HMS Headlines
November 16, 2022
A Message from Our Administrative Team
Dear HMS Families,
As we begin these next few days of conferencing, and prepare for next week's Thanksgiving celebrations, we want to take a moment and share our gratitude to you, our community, for your continued support, partnership, and engagement through this school year. From treats during conferences (thanks, PTO!) to notes of support, to volunteering in the lunch room, you all make Highcrest an amazing place for all of our staff and students.
We wish you a wonderful Thanksgiving, and hope you have a week full of family, friends, and food!
Take care,
Kelly, Linda, and Susie
CONFERENCE INFORMATION
Conferences start this evening at Highcrest, and continue all day tomorrow and on Friday morning.
As a reminder, there is no school on Thursday or Friday this week, and next week students have off for Thanksgiving break.
Unless you have arranged an in-person conference, all conferences will be on Zoom. HERE is a page with links for you to save and access as you meet with your child's teachers.
If you like, linked HERE is a worksheet you can fill out with your child's help to copy and paste the links you need so they are there at your fingertips when you are ready to conference. You will have to know the names of the teachers and the schedule of your meetings with them to make sure you are there are the right time.
As you prepare for your Zoom conferences, here are a few tips be sure you have Zoom set up on the device you will be using, and if you have any difficulty with Zoom, please reach out to the Zoom Help Center at any time.
If you were not able to schedule a conference or missed the link to do so, please reach out to the main office (847-512-6500) and they will work with you to see what can be set up. Please keep in mind, we are not able to schedule day-of conferences (i.e. if you call today, you will need to schedule for Thursday or Friday).
6th Grade Technology Safety Presentation
LOST AND FOUND
We are donating items from our Lost and Found on Friday afternoon, the 18th of November. Please come and stop by our lobby during parent/teacher conferences if you are missing something and would like to see if it is in the Lost and Found. Just buzz in with our reception desk and they will let you in to look at the clothes, water bottles, lunch bags and more!
SPELLING BEE!
Bzzz, Bzzz! It's time for the District 39 Spelling Bee! The D39 Bee is open to Highcrest and Wilmette Junior High students. Round 1 is online through the Scripps Online Testing Platform which your child will complete at home between Sunday, December 4th through Monday, December 5th. Round 2 will be an in-person bee in early winter 2023. If your child is interested in studying for the Bee, view the spelling bee folder in your child's lunch course. There, your child will have access to the study list as well as the Google registration link. Email Magistra Carlson if you have any questions: carlsona@wilmette39.org. The deadline for registration is Thursday, December 1st!! Bzzz, Bzzz! Happy Spelling!
WHMS LIVE BROADCAST! TUNE IN EVERY MONDAY!
DISTRICT 39 UPDATES
Shine on 39, Thanksgiving Edition
As we prepare for Fall Break, some of our D39 students share, in their own words, why they are thankful for their teachers in this week’s “Shine on 39”. We are fortunate to have such a dedicated and talented group of educators in our district!
Board of Education Meeting
The Board of Education held its regular monthly business meeting on Monday evening. The Board heard presentations on our social-emotional learning assessments and long-term enrollment projections. Additionally, the Board reviewed the tax year 2022 estimate of levy and further discussed several Board policies. Click here for access to the complete meeting agenda and materials.
Parent/Teacher Conferences and Fall Break
Beginning this evening and running through Friday (Nov. 16-18), District 39 will be hosting parent/teacher conferences. We thank all parents and teachers for their time in connecting with one another during these important opportunities to build partnership and student success. Students will be off school beginning tomorrow (Nov. 17) with classes resuming on Monday, Nov. 28. For our full D39 2022-23 school calendar, please click here.
Wilmette’s Building Safer Communities Event
District 39 continues to partner with the Village of Wilmette and the Wilmette Police Department to support safe communities and schools. On Monday night, the Village and police department co-hosted a Building Safer Communities event focused on our collective commitment to keeping our community safe. Chief Murphy reinforced the importance of “See Something, Say Something” and D39’s Safety Starts with Me campaign as ways for people to keep their fellow communities safe.
