The Franklin Flyer

Mark Your Calendars:

March 24 - 28: Spring Break - No School

April 1: Start of Illinois Assessment of Readiness Grades 3-5

April 5: Science Olympiad

April 10: PTA Meeting

April 11: PTA - Spring Donutes with my VIP

April 15: New Kindergarten Parent Orientation @ 6 pm

April 18: No School

April 25: PTA - Night of the Stars Performance

May 15: Incoming 25-26 Kindergarten Student Screening

May 26: No School

Absences

Please call in or email absences by 8:45 AM. You can call our student absence line (847) 318-4390 (ext 1) is available 24 hours a day, or email Mrs. Linda Berleth at lberleth@d64.org.

If the absence is illness related, please also make sure to include Franklin's nurse, Mrs. Queta Karstens, at qkarstens@d64.org.

Franklin Office Hours
School office hours are from 8:00 am - 4:00 pm, Monday through Friday.

School Hours

School Hours (M, T, Th, F): 8:50 am - 3:30 pm

Kindergarten, 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Grade Lunch: 11:35 - 12:30

4th and 5th Grade Lunch: 12:05 - 1:00

Wednesday School Hours: 8:50 am - 2:40 pm

Wednesday Kindergarten, 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Grade Lunch: 11:05 - 12:00

Wednesday 4th and 5th Grade Lunch: 11:35 - 12:30

Half-Day Kindergarten Hours

Kindergarten Hours (M, T, Th, F): 8:50 am - 11:35 am

Kindergarten Wednesday: 8:50 am - 11:05 am

Dear Parents/Guardians:

The Illinois Assessment of Readiness Test, an assessment for all students in Illinois in grades 3-8, will be administered in District 64 from April 1-April 11.

The best preparation for the IAR has been the quality instruction our teachers have provided this school year. However, there are things you can also do to promote your child’s success:

• Make sure your child gets a good night’s sleep and eats a healthy breakfast before each day of testing.

• Provide your child with words of encouragement. While we don’t want our students to feel anxious about any assessment, we do want them to do their best.

• The IAR is an online assessment and students will be using their Chromebooks to complete these tests. Please make sure your child brings his or her Chromebook to school each day, fully charged.

Below is our school’s schedule for test administration:

April 1st: ELA Test 1

April 2: Math Test 1

April 3: ELA Test 2

April 4: Math Test 2

April 8: Math Test 3

If you would like to learn more about the IAR tests, sample tests are available for your review. Thank you for your support in helping your child be prepared for upcoming testing.

Sincerely,

Dr. Kristin Williams

Election Day Safety Plan | April 1

On April 1, we are one of the elementary buildings that will serve as a public polling place for election day.

As part of our commitment to student and staff safety, the we have have a plan in place for our school:

• A school administrator will be on-site at all times during school hours.

• Public access to the building is restricted—voters may only enter and exit the designated polling area.

• Franklin staff will be stationed just outside the polling area to ensure the public does not exit the polling space.

Thank you as always for your partnership in keeping our schools safe!

To Parents/Guardians:

The Illinois 5Essentials school climate survey for parents opens today! I am pleased to invite all parents to participate and would like to encourage you to share your thoughts. The survey should take about 20 minutes or less to complete.

The survey focuses on the five “essential” areas that research has shown are key components for school success: Effective Leaders, Collaborative Teachers, Involved Families, Supportive Environment, and Ambitious Instruction.

Your participation will help us understand the conditions at our school and guide improvements. Your identity and individual survey responses will be kept completely confidential and will never be connected to you or your child. The 5Essentials Survey is sponsored by the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) and was developed in collaboration with the University of Chicago.

Three helpful tips before you enter the survey:

• Please focus on your experiences during the current school year.

• Take care to select the correct school and community (you’d be surprised how many schools in Illinois have the same name)!

• If you have a student at more than one school, we invite you to complete a survey for each location.

Please visit this link to begin: https://survey.5-essentials.org/illinois/

The survey will close on March 31, 2025.

Thank you for sharing your thoughts and helping to improve the environment for student success in District 64.

Ramadan

If your student is observing fasting during Ramadan, Franklin provides an alternative, quiet location where they can spend the lunch portion of the lunch/recess hour. If your child would like to use this alternative space during lunch while fasting, please email their homeroom teacher to make arrangements.

When Entering The Building

When a parent or guardian arrives to Franklin with or for a student, dropping off items or for a meeting, when ringing the doorbell, please state your name and your student(s) names to support our safety procedures.

