partnership and support.

Jonathan Ellwanger
Principal

Beyestander Column (December)

“The old year now away is fled, the new year, it is entered”…… or soon it will be, anyway. As hard as it may be to believe, 2008 is about to be a historical footnote, and soon we’ll all be struggling to remember to write 2009 on our checks! As we prepare to move into this New Year, I encourage you to think with your learner about making some New Year’s resolutions that will maximize what we learn and accomplish in 2009. Being better about getting homework completed, finding a new interest to explore, committing to participating in class more regularly, making new friends, taking a STAND against bullying and STANDing for the traits in our REACH program- any of these might make for a fine resolution. Ultimately, it’s the reflection, self-examination and self-awareness that leads to the resolutions that will be as important as the promises we make and strive to keep.

I reported in my October Beyestander column and at the November PTO meeting on our school report card, which was recently issued by the state. You can see my powerpoint from the PTO meeting (saved for you as PDFs) as well as the actual school report card on the Beye web site (www.op97.org/beye). My presentation is based on the data from the school report card, but organized in a way that makes the numbers easier to digest and hopefully it’s also easier to see how we’ve been trending continually upward over the last few years.

It is with joy and some sadness that I share the news that our lunchroom manager, Diane Boyd is leaving us. While we’re sad to see her go after twelve years at Beye School, we’re happy that she’ll still be in the District 97 family as she moves to the central office to coordinate the meal programs in all ten schools. Our program will not miss a beat as Bridget Redmond steps in to serve as our new lunchroom manager. Ms. Redmond has been working in the Beye lunchroom for the past five years and will now be the first person you should contact if you have questions, concerns or ideas re: the breakfast or lunch program here at Beye School.

The Beye Green Team has continued to work on ways we can become more responsible in our interactions with and impact on the environment. We’re working with Seven Generations Ahead to conduct a Zero Waste Assessment that will help us target ways we can minimize our waste footprint and maximize our education and awareness on these issues. The green team is also working on preparing a submission for the “Green My School” contest. Look for more information elsewhere in the Beyestander and in your Thursday packets.

Thanks for your partnership in our fall conferences. When you receive the first trimester report card, please consider it an invitation to extend the conversation you began at conferences. Anything on the report card that is unclear or surprising is something for you to discuss with your child’s teacher. Please also remember to sign the report card envelope and return it to your child’s teacher.

The SIT (School Improvement Team) thanks the parents and teachers who gave feedback on our survey about the start of this school year. Overall, comments were very positive. The SIT will be reviewing all the comments to help us plan for the start of the 2009-2010 school year. The BOOST program (Building On Our Strengths Together) has begun meeting after school on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays to provide a boost in reading and math for students in grades 3-5. This extra support has been one very important piece of the continued improvement we’ve seen on our ISAT scores over the past few years. The SIT also thanks the teachers, parents and students who made our “Blast off into Reading” night a big success. Look for another learning night coming your way in the New Year.

May your holiday season be full of peace, time together with family and enough R&R to propel you headlong into a great 2009! As always. please email, phone or stop by with questions, concerns, ideas or causes for celebration. Thanks for your partnership and support.

Jonathan Ellwanger
Principal

Amazing Reptiles

On Friday, Nov. 7th, the PTO sponsored three assemblies as part of their ongoing Children’s Enrichment Series.  Students in grades K-5 saw, learned about and touched a variety of reptiles.  They heard how these animals survive in the wild, how they serve important roles in the food chain, and how many of these fascinating creatures make poor pets, and often end up being abandoned by once eager owners. The guest who elicited the most ooos and aahs was a 14 foot 150 pound albino constrictor named Chicquita.

Chicquita

Beyestander Column (November)

November is here and as surely as the leaves and the temperature are falling, that means the first trimester is quickly coming to a close.  At your conference you should have heard some things to work on and work toward between now and the close of the grading period on Nov. 25^th.  Our standards based report card (which you’ll receive on December 12^th) will give you a snapshot of where your child is at trimester’s end and how hard and how well they worked to get there.  Between now and then please feel free to continue the conversation with your child’s teacher about how we can work together to see success and learning maximized.

