HIGHCREST HEADLINES
November 1, 2024
A Message from the Administrative Team
This week marks the end of the first quarter at Highcrest, and our teachers will be putting the finishing touches on progress reports by next Friday (11/8) when they will be made available to parents and families.
Progress reports at Highcrest include two components:
1. Information about the behaviors your child is exhibiting as a learner: Engaged Learner, Prepared Learner and Self-Directed Learner. These are marked with a 3 (consistently showing this behavior), 2 (sometimes showing this behavior), or 1 (seldom showing this behavior). For more information, click HERE.
2. Information about your child's progress toward the standards for each content area. These vary by content area and are marked with a number indicating 3 (meeting standard), 2.5 (approaching the standard), 2 (developing proficiency), 1 (experiencing difficulty with the standard), and in some cases a 4 (extending or applying the standard independently). For more information, click HERE.
Progress reports do not contain letter grades. Those are a summative mark that are given at the semester only. Teachers will review your child's progress in all area at conferences in a few weeks.
Please go to THIS WEBSITE to learn more information about Highcrest Progress Reporting.
Have a wonderful weekend,
Kelly, Linda, and Susie
NEW PROCEDURES FOR LEAVING THE CLASSROOM
To start the year we reviewed hallway and classroom expectations for behavior, and now as we continue into this quarter, students have been learning about a new process we will be using for leaving the classroom for water, locker, or bathrooms. Students will utilize their iPad to sign out instead of signing out with paper and pencil.
Benefits of this new process include:
Increasing student safety - we will know where students are in a consistent way
Limiting impact on instruction - students no longer will have to ask to leave the room
Fostering student independence and accountability
The tool that we will be using for this new process is called "Securly Pass." It is a digital pass system that allows students to check in and out of class efficiently, and helps students to self-monitor how often they are out of the classroom. HERE is more information about the application itself. This application is already in place at WJHS, and they have seen a lot of success with it.
Starting Monday, all students will use Securly Pass in order to leave the classroom for bathroom, locker or water fountain visits. In addition to the use of passing periods and lunch/recess time, each student will have 3 daily passes, with an option for a teacher-created pass in case of emergency. There are exceptions to this system for students with specific accommodations and students can and should still use the passing period to go to the restroom, stop by their lockers or fill their water bottles. In addition, students can use the restroom without Securly Pass during lunch and PE classes. We have reviewed these procedures with students during the day today and will continue to review in the coming weeks.
SEL NEWS - NOVEMBER
As we look to November we look forward to the many holidays that occur duing this upcoming season. Friday, November 1 begins the Indian holiday of Diwali, the Festival of Lights. It celebrates the triumph of light over darkness and good over evil. Happy Diwali to all of our families celebrating.
Thanksgiving, which occurs later this month, is a wonderful time to celebrate our families. The theme that we observe in November across the district is “Our Families are Important.” We encourage our students to share about their families, their family traditions, and what makes their family special to them.
Families and the community are also a crucial part of the social-emotional development of our students. While we have lessons about understanding our emotions, building relationships, understanding others’ perspectives, and making good choices and decisions, these lessons at school alone, are not as effective as they are when supported at home by the families that surround our children. Spend time as a family over this month celebrating one another, and engaging in activities that are fun! The Wilmette Public Library has regular events for families, and check out this list of opportunities to spend time together by catching a show, apple or pumpkin picking, heading to a museum and more!
DISTRICT 39 UPDATES
Parent/Teacher Conferences
Fall parent/teacher conferences will take place on Nov. 20-22, immediately preceding Fall Break (Thanksgiving Week). Families will receive an email today from District 39 with their Meet the Teacher login credentials to sign-up for parent-teacher conferences. The sign-up window for families to schedule their parent-teacher conference appointments will open on Monday, Nov. 4. Please visit our D39 webpage for more information.
Parent Education Event – Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging Monthly Themes
Join us for our next Parent Education event titled “Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB) Monthly Themes in Literature,” scheduled for Wednesday, Nov. 6 at 11 am via Zoom. DEIB monthly themes supported through reading help us come together to build welcoming spaces where students can share ideas and ask questions. Learn more about this topic from our D39 librarians and professionals from the Wilmette Public Library. Online registration for this event is now open. Please visit our Parent Education webpage for our full schedule of events as well as archived recordings of past events.
Board of Education Meeting
The Board of Education met on Monday night for its monthly business meetings. During this meeting, the Board was presented with Spring 2024 Illinois Assessment of Readiness data and updated key performance indicators for Goals 2, 3, and 4 of our D39 Strategic Plan. Additionally, the Board approved the estimated tax levy for 2024, bid for WJHS air conditioning work scheduled for summer 2025 and an updated Intergovernmental Agreement with the Village of Wilmette. Agendas and materials for all Board of Education meetings are posted online the Friday prior to the meeting.
Help Fund Your Child’s Enrichment: Donate to iGNITE
Please consider donating to iGNITE. The Highcrest iGNITE program raises funds to pay for enrichment programs such as field trips and school assemblies and contributes to enhancements to our schools directly related to our students such as outdoor learning environments and athletic equipment. These activities and resources are 100% funded by the Highcrest iGNITE fund. Click HERE to fund your child’s enrichment activities.
There were multiple enrichment activities in October. In mid/late October our 6th graders went on a field trip to Heller Nature Center where they participated in the Teams Course - made up of a series of thought-provoking puzzles and challenges that can only be solved by working as a cohesive group. (5th graders will be going on their field trip in the spring). On Oct 31, 5th and 6th grade students all partook in enrichment activities. 5th graders had assemblies with Matt Wilhelm, a BMX rider who combines BMX tricks with an anti-bullying program. 6th graders enjoyed the visit from Joey FineRhyme who has a unique approach of merging STEM education with “Raptivism” - original rap music used to educate and inspire environmental action.
These enrichment activities were only made possible by donations from our families. Thank you to all the families that have donated so far. If you have not donated yet, please consider donating to iGNITE so that we can maintain our enrichment programs.
Nov. 7 Mom’s Comedy Night Out - Ticket Sales Open!
Join the Highcrest PTO for a mom's night out. It will be an evening of fun and laughter. Light bites and wine/beer will be served.
Date: Thursday, November 7
Schedule: Doors Open at 6:30 pm Show: 7:30 pm-8:45 pm
Location: Woman’s Club of Wilmette | 930 Greenleaf Ave, Wilmette
Cost: $50 (limited to 100 tickets)
All proceeds will go toward Highcrest Enrichment.
Click HERE for tickets to this event.
Snacks Needed!
We need help stocking the teachers' lounge for our awesome staff! We need a lot more sign-ups this month! Please click here to sign up!
November: Grade 6th, House 3 (Heyde, Flintz, Eakley, Facchini)
December: 6th Grade House 4 (Bishop, Resis, Everhart, Flanigan)
Spiritwear - Available at Humankind!
HMS has spirit days throughout the year--show your Hawks pride with some swag! Available online at Humankind!