Carleton Washburne

It was awesome to see our halls filled with students, and to hear the excitement that comes with the start of a new school year. It was a great first week at Washburne, and we look forward to welcoming parents into the building next Wednesday 9/18 for our annual Go To School Night. As students are taking advantage of the nice weather and walking and riding their bikes to school, we wanted to take a minute to relay some safety guidelines for our bike riders and walkers.

Thank you in advance to our families for helping us reinforce the following practices:

• understanding the importance of using caution and following all traffic signals

• wearing a helmet while riding a bike, skateboard or scooter

• being respectful to pedestrians while riding on the sidewalk, and

• walking bikes through crosswalks.

We also wanted to share revised procedures for parents dropping off materials and students wearing lanyards.

Office Drop-Off Procedures

We will be implementing new procedures for parents who need to drop off items, such as iPads, lunches, or homework, at school during school hours. If you are dropping off an item for your child, you will be buzzed into the outer foyer of our building. We have a table set up where items can be left. There are post-it notes and pens on the table if you need to label the item for your child. We will no longer be buzzing parents into the office if you are dropping off an item during school hours.

Lanyards

All students were provided with a Washburne lanyard on the first day of school. For safety and security reasons, students are required to wear this lanyard during the school day.

If your child leaves the lanyard at home, we will provide a temporary one for them to wear that day. If the lanyard is lost, a replacement lanyard must be purchased for $1. Please help remind your child to bring their lanyard to school each day.

Thank you for your partnership as we work together to create a safe environment for our students, staff and families.

Take Care and Be Well,

Andrew Fenton & Ben Horwitz

Carleton Washburne Principal & Assistant Principal

Homework Club starts on Tuesday, September 10, after school in the Washburne Resource Center from 3:30-5:00pm. Homework Club will be available all year on Tuesdays, Wednesdays (new this year!), and Thursdays. It's a great opportunity to get things done while still at school. Drop in to finish some homework or get help from a teacher. All are welcome and there are no sign-ups required. Stay until five or leave when finished. Reach out to Ms. Nelson with any questions.

Student Leadership is excited to begin another year of supporting the Washburne school community! The first meeting of the 2024-2025 school year will be on Wednesday, September 11, at 7:45 AM in the main office conference room. Student voice is an important part of Washburne and this is a great opportunity for students to participate in creating a strong school community and a fun way to get involved. Please contact Mr. Hovis, Ms. Eisen, or Ms. Nelson with any questions.

Washburne’s Go to School Night is Wednesday, September 18th from 6:00-8:10 pm. Parents will get to meet their child’s advisor, follow their electives schedule, and hear from all of their child’s core teachers in a group presentation. The evening will begin with a presentation by Dr. Fenton and Mr. Horwitz in the Washburne gyms. All families should use the Elm Street entrance pictured below to enter the building to start the evening.

Parents will receive a copy of their child’s schedule in advisory. Listed below is the general schedule for the evening.

Picture Day at Washburne is Wednesday, September 18th. Students will take their photos during the school day.

Weather permitting, all grade levels will have their pictures taken outside this year.

Dress:

8th Grade: This is a formal, graduation picture. Students are recommended to wear a dark sports jacket, a white or pastel shirt, and a tie –or-- a dark top and a simple piece of jewelry.

7th Grade: More casual attire is permitted. In general, darker clothing shows well, and shirts with collars are better than those without.

Retakes: Picture retakes will be held on October 24th. Retakes will not be allowed for cosmetic reasons (new hair styles, no braces, new outfits, etc.). They will be permitted for photographic mistakes, such as double exposure, closed eyes, etc., and absences.

Students at Washburne will complete MAP testing on Thursday, September 19th and Friday, September 20th. Please ensure that your student brings their fully charged iPad to school these days and is prepared for testing.

Please click here to view information regarding the use of student personal technology at Washburne for the 2024-25 school year.

Washburne has four entrance locations for students in the morning based on their advisory. Please see the image below for specific entrance locations, and keep in mind the following guidelines regarding our entrance procedures:

• Students should not be dropped off prior to 8:10 AM.

• Doors will open at 8:20 AM so that students can drop off items in their lockers before heading to advisory.

• The school day begins at 8:30 AM. Any students who arrive after 8:30 will need to enter through the main entrance and sign in at the office.

• Please remember that Oak St. is one way, westbound, between 8:00AM-4:00PM.

• If dropping off a student on Oak, please make sure to drop them off on the north side of the street.

• If you are dropping off your child on Elm St., please use the south side of the street. Doing so will prevent students from needing to cross the road at a busy time and prevent accidents.

