☀️ Summer 2026 Programs Now Open!
Attention District 186 families! It’s time to plan for a summer of growth, fun, and learning. Registration is now officially open for our elementary summer acceleration and enrichment programs.
District 186 Student Programs
Camp Kindergarten: A high-quality, developmentally appropriate program designed for incoming Pre-K learners. Through active, purposeful play and discovery time, children develop the speech, language, and social skills necessary for a successful transition into the school environment.
Summer SCOPE: A long-running childcare and enrichment program for students who have completed grades K-5. Operating from 7:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., it provides a safe and engaging environment throughout the summer months.
Extended School Year (ESY): Specialized instructional support and services provided to eligible students with disabilities (PreK-12) to maintain progress on IEP goals and prevent significant regression during the summer break.
District 186 Hosted Programs
Camp Invention: An all-new 2026 STEM adventure for children entering grades 1-6 that builds confidence through hands-on creative challenges. This year’s "Spark" program features four unique experiences where campers solve mysteries with a robotic capybara in Fur-ensics, design floating billboard boats in Make Waves, launch rocket missions in Space Morphers, and protect their genius ideas from "Infringers" using wearable cryptography. This program will be held at Lincoln Magnet School from July 6-10, 2026.
Camp Nkiru: hosted by the Springfield Urban League, is a transformative, free program designed to empower students in grades 9th through 12th. This academy provides a unique platform for high schoolers to sharpen their leadership skills, engage in meaningful community service, and receive academic enrichment that prepares them for future success. By fostering personal growth and encouraging positive life choices, Camp Nkiru aims to equip the next generation with the tools they need to thrive both in the classroom and as influential leaders in their communities
CDF Freedom Schools: Hosted by the Springfield Urban League, this six-week program provides a literacy-rich summer experience for children in grades K-8. It focuses on the "I Can Make a Difference" theme, fostering a love for reading and civic engagement through a research-based multicultural curriculum, social action, and parental involvement.
RYSE and Shine (YMCA): A program for students in grades K-12 that emphasizes academic excellence and social-emotional growth. Led by qualified educators, it provides structured reading instruction and large motor activities to ensure a well-rounded summer experience.
How to Register
Don't wait—spots fill up fast! For full program details, dates, and registration links, please visit the official Summer Acceleration Programs page.
Questions?
Contact Hope Pitts at hpitts@sps186.org or call (217) 525-3220
📚 Get Ready! BOGO Book Fair is Coming!
Double the books means double the fun! We are thrilled to announce that the Scholastic Summer Reading Sale is coming to Graham Elementary. This is a special Buy One, Get One FREE event to help our students stock up for their summer reading lists.
🗓️ Mark Your Calendars
Dates : May 11 – May 15
Location: Graham Elementary School, 900 W Edwards St
💳 Create your student's E-Wallet
Forget about sending loose change! You can set up a Book Fair eWallet, a secure digital payment account for your student. Students shop cash-free, and any leftover funds can be used at the next fair or online.
❤️ Share the Fair
Help us ensure every child goes home with a new story. Consider contributing to our Share the Fair program to benefit students who need help purchasing books.
Visit our Book Fair Homepage to set up your eWallet or start shopping on May 11th!
#ScholasticBookFair #SummerReading #BOGO
Because of the generous support from members of the Central Baptist Church Study Group, we were able to send our students home for the break with fully stocked weekend food bags. A special thank you also goes out to our wonderful volunteer librarian, Ms. Linda, for her generous donation that made this distribution possible. Seeing our community come together to ensure no student went without is truly inspiring.
We are so grateful for these partnerships that help our students thrive!
📢 IMPORTANT COMMUNITY RESOURCE!
We know that everyone needs a little extra support sometimes, and we want to make sure no one in our community is "leaving money on the table." We are excited to share a helpful new resource: the Illinois Benefit Hub.
What is the Illinois Benefit Hub?
