Hawks TGIF Dispatch SY 2026-2027

Dear Teachers and Staff,

5 Weeks Down! Welcome to the second half of the 1st Quarter.

Since tomorrow our Chicago Bears will be playing, feel free to wear your BEARS Gear!

Our students have officially settled in. I want to remind everyone about bringing joy into the classroom. This supports connection and wellbeing for our students and for us as well.

There is some new information in regards to ParentSquare ~ our new communication tool replacing "Talking Points" and "Remind". Please look at the information in the dispatch below.

Have a great week!

With gratitude,

MA and Luna

We’re excited to announce that Henry School is launching ParentSquare as our new school-wide communication platform. This move brings all school and classroom communication into one place, making it easier for staff to connect with families and for families to stay informed and engaged.

Why we're making this change

This past year we used Talking Points because we were unable to use Remind. Now that Remind can be used by the district, it has been purchased by ParentSquare and Remind will be phased out and Parent Square will be the new platform.

All Remind classes and groups will be archived on (Not sure what date yet) and will no longer be accessible. If you need to save any communication from Remind, please copy and paste the messages into a document asap.

To help you start understanding some of the features in ParentSquare and how they are similar to Remind, the Remind and ParentSquare Terminology resource will provide an overview of how common features align between the two platforms.

With ParentSquare, we’re simplifying our systems, improving consistency, and creating more opportunities for meaningful engagement across every school and classroom. ParentSquare is already set up for you, with our school and class rosters preloaded to minimize setup time and help you get started quickly.

What you can do with ParentSquare?

ParentSquare offers an easy-to-use platform where you can:

• Create posts and send messages to families

• Communicate in their preferred language with built-in two-way translation

• Post calendar events and request RSVPs

• Share forms, files, and permission slips

• Schedule conferences and appointments

• Set up volunteer and wishlist sign-ups

• Track message reach and engagement

• And more—all from your computer or mobile device

What this means for families?

Families will begin receiving school and classroom messages via email, app, voice, or text. Those who activate their accounts can also reply to messages, fill out forms, view photos, manage notification preferences, and more, all in one place.

Training and support?

You’ll have ongoing access to resources to help you succeed with ParentSquare:

• Live and recorded training webinars (login required)

• Self-paced courses via ParentSquare Academy (login required)

• Check out below for the pre-recorded Navigate ParentSquare Basics and Getting Started with ParentSquare Teacher Checklist, which are great places to begin.

• Also, follow these steps to support implementation:

  Steps 1-3

You can also join the ParentSquare User Group on Facebook to connect with other educators and share ideas, questions, and feedback.

We’re looking forward to all the ways this platform will make communication simpler and more effective, for both you and the families we serve.

Sincerely,

Principal Reynolds

Monday, September 28th

• MTSS Cycle 1 Continues
• Boys' 7th/8th Grade Soccer Practice 3:30 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.
• Girls' 7th/8th Grade Volleyball Practice 3:30 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.
• NRC After School Program
• 3rd-4th Homework Help and Fun Activities
• 5th-8th Introduction to Guitar

Tuesday, September 29th

• Boys' 5th/6th Grade Soccer Practice 3:30 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.
• NRC After School Program
• K-1st Crafty Club
• 1st-3rd Bilingual Tutoring
• 2nd-3rd Little Kickers
• 5th-6th Crochet Club
• 5th-6th Wrestling and Fitness
• 7th-8th Co-ed Soccer

Wednesday, September 30th

• PLC in Room 105 (Multilingual Supports with Mrs. Dorado)
• Boys' 7th/8th Grade Soccer Practice 3:30 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.
• Girls' 7th/8th Grade Volleyball Practice 3:30 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.
• NRC After School Program
• 2nd-3rd Little Kickers
• 3rd-4th Homework Help and Fun Activities
• 5th-8th Introduction to Guitar

Thursday, October 1st

• Boys' 5th/6th Grade Soccer Practice 3:30 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.
• NRC After School Program
• K-1st Crafty Club
• 1st-3rd Bilingual Tutoring
• 5th-7th Art Club
• 5th-6th Wrestling and Fitness
• 7th-8th Co-ed Soccer
• 4th-8th Broadway Beats

Friday, October 2nd

• Happy Custodial Workers Day!
• Dance Friday!

Saturday, October 3rd

• Girls Volleyball Game 3:00 p.m. & 3:45 p.m. vs. Thorp @ Rickover H.S.
• Boys Soccer Game 10:00 a.m. vs. Portage Park @ Portage Park

5th ~ World Teachers' Day

7th ~ High School Exam for 8th Grade

12th ~ Indigenous Peoples' Day

13th ~ LSC Regular Meeting @ 4:00 p.m.

13th ~ Cultivate Survey Opens

15th ~ BAC Meeting @ 8:30 a.m.

19th ~ Picture Day

23rd ~ Quarter 1 Ends

23rd ~ Cultivate Survey Closes

29th ~ Day of the Dead Event and Trunk or Treat

Please complete by date indicated.

All Staff/Teachers

• Don't forget to log into your Safe Schools Account to complete the required trainings. Trainings are due Friday, October 2nd.

Teachers

• Please review the information regarding ParentSquare: Our new "Remind"/"TalkingPoints"

PLCs

• This week's focus will be on our multilingual learners. Mrs. Dorado will continue our learning and next steps to support language objectives and targeted supports for our MLs.
• Pathways completed in Google Classroom for PD on 9/25/26
• Identify supports for students who are receiving Ds/Fs for progress reports.
• What supports are needed? SEL/Attendance/Academics?
• How are you communicating with families to build the home-school connection?
• What assignments and/or assessments are averaging a D or F in your classroom? What instructional shifts are needed?
• What supports do you need as a classroom teacher to help support the students?
• Don't forget to give your letters to your students (based on PD last week. Teachers who were at the HSAT training, we will discuss this during PLCs this week.

