Washburne Families,
I hope everyone enjoyed the long, and somewhat snowy, weekend. We are excited to welcome our hybrid students back into the building today. I heard from both students and teachers that the opportunity to see everyone's full, unmasked faces was a welcome benefit.
I would like to address the topic of communication between Washburne and our families. We have heard your feedback via parent surveys, email, phone conversations, and through the PTO. We are committed to working together to address these concerns. As I have mentioned in previous newsletters, we are working to improve the communication between students, parents, teachers and staff, with a particular focus on 7th grade.
In an effort to enhance communication, continue to learn more about Washburne, and review each team's processes and procedures, each team at Washburne will be hosting a zoom meeting for parents on Monday, February 1st in the afternoon.
These meetings will follow a similar format (30-35 minutes in length to allow for transition between teams) and will address the questions and comments we have received on the following topics: -
Expectations for students at Washburne
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Team philosophy and procedures for helping students meet those expectations
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The best way for students and parents to communicate with individual teachers
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Homework and workload in the Hybrid model
There will also be an opportunity for parents to ask questions to your individual team's teachers during the meeting.We have shared your comments, concerns, questions and feedback with our staff from your previous communications and surveys to guide these presentations.If you have any additional comments or questions please, feel free to email me at [email protected].
On Monday, February 1st, all Washburne students will attend school remotely in the morning (the academic schedule will be the same as January 11th).
Team Zoom meetings will take place in the afternoon at the following times: I will be sharing the link for these meetings in next week's memo, but wanted to make sure you had the date and time as soon as possible.
It is our hope that these meetings will be a positive way for our community to interact with our staff as we know that the pandemic has limited our opportunity for connection.
Thank you for your continued partnership as we work through this school year.
Take care and be well,
Dr. Andrew Fenton Ben Horwitz Principal Assistant Principal
PARENT EVENT THIS THURSDAY NIGHT
Navigating School During Uncertain Times
Presented in partnership with Stanford University's Challenge Success
Thursday, January 21 at 7 p.m.
How can parents best support the personal and academic needs of their children while also attending to their own professional and familial needs? In this presentation, caregivers will learn how they can establish a healthier home environment for their school-aged child, reduce academic stress without sacrificing achievement, and increase their child's resilience, creativity, and well-being.
ACCESS THE WEBINAR HERE:
Washburne Spirit Day:
Be true to your school! Washburne Spirit Day will be celebrated on Friday, January 22nd.
Your 7th or 8th grader can show their Lion pride by wearing their Washburne Spiritwear or the school colors of green and white.
MAP Testing Update
Washburne students will take the winter MAP assessment next Tuesday, January 26th and Wednesday, January 27th. As we did in the fall, hybrid in-person students will take the assessment when they are present in the building.
Remote students will test on these same dates in a separate test session. Remote families should review this letter from the district for more information specific to completing the MAP in a remote setting. Most importantly, remote students will need two devices to complete MAP (their school iPad plus an additional device). Remote families should complete this survey to indicate whether or not a second device is available to the student at home. The Washburne tech team will provide an additional device if one is not available.
January Hybrid Calendar
Please see this link to view Washburne's hybrid calendar for January.
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Trimester 3 Commitment Form: Remote or In-Person
The District is now planning for Trimester 3 (February 22-June 7, 2021). A critical component in our planning is knowing how many grade-level students to accommodate for in our in-person hybrid or full remote model. The District remains committed to offering families a choice between the two models, but please note that you are committing to this choice for the duration of the Trimester. We are unable to accommodate changes mid-trimester to ensure our educational programming, staffing, and quarantine protocols can be upheld as designed.
Winter MAP Testing
We are approaching our second testing window for the Measure of Academic Progress (MAP) test, which will take place between January 25 - February 5, 2021. Your child's school or teacher will inform you of his or her specific testing dates.
