Principal's Corner

The Community Speaker Series

Elm Earth Week Activities: April 21-25, 2025

• Monday: Wear Earth colors to school - blue, green, brown. Make it a Meatless Monday! Enjoy a vegetarian or vegan lunch or dinner. Watch this video about why you should go meatless.
• Tuesday is Earth Day: Take it outside for CHALK THE WALK! Draw pictures of our beautiful Earth.
• Wednesday: We love animals! Wear a shirt with an animal on it.
• Thursday: Nature Day - Wear clothing with flowers, leaves, trees, or anything that reminds you of nature!
• Friday: Feel the Elm Spirit Day! Wear RED and BLACK to show that Elm loves and supports our Earth!

Everyday next week, we are encouraging all students to bring a waste-free lunch. You can get some great ideas of what this looks like in this video. If we see students with these lunches, they will earn a special green Bowser Buck designed by our very own 5th grader, Keira Sweis! Thank you for supporting the Earth!

Other Suggested Activities for Earth Week 2025:

• Use a reusable water bottle every day

• Exercise outside

• Pick up litter in your neighborhood (wear gloves)

• Plant a tree, flower, plant, or garden

• Turn off the water while brushing your teeth

• Turn off the lights and open the blinds/curtains

• Unplug unnecessary electronics

• Visit Earthday.org for lots more ideas

Parent Input for 2025-2026 Class Lists

The planning process for the 2025-2026 school year has begun! This is a comprehensive process that we take very seriously. Many factors are considered as we develop our schedule and class lists. We collaborate with your child’s current teachers and specialists (including reading specialists, differentiation specialists, resource teachers, and staff from art, music, and PE) to create class lists that promote effective learning. We take into account your child’s academic, social, and emotional needs. Our aim is also to establish equitable classes regarding size, instructional support, gender, and more.

We welcome you, as our partners, to share your perspective on your child’s placement for the upcoming school year. Providing this information is optional. If you choose to share your input, please utilize the official form, as it is our designated method for collecting this important information. Additionally, we cannot honor requests that include the names of teachers or other students and we kindly ask that you refrain from doing so. Thank you for your cooperation! Should you wish to share your perspective, please complete the form by April 25, 2025. 

Kindergarten Registration

Spring NWEA MAP Assessment

Our Spring NWEA MAP assessment window opens on Monday, April 21st and will extend through Friday, May 2nd. Elm’s schedule is as follows:

While we realize that some absences are unavoidable, we ask that you make every effort to avoid scheduling appointments or other absences during this time to minimize the amount of instructional time missed for make-up assessments. 

Preparing for MAP:

A student who is well rested, well fed, and has a positive attitude about assessment is best prepared for testing. You can help your child do his or her best by considering these tips:

• Make sure that your child is in school and on time on test days.

• Make sure your child gets a good night’s sleep and eats a healthy breakfast before each day of testing.

• Be sure your child fully charges their device and brings it to school each day. 

• Remind your child that this assessment is only one measure. Emphasize that you have confidence in his or her ability to do the best job possible.

• Remind your child to listen to the directions and read each question carefully during testing. 

Communication of MAP Results:

Your child’s scores will be available in Skyward after administration is complete and all reports are available. We will reach out when scores are available for parents to view.

Satchel Pulse Screening Information

Elementary students and teachers will once again participate in the Satchel Pulse Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) Screener, a tool to help us monitor and improve the social-emotional skills of all our students, during the week of May 5th-9th. Teachers of students in grades K-5th will complete the screener about their students, and students in grades 3rd-5th will complete the screener about themselves.

SEL skills include developing healthy habits, managing emotions, setting and achieving goals, developing empathy for others, establishing and maintaining supportive relationships, collaborating with others, and making responsible and caring decisions. 

Satchel Pulse is a student-friendly screener with 25 simple questions. Information gained from this screener will provide our school teams with additional insight to best support our students’ social, emotional, and academic growth. Please let me know if you have any questions. 

Sign up for Elm Running Club by Monday 4/21

Students in grades K through 5th are invited to participate in Running Club with Mr. Jensen and Mr. Kolar! This morning club will be held at 8:00AM to 8:30AM twice a week starting on April 22, 2025. The sign-up form will automatically close on April 21st at 5:00PM to ensure an attendance roster for the first day. We have a 60 student maximum so it may close before the anticipated date. Click HERE for more information.

