School Improvement Day

AM classes DISMISS EARLY at 10:25 AM

If your child rides the bus home from our morning session, drop off at your home or child care will be 25 minutes early.

PM classes START EARLY at 11:25 AM and DISMISS EARLY at 1:30 PM

If your child rides the bus to school for our afternoon session, pick up will be 25 minutes early from your home or child care and the bus at the end of the day from Haines Center will drop off 50 minutes earlier.

Memorial Day Holiday

Please note this is different than the last day for older students.

Save the date for our community celebration at Pottawatomie Park's inlcusive playground. Classrooms will be assigned for one of two sessions: 9:00 am - 10:30 am or 10:45 am - 12:15 pm.

Teacher Appreciation Week is coming the first week of May and the Teacher Appreciation Committee has been preparing to make a BIG SPLASH this year! Thank you to everyone who has already donated and/or signed up to help with donations for the week. Here's the link to sign up if you are able.

Thank-you for all of the mascot nominations submitted. We collected over 150 nominations.

The Mascot Selection Committee selected the top 8 ideas (from 42 unique ideas) that best meet our criteria:

• Firefly
• Honeybee
• Husky
• Otter
• Owl
• Panda
• Toucan

A staff vote is underway to determine the top 4 from these ideas.

Next up will be a student and staff vote to determine the final two options. Professional mockups will be created for these two finalists.

Students and school staff will vote between the finalists in May. Our big reveal will be at our Early Childhood Community Celebration at Pottawatomie Park on Thursday, May 29.

Would you like to assist our Early Childhood staff? Have some time to volunteer during the day? The Teacher Appreciation Committee (TAC) set up a system for you to come in and help with various tasks like copying, labeling and laminating. Call the office at 331-228-3400 (press 1 for early childhood) or email grace.patel@d303.org to see if there are jobs waiting to be completed. Thank you for considering!

Reminder: If someone other than the usual pickup person is picking up your child after school or early due to an illnes or emergency they need to have an ID with them. Thank you for helping us with our safety precautions. See below for updating your child's emergency contact information as well.

Please make sure your child has at least one emergency contact listed in case we can't reach you during an emergency. If you don’t have someone other than the parent/guardian to list, contact Tricia Sabathne, the Child and Family Educator, to discuss options. You can reach her at tricia.sabathne@d303.org or 331-228-5727.

If you have access to the Home Access Center (HAC), you can view this information there. Please check that the details are correct.

If you've never used the Home Access Center, please call our main office at 331-228-3400 (press 1) to get your username and password and to verify your emergency contact information. For Early Childhood families, these accounts have already been set up for you.

Click the link below to get a digital copy of the Family Engagement Activity Guide that was sent home recently. The calendar has extra ideas for you and your child to use on E-Learning days and our monthly Early Release days.

If you have a child between the ages of birth and five and live in Southern Kane County you can enroll them in the Imagination Library. Your child will receive books mailed to them monthly until their 5th birthday as long as they live in the covered geographic area. The covered area is the Fox Valley United Way service area and includes Campton Hills (60174), Elburn (60119), St. Charles (60174 & 60175), South Elgin (60177), and Valley View (60174).

If you want your child to be considered for our Preschool For All program, please contact the Early Childhood Office at 331-228-4824. We have openings available for the 2025-2026 school year.

Playgroups at our Haines Family Resource Center offer children, ages 0-5, and a caregiver a safe, quality, and educational play opportunity. Connect with other caregivers (parents, grandparents, babysitters, etc.) to share experiences, learn from each other, and build social networks.

Times:

• 9:35 - 10:35 am
• 12:05 - 1:05 pm Spanish
• 1:05 - 2:05 pm

**There is no fee for this program. Playgroups meet every Monday school is in session. Once you are registered you can attend whenever it works for you.

Your influence on how your child grows and develops is immense. We are proud to partner with you in your child's early learning journey. Making sure your child attends school for the full 2 1/2 hours when they are healthy helps us play our part.

Please contact your child's teacher or Tricia Sabathne, Child and Family Educator (CAFE), if you are experiencing barriers to arriving on time (car riders and walkers) or catching the bus (bus riders) so we can partner regarding possible solutions.

tricia.sabathne@d303.org

331-228-5727

To report a student absence:

• Main Haines building number- 331-228-3400
• Press 1 for the Early Childhood Center
• Press 1 for the Attendance line
• Clearly state your child's name and the reason for their absence.
• If you do not provide a reason for their absence OR do not call the absence will be unexcused.

Bus riders: There is no need to call transportation to report an absence. Drivers stop at each designated stop even when children are absent to stay on schedule for the rest of the route.

Website: https://ec.d303.org/
Location: 305 S 9th St, St Charles, IL 60174
Phone: 331-228-3400, Press 1 for Early Childhood