happy new year!
January brings bitter cold days, so we work extra hard to keep it warm on the inside! The next three months bring the "mean" of the school year "hamburger" -- a time when routines are established, relationships are solid, and expectations are high. Regular and consistent attendance is important as we work hard to meet goals!
Parents, please make sure you have updated your phone numbers and email addresses with the school so you can continue to stay informed and receive any emergency alerts.
Parents, please make sure you have updated your phone numbers and email addresses with the school so you can continue to stay informed and receive any emergency alerts.
parent-teacher conferences february 17th and 18th
The Boy Scouts will once again (THANK YOU!!) provide babysitting during February conferences. If you have not already done so, please visit the PTC Wizard website to schedule your child's conference with each homeroom teacher. Here is a link to the school website for information and a link to the site.
http://www.d70schools.org/schoolsites/?sect=home&func=home_cust&school_id=3&pid=75
http://www.d70schools.org/schoolsites/?sect=home&func=home_cust&school_id=3&pid=75
Copeland promise plan -- behavior plan updated to align with classroom behavior plans
At Copeland, students make PROMISES at the beginning of each year to:
Be respectful
Be responsible and safe
Be ready to learn
The Copeland School Promises are the foundation for our all-school behavior plan. Expectations are clearly communicated to students for appropriate and positive behaviors. As your child about "Behavior Stations" this morning. Positive demonstrations of behavior are recognized and celebrated often (ask your child if he/she has received a “Cougie Card”). When students demonstrate behavior that goes against the expectations, feedback is offered and communication goes home with the aim of changing behavior in the future.
We are adding a layer of communication to the Copeland School Promise Plan that distinguishes between minor and major behaviors. A minor referral is an action that is unexpected, but can be handled under the classroom behavior plan. When a minor write up is given to a student, it will go home with the child so that conversations can take place at home. We ask that you sign the form and return it to school the next school day. A major behavior is an action that requires teachers to stop class and will result in a student reporting directly to Mr. Feldman in the office and a Broken Promise write up that requires completion of a Think Sheet and a parent contact and signature.
The Copeland School Promise Plan can be found on our school website. Here is a quick link:
The Plan contains a continuum of consequences that range from parent contact, to time in the office to suspensions. Minor referrals can lead to major referrals (Broken Promises). One minor referral will not result in a student having to speak with Mr. Feldman in the office. However, if a child receives three minor referrals, a Broken Promise will be written and the child will be sent to the office for a conference with Mr. Feldman.
The purpose of our school-wide behavior plan is to provide students with clear expectations for positive behaviors, celebrate positive choices, and provide feedback for when students show unexpected behavior throughout the building, not just in the classroom. Any staff member who witnesses unexpected behavior will write up the minor referral and give it to the classroom teacher.
We will continue to work together to celebrate positive character and keep our Copeland School Promises. If you have any questions, comments, or concerns, please speak to your child’s classroom teacher, Mr. Feldman, or Mrs. Poelking.
Thank you for your support in maintaining a safe and happy school environment for everyone.
Be respectful
Be responsible and safe
Be ready to learn
The Copeland School Promises are the foundation for our all-school behavior plan. Expectations are clearly communicated to students for appropriate and positive behaviors. As your child about "Behavior Stations" this morning. Positive demonstrations of behavior are recognized and celebrated often (ask your child if he/she has received a “Cougie Card”). When students demonstrate behavior that goes against the expectations, feedback is offered and communication goes home with the aim of changing behavior in the future.
We are adding a layer of communication to the Copeland School Promise Plan that distinguishes between minor and major behaviors. A minor referral is an action that is unexpected, but can be handled under the classroom behavior plan. When a minor write up is given to a student, it will go home with the child so that conversations can take place at home. We ask that you sign the form and return it to school the next school day. A major behavior is an action that requires teachers to stop class and will result in a student reporting directly to Mr. Feldman in the office and a Broken Promise write up that requires completion of a Think Sheet and a parent contact and signature.
