Important Dates March 1 – Half Day AM only -

PM Teacher In-Service

March 4 – Pulaski Day – No School

March 5-15 – ISAT Testing

(3rd & 4th grade)

March 6 – Bookmobile (1-3 gr.)

March 8 – ITSCO Hot Lunch Day

March 13 – Bookmobile (4th gr.)

March 13 – BOE 7 pm Admin. Cntr.

March 14 – ITSCO Meeting

March 17 – Happy St. Patrick’s Day

March 16 – Artworks @ LWE

March 20 – Bookmobile (1-3 gr.)

March 20 – Fourth Quarter Begins

March 21 – Bubble Wonders

Assembly

March 21 – Choir Concert LWN

March 21 – Hearing & Vision

Screenings

March 22 – ITSCO Treat Day

March 22 – Hearing & Vision

Screenings

March 24 – Dancing with the

Teachers

March 26 – Market Day pick-up

March 27 – Bookmobile (4th gr.)

March 27 – BOE 7 pm AH

March 28 – Report Cards Issued

March 28 – Hearing & Vision

Screenings

March 29-April 7 – Spring Break

April 8 – Classes Resume

Indian Trail School

Home of the Trailblazers 20912 S. Frankfort Square Rd.

Frankfort, IL 60423

815-469-6993 phone

815-806-8352 fax

www.summithill.org

Reminders:

Office Hours are 8:35 a.m.-3:50 p.m.

Attendance Hours Are 9:00 a.m.-3:30 p.m.

Please report your child’s absence by 9:10 AM the day of the absence

Please remember to send a lunch with your child daily. Be sure the

lunch is labeled with the child’s name.

If a lunch is forgotten, parents may drop off a lunch on the cart in

the vestibule outside the office (by 11:30, please!). Please have the

child’s name and teacher’s name clearly labeled.

Campbell’s Soup Labels, BoxTops for Education, and Capri sun pouches

are collected to benefit our school. Please send them to school in a

baggie with your child’s name and teacher’s name

If you shop at Target with a Target card, you can elect to have

Indian Trail receive a percentage donation when you shop. Info is

available online or at your local Target Store.

Please maintain regular communication with our teachers.

Frankfort Square Road in front of the school is a designated no

parking zone- please use the 78th Avenue Lot or North Lot for pick-up

and drop-off.

Trailblazer Trib.

March 2013 Edition

We certainly had a productive and fun-filled February at Indian Trail! It always makes me proud to see the kids and staff in action learning and growing in the classroom as well as participating in special events. February is the last “ISAT-prep push” before we get into the testing swing next week. Students and teachers work on review of skills in math, reading, and science for the final ISAT prep. This whole year has been a bit different, however, since we have more emphasis on Common Core State Standards than the older Illinois Learning Standards that ISAT is primarily based upon. In previous communications, I also mentioned that ISAT cut scores are being raised (kind of like raising the grading scale in the middle of the school year) and that Common Core is being partially assessed in ISAT’s this year. (please see the “Changes to State Testing” article for more details). The district has been working diligently in preparing for the Common Core/PARCC assessment, and I am very proud of Indian Trail teachers’ excellent efforts in shifting instructional focus on the Common Core. The kids’ efforts on Common Core-focused activities were showcased at the February 27 School Board meeting (the kids and teachers were awesome ). On the fun side, students and staff enjoyed our annual February activities. Jump Rope for Heart during Valentine’s Week was a great success, as always. The students and staff also thoroughly enjoyed Winter Carnival on the 22nd. Thank you SO much to our parent volunteers for providing Winter Carnival and your assistance with hosting the Feb. 27th board meeting.

-Mr. Pierson

First Grade at Indian Trail School

Hooray for the 100th Day of School!!!

Yippee!!! On Friday, February 1, 2013, the first grade students and staff at Indian Trail School had an exciting

time celebrating the 100th day of school. To prepare for this special day, students learned important facts and

skills pertaining to 100. On the 100th day of school students were engaged in a variety of cross-curricular

activities. Some activities included reading books related to the 100th day theme, reading and writing 100 words,

creating a dog with 100 spots, counting to 100 by 2s, 5s, and 10s, and designing festive headbands. What a fun

time we had celebrating!

