HIGHCREST HEADLINES
November 10, 2023
A Message from the Administrative Team
We are looking forward to seeing our families virtually next week for our annual fall conferences. Please use this time with your child's teachers to learn about how they are progressing in school, and to ask any questions you might have about how to best support your child's learning and progress.
Hopefully you've had a chance to access your child's progress reports. They were made live earlier this week. The progress reports share information about how children are working toward standards. On those progress reports you will see marks of 1-4 for each of the standards addressed thus far in the year. More information about progress reporting at HMS is available HERE. Please note only learner behaviors and learning standards are marked at the progress reporting period, and letter grades are given at the semester (after 2nd quarter). Parents will have the opportunity to discuss the progress reports, students strengths, and opportunities for growth, at their upcoming conferences.
We are looking forward to next week's conferences Wednesday evening, Thursday all day, and Friday morning. As a reminder, there is no school on November 16 and 17, and the following week of Thanksgiving is our fall break. We will send a Highcrest Headlines update on Wednesday next week.
This year all of our conferences are on the Meet the Teacher video platform. You will receive a unique link via email for your child's conferences that you will use to conference with their teachers. Conferences are timed (5 or 10 minutes depending on the grade level and subject area) and will time out at the end of your selected time, so that the schedule is maintained.
Have a great weekend!
Kelly, Linda & Susie
Veterans Day at HMS
Today we celebrated our Veterans at Highcrest with a live broadcast where we remembered Veterans in our communities and families, and where we had the opportunity to listen to a special piece honoring our present and past service members, performed by the Hawk Orchestra. To see a recording of this morning's broadcast, please click HERE.
Lost and Found is OVERFLOWING!
The contents of the HMS Lost and Found are out in the lobby for students to stop by and see if anything they are missing has shown up there. Water bottles, lunch boxes, sweatshirts, and more!
Parents may stop by to check it out in the lobby next week (sign in through the office first). Everything left will be donated next Friday.
State of Illinois' Undesignated Emergency Asthma Medications Program
This serves as notification that Highcrest Middle School is participating in the State of Illinois' Undesignated Emergency Asthma Medications Program.
This program authorizes our school nurse to administer asthma medication (Albuterol) to anyone experiencing respiratory distress while at school. This program is available to all students, even those who do not have a formal asthma diagnosis. Albuterol is very safe and effective, it opens up the airways allowing air to move in and out of the lungs making it easier to breathe. It will be administered according to the guidelines established by the Illinois State Board of Education and any parent/guardian of a student receiving the medication will be notified immediately.
If you need additional information or you do not want your child to receive Albuterol during a respiratory emergency at school, please notify our school nurse,
Mary McLone, BSN, RN at mclonem@wilmette39.org.
STUDENT YEARBOOK PHOTOS - PLEASE READ
If your child missed both picture and retake day at Highcrest AND you want your child's picture in the yearbook, please reach out to Stuart Rodgers so you can make an appointment to have your student's photo taken at their Wilmette location. Pictures must be taken by 11/22 in
order for them to be included in the yearbook.WEBSITE: https://www.srphoto.com/
PHONE: 847-864-7322
WHMS LIVE...MONDAY BROADCAST!
Tune in Monday, September 11th for our first student-led LIVE broadcast of the school year. Every Monday (or the first day of the school week) at 8:52 am Highcrest students put on a live morning news broadcast. Each week a new homeroom is responsible for writing, producing, directing, filming and starring in WHMS News. Want to catch all the action? Please visit our WHMS News YouTube Page and subscribe to get alerts when we go live!
SEL NEWS
November is Native American Heritage Month, which is a great opportunity for all of us to pay tribute to the contributions, rich history and traditions of Native Americans across our country. District 39 is committed to providing a safe and equitable learning environment that fosters a mindset of empathy, respect, and belonging for all district students and staff. Learning about Native Americans in our community and beyond, helps us all to students and families about celebrate one another in our community throughout the year.