Dear Teachers,

We are starting Cycle 1 on Monday, September 21st. Please remember, all Tier 2 and Tier 3 students need to have plans in Branching Minds for each subject area that they are in Tier 2 or Tier 3. Progress reports are going home this week. If a student is receiving a D or an F in a core content area- they must also have a plan in Branching Minds (make sure you submit a BHT referral as well). If grades are the reason they need a plan, please reach out to me for next steps. We need to determine if it is an academic content deficit or behavior related.

In Branching Minds you need the following:

Dates: Sept. 21- Oct. 26

Progress Monitor every two weeks (minimum) or weekly

Tier 2 should meet 2-3 times a week for 15-20 minutes each time.

• Add the intervention program that matches the deficit

• Add the progress monitoring that matches the skill/ deficit you are explicitly teaching to the students.

You must be meeting with your students throughout the week in small groups to teach the deficit- this teaching should not come from a computer program (IXL, Freckle, etc) Those are tools you can use, similar to a worksheet or a book. But the actual teaching and learning come from the teacher.

Here is a deck that explains the Tiering process and refresher on how to add your plans in Branching Minds!

Middle School Teachers- please reach out to the advisory teachers to help support groups during that time. If you are teaching an advisory, please remember to dedicate time in the week to interventions in Reading and Math. We can be creative and share groups and kids amongst the grade level.

I will be around to discuss the groups and times I am going to be pulling with specific teachers. If you have any questions, need clarification, etc. Let me know and we can meet to plan this out.

Thank you for all of your hard work!

Lindsay Krizanovic

During our PD on Friday, we asked you to write an encouraging letter to our students who are on the list of having a higher chance of being chronically absent. Check out this short article to understand why a positive letter can help build trust and that relationship with our families

Boys Soccer 7/8 grade (starts 8/31/26 )

Fútbol Masculino 7/8 grado

Coach Ms. Daicy Martinez

Monday and Wednesday

Lunes y Miércoles

3:30 pm – 5:00 pm

Boys Soccer 5/6 grade (will start 9/7/26 )

Fútbol Masculino 5/6 grado

Coach Mr. Aaron Belcher

Tuesday and Thursday

Martes Y Jueves

3:30 pm – 5:00 pm

Girls Volleyball 7/8 grade (starts 8/31/26 )

Volibol Femenil 7/8 grado

Coach Mr. Derek Arias

Monday and Wednesday

Lunes y Miércoles

3:30 pm – 5:00 pm

Girls Volleyball 5/6 grade (will start 9/7/26 )

Volibol Femenil 5/6 grado

Coach Ms. Irma Ortega

Monday and Wednesday

Lunes y Miércoles

3:30 pm – 5:00 pm

All Games at Portage Park

September 19th @ 1:00 p.m. vs. Gray (Canceled due to weather)

September 26th @ 10:00 a.m. vs APC

October 3rd @ 10:00 a.m. vs Portage Park

October 10th @ 1:00 p.m. vs Soloman

October 17th @ 11:00 a.m. vs Wildwood

October 24th @ 11:00 a.m. vs. Belding

All Games at Rickover High School

September 19th @ 11:15 a.m. vs Scammon

September 26th @ 11:15 a.m. vs Beaubian

October 3rd @ 3:00 p.m. & 3:45 p.m. vs Thorp

October 10th @ 10:30 a.m. & 11:15 a.m. vs Canty

October 17th @ 9:00 a.m. & 9:45 a.m. vs Cleveland

October 24th @ 3:00 p.m. & 3:45 p.m. vs Dever

Thank you for helping us with our fun dance playlist on Friday! 🙂

Hi Everyone!

Please take a moment to read the shout-outs and news below. If you'd like to give a shout-out or share some news, please fill out the form.

A special thank you to everyone on Friday for the fun we had at the end of our time together. I'm still working on the video and can't wait to share it with everyone! ~ Ms. Reynolds

Thank you to Mrs. Rios, Mrs Ortiz, Mrs. Pucciarello, Mrs. Dorado, and Ms. Luna for the fun Loteria Night. Check out the video below! ~ Ms. Reynolds

Thank you Mr. Delgado, Mr. Hussey, Mrs Stacy Sanchez, Ms. Luna and Mr. Figueroa for supporting during some of the situations that came up last week. Your resilience is what makes these difficult moments run smoothly and I can't thank you enough. ~ Ms. Reynolds

Thank yo Mrs. Carrion and Mrs. Greene for conducting our 8th grade information session on Thursday.. ~Ms. Reynolds

Thank you Mrs. Barrera for supporting me with the SPS process. ~ Ms. Reynolds

Please fill out this form if you would like to give Culture & Climate Feedback. This form is always anonymous (unless you choose to provide your name). This form is open and reviewed regularly. You don't need to answer every question. Share what you'd like! Feedback is appreciated!

🎂Happy September Birthdays 🎂

16 ~ Selena Rios

19 ~ Zenaida Rivera

30 ~ Vernice Cabrera

30 ~ Mykie Moya

🎂Happy October Birthdays🎂

4 ~ Francis Train

12~ Mary Ann Reynolds

17 ~ Jetjon Bebo

21 ~ Michelle Looker

25 ~ Jessica Avila

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