To Irving Parents and Guardians

Old Man Winter has returned to Oak Park and this week promises to be cold and sunny. Lunchtime recess will continue to be outside this week, so please be sure to dress your children appropriately for the weather with gloves, hats and warm coats. Snow pants and boots are optional since snow is not in the forecast. We will continue to assess weather conditions daily to determine if weather is suitable for safe outdoor play.

John Hodge
Irving School Principal

Emilie Creehan
Irving School Student Support Specialist

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Jamie Peterson-Strokosch,RN, BSN
School Nurse for Washington Irving Elementary School
Oak Park School District 97

Dear Irving Community,

I hope the New Year is off to a good start for all of you, and the transition back to the school routine has been smooth for you and your children.

I am writing to provide you with an update about the plans and activities we are undertaking here at Irving to ensure that we are as prepared as possible for any situation that would necessitate a lock down of our building. On Wednesday, December 19, our staff reviewed our lock down procedures and conducted a practice drill after school without the children present; and tomorrow all of our students and staff will participate in a drill that will be attended by our Resident Beat Officer John Rumoro.

We included information about the drill in this morning’s announcements, and plan to do so again tomorrow. I will also spend time tomorrow reviewing the step-by-step instructions for the drill. Please be assured that we will not discuss the events from Newtown, CT with our students; and have made sure everyone understands that the sole focus of our efforts is to keep Irving safe.

I wanted to let you know about the drill in the event that you want to talk about it with your children, or hear about it from them either today or tomorrow.

Please contact me if have any questions or concerns.  Thank you for your time, attention and continued support of our school.

Regards,

John Hodge
Principal

I am sure many of you are aware of the rise in the number of cases of confirmed influenza and “flu-like illness” in the Chicagoland area. Fortunately, the rates of abseentism at Irving have remained low at this point in the year. However, flu season is predicted to be longer and more severe this year, reaching its peak in January and February. In the interest of keeping our children, families and staff healthy, I wanted to post some friendly reminders from the CDC in preventing and containing influenza.
Symptoms of the flu are: 

• Fever or feeling feverish/chills ( some cases of flu can be present without fever)
• Cough
• Sore throat
• Runny or stuffy nose
• Muscle or body aches
• Headaches
• Fatigue (tiredness)
• Some people may have vomiting and diarrhea, though this is more common in children than adults.

Prevention:

• CDC recommends a yearly flu vaccine as the first and most important step in protecting against flu viruses.
• Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze. Throw the tissue in the trash after you use it.
• Wash your hands often with soap and water. If soap and water are not available, use an alcohol-based hand rub.
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth. Germs spread this way.
• Try to avoid close contact with sick people.
• If you are sick with flu-like illness, CDC recommends that you stay home for at least 24 hours after your fever is gone except to get medical care or for other necessities. (Your fever should be gone without the use of a fever-reducing medicine.) Flu is highly contagious! Symptoms start 1 to 4 days after the virus enters the body. That means that you can pass the flu on to someone else before you know you are sick, as well as while you are sick.
• While sick, limit contact with others as much as possible to keep from infecting them.
• Maintain healthy sleep habits and include highly nutritious foods in your diet to boost your body’s own immunity.

If you are calling your child in sick, please inform Mrs.Johnson or myself of the reason for the absence so that rates of infection can be monitored. This information will be kept confidential. Wishing you the best in health during this season of contagion! Feel free to call me with any questions or concerns at 708-524-3089.

Nurse Jamie
—
Jamie Peterson-Strokosch,RN, BSN
School Nurse for Washington Irving Elementary School
Oak Park School District 97

December 16, 2012

Dear Irving Community,

I am sure that the events of Friday in Connecticut have weighed heavily on all of us over the past few days.  As Dr. Roberts indicated in the communication he sent out on Friday afternoon, the teachers, support staff and I will be working to assure that your children continue to feel safe and secure at Irving School.

Below are considerations and measures that will be in place when your children arrive to school on Monday, December 17th.

• The age range of our children (from age 5-12 years old) indicates that parents, teachers, social workers and school psychologists engage in developmentally appropriate conversations to reassure students that they are safe at Irving.

• Students will come to school on Monday with a wide range of thoughts and worries (from none to very anxious) stemming from how they came to know about this tragedy and how they’ve been able to process these events since Friday

• Teachers will take stock of the opening of the school day with an eye on continuing ‘business as usual,’ but they will be prepared to talk about the ways we work together to maintain a safe environment each and every day.

• While classroom conversations will remain about how we keep the Irving environment safe, a social worker and school psychologist will be available to talk with students privately or in small groups if they are worried or showing signs of distress, as well as for those students who are in need of processing this tragedy

• Like previous lock-down drills, we will prepare for a ‘staff only’ drill after students are dismissed early on Dec. 19, and schedule a whole school lock-down drill soon with the assistance of the OP Police

I am including with this letter a link from the National Association of School Psychologists that I found helpful for parents and staff to have as a reference for helping children cope with violent acts. http://www.nasponline.org/resources/crisis_safety/talkingviolence.pdf

If you would like to speak directly to me or one of the district’s social workers or psychologists, please call the school office at 708.524.3090 or email me directly at jhodge@op97.org .

Working with you, our goal is to assure each and every student that they can continue to learn  in a safe environment at school.

Sincerely,

John Hodge

Principal