A Message from the Principal
Today, your children will be bringing home their Fannie May Candy fundraiser packet. All of the information you need is inside the envelope. Our goal, as a school, is for each family to sell a minimum of 10 boxes.  All candy will be delivered before the Thanksgiving holiday, so that is a great selling point. They make great hostess gifts! Thank you for your support, and I welcome any feedback you have about this new fundraising opportunity.
Please put February 10, 2018 on your calendar! Save the date for our FUNdraiser Auction, a wonderful evening with fellow school and congregation members. If you are interested in serving on the Auction committee, please let me know as soon as possible.
Our school depends on you! Thanks again for your support!


In His Name,
Teri Lyn Mannes, Principal

Eagles in Action
Sixth Grade Eagles in Action Project

During the month of October, sixth graders are collecting stocking stuffers for service members in harm’s way during Christmas. Last year, students brought enough individual stocking stuffers to chapel to fill three boxes. This year, our sewing club members have created stockings that need filling.  Please bring the items listed below to school. Stockings will be distributed to each classroom for filling. When one is filled, bring it to chapel as you would your regular chapel donations. Sixth graders will bring your offerings and donations to Operation Support Our Troops (OSOT) – America, Inc. on October 26, where they will volunteer their time stuffing more stockings for United States Service Members. Items needed most include the following:

* Fruit Snacks / Fruit Rollups (Individual Packs)
*Chocolate Candy Bars / Tootsie Rolls
*Trail Mix (Individual Packs)
*Granola Bars / Rice Krispie Bars
Individual Packs of Cookies
*Starlight Mints, Lifesavers Candies, and Gum
*Licorice / Twizzlers (Individually Wrapped)
*Unbreakable handmade Christmas Ornaments
*Hot Chocolate Packets
*Mechanical Pencils / Pens

Thank you for your support!
3 rd Grade Eagles in Action 2017
3rd Grade will be serving at Feed My Starving Children in Aurora at the end of September. We are going to pack meals to help hungry children in the world who are desperate for healthy food supplemented with vitamins and prayers to help them grow. In addition, we want to serve people in need here in our area. So, we will be using our chapel offerings for the LaGrange Area Food Pantry which helps families with food items, and non-food items like toothpaste, shampoo, soap, deodorant, toilet paper. Throughout the school year, 3 rd grade will purchase items from our chapel offerings collected in September to donate to the food pantry. There will be a collection bin located in the church narthex throughout the year if you would like to donate outside of the month of September. We hope to build a relationship with the food pantry and serve God and people’s needs throughout the school year. Thank you for helping us serve God with your offerings!

Announcements
Student Council
 We are pleased to announce the Student Council members for the first semester of this school year. Brian Dahlstrand and Greta Sandman from sixth grade, Victor Skrobacz and Angie Tornabene from seventh grade, and Maddie Radtke and Joshua Tolefree from eighth grade were elected by their classmates to be representatives and leaders at St. John's. They meet every other week at lunchtime with the faculty representatives, Mrs. Hull and Mrs. Kunz, to come up with ideas for activities and ways to make things even better at school. Their first order of business is planning activities for Red Ribbon Week in October. Victor, Maddie, and Joshua attended a pizza lunch at L.T. last week in order to meet with students from other schools and get ideas for Red Ribbon Week.
Please do not combine payments for different meals (i.e. hot lunch and pizza) and/or activities (i.e. Hot Shots, Art Studio, Extended Care, etc.) into a single check or envelope. Several different people are responsible for these and the money goes to different accounts.
Thank you!
We congratulate the following students for earning Accelerated Reader Certificates:

Ready 1: Grayson Beck, Caidon Spalla
Ready 5: Quinn Hogan
Independent 1: Christ Anisi
Rising 1: Jackson Croasdale
Rising 2: Nigel Pakula

Keep up the good work!
MAP testing will take place at St. John’s during the weeks of
September 18 and September 25