Fuller House Fundraiser - Tuesday 4/22, 4pm to close

Help fundraise for the Elm School PTO by dining out or picking up dinner at Fuller House on Tuesday, April 22nd!

Order by Wednesday 4/23 12pm for Special Lunch on Thursday 5/1

The next Special Lunch (Tropical Smoothie Cafe) is on Thursday, May 1st. Orders must be placed by 12pm on Wednesday, April 23rd. See ordering instructions HERE. 

Harvester Park Clean-up - Saturday 4/26, 2-4pm

Join the PTO's Community & Culture Committee and fellow Elm families for a park clean-up event in celebration of Earth Day. The clean-up will take place at Harvester Park in Burr Ridge on Saturday, April 26th, 2-4pm. Please sign up HERE and indicate the number of adults and children in your group. All supplies will be provided. See you there!

Mary Poppins by Hinsdale Central Drama - Thursday 4/24 - Sunday 4/27

Principal's Corner

Summer Learning Catalog

D181 Summer Learning Program: Registration is open!

In-person program at Clarendon Hills Middle School (June 9 - June 27).

Click here to view the course catalog

Click here for registration and complete program details 

The Community Speaker Series

IAR Assessment Schedule - Third, Fourth and Fifth Grade Students

This year's Elm School Illinois Assessment of Readiness theme is Good to Grow! We have some fun surprises planned for our students each day of testing! Our theme was selected to remind students that they already possess the necessary tools to succeed on this important test. It also aligns with our school focus on strengths-based feedback and student efficacy, emphasizing that growth is just as important as simply achieving high scores. We believe that every student has the ability to perform their best! 

Additionally, Elm has been selected as a pilot school this year, which means we will be administering a third ELA assessment. We are excited for our students to showcase their knowledge and skills! Below is our schedule for the upcoming IAR assessments.

Elm Earth Week Activities: April 21-25, 2025

• Monday: Wear Earth colors to school - blue, green, brown. Make it a Meatless Monday! Enjoy a vegetarian or vegan lunch or dinner. Watch this video about why you should go meatless.
• Tuesday is Earth Day: Take it outside for CHALK THE WALK! Draw pictures of our beautiful Earth.
• Wednesday: We love animals! Wear a shirt with an animal on it.
• Thursday: Nature Day - Wear clothing with flowers, leaves, trees, or anything that reminds you of nature!
• Friday: Feel the Elm Spirit Day! Wear RED and BLACK to show that Elm loves and supports our Earth!
• EVERYDAY: BRING A WASTE FREE LUNCH & WALK OR BIKE TO SCHOOL

Other Suggested Activities for Earth Week 2025:

• Use a reusable water bottle every day

• Exercise outside

• Pick up litter in your neighborhood (wear gloves)

• Plant a tree, flower, plant, or garden

• Turn off the water while brushing your teeth

• Turn off the lights and open the blinds/curtains

• Unplug unnecessary electronics

• Visit Earthday.org for lots more ideas

Parent Input for 2025-2026 Class Lists

The planning process for the 2025-2026 school year has begun! This is a comprehensive process that we take very seriously. Many factors are considered as we develop our schedule and class lists. We collaborate with your child’s current teachers and specialists (including reading specialists, differentiation specialists, resource teachers, and staff from art, music, and PE) to create class lists that promote effective learning. We take into account your child’s academic, social, and emotional needs. Our aim is also to establish equitable classes regarding size, instructional support, gender, and more.

We welcome you, as our partners, to share your perspective on your child’s placement for the upcoming school year. Providing this information is optional. If you choose to share your input, please utilize the official form, as it is our designated method for collecting this important information. Additionally, we cannot honor requests that include the names of teachers or other students and we kindly ask that you refrain from doing so. Thank you for your cooperation!

Should you wish to share your perspective, please complete the form by April 25, 2025. 

Kindergarten Registration

Fine Arts Night - Thursday 4/17, 6-7:30pm

Elm School's Fine Arts Night is on Thursday, April 17th, 6-7:30pm and will feature student artwork; PE activities; One School, One Book activities; and a choir concert.