Hawthorne Elementary School |
♥ The Little School with the Big Heart ♥ |
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♥Valentine's Day Friendship Parties ♥ |
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Dear Parents,
Our classroom Valentine’s Day celebrations will take place on Friday, February 13, from 2:15–3:15 p.m. We are looking forward to a fun and festive afternoon with our students. A special thank you to our parent volunteers for helping make this celebration possible.
Students are welcome to bring Valentine’s cards to share with their classmates. If your child chooses to participate, please ensure they bring enough cards for every student in the class. We would like to remind families that to support student health and safety, valentines may not include any food or candy items.
A simple friendship card truly goes a long way in helping students feel included and celebrated. ♥♥♥ Thank you for your continued support and cooperation. We look forward to celebrating Valentine’s Day with your children. . |
February is Kindness Month at Hawthorne! 💛 |
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Next month, Hawthorne Elementary School is spreading kindness one good deed at a time! Every student will receive a Kindness Bingo Card next week filled with simple, meaningful random acts of kindness they can complete at school and at home. When a student gets a Bingo (4 in a row), they’ll earn a special Kindness Certificate to celebrate their positive impact. Students who go above and beyond and complete the entire bingo board will be invited to a special reward-lunch with Mrs. Zimmer and a fun craft activity together in the library on Thursday, March 5, 2026 during the 30 minute lunchtime. Students should bring their own lunch on this day and Mrs. Zimmer will provide the craft!
📅 Bingo cards are due Monday, March 2 — please be sure your child’s name is written on the back of the card. Let’s make February a month full of compassion, connection, and kindness at Hawthorne! 🌟
Sincerely, Mrs. Zimmer |
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Hawthorne Elementary School is planning for our students who will be starting kindergarten this fall. To adequately arrange for registration in the spring, it will be helpful to have the information requested on this Google Form If you know of a child or children who will be of school age this fall who may not receive this form, please pass it on to their parents.
We look forward to seeing you at KINDERGARTEN ROUND-UP on February 26, 2026 from 6PM-7PM |
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Our Primary Finance Club is helping young learners build early money skills in fun and engaging ways! Students are learning about saving, spending, and making thoughtful choices through games, stories, and hands-on activities designed just for their age level. The club encourages problem-solving, teamwork, and real-world connections while building confidence and responsibility. We’re excited to see our youngest students developing skills that will support them now and in the future! A special thank you to our friends at Wheaton Bank & Trust, Rachael Pierce, and Susan Anderson for making this club possible.
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Hawthorne Elementary School's Speech-Language Pathologist, Amy Krischel, plays an important role in supporting learners in SAIL (Social Academic Integrated Learning). Amy thoughtfully prepares each lesson with individual students’ social and communication goals in mind, ensuring instruction is both meaningful and personalized.
Many of the researc-based learning activities used in SAIL are hand-created by Amy to reflect students’ special interests and to intentionally target growth in specific learning areas. Her work is deeply collaborative, as she partners closely with related service providers, including our social worker, psychologist, occupational therapist, behavior specialists, and special education teacher, to meet the diverse needs of all students in the program.
In addition to her work with students, Amy supports schoolwide professional learning for teachers and teaching assistants and helps lead social lessons that benefit all Hawthorne students. Through her dedication, creativity, and collaboration, Amy helps our school community better understand and appreciate the many ways we all communicate with one another. |
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Indoor Recess Games, Origami, & Magnatiles |
Indoor recess has been a fun and engaging time for our students across all grade levels. In grades K–2 and 3–5, students have been making the most of their time by playing board games, building creatively with Magna-Tiles, and even learning the art of origami.
These activities encourage problem-solving, creativity, collaboration, and fine motor skills—all while giving students a chance to relax and connect with their peers in a positive way.
A special thank-you to our recess supervisors for their creativity and dedication in creating such a welcoming and enjoyable indoor recess environment for our students. Their efforts truly make a difference! |
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Building Strong Math Fluency in Third Grade |
Hawthorne third grade students are strengthening their math skills through a dedicated 30-minute Math Fluency block in addition to the 60 minutes of core math instruction each day. This time is intentionally designed to support strategy work that helps students grow into fluent mathematicians.
Rather than focusing on memorization alone, math fluency emphasizes efficient, flexible, and accurate reasoning. Students engage in high-cognitive-demand activities, games, and routines that deepen their understanding of numbers and operations.
