Julian Curtiss Elementary School
September 12th, 2025
We are grateful and excited to have our new playground! As our scholars explore and enjoy the new slides, we want to remind all families who use the playground after school hours to please supervise children closely while they play. To ensure everyone's safety, we ask that slides be used one person at a time and that children follow safe playground practices. During school hours, our staff is also maintaining close supervision to help prevent any potential injuries or accidents.
🐶 Dog Policy at JC
For the safety and comfort of all our students, we kindly ask that families refrain from bringing dogs onto school grounds (including our blacktop/playground area). We love our furry friends, but keeping our grounds pet-free helps ensure a safe environment for everyone. Thank you so much for your understanding and cooperation!
No Motorized Vehicles on Playground
Please note that motorized vehicles are strictly prohibited on the playground. This is in place for the safety of our scholars, as many children use the playground after school hours, varying in age. We appreciate your understanding and cooperation in helping us maintain a safe environment for all our students.
Each month, all of our students in grades PreK–5 share a common story through our Book of the Month program. Reading the same book across grade levels fosters a shared experience, sparks meaningful conversations, and builds a strong sense of community around literature.
This month, our students are reading Not Perfect, a heartfelt story about Dot, a girl who feels like she just can’t measure up to the “perfect” talents of her family and friends. From messy cupcakes to off-key piano notes, Dot discovers that what truly matters isn’t being perfect, but being yourself and celebrating the people you admire. The story encourages children to embrace mistakes, build resilience, and recognize the beauty in trying.
Not Perfect has received national recognition, including being named A Bank Street Best Children’s Book of the Year, A Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection, and A Chicago Public Library Best Book of the Year.
We invite families to join the conversation at home by asking children what Dot learns about herself, sharing stories of times when “not perfect” moments turned into learning opportunities, and celebrating the small victories that come from persistence and creativity. Together, we can help our children see that imperfection is part of growth- and sometimes even the best part of the story.
Greenwich Elementary Schools (Grades K-5): There should be no cell phone use during the day.
You are encouraged to not send phones to school with your children. There are ample phones available at the school site for parents to get in touch with the school, or the student to call home.
If you feel there is a safety need given unique circumstances, such as walking a long distance to or from school each day, then the phones/wearables must be off and away in lockers or backpacks for the duration of the day.
Grades K-8: Smart wearables should not be brought to school
Smart wearables, such as Apple Watch, Fitbit Versa, Amazfit, Garmin Venu, Galaxy Watch, Pixel Watch, Withings ScanWatch Horizon or other wearables, should not be brought to school in K-8.
If there is a medical reason why a student needs a wearable, then you should meet with the administration, who will then acknowledge and approve in coordination with any other resource personnel, such as the nurse, that such wearable is allowed for that student. Examples of this include a student who wears a monitoring device for their heart, blood sugar regulation, insulin dependency, or other critical wearable. If the device requires the use of a cell phone, an implementation plan should be put in place along with the approval of the wearable.