 The School Improvement Team is looking for feedback on the start of this school year, and has posted a survey to hear from you!  We want to know how the schedule and the particular activities we planned worked or didn’t work for you and your family.  You can find a link to the survey on the Beye web site or point your browser to:  http://smtpgate1.op97.org/phpsurveyor/index.php?sid=10  Hard copies are also available in the office.  Responses will be collected until Nov. 17th.

 The official school report card issued by the state board of education is now available online at the Beye web site and in print in the school office.  I am happy to report that as a school our overall performance is up in reading and math and that all of our subgroups made AYP (annual yearly progress) as required by NCLB (No Child Left Behind).  While we still have an achievement gap,  we continue to see it shrinking.  I commend all of our students, teachers and parents on the continued hard work that has brought continued progress.  I will be spending time at the upcoming November PTO meeting going over the school report card in greater detail.  I hope you can join me then, but you may contact me at any time with questions.

 Summer school for K-4^th graders has been scheduled for June 29^th- July 17^th.  Middle school academy for students going in to 6^th grade next year will be held June 9^th  -July 10^th  at Julian.  This represents a change from last year’s schedule.  School Daze, the optional enrichment summer program, will take place from June 9^th-26^th.  Keep an eye out for more information that will be coming soon from the district office.

 We are working hard to keep safety a top priority here at school.  When we ask you to enter through the office, to always sign in and wear a visitor’s pass, to drop off or pick up only in the zones so designated in our traffic safety plan, we are making those requests to keep Beye School and all our students as safe as possible.  We appreciate your cooperation and vigilance.

 Wellness is more than a buzzword, it’s a policy in District 97 and throughout IL.  Thanks to members of our wellness committee for attending a recent district-wide wellness council meeting and for keeping us focused on doing better.  In light of our wellness policy we are also asking you once again to please consider one of the following alternatives to cupcakes or other sweet birthday treats:

• giving special pencils, erasers or stickers

• donating a book for the classroom or school library in your child’s name

• leading something special, like a game, a song or a dance

• a healthier treat like fresh fruit; pretzels; animal crackers; yogurt; low-fat breakfast or granola bars; or low-fat popcorn

Cupcakes have not been banned.  No one is going to inspect your Tupperware to see if your treats pass muster.  We do hope you’ll think about what’s the very best you can do for your child and their classmates and let your conscience (and perhaps a calorie counter) be your guide.

 We have a new offshoot of our wellness committee that’s come to be known as the Green Team.  They are in the process of finalizing plans and priorities for this year to keep us focused on reducing waste, increasing recycling and generally minimizing our negative impact on our environment.  They will present an overview at the November PTO meeting and would love for you to join them.  Contact Ana Garcia Doyle if you’re interested.

 Mr. Rocco is starting a new walking club that will meet Thursday’s at lunch time.  Beye Trekkers will have a chance to walk around the block each week and keep track of their progress via a punch card that allows them to accumulate miles and earn trekker charms.  Please let  Mr. Rocco know if you’d be available to help supervise.

 Please remember we an Institute Day on November 26^th, and of course, please email, phone or stop by with questions, concerns, ideas or causes for celebration.  Thanks for your partnership and support.

 Jonathan Ellwanger, Principal

Boo! to You!

teachers

On Friday, October 31st, Beye School continued its long tradition of holding a Halloween Parade.  The entire school gathered on the blacktop, decked out in a dazzling array of costumes, and after greeting families on Harvey St.  ventured southward to the Heritage House senior center, where we spread some Halloween cheer.  The weather was glorious, the parade was grand and the eats were good (and mostly, good for you).  Truly, a good time was had by all!

raisins?

students

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On Guard

We have two new crossing guards assisting our children in getting safely to and from school this year. Josephine Barnes, grandmother of a Beye third grader, guards the corner of Harvey and South Blvd. Ernest Williams guards the intersection of Ridgeland and Ontario. We welcome them both and thank them for their valuable service.

 

Ms. Barnes

 

Mr. Williams

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