Fremont Focus

As part of our Strategic Plan, FSD79 is collaborating with professional learning partner The Reading League on evidence-based literacy practices. Tuesday night, District staff and Ryan Buggy of The Reading League teamed up for a virtual Parent University presentation to further help inform families on how we are implementing these practices at Fremont. If you missed Tuesday’s presentation, please watch the recording below. You may also access the presentation slidedeck here.

If you do not have time to view the entire video, we encourage you to tune in around the 44:47 mark where Ryan shares some specific guidance for caregivers on how they can support literacy development at home.

Please read the following newsletter for detailed information, but here is a summary of key dates for quick access:

• November 13 - Early Release Schedule (MS dismissed at 2:13 p.m.; ES/IS dismissed at 3:08 p.m.)
• November 15 - PTO Reading Rally, 6:00 p.m. (Intermediate School)
• November 15 - Lincoln Institute Day (Students Not In Attendance - Lincoln only)
• November 18 - Board of Education meeting (live stream), 7:00 p.m. (Middle School Media Center)
• November 20 - Early Release Schedule (MS dismissed at 2:13 p.m.; ES/IS dismissed at 3:08 p.m.)
• November 20 - Soup with the Supt., 5:15 p.m. (Middle School; RSVP form)
  
• November 20 - PTO Meeting, 6:00 p.m. (Middle School Media Center)
• November 25 - Parent/Teacher Conferences (Students Not In Attendance)
• November 26-29 - Thanksgiving Break (Students Not In Attendance)
• December 4 - Early Release Schedule (MS dismissed at 2:13 p.m.; ES/IS dismissed at 3:08 p.m.)

Since January 2024, a Steering Committee has been working diligently to develop a 20-year Educational Long-Range Facility Plan as we create a roadmap for the future of our FSD79 facilities. Following community and staff feedback forums last month, the Steering Committee is set to present its recommended plan to the Board of Education at its November 18 meeting. For more information on the Board meeting, including a live-stream link, please see the meeting preview below.

It is always an honor to recognize those who are serving or have served our country in the military. FSD79 schools hosted a series of assemblies in recognition of Veterans Day. Please see below for a video and a photo gallery.

Thank you to everyone who has listened to and subscribed to our new podcast, "Fremont Leads." Hosted by Fremont Middle School teacher Jacki Mjoen, this series features interviews with our outstanding student leaders.

Our latest episode is now live and features a look at a terrific project that Fremont Middle School students participated in to help recognize veterans on Veterans Day. Subscribe via any of the platforms below so that you don't miss an episode!

Spotify | Apple Podcasts | Amazon Music | YouTube Music | iHeartRadio

Since January 2024, the Social Emotional Learning (SEL) Committee has been dedicated to creating the Portrait of a Graduate (POG), which is directly aligned with the FSD79 Strategic Plan and focuses on fostering a Safe, Healthy, and Connected Culture. The SEL Committee, is developing desired student competencies as part of the Portrait of a Graduate for all students from Pre-K to 8th grade. The committee developed a brief survey to gather staff, students, and parent/guardian feedback about the Portrait of a Graduate.

Please take a few minutes to complete the Portrait of a Graduate Survey. The committee will examine the survey data to verify the Portrait of a Graduate reflects our shared values.

Our committed Fremont mental health team, consisting of our social workers, counselors, and school psychologists, has developed a Family Resources document. This page is accessible on our website and is designed to provide valuable support for all of our families. The resources found in this document include counseling and mental health support, special recreation programs, child care information, community resources, and more. We encourage our families to utilize this resource as needed.

The next meeting of the Fremont School District 79 Board of Education will be held Monday, November 18 at 7:00 p.m. at the Fremont Middle School Media Center. Prior to the regular meeting, a public hearing is being held regarding paving repairs to school grounds. The agenda will include the following recognition(s) and presentation(s):

• Recognition: Board President Gabriela Whipple (10 years of service)
  
• Presentations: Recommendation of Educational Long-Range Facility Plan

A live video stream of the meeting will be available via the District’s YouTube page. The stream will go live shortly before the start of the meeting. Recaps of previous Board meetings can be found here. The Board meeting agenda and materials can be accessed here. Board materials are available by noon on November 18.