The Illinois Benefit Hub is a one-stop shop designed to help you discover public benefits you may be eligible for. On average, families using this tool find about $1,300 in monthly benefits and tax credits!
How It Works
Fast & Easy: The eligibility screener takes only about 6 minutes to complete.
Anonymous: You don’t need to create an account or provide personal identifiers to see your results.
Comprehensive: It checks your eligibility for 30 different programs across categories like:
🍎 Food & Nutrition (SNAP, WIC, etc.)
🩺 Health Care
🧸 Child Care & Education
⚡ Utilities & Transportation
💸 Cash Assistance & Tax Credits
How to Get Started
Visit the Illinois Benefit Hub Screener.
Click "Get Started" to answer a few simple questions.
Review your personalized results to see what help is available and how to apply.
Don’t miss out on support that could help your family thrive. Check your eligibility today!
📢 Quick Update: Book Fair Hours for Family Reading Night
Please note a quick change to our schedule: The Scholastic Book Fair will be open for a limited window tomorrow, Thursday, March 19th, from 6:00 PM – 6:30 PM during our Red Carpet Readers Family Reading Night.
Make sure to stop by the cafeteria early to help your student find their next favorite book before the reading stations and activities begin!
All-day shopping will resume on Friday, March 20th, which is the final day of the book fair.
Reminder: You can still set up your child’s Book Fair eWallet for a quick, cash-free checkout: https://bookfairs.scholastic.com/bf/grahamelementaryschool7
We can’t wait to see you all on the Red Carpet! 🎬📚
Today is the last day to RSVP!
Roll Out the Red Carpet for Family Reading Night! 🎬📚
Join us for a blockbuster evening where books take center stage! Our Red Carpet Readers Family Reading Night is next Thursday!
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🗓️ EVENT DETAILS
Date: Thursday, March 19, 2026
Time: 6:00 PM – 7:30 PM
Location: Graham Elementary Cafeteria
900 W Edwards St, Springfield, IL
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📖 WHAT TO EXPECT
Literacy Baskets
Families can receive a literacy basket filled with materials to support reading at home.
(Limited number available—first come, first served.)
Free Books
Every family will have the opportunity to take a book home.
Scholastic Book Fair
The book fair will be open during the event for those looking to add more to their home library.
Dinner
IHOP has sponsored a meal for this event! Please RSVP today!
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Starring Activities:
Teacher-Led Reader Stations: Enjoy stories that have made the leap from the page to the big screen!
Sight Word Popcorn (Grades K-2): A "tasty" way to practice foundational reading skills.
Word Family & Sound Match Games: Interactive phonics fun for our younger readers.
Prefix Connect 4 (Grades 3-5): A strategic game to build vocabulary skills.
Popcorn Comprehension Challenge: Draw questions to test your knowledge—just watch out for the "POP" card!
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✉️ RSVP REQUIRED
To help us plan for the meal and materials, please RSVP by contacting:
Hope Pitts at hpitts@sps186.org OR complete this google form: RSVP FOR FAMILY READING NIGHT
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Don't miss out on this premiere event! We can't wait to see you there. 🍿⭐
#FamilyReadingNight #RedCarpetReaders #LiteracyMatters
Create your child’s Book Fair eWallet so they can shop cash-free, worry-free, and independently! It’s easy to set up and easy for others to contribute funds! Start here: Graham Elementary Book Fair Homepage.
#ScholasticBookFairs
Genere la eWallet de la Feria del Libro para que su nino o nina pueda comprar sin usar efectivo, sin preocupaciones y de manera independiente! Es facil de configurar y otras personas pueden enviar fondos con facilidad! Comience aqui: Graham Elementary Book Fair Homepage.
#ScholasticBookFairs
Roll Out the Red Carpet for Family Reading Night! 🎬📚
Join us for a blockbuster evening where books take center stage! Our Red Carpet Readers Family Reading Night is next Thursday!
