Dear Crow Island Community,

I hope you all enjoyed the beautiful weather this weekend! Last week, our students and staff joined together for a brief moment of silence in recognition of the 25th anniversary of September 11. It was a simple and age appropriate opportunity to pause together as a school community and reflect on the importance of kindness, caring for others, and community.

As we settle into the school year, it has been wonderful to see our students continuing to build their classroom communities while diving into their learning. From exploring our new math curriculum to growing as readers, writers, thinkers, and classmates, there is already so much great learning happening throughout Crow Island.

I hope everyone has a wonderful week!

Sincerely,

Anna

September

Thursday, September 17th | Fall Benchmark Assessments Begin for K–4 Students
Monday, September 21st | No School, Yom Kippur
Thursday, September 24th | Go to School Night, 6:00–7:30pm (Parents and caregivers only please)
Thursday, September 24th | MAP Reading Assessment, Grades 3–4 *This is an updated date*
Tuesday, September 29th | MAP Math Assessment, Grades 3–4

October

Monday, October 5th | Safety Week Starts
Wednesday, October 7th | Vision and Hearing Screening
Thursday, October 8th | PTO Runathon
Friday, October 9th | High Five Friday
Wednesday, October 14th | Picture Retake
Thursday, October 22th and Friday, October 23th | Fall Conferences- no student attendance
Friday, October 30th | Halloween Parade and Ghost Walk

Want all of this year’s dates added to your Google Calendar? Click below!

Crow Island Families Google Calendar

Lighthouse Moment: 1st Grade Resource Center

Our 1st graders enjoyed their time in the Resource Center with Ms. Maneck last week! Students created bookmarks inspired by Mo Willems’ famous Pigeon character, adding their own creative touches through their drawings, colors, and designs. Ms. Maneck will laminate the bookmarks so students can use them throughout the year.

The excitement continued when it was time to check out books! Students eagerly recommended books to one another, gathered together to look through their finds, and proudly shared their choices with friends. The Resource Center is such a special place at Crow Island, and it was wonderful to see our students’ excitement about books, creativity, and time spent together!

School News

Bike Safety

Important: Check Bikes Before Riding

We want to make you aware of a concerning bike-safety issue that has been reported in the community. There have been reports of someone loosening the front-wheel quick-release lever or axle hardware on parked bicycles. If a rider gets on a bike without noticing that the front wheel is unsecured, the wheel could shift or detach, creating a serious risk of a fall and injury.

The police have been notified. We ask students and families to take a few moments to check bicycles before riding:

Make sure the front and rear wheels are firmly attached and do not wobble.
Check that any quick-release lever is fully closed and secure.
If your bike has axle nuts, make sure they are tight.
Check brakes, handlebars, and tires before riding.
If anything looks loose, damaged, or unusual, do not ride the bike; ask an adult for help.

Tampering with someone else’s bicycle is not a harmless prank. It can cause significant injuries and will be taken seriously. Please remind your child not to touch, move, or interfere with another person’s bike for any reason.

We appreciate your partnership in helping students travel safely to and from school.

Safety Month in The Winnetka Public Schools

Mr. Finnerty, Director of Safety & Security, is leading our third annual Safety Month, intended to continue to raise awareness about best practices in school safety and educate our community on on the “I Love U Guys” Standard Response Protocol (SRP). Students and staff will become familiarized with this Standard Response Protocol throughout the course of emergency drills and safety discussions this year. We are also thrilled to welcome our Village of Winnetka First Responders at “High Five Fridays” at our school campuses throughout the month.

Crow Island will have our Safety Week from October 5th-9th.

District News

Winnetka Parent Institute

Winnetka Parent Institute: October 7, 2026

Exploring Innovamat: A Fresh Approach to K–4 Mathematics

10:30 am -11:30 a.m. - The Skokie School Resource Center

*Please note - this is an in-person event*

Join us for an interactive introduction to Innovamat, our new K–4 mathematics resource. Parents will experience math learning as our students do—exploring problems, sharing strategies, and building understanding through discussion and discovery, all while learning how Innovamat’s spiraled approach develops confident, flexible mathematical thinkers.

RSVP here

Ability Challenge Parent Survey

Parents/guardians of students receiving special education services are invited to complete this survey.

As a part of the district's focus on strategic planning for the future, we are engaging with The Ability Challenge to complete an analysis that will help us better understand the strengths and growth opportunities related to how we serve students with disabilities in Winnetka. Your perspective is very valuable to us because we want to understand how all members of the community experience the support we provide.

We invite you to complete this anonymous survey. Your responses will be available only to our partners at The Ability Challenge. They will provide the district with updates about completion rates, and the overall trends will help inform findings of their analysis. Individual responses will not be identifiable or able to be attributed to any single respondent.

We thank you for your participation and partnership in helping us serve all students equitably and well in Winnetka.

Resources

Crow Island 101 Document:

Our Crow Island 101 Guide is a helpful, at-a-glance resource for families. Many parents like to keep a copy in their kitchen for quick reference. You can view it here: Crow 101 Document.

Health Forms Due Now!

Families of students entering Kindergarten and Second Grade: Please remember to submit the required health forms before the first day of school. The link below outlines which forms are required for each grade level.

Health Forms Information

You can drop off these forms at Crow Island or upload them using the links below:

Kindergarten Forms (Health, Eye, Dental)

2nd Grade Form (Dental)

*NEW Families Only (not entering Kindergarten): NEW 1st-4th grade families form

Arrival & Dismissal:

Please take a few minutes to review our Arrival & Dismissal procedures for this year. These routines help ensure a safe and smooth start and end to each school day for all students.

Hot Lunch Program:

Crow Island has a hot lunch program run through a third party collaboration with our PTO called Marla's Lunch. You can register and sign-up here: Marla's Hot Lunch.

Contact Us

Email:

annatrilla@winnetka36.org (Principal)

christinedemas-hall@winnetka36.org (Administrative Assistant)
Website: https://crowisland.winnetka36.org/
Location: 1112 Willow Road Winnetka, IL 60093
Phone: (847)-446-0353
Instagram: Winnetka Public Schools

Crow Island Connections

September 14, 2026

Want all of this year’s dates added to your Google Calendar? Click below!

Lighthouse Moment: 1st Grade Resource Center

School News

Bike Safety

Safety Month in The Winnetka Public Schools

District News

Winnetka Parent Institute

Ability Challenge Parent Survey

Resources

Contact Us

Want all of this year’s dates added to your Google Calendar? Click below! Want all of this year’s dates added to your Google Calendar? Click below!

Lighthouse Moment: 1st Grade Resource Center Lighthouse Moment: 1st Grade Resource Center

School News School News

Bike Safety Bike Safety

Safety Month in The Winnetka Public Schools Safety Month in The Winnetka Public Schools

District News District News

Winnetka Parent Institute Winnetka Parent Institute

Ability Challenge Parent Survey Ability Challenge Parent Survey

Resources Resources

Contact Us

Want all of this year’s dates added to your Google Calendar? Click below!

Lighthouse Moment: 1st Grade Resource Center

School News

Bike Safety

Safety Month in The Winnetka Public Schools

District News

Winnetka Parent Institute

Ability Challenge Parent Survey

Resources