Blog Posts

Week 32

4/25/2019

Dear Waters Community,

Welcome back to school! I hope that all of you were able to spend some time together as family during the week.

With spring in full swing, we “burned” during the break and the soil feels refreshed and is producing beautiful vegetation.The school grounds are alive with renewed energy.

It has been a pleasure to see the students enjoying the outdoors during their recess time.

Aspen has been released! There have been many inquiries regarding the new system. A FAQ has been posted on our website for your convenience. You should have received an email invite to log in to Aspen. If not, please utilize the document to guide you.

Our 8th graders are in St. Louis enjoying their trip and the southern warmer weather. Thank you for helping support our students by participating in the fundraisers. Your involvement made this trip happen!

Our 7th grade Battle of the Books team will compete in the city finals on Saturday! Congratulations and we wish you well!!

This week Tuesday was our monthly LSC meeting. Council approved our FY20 budget and our spend down for FY19. I am excited to report that we will be purchasing an entire K-8 Next Generation Science Standards aligned curriculum. This curriculum will be in place for the upcoming FY20 school year.

I wanted to remind you of the upcoming Screenagers film on Wednesday, May 1 at 6:30 pm. Also on this evening we will host Cyberkidz, a presentation on cyber awareness. This workshop is directly aligned to concerns regarding grooming and I strongly encourage you to attend this evening out at Waters.

There are many events that are scheduled for the months of May and June.
Please check our calendar on the website as it is being updated regularly.
There will be Drama and Music performances, spring Cardboard Challenge, CAPE Finale, Little Big Night, Walk A Thon, BOGO Scholastic, Field Day, just to name a few!

Don’t forget to tell your neighbors about Kinder registration! Early registration began this week adn is ongoing. Kinder registration is crucial to staffing, the sooner we know how many kindergartners will attend Waters in the fall, the better prepared we will be. Please spread the word!

Graduation will be on June 19 and the Kinder celebration will be on June 20 this year.

If you haven’t heard, WT is hosting a Mattress sale in the gym this Saturday. Please come out and shop for a great new mattress and support our beautiful school!

Sincerely,
Ms. Kipp
School Principal

Week 31

4/11/2019

Dear Waters Families,

April has proven to be a busy month!

Our LSC Budget committee has hosted two meetings in two weeks to review and discuss our FY20 proposed budget. We continue to work with central office for some adjustments to better align with our funding needs. We will meet again upon return from spring break to finalize the budget at our monthly meeting.

Waters staff in accordance with CPS and CTU contractual agreement voted on the Bell Schedule and Flex Days for FY20. Waters schedule will remain the same as this year with the school day beginning at 8:15 am and ending at 3:15 pm.

Our Instructional Leadership Team met this week to discuss end of year programming and professional development. Social Emotional Learning was a topic of discussion. Our staff has engaged in PD on SEL and will continue to incorporate best practices in our daily instruction to meet the social emotional needs of the students.

Thank you to Bloom Yoga Studio for treating our staff to massage therapy! Thank you Jessie Novak for organizing.

We welcomed John Vincent, better known as the Cubs national anthem singer, for a presentation on Bullying. Students in grades 5-8 had an opportunity to engage in a lively discussion on Bullying. Be sure to ask your child about this presentation. Thank you Jason Kraus for helping organize this learning opportunity for our students.

I hope all of you had a chance to meet with your child’s teacher yesterday. Report cards were presented and students had an opportunity to share their learning with parents. If you were not able to attend the conferences, please reach out to your child’s teacher to schedule an appointment.

On Monday, April 22, 2019 at 7:00 pm we will host CyberKidz, a cyber security awareness workshop sponsored by JP Morgan Chase. This workshop is for parents (students are welcome to accompany their parents) to learn more about cyber safety. Topics covered include how to stay safe online, protecting personal information, cyberbullying, apps and sites that are safe/ok/unsafe. Don’t forget! I know this is the first day back after spring break but it is an important topic!!

Eighth graders will travel to St. Louis, MS on April 24-26 for the annual class trip.

Don’t forget the Mattress Sale on Saturday, April 27 in the school gym! This is a great opportunity not only for you but to support Waters school.

