Forest School News (4.7.25)

• Cars are expected to pull all the way up to the stop sign. 🛑
• Students are expected to get in and out of the car independently on the curb (passenger) side.
• Family members must stay inside the vehicle at all times. 🚗

• ✅ Parking is permitted/allowed on 5th Avenue between Forest School and Algonquin Middle School.
• 🚫 Parking is NOT permitted/NOT allowed in the Forest Staff Parking Lots or on 5th Avenue in front of Forest. The Des Plaines Police Department will begin ticketing those who are parked or idling in an area where parking is not permitted.

As the weather is beginning to warm up, we love to see so many students and families connecting after school at the playground! We also need to make sure that everyone is safe. To increase student and family safety at dismissal, please refrain from using the blacktop area while there are still one or more buses in the bus lane. Once all of the buses have left, families are welcome to use the entire blacktop area in addition to the playground and field.

After spring break, all students in grades 3-5 will complete the Illinois Assessment of Readiness (IAR). All 5th graders will also complete the Illinois Science Assessment (ISA). Please see the information below regarding who will take each assessment and when.

Illinois Assessment of Readiness (IAR)

• Who? Students in grades 3-5
• When? April 7-11 during the school day
• Students will take the reading assessments on April 7-8.
• Students will take the mathematics assessments on April 9-11.
• What if my child is absent? Missed assessments will be made up from April 14-17.

Illinois Science Assessment (ISA)

• Who? Students in 5th grade.
• When? April 21-23 during the school day
• What if my child is absent? Missed assessments will be made up from April 24-30.

• Who? Incoming kindergarten students and their families
• What? Kindergarten Information Night
• When? Tuesday, April 29th from 6:00-7:00 PM
• Where? Forest Elementary School
• Why? Come meet Forest's kindergarten teachers and learn about the kindergarten school year
• Childcare? Yes, childcare will be available!

How to Register

Online registration for all families, including incoming students, beginning Friday, March 7 fore the 2025-2026 school year. We ask that you register your child(ren) by Wednesday, April 30. District 62 will begin collecting next year's fees during registration. All of next year's fees remain unchanged.

Helpful Links for 2025-2026 Registration

• Kindergarten Registration
• New Student Enrollment
• Annual Online Registration (for existing families)

Upcoming D62 Registration Events

District 62 will host a series of events to support families with the registration process at Algonquin Middle School at the following dates and times:

• Thursday, May 22 from 5:30-7:30 PM
• Tuesday, August 5 from 5:30-7:30 PM

District 62's Special Education Parent Advisory Council (SEPAC) is hosting a virtual session open to all parents on Raising Resilient Children: Understanding & Responding to Stress and Anxiety on Monday, April 7th from 7-8pm. Check out the flyer or a previous email to learn more and join us on 4/7 at 7pm using this Zoom link.

Visit the SEPAC webpage for more information about Autism Awareness & Acceptance month, resources, and to learn more about upcoming events.

We invite you as we welcome author Dr. Devorah Heitner from 6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. on April 10 at Chippewa Middle School, 123 N. 8th Avenue, Des Plaines.

Dr. Heitner is a researcher and author of Growing Up in Public: Coming of Age in a Digital World and Screenwise: Helping Kids Thrive (and Survive) in Their Digital World.

Join us to learn:

• How caregivers can mentor children as they grow up with Roblox, Youtube, Instagram, TikTok, Discord, and more.
• How caregivers can help kids be thoughtful about their digital footprint and reputation (including what we share about our children on our own social media).
• Strategies for teaching tweens and teens to recognize how social media affects their mood and mental health and when to take a break;
• How to assess readiness for a new tech milestone like a smartphone
• How to work on sleep habits at every age to balance screen time and getting enough rest;
• Should we "track" our kids online?

Bring your questions about raising kids in the digital age!

Dr. Heitner’s work has appeared in the New York Times, Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, TIME magazine and Education Week. She also has a Ph.D. in Media/Technology & Society from Northwestern University and has taught classes at Northwestern and DePaul.

This event is open to District 62 staff and parents.

Did you know that the District 62 website has a Virtual Bulletin Board? Check out the community flyers that are updated regularly. When you go to the Virtual Bulletin Board, be sure to click the flyer or link to get more information about whichever community flyer(s) you're interested in!

The current community flyers are for:

• Baby Talk Mini Star Program
• Des Plaines Youth Baseball - Registration is open!
• New Girl Scout Troop for Girls with Disabilities in D62
• Join Girl Scouts of America
• Fairy Fest at Arndt Park Fieldhouse
• Floating Egg Hunt at Prairie Lakes Aquatic Center
• Craft Fair at Orchard Place School
• H2O Middle School Pool Party
• Des Plaines Community Concert Band
• MaineStay Youth and Family Services - Counseling available for all ages!
• Maine Township Youth Pride Program

Ms. Biancalana and Ms. McInerney invite Forest families to join them for the final SEL Night of the 2024-2025 school year. The SEL Night will be held on Monday, April 14 from 6:00-7:00 PM at Forest.

