Weekly Family Update 12.11.20

12/11/2020

2nd Quarter Progress Reports Sent Home: Monday, December 14th, 2020.
Virtual Open House for Perspective Families: Monday, December 14th, 2020 at 5pm.
Early Release: Friday, December 18th, 2020. 1:00PM.
Winter Break Starts: Monday, December 21, 2020.
Winter Break Ends: Friday, January 1, 2021.
Classes Resume from Winter Break: Monday, January 4. 2021.
GO CPS Deadline EXTENDED: Friday, January 8, 2021.
MLK Day: NO SCHOOL -Monday, January 19, 2021.

Technology exchanges are by appointment only on Mondays between the hours of 9am - 12pm
If you have have technology issues please submit a tech ticket using this link
Tech support is available via phone by calling 773-828-4221
The main office number is 773-820-9426, and is answered between 8am-4pm Monday-Friday.
When your artist is going to be absent please email aim@distinctiveschools.org.

ATTENDANCE UPDATE!

Beginning in January, we will start phone calls to parents and guardians each day with a summary of all periods that your student was marked with an unexcused absence. To report a student absence, please call the the main office (773-820-9426) or aim@distinctiveschools.org.

If you need support with motivating your student or help navigating their schedule, please reach out to Mr. Acevedo, our Student Support team leader at jacevedo@distinctiveschools.org

2nd Quarter Progress Reports!

Progress Reports will be sent via email by Monday, December 14, 2020.
Mentors and Arts Teachers will be emailing progress reports to each family and student.
All AIM students have a dedicated mentor throughout the year that meets with them at least once every two weeks to maintain a trusted relationship with a staff member, who serves as that student’s point person. If you do not know who your student's mentor is, please reach out to your student's community teacher.

Need Support Helping Your Student Navigate Online Platforms?

Watch this guided video to learn more about checking student progress
and key links to accessing your student's day!

Progress Reports serve as a snapshot of student academic development and highlight areas of strengths and growth. Please review your child’s report and identify the classes that your student may be off track. If your child is off track in any course, please use next week and Winter Break as an opportunity to catch up. Friday, January 22, 2021 marks the end of semester one. Students are highly encouraged to work diligently to meet grade-level and year-end competency goals and stay on track to meet graduation and promotion requirements.

As we approach Semester 2, we have shared information with families about promotion and graduation requirements as well as supports to ensure student success in this letter. We will be hosting a virtual family night in January (Date TBD) to discuss requirements and how to best support your student.

The Power of Parenting with Social and Emotional Learning: The home and the school are allies when it comes to SEL. Read this article to see how you can incorporate SEL at home and build a partnership with the school.
December Happiness Calendar
Help with Summit and Synergy: Any parents who need help with navigating the AIM Student Resource Page, Summit, and/or Synergy, please reach out to Dean Acevedo (jacevedo@distinctiveschools.org) for support.
School Store: Students can earn great rewards for Summit goals and work completion (in all subjects), exhibiting the best CREATIVE character values, and being engaged during at-home learning. All points earned will be tracked in DeansList (read below for info on DeansList).
DeansList: Parents should have received an email that explains how to sign-up for DeansList (DL). We will be tracking student engagement and behavior in DL, so sign-up to stay up to date. Students can also setup a DL account by following the instructions here.

Name Your Emotions

At any time of day, pay attention to the emotions that come and go and give a name to what you are feeling. You don’t need to understand them completely, but just noticing them and giving them a name can help you accept them, process them, and let them go. - Mrs. Lee, Campus Social Worker

If you know any students in grades 7, 8, 9 or 10 who would like to join the AIM Family, have them visit aimchicago.org for all information. Also, please invite them to our next virtual open house. Seats are limited and we are already developing a waitlist for next year!

Return to School Tentative Timeline
Our tentative timeline for returning to school based on public health guidelines is January 25, 2021, aligned with the start of Quarter 3, would be the first date we could possibly allow for Community Care, or potential in-person learning scenarios

- Our ability to reopen Community Care will be dependent on programming for Q3.
- We are also planning for potential alternative return to school options (other in-person learning scenarios).
- In-person learning scenarios are dependent on the status of COVID-19, the guidance we receive from our partners, and the health data trends.
- Our school teams are designing what in-person or alternative learning options may be possible for January and beyond.

Based on those proposed ideas, we will send surveys in mid-December or early January to identify your preferences, interests, and feedback regarding Community Care or potential in person learning scenarios.We plan to reopen schools as soon as it is safe to do so. We are working in close collaboration with CPS to understand plans. We will share more updates during the week of January 11, 2021 to ensure families have enough time to plan.

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