
Fifth grade students were able to participate in a zoom call with Mr. Josh Wojcik. Mr. Wojcik helped to engineer the generators helping to power the Mars Rover Perseverance. The students asked great questions about engineering and the rover.

Classes resume tomorrow, Wednesday, January 6th! Please remember your student needs a mask, a water bottle & a completed self-certification form if it hasn't already been turned in!

Here is a link to the Christmas program for Grantfork Elementary.
https://youtu.be/Zss5StKAFos

Reminder - Tuesday, December 22nd is an early dismissal day! Students are dismissed at 2:35pm! Please plan accordingly!

Dismissal is at 11:05, Friday, December 4, 2020.

Today, we recognized our November VIP students. These students went the entire month of November with zero strikes! They were rewarded with a certificate and a cookie! Congratulations to all! Teagan B, Lauren B, Keagan C, Hayley C, Parker D, Isabel H, Madison H, Caitlin R, Laney S, Carly S, Gavin S, Noah W, Nellie A, Maebry E, Stella L, Nora M, Dean V, Alanna B, Joshua C, Makayla K, Rylee S, Kylee S, Morgan W, Ryan E, Eloise E, Josie K, Emma L, Mickey S, Ella S, Nevin S. Not pictured: Abigail L, Bella P, Ethan H

Each year, we challenge our students to create a disguise for Tom Turkey to keep him from being cooked for Thanksgiving! We had some great entries this year, but our top three were Parker Dressler (jailbird), Madison Hill (hunter), Ella Schwarz (Starbucks) and our overall winner was Teagan Barr (her turkey was disguised as Paco)! Great job everyone!

Good afternoon HCUSD No. 5, to access a food service announcement please use the following link: https://5il.co/m5zn

Good afternoon HCUSD No. 5, to access a food service announcement please use the following link: https://5il.co/m5zn

Today was also Custodian Appreciation Day, aka "Paco Day"! Everyone dressed like their favorite custodian - there were lots of red shirts, some overalls & jeans & the trademark red bandana! A custodian is the quiet hero of the school. Always the first to arrive each day, cleans up messes no one dares to touch & befriends everyone that passes by! Thank you to Paco for all that he does!

Cherrydale fundraiser packets are coming home today! It's easy to shop online or from the brochure! Please talk to family, friends & neighbors! All orders and money are DUE October 6th!! Checks should be made payable to Grantfork Elementary! Money will be used to update technology & for other virtual opportunities! Thanks for your continued support!

At the end of last year, our district decided to update the lockers in our classrooms. There were a few bumps, delays in shipping, but they have finally arrived. Our maintenance dept has worked very hard & our teachers & students have been incredibly flexible during the installation! We would like to extend a big thank you to all of them! They look GREAT!!

Links to each teacher's virtual open house will be sent out on Friday, August 14th. Thank your for your patience!

Just a reminder all HCUSD parents should have received an email today with infosnap codes & instructions for registration. Online registration will be open through July 22nd.
The Alhambra Primary office will be open on July 7th & 14th for anyone who needs help with registration or does not have internet access at home!
Remember, registration fees are not paid at the time of registration, you will receive an invoice on Sept 1st with a due date of Sept 30. At that time, you may pay your fees in full, or choose to set up a payment plan that works for you through Myschoolbucks.com.
Please make sure you complete the registration process by July 22nd. Only students who are registered will be enrolled in classes!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JYgJ_rM9CUs
The Grantfork Staff has a special message for our students! We miss you all, keep working hard!

Grantfork students are finding so many ways to dive deeper into their learning from home!

We want to throw a huge thank you out there to our parents, grandparents, and anyone else supporting our community. When you question if you are doing enough, remember when you do your best it is ALWAYS enough. We support you. Thank you Center School Family.
❤️Your Virtual Colleagues

Reminder .... PTO Butterbraid curbside pickup today from 3:00 to 5:30 at the Fireman's Hall in Alhambra. Please stay in your car and we will bring you your order.
The PTO raised over $3500 for our Center Schools! THANK YOU for your continuous support!

