Carleton Washburne

Take Care and Be Well,

Andrew Fenton & Ben Horwitz

Carleton Washburne Principal & Assistant Principal

Students are always in need of skates for the Washburne skating parties. This year those parties are on Friday, December 20th. There are pairs to rent at the rink, but sometimes certain sizes are limited. We would love if families have extra or old skates that they are not using they could lend them to the RC for Friday, December 20th. They can bring them in anytime this week. Students who don't own skates can check them out, and we will keep track of the pairs for both 7th and 8th grade skating parties.

We will send them home after school on the 20th.

We have been happy with our implementation of Yondr pouches this school year. There is a noticeable difference within our building in terms of student focus and attention. As we head towards winter break, we want to remind everyone of our expectations regarding personal devices:

• All personal devices must be put in a student’s Yondr pouch prior to morning advisory.

• If students forget to bring their Yondr pouch to school, any personal devices must be turned into the office for the day.

• Students are responsible for keeping their Yondr pouches throughout the school year. If a pouch is lost, it must be replaced for a $35 fee.

• If your child does not bring personal devices to school, please make sure that your child’s advisor is aware.

Thank you for your help in implementing this new school procedure.

In this section we will be shining the spotlight on our Related Studies program and all the wonderful opportunities available to our Washburne students.

The Washburne 7th/8th grade strings have had a busy fall!

Back in October, several members of the band and orchestra auditioned for the ILMEA (Illinois Music Educators Association) Honors Band and Orchestra Festival. Two musicians were chosen to participate in the Festival on Nov. 2 at Wauconda High School. It was a fabulous day of music making!

On Tuesday, December 10, the Washburne Strings performed very successfully in their Winter Concert at Skokie School. Pieces performed were: Thundersnow by Katie O'Hara LaBrie, Themes from The Moldau by Bedrich Smetana, Arr by Robert Frost, Leap of Faith by Randy Sabien featuring the viola section and Secret World by Michael Hopkins. They also led the combined 5th, 6th and 7th/8th grade groups in a lovely performance of Canon in D by Johann Pachelbel. Great job, everyone!

Many students will now be preparing either solos or small ensembles to perform on Feb 8 in McHenry as part of IGSMA (Illinois Grade School Music Association) Solo/ Ensemble Competition.

We hope that everyone has a safe, relaxing and joyful holiday season!

Intramural Basketball registration is now live. This is Washburne's House League for basketball, and is open to any 7th or 8th grader who enjoys playing the sport. We will start with team formations days on Saturday, December 7 and December 14 from 12:00-1:30. We will begin the season after winter break. Games will be on Saturdays for an hour between 12pm-3pm.

Please contact Andy Becker at AndyBecker@winnetka36.org for more information.

The Dimension of Belonging featured in December is “Known” and monthly observances include Human Rights Month, Hannukah, and Christmas. Learn more by reading the Belonging Means… Newsletter which features contributions from The Skokie School and the Department of Communications, Safety & Security.

• Tuesday, December 17th: D36 School Board Meeting @ 7:15pm
• Monday, December 23rd - Friday, January 3rd: No School - Winter Break

In advance of holiday events, we strongly encourage all parents/family members to proactively make a visit to your school to get your ID (Driver’s License) registered in our Raptor System or fill out this form at your earliest convenience (one per guest). This system allows the District to conduct an immediate background check on visitors during school hours so we can ensure that all those within our school buildings are safe and clear to be there. This must be done for each event you are attending; previous Raptor registrations will not suffice for future events. By taking care of this in advance of a holiday event, you should experience a more efficient entry process. If you are unable to do this in advance, remember to bring your drivers license or state ID the day of the event and arrive at least 30 minutes prior to the event in order to register.

To expedite the process even further, please fill out this form (one per guest).

Kindergarten enrollment: Children who will be five-years-old on or before September 1, 2025, are eligible to enroll for Kindergarten.

School Admissions and age requirements are addressed in School Board Policy 7:50 School Admissions and student Transfers to and from Non-District Schools.

2-Step Process to complete registration:

• Step 1: Click here to begin the online new student registration process.

• Step 2: Contact Maria Perez via email marizperez@winnetka36.org or phone 847-446-9400 to schedule a time to drop-in with final verification documents.

Benchmark assessments are valuable tools that provide a snapshot of student progress at a point in time. These assessments help teachers to identify areas where students are excelling and where they may need additional support. They can also inform instructional decisions by providing data that can be used to tailor teaching to meet each student's unique needs and strengths. Benchmark assessments are an important component of progressive education, which recognizes that students learn in different ways and at different rates. By using benchmark assessments to inform instruction, teachers can provide a more individualized approach to learning that supports each student's academic growth and personal development.

Academic benchmark assessments for literacy and math will occur three times this year for students in grades K-8. The Winter Benchmark Assessments start on January 6th and conclude on January 24th. There are four platforms the district utilizes to gather student learning information; aimswebPlus, mCLASS, NWEA MAP, and SSIS. Benchmark data will be available in Otus beginning January 31, 2025. In order to allow for the data uploads to take place and to provide parents with consistent access to student data, please be aware that the Otus Parent Portal will be inaccessible January 6-January 30.

Building Data Team meetings to review the Winter Benchmarking data will occur February 3-14.

Otus Parent Resources

To keep everyone informed on what we are seeing around the district, we are sharing that a lot of students are currently getting diagnosed with pneumonia, flu, strep, and GI viruses. Please keep our health guidelines in mind when thinking of sending your child to school.

Everyone needs to be fever/vomiting/diarrhea free for 24 hours without the use of medication before returning to school.

The District offers regular sessions for families to learn more about a variety of topics.

View the entire 2024/2025 schedule here.

Up Next:

Acceleration Applications Overview with Assistant Superintendent of Innovation, Teaching and Learning Dr. Becky Mathison

January 15, 2025 at 9:30 AM

Location: Carleton Washburne School RC

Attend this session to understand accelerated programming options for students entered grades 3-8 during the 2025/26 school year. Time will be provided for attendees to begin the application for this process.

RSVP Link

Preschool/Kindergarten Family Information Night (with Winnetka Administration and Sue Stolzer, Early Childhood Assessment Team Lead from TrueNorth)

January 15, 2024 at 6:00 PM

Location: Greeley School

This informational session is intended for Winnetka parents of preschool students who will be attending The Winnetka Public Schools. Parents will learn more about the support and services that the District provides to current preschool students attending local preschool programming as well as what is available within our schools once a student enters kindergarten. Families will receive a preview of:

• The transition-to-Kindergarten process by Crow Island, Greeley and Hubbard Woods Principals,

• The resources available to families of current preschool students from the Department of Student Services, Equity and Inclusion

• Details on “Kindergarten Connection” which will take place in Summer 2024

• Highlights of a typical kindergarten day in The Winnetka Public Schools

We look forward to meeting new families at this event!

RSVP Link