hicago's teachers union and the nation's third-largest school district are now hopeful that a strike, which has resulted in 350,000 children being left without classrooms, will end soon. "Plan for something for your children tomorrow and let's hope for something (an agreement) Friday," said a cheerful Karen Lewis, the teachers union president, following Wednesday's late-night talks. "We made a lot of progress. We are definitely coming much closer." Still, no deal has been reached and strikes will enter their fourth day on Thursday. The city's mayor, Rahm Emanuel, is pushing for a longer school day and year, and wants to judge teachers based on student performance on standardized tests.