Beginning April 22, we kick off Kindergarten registration for FY20. If you know anyone who has a kinder aged child, please encourage them to register. The sooner we know how many students we will have in our kindergarten, the better prepared we will be. This is crucial for planning not only for staffing but also for classroom space in the school. Please help us get the word out!

May is a month filled with many activities. James and the Giant Peach, a drama performance, Cardboard Challenge, Screenagers, Soccer,Volleyball, Little Big Night, Spring Concert,music performance and our annual CAPE finale, just to name a few. Please check out our school calendar online to see the specific dates and times. It is continually updated as specific details become available.

I hope you have a restful and enjoyable spring break! Be safe and I look forward to seeing all of you on Monday, April 22!

Sincerely,

Ms. Kipp
Waters Principal

Week 30

4/4/2019

Dear Waters Community,

WOW!!! Did you see what your child created?   STEAM week was a huge success at Waters and our mini makers were on site to share their learning experience with guests.
K-8 grade students encouraged by their home room teachers and essential teachers created amazing projects. From discovering how to build a structure to safe car designs, our students were engaged in authentic hands on learning. If you weren’t able to attend the exhibition last Friday, please be sure to ask your child about their project. Thank you to our incredible STEAM team for organizing this event!

In addition to the maker faire, Maker guests visited classrooms and shared their professional occupations with the students. Do you realize that you have inspired our students and have given them ideas about possible careers to pursue in their future?

Congratulations goes to Waters own Dylan Sebanc, a middle school student who presented at the Chicago Student STEM Exhibition on Friday and Saturday at the Illinois Institute of Technology. The judging was comprised of regular judges as well as special judges representing various companies and organizations. Dylan placed in the Silver category at the STEM Exhibition as well as received two special awards at the Awards Ceremony on Sunday! He received the Pearson NCS award of $100 and the Charms, Inc. Chicago Chapter Award of $50 both for having an exemplary science fair project! Way to go Dylan!

This year teachers in grades 5-8 hosted Battle of the Books. Our 7th grade team won the first round competition last week. They are advancing to the finals on April 27th.   Thank you to Mrs. Collins-Gonzalez, Mr. Wall, and Mrs. Herman for coaching our students and engaging them in rich dialogue and debate. Good luck at the Finals!

Waters Leadership Team hosted the first ever evening Spring Fling Dinner and Dance. Students enjoyed yardstick pizza from Armands and danced the night away. Thank you to our Middle School teachers and parent volunteers who helped chaperone this event.

Friday, April 5th there are no classes for students. It is a professional development day for teachers.

April 9 at 4 pm there will be a LSC budget meeting. Please join us to learn more about our FY20 budget.

Don’t forget Wednesday, April 10th is Report Card Pick up. Conference time is between
11:45am-3:00pm and 4:00pm-6:00pm. If you haven’t already signed up for a conference time with your teacher, please be sure to reach out to them.
We want to see all of you next Wednesday. Students should accompany parents to the conference so they can share with your what they have been working on.

Spring Break is the following week April 15th to April 19th.

On April 22, 2019 at 7:00 pm we will host CyberKidz, a cyber security awareness workshop sponsored by JP Morgan Chase. This workshop is for parents ( students are welcome to accompany their parents) to learn more about cyber safety. Topics covered include how to stay safe online, protecting personal information, cyberbullying, apps and sites that are safe/ok/unsafe.

Boys Volleyball and Girls Soccer has begun! We look forward to an exciting season!
Thank you Coach Orlov and Coach Changet.

Sincerely,
Ms. Kipp

Week 26

3/14/2019

Dear Waters Community,

A HUGE thank you for the spectacular BIG NIGHT event on Saturday! Our staff is grateful for your support in raising over $80,000 for Waters school programs. Thank you to co fundraising chair persons Leah Rieger and Jessica Kaune for your vision in making the night a success. In addition, thank you to all of the WatersToday board members and many volunteers for your hours of “behind the scenes” work to make the event happen.

