Meyer School celebrated HISPANIC HERITAGE MONTH, September 15th through October 15th, during our daily announcements. Each school day we featured a different Latinx or Hispanic American contributor, such as Monica Ponce de Leon, Clarence Samuels, Gloria Estefan, Jose Hernandez, and many more. Ask your Meyer Shining Star about their favorite contributor!

MEYER PARENT LEADERS (MPL), a committee of the PTO, is a group of Meyer parents and guardians dedicated to supporting the school and community by providing opportunities for Meyer families to connect and socialize. 

All parents/guardians are welcome to join us for this month's Zoom meeting! We will discuss and finish planning this month’s MPL event, Socktoberfest. 

Thursday, October 19, 2023
7:00 to 8:00 pm
The Zoom link will be sent to Meyer families through Seesaw the day before the meeting.

OCTOBER is SOCK-tober! Thank you to all the families who have sent in pairs of new socks to be donated to the Niles Township Clothing Closet. Our goal is to collect at least 1,000 pairs of new 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 in need. 

Students can also show their support by celebrating Wacky Socks Wednesdays and wearing wacky socks every Wednesday in October.

Middleton had a great turnout for PARENT-TEACHER CONFERENCES. More than 90 percent of our students' parents/guardians met with teachers in person or via Zoom. Thank you to all who participated!

OUTDOOR RECESS WEATHER REMINDERS. Students participate in outdoor recess throughout the school year unless there is a significant weather-related or other external factor that necessitates an indoor program. Here at McCracken, we use the Child Care Weather Watch system to determine students' participation in outdoor recess. This guide uses a combination of temperature and wind speed to calculate year-round weather safety for our students. Thank you, in advance, for helping to ensure that your child is prepared with appropriate outerwear for recess so that they are comfortable during our outdoor programming! Families in need of outerwear for their child should contact administration for additional resources.

McCRACKEN PJAMMIN FUNDRAISER. Students and staff were encouraged to rock their pajamas on October 13th to support childhood cancer in memory of former graduate, Griffin Maks. Ms. Bethany Fagan organized this fundraiser with the help of McCracken students. Check this FLYER for more information about how families can support our fundraiser and donate to the American Childhood Cancer Organization.

Rehearsals continue for this year’s musical, INTO THE WOODS, JR. Special thanks to all of our students and our Musical Director, Ms. Amy Keipert, for her planning and organization. We would also like to recognize Ms. Kate Magnuson as the Musical Producer and Ms. Sally Alvarado as the Musical Manager. Tech Crew applications were due this week. We are looking forward to final performances scheduled to take place on Friday, November 10th and Saturday, November 11th! Ticket information is coming soon!

October is recognized as bullying prevention month. Monday, October 2nd was also the World Day of Bullying Prevention. We encouraged students and staff to wear blue that day to help us to "Stomp out bullying" at McCracken. In addition, we provided students with an opportunity to create and submit bullying prevention posters during all of our recess periods. Families can also access bullying resources online through our district website. Bullying behavior is aggressive and includes an imbalance of power and is repeated. According to stopbullying.gov, bullying includes actions such as making threats, spreading rumors, attacking someone physically or verbally, and excluding someone from a group on purpose. Some students at this age experience peer conflict that does not rise to the level of bullying, but does require adult intervention and restorative measures to support positive interactions.

Bullying and harassment can happen in person and online. Many of our middle school students are using technology in multiple ways to communicate with peers outside of school. They may be using smartphones and social media apps to communicate with friends. Social media applications have parental controls for monitoring and safety. At times, students at this age may experience peer conflict that may turn into negative interactions online with friends or acquaintances. Negative interactions or cyberbullying that impacts the school environment may result in school issued consequences. Please monitor your child’s online presence and help to reinforce online safety and kindness in communication. We look forward to partnering with you to keep our students safe at school!

GIRLS BASKETBALL TRYOUTS are upcoming!

• Varsity tryouts will be held Wednesday, October 18th from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m.
• Junior Varsity tryouts are on Monday, October 16th from 3:00 to 4:00 p.m. and Thursday, October 19th from 3:00 to 4:15 p.m.
• Sixth Grade tryouts are on Monday, October 16th from 4:15 to 5:15 p.m. and Tuesday, October 17th from 4:15 to 5:15 p.m.

All students must have a current physical on file with Marryann Warda, our school nurse. 

ATTENDANCE REMINDERS. Did you know that missing two days of school a month, over the course of a school year, can affect a student's academic success? Please help us make school attendance a priority! If you know that your child will be absent for the day, please call our school nurse, Ms. Warda, at 847-676-8235 by 8:00 a.m. on the day of the absence. Please review the McCracken Attendance Reminders for more information about the importance of consistent school attendance and keeping your child engaged in school.

NILES NORTH FEEDER GIRLS BASKETBALL TEAM. Niles North is very excited to announce that they will have Jr. Viking Girls Basketball team(s) this winter! All girls in grades 5-8 interested in playing on the feeder team should scan the QR code on the flyer available in the McCracken office, on the daily announcements slide, or complete this form. The cost is $100-150 for registration. Students, parents, and guardians can reach out to Coach Leah Czuhajewski  at [email protected] with any questions.