Westmoor Weekly 08/15/2025

Dear Westmoor Families,

We’re so excited to welcome everyone back next week! The school is looking amazing — a huge thank you to Matt and his team for making sure everything is clean, bright, and ready for a fresh start. Our teachers have also been hard at work setting up their classrooms and preparing for a great year ahead.

This year, we’re continuing one of our favorite traditions: celebrating our school families on the TV display in the front lobby! We’d love to feature your summer memories — whether it’s a big celebration, a family trip, or a quiet day at home. Throughout the year, we’ll keep adding photos, so feel free to share updates and special moments as they happen. You can upload your photos using this link.

A few important reminders:

• Meet the Teacher is Tuesday, August 19th

• The first day of school is Wednesday, August 20th — doors open at 8:15 AM, and students should head straight to their classrooms

We’re looking forward to an incredible school year full of learning, growth, and connection. Have a wonderful weekend — we’ll see you soon!

We are so excited to kick off Westmoor Bulldog Packs again this school year! Bulldog Packs have quickly become a favorite for the Westmoor community. The intent of this program is to build a strong sense of belonging among our entire school community.

Bulldog Packs are groups of 7-8 students across grade levels who meet together with 1-2 staff members to build friendships and participate in fun social-emotional themed activities. Students are assigned to the same Pack for the entirety of their Westmoor journey. Our older students have leadership opportunities and our younger students have the opportunity to build a sense of trust and belonging with older students in the building and staff members with whom they may not otherwise interact with.

Our first Bulldog Pack meeting will be on September 9th and meetings will continue monthly throughout the school year. Please be on the lookout for a t-shirt size Google Form next week, an introduction letter from your child’s Pack leader after the first meeting and other Bulldog Pack communication in the Westmoor Weekly or through Blackboard.

Let’s Go Bulldogs!

Students and a parent or caregiver are invited to visit school to "Meet the Teacher" on Tuesday, August 19th. Kindergarten students will receive an invite from their classroom teachers and 1st through 5th grade students are invited to drop in between 1:30-2:30. If you ordered school supplies for your child, they will be waiting for you at Meet the Teacher.

Hi Bulldogs! My name is Ms. Walczak and I will be your music student teacher for the beginning of the school year. I am currently a student at Elmhurst University studying music education with a focus on choir. One fun fact about me is that I like to spend time outdoors and go on hikes! I can't wait to get to know you all and make some beautiful music together!"

I am looking forward to a wonderful semester at Westmoor!

ARRIVAL

School starts at 8:30 a.m. We encourage students to arrive at school between 8:15 a.m. and 8:25 a.m.

All Students Enter through the Following Doors *Doors will close at 8:30- please come to door A if you are running late

• Kindergarten & 1st grade will enter through the main office (Door A)
• 2nd-3rd grade students will enter by the playground (Door C)
• 4th-5th grade students will enter near the gym (Door D)

Carline

• If you are driving your child, cars enter the parking lot northbound on Cherry Lane and drop students off along the sidewalk next to the parking lot. Staff members will be present to greet students.
• Students exit the vehicle and go to the assigned entrance door
• We ask that you please use the carline if you /drop off or pick your student up via car, we are pretty quick!

Please remember that if you are parking near Shannon Rd that you should park on the Northside of the road only to maximize visibility for all crossing students and families.

Any student arriving after 8:30 will need to be signed in at the front office. Please make every effort to ensure that your child is here on time to begin their day. We will give plenty of leeway in the first weeks of school as we all adjust to the new routines.

DISMISSAL - All AT 3:30PM

• Bus riders escorted to buses
• Car riders dismissed to large gym, wait for car to pull up
• Kidcare students dismissed to the small gym
• Walkers dismissed to playground

Lunch, Snacks and Recess

• This year, we’ll have two lunch periods. All students will eat in the lunchroom.