Illinois Assessment of Readiness (IAR) began this week. The federal Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) sets the expectation that every student participates in state assessments and requires that states calculate rates of proficiency out of at least 95% OF ELIGIBLE STUDENTS. Universal participation in assessments promotes equity, excellence, and transparency.

Illinois has made a lot of improvements to the state assessment for grades 3-8 since it debuted in 2015, thanks to the active partnership of Illinois educators. The Illinois Assessment of Readiness is shorter, returns results more quickly, and measures not just what students know but also what they can do with what they know, as well as their growth over time. A school’s participation rate on state assessments impacts its rate of proficiency and its annual designation.
ESSA requires states to calculate proficiency by dividing the number of students who met or exceeded standards by either the number of students who tested or 95% of the number of students who should have tested, whichever is greater. Schools with less than 95% participation in state assessments are ineligible to receive the Exemplary designation.

Schools with any student group that has a participation rate below 95% for three consecutive years will develop and implement a Workplan for School Improvement. Opting out decisions will have a detrimental impact on our school’s standing with the state. It will require an additional workplan for school improvement in addition to our CIWP. English Learners must take all portions of the IAR to meet federal requirements, even those in their first year in the U.S. Their results in that first year provide a baseline for growth but do not count for accountability

Students and Staff are preparing STEAM week activities which begin Monday, March 18th. On Friday, March 29th there will be a Mini Maker Faire afterschool from 3:30 pm to 5:00 pm. STEAM projects will be on display. Come see our mini makers in action! More info to come!

Basketball playoffs begin next week. Both 5th and 6th grade girls and boys teams made the top 12 teams to qualify for playoffs. Our 5/6 girls finished the regular season undefeated! Congratulations to our athletes and Coach Barlow, Coach Rangel and Coach Orlov. We look forward to March Madness!

As our Basketball season comes to a close, Mr. Wall is coaching Track and Mr. Changet is coaching girls soccer. More information will be coming on soccer tryouts soon.

April is quickly approaching! There will be no classes/school for students on Friday, April 5th (Professional Development day for staff) and Student Parent Teacher conferences on Wednesday, April 10, 2019 between the hours of 12 noon-3 pm and 4pm -6 pm. Spring Break is April 15th - 19th.

Please join us at our LSC meeting on Tuesday, March 19 at 4 pm.

As winter turns to spring, please stop by the lost and found to collect your children’s winter gear.
In a few weeks, it will be cleared and donated to a local charity.

Ms. Kipp
Principal

Week 25

3/7/2019

Dear Waters Community,

Saturday evening at the Dank Haus, we will celebrate together at our annual Waters Fundraiser. This year the theme is Havana Nights. If you haven’t already bought your ticket, it’s not too late! There are so many wonderful items to bid on. Have you seen the classroom projects? Don’t delay! Let’s join together and celebrate all the many reasons why we love Waters! I look forward to seeing all of you there!

IAR testing will begin next week. You will receive an email from your child’s teacher regarding IAR and their specific testing date. Please see the IAR Letter for more information.

I am happy to welcome Mr. Edgar Crespo, our newly appointed Engineer to Waters. Mr. Crespo has worked in CPS for many years and we are excited to have a permanent engineer on site.

In addition, I am happy to announce that Ms. Becky Jones joined our middle school team this week. Ms. Jones has worked with our students in many capacities over the years. She has and continues to collaborate with the team as she assumes the role of a middle school teacher.

We look forward to the return of the Trinity Dancers next week! We enjoy learning about the history of the dance and costumes!

Students and staff are busy creating STEAM projects. Please be on the look out for more information as we gear up for STEAM week beginning March 25, 2019.

Congratulations to our basketball teams. Our regular season has concluded with 3 out of 4 teams heading to the playoffs. Be sure to check our calendar for our very own March Madness!

If you haven’t turned in your “purple” emergency information form, please do so by tomorrow.
This form will be used to verify that all of your information ( phone numbers, emails, emergency contacts, etc. ) is accurate in Aspen which will go live in April. Please do not delay!

Don’t forget that this weekend marks daylight savings time. Please be sure to set your clocks one hour ahead.

