Barrington Middle School
Prairie Campus

Principal Update
November 2009

As you know, the first quarter of the school year is now behind us and we are moving quickly toward winter break. We have had a good start to the school year and for the most part students and staff have settled back into their routine for "doing school." I hope that your family is also experiencing a good start to the year.

ISAT Results.  Prairie Campus was recently recognized as one of the top middle schools in Illinois for our 2009 ISAT scores. As you can see, our students preformed very well on the ISAT. We are continuing to study the work of Grant Wiggins, Understanding by Design, (UbD) which provides an effective curriculum design framework (backward curricula design with focus on big ideas and essential questions for the purpose of student understanding)and Richard DuFour, Professional Learning Community (primary tenants: collaborative culture, guaranteed curriculum, common assessment for learning). The following chart from the IIRC reflects our 7-year ISAT performance trend.

Social Emotional Learning (SEL). As many of you know, the “schooling years” are, or should be, a wonderful time in the lives of students. Although most students enjoy a wonderful school experience, this may not be the case for all students. Prairie Campus has a number of supports to help students and families. If your child is experiencing difficulties of any sort, I would encourage you to access our professional support staff. Our counselors, Jenny Godinez-6th Grade, Laurie Ihde-7th Grade, and Kathy Moony 8th Grade, can assist you and discuss the various supports available to students at BMS –Prairie.  We also have a full time social worker, Brian Turcotte, and a school psychologist, Lynn Cobb.  Remember that it is important to talk with your children daily to see how they are doing.  In most cases kids are doing well, however if you determine that there may be frustration or concerns linked to school or effecting performance in school, please allow us to assist if appropriate. In additional to professional support systems, we provide academic supports such as  academic tutorial programs, after-school space and supervision in the Media Center for students to complete homework and utilize computers, at risk support programs, and numerous counseling programs, just to name a few. So, if you are interested or have questions, please feel free to contact Ms. Jodi Megerle who supervises our student support programs.

Thanks to the many parents who attended our Fall Conferences.  We are always delighted to have parents in the building.  We had over 425 parents attend our fall conferences this year.  The feed back from parents related to the arena format was extremely positive. I have spoken to the staff regarding teacher’s conferences and they were very pleased with their meetings and conversations with parents. 

The PTO Fall Fund Raiser is underway.  In fact, you should have received your “No Stress Fund Raiser” letter in the mail.  Once again, I have asked the PTO to support the purchase of classroom technology with the bulk of the money that we raise. Last year, we were able to purchase and install 20 SMART Boards. Our goal is to add an additional 5 to 6 Smart boards so that each regular classroom has an interactive white board. The cost of the Smart Board is roughly $1400 plus an installation cost of roughly $400.00.  I have also asked the PTO to help cover half of the purchase and installation of soundproofing windows for the media center so that we may use the space more frequently for instructional purposes.

 I appreciate your ongoing support in all areas, but particularly in the area of technology, and especially during the current status of  the U.S. economy. Speaking of technology, please utilize our Prairie web page at www.barrington220.org/prairie/ for up-to-date information.  You can find student activity information, daily announcements, school program information, and plethora of other school related information.  Our web page is kept current by Janet Woods, our webmaster…she is outstanding.

And finally, a big thanks to the PTO for providing a wonderful teacher dinner on Wednesday  and afternoon treats on Thursday at Fall Conferences.  The PTO involvement once again has contributed to the great start we have had this school year and the development of a positive school environment. 

With the Thanksgiving break just around the corner, I want to, once again, mention that I am thankful for the opportunity to work in a wonderful community filled with great families, excellent students, and a school filled with excellent staff. Thanks for all you do. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving, and a relaxing winter break.

Sincerely,
Mr. Fessler,
Principal,
BMS – Prairie Campus