Forest School News

• 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.

The D62 Education Foundation is hosting a Spelling Bee on Wednesday, November 6th at the Des Plaines Theater! There are different grade level competitions and prizes! They would love to pack the theater with families, teachers, and principals cheering the kids on. Please refer to the graphic for more information and sign up online.

If your child(ren) are interested in participating, you might consider using the Words of Champions Word List to prepare!

The Des Plaines Elks Club is hosting a Hoop Shoot competition on Saturday, November 9th at Chippewa Middle School. This is a free throw shooting contest for both boys and girls ages 8 up to 13 years old. The event is free to attend and participate in. There will be trophies for the top 3 finishers in their age group as well as pizza, snacks, and beverages at the event. Click here for more information and to register!

Back by popular demand, Mrs. Gutzeit will be facilitating the Taylor Swift Friendship Club again! This year the club is open to all grade levels and the schedule will be determined based on who is interested. Permission slips are due back to Mrs. Gutzeit by October 30. Please see the photo of the flyer or ask your child for their paper copy for more information!

As we continue further into the fall season, please remember that colder weather is upon us. Make sure your children are bundled up with coats, hats, and/or gloves so that they stay warm during outdoor recess, arrival, and dismissal. If you are in need of any cold weather gear, please join us on October 30 from 6:00-7:00 PM for the Winter Gear Drive and Swap here at Forest!

Thursday, October 31 is a non-attendance day for kindergarten and an early dismissal day for students in grades 1-5. Right at School will still provide programming before school, but will not provide after school programming.

Have you or one of your family members actively served in the United States Military? We would like to celebrate any Forest family members who have served by creating a display in our building.

If you or a member of your family have served and would like to be celebrated by having your picture featured, please send in a copy of the photograph with your child by November 1. Please do not send any original photographs as we do not want them to be potentially damaged. Additionally, please ensure that photographs are school-appropriate (no weapons featured, please!).

With the photograph, please include the person's NAME, TITLE, and BRANCH OF SERVICE.

Wednesday, October 30 - Regular School Day

• Kindergarten will celebrate in their classrooms during their regular AM or PM class.

Thursday, October 31 - No school for Kindergarten / Early Dismissal @ 12:00 PM for Grades K-5

• 10:30 AM - Parade: Students in grades 1-5 will participate in an outdoor parade (weather pending) from 10:30-11:00 AM. Families are encouraged to find a spot along the parade route (pictured) to enjoy the parade! If you are planning to attend, please plan to arrive no earlier than 10:15 AM. In the event of inclement weather, the outdoor parade will be canceled.
• 11:00 AM - Class Parties: After the parade, students will head back to their classrooms to enjoy fun and games with their teacher, peers, and PTC volunteers.
• 12:00 PM - Dismissal: All students in grades 1-5 will dismiss at 12:00 PM.

If your family does not want your child to participate in the Halloween activities, please email Ms. Soike (soikea@d62.org) and Ms. Reiner (reinert@d62.org) so that we can create alternate activities for them.

Students are invited to come to school in their costumes. For the safety of all students, costumes must meet the guidelines listed below. If an inappropriate item is brought to school and/or an inappropriate costume is worn, the student will need to remove the item and/or may need to call home for a change of clothing.

Costume Guidelines:

• All costumes must meet the D62 Dress Code rules, based on the Student Handbook.
• No weapons. This includes swords, guns, clubs, lasers, etc.
• No blood or gore.
• Masks may be worn during the parade if they allow for students to have a clear line of vision.
• Face paint may be worn, but we must be able to identify the student easily.
• Costumes should not portray a stereotypical image of any group of people or culture, or be offensive to any racial, ethnic, or religious group.

Per the D62 Student Handbook, students and families are not allowed to bring and distribute food treats for any occasion during the school day. However, if you would like to send something with your child to pass out, you could send non-edible treats such as stickers, pencils, erasers, or books. Please consult your child's classroom teacher about if you have any questions and to ensure you send enough for each child in the class.

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

The PTC will be partnering with the Forest SEL team for a Winter Gear Drive and Swap. The Drive and Swap begins this week with the collection. You can drop off gently used winter gear such as coats, snow pants, hats, gloves, and boots in the vestibule at Forest between October 21st and October 25th. Families can then "shop" for new sizes in the TILE room at Forest on October 30th from 6:00pm to 7:00pm.

Our Fall Pool Party will be on Friday, November 15th at Prairie Lakes Aquatic Center! Tickets go on sale Wednesday, October 30th at 7:00pm. Please see the flyer for more details.

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

10/29: 5th Grade Field Trip to the Chicago Wolves Game

10/29: Game Club begins from 3:30-4:30 PM

10/30: Friendship Club permission slips due

10/30: Halloween Celebrations for Kindergarten only during the school day

10/30: Forest Winter Gear Drive from 6:00-7:00 PM

10/31: EARLY DISMISSAL at 12:00 PM for Grades 1-5 / NO SCHOOL for Kindergarten

10/31: Halloween Celebrations for Grades 1-5

11/1: Native American Heritage Month begins

11/1: Permission Slips for 2nd Grade Sports Club due

11/1: Veterans Day family member photographs due

11/2: Spartan Basketball Fundamentals Clinic (grades 3-8) from 10:00-11:30 AM

11/5: No School - Election Day

11/6: D62 Education Foundation Spelling Bee starting at 4:00 PM at the Des Plaines Theater

11/9: Elks Club Hoop Shoot Contest starting at 8:30 AM at Chippewa Middle School

11/12: PTC Meeting at 7:00 PM

11/15: PTC Pool Party from 7:00-9:00 PM at Prairie Lakes Aquatic Center

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