Sincerely,

Ms. Kipp
Principal

Week 24

2/28/2019

Dear Waters Families;

Thank you to Pastor Lindsey Mack, Emily Haite and Drs. Stern and Peterson for providing an evening of healing for our middle school students, families and staff this past Tuesday.   We are truly grateful for the offering of space at Luther Memorial, their time and an opportunity to gather together as a community.

If you haven’t already heard, plans are underway for an addition to our existing building!
Please join us on Thursday, March 7 at 6 pm for a community meeting to hear about the exciting plans for Waters expansion. You can click here  to learn more about our journey to this exciting expansion.

I would like to formally introduce Ms. Holly Gallegos, as the newest member to our Waters staff. Ms. Gallegos began her teaching with us on Monday. She is a certified teacher who will be working with alongside our staff providing teaching and learning services for our diverse learners. Welcome aboard Ms. Gallegos!

Our basketball season is winding down. Teams will head to the playoffs beginning next week. Check out our school calendar for dates and times. Thank you coaches for giving of your time and parents for supporting our teams at every game.

If your child is interested in participating in Track this spring, please have them stop by Mr. Wall’s room to pick up an official form to register.

IAR (formerly known as PARCC) testing begins next month. IAR is a robust, common core aligned test that captures students ability levels in Reading, Writing and Math. It is also aligned to the SAT. This assessment is state mandated and is used to rate each school in Illinois. This assessment will eventually be used within CPS for high school applications, SQRP data, etc.
For more information on IAR please go to: ISBE.net/IAR.

Tomorrow, Emergency Forms will be sent home. It will be on purple paper. This is the same form you completed in the fall.
With Aspen ( a new database system) going live in April, we want to make sure ALL emergency information is current. Phone numbers(land lines and cell), emails, emergency contacts for pick up, etc. will need to be completed. We will cross check all students information so we will be sure that it is current when we transition to Aspen. The form is to be returned to your child’s homeroom teacher. Thank you in advance for your cooperation in completing the form.

Big Night is just around the corner! This is a great community event that benefits the children at Waters! If you haven’t bought your tickets yet, please do so. It is sure to be a great time with great people!

Have a great weekend!

Ms. Kipp

February 21, 2019

2/21/2019

Dear Waters Families,

This week we welcomed the Chinese New Year with our parade. Thank you to all staff and students who participated in this annual cultural and educational event This year we celebrate the pig. The excitement and positive energy was felt throughout the corridors! Thank you Ms. Vecchioni for inspiring the students. Their display of artwork was a welcome sight.

Thank you again for the countless volunteers who helped not only to hang the first semester art show but also who helped to carefully remove it. You are greatly appreciated!

On Tuesday, we hosted a parent meeting to share our plan for our middle school curriculum needs and to provide some resources so families can begin the healing process. We want to work together as a community to help one another so we can support the well being of every student. I have attached some resources for you to use as needed. (Thank you to Erica Smith for compiling this extensive list.)

I am also working to provide families another opportunity to meet together to work through the many raw emotions that we are all feeling. I will update you as soon as I have a confirmed date.

Please know that I, along with my staff, appreciate you and all of the support that you have given us during this very difficult time. Your positive messages have been encouraging for all of us.

Our middle schoolers thank everyone for the support you have given to the photo booth and the Valentine’s Dance last week. We were able to raised just around $2000. As a reminder, all funds will go to help reduce the cost of the annual 8th grade class trip.

Our basketball season is winding down but there is still time to catch a game! Please refer to the school calendar to see what games you might be able to attend.

As always, please feel free to contact me at tmkipp@cps.edu with any questions that you may have.

Sincerely,

Ms. Kipp
School Principal

Special Blog Update

2/18/2019

Dear Waters Parents,

Tuesday, February 19th, we will host a parent meeting at 6:30 pm in the gym to discuss supports for our students regarding the recent incident involving a staff member. We understand that this incident has caused many concerns. We want to work together as a community to help one another so we can begin to heal and support the well being of every student.

During this meeting, we will also discuss our plan for middle school math for the rest of the school year. While there will be some adjustments to be made, our middle school staff along with Ms. Alvarez and I, do not feel a substitute is the correct course of action for the students.

