May News

Dear John Stewart Families~ 

I hope you are all continuing to stay well as our "stay-at-home" order continues. I can't begin to describe the disappointment felt by our entire staff when we learned we would not be returning to our school home this year. We greatly miss every one of our students and are doing our absolute best to continue to support their learning. Your patience, respectfully posed questions and commitment to do the best you can with Remote Learning is recognized and appreciated. This May news is coming to you a bit early, as I'm certain you have many questions regarding the typical end of the year activities. I wanted to share with you what I currently know and assure you that I will reach back out as decisions are finalized.

Laura Garland

Principal

End of the Year Information
Please know that the district is currently working on a plan to address 3rd-trimester grading, as well as student material pick-up. Once the plan is complete, we will share out with all families.

Celebrating our 5th Graders

With the announcement of Sheltering in Place for the remainder of the 2019-2020 school year, I'm sure there are many of you who have questions about how to honor and celebrate the milestone in our student's lives of moving from the elementary school to middle school. All elementary schools will be creating a virtual clap out for our students. This will come out on May 20th, our last day of student attendance. We also have ordered a large sign which will be placed in front of the school for 5th graders to come and get their picture taken using social distancing practices. The sign will be in front of the school for several weeks to allow access to all who want to come and get their photo taken. We'll let you know when the sign arrives.

Retirees
We have 3 staff members who are ending long-term educational careers at the end of this school year. While we are all disappointed with the current restrictions on in-person learning, these staff members are particularly sad knowing this is their last year with students. Please consider sending a message to our retirees letting them know how much their efforts have been appreciated over the years.

Julie Kolzow- Special Education Teacher-  10261@kaneland.org
Karen Weigt- 1st Grade Teacher- 10522@kaneland.org
Linda Zulkowski- RtI Reading Interventionist - 10570@kaneland.org

New KST Principal
As I shared with you all previously, I have accepted the position of Personalized Learning Coordinator for Kaneland Schools, beginning on July 1st. The extensive interview process for identifying the next principal for Kaneland John Stewart Elementary School has just concluded. Please watch your email over the next few days regarding the incoming principal.

Summer School

The deadline for summer school registration has been extended through May 1, 2020.

At this point, we are hoping to still be able to offer the traditional Summer School format and are proceeding with the registration process with the intention of doing so. We are also making plans for alternative options should that become necessary. We will keep families posted as we learn what constraints we may or may not be facing in June. At this time, you may register for summer school through the Kaneland Web Store, accessible through our website, kaneland.org.

Summer School courses will run Monday- Thursday from June 1st - June 25th. The time will depend upon which session/sessions your child will be attending. The registration deadline is now May 1st.

PAY IT FORWARD
We know there are so many First Responders in our communities that are risking their lives and family's health to continue to service and protect all community members. We would like to show our support and appreciation to those working to keep the Kaneland community safe. If your students would like to create a drawing, a thank you card, and or a small sign that encourages them on their hard work, please create the card or drawing and either drop it off in the plastic bin in front of our school while out on a walk or taking a ride OR mail directly to the local department. Let's shower our First Responders in Kaneland with love and appreciation! 💛

Mail to any one of the following departments:

Elburn Police Department: 301 E North St, Elburn, IL 60119
Elburn Fire Department: 200 IL-38, Elburn, IL 60119
Kaneville Fire Department: 46W536 Lovell St, Kaneville, IL 60144

Kane County Sheriff: 37W755 IL-38 suite a, St. Charles, IL 60175

Maple Park Fire Department: 305 S County Line Rd, Maple Park, IL 60151
Maple Park Police Department: 306 Willow St, Maple Park, IL 60151

Montgomery Police Department: 10 Civic Center Dr, Montgomery, IL 60538

Montgomery Fire Department: 198 S Railroad St, Montgomery, IL 60538

Sugar Grove Police Department: 10 Municipal Dr # A, Sugar Grove, IL 60554 

Sugar Grove Fire Department: 25 Municipal Dr, Sugar Grove, IL 60554

Technology Support

Beginning on April 6th we will have technical support and repair available for student Chromebooks on-site in the Harter Middle School Community Room, just inside Door 20 (student entrance). You will want to park in the rear of the building. Support will be available Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays from 9:00 am- 11:00 am. If you just have a question and need tech support, please use this link, http://www.kaneland.org/r/student-helpdesk/, which will connect you with a tech that can give you support to problem solve.

Class Placement

Despite the suspension of in-person learning, we are beginning conversations related to classes for next year. While we do not accept requests for specific teachers, we do try to accommodate requests for instructional and classroom styles that are best for a particular learner. If you have information regarding your child as a learner, that we are not already aware of, please send me an email with the relevant information. We will consider this information when determining the 2020-2021 class placements. Please note that final class placements come out at the end of summer.

Remote Learning 
We need your help. Please log on to this link for Daily Attendance on days when we should be at school. Be sure to contact your child's teacher if you need any support throughout Remote Learning.

Kaneland CUSD Remote Learning Plan

April News

Dear Kaneland John Stewart Families~

Our first day of Remote Learning has come to an end. All in all, it appears to have gone relatively well. We've heard from many families who experienced success in logging in and accessing learning opportunities, as well as several that were problem-solving through issues they encountered. We know your inbox has been full of Kaneland emails over the past two days as we attempted to push out information. That overwhelming initial push out should subside somewhat as we settle into a routine. A few great questions we received today, that may be helpful for all include:

• Do students have to report attendance for each subject area? A: No, students should complete 1 attendance form per day. 

