November 25, 2019

The Thanksgiving Holiday will be observed November 27, 28 & 29. There will be no student attendance on those days.

We recognize that holidays are an important time for reconnecting with families far away. A few missed days here and there, even if they’re excused absences, can add up to too much lost learning time and put your child behind in school. Our teachers will be teaching, and our students will be learning, right up until vacation starts and the first day back. Please keep in mind the costs to your children’s education if they miss too much school, you can help us convey that message.

District 97’s vision is that EVERY child experiences a sense of belonging in our schools. Belonging means access to teaching and learning that is engaging, stimulating and challenging for ALL instead of just a select few. Read the latest post in the superintendent’s blog, "Around the District with Dr. Kelley," to learn more about why District 97 believes in the importance of our students feeling a sense of belonging -- http://bit.ly/34Q0fnl

District 97 is administering the Illinois 5Essentials Survey again this year to certified staff and parents/guardians from all 10 of our schools, as well as students in grades four through eight.

The parent/guardian survey is available now. Please click here to learn how parents/guardians can participate in this important endeavor and click here to access the parent/guardian version of the survey.

Please note that school-level reports will only be generated if at least 20 percent of our parents/guardians complete the survey, which can be accessed until Feb. 14, 2020. Our current response rate for parents/guardians is at 5%.

As the cold weather approaches, we would like to stress the importance of students wearing the appropriate winter outerwear to school.

Our goal is to have students go outside for social time whenever possible.

• Students should come to school wearing a winter jacket, gloves, scarves, hat, etc.
• Please discuss with your child the need to wear jackets when outside.
• Winter outerwear should not be removed when it is cold outside.

If you need to purchase an ID, you may do so on RevTrak or in the main office. The cost to replace an ID is $5.00.

Please help your student remember to bring their ID each day to school to Be Safe. During the lunch periods, their ID designates their lunch color. This is important so we can monitor where students should be during the lunch period, especially if there is any type of emergency situation that should occur during a lunch period. We have over 900 students and 100 staff members in the building each day. Wearing ID helps all of us get to know each other as we traverse the building.

In an effort to celebrate our community, we would like to invite parents and students to give a shout out to member(s) of the Brooks Community who have inspired them. We also want to hear from parents and students who would like recognize a Brooks teacher that has made an impact around diversity and inclusion. Every Sunday, selected comments will be featured in Middle Matters and the staff member will receive a certificate detailing how they have made a difference to you. You can also tag your comments under #BeBrooks97 on Twitter. Please join us in celebrating the Brooks Community by completing this form.

Join us Dec. 2 for the next Mindful Middle-Schoolers talk

In partnership with DePaul Family and Community Services, join us on

Monday, December 2 from 6:30 - 8:00 at

Brooks Middle School for a discussion on

Understanding Anxiety in Youth and Strategies for Treatment and Support.

What is mindfulness? How can mindfulness practices be helpful in supporting youths' academic and emotional functioning at school and at home? Join us for a free talk!! DePaul University, in partnership with the Oak Park Township Community Mental Health Board and D97 plan to offer a series of community talks to the Brooks/Julian middle school communities during the 2019-2020 school year as part of The Mindful Middle Schoolers Program. All are welcome (parents, school staff, students, community members).

Sign up at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/understanding-anxiety-in-youth-and-strategies-for-treatment-and-support-tickets-75088771537

We'd like to share that the 8th grade graduation date for the Gwendolyn Brooks Class of 2020 will take place on Saturday, June 6, at 2:00pm. The ceremony will be held at Oak Park and River Forest High School.

Please be sure to mark your calendars. We will have more information regarding graduation activities in February.

Fall 2019 Promotional Discounts For Yearbooks

The Fall is a great time for you and your school community to order yearbooks! You will receive these discounts when ordering early in the school year:

November 1st - November 30th = 5% use code : 1014096931934358

During the months of August, September, October, and November when placing online orders the price of the book will reflect these discounts. The discount is calculated on the cost of the yearbook and does not apply to hardcover upgrades or extra custom pages.