At our meeting, we will have representatives from central office departments, Student Protections and Title IX Department, Health and Wellness, as well as a representative from the Children’s Advocacy Center.

In addition to these presentations, we will have time for questions. Please keep in mind, we are not able to answer questions specific to the investigation as it is an active ongoing investigation. Please know that we will try to answer all of your questions and if we are not able to do so during the meeting we will get back to you as soon as we have an answer.

I want to thank the members of our community who have reached out to support our students and staff during this incredibly difficult time. From providing the staff with lunch to emails and phone calls with encouraging words, these acts of kindness and compassion helped our school community through this past week. Even though I was away assisting my elderly parents, I was available and in contact with Ms. Alvarez, Network Chief, central office departments, LSC and several members of the school community, to ensure we were doing everything we could for our students.

While this has been a week filled with so many emotions, I know we will move forward knowing we have a community that is actively engaged, supportive and working alongside us.

As always, if you are unable to attend this meeting, please feel free to contact me at tmkipp@cps.edu.

Sincerely,
Titia Kipp

Week 22 Update

2/14/2019

Dear Waters Families,

The Photo Booth for the 8th grade trip to St. Louis was a great success today. A big thank you for the families who purchased photos and a big thank you to our Leadership student and volunteer parents (Hope Wielgopolan, Anna Harris, and Carrie Zacks) who helped Ms. Mendez run the booth. The smiles on the children’s faces really brightened our day! We hope the children will be as excited for the Valentine’s Dance tomorrow.

I want to thank all of you for reaching out to our school family during this very difficult week.
Your support, concerns and thoughts have been heard and are greatly appreciated.

Please know that we are providing supports at school for the children as the requests and needs arise. If you see that your child is struggling with this situation, please do not hesitate to contact us for support.

We are doing our best to continue to provide a learning environment where the children can learn and flourish. Central office and our network team are providing additional supports for our children and staff.

There is no LSC meeting next Tuesday. In its place, we will host a parent meeting on Tuesday, February 19th at 6:30 pm to discuss how we plan to provide additional social emotional supports for the students and our plan of action for our curricular programming especially in middle school.

Reminder, there is no school on Monday, February 18th, as it is Presidents’ Day.

Don’t forget to have your child wear red as we will celebrate the Chinese New Year Parade next Tuesday morning.

Happy Valentine's Day to you and your family.

Sincerely,

Ms. Kipp
Principal

Week 21 Update

2/7/2019

Dear Waters Community,

This week has been a pleasure! I am so happy to have the students back in school with our staff.

Earlier this week, I removed the fencing so students could access both playgrounds during recess. Hopefully the weather conditions will cooperate and beginning Monday, geo drilling will begin. If so, the fences will be put back into their places and the playgrounds will be off limits.

We are so happy to be back outdoors! Even though the temperatures are warmer, please make sure your children are dressed appropriately for outdoor activities.

As a reminder, please ask your child for their Report Card, they will be sent home on Monday.

We have some exciting events this month:

Photo Booth - Thursday, February 14
Valentine’s Dance - Friday, February 15
100th day - Kindergarten parade
Chinese New Year - February 19

Next Month:
Big Night - March 9
Pi Night- March 14
STEAM week March 25

Please see the flyer for the Photo Booth and Dance. Please note the activities will take place on separate days. Remember these are fundraisers for our 8th grade annual class trip and we aim to take all of our students to St. Louis.

This month, Mauricio Segovia, was appointed as the Chief of Network 2. Mr. Segovia has served CPS for 25 years and his most recent appointment was Principal at Darwin elementary school. Welcome Mr. Segovia to our network and school community!

In addition, I am pleased to welcome Anthony Vivit, our security officer to Waters School. Some of you may know him as he has worked with our students during recess and in our after school programs.

Please join us at our monthly Local School Council Meeting on Tuesday, February 19, 2019 at 6:30 pm. We will have an update on our proposed addition from our Facilities and Grounds subcommittee.

Don’t forget that there is no school on Monday, February 18th in observation of Presidents Day.

Thank you,

Ms. Kipp
Principal

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