What is MAP testing?
MAP = M easures of A cademic P rogress.
·  This is a series of tests that our students take on the computer that measure each child's academic growth within the year, and from year to year, in the areas of mathematics, reading, and language usage. At St. John’s these tests are administered to all children in Kindergarten through 8 th grade three times a year: fall (Sept.), winter (Jan.), and spring (April).
·  When taking the MAP test, the difficulty of each question is based on how well a student answers all the previous questions. As the student answers correctly, questions become more difficult. If the student answers incorrectly, the questions become easier. Although the tests are not timed, it usually takes students about one hour to complete each test. Students will repeat the tests two more times during the year in order to continually assess their progress and adapt learning as needed.
·  MAP test results are important to our school because they let teachers know where a student's strengths are and if help is needed in any specific areas. Teachers use this information to help them guide instruction in the classroom.
 
How can you help your child prepare for MAP testing?
·  Make sure that your child is well-rested on school days, especially the day of the test. Children who are tired are less able to pay attention in class or to handle the demands of a test.
·  Give your child a well-rounded diet. A healthy body leads to a healthy, active mind.
·  Provide books and magazines for your child to read at home. By reading new material, a child learns new words that might appear on a test. Ask your child's teacher for a suggested outside reading list.
 
If you would like more information about MAP testing, talk with your child's teacher or go directly to the NWEA website at
 
Timothy Botts Assembly
  St. John's Lutheran School is excited to host Timothy Botts, noted Christian calligrapher, to lead a schoolwide assembly on Thursday, Oct. 5. We would like to invite any adultsto join us. Tim will be creating a piece of artwork based on our school theme: "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever." The program will begin at 8:20 in the gym and will last about 45 minutes. Anyone who has seen Tim work knows that his faith is displayed through his amazing God given talent.
Save the Date!
Saturday, October 28, 12:00-1:30pm in the St. John’s Parking lot

                                                                                                    
PTO News
Tired of packing lunches every day?
We are in our 3 rd week of Smart Lunches service here at St. John’s! Feedback from parents and kids has been very positive. Most kids have liked the food and parents have enjoyed the convenience. As a reminder for those of you who haven’t yet given it a try: you can order delicious, nourishing lunches to be delivered directly to your child at St John’s Monday through Thursday. You can order lunches every day, twice a week, once a week, sporadically or just one time, to give it a try. The more lunches you sign up for, the lower the price per lunch. 
What they deliver:
  • Rotating menu with a variety of hot and cold meals;
  • Nutrition kids need with healthy sides, no high-fructose corn syrup, and organic pasta daily;
  • Worry-free service: they get it right, and your kids love their lunches, or it’s on Smart Lunches!
It’s easy to order lunches:
  1. You create an account and customize lunches at www.smartlunches.com.
  2. Smart Lunches prepares the lunches & delivers them to St John’s in temperature-controlled packaging.
  3. Your child gets a tasty lunch!
WIN A FREE MONTH OF LUNCHES!
Each week that you have a lunch delivery scheduled, you will be automatically entered to win a free month of lunches! There’s a new drawing every week! Promotion ends Oct. 1st, 2017. View contest rules at http://try.smartlunches.com/sweep .
Order lunches now at www.smartlunches.com , or view the upcoming calendar menu at http://try.smartlunches.com/calendar !
Questions? Contact Debbie Cloutier: bankerref@comcast.net, (630)321-0427 (hm), or (630-888-4188 (text). Or contact Smart Lunches Customer Service: (888)257-6278 or info@smartlunches.com.

Wild West Book Fair: Saddle Up and Read!
“Readers are wanted and adventure awaits in books galore!”
The Scholastic Book Fair will be open October 16 th and 17 th
Volunteers needed!  Volunteers are needed to help set-up, take down and staff the Book Fair and Family Reading Night. Most volunteer shifts are scheduled in 1 hour increments, so feel free to volunteer for as many (or as few) hours as you’d like!
Special volunteer need : Dinner Coordinator for Family Reading Night! Contact Debbie for info
High school volunteer needed : Do you know a high schooler who needs community service hours? We need someone to be “Clifford the Big Red Dog” for 1 - 1½ hours during Family Reading Night. Costume provided - no talking required - anonymity (virtually) guaranteed!
Questions? Need more information?
Contact Debbie Cloutier (bankerref@comcast.net or 630-321-0427).