• Thanksgiving Holiday - No student attendance : Nov, 27 - Nov. 29
• Trimester 1 Report Card: Friday, December 6th
• Winter Break - No student attendance - December 23, 2019 - January 3, 2020

You can donate $10 or more to help pay for things like teacher grants, need-based scholarships and other enrichment activities. Please consider a matching gift donation from your employer.

Last month, the PTO funded a Teacher Grant to Ms. Maggio to add flexible seating to her classroom.

Email the PTO BoardEmail gwendolynbrookspto@gmail.com if you are interested or have questions!

Our school is working on bringing more tangible learning experiences to students through Virtual Field Trips using VR headsets and the Google Expeditions app. With these tools, students are able to "visit" museums, explore objects in 3D, and more - right from their classrooms! Students may have experiences not otherwise possible creating an equitable learning environment for all.

To make this happen we need devices. To offset the costs of new ones, we are taking donations of old smartphones/iPods and chargers (Android or Apple). Donated devices would need to be cleared and logged out of iCloud and Google accounts and reset to factory settings. Devices that are slightly cracked are appreciated as well!

The devices can be dropped off to the office or to Ms. Rodriguez in room B302.

Please email Tasia Rodriguez at trodriguez@op97.org with any questions.

Below are the device requirements from the Expeditions Website. However, we will take any donations and try to make them work for this project:

• A gyroscope and accelerometer—essential for orientation and to see images shifting in a VR viewer
• Android 4.4 KitKat or later or Apple® iOS® 9.0 or later
• At least 1 GB of RAM

We also recommend:

- A graphics processing unit (GPU) that can support 3D viewing

- A high-resolution screen, 720 or 1080 pixels

- 2 GB to 4 GB of RAM for more Expeditions activity

- 2.4 GHz or 5 GHz Wi-Fi support

The 8th grade dance is a great way to celebrate finishing middle school. However, it can’t happen without support from the Brooks community! The PTO is currently looking for one more 8th Grade VP. This role helps plan 8th grade dance and a winter staff appreciation dinner. There are two 8th grade VP’s, so you are working with a partner!

Mondays

• Math Team 3:30pm - 4:30pm in room B409. For more information contact Esther Smith at esmith3@op97.org . Open to 6 - 8 grade students.
• Orff Ensemble (Xylophone and Drumming Music Group) Monday's, 8:00-8:50 am, Rm D104. Open to all students grades 6-8. For more information contact Mr. Carrillo (fcarrillo@op97.org)
  
• Rainbow Tribe 3:30pm - 4:30pm in the Library! Come join students who want to be a part of creating a safe and inclusive space for our Brooks LGBTQ community. All students (those who identify and allies) are invited to join! Reach out to Ms. Berman (aberman@op97.org) or Mrs. Olsen (jolsen@op97.org) with any questions!
  
• Spoken Word Club: Mondays in B205 (3:30 - 5:00 pm) with Mr. Lee and resident poet Christian Robinson. Contact Mr. Lee with questions. mlee@op97.org
• Ultimate Frisbee: Currently on Winter hiatus. This recreational Frisbee Club will meet again in the Spring on Mondays and Wednesdays to play from 3:30p to 4:30p. For more information contact Coach Gillespie at mgillespie@op97.org or Coach Guerino at tguerino@op97.org - Please note practices are dependent on weather.
  

Tuesdays

• Yearbook Club meets the 1st & 3rd Tuesday each month. Room B202 Beginning in October and ends in April. Everyone is welcome to join GBMS Yearbook Club. We are looking for students to assist us in recording the student activities & events of the 2019-2020 school year!For more information please contact Meaghan Pabellon at mpabellon@op97.org or Marsha Turner Reid at mturnerreid@op97.org
• EcoEalges - meets weekly on TUESDAYS at 3:30 in Room C202

  Students who are passionate about helping the environment, gardening, saving endangered species or who just want to do interesting things outdoors should check out the ECO EAGLES, the Brooks ecology club. We have made award-winning films, gone on cool field trips, implemented fun fundraisers and raised awareness about many different issues. We are open to whatever you are interested in, so join us! For more information contact lstamp@op97.org
  

• Chess Club meets in room C108 from 3:30pm to 5:00pm. For more information contact Coach Hausfeld at mhausfeld@op97.org

Wednesdays (no school or clubs)

• Best Buddies: Calendar of meeting for 19-20 school year. Contact Ms. Beauprez with questions lbeeauprez@op97.org .
• Ultimate Frisbee: Currently on Winter hiatus. This recreational Frisbee Club will meet again in the Spring on Mondays and Wednesdays to play from 3:30p to 4:30p. For more information contact Coach Gillespie at mgillespie@op97.org or Coach Guerino at tguerino@op97.org - Please note practices are dependent on weather.

