Cultural Arts Event

Last Thursday, the students spent time with an engaging, energetic and interactive musician that taught them all about Brazilian music!  He explained each of the instruments and how to play them.  The children were asked many questions and had the chance to ask questions of their own as well.  They even gleaned some background information on Brazil.  Twelve children from each assembly were invited to make "music!"  The students had a great time clapping their hands and tapping their toes!  

Thank you to the PTO 

for making this great experience possible!  

Building Resilience

On Tues., Nov. 13, 9:30 – 11 a.m., you are invited to the Ivy Hall School Mat Room to participate in the facilitated discussion of the book we've been reading as a district: Building Resilience in Children and Teens: Giving Kids Roots and Wings. Parents who have not yet read the book, which addresses social/emotional learning (SEL) for our children, are welcome and encouraged to attend, as well. The interactive discussion will be facilitated by Student Services Director Kimberly Dahlem and Asst. Student Services Director Kim Lechner and is presented in collaboration with our District 96 Parent-to-Parent (P2P) Network. Though walk-ins are welcome, your RSVP is appreciated.

Special Directions for entering Ivy Hall School for the Nov. 13 program: 

Ivy Hall School is located at 1072 Ivy Hall Lane, Buffalo Grove. At the intersection of Arlington Heights and Route 83 (McHenry Rd.), take Arlington Heights Rd. south to Alden Lane (first street on left). Turn left onto Alden Lane and follow to the Ivy Hall School parking lot. Park in available lot spaces or curbside on the streets surrounding the school. 

Enter the Ivy Hall School through the double doors facing Clohesey Lane, near the playground area. Please do not enter through the main office. Staff will be in place throughout the program to monitor hallways and direct attendees to the Mat Room.

Questions? Call the public info coordinator at 847.459.4260, ext. 7722, or send email to bfresen@kcsd96.org

Canned Food Drive!

Hey Country Meadows' Cubs!  

This time of year is a great time to think about appreciation. We are appreciating that we have food and we are able to help those in need. So please bring in any canned foods or boxed foods for our Canned Food Drive. It is a great way to give back to our community. We will be collecting food until Friday, November 16th. Go home and ask your parents to help donate food so that we can help those in our community have food for the holidays! It will make you feel really good that you did something kind. The boxes for the food will be outside of the ICT Center. Let's try to collect more food than ever before! 

From - 
Your Cub Communities

Thank You!

The Country Meadows Community would like to send a BIG thank you to the men and women that serve our country!

We are honored to know so many Veterans and recognize each one on Veteran’s Day!  We are forever grateful for your service. 

We especially want to thank Mrs. Leonard for her service to our country!  You are a role model for all of us.  

Common Core Standards - What are they?

You may have heard reference to the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) to which our learning standards in District 96 are directly aligned.  As indicated on the CCSS website (http://www,commoncorestandards.org/), the Common Core State Standards provide a consistent, clear understanding of what students are expected to learn, so teachers and parents know what they need to do to help them. The standards are designed to be robust and relevant to the real world, reflecting the knowledge and skills that our young people need for success in college and careers.  The CCSS are a more rigorous set of standards than previous Illinois State Standards which we have historically used to develop our learning standards and curriculum frameworks.  The chart below illustrates the standards in place for 3^rd graders prior to the 2011-12 school year, which is when the elementary schools began implementation of the new targets.  This list of reading standards was based on the past version of the Illinois State Learning Standards:

Reading Standards- 3rd Grade

Utilize contextual clues to determine meaning (within and across sentences).

Determine the answer to a literal or simple inference question regarding the meaning of a passage.

Draw conclusions or generalizations about text and support them with textual evidence and prior knowledge.

Identify the author’s purpose for writing a fiction or non-fiction text (to inform, to entertain).

Identify setting (place and time period)

Identify the following forms of genres (tall tales, folktales, fiction, non-fiction, poetry).

Identify the main idea and supporting details of a selection.

Describe and compare character traits citing support from the text.

Identify events important to development of the plot including the problem and resolution.

The chart below illustrates our current standards for reading at the 3^rd grade level. The complexity of what we expect students to do is at a higher level than those in the past. These are the meets level, 3.0, targets for ALL 3^rd graders in District 96.

CCSS- Aligned Reading Standards- 3rd Grade

LITERATURE

Answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers.

Answer inferential based questions to demonstrate understanding of a text referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers.

Recount stories, including fables, folktales, or myths from diverse cultures

Explain how the central message, lesson, or moral from stories, fables, folktales, and myths from diverse cultures is conveyed through key details in the text.

Describe characters in a story (traits, feelings, or motivations)

Explain how a character's actions contribute to the sequence of events.

Compare and contrast the themes, settings, and plots of stories written by the same author about the same or similar characters.

INFORMATIONAL TEXT (NON-FICTION)

Answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers.

Answer inferential based questions to demonstrate understanding of a text referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers.

Determine the main idea and recount the key details of a text.

Determine the cause/effect of a historical event or scientific ideas/concepts. (From social studies)

Use information gained from text features and illustrations (e.g., maps, photographs) and the words in a text to demonstrate understanding of the text (e.g., where, when, why, and how key events occur).

Parent-Teacher Conferences are November 19th and 20th

Conferences are one of our favorite times of the school year!  We love collaborating with you about your child's progress.  We are looking forward to sharing your child's progress with you so far this year at our upcoming Parent-Teacher conferences to be held Monday, 11/19 from 5-7pm and Tuesday, 11/20 from 2-7pm.  You likely scheduled your conference at Curriculum Night in September.  Your child's teacher will be sending a reminder home with your appointment date and time soon.  We do hope that you will be able to attend conferences in person.  If you cannot, you may request a phone conference with your child's teacher and team members when appropriate.  It is not the expectation of the District for teachers to recreate the conference experience outside the dates/times identified on the District calendar.

The following is the language in Student Parent Handbook:  

8.1 Reporting Student Progress to Parents -   

Parent Conferences

In addition to these regularly scheduled progress reports, the equivalent of three full days are set aside in the school calendar for parent/teacher conferences. One and one-half days are scheduled in the late fall and another one and one-half days are scheduled in the spring.

Since no one report card can fully answer all of the questions parents may have, an individual conference between the teacher and the parents can be of great value in providing a better picture of the child at school and at home. 

If, for any reason, a parent perceives a need to confer with a teacher, the parent need only call the school to make necessary arrangements. The intent of scheduled conference days is to provide an opportunity for parents and teachers to come together to share information in a brief conference–not to replace the opportunity for these same people to come together whenever needed. Should you be unable to schedule a conference during the conference times identified on the school calendar, a parent may request a brief phone conference with the student's teacher and individual team members when appropriate. It is not the expectation of the District that teams re-create the conference experience outside the dates/times identified on the calendar.

Important Dates in the Next Coming Week!

Sunday, November 4th - When you wake up, don't forget to roll your clocks back an hour!  Yes, hopefully that means a bit more rest for everyone!

Monday, November 5th - Students at CM will practice voting!  Ask your child about voting in a booth at our polling place!  

Tuesday, November 6th - Election Day - No School for Teacher Institute

Sunday, November 11th - Veteran's Day - Thank you for honoring our Armed Service Veteran's!