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
🗓️ EVENT DETAILS
Date: Thursday, March 19, 2026
Time: 6:00 PM – 7:30 PM
Location: Graham Elementary Cafeteria
900 W Edwards St, Springfield, IL
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
📖 WHAT TO EXPECT
Literacy Baskets
Families can receive a literacy basket filled with materials to support reading at home.
(Limited number available—first come, first served.)
Free Books
Every family will have the opportunity to take a book home.
Scholastic Book Fair
The book fair will be open during the event for those looking to add more to their home library.
Dinner
IHOP has sponsored a meal for this event! Please RSVP as soon as possible!
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
Starring Activities:
Teacher-Led Reader Stations: Enjoy stories that have made the leap from the page to the big screen!
Sight Word Popcorn (Grades K-2): A "tasty" way to practice foundational reading skills.
Word Family & Sound Match Games: Interactive phonics fun for our younger readers.
Prefix Connect 4 (Grades 3-5): A strategic game to build vocabulary skills.
Popcorn Comprehension Challenge: Draw questions to test your knowledge—just watch out for the "POP" card!
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
✉️ RSVP REQUIRED
To help us plan for the meal and materials, please RSVP by contacting:
Hope Pitts at hpitts@sps186.org OR complete this google form: RSVP FOR FAMILY READING NIGHT
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
Don't miss out on this premiere event! We can't wait to see you there. 🍿⭐
#FamilyReadingNight #RedCarpetReaders #LiteracyMatters
Making a Difference, One Bag at a Time!
Every week, our mission to support students continues, and it’s all thanks to our dedicated food bag sponsors. Your ongoing generosity provides more than just food; it provides peace of mind for our families.
A special shout out goes to our community sponsors Central Baptist Church, Maureen, Tara, Kendra, Diane, Tressa, Rhonda, and Barb.
Thank you for being a vital part of our school community!
📚 You’re Invited: Family Reading Night at Graham Elementary!
Join us for an evening of literacy, food, and fun! We are hosting a special Reading Night to celebrate our students and support reading at home.
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🗓️ EVENT DETAILS
Date: March 19, 2026
Time: 6:00 PM – 7:30 PM
Location: Graham Elementary Cafeteria
900 W Edwards St, Springfield, IL
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
📖 WHAT TO EXPECT
Literacy Baskets
Families can receive a literacy basket filled with materials to support reading at home.
(Limited number available—first come, first served.)
Free Books
Every family will have the opportunity to take a book home.
Scholastic Book Fair
The book fair will be open during the event for those looking to add more to their home library.
Dinner
We are working on providing a warm meal for all attendees!
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
✉️ RSVP REQUIRED
To help us plan for the meal and materials, please RSVP by contacting:
Hope Pitts
📧 hpitts@sps186.org OR complete this google form: RSVP FOR FAMILY READING NIGHT
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
We can't wait to see our Graham families there! 📖✨
REMINDER: Take the 5Essentials Survey Today!
Your Voice = Our Growth! 📈
We want to hear from you! The 5Essentials Survey is still open! This is your chance to help guide school decisions and improve our teaching and learning environment.
CLICK HERE to take the survey today!
⏳ Deadline: Please complete the survey by March 13.
🎁 BONUS: After you finish, email hpitts@sps186.org to be entered into a raffle for a free meal voucher! 🍔
Thank you to last week's sponsors for weekend food bags:
B.O.N.E. LLC and Ruby Funeral Services & Chapel Inc.
Because of their generosity, we were able to serve 17 families with breakfast, lunch, and dinner for the entire weekend. We are so grateful for this community support!
🏫 Every Minute Counts!
Did you know that arriving just 20 minutes late or leaving 20 minutes early three times a week adds up to 19 hours of lost learning each year? That is the same as missing 3 full days of school!
We want to help our students stay on track for a bright future. Please remember:
School Hours: 8:00 AM - 3:15 PM ⏰
Grades K-1: Arriving after 9:59 AM counts as a full-day absence.
Grades 2-5: Arriving after 10:29 AM counts as a full-day absence.
