Forest School News

This Wednesday, October 9 is Walk & Roll to School Day! Walk & Roll to School Day is an annual event that involves communities from across the country (and globe!) walking and rolling to school on the same day. The event began in 1997 as a one-day event. Now, thousands of schools across the U.S. participate every October -- with more than 3,700 schools set to participate this week! At Forest, we are very excited to join the movement!

Join in by walking, biking, or rolling to school on Wednesday morning! Students and families that participate will have the opportunity to take group pictures upon arriving at school. Students who participate will also receive a special certificate!

Important Notes:

• We encourage everyone to safely get to school. If your child is biking or rolling, encourage them to wear their helmet! Check out some tips: How to Help Your Child be a Safe Cyclist and/or Tips for Teaching Pedestrian Safety to Children.
• If we run out of room on the bicycle racks, we will be able to store student bicycles at Forest. Students can retrieve them at dismissal or families can pick them up during conferences on Thursday or Friday. Other items, such as foldable scooters or rollerblades, can fit into student lockers during the school day.

Family-Teacher Conferences are just around the corner! We strive to have 100% of our Forest families visit us during Fall Conferences. If you have not already done so, please visit Forest Conference Links to sign up for a conference time with your child's teacher(s).

Fall Conference Schedule

• Thursday, October 10 from 12:00-3:00 PM and 4:00-8:00 PM
• Friday, October 11 from 8:00 AM - 12:00 PM

• 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.

As we wrap up the last day of September and the weather begins to cool, it's time to start thinking about the D62 Winter Card Contest! All D62 students (K-8) are invited to enter the 2024 Winter Card Contest. The deadline to submit an entry is October 15, 2024. Refer to the District 62 Winter Card Contest web page and the flyer below for more information.

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.

• Who? All Families
• What? SEL Parent Night
• When? Tuesday, October 8 from 6:00-7:00 PM -- This is right before the PTC meeting at 7:00 PM!
• Where? Forest Elementary School
• Why? Come meet our social worker, Ms. Biancalana, and our school psychologist, Ms. McInerney, during our SEL Parent Night sessions. The first session will be about anti-bullying, which is our school's Second Step focus for the month of October. Please join us to learn more about anti-bullying from our team while having the opportunity to connect with other Forest families.
• Interested? Please ⭐ RSVP to the SEL Parent Night ⭐ session so we know how many families to plan for and so that we can arrange the space to accommodate everyone.

If your family is in need of additional resources (i.e. food, clothing, community resources, etc.), please fill out this form. The responses to this form are confidential, and will only be seen by the SEL team unless you specify otherwise.

PTC Meeting: Our next PTC meeting will be this coming Tuesday, October 8th at 7:00pm at Forest School. Babysitting is provided for children who are three years old and above. Our guest speaker will be District 62 Superintendent, Dr. Mike Amadei. We hope to see you there!

Fall Fest: Fall Fest is coming on Friday, October 18th from 6:00pm to 8:00pm! There will be lots of fun for the entire family! Please see the flyer for more details about the event and how to register. The deadline for early registration is Friday, October 11th.

Staff Spotlight: Want to recognize a teacher or staff member for doing a great job? Nominate them for Staff Spotlight! Staff Spotlight is a way to recognize any Forest staff member that makes students feel welcomed, cared for, and supported. Let us know the name of the staff member and what they did/are doing for their student or family at Forest. Any adult can be recognized, so in addition to classroom teachers, don't forget paraprofessionals, custodians, interventionists, and more! The next winner will be chosen at our October PTC meeting and featured on our website. Nominees stay in the drawing month to month. Email Kristin Vana at vanakristin@gmail.com to nominate!

Winter Gear Drive: The PTC will be partnering with the Forest SEL team for a Winter Gear Drive and Swap. 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.

Spirit Wear: 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

10/8: SEL Parent Night (Anti-Bullying) from 6:00-7:00 PM at Forest

10/8: PTC Meeting from 7:00-8:00 PM at Forest

10/9: Walk, Bike, and Roll to School -- On the way to school!

10/9-10/23: PTC Dine N Share at Forever Boba Tea begins

10/10: NO SCHOOL -- Family-Teacher Conferences from 12:00-3:00 PM & 4:00-8:00 PM

10/11: NO SCHOOL -- Family-Teacher Conferences from 8:00 AM - 12:00 PM

10/12: Free Kids Yoga from 10:00-11:00 AM - Email Amy Kendal for info (only 10 spots available)

10/14: NO SCHOOL - Indigenous Peoples' Day

10/15: Deadline to submit a Winter Card Contest entry - Bring to Mrs. Powell in the office!

10/18: Fall Fest from 6:00-8:00 PM at Forest

10/19: City of Des Plaines Harvest Hoot from 12:00-4:00 PM at Oakton College

10/19: Des Plaines Park District Floating Pumpkin Patch from 1:00-3:30 PM at Prairie Lakes

10/21-10/25: Winter Gear Drop Off from 8:00 AM - 4:00 PM at Forest

10/21: Board of Education meeting at 7:00 PM

10/22: Band Rehearsals begin from 8:00-8:45 AM

10/23: Orchestra Rehearsals begin from 8:-00-8:45 AM

10/23: PTC Dine N Share with Forever Boba Tea ends

10/24: Picture Retake Day

10/26: Spartan Basketball Fundamentals Clinic (grades 3-8) from 10:00-11:30 AM

10/26: Free Kids Yoga from 10:00-11:00 AM - Email Amy Kendal for info (only 10 spots available)

10/26: Prairie Lakes Trunk or Treat from 12:00-3:00 PM

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