Classroom Procedures
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Contact Information
Miss Deon Obrochta
Hillcrest Elementary School Room 305
433 E. Depot St.
Antioch, IL 60002
Phone/Voicemail: 847-838-8018
Email: dobrochta@antioch34.com
Website: https://www.antioch34.com/site/Default.aspx?PageID=4184
24-Hour Attendance Hotline: 847-838-8181
Hillcrest Main Office: 847-838-8001
School Hours: Mon, Tue, Thu, Fri: 8:35am-3:20pm – Wed: 8:35am-2:35pm
Classroom Procedures
Attendance Hotline
To report an absence, please call the 24-Hour Attendance Hotline at 847-838-8181. Please do not call my school phone number to report an absence because it does not ring during the school day and I may not get the message in time. Please let the office staff know, and they will inform me.
Transportation Changes
If your child is normally a bus rider, and you are planning on picking them up from school, please send a note in their take home folder that includes the date, your child’s first and last name, and my name. Including this information assists the office staff in recording the information. If you forget to send a note in the morning, you can call Hillcrest’s main office at 847-838-8001 to let them know that you are going to pick up your child from school. They will then inform me of the transportation change.
Water
We have water fountains and a water refilling station in our village. You can send disposable water bottles or a reusable water bottle if you would like. Please make sure your child’s name is on the water bottles.
Parent Pick-Up & Drop Off
If your child is going to be a parent pick-up/car rider every day you will need to complete a form that can be found on the home page of the Hillcrest website. On the home page click, "TBD - INFO COMING SOON" and then the Google form to complete this important step. You can also contact the office for more information.
Students who will be dropped off for school can pull up to the Hillcrest main entrance beginning at 8:25am daily. Please make sure to pull all the way up and around the circle when dropping off your student, as we need to keep the entrance/exit to Depot clear of traffic.
For safety reasons, all students should enter/exit vehicles on the passenger side to allow cars to safely pass on the driver’s side. Adults should remain in their vehicles at all times. Please follow the directions of the staff directing traffic to keep our students safe and traffic flowing.
For dismissal, please make sure to pull all the way up and around the main circle while waiting for your student to arrive. If your student requires buckling assistance or needs extra time, please park in the visitor’s lot and walk through the crosswalk to pick-up your child. Overflow traffic will be directed around the back lot. Please follow the blue traffic lines (the white lane is for passing) and await staff directions to proceed to the main entrance.
For pick-up, please make sure to have a sign with the student name, grade level, and teacher name clearly printed and displayed in the front windshield of your vehicle. Please see the diagram below for more traffic flow info.
Snack
We will be eating a snack every day. The district has expanded the snack choices for what students are allowed to bring to school for snack time. Snacks that students are allowed to bring, including all fruits and vegetables, are listed below. Please make sure your child can easily open the snack.
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- Teddy Grahams
- Pretzels
- Peanut Free Mini Muffins
- Cheez-It Crackers
- Goldfish Crackers
- Whole Grain Pop Tarts
- Whole Grain Rice Krispie Treats
- Peanut Free Mini Rice Cakes
- Animal Crackers
- Yogurt Cup, Tube, Or Squeeze Pouch
- Applesauce Cup Or Squeeze Pouch
- Welch Or Motts Fruit Snack
- Fruit Cup Or Squeeze Pouch
- String Cheese
Birthdays
Birthdays are important milestones for children and many families choose to note this event by sending items to school to share with their child's classmates. Parents may recognize birthdays at school in ways that do not involve food items. Some examples include providing non-edible goodie bags filled with trinkets for the class such as pencils, erasers, stickers, etc. Another idea is purchasing a gift for the classroom that your child can unwrap in front of the class (such as puzzles, books, card games, or a board game) that we can enjoy during inside recess and Fun Friday. Birthday food items, such as cupcakes, will no longer be distributed at school.
- If you are throwing a birthday party for your child outside of school, please plan to mail out party invitations. Per school policy, birthday party invitations cannot be passed out at school. I appreciate your cooperation and understanding!
- Summer birthdays will be celebrated at the end of the year and a reminder will be sent home when that time comes.
