Picture Day is coming on Tuesday, October 29!

You can place your order on mylifetouch.com using your Picture Day ID: EVTQZFR37. Order before midnight on Picture Day to get FREE shipping!

Your child can also bring their completed flyer with cash or check on Picture Day.

Our lockdown drill with law enforcement will be today, Friday, October 25th in the afternoon. We previously sent out an email communication regarding the drill being on Wednesday of this week, but we had to resschedule.

We appreciate your flexibility and know the students and staff will do an amazing job!

Dear Orrington Families,

Thank you for taking the time to attend our recent parent-teacher conferences. Your partnership and engagement in your child's education makes a tremendous difference in their academic success and social-emotional well-being.

These conferences provided valuable opportunities for our teachers to share your child's progress, celebrate their achievements, and collaborate with you on strategies to support their continued growth. The conversations we had about both academic development and social-emotional learning will help us ensure that every student receives the support they need to thrive.

Your dedication to maintaining open communication and working closely with our staff demonstrates the strong school-family partnership that makes Orrington such a special community. We deeply appreciate the time you invested in these important conversations about your child's education.

Please continue to reach out to your child's teachers or our staff whenever you have questions or concerns. Working together, we can provide the best possible educational experience for every student.

Thank you again for your commitment to your child's success and to our school community.

Best wishes,

Dr. Schoeffmann & Ms. Yoo

Last Thursday, students were treated to a storytelling session from Donna Washington! She thrilled the students with her vivid language and expressions.

Donna is an award-winning international storyteller and author. She tours the world virtually and in person! She has been featured at hundreds of national and international storytelling festivals. She has been a storyteller for 33 years. Donna L. Washington was born October 6, 1967 in Colorado Springs, Colorado to Sgt. Don Washington and his wife Gwendolyn. Growing up as an Army Brat meant Donna lived in Colorado, Texas, Georgia, Germany, Korea, Indiana, Japan, Oklahoma, Indiana, and Virginia before she graduated from High School.

In 1989, Donna graduated from Northwestern University with a Bachelor’s of Science in Speech. She remained in Evanston, Il for seven years after graduation. She toured to Brussels with the Chicago Children’s Theatre and did a few other shows in the area before becoming a full-time professional storyteller.

Her books include: A Big Spooky House, A Pride of African Tales, The Story of Kwanzaa, Li’l Rabbit’s Kwanzaa, Boo Stew, and Prak Fills The House.

These days, Donna lives in Durham, NC with her husband Dave and their two cats, Love Bug and Flash.

You can find more of stories on YouTube HERE!

Thank you to the PTA for donating to make this happen! A big thank you to community, the Fun Run helped raised $8,000, which helps with making things like this happen.

At Orrington, we highly value open communication and community collaboration. Our greatest success comes from working together with parents to address student concerns.

Recently, we've noticed a troubling trend of inappropriate language among our students, much of which seems to be influenced by social media content, particularly from TikTok. We know that both parents and faculty agree on the importance of maintaining a respectful and positive school environment to support every child's well-being and academic progress.

While we recognize the widespread use of these platforms among young people, it's essential to guide them in using appropriate language, no matter what they encounter online. We kindly request your help in reinforcing this at home by:

• Discussing with your child the importance of using respectful language and the potential effects inappropriate words can have on others
• Monitoring your child's social media activities
• Encouraging critical thinking about the content they see online and how it may influence their behavior

Our staff will continue to address this issue at school, and we appreciate your cooperation and ongoing partnership with Orrington. Thank you for your support.

Check out more information about our Winter Gear Drive in partnership with the Gary Comer Youth Center HERE.

As a general rule, costumes that are gory, bloody, violent in nature or overly frightening are not permitted at any PTA event. Additionally, weapons, even toy ones, are not allowed.

Sign-up for the Orrington Directory!

Once you have signed up for the directory, you will be able to edit your information and indicate your information-sharing preferences. We also use this system to distribute our Orrington PTA E-Newsletter that contains information and updates you will not want to miss!

Follow this link to access the Orrington Elementary School Directory site: https://orringtonpta.membershiptoolkit.com/

Questions? Contact us at orringtonelementarydirectory@gmail.com

1) Click "Register/Login" and "Create Account"

Create your family's account and click "verify my email". Non-work emails are preferred as work based emails frequently are bounced because of employer firewalls

2) You've got mail!

Check your email for a link to complete the process. The link expires in 2 hours.

3) Finish your registration

Parent/Family and Student Info

Directory/Publish Preferences

Volunteer during Lunch!

Want to make your kid's or kids' day? Volunteer to serve lunch with your fellow friendly Orrington parents!

What: Parent volunteers help students properly compost and recycle their lunch waste. One volunteer are scheduled per day. Bring your ID for check-in in the school front office.

When: Volunteers are needed from 11:15 AM to 1:15 PM.

IMPORTANT: Please sign up only for yourself! Sign up HERE.

Questions: Contact Orrington PTA (info@orringtonpta.org)

Want to know what's going on around the community? District 65 uses a "Digital Backpack" to share community information. Please click the button below to view upcoming community events and activities.