As part of our Parent University programming, FSD79 and the Fremont PTO will be co-sponsoring a Parent Book Club event on New York Times #1 Bestseller, “The Anxious Generation” by Jonathan Haidt. We will be hosting a one-night discussion on the book on February 11, 2025. For more information on the book club event, please visit our table at this Friday’s Reading Rally. Additional information will be shared with families in the near future. Secure your physical or audio copy of the book now to prepare for the discussion.

Registration for Wednesday Right at School for Fremont K-5 students for January 8, 2025, through the end of the school year will open on November 18 and will remain open through December 13. An email will be sent to families on November 18 once registration is live.

Fremont School District 79 earned recognition from the Illinois Chapter of the National School Public Relations Association (INSPRA) with four awards at this year’s state conference. The District received the Award of Excellence for the 2024 Financial Report as well as the Award of Merit for the Fremont Digest mailed newsletter, the Fremont Feature video series, and the District Informational Sheet. Fremont remains committed to frequent and transparent communication with our community.

As a District, we are now in year three of full District implementation of standards-based grading practices and we wanted to reshare and highlight the SBG principles that are core to our work in this area. We highlighted three of our principles in the October 16 edition of the Fremont Focus. Here are our next three.

Principle 4 - Not Everything Should be Included in Grades

What does this mean for my child(ren)? Students should not be penalized for early attempts in learning. Students are not graded as they are learning the information, but after the learning has occurred. Students need to have enough "practice" in order to be successful.

Principle 5 - Avoid Grading Based on (Mean) Averages

What does this mean for my child(ren)? A student should not be penalized for their early attempts to demonstrate learning and a teacher should not be limited in their ability to communicate student growth and attainment of learning targets. When reporting student progress on a standard, teachers can use any and all evidence to gauge a student’s progress. Averaging and algorithms are unnecessary in reporting whether or not a student has mastered a standard.

Principle 6 - Focus on Achievement, and Report Other Factors Separately

What does this mean for my child(ren)? A student’s academic achievement should be the only aspect included in their academic grade. For example, a student’s math grades should reflect their math achievement. Other important behaviors, such as completing tasks on time and organizational skills, during math should be reported separately. These behaviors are of the utmost importance to their success and should be explicitly, and separately, communicated in their habits of success category.

Our goal is for you to see these principles in action as we continue on our standards-based grading implementation journey together. Stay tuned for additional communications and feel free to visit our Standards-Based Grading webpage for further information.

MARK YOUR CALENDARS!

The Fremont PTO would love to see you at our meetings this year! Meetings are on the third Wednesday of the month in the Middle School Den at 6:00 p.m. Our next meeting is on November 20.

Childcare services for children ages 3+ will be provided at ALL of our upcoming PTO meetings. Please use the form below to let us know if you will be bringing a child to the meeting. It is not required to RSVP; however, we ask that you please do so if you plan to take advantage of childcare. Care will be provided by Fremont Middle School students for individuals ages 3 and up.

RSVP Form for childcare: https://forms.gle/ceerdTKn7Pa51mVt7

Here is the list of all meeting dates for the 2024-2025 school year.

To stay in the know of what Fremont PTO is up to, follow and tag us on social media:

Instagram: @fremontpto

Facebook: Fremont PTO

WINTER CLASS PARTY HOST SIGNUP
Sign up now to volunteer to be a Party Host at the Winter class parties! Winter parties will be held on Friday, December 20. Party Times are as follows: Kindergarten Classes: Lindley, Martinelli & Van Reck 10:30-11:15 AM; Kindergarten Classes: Eddy, Goldman, Hay, Hoehne, Perna, Sherman, & Kastein and Grades 1st - 5th Grade 2:00 PM - 2:45 PM; Lincoln AM 9:45 - 10:15 AM; Lincoln PM 2:00 - 2:30 PM

Each class party is designated 3 Party Hosts. If more than 3 parents sign up for a classroom party, volunteers will be chosen at random. Please note: All remaining parents who have not been assigned to host a party will not be invited to attend the party.