Lunch
If your child would like to eat the school provided lunch, please make sure they can express that to me on the days that they want it. They can choose to eat lunch from school each day, or they can bring a lunch from home. They can also choose milk only, if they would like a milk with their lunch from home. Again, please practice this with your child so that they know if they need a lunch from school, or a milk with their from home lunch.
Please make sure that if your child brings a lunch from home, that it is in a lunch box or bag marked with their first and last name. It is also helpful to go over lunch versus snack with your child. Many students think that their snack is their lunch. Please make sure your child knows the difference between them. Thank you for your help with this!
The lunch menu(s) each month can be found on the Hillcrest website under --> Families --> Lunch Menu/Account. Or here, via the following URL
You can add funds to your child’s lunch account if you would like them to receive the hot lunch from school. Money should be placed on their lunch card before a meal can be purchased. Parents/Guardians can make a credit card payment through their student’s account at the following link below.
http://PowerSchool.Antioch34.com/public/
Deposits can also be made by cash/check to the schools. Money can be sent in an envelope in your child’s take home folder. Please print your child’s first and last name with my name on the envelope. A student with a negative balance of -$15.00 may be unable to charge any lunch or milk on their account. Printed notifications and emails are sent home weekly for low or negative lunch balances.
Lunch Costs
Lunch (includes milk) $2.95
Milk Only $0.35
Reduced Lunch (includes milk) $0.40
Applications for free and reduced lunch are available in the school office or on the home page of the Hillcrest website.
https://il02211918.schoolwires.net/hillcrest
Eligibility for free and reduced benefits must be established each school year by filling out an income eligibility application and fee waiver form. If you ever have questions about your student’s lunch account, please contact our cashier at 847-838-8275.
Take Home Folders
Your child’s Take Home Folder serves as an important link between home and school. In the folder you will find announcements, completed work, etc. It is your child’s responsibility to bring the folder home and back to school the next day. There may be some nights your child will not have any papers to bring home, but we want to keep your child in the routine of bringing the folder home and returning it to school each day. Please take the time to review the contents of the folder with your child each day. This daily routine can serve as a springboard for discussions about your child’s day at school.
Behavioral Procedures
Positive Behavior Interventions and Support
District 34 has adopted Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS) as the framework for implementing a culture of self-regulation conducive to learning.
Research shows us that positive reinforcement is one of the best ways to not only change problematic, or unexpected behavior, but also to encourage and maintain expected behavior.
We will be using a digital PBIS Rewards app that recognizes students for being safe, respectful, and responsible. Students earn points and can redeem points for different rewards.
Specials
P.E. - Our class has PE every day. It is recommended that your child keep a pair of gym shoes at school to wear for P.E.
S.T.E.M. Project Lead the Way (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math PLTW) - Students go to STEM/PLTW 2 times per week.
Music - Students go to music 2 times per week.
Art - Students go to art once per week.
Newsletters
In an effort to ‘go green’, the district is putting lunch menus, flyers, and notices on the district website. I will be doing the same with our classroom newsletter. The newsletter will be posted each Friday (subject to change) on my webpage under “Classroom News”. In the newsletter, you will find events that took place during the week, things we are working on, and upcoming events. Please make sure to check this weekly. If you do not have internet access and are unable to view the newsletter, please let me know and I can send home a paper copy for you. You may also receive an email, text, or phone call “blast” from the school or district when there is important information to review.
Grading Symbols
The following are the symbols you will most often see on your child’s work:
* A star, sticker, or stamp indicates that the assignment is complete and everything is correct.
If there are a few items incorrect on an assignment, I make a smiley face. This means the student is on the right track but has not yet totally mastered the concept.
“Please Finish/Fix and Return” Please help your child to finish or fix any pages where many items are missing or incorrect.
Book Clubs
Scholastic Book Clubs provide a great opportunity for you to order wonderful books to read with your child at home. In addition, our classroom earns bonus points for each book ordered. Bonus points are used to order additional reading materials and resources for our classroom. If you would like to place an order, please be sure to write your child’s name on the order form and send it with a check (no cash) made payable to Scholastic Book Clubs in a clearly labeled envelope. You may also place orders online at www.scholastic.com/bookclubs. You will need to enter an activation code (J3JKQ) to order online. Ordering online is completely safe and easy.
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me by phone (847) 838-8018 or email dobrochta@antioch34.com. I am looking forward to a fun and successful school year!
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