• Kindergarten/1st/2nd @ 11:35

• 3rd/4th/5th @ 12:00

• Students will have recess before (3rd/4th/5th) or after (K/1st/2nd) lunch.
• Please send a healthy snack for your child daily.
• As the number of children with food allergies increases, we strive to make sure that all students are included at Westmoor. Your child’s teacher will notify you if there is an allergen that should not be brought into the classroom.
• We will again partner with Marla’s Lunch to offer a hot lunch ordering option for our students. This is an optional program coordinated via our PTO. More information will be sent by PTO soon. Please be on the lookout.

August 19

Meet the Teacher (1st - 5th grade)- 1:30 - 2:30 p.m.

Kindergarten by invitation between 9:00 a.m. and 11:00 a.m.

August 20

First Day of School! Full Day of school and buses and KidCare will both be up and running

September 3

Curriculum Night will be held this year on Wednesday, 9/3 from 6:30-7:30. Parents can choose to attend one of two identical sessions with their child’s teacher, either 6:30-6:55 or 7:00-7:25. Our PTO will be presenting in the small gym, please stop by to hear all about our PTO and the wonderful events and programs that they sponsor for our students and families.

As mandated by state law, our school will conduct its annual safety drills within the first two weeks of school. Here’s the schedule:

• Inclement Weather: Friday, August 22
• Fire: Wednesday, August 27
• Lockdown: Thursday, August 28

The Lockdown Drill is about making sure everyone knows what to do if we ever need to stay put and stay safe. Teachers will lock their doors, and our resource officer and an administrator will make sure students are out of sight and the doors are locked tight. We'll let everyone know when the drill is happening, and teachers will explain it in a way that makes sense for everyone's age. During the drill, students will practice following what their teachers say, but there won't be any pretend situations or leaving the building. A representative from the Northbrook Police Department will be here to help with this drill.

Per state law, parents can choose to opt their students out of the lockdown drill. If you would like to do this, please email me at meck@northbrook28.net by 3 p.m. on 8/27. Your child may stay at school and will be supervised by a staff member in a location in the building but will not participate.

Thank you for your cooperation and support in ensuring a safe environment for all students.

Show your creativity and celebrate the start of the 2025-26 school year with us! Share your first day of school photos by sending them to Samantha Scheinman, Director of Communications & Community Relations, at sscheinman@northbrook28.net. If you're posting to Instagram, be sure to use the hashtag #D28FIRSTDAY25

Families in grades K-8 should send in their photos by 6 p.m. on August 20. Families of Young Explorer students should send in their photos by 6 p.m. on August 21. The winner will be featured on our Facebook and Instagram social media channels on Friday, August 22!

The Back-to-School packet was emailed out to all families on Tuesday, August 13th. In case

you missed it, see the attachment below. It will be your handy reference guide for all the PTO

events for the year!

• Review the Back to School Packet
• Sign Up to Volunteer! We can't do this without you!
• Sign up for to be a Pizza Lunch Volunteer! Sign ups will be emailed out at 8pm on Sunday, August 17th!
• Pay your dues and order Dilly Bars! DEADLINE August 20th by 5pm. PTO dues must be paid first, in a separate transaction. www.westmoorpto.com

• August 22, 3:30pm – 4:30pm: Ice Cream Social (Westmoor Blacktop)
• August 22, 8:15pm – 10:15pm: 5 th grade pool Party (Meadowhill)
• September 5, 2:15pm: PTO Meeting (Westmoor & Zoom)
• September 20, 11:00am – 1:00pm: Bulldog Bash (Westmoor Playground)

August 19: Meet the Teacher

August 20: First day of school, full day 8:30am-3:30pm

August 22: PTO Ice Cream Social - 3:30-4:30pm; 5th Grade Pool Party - 8:15pm

August 26: Beginning Band and Orchestra parent meeting @ 6pm @ NBJH

August 29: Half Day, Dismissal at 12:00pm

September 1: NO SCHOOL

September 2: Fall assessment window opens (teachers will share specific dates)

September 3: Curriculum Night 6:30-7:30pm

September 5: PTO Meeting @2:15pm

September 9: Bulldog Pack Meeting

September 10: Picture Day (Details in next weekly)

September 20: Bulldog Bash/Fall Festival @11am

September 23: NO SCHOOL