Dear Center School Families,
I hope this message finds you and your family healthy and safe.
This is not my ideal way of communicating the following message to you, but due to the current circumstances we are in I felt this was my best option. I wanted to inform you I recently accepted a Superintendent position for the 2020-2021 school year with Staunton CUSD #6.
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I have felt truly blessed to be a part of a culture and community that has allowed me to share my knowledge of education with students and help lead them to excellence. I have met amazing people while serving the Center Schools and will always be grateful our paths have crossed. I will miss my students and staff!
I want you to know I will give you nothing less than my personal best for the remainder of this school year and will continue to serve you and your students as I have always done until my time has ended here on June 30th.
I hope to see our students sooner than later. We miss them! Until we meet again, stay safe.
Sincerely,
Cindy Tolbert
Principal

PTO Butterbraid Delivery Update: Due to schools being closed, the Butterbraid delivery and pick up will be at the Fireman Hall in Alhambra located at 610 W. Main Street, Alhambra, IL 62001 on April 2nd. Delivery will be done in a drive thru process, so please be patient as we work to get everyone's items delivered to them. You can pick up your items anytime between the times of 3:00 -5:30. If you have any questions please feel free to call/text Megan Henschen at (618) 779-1010. As always, THANK YOU for supporting our Center Schools PTO!

Dear Center School Families,
As Mr. Sutton recently sent out in his last communication, the Governor of Illinois has extended the closure of all schools until Wednesday, April 8, 2020. He has also enacted a “stay at home order” in the State of Illinois encouraging all families to stay inside with the exception of the need for groceries, gas, and pharmaceutical needs. As Mr. Sutton said we all need to remain calm and follow guidelines for social distancing in order to help prevent the spread of the Coronavirus.
Our teachers will continue to engage students academically during this shutdown, so please continue to check Google Classroom, email, and other websites for continued instructions. The district will continue to send out messages through our messaging system as well as our district website as new information comes in. We ask students to continue to do the best that they can and don't hesitate to email teachers or myself with questions.
These are unprecedented times, but we are all together with the goal of caring for students. We are going to stay positive and make the best of a difficult situation. Please take the next couple of weeks and relax, stay healthy, get some fresh air and enjoy the break.
I want to thank you, parents, for your continuous support. I'm so proud of all of our kids for working so hard during this shutdown.
To Our Students …. I can’t emphasize strongly enough, PLEASE DON’T WASTE THIS MOMENT. You are in the middle of a historical event that people will talk about for years to come. This situation has the ability to give you an education that school could never adequately simulate. Hopefully, you will examine and develop an enduring appreciation for our societies interdependence, a real grasp of the relationship between personal responsibility and personal freedom, and an actual experience with how to be truly still. Continue to read a book, do art, play music and work on your learning packets. Your teachers will continue to provide resources for all of your classes that will help you stay on top of instructional material, but we highly encourage you to take time to learn about things that interest YOU!! You have a world of knowledge at your fingertips; take time to explore new topics and ideas.
On behalf of all Alhambra and Grantfork staff please know we love you guys and we want what is best for you. We miss you and hope to see you soon!
Sincerely,
Cindy Tolbert, Principal

Dear Center School Parents,
By now you probably have heard that schools are closing to prevent the spread of the Coronavirus. Our students’ learning is a second only to their health and safety. The faculty and staff are doing their best to pull together some key activities to help our students keep their skills sharp while out of school.
Our teachers will send home learning materials/packets today. If you are unable to access the online work sent home, just work through the packet of work that does not require technology with your student. We ask you to do the best you can. Students should return the completed packets as well as any books sent home with them when returning to school. Please have your student reading.
Teachers will be available for questions via email.
If your student was not in attendance today, you may pick up their materials tomorrow in the school offices between 11-3.
This is a critical time in our school year for our students’ development. Please help us prevent any backslide by making sure they continue practicing their skills. We are looking forward to having our students back in the buildings as soon as we are able.
Mrs. Cindy Tolbert, Principal
Alhambra Primary and Grantfork Elementary

The Center School PTO's Jukebox Bingo will be postponed. More details about when it will be rescheduled will be communicated with you in the upcoming weeks.

This is a friendly reminder to you that spring pictures will be taken on Thursday.

LATCHKEY CANCELED TUESDAY AND WEDNESDAY!
Due to our latchkey supervisor being ill and we being unable to find a replacement for her, we wanted to notify you that morning and afternoon latchkey will be CANCELED on Tuesday, February 18th and Wednesday, February 19th. Sorry for the inconvenience.

Reminder - there is NO SCHOOL on Monday, February 17th, in observance of President's Day! Classes resume on Tuesday!

Our January PTO meeting will be held next Thursday, January 16th at Grantfork Elementary beginning at 6:30pm! Meetings are kept to one hour or less. Please plan to attend!

Spelling Bee! Our annual Grantfork school spelling bee will take place this Friday, January 10th at 1:15pm in the gym! Parents are welcome to attend! Please do not arrive before 1pm, as there will be no one in the office to let you in!

Welcome back! Hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas break! Classes Resume tomorrow, Tuesday, January 7th!

Fifth grade students learned about physical and chemical changes by making and enjoying pancakes.

