Dr. Howard Elementary School

Champaign Unit 4 School District wants to hear from you!

Today, Unit 4 launched a districtwide Communications Survey to hear from students, staff, families and community members. What communication is working well and what needs improvement? Let us know by clicking the links below.

The survey will take 10-15 minutes to complete and is anonymous. The deadline to complete the survey is November 23. Your voice matters and your feedback is our future!

Staff, Family, and Community Survey: https://edu.sogolytics.com/r/CIsg9m

High School Student Survey: https://edu.sogolytics.com/r/XCPrjH

From Hogwarts to the Hundred Acre Wood, Dr. Howard Elementary was filled with storybook magic during our Storybook Parade! High fives to all of our amazing students and staff for bringing their favorite books off the pages and into the hallways. 📚🎉

Big congratulations to Sarah Iehl and Lisa Nelson! Check out these smiles as they were presented with grant checks from the CU Schools Foundation. Thank you, CU Schools Foundation, for your incredible generosity and dedication to our community!

Field trip success! 🌿 Our 3rd graders traded their desks for the great outdoors today to study ecosystems up close. We love seeing our Dr. Howard Owls make connections between habitats, adaptations, and natural resources in their own environment.

Hats off to our Dr. Howard Owls for making Tuesday’s Hat Day so much fun! 🦉🧢

Who says Mondays are hard? We rolled out of bed and straight into school spirit at Dr. Howard! 😴📚

🍂 Fall Break is almost here! 🍂

Here is a quick look at our upcoming schedule:

📋 Thursday, October 8 & Friday, October 9: Parent-Teacher Conferences (No school for students).

🏫 Monday, October 12: All school and administrative buildings will be CLOSED for Fall Holiday.

🍁 October 12–16: FALL BREAK! Enjoy a restful and safe week off.

We look forward to connecting with families during conferences and hope everyone has a wonderful break! See you back in class soon.

3-Day Spirit Week at Dr Howard starts TOMORROW!!

We are excited to invite Dr Howard families to our 2026–2027 Fall Family Conferences. This is a great opportunity to connect, celebrate your child's success, and work together to support their journey!

Unlocking new worlds and solving ciphers! 🔍📚 We loved hosting author Laura Ruby as part of the Youth Literature Festival. Our 4th and 5th graders were spellbound as she took us inside the world of York and inspired our next generation of storytellers. Thank you for an unforgettable visit, Laura! 🌟

The Hoot and Scoot is today but it's not too late to donate! Donations can come directly to the school or use the link below 🦉🎉 https://my.cheddarup.com/c/drhowardpta2026

Solid, liquid, or somewhere in between? 🧪 Our students explored the properties of materials by creating and testing slime!

Evaporation, condensation, precipitation & a whole lot of creativity! Check out how these second graders brought the water cycle to life! ☁️☀️💧

We are so proud of our very first Dream Chasers of the Month! 🌟 These Dr. Howard students were celebrated at our school assembly for their hard work, personal growth, and commitment to reaching their Hopes and Dreams. We can't wait to see who our next Dream Chasers will be next month!

New tools, new strategies, and plenty of teamwork! Watching these 1st graders step up to try something new is where the real math magic happens!

Ready to unlock your inner superstar? 🌟 Fall registration for Girls on the Run at Dr. Howard (3rd–5th grade) is open!

Practices: Tue/Thu, 2:45–4:00 PM (Sept 8–Nov 8)

Deadline: Sept 5

Register: www.girlsontherunofchampaigncounty.org

Feeding Our Kids Weekend Backpack Food Program: Helping make weekends a little easier for our students and families!

Dr. Howard is pleased to partner with Feeding Our Kids, local organizations, and community volunteers to provide a weekly Friday food program for families who may benefit from additional food support over the weekend.

The program provides a small bag of nutritious, easy-to-prepare foods that will be placed in your child's backpack at the end of each school week. The food is provided at no cost to families and is intended to remain in your child's backpack until they arrive home.

Participation is completely voluntary and is intended to provide additional support to families who may find it helpful.

Interested in participating or have questions?
Please reach out to Mr. Boyd, School Social Worker, at boydje@u4sd.org for more information or to request a participation form.

New year, new faces, same Owl pride! 🎉 Welcome to Dr. Howard. Happy first day to our newest Owls!! We are thrilled to have you on the team and looking forward to watching you soar all year long!

It’s owl-ficially go-time! 🦉✨ We loved seeing our K–5 families, community partners and educators fill the halls last night. Let’s make this school year one for the books! 📚 🎉