Similar to the fall, all students in Grades 3 - 8 will take one Reading test and one Math test. MAP is a computer-adaptive test, which means every student receives a unique set of test questions based on responses to previous questions. This provides a personalized assessment experience by adapting to each student's learning level. The purpose of the second testing session is to provide teachers with midyear progress data that will help inform their instruction as they move forward into the school year. Winter student reports are not sent home. Student Reports are sent home at the end of the school year with fall to spring growth measures. Additional information on the MAP assessment may be found on our district website at:
An Update on Quarantine Guidance for Close Contacts/Travel
The Cook County Department of Public Health and Illinois Department of Public Health have released updated guidance in response to the recent Centers for Disease Control guidance revision. For close contacts and travel, the 14-day quarantine is still highly recommended; however, the state and local health departments have advised the District that it is acceptable to follow the alternate quarantine timelines due to our effective mitigation efforts:
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FOR CHILDREN & STAFF: 10-day quarantine (can return to school on 11th day) with no test and an absence of all symptoms during any day of the daily monitoring period.
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FOR ADULTS (staff) ONLY: 7-day quarantine (allowing for a return to work/school on the 8th day) with a negative test taken AFTER the 5th day of exposure with an absence of all symptoms during any day of the daily monitoring period. This option is ONLY available to adult staff members and the Illinois Department of Public Health is ONLY recommending molecular (RT-PCR or NAAT) tests for release from quarantine.
The 10-day quarantine option will be an option for students and staff. The 7-day quarantine + test option is ONLY available to staff per IDPH guidance. PLEASE NOTE, THE GUIDANCE IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE AT ANY TIME.
Upcoming Parent Education Events:
From District Partner The Alliance for Early Childhood
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Pandemic Parenting: Tools and Tips, February 18, 7-7:45pm Register Here
From District Partner Family Action Network
Family Action Network (FAN) hosts a series of parent sessions with renowned authors, educators, and experts. Upcoming events include: ANDREA DAVIS PINKNEY & BRIAN PINKNEY "The Marriage of Words and Pictures" Tuesday, January 19, 2021, 7:00 PM ANGIE THOMAS "Concrete Rose: A Conversation with Angie Thomas" With special guest Dion Graham, actor and narrator of the audio version of Concrete Rose. Interviewer: Marcus Campbell, Ed.D., Assistant Superintendent/Principal, Evanston Township High School Thursday, January 21, 2021, 7:00 PM RON LIEBER "The Price You Pay for College" Interviewer: Lauren Rivera, Ph.D., Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University Tuesday, January 26, 2021, 7:00 PM GLENN ADAMSON "Craft: An American History" Interviewer: Norman Teague, Founder, Norman Teague Design Studio Wednesday, January 27, 2021, 7:00 PM
See further details and FAN's complete schedule here.
Access 2020-2021's District 36 Parent Education sessions below:
Kindergarten & New Student Registration
Registration for Kindergarten and students new to The Winnetka Public Schools in 2021-2022 is now open and can be accessed from the District website. Children who will be five-years-old on or before September 1, 2021, are eligible to enroll.
The New Student Registration includes the following:
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Complete the following new student registration forms online.
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Provide proof of residency. Click here to view the list of documents that will meet these requirements. For your convenience residency documents may be uploaded during online registration.
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Provide the original or certified copy of your child(ren)'s birth certificate and a parent photo ID. Scanned copies or snapshots of these documents may be uploaded during online registration or can be submitted in-person at the District Office by appointment. Please contact the District Registrar at (847) 446-9400 or via email [email protected] for more information.
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Next spring you will receive an email from the District with a link to your child's registration. You will be asked to review the information provided in the past, answer additional questions, pay student fees, and sign up for transportation and before/after-school care at that time. Registration information will be sent to the student's primary email and home address.
Please note: children will not be considered enrolled until both the online registration and all supporting documents (steps 1-3) have been completed. We look forward to welcoming you to The Winnetka Public Schools.
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Replies to this email will be sent directly to Andrew Fenton. Please note that unsubscribing from this email will unsubscribe from all Winnetka School emails.
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The Winnetka Public Schools community empowers every student to flourish in an innovative, experiential environment. We support and challenge all learners to actively engage in continual growth and achievement to make a meaningful difference in the world.
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Upcoming Dates
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Tuesday, January 19th
Return to Hybrid In-Person model
Thursday, January 21st Navigating School During Uncertain Times Parent Presentation @ 7:00pm.
Tuesday, January 26th
Board of Education Meeting @ 7:15pm.
Monday, February 1st
Remote attendance 1/2 day AM for all Washburne Students
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