Sign up to help with the Book Fair on the Scholastic website: https://volunteer.scholastic.com/#/signup/oZTtl468k
Are you a book lover? Read on…
Share your love of reading with our kids! St. John’s needs a new Book Fair coordinator to take over next year. The easiest way to learn what’s involved would be to work with this year’s Book Fair coordinator on our Wild West Book Fair in October! While our Scholastic Book Fairs are technically PTO fundraisers, they are mostly about getting books into our kids’ hands and getting them excited about reading! To find out more, please contact Debbie: bankerref@comcast.net, 630-888-4188(text) or 630-321-0427(home).
Box Tops Competition is Back!

We are off to a late start, but the quarterly competition between all the classes is beginning again. Each classroom has their own special Box Tops container for collections. At the end of each quarter, the class with the highest percentage wins a special treat. This is a simple way to help out our school and let the kids have a bit of fun in the process. The first completion ends on October 27 th .

For more information on Box Tops, including a list of participating products, go to  BTFE.com . Be sure to sign up as a member (it’s free!) so you can check out our school’s earnings details and get access to coupons and bonus offers.
Hot Shots Sports

The first session of Hot Shots starts on October 5 th and will run for the next 4 Thursdays. This session is for preschool through 1 st grades. There was a discrepancy on the Hot Shots website with the correct grades, but hopefully it will be corrected soon, if it hasn’t already. Registration forms have gone home for the appropriate grades; they will also be available on the school website as well. For more information, visit www.chicago.hotshots4kids.com
By request…
Mixed Bag Designs fundraising “pre-sale”

Next March, the PTO will be hosting a catalog fundraiser through Mixed Bag Designs. The PTO will earn 50% of all orders during that fundraiser. Our Mixed Bags representative was at Parent Information Night, along with a wide assortment of samples of available products. Products include reusable storage, shopping bags, lunch bags, iPhone cases, and travel bags along with dozens of other options to help you “live green.” A number of people asked if it was possible to purchase items before March, while still supporting our school. The answer is “YES!” and here’s how…
It’s easy to support us – just shop online!
  • Go to www.mixedbagdesigns.com/?fundraiserid=57322
  • Make sure our ID 57322 is entered at the top of the website before shopping.
  • We receive 40% of every online purchase!
  • Orders ship directly to anyone in the USA. Orders may be subject to tax/shipping.
  • Shipping is FREE on orders $75 and up!
Questions? Contact: Debbie Cloutier (630) 321-0247; bankerref@comcast.net
Calendar
Week of September 25, 2017
Fall MAP Testing

Monday. Sep 25 Trip Orders Due
  • 3:30 PM So Kids, Sew!
  • 4:00 PM Girls Varsity Volleyball Game HOME - Trinity, Burr Ridge
  • 5:00 PM Boys Varsity Volleyball Game HOME - Trinity, Burr Ridge

Tuesday, Sep 26

Wednesday, Sep 27

Thursday. Sep 28

Friday, Sep 29 PICTURE DAY
  • 4:00 PM Girls Varsity Volleyball Practice

Saturday, Sep 30
  • Walther Girls Volleyball Tournament

Sunday, Oct 1


Week of October 2, 2017

Monday. Oct 2 Trip Orders Due
  • 3:30 PM So Kids, Sew!
  • 3:30 PM Cross Country Meet - St. Peter, Schaumburg

Tuesday, Oct 3

Wednesday, Oct 4

Thursday. Oct 5

Friday, Oct 6 NO SCHOOL

Saturday, Oct 7 No Activities Planned

Sunday, Oct 8

Monday, Oct 9 NO SCHOOL - COLUMBUS DAY


Want to see more calendar information? View the school and church calendar on our website HERE :
708-354-1690
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