Fox Valley area teachers, parents prep for return to school days

Think little kids are excited, and a bit scared, about starting school?

Well, teachers get butterflies, too.

"It's the same thing for teachers, too. It's a sea of children you've never seen before," said Jill Nippert of Batavia, as she worked to decorate and organize her classroom at Heartland Elementary School in Geneva Monday afternoon, energized by a "Mama Mia" soundtrack playing in the background. She expects to have 23 students in her charge come this morning.

She was busy trying to find room for craft supplies for projects, putting up themed bulletin board displays, and trying to clear her desktop of clutter.

"Every year what I do in my room it is from scratch," she said proudly of her decor, which included an Olympics-themed board, and inflated models of the planets in the Milky Way galaxy hanging from the ceiling. "If I get bored, the kids get bored."

She said she usually spends $200 or more of her own money on the displays, books and other items she uses.

"You need a lot of color and a lot up (on the walls)," said Heartland kindergarten teacher Deidra Cook of Geneva. She spent Monday afternoon making photocopies of handouts for her 45 students.

At Viking Office Supply in downtown Geneva, parents were running in to purchase the pens, pencils, protractors and whatnot students are expected to tote to today's first day of school. Experienced moms stopped by the counter up front to check the binder that had the official school supply lists for Batavia, Geneva and St. Charles public schools, a few private schools and one in Elburn. A clerk explained to a new resident how to get to the store from Hughes Road. A sign on the door noted that it would stay open extra late, to 9 p.m., every night through Thursday.

"We have everything else but we needed to bring a white sock and a ruler-sized pencil box," said Theresa Costa of Geneva, shopping for first-grader Joseph, who attends Western Avenue School. The pencil box was a last-minute addition by the teacher, in a letter sent to parents last week.

Costa said she hadn't been able to find the 12-inch-long box at any of the big-box stores where she bought the rest of her supplies. It turned out that Viking had it - and the clean white sock is for erasing the dry-erase board.

"There was something about a felt-tipped pen," she said and off she went to check the binder, then the pens aisle.

Weldon Johnson, who has owned the store for 21 years, said this year he sold about 1,200 pre-packed bags of supplies, through school PTOs in Geneva and Elburn. The PTOs handle the ordering and the bags, containing everything on the official classroom lists are delivered to the schools, for parents to pick up.

"We make sure that we carry the things from the local schools," he said. "We're ready for the crunch. When they can't find it anywhere else, they'll be here at 9 p.m."

Back to the books

School starts this morning for some students.

Starting today: West Aurora, Batavia, Geneva, Kaneland and Burlington Central school districts.

Starting Monday: Huntley

Aug. 27: Cary, Crystal Lake, Fox River Grove, St. Charles, Elgin (except kindergartners)

Aug. 28: Elgin kindergartners

Sept. 4: Dundee District 300