• Q: When will Social-Emotional Learning lessons be sent out? A: The next set of SEL lessons will be shared with all families on April 9th. 

• Q: Do students have to be on-line during the duration of their teacher's office hours? A: No, students may complete their remote learning and email teachers as necessary at any time throughout the day. Responses can be expected during identified teacher office hours. 

• Q: Will refunds be issued for field trips that have been paid for, but did not take place? A: Yes, the district does plan to issue refunds for field trips. These will likely be issued at the end of the school year, once we have more certainty as to whether or not we'll be back in school this year. 

• Q: The formating of the Exploratory information is off when I open the link. A: Our mistake! Try this one: Exploratory Remote Learning

• Q: I am having difficulty logging into iReady. Can you help? A: We sure can! 

Logging into iReady from home

1. Go to kaneland.org
2. From this home screen you will see “Web Apps” (bottom left under main message box), click on this
3. After you click on web apps it will ask you to sign into google. Students will need to put their 6 digit number @kaneland.org (example: 123456@kaneland.org) then their secure password (example: MicTip3!)
4. Then they will need to login to iReady. They will use the SAME login they did for google. Where some students are getting stuck is they are forgetting to add the “@kaneland.org” after their 6 digit username. So again, example: 123456@kaneland.org and then their secure password.

***If siblings are sharing a device, the first child must log out before another logs in.  The easiest way is to shut down in between siblings because that forces a restart which clears their cache. 

Please keep in mind the recommendations from the Illinois State Board of Education regarding the amount of instructional time recommended during Remote Learning. 

Grade Level	Minimum Time Minutes per day	Maximum Time Minutes per day	Time on Task
Pre K	20	60	3-5 minutes
K	20	90	3-5 minutes
1-2	45	90	5-10 minutes
3-5	60	120	10-15 minutes
6-8	90	180	Typical Class Period
9-12	120	270	Typical Class Period

I've read multiple times over the past few weeks that Remote Learning should really be called Crisis Learning. We are not attempting to replicate a typical 6-hour instructional day. We are trying to provide some level of engagement with learning for students and families during a time of crisis. Our message to you is that you should strive to only do the best that your family can do right now and to reach out to us if you need any support. 

Device Pick-Up
On Wednesday, April 8th, if your 1st-3rd grade student needs to check out a Chromebook to complete work, you may pick up a loaner at John Stewart Elementary. If your child has access to a device at home that they can use for Remote Learning purposes, it is not necessary to come to school to pick up a loaner device. Please be sure to bring your own pen to sign the 1:1 agreement and have your child's ID number with you. Pick up times are as follows:

• 2nd Grade- 9am-10am
• 3rd Grade- 10am-11am
• 1st Grade- 11am-12pm

**If you have a student in 1st grade, as well as 2nd or 3rd, please wait to pick-up your devices until the 1st grade pick-up time.

** Pick-up will be outside near the flagpole. We ask that only 1 adult member of the family pick-up the device(s) to support our efforts to maintain appropriate social distancing. No teachers will be present at the device pick-up and no one will be allowed in the building. 

**If you are not able to make your designated pick up time, loaner devices can also be picked up in the Harter Middle School Community Room (Enter Door 20) on Mondays, Wednesdays or Fridays between 9-11 am. 

Technology Support

Beginning on April 6th we will have technical support and repair available for student Chromebooks on-site in the Harter Middle School Community Room, just inside Door 20 (student entrance). You will want to park in the rear of the building. Support will be available Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays from 9:00 am- 11:00 am. If you just have a question and need tech support, please use this link, http://www.kaneland.org/r/student-helpdesk/, which will connect you with a tech that can give you support to problem solve.

Updated Lunch Distribution Schedule
Beginning April 6, 2020, on Monday’s and Thursday’s from 10 a.m. – 12 p.m. school lunches will be provided for those in need at the following locations:

Kaneland John Stewart Elementary School, 817 Prairie Valley Street, Elburn, IL
Kaneland John Shields Elementary School, 85 S. Main Street, Sugar Grove, IL
Kaneland McDole Elementary School, 2901 Foxmoor Drive, Montgomery, IL

On Mondays – students will receive lunches for Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday.
On Thursdays – students will receive lunches for Thursday, Friday and a weekend pack.

Please email 10161@kaneland.org if you have any questions or unique circumstances if you are not able to pick up lunches on Mondays or Thursdays.

Virtual Zoo
We have had so many great submissions to our Virtual Zoo. We encourage you to take a look at the current exhibits and continue to add your own. Kaneland John Stewart Virtual Zoo

Something Fun to Try at Home

 COVID 19 Time Capsule

Summer School 

On March 16th, the window for summer school registration officially opened on our website,
kaneland.org. Much has happened in our world since then. At this point, we are hoping to still
be able to offer the traditional Summer School format and are proceeding with the registration
process with the intention of doing so. We are also making plans for alternative options should
that become necessary. We will keep families posted as we learn what constraints we may or may
not be facing in June. At this time, you may register for Summer School through the Kaneland Web
Store, accessible through our website, kaneland.org. Summer School Course Catalog

Summer School courses will run Monday- Thursday from June 1st - June 25th. The time will depend upon which session/sessions your child will be attending. The registration deadline is April 24th.

Class Placement

Despite the suspension of in-person learning, we are beginning conversations related to classes for next year. While we do not accept requests for specific teachers, we do try to accommodate requests for instructional and classroom styles that are best for a particular learner. If you have information regarding your child as a learner, that we are not already aware of, please send me an email with the relevant information. We will consider this information when determining the 2020-2021 class placements. Please note that final class placements come out at the end of summer.