As a family, learning about traditions that are the same as, and different from your own helps your child increase their understanding of the world around them, and improves all of our ability to see many different perspectives. Enjoy reading a book together or check out one of the events taking place in Chicago to celebrate Native American Heritage Month.
Also celebrated this month is the Indian holiday Diwali, the Festival of Lights. Be sure to check out celebration planned at the Wilmette Public Library this Saturday, November 4, for activities and a celebration of Diwali. As a reminder, this calendar provides dates and information on many celebratory dates for students and staff of District 39.
DISTRICT 39 UPDATES
Parent-Teacher Conferences
The sign-up window for families to schedule parent-teacher conference appointments remains open. Families can sign up for conferences with their Meet the Teacher login credentials until Monday, Nov. 13 at 11:59 pm. As a reminder, Fall conferences will take place Nov. 15-17. Please visit our D39 webpage for more detailed instructions on how to book your appointment.
Parent Education Events
Thank you to all of our families who participated in one or both of our parent events this week. We were extremely grateful to have partnered with Wilmette Public Library for “An Evening with Grace Lin” on Tuesday night and with the Youth Services for our Wednesday evening presentation, “How Identities Are Impacting Students Today.” Please visit our Parent Education page for our full schedule of events, registration links, and archived recordings.
Board of Education Meetings
The Board of Education will gather on Monday, Nov. 13 at 7 pm at the Mikaelian Education Center. The Board will conduct a public hearing on the 2023 tax levy immediately before transition to its regular business meeting. During its meeting, the Board will review our long term enrollment projections in addition to conducting the second and final reading of several Board policies and hearing committee reports. Agendas and materials for all Board of Education meetings will be posted here the Friday prior to the meeting.
5th Grade Enrichment
Fifth grade Latin students took a field trip to the Museum of Science and Industry last week to view the Pompeii exhibit. The students viewed interesting artifacts and asked many questions to learn more about this ancient disaster. Their teacher, Magistra Carlson, was able to make many educational connections to the Latin language with them. The PTO iGNITE fund for enrichment funded the entrance fees for students. In D39, parents pay for enrichment, not the district. Thank you to the parents who have donated to iGNITE!
Join us for the third annual College Paddle Night!
Grab some friends, sport your favorite college-themed gear, and join us for a fun night of paddle! Enjoy great raffle prizes, food, beverages, and some friendly competition. All skill levels are welcome. Similarly leveled players will be matched together in a rotating round-robin style tournament. Don't miss out on the fun!
Where: A.C. Nielsen Paddle Hut
When: January 27, 2024 from 7PM-11PM
Tickets: Available December 13, 2023 at 10am for $75/person at d39foundation.org.
Pass 39 Kids Connect: please bring your kiddos to our last outdoor playground event of the year.
November 12, 2pm -4pm at McKenzie school playground.
If your child has an IEP or 504, or you have questions about whether they may need one, please bring your kids to play and meet others while meeting some of our pass 39 reps and learn more about how we help advocate for our district’s kids.
CRC Representative for Highcrest
The District 39 Community Review Committee (CRC) is seeking to fill their committee with one representative from Highcrest. The CRC advises the District 39 Board of Education by researching a relevant topic that will lead to improvements in the district. The position requires attending monthly meetings October through June to develop a topic and recommendations to present to the district. Meetings are scheduled from 7:00 pm to 8:30 p.m. on the first or second Tuesday of each month. You can learn more about the CRC here.
Volunteer Opportunities
There are so many ways to get involved at Highcrest! See links below to sign-up:
School Store - Hawk Hut sign-ups are available on Wednesdays during lunch
Lunch Duty - Volunteer to help with lunch on Tuesdays, Thursdays or Fridays
Order Your Yearbook!
Yearbooks are available to order now. Click here to order your 2023-2024 HMS yearbook!
HMS Spiritwear
Your Highcrest PTO is thrilled to announce our new spirit wear partnership with humanKIND, locally owned by a D39 Alum! Order featured items OR create your own! Local pickup available at no additional cost. Check it out by scanning the QR code below or click here.