The Copeland School Promise Plan can be found on our school website. Here is a quick link:
The Plan contains a continuum of consequences that range from parent contact, to time in the office to suspensions. Minor referrals can lead to major referrals (Broken Promises). One minor referral will not result in a student having to speak with Mr. Feldman in the office. However, if a child receives three minor referrals, a Broken Promise will be written and the child will be sent to the office for a conference with Mr. Feldman.
The purpose of our school-wide behavior plan is to provide students with clear expectations for positive behaviors, celebrate positive choices, and provide feedback for when students show unexpected behavior throughout the building, not just in the classroom. Any staff member who witnesses unexpected behavior will write up the minor referral and give it to the classroom teacher.
We will continue to work together to celebrate positive character and keep our Copeland School Promises. If you have any questions, comments, or concerns, please speak to your child’s classroom teacher, Mr. Feldman, or Mrs. Poelking.
Thank you for your support in maintaining a safe and happy school environment for everyone.
a note from copeland's character counts committee with an invitation for a family night
In celebration of Fairness Month through Character Counts, the Copeland Character Counts committee is planning to host an interactive event on January 27th at 6:30 P.M. in an effort to increase awareness of hunger issues here in Lake County., IL. We will be hosting a “meal” that will simulate the disparity of food insecurity in Lake County (and many other counties in the United States). Every family attending will be randomly placed into meal distribution groups when you arrive for our event. The primary goal is to gain a better understanding of hunger in our own Lake County as well as suggestions for how we can solve or improve this issue.
We will begin the evening at 6:30 with a short presentation regarding hunger along with a children’s book read by Mrs. Poelking. This will be followed by our
“meal” and a short follow-up discussion. Voluntary donations to benefit local food pantries are greatly appreciated and will be accepted at the door. If you have questions regarding this hunger awareness event, please email either Mrs. Travelstead or Mrs. Chickey. We are planning to limit attendance to 120 people to maximize the experience of the event.
A peek into third grade
As the third graders settled back into their classrooms following the winter break, reading lessons began to focus on the skill of summarizing. In third grade, students are asked to include the conflict, major events, and theme when writing about a piece of literature. We practice this skill by reading and summarizing many fables, myths and short stories. The third graders use graphic organizers to help them organize their ideas and evidence from the story. Time is also being spent learning about figurative language, which can be beneficial as the students learn to weave the theme from the story into their summaries.
Third graders are also busy during science lessons learning how volcanoes and earthquakes change the Earth’s surface. These science lessons will help the students as they work on research reports during their writing time. This project, which is part of a grant awarded to Mrs. Johnson and the third grade teachers by the District 70 Partners for Excellence in Education program, gives the third graders an opportunity to read several different e-books on the topic of volcanoes. They will use these books, their science textbooks, and grade level subscriptions to help them gather information as they write their research reports.
Third graders are also busy during science lessons learning how volcanoes and earthquakes change the Earth’s surface. These science lessons will help the students as they work on research reports during their writing time. This project, which is part of a grant awarded to Mrs. Johnson and the third grade teachers by the District 70 Partners for Excellence in Education program, gives the third graders an opportunity to read several different e-books on the topic of volcanoes. They will use these books, their science textbooks, and grade level subscriptions to help them gather information as they write their research reports.
Summer school 2016
Fun in the Sun…Summer School!
2016 Summer School registration will be here before you know it. The course catalogs will be available online starting on Friday, February 26th. Registration for In-District families will begin on March 6th and ending May 20th. As more information becomes available it will be posted at d70schools.org/summerschool. Check out all the new classes and old favorites offered to students from Pre-Kindergarten through 8th grade. All students will register according to the grade they will be in Fall 2016 for the 2016-2017 school year. Hope to see you this summer at Highland!