Thursdays (no school or clubs)

• Art Club from 3:30-4:30 October- March in D301. Free and open to all students.

  Mrs. Murray (kmurray@op97.org) will offer a variety of materials and techniques. Come when you can and be ready to explore your own ideas, work at your own pace, and make new friends in a creative environment just for artists! Art club is FREE!

Fridays (no school or clubs)

• Service Club meets at 8am in room B209. We organize & promote the school's service projects such as food drives, coat drives, the holiday food and gift basket program, and more! If you have any questions, please reach out to Ms. Susan Walsh (swalsh@op97.org) or Ms. Blanca Martinez (bmartinez@op97.org).
  

This year we are offering two cool programs for D97 middle school kids to enjoy. We look forward to another exciting VEX Robotics season at both Julian and Brooks.

• The In-House Club is designed for students with little or no experience with robotics and for students who cannot commit to the long season of our Competitive League.

• The Robotics Competitive League is an intensive program for the dedicated technology student, especially those who want to take their experience with VEX Robotics and programming to the next level.

To sign up or learn more information about our programs, visit our OPEF VEX Robotics page at https://www.opef.org/programs/vex-robotics/

Brooks in-house contact - Brian Shinners, bshinners@op97.org

Girls on the Rise is a program offered in partnership with Brooks and the Oak Park Township. Girls on the Rise provides prevention and empowerment to minority girls. We strive to instill confidence in girls to utilize problem-solving skills through communication and respect. Our program plans to build social, communication and leadership skills, healthy relationships with peers and adults, raise self-esteem and self-awareness and create a sisterhood of strong young ladies.

The 8th Grade Girls group will begin meeting on January 15th, 2020.

For more information contact Dominique Hickman at dhickman@oakparktownship.org

YEMBA is a hands on, community based forum for connecting, serving, educating, strengthening and empowering our youth physically, mentally and spiritually. For female and male youth grades 6th through 8th. Join your friends, classmates and peers in our mentoring empowerment program. A fun, safe, exciting experience and learn skills that will last a lifetime.

Wednesdays - 3:30pm 6:30pm

• Includes: Homework help, mentoring, recreation workshops, snacks, guest speakers and much more...

For more information contact:

YMBA, INC.

(773) 842-5022

email: www.yemba@yemba-inc.org

Website: www.yemba-inc.org

Rehearsal Calendar

Classes & Program Schedule

Questions about BRAVO

TICKETS

Distribution of information by a community group in accordance with District 97 policy does not imply, directly or indirectly, that the group's program(s), event(s) and/or services(s) is sanctioned, sponsored or endorsed by the district, the Board of Education or the superintendent.

Oak Park and River Forest High School recently implemented a new rule when attending athletic events. Effective immediately, children ages 11 and younger will not be allowed to attend athletic events at OPRF unless they are accompanied by an adult age 18 or older. Please click here for the full message from the high school.

The Executive Director of the YMCA is asking for our assistance to drive participation in their FREE water skills/safety course. Please see the list of dates for their upcoming session and engage families to consider. Flyer is linked here. The link for folks to enroll is: http://www.westcookymca.org/saw

Fall II Session: 10/28/19 through 12/22/19
Monday: 6:35 p.m. to 7:15 p.m.
Tuesday: 6:20 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Wednesday: 5:50 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.
Thursday: 6:20 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Friday: 4:30 p.m. to 5:10 p.m.
Saturday: 8:00 a.m. to 8:40 a.m.
Sunday: 10:35 a.m. to 11:15 a.m.

Email: acapuder@op97.org
Website: op97.org/brooks
Location: 325 S Kenilworth Ave, Oak Park, IL, United States
Phone: (708) 524-3050
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/108994473138309/
Twitter: @brooksop97