Currently, students are applying the decomposing strategy to multiply one-digit numbers by two-digit numbers, building a strong foundation for more complex problem solving. This thoughtful approach supports confidence, perseverance, and a deeper understanding of math concepts. |
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Rise and Shine for Excellence in Education Breakfast |
On behalf of the CUSD 200 Student Excellence Foundation, we invite you to join us for the Rise and Shine for Excellence in Education Breakfast on March 11.
This inspiring morning brings together business leaders, educators, and community partners committed to student success across CUSD 200. Through moving, real-life stories, we will highlight the powerful impact of our Essential Needs Fund, which has helped ensure students and families facing unexpected hardship have access to food, clothing, and basic necessities so learning can remain the focus. The program will also feature performances by students from the Wheaton Warrenville South High School Show Choir, directed by Chris Miller, an incredible keynote speaker, and our Excellence in Action videos showcasing the tangible difference community support makes in our schools.
This breakfast is a celebration of what’s possible when schools and the business community work together. We would be honored to have you join us for this uplifting and meaningful start to the day. Register Here |
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Attendance Reporting in ParentVUE |
We are excited to announce a fantastic new feature within our ParentVUE mobile app designed to make managing your student's attendance even more convenient!
While the traditional method of calling your child's school attendance line remains fully functional, you now have the ability to report planned absences directly through the ParentVUE app. This option will be available starting the week of January 12, 2026. What This Means for You This new digital option allows you to notify us in advance of any scheduled absences, such as illness, medical appointments, family travel, or other planned events. It’s a fast, easy way to communicate important attendance information without needing to make a phone call during busy hours.
How to Use the New Planned Absence Feature
1. Open the ParentVUE Mobile App on your smartphone or tablet. This can also be done via an internet browser on the web by going to this website.
2. Log in with your credentials.
3. Navigate to the Attendance section or click the Report Absences button.
4. Follow the prompts to enter the start date, end date, reason for absence, and any necessary comments. Note: leaving a note regarding the absence is required.
5. Submit the request. Currently, ParentVUE can only record full day absences. If an absence will be a partial day, please note the time in the notes section (i.e. periods that will be missed for MS/HS) so that your child’s school can reflect that in their records. Lastly, this attendance feature still adheres to adopted cut off times for excused absences as stated in each school’s student handbook. We believe this new feature will be a significant time-saver and enhance our communication regarding student attendance. If you have not yet downloaded the ParentVUE mobile app, please search for "ParentVUE" in the Apple App Store or Google Play Store.
Thank you for your partnership in ensuring accurate and timely attendance records for all our students. Sincerely, Community Unit School District 200 |
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❤️The Happy Heart Award❤️ |
Students at Hawthorne Elementary School are always learning and growing. One of the things we pride ourselves on at Hawthorne is the work we do to ensure students understand, demonstrate, and reinforce schoolwide expectations. At Hawthorne, students learn about the Hawthorne Way during the first week of school with Mrs. Zimmer. During the year, we work to reinforce the things we learn about the Hawthorne Way. The Happy Heart Award is a recognition ticket given to students who go above and beyond to demonstrate the Hawthorne Way during the school day. Students who earn this will receive a ticket with their name on it, the staff member who recognized them, and the reason they were recognized. The recognition portion will go home to celebrate with family.
Congratulations to this week's Happy Heart Award drawing winners! |
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February 9: BPAC Parent Event
February 9: 5th Gr Step up Concert @ Franklin 7PM
February 10: Variety Show Practice 8:00-9:00
February 12: Variety Show Practice 3:30-4:30
February 13: Friendship Classroom Parties
February 16: No School, Presidents Day
February 16: CNO at Hen House
February 19: Variety Show Dress Rehearsal
February 19: Mobile Food Pantry
February 20: Variety Show
February 26: Kindergarten Roundup
February 27: No School, Institute Day
February 27: End of Trimester 2 March 2: Bingo Cards Due
March 5: Bingo Lunch & Craft Celebration
March 6 : PTA Meeting in LLC 9:05AM
March 11: CNO at 302
March 11: SEF Rise & Shine Breakfast
March 19: Mobile Food Pantry
March 23: PTA Reflections Ceremony @ Hubble MS
March 30-April 3: Spring Break April 1: Paraprofessional Appreciation Day
April 10: PTA Meeting & Dad's Gym Night
April 16: National Librarian's Day
April 22: Administrative Professionals Day
April 28: Fine Arts Night
April 30: Conservation Club |
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