Lorenzo Cervantes
Assistant Principal
Highland Middle School
Ph: 847-362-9020
2016 Summer School registration will be here before you know it. The course catalogs will be available online starting on Friday, February 26th. Registration for In-District families will begin on March 6th and ending May 20th. As more information becomes available it will be posted at d70schools.org/summerschool. Check out all the new classes and old favorites offered to students from Pre-Kindergarten through 8th grade. All students will register according to the grade they will be in Fall 2016 for the 2016-2017 school year. Hope to see you this summer at Highland!
Lorenzo Cervantes
Assistant Principal
Highland Middle School
Ph: 847-362-9020
celebrating young authors in 4L
Winter Each year, students in Mrs. Livermore's fourth grade class submit poems to a contest -- this year titled "A Celebration of Poets -- Fall 2015." For the first time, the poem of every student was accepted and will be published. This is an usual event and one to be celebrated. Thank you, Mrs. Livermore, for sharing your students' writing talents. Enjoy the titles of the winning poems (last names have been omitted).
Halloween Night (Mina)
The Senses of Christmas (Santino)
The Passage Below the Earth (Atalhea)
Types of Weather (Sarah)
Dancin' in the Streets (Sophia)
The Accident of the Pink Fluffy Unicorns (Caroline)
The White Falling Crystals (Lucas)
Nature is Beautiful (Wil)
Thanksgiving at the (S) House (Rebekah)
Winter Wonderland (Gavin)
The Battle that has Begun (Jack)
Leaves Fall (Ruth)
Just Me (Nevaeh)
The Extraordinary Wonderful Jamaica (Christian)
Children's Day (Leila)
A Snowy Christmas (Arianna)
Fast, Brutal and Anxious Hockey (Nathan)
Friendship (Parker)
Winter Frost (Ella)
What If .... (Jake)
Season's Feelings (Amelia)
The Evil World Around Me (Jocelyn)
Halloween Night (Mina)
The Senses of Christmas (Santino)
The Passage Below the Earth (Atalhea)
Types of Weather (Sarah)
Dancin' in the Streets (Sophia)
The Accident of the Pink Fluffy Unicorns (Caroline)
The White Falling Crystals (Lucas)
Nature is Beautiful (Wil)
Thanksgiving at the (S) House (Rebekah)
Winter Wonderland (Gavin)
The Battle that has Begun (Jack)
Leaves Fall (Ruth)
Just Me (Nevaeh)
The Extraordinary Wonderful Jamaica (Christian)
Children's Day (Leila)
A Snowy Christmas (Arianna)
Fast, Brutal and Anxious Hockey (Nathan)
Friendship (Parker)
Winter Frost (Ella)
What If .... (Jake)
Season's Feelings (Amelia)
The Evil World Around Me (Jocelyn)
Geography bee
Congratulations to Copeland's top ten students for the 2015 Geography Bee. They are (in random order):
Andrew N., Chris A., Luke M., Zac P., Yvie G., Finn B., Caroline T., Ben N., Braden A., and Henry E.
All 4th and 5th grade students participated in this competition which consists of 7 rounds of oral questions concerning local and world geography. Each classroom had a class winner and the next highest scores overall were used to round out the top ten.
The final round of the Geography Bee took place in the library the week after winter break. Congratulations to Braden., who is this year's school winner. Braden will take the qualifying test next week to try to qualify for the state Geography Bee in Springfield this Spring. Henry was the runner-up.
Congratulations Braden and great work to all our qualifying Cougies!
Andrew N., Chris A., Luke M., Zac P., Yvie G., Finn B., Caroline T., Ben N., Braden A., and Henry E.
All 4th and 5th grade students participated in this competition which consists of 7 rounds of oral questions concerning local and world geography. Each classroom had a class winner and the next highest scores overall were used to round out the top ten.
The final round of the Geography Bee took place in the library the week after winter break. Congratulations to Braden., who is this year's school winner. Braden will take the qualifying test next week to try to qualify for the state Geography Bee in Springfield this Spring. Henry was the runner-up.
Congratulations Braden and great work to all our qualifying Cougies!