6th Grade Niles North High School Tutoring

Attention 6th grade students and families! Niles North High School is extending their tutoring program to include 6th grade feeder schools this year. Niles North students will provide tutoring services to students in reading, writing, math, science, and more on Mondays from 4:00 to 5:00 p.m. starting on October 3rd. Please access this Niles North High School flyer to learn more and complete the one-time registration. Thank you to Niles North High School for including our 6th graders in this great program!

Hispanic Heritage Month

Our Cultural Diversity Club sponsored by Ms. Lynn Catanus is helping to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month at McCracken Middle School. They are sharing facts and resources with our students and staff this month. Did you know that Hispanic Heritage Month is celebrated from September 15th to October 15th because September is the anniversary of independence for Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Mexico, and Chile? Special thanks to our McCracken Cultural Diversity Club for their efforts in celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month!

September Spotlight on Success

McCracken students are eligible to earn a wide variety of acknowledgement for their success in school whether remote or in-person! This includes Spotlight on Success, which recognizes students’ academic growth and achievement. Each month, teachers celebrate the many students who have demonstrated academic success in each grade level to honor them for making progress toward learning standards, meeting or extending learning standards, demonstrating great interest in a particular subject area, and/or demonstrating a growth mindset. Students are featured in our morning announcements, receive a certificate in person and by mail, and are delivered a fun incentive by our Ollie Trolley! Congratulations to our September Spotlight on Success recipients!

Parent-Teacher Conferences

District 73.5 will host Parent-Teacher Conferences in person or virtually on Thursday, October 6th from 5:00 to 8:00 p.m. and Friday, October 7th from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon. McCracken students are encouraged to participate in these conferences as a means for self-reflection, progress monitoring, and goal setting. An email with the subject "Parent-Teacher Conference Information" was sent to all families on September 21st. Information is also available on our website. Registration opens on Monday, September 26th at 7:00 a.m. and closes on Monday, October 3rd at 3:00 p.m. We encourage parents who are unable to secure conferences to reach out to individual teachers to coordinate another time to connect. PowerSchool is available to families and students to monitor academic progress throughout each trimester. We are so thankful to parents and guardians for their continued partnership! Conference times are available on a first come, first served basis and have been scheduled to allow as many families as possible to meet with their child’s teacher(s) during the conference window. If a teacher’s conference schedule is full, parents can contact the school by phone or email to request a meeting with individual staff members throughout the school year.

8th Grade PSAT Assessment Information

• The PSAT 8 assessment for our 8th grade students will be administered at Niles North High School on Saturday, October 1, 2022, from 9:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. (approximate end time)
• All 8th graders planning to enroll at Niles North High School are expected to take the PSAT 8, the first high school level exam in the SAT Suite of Assessments. The PSAT 8 establishes a baseline measurement for college and career readiness as a student enters high school. The exams in the SAT Suite of Assessments measure a student's strength in reading, writing/language, and mathematics. Monitoring these same skills at different grade levels allows students, parents, and educators to monitor a student's progress.
• This assessment is free of charge and given to junior high (middle school) students in the fall of the year prior to high school registration. Results from this test, along with other metrics, will be used for proper 9th grade course placement.
• Please access the Niles North High School PSAT 8/9 - 8th Grade website for additional information.
• If you have any questions, please contact Niles North testing coordinator Marija Markovic at 847-626-2177 or by email at [email protected]. A letter was mailed to families from Niles North High School on August 22, 2022.
• PSAT 8 FAQ Sheet

4th and 5th Grade Band

Registration for a nationally recognized band program is open to all 4th and 5th graders! Students were introduced to our district's band program in a presentation during music class. The McCracken Middle School Symphonic Band will perform a concert for students this upcoming Tuesday morning. Register your child at mccrackenband.com/join. The registration deadline is Wednesday, September 28th.

5th Grade White Pines Outdoor Education Overnight Trip

We will take our annual overnight trip to Oregon, IL at White Pines Ranch! Students will experience engaging activities such as orienteering with compasses, digging for fossils, hikes, team building, and more! Meals and sleeping accommodations are provided. This year, the trip will be October 19th through 21st. A packet of information was shared with families during the White Pines Information Session before Curriculum Night OR in student backpacks. Please look over the packet and turn in the required forms as soon as possible. All forms and fees are due by October 7th. We look forward to a great trip! If you have any questions, feel free to contact your child’s teacher or Assistant Principal Mrs. Stephanie Larenas, who will also attend the trip.

Parent-Teacher Conferences

We hope to see you at Parent-Teacher Conferences on the evening of October 6th and the morning of October 7th! This is a great opportunity to connect with your child’s teachers and to discuss academic and social-emotional progress. An email with the subject "Parent-Teacher Conference Information" was sent to all families on September 21st. Information is also available on our website, including instructions for how to sign up for a conference through the PowerSchool Parent Portal. Conferences are scheduled in October and February both in-person or virtually. 

Meyer Parent Leader Family Meet-Up

Want to meet other Meyer Families? Join the Meyer Parent Leaders (MPL) for an outdoor meet-up this Saturday, September 24th from 10:00 to 11:00 a.m. on the Meyer School Playground. No RSVP needed, just stop by and join in! 

Check out the MPL's Facebook page or website!

PBIS Kick-Off

On Tuesday, we kicked off Meyer’s Positive Behavior Interventions & Supports (PBIS) program. We had two very special guests at our assembly, Mr. Mac and Ms. Mac, who came to remind us how to Be Safe, Be Kind, and Be Ready. Thank you to all the parents and guardians who were able to join us!

Classrooms may earn a Meyer red star when the class is showing positive behaviors and following school and/or classroom rules. At the end of each week, we will count the Meyer Stars earned in every classroom and one preschool and one kindergarten classroom will win the Meyer SuperStar to keep in their classrooms for the week.

October is SOCK-tober!

During the month of October, we will celebrate SOCK-tober. We will be collecting new socks to be donated to the Niles Township Clothing Closet. Students can bring in new socks of any size, which will be donated at the end of the month. Last year, we donated over 1,000 pairs of socks! 

We want to show our Meyer Shining Stars that even the smallest acts of love, like donating a pair of socks, can make a big difference in the lives of our neighbors, who are in need. 

Students can also show their support by celebrating Wacky Socks Wednesdays! Wear your wacky socks every Wednesday in October. 

Then join us for SOCK-toberfest on October 27th from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m., hosted by the Meyer Parent Leaders. More details will be sent home in October.