Is there anything you've been wishing our SEL team would cover during one of these nights, but the topic has just not come up? Or anything you need help brainstorming (e.g., building a before school routine, limiting screen time, creating and using an incentive chart, etc.)? This event for you - the theme is BYOT: Bring Your Own Topic!

Fill out the Google Form to RSVP. Each participant will have something to take home to use right away or continue learning with!

If you are experiencing financial hardship, food insecurity, looking for community resources, or exploring opportunities for parent learning, look no further. Our SEL team created a Google Form you can fill out so they can be notified to follow up with you about any/ all areas you are looking for support. The responses to this form are confidential, and will only be seen by the SEL team unless you specify otherwise.

You can contact them here:

• Gina Biancalana, School Social Worker
• McKenna Corcoran, School Social Worker
• Mary McInerney, School Psychologist

We hope everyone had a wonderful Spring Break! It's hard to believe it, but there are only two PTC meetings left for this school year. The April PTC meeting is coming up on Tuesday, April 8th at 7:00pm. Babysitting will be provided for children 3 years old and older. We hope you can join us!

Join us this Thursday, April 10 to help us celebrate the incredible cultures that make Forest School so special. 💙🌟

Students and their families will be hosting tables to teach us about more than 10 countries! Come learn about Mexico, Brazil, Pakistan, Philippines & Laos, Germany, Morocco, Poland, England, and Belarus. There will also be a series of performers including a couple Bulgarian dances, Polish folklore, and Barefoot Hawaiian.

Yearbooks are on sale and can be purchased at this link!

The deadline to purchase Yearbooks is April 17th.

Thank you to all of the students who auditioned for the Talent Show last week. Next up is the Tech Rehearsal on April 22nd!

• Tech Rehearsal: Tuesday, April 22nd
• Talent Show Day: Friday, April 25th

Talent is found in many places! We want to showcase student talent in art and writing during the Talent Show. Submit your artwork, short stories, and poems to the Student Art and Stories Show which will take place in conjunction with the Talent Show on April 25th.

For this exhibit:

• Please have students submit work we can hang up!
• Artwork should have the student name and teacher name somewhere so it can be returned in May.
• Submissions are due to the Main Office by Monday, April 21st.

Thanks for your participation, and we can't wait to see what the students do!

Spirit Wear is a great way for your family to show their Forest pride. Spirit Wear is available to purchase on our website, and it will be delivered straight to your child's classroom.

Do the events above sound fun but don't line up with your schedule? Or would you like to learn more about what we can do for our students? Please consider joining the PTC! Membership gives you our meeting minutes and the first opportunity to volunteer at school events! You can join us here: Membership Form You can also check out our website: https://forest-ptc.square.site

This Week:

• 4/7-4/11: IAR Testing for all students in grades 3-5
• 4/7: Art Club begins with Mrs. Bresnak and Ms. Polovitch from 12:10-1:00 PM
• 4/7: Parent Education Event - Raising Resilient Children from 7:00-8:00 PM via Zoom
• 4/8: Dental Exam visits
• 4/8: 2nd Grade Friendship Club begins with Ms. Clavien and Ms. Fortier from 12:10-1:00 PM
• 4/8: Art of Science Club begins with Mrs. Bergstrom and Ms. Peters from 3:30-4:30 PM
• 4/8: Forest PTC Meeting at 7:00 PM
• 4/10: Multicultural Night (presented by the PTC) from 6:00-8:00 PM
• 4/10: Parent Education Event - Raising Kids in Today's Digital World from 6:30-8:00 PM at AMS

Next Week:

• 4/14-4/17: IAR Testing Make-ups
• 4/14: SEL Parent Night from 6:00-7:00 PM
• 4/15: Planned Fire Drill in the afternoon for Forest and the Westerhold ELC
• 4/17: Bilingual Parent Meeting from 6:00-8:00 PM at the Forest Boardroom
• 4/18: NO SCHOOL

In Two Weeks:

• 4/21-4/23: Illinois Science Assessment (ISA) Testing (Grade 5 only)
• 4/21: Board of Education Meeting at 7:00 PM
• 4/22: Hearing & Vision screenings during the school day
• 4/22: AMS Representatives visit with 5th Graders at Forest in the afternoon
• 4/22: Talent Show Tech Rehearsal from 3:30-7:00 PM -- Students only please!
• 4/23: 5th Grade Band & Orchestra Concert from 6:30-7:30 PM at AMS
• 4/24-4/25: ISA Testing Make-ups
• 4/25: Trimester 3 Progress Reports sent home
• 4/25: Talent Show - Performance for students and staff from 9:30-10:30 AM
• 4/25: Talent Show - Performance for families from 6:30-7:30 PM

Website: http://forest.d62.org

Address: 1375 South 5th Avenue Des Plaines, IL 60018

Phone: (847) 824-1380

Facebook: Forest Facebook

Principal: Ms. Amber Soike

Assistant Principal: Ms. Traci Reiner