Second Grade News

Second Grade students at Indian Trail are digging into common core just like true paleontologist!! As we continue

to work on common core throughout the curriculum second graders were able to use their common core standards

to create dinosaur projects. Students were assigned a dinosaur and had to research their dinosaur and present

their new information to their fellow classmates! Students learned many facts about dinosaurs for example

students learned that a Giganotosaurus brain is the same size as a banana!! Students also learned that an

Apatosaurus is as large as two semi-trucks put together!! Overall students were able to utilize their common core

standards through the Science curriculum!

Third Grade Writing Detectives

Third grade students have been working on expository writing using their detective skills to find evidence.

Students were given two sources of text to read on the same topic, and they were asked to answer the expository

writing prompt citing evidence from the two sources. Lessons were modeled by the teachers first, and writing

activities with two sources were done as whole group activities second. Finally, students were writing using two

sources of text; they are amazing.

Fourth Grade News

This year has been an exciting year as fourth grade students. We have been adventuring into the world of

history for our social studies curriculum. Since the beginning of the school year, the students have been learning

about the Westward Expansion of the United States beginning in the early 1800’s. Throughout the curriculum, the

students have learned about Lewis and Clark, the Louisiana Purchase, the Missouri Compromise, Trail of Tears, and

the Oregon Trail, just to name a few. Also, the students read the novel, “Joshua’s Diary” which tells the struggles

and hardships of moving from Missouri to Oregon on the Oregon Trail through the eyes of a young boy. The

students have completed many activities to show their understanding of the novel, such as acrostic poems,

possession chests, quilts, and having the ability to choose any activity from a “choice menu.” Our fourth graders

have had interesting and in depth conversations in their classrooms about how life was as a 9-10 year old during the

late 1800’s. They realize how their lives would be different today without the struggles and hardships of our

ancestors. For our next adventure in history, the fourth grade students will be learning about the causes and

events of the Civil War.

ISAT’s are Coming

Each year, school systems across the country administer state-

required tests to assess pupil performance and to identify areas

of strength and need in instructional programs. Indian Trail will

conduct its annual testing during the state-mandated windows of March 5-15.

During this time, students in third and fourth grade will take the Illinois Standards Achievement Test. Third

graders will be tested on Reading and Math, while fourth graders will be test in Reading, Science and Math. The

results of these tests are given to the parents when the district receives the testing data.

Children respond best to a testing situation when they are calm, relaxed, and well-rested. For these reasons, we

ask you to ensure that your child:

Attends school during the testing period.

Goes to sleep at a reasonable hour.

Has a nutritious breakfast every morning.

Has two or more #2 pencils.

Knows that you have confidence in his/her ability.

Asks the teacher questions if he/she doesn’t understand the test directions.

Doesn’t worry about the test, but puts forth his/her best efforts.

Please contact your child’s teacher or Mr. Pierson if you would like additional information about the tests.

Heart Hero Week at Indian Trail

School

Indian Trail students participate in another successful Heart Hero Week. Heart Hero Week, which ran

from February 11th through the 14th, promotes healthy living and teach the importance of daily physical activity

while making smart choices and helping others.

Students, with the guidance of the Heart Hero Week sponsors Mr. Jacobi, Mr. Schereck and Nurse

Dankovich, participated in many heart healthy events. During PE classes students raised money for The American

Heart Association by participating in Jump Rope for Heart. Students pledged to make healthy food choices and

signed a pledge to eat healthier and also “got caught eating healthy” during their lunch periods. Students that were

caught eating healthy received a raffle ticket and a boy and girl from each grade won a fun heart worthy prize!

Students also took time to honor their own personal Heart Hero. Students made hearts for a special person in

their live that was affected by heart disease or stroke and hung those hearts on Indian Trail’s Heart Hero wall.

The top fundraisers were Andrew Maciejewski, Autumn Potaczek Gino Petrizzi, Logen Sorensen, Ryan

Schimke and the highest class participation goes to Mrs. Drop’s first grade class.

Special Visitor to Indian Trail Library

Indian Trail School had a visit from the Frankfort Public Library, this month. Children's librarians Sandy Andersen

and Rachel Cuzzo had a book talk with the students during their library classes. Students heard several book

summaries. They also received bookmarks with the titles of the books on them. Students were encouraged to visit

the Public Library, and check out the books .

Thank you to all the SCO officers and volunteers

that planned, set-up and ran the winter carnival. Fun was

had by all!