Fifth grade students learned about physical and chemical changes by making and enjoying pancakes.

Fifth grade students learned about physical and chemical changes by making and enjoying pancakes.

Fifth grade students learned about physical and chemical changes by making and enjoying pancakes.

Grantfork Elementary enjoyed a holiday concert compliments of the HHS bands.

Grantfork Elementary enjoyed a holiday concert compliments of the HHS bands.

Grantfork Elementary students welcomed special guests today that helped us learn about the events that led up to the first Thanksgiving and helped us get into the holiday spirit with Christmas carols.

Our fifth grade band students gave a remarkable performance tonight along side their Highland Elementary band mates at the fifth grade band concert.

This morning we joined Alhambra Primary to honor our communities' Veterans. Thank you to Ms. Keys and the students who worked hard to put together such a wonderful program. Happy Veterans Day!

This morning we joined Alhambra Primary to honor our communities' Veterans. Thank you to Ms. Keys and the students who worked hard to put together such a wonderful program. Happy Veterans Day!

This morning we joined Alhambra Primary to honor our communities' Veterans. Thank you to Ms. Keys and the students who worked hard to put together such a wonderful program. Happy Veterans Day!

Tomorrow, Friday, November 8th is our Veterans Day Assembly at Alhambra Primary - please remind your child to wear red, white & blue if possible!

Enjoy an evening out while your kids have fun with their teachers and friends!

Red Ribbon Week:
Tuesday is Camo Day! Wear as much camo as you can!

It's Red Ribbon Week! Mon: "being drug free is no sweat" -wear sweats! Tues: "you won't see me doing drugs" -wear camo! Wed: "team up against drugs" -wear team jersey! Thurs: "say boo to drugs" -wear boots/Halloween shirt! Fri: "ready to live a drug free life" - wear red!

Grantfork Elementary enjoyed bus evacuation drills on Wednesday. Thanks to our drivers for always getting us where we need to be and keeping us safe!

Wednesday, October 23rd is Unity Day! Students & staff are encouraged to wear Orange to show our support & unity against bullying!

1st Quarter Report Cards are coming home TODAY - look for them! Signed report cards are DUE back by Wednesday, October 23rd!

PTO Meeting Thursday, October 17th at 6:30pm at Grantfork Elementary! Please plan to attend!!

We enjoyed fire safety presentations by the Grantfork Fire Department.

We enjoyed fire safety presentations by the Grantfork Fire Department.

Our October PTO meeting will take place on Thursday, October 17th at 6:30pm at Grantfork Elementary! Please plan to attend!

No School on Monday, October 14 in observance of Columbus Day!

Grantfork Elementary has Fire Safety Day on Friday, October 11, not tomorrow!

The PTC website will open at 4pm so that you can log online & schedule your Parent Teacher Conference! It will remain open until 11pm on October17th! If you have questions please call the office at 675-2200!

Fifth grade students participated in a hands on activity focusing on the design process in science.

Ms. Barb Kay visited our fifth grade class for a meet the press discussion. The year was 1810 and the United States is dealing with a few issues. Each student represented a person from that era – such as An Illinois Farmer, Former President Jefferson, Tecumseh, A New England Shop Keeper, etc. The students discussed the problems and possible solutions, not everyone agreed and the discussion got quite lively!

Thanks to all who came out for our Happy Birthday Illinois celebration this morning! We hope to see you at Parents Night Out tonight at Alhambra Primary! Doors open at 5, and the festivities will begin at 5:30!

Grantfork Christmas Program is tonight, Thursday, December 20th. Doors open at 6:15pm, program begins at 6:30pm. Please enter & exit through the cafeteria doors! Parents should keep their students coats with them, as they won't go back to the classroom after the program ends! Hope to see you tonight!

Happy Birthday Illinois celebration will begin at 9:15 at Alhambra Primary. Doors open at 9 AM. All are welcome to attend! There will be a shuttle bus available to those people who choose to park at the Baptist church, Legion Hall or on the side streets near the school. The shuttle will begin to run at 8:45 AM. It will run until 12:00. The celebration will begin promptly at 9:15 AM.

Just a reminder that November 20th is the last day for early registration!

No school on Thursday, November 15th!

Students enjoyed our visit from the Air Elite Dunkers this morning during our VIP Assembly!

Please help me congratulate one of our very own Center school teachers, Christy Zeller, for winning the 2018 Emerson Excellence in Teaching Award. The Emerson Excellence in Teaching Awards program, sponsored by Emerson, annually recognizes more than 100 educators in the St. Louis metropolitan area – from kindergarten teachers to college professors – who are examples of excellence in their field.