All visitors to Franklin must have a valid state ID or driver’s license. Identification is entered into the Raptor identification system. This process only takes a short time to complete. Once you have clearance, the office staff will print a visitor pass for you and attach it to a lanyard you must wear throughout the building. The office will hold your ID until you return to the office and return the lanyard. We appreciate your support as we proceed with this district-mandated safety procedure for the safety of our students.

Issues with A School Device?

If you have are having issues with your student's device at home, please complete a ticket.

https://d64.incidentiq.com/guest/NPV6SRUK/d64-family-tech-support-ticket#top

Payments to School - My School Bucks

Park Ridge-Niles CCSD 64 employs My School Bucks as its payment platform for families. Most

purchases for students, including field trips and student orders. Directors can be found here.

For the health and safety of our students and community, no pets are allowed on school property. We realize the beautiful weather increases the amount of families who are walking to and from school. However, we ask that you please leave your dog or cat at home. Properly identified service animals are always permitted.

Please take a moment to review the contacts section of your ParentPortal. Any adult who has approval for after school pick-up or emergency pick-up for illness/injury should be listed. Franklin staff will not release students to adults who are not listed on the ParentPortal.

Student-Parent Handbook

Franklin Elementary School and all District 64 schools follow policies and practices reviewed and implemented by the District 64 Board of Education. Please review the D64 Student-Parent Handbook before the start of the school year.

You can find frequent updates or snapshots from our days at Franklin on Facebook and Instagram! Follow us at

Facebook: facebook.com/FranklinD64

Instagram: franklin.d64

Help Honor our Retiring Staff | Retirement Committee Chairs Needed

We have three beloved teachers retiring this year and are looking for a few people to coordinate activities to show them how much their dedication has meant to our Franklin community over their years of service.

Retiring Teachers: Laura Mabrito, Kathy Hurley, and Peggy Weller

Interested or have questions? Reach out to Camille DeCicco (camille.decicco@gmail.com)

Sign Ups Open for Night of the Stars 2025

!! NEW!! Students who want to participate in stage crew can also sign up in the link below !!

Student Performance Sign Up (AND STAGE CREW) is Open: We’re so excited to be able to showcase the many talents of our Franklin stars! Click here to sign up and mark your calendars for the following dates:

• Tryouts: Wednesday, April 9, 2:40 - 5:00 PM - Franklin Gym (Performers will be given a 15-minute time slot once participant list is finalized, they will NOT need to be in attendance the entire time)

• Dress Rehearsal: Wednesday, April 23, 4:00 - 7:00 PM - Emerson Middle School Multi-purpose room

• Emcee Rehearsal: Thursday, April 24, 4:00 - 5:00 PM - location TBD

• Night of the Stars: Friday, April 25, 6:30 - 8:30 PM - Emerson Middle School

Volunteers receive VIP seating and free tickets for their family members: There are many different ways to help with this fun event - from talent management to stage crew to set up and tear down. More details and sign up available on PTA Membership Toolkit

Questions?? Reach out to Natalie Packer (nataliebergcm@gmail.com) and Danielle Kastner (dcpkastner@gmail.com) for questions related to auditions, and Venus Garcia (marivenusgarcia@gmail.com) for questions about volunteering.

Volunteers Needed- Donuts with my VIP

Opportunities are currently open in Toolkit for volunteers for Donuts with my VIP on 4/11. We need just a few great volunteers to help set up and serve at the event.

Any questions should be directed to Ashley Thielsen ashley.thielsen@gmail.com

Staff Lunches

The PTA offers teachers and staff members an option to purchase lunch on Mondays from Spuntinos via franklinpta.com. Families are always welcome to show their appreciation for a staff member by purchasing a Monday lunch on their behalf. If this is something your family is interested in doing, please refer to the PTA website for more information.

Questions about teacher and staff lunches can be directed to rebeccavanpoucke@gmail.com.

Yearbook

Yearbooks are still on sale until April 25th. That is the absolute final day to purchase a yearbook for end of school delivery. After that date, any yearbook purchases will be mailed directly to your home. Click here to purchase.

Spirit Wear SALE

The Franklin Elementary School Spring Sale is underway, featuring all new designs! You'll save 20% with code: SPRING. Shop at https://1stplace.sale/30637

Dates: March 10th - April 1st
Savings: 20% sitewide
Promo Code: SPRING

Missing out on info? We have a FACEBOOK page!

We post reminders, updates, recognition, answer questions &

Help make this community stronger! Join us at https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100071259407924
Or scan the QR code. MUST BE A PAID PTA MEMBER TO JOIN.

Looking for some new books to read? Check out these spring releases to read with your student!