The meeting also addressed the importance of firearm safety. Please click here for firearm safety practices and programs offered by the Wilmette Police Department. Below are a couple of other resources that families might find helpful when discussing firearm safety:
Guns in the Home: Keeping Kids Safe (healthychildren.org)
Firearm Safety (kidshealth.org)
COMMUNITY NEWS
LINK: http://www.wilmette39.org/news/community_events
New Trier is offering Beyond Diversity for Community Members. The sessions will be on December 9 and 10 at New Trier Northfield Campus from 8:30-3:30. Participants must attend both days. These sessions are specifically designed for community members.
The Trevians Girls Softball Association is adding players born in 2011 (or younger) to travel softball teams. Good athletes who want to learn the sport, receive high quality instruction during indoor workouts and will play in spring & summer seasons. Contact Kelsey Farmer for more information.
Wilmette Jr. Trevians are recruiting Kdg-2nd graders to play hockey in House Mite and Mini Mite programs. Season runs from September - February. Contact: leslie.humbel@yahoo.com
PICKLES - kids supporting kids is a local nonprofit that provides free peer-to-peer support and resources for kids ages 6-18 affected by a parent’s cancer diagnosis. These fun, supportive youth groups meet monthly at Winnetka Community House. For more information: www.picklesgroup.org
New Trier Township offers a Food Pantry 10am - 4pm weekdays for families that live/work in the township. NT Township also offers Emergency Financial Assistance, Legal Aid Clinic, property tax assistance, social service referrals and other available resources. Go to www.newtriertownship.com for more information.
Wilmette Food Pantry is open every Tuesday 10:00-11:00 am at Trinity United Methodist Church.
"Best Step Tutoring” offers free online tutoring for PreK-12 grades.
Scout Troop 2 Wilmette email: bsatroop2wilmette@gmail.com
YEARBOOKS ON SALE NOW!
Our online yearbook offer is live and yearbooks can be purchased at www.jostensyearbooks.com or your direct link of http://jostensyearbooks.com?ref=A01022093 or by phone at 1-877-767-5217.
PASS 39 NEWS
The Parent Association for Student Services in District 39 (PASS39) is a parent organization committed to supporting parents of children with learning, behavioral, emotional, and developmental challenges.
Check their latest newsletter for more information HERE
GREEN CORNER
Trex Plastic Recycling Challenge – From Bag to Bench
The official Trex Plastic Recycling Challenge has started! Thank you to all that collect their difficult to recycle plastic film items, such as produce bags, bubble wrap, and plastic mailers (see list below) and bring it to HMS. One bin is located at the entrance of the school office, one in the front lobby, and one in the teacher’s lobby. The Environmental Affairs Committee will weigh, collect, and bring the plastic film to the collection sites.
Gillson Park Beach Clean-up
November 19, 2022
9:00 am - 11:00 am
Location: Gillson Park: Lake Ave. and Michigan Ave., Wilmette.
Do you like to join Go Green Wilmette for a beach clean-up at Gillson Beach? Look for the Go green Wilmette table at the south end of the park near the diagonal beachfront parking. Please bring reusable gloves and a bucket or container to collect plastic pieces that wash up during every storm (note that some of these pieces are very small and may require using your hands).
You can also do a beach clean-up on your own time. If you do, take photos and tag #gogreenwilmette on Instagram or Facebook.
Nocturnal Hunters – Owls
Date: November 20, 2022
Time: 1:30 pm
Location: River Trail Nature Center, 3120 Milwaukee Ave, Northbrook, IL 60062
See and learn about the different attributes that make owls unique and fascinating. All ages welcome.
VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES
There are many ways to get involved at Highcrest! See links below to sign-up:
- School Store - Sign-ups are available on Wednesdays during lunch.
- Lunch - sign ups for help during lunch period for both 5th & 6th grade
Village Wide PTO - Please contact the President of the Presidents’ Council, Barb Bentivenga, at bentivenga4@icloud.com for more information.
SPIRITWEAR
Show your Hawks pride with a variety of spiritwear options! Please contact spiritwear@highcrestpto.org if you would like to make a purchase.