From the Desk of Dr. Piech–May

Welcome to the 2011-2012 school year! The hallways are sparkling as are the classrooms. We had a few minor construction projects over the summer, but the building is ready and so are we. Our custodial staff has done an excellent job in preparing for the coming year. Dirksen teachers have been in the building weeks before students are scheduled to arrive in order to prepare a welcoming environment for your children. Our focus as a staff will be to continue to build upon the excellent academic opportunities that are provided atDirksenSchool; rigorous instruction in all core areas as well as enrichment or remediation support based on student need. I am looking forward to an exciting year filled with opportunities and possibilities for each and every Dirksen student.

Additional enrichment opportunities will be provided to students in Art, Music and Physical Education this year during lunch recess. These additional offerings will be choice options for students. Additional information will be forthcoming as we finalize plans for all our clubs and extra curricular activities.

Erin Hall will join Dirksen as Assistant Principal. Erin will split her days between Dirksen andCollinsSchool. This is her second year in District 54 as an assistant principal. Erinis eager to get to know the Dirksen families and students.

As you are aware, all District 54 schools have been impacted by the changes in the fine arts and P.E. departments. We have three new staff members to introduce to you. Alyssa Groberski will be teaching physical education. Robert Hulina will teach band and our general music classes and Rob Singer will be teaching art. Carolynnn Garcia-VanderVorst will join Dirksen as our second fulltime bilingual teacher. We are very excited about the talent and enthusiasm that they bring to Dirksen.

Please see below for a few notes of interest.

FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL -First through sixth grade students will have their first regular full day of school on Wednesday, August 24, 2011 with dismissal at 2:30. It should be noted that on that first day of school, students taking a bus, being dropped off by car on Beech or walking to school will be greeted by their classroom teacher at their respective door (1^st/2^nd grade- Door # 2, 3^rd/4^th grade- Door #1, 5^th/6^th grade- Door #3). This procedure will be followed for the first week, On August 29th regular morning arrival procedures will be observed for all students. Students will enter the building as they arrive at school. Please note that student supervision begins at 8:25 AM. As a matter of safety, students should not arrive at school before 8:25 AM.

KINDERGARTEN students will have their screening appointments on August 24, 25, 26. If you have not scheduled an appointment, please call our office to do so. These screenings provide us with valuable instructional information. This time also helps to acquaint your child with his/her new teacher and the classroom environment.

SCHOOL HOURS – School hours are 8:35 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. for grades 1 – 6; kindergarten a.m., 8:35 – 11:10 p.m.; kindergarten p.m., 12:30 – 3:00 p.m. Please note: Beginning August 24th, every Wednesday is designated for staff development. Students are dismissed 30 minutes early (2:30). On Wednesday staff development days, kindergarten hours are as follows: AM- 8:35-10:55 and PM- 12:15-2:30. Also, on all half-days, kindergarten classes are canceled. Our lunch is a bit later this year. Students will eat lunch and have a 20 minute recess from 11:55– 12:40.

OFFICE HOURS -School office hours are from 7:45 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Remember that our student absence line (357-5602) is available 24 hours a day. Please call if your child will be absent from school.

SUPPLY LISTS – Supply lists can be found on our website at http://dirksen.sd54.org/. Teachers would like your child to have all supplies on the first day of school. Remember to mark your child’s personal items with his/her name to avoid confusion if an item is misplaced. You will have the opportunity of dropping off supplies on August 18^th. Our PTA is hosting a Block Party from 6:30-8:30. (see enclosed flyer)

BLOCK PARTY. The Block Party runs from 6:30 – 8:30. Classrooms will be open from 6-7 pm. This is an opportunity for students and families to meet this year’s teachers and drop off school supplies.

RUN TO READ – Dirksen will again be hosting the annual School District54 Run to Read on September 25, 2011. This event has two goals: to fight childhood obesity by encouraging exercise and to promote literacy. The profits will be used to purchase books for classroom libraries in District 54. For your convenience I have enclosed a race day application and race map. If you would like additional information regarding the race please go to the District web site at www.sd54.org

I hope to see all of our families at Curriculum Night on Wednesday, August 31, 2011. This is a night for parents to learn about their child’s day and the expectations for a successful new year. Watch for detailed information about this night that will be sent home with your child. Our PTA newsletter, the Dirksen Digest, is always a good source of up to date Dirksen happenings. Please watch for that publication and be sure to check our new and improved webpage at http://dirksen.sd54.org/ Please feel free to contact me at anytime!

Sincerely,

Patricia Piech, Ed.D.

Posted under News, Principal's Message

June Message from the Principal

Posted Monday, June 6th, 2011 by mboekenhauer

Dear Dirksen families,

The year has been packed with exciting learning opportunities and wonderful moments of friendship and caring. It’s obvious from the excitement in the air that summer is just around the corner. You can help make the most of this time keeping your children reading by providing trips to the library, reading to them, listening to them read, talking about what they’ve read…..I can’t stress it enough…read, read, read.

Your child should have brought home their MAP test reports last week. We are thrilled with Dirksen’s continued growth! We are the second highest achieving elementary school in math and the fourth in reading. This is a huge step up from 13th

place out of 27 schools last spring. Our students are not only achieving their goals; 83% in reading and 69% in math, but nearly 50% of our students doubled their growth goal. We have strengthened our intervention block; providing targeted remediation support as well as enrichment. The Dirksen staff is extremely responsive to our data and more than willing to do what is best for kids! Our school leadership team will continue to seek ways to ensure academic rigor for every Dirksen student.

We are looking forward to our school wide end of the year celebration. You are welcome to join us outside on the lawn on June 7th

at 9:00 am, weather permitting. We have a number of awards and recognitions to bestow and Dirksen Idol returns! Also on this day students going into grades one, three and five will be visiting their new classrooms and meeting their new teachers. This is an exciting time and we hope that it get our students excited about next year.

We wish all of our families a safe and relaxing summer. We expect to see all of you, healthy and happy as students return in August.

Respectfully,

Patricia Piech, Ed.D.

Posted under Principal's Message

From the Desk of Dr. Piech–May

From the Desk of Dr. Piech–April

From the Desk of Dr. Piech–February

From the Desk of Dr. Piech–January

From the Desk of Dr. Piech–December

From the Desk of Dr. Piech–November

From the Desk of Dr. Piech–October

From the Desk of Dr. Piech

Welcome to a New School Year

June Message from the Principal

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