Winter Carnival

PE Newsworthy

The students just finished up on their jump roping skills. There were eight colored levels with around thirty-eight

different skills they chose to try and master. Along with individual ropes there were long ropes and partner ropes

too. As you can see from the pictures, they have been working really hard on perfecting their skills. Also, don’t

forget about the Raging Waves and Commit to be Fit programs where your child can earn prizes just for

participating.

First Grade Presenters

Second Grade Presenters

Third Grade Presenters

Board of Education Meeting

Indian Trail School

Wednesday, February 27, 2013

PBIS Student Ambassadors

Our PBIS student ambassadors have been quite helpful during our monthly lunch discussions! They have given us a

student perspective on ways to strengthen PBIS here at Indian Trail, while demonstrating our expectations of

being respectful, responsible, and safe!

Changes to State Testing The need to prepare our students for advanced schooling has led Illinois schools, including our building,

to start implementing the Common Core State Standards. These new standards outline the skills and content our students must master in Math and English Language Arts at each grade level to continue on the path to college and career readiness.

These higher and clearer standards require changes in what we teach and how we teach it. Your child will also be required to learn in different ways.

Therefore, the performance levels of the Illinois Standards Achievement Test (ISAT), an exam that measures success in meeting the state standards, must be changed accordingly.

The state has determined that the expectations in the current state standards for our students in grades 3-8 are too low and do not give an accurate picture of a student’s ability to succeed in college and the workforce. Therefore, the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) is raising the bar on the ISAT performance expectations in Math and English Language Arts for elementary and middle school students.

These higher expectations will cause the number of students who meet and exceed standards to drop significantly. Some students who previously met or exceeded standards will instead show the need for improvement. However, these new expectations do not mean that our students know less than they did before or are less capable than they were in previous years. Instead, ISBE is simply expecting more of students going forward to show their progress toward college and career-readiness targets.

As we receive the results of the revised statewide tests, our staff will be able to provide the appropriate support and help for your student based on the new learning standards at an earlier point in their schooling. The new expectations also pave the way for the state to replace the ISAT tests in Math and English Language Arts with the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) exams. The PARCC exams will line up with the Common Core State Standards and provide better information about students’ abilities to master the appropriate skills and content for college and careers. Unlike the ISAT, which is given once a year, the PARCC tests will be given more than once during the school year. We believe the exam will give us a more detailed picture of students’ strengths and areas that need improvement. The new PARCC tests are scheduled to begin in the 2014-2015 school year.

Later this year, the state will provide us with information regarding how our students’ 2012 ISAT scores compare to what is expected under the new performance levels. The ISAT data collected this spring on the 2013 ISAT tests will be analyzed using the new expectations and released in the fall.

Though more difficult, these higher standards will better position students to tackle the challenges of college and careers. With these new tools and standards – and with your help – we are confident that our students will rise to the occasion.

Please do not hesitate to contact your child’s teacher or Mr. Pierson with any questions and concerns. We are prepared to help all students and parents understand what is expected and what help is available to meet those expectations.

Dancing With The Teachers- March 24th

Support Rockin’ Renardo at Indian Trail!

The Summit Hill Education Foundation (SHEF) has been supporting our district’s curricular and

instructional efforts for several years now, but you may not be aware of the specific support

they have given Indian Trail School. Below are examples of some of the grants awarded to

staff members at Indian Trail that benefit Indian Trail students:

First Grade

4 Listening Centers which included a set of 6 headphones and a CD player

Second Grade

Flat Stanley classroom sets of books

Third Grade

Hands-on Math Manipulatives

Fourth Grade

6 sets of Novels (30 / set)

Hands-On Math Manipulatives

Tech in Classroom- Quizdom

Hands-On Science (microscopes, simple machines, anatomy models)

Specialists

Reading: Comprehension Resources, Beat the Clock sight word practice (gr. 1), Extreme Reading Comprehension

Practice (gr. 3-4)

ELL: 18 sets of leveled readers Social Studies

Resource/Speech/Soc Wkr: Indoor/Outdoor games concentrating on social skills

Technology: 24 ELMO document cameras

Please attend Dancing with the Teachers-Season Three

and support Mr. Renardo!

Sunday, March 24, 2013--Lincoln-Way North Gym

Doors open at 1:15pm - dance competition begins 2:00pm

$10 per person or $15 per person at the door

(children 3 and under free)

Cash or check only accepted at event - no credit cards

Mr. Renardo’s Promotional Video:

http://www.easywebvideo.com/video.php?v=5d103565

SHEF Website:

http://www.summithill.org/resources/district_foundation.html