Every day your student is in class, they are building strong habits for the future! 🌟
If your family needs support with transportation or attendance planning, please reach out to our F.A.C.E. Liaison, Hope Pitts, at (217) 525-3220 or hpitts@sps186.org.
#AttendanceMatters #EveryDayCounts #StayOnTrack
🗓️ Community Resource Alert:
We have several upcoming opportunities in Springfield for families. Whether you're looking for career advancement, tax help, or a fun family literary event, these local resources are here to support you. Save these dates!
Saturday, February 21 | Diaper Giveaway: Drive-thru at Laurel United Methodist Church (631 S. Grand Ave. West) from 10 AM – 12 PM.
Sunday, February 22 | Black Children's Book Week: Kick-off event at CAP 1908 (1100 E. Adams St.) from 1:30 PM – 3:30 PM. Free books for every child!
Thursday, February 26 | Career Fair & Free Tax Prep: Join us at Fresh Visions Community Church from 10 AM – 2 PM for a resource fair and IRS VITA tax assistance.
Saturday, March 14 | Record Clearing Event: Expungement & Sealing clinic at 1908 Innovation Center.
Note: You must register by March 7 at socialchange.site.
Questions? Check the flyer for specific location details or visit the registration link for the Expungement event.
#CommunityResources #BlackHistoryMonth #FamilySupport
🔔 REMINDER: Our F.A.C.E. Meeting is TOMORROW!
Don't forget! Join us tomorrow evening to learn how we can team up for your child's "Exam Excellence." We’ll be breaking down standardized testing and sending you home with fun tools to keep the learning going!
What’s Happening:
Test Deep Dive: Get the inside scoop on IAR and MAP scores—find out exactly what they mean for your child’s growth.
Stress-Free Success: Tips and strategies to help your student feel confident and prepared.
Free Math Games: Every family can take home math games to keep the practice fun!
Event Details:
📅 Date: Thursday, February 19, 2026
⏰ Time: 6:00 PM – 7:00 PM
📍 Location: Graham Cafeteria, 900 W Edwards St., Springfield, IL
It’s not too late to join us! Please let Hope Pitts know if you'll be there:
📧 Email: hpitts@sps186.org | 📞 Phone: (217) 525-3220
CLICK HERE TO RSVP FOR PIZZA
🍕 PIZZA & PROGRESS: Graham Elementary F.A.C.E. Meeting!
We’ve got a delicious update for our next F.A.C.E. Meeting on February 19th! Thanks to a generous donation, dinner is on us! We want to make sure there's enough pizza for every member of the Graham family, so we need your help with a quick headcount.
🗓️ Event Details:
Date: Thursday, February 19th
Time: 6:00 PM - 7:00 PM
Location: Graham Elementary
🗳️ How to RSVP:
Please click the link below to let us know you’re coming and how many slices your crew will need! 👉 RSVP FOR PIZZA HERE!
We can't wait to see our Graham Stars there! 🌟
#GrahamElementary #GrahamStars #FACEMeeting #PizzaParty #SchoolCommunity
Thank you to this week's sponsors for weekend food bags: Little Lambs Therapy and PhysioTherapy Professionals!
Because of their generosity, we were able to serve 16 families with breakfast, lunch, and dinner for the entire weekend. We are so grateful for this community support!
🌟 Graham Elementary Families, We’re Here for You! 🌟
Have you visited the Graham Elementary Family and Community Engagement (F.A.C.E.) webpage lately? It’s a helpful hub designed to keep our families informed, supported, and connected.
On the site, you can find:
📚 Family and student resources
🤝 Information about engagement opportunities
📅 Updates on meetings and events
🏫 Details about district initiatives and community partnerships
Whether you’re looking for support, ways to get involved, or important information to help your student succeed, the F.A.C.E. page is a great place to start.
We encourage all Graham families to take a few minutes to explore what’s available!
🔗 Visit here: Family and Community Engagement Webpage
Together, we can continue strengthening the connection between school, family, and community. 💛