The sign-up will close on November 15. Volunteers who are chosen to be party hosts for the Winter parties will be notified on November 20.

HAPPY LITTLE FLAME CANDLE FUNDRAISER

Thank you for supporting FSD79 with your purchases from Happy Little Flame! Candles will be ready for pickup from their retail store on November 20!

READING RALLY AND BOOK FAIR
Join Us for a Cozy Night of Storytelling on Friday, November 15 at 6 p.m. at the Intermediate School! Come in your favorite pajamas and enjoy listening to our teachers and staff read their favorite stories. Attend four engaging read-aloud sessions with teachers located around the school. Don't forget to drop by the Wildcat Cave and grab a new bedtime story at the book fair (open until 8 p.m.).

SHOP. SCAN. EARN.
Forget the scissors - Box Tops for Education has gone digital! Simply download the Box Tops for Education app (see www.boxtops4education.com for more info), select Fremont School District 79 (in Mundelein, IL) as your beneficiary, and you're all set! Enter the code H02P2R0D when you register for bonus points. Then simply scan your receipts after shopping, and watch the points (and $$) add up for our schools!

PTO MEMBERSHIP/ONLINE DIRECTORY FOR 2024-2025 SCHOOL YEAR

If you already have an account in Membership Toolkit, thank you for creating and/or updating your Membership Toolkit account last year.

If you don't have an account in Membership Toolkit, set it up now for free! Once you have created an account in Membership Toolkit your child will appear in the online directory immediately (that's if you choose to do so). To create an account, go to fsd79.membershiptoolkit.com and follow the directions in the attached form (Online Student Directory Set Up Instructions 2024-2025).

To gain access to the Online Student Directory your account must be active and you must pay the $15 PTO Membership Family Fee. If you paid your PTO Membership fee through your TeacherEase account before June 15th, your payment has been confirmed and you currently have access to the Online Student Directory. If you didn’t pay your PTO Membership Family Fee before June 15th, you can pay the $15 PTO Membership Family fee thru Venmo @Fremont-PTO; or by bringing or sending the attached form with your cash payment or check made payable to Fremont PTO to any school front office. The option to pay the PTO Membership Fee thru your TeacherEase account is no longer available. Once we receive confirmation of your payment, we will give you access to the online directory. Please note it may take up to one week to be granted access to the online directory.

Don't forget to download the FREE Membership Toolkit app to your smartphone-search "Membership Toolkit" in your app store.

BIRTHDAY BOARD

Celebrate your Fremont Student's special day! "Happy Birthday, Your Child's Name" can appear on the Fremont Electronic Message Board. Just complete the Birthday Board Request Google Form 2024-2025; or complete the birthday board form and send it back to any school front office with your $5 payment per birthday message. If you have any questions, please contact Christie Johnson at cjohnson@fsd79.org.

Please visit the PTO webpage for the most up-to-date information.

FSD79 offers local groups and organizations the opportunity to advertise their upcoming events in the Virtual Backpack. To submit your group's event for consideration, please submit a PDF flyer to publicrelations@fsd79.org. Check back regularly for upcoming offerings.

• Lake County Stallions Wrestling
• Libertyville Wildcats Youth Sports Girls Wrestling
• Mundelein SC Soccer
• Ela Soccer Club
  
• Stevenson HS Free 8th-Grade Master Dance Class
• Chicago Wolves Fall Reading Challenge
• CLC Latinx Series
• Stevenson HS Community Education (PREP) Programs
• Special Gifts Theatre

The next edition of the Fremont Focus will be distributed on Wednesday, December 4. This will be in addition to the weekly e-newsletters sent on Fridays from principals at the school level.

Address: 28855 North Fremont Center Road, Mundelein, IL

Phone: (847) 566-0169

Website: fsd79.org

Facebook: facebook.com/FremontSchoolDistrict79

Twitter: @FSD79

Instagram: @FSD79

YouTube: youtube.com/FSD79