Due to an increasing number of students with food allergies, schools must be extremely careful regarding food items brought into the school building and classrooms. In order to provide a safe and healthy environment NO FOOD treats will be allowed for birthday celebrations or classroom/advisory parties.

Quest Food Management Services, Inc. is the food service provider for the Carleton Washburne Cafeteria. The school district has partnered with mymealtime.com, a convenient and secure online service for monitoring your student's lunch account and making credit or debit card deposits.

Please visit the following link for more information: Washburne Lunch Webpage.

Update for the 2024-25 school year:

Parents will receive an email when the child's account goes below $10.00. A student is allowed to overdraw their account up to $25.00. Once it goes below -$25.00, My MealTime will not allow the cashiers to ring out any more items on credit. At this point, families must deposit additional funds or the child must have cash to purchase food.

In addition, families who do not already have accounts created will receive an email from the district this week with login information. If you have any questions, please contact Margie Karabas at 847-501-2527 or margiekarabas@winnetka36.org.

All students should have the supplies listed in this LINK, either ordered as a kit through our PTO or purchased on your own. Please know that it is okay if students do not bring every item to school on the very first day. Our teachers will communicate with students regarding expectations for managing school supplies on the first day.

The PTO and the KW teams at Skokie and Washburne are excited to continue our partnership with New Trier High School’s One Stop Trev Shop! The One Stop Trev Shop is an innovative job training/life skills program for New Trier’s Transition Program students. Please CLICK HERE for more information on how to order your KW uniform.

• Wednesday, September 18th: Washburne Picture Day

• Wednesday, September 18th: Washburne Go to School Night 6:00pm - 8:10pm.

• Thursday & Friday, September 19th-20th: Fall MAP Testing

• Tuesday, September 24th: Coffee with the Principal 9:00am-10:00am.

The District offers regular sessions for families to learn more about a variety of topics. Join us on September 11 for our first event, focusing on Literacy Programming in our schools. View the entire 2024/2025 schedule here.

Insights on K-8 Literacy Programming in The Winnetka Public Schools

September 11, 2024

Time: 9:30 AM

Location: Carleton Washburne School RC

Dr. Becky Mathison (Assistant Superintendent of Innovation, Teaching and Learning), will conduct a session to learn about the new literacy materials that were selected, why they were chosen, and what to expect this year.

Interested:

RSVP here

Feedback Link

The District’s Green Team will be hosting a kickoff event on September 13 at 3:30-4:00 pm at the Washburne Amphitheater. All current and interested Green Team members District-wide are invited to attend and hear more about our vision for this school year. Did we mention there will be popsicles? Please RSVP here if you plan to attend so we know how many to purchase.

As part of The Winnetka Public Schools' ongoing commitment to equity by fostering connection and belonging, our schools will take time each month to recognize the contributions of people of diverse backgrounds. Observances will look different at all schools and even at different grade levels. Some activities might include art, music, book studies, research projects, sharing cultural holidays and celebrations, and other school activities.

For the month of September we are celebrating Latin X Heritage Month as well as Patriot’s Day. More information is included below…

In September, we celebrate LatinX Heritage Month in the United States each year. This tradition began in 1968, when President Lyndon B. Johnson issued a proclamation to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Week. The dates for LatinX Heritage Month were chosen to coincide with the Independence Day celebrations of many Latin American nations when they declared independence from Spain.

During LatinX Heritage Month, we celebrate the countless contributions that Hispanic Americans have made to our nation. We also take this time to recognize the trailblazing individuals who fought for progress and equity for their communities. Throughout this month, teachers will incorporate this into their classrooms with age and grade appropriate materials. In addition, our library will be sharing some resources for families at home. You can access two of the resources here:

• Families can learn more about LatinX Heritage Month here.

• You can access our library collection via Destiny here: Destiny Collection

As a school, we will also celebrate Patriot’s Day on September 11th. Patriot’s Day is a national day of remembrance for those who lost their lives on September 11th, 2001. In the morning, our school will take a moment of silence when we complete the Pledge of Allegiance as a school community.

We are excited to share a new resource with parents this year that will enable them to receive a weekly email sharing their student’s web activity using their school account. An introductory video can be viewed here. For a detailed overview of the capabilities and how to get started, watch this video. You can expect to receive an email by September 3 inviting you to download the Securly Home app.

Additional resources:

• Home App Walkthrough .pdf

• Securly’s Standard Filtering Categories

Download the District’s app by searching “The Winnetka Public Schools” on the Apple App Store and the Google Play Store. The app will serve as a convenient way to report absences, view and manage your school calendars, and see at-a-glance District news.

Please follow the District via the following social media platforms in order to see day-to-day happenings and more.

Facebook and Twitter: @Winnetka36

Instagram: @WinnetkaPublicSchools