Nitzel's Notes

February 20, 2008

Can you believe that spring is almost here?  From the weather right now, you'd never guess, would you?  Though spring may not have sprung quite yet, we still need to be prepared of all that will come with it.  Here we go!

ISAT: Our third through sixth grades will be taking the ISAT test during the weeks of March 3 and March 10th.  All students will be taking tests in reading and mathematics, our fourth grade students will be taking tests in science and our fifth and sixth grades will be taking assessments in writing.  These are important tests that will measure how well our students are meeting expectations set forth in the Illinois Learning Standards and whether or not our school will meet the requirements for Adequate Yearly Progress under the No Child Left Behind Legislation.  We have been working very hard preparing our kids for these tests.  Here's what you can do to help.  First, make sure your child is at school the weeks of March 3 and March 10.  Second, please make sure your child receives plenty of rest during those weeks.  Thirdly, please see to it that your child has breakfast before coming to school or at school.  And finally, ask your child to explain to you what he/she has been doing at school to prepare for the test.  Thomas Jefferson has been named an Illinois Spotlight School the past three years for its performance on the ISAT.  Together, we can make it four years in a row!  

Intersession: Our spring intersession will be the week of March 17 and March 24.  We are offering intersession classes again this spring.  Information and a registration form were sent home in our Tuesday folders on the 19th of February.  If you need another, please call the office at 793-5985 and we'll get another one to you.  

School Safety: It has been a few days since the tragic shooting at Northern Illinois University.  I wanted to write you a few lines to assure you that we are doing everything we can to keep your kids safe here at TJ.  Each day, we take measures to make sure our building is secure and our students are safe.  Our building is locked after the beginning of the school day and the only way to gain entrance is by using our front doors.  As most of you know, you must press the buzzer and be let into the building once recognized by the office staff and then proceed to the office to sign in.  We also practice our Code Red drill at least twice each year so that students and staff are aware of what to do should the need arise.  We have an excellent working relationship with the Milan Police Department, whose personnel participate in our Cod Red drills with us.  In addition, our friends at Milan PD will come around from time to time to jiggle the doors to see if they≠re locked or not˘helping to keep us honest!  As we continue to develop our building plans for the new addition, security issues will be a huge part of what we look at.  We want to use our new building plans as a means of making our students and our building an even safer place to be. In spite of everything, I want to assure you that school is still one of the safest, if not the safest, places for your children to be.  Like you, we consider our kids precious cargo and we will continue to do everything in our power to make sure they are safe!  If you ever have any suggestions in that regard, please let us know.  One last note, as spring and severe weather approach, we will be practicing our severe weather drills˘always a favorite with the students and staff!  

Until next month, take care!

Mr. Nitzel  
 

This Page was last update: Tuesday, February 19, 2008 at 5:26:13 PM
This page was originally posted: 7/11/05; 10:20:18 PM.
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