Together We Soar 9-18-2026

Dear Highland Families! 

It is hard to believe that we have already completed our first month of school together! The past four weeks have been filled with important first steps, and it has been wonderful to watch our Hawks learn our school and classroom norms and, most importantly, start building relationships with one another and with the adults who support them each day. 

I also want to remind you that this newsletter will be sent twice each month—on the first Friday and the third Friday. We hope that it will be a consistent way to keep families connected to what is happening in our school and celebrate our students. As we look ahead to the months to come, I'm excited to see how much our students will continue to grow- not only as learners, but as members of our school community. 

Thank you for supporting the safety of our students and staff! Thanks to everyone’s cooperation, it has been a great start to the school year. With the start of the school year behind us, we would like to remind everyone of a few District and school policies and procedures regarding the use of school playgrounds and school property during the school day.

During school hours, the school playground and facilities are reserved for school-related activities and are not open to the community for use during this time. Please also note that the Park District’s afterschool SPACE Program operates at our school Monday through Friday until 6:00 p.m. During this time, SPACE students may have precedence in using the playground and other outdoor areas as part of their program. 

We also want to remind families that dogs that are not part of our educational programming are not permitted on school property, including playgrounds and other areas of school grounds during arrival and dismissal. 

We appreciate everyone’s cooperation in following these guidelines and helping us maintain a safe environment for our Hawks! 

Principal Atto 

In 2013, Illinois passed Erin’s Law (House Bill 6193), which requires all schools to provide age-appropriate lessons on sexual assault and abuse awareness and prevention for students in Pre-K through 12th grade. These lessons are designed to help children learn how to stay safe and protect themselves. To support this important work, our school will provide developmentally appropriate instruction aligned with state learning standards. 

This instruction will focus on giving children practical tools to recognize unsafe situations and know what to do. Topics include:

Families are invited to attend a virtual informational meeting to preview the program and ask questions.

Students will receive instruction in the classroom setting between October 5th through November 20th, 2026.

If you prefer that your child does not participate in this program, please complete the Curriculum Objection Form by October 5th, 2026. 

Our district 68 is committed to supporting the academic, social, and emotional well-being of every student. As part of this commitment, we use Satchel Pulse, a brief universal screening tool that helps us better understand students’ social-emotional strengths and areas where they may benefit from additional support.

The screening asks students to reflect on skills related to:

Questions are designed to be age-appropriate. Students in kindergarten through second grade will respond using pictures, while students in grades 3–8 will respond using words.  Click HERE to see the questions that are asked for Kindergarten - Second Grade, Third -Fifth Grade, and Sixth- Eighth Grade. 

The information gathered through Satchel Pulse helps our schools:

A team of school staff will review the results to identify school-wide strengths and areas where additional support may be helpful. If the team believes your child may benefit from individual support, your child’s teacher or school social worker will contact you to discuss the results and partner with you before any additional support begins.

The screening will take place in your child’s classroom between Monday, September 28, and Friday, October 16. If you do not want your child to participate, please email your child’s teacher by Friday, September 25.

If you have questions about this, please contact our school social worker, Ms. Kim Weissenberg, at kweissenberg@skokie68.org.

Thank you for partnering with us to support the well-being and success of our Hawks! 

Join us at Terminal Park on Sunday, September 20th from 1:00 p.m. - 3:00  p.m.! Enjoy games and activities, share light snacks with neighbors and friends, and explore the bookmobile while you discover valuable district and community resources.

Many amazing organizations will be present, including the Niles Township ELL Parent Center, Hamdard Health Alliance, and the Middle Eastern Immigrant and Refugee Alliance.

Registration for 4th Grade Instrumental Music is now open through September 24th. Here is the sign up form:  https://tinyurl.com/SkokieMusic

Instrument sections are capped and will not allow selection when the numbers have been filled. 

We encourage signing up asap to get instrument preferences.

You can also view program details in this presentation: 

We would like to extend a special thank you to Ms. Perez for sharing delicious churros with her class and staff in celebration of Mexican Independence Day.

This thoughtful treat provided a wonderful opportunity to recognize and appreciate the rich culture and traditions of Mexico.  

Families with students in third, fourth, or fifth grade are invited to join us at our Family Book Chat at Highland School Library!

We will ensure each family has a copy of the book. Your student and any adult family member will read the book on their own at home.  At the book club meeting on the dates below, we will discuss the book and eat snacks.  

Thursday, November 19, 2026 (6:30 - 7:30 pm)

Thursday, January 28, 2026 (6:30 - 7:30 pm)

Please RSVP to Lisa Talbert (ltalbert@skokie68.org) or fill out this form.  We hope you'll join us!

The Skokie Public Library Bookmobile will be parked at Payne Street and Keystone Avenue on Thursday afternoons from 3:15 to 4:15. Every Highland student has a Skokie Public Library barcode for book checkout, coordinated with the school.

Highland families can come on board the Bookmobile and browse books. Hold pickup is also available if you requested "Bookmobile” when you placed the hold on the library website.

Join the Highland PTA as we kick off our first event of the year! The always-famous Family Fun Run! 

This year we are doing grade-level relay races, chalk drawings, and of course, fun runs! Everyone who participates gets a prize! There will be drinks and snacks to purchase, plus prizes and goodies for all! 

Register here for the Family Fun Run!  $20/per family or $5/person

Can't Run? Can't make it? That's okay! Donations are welcome! Use the link above. 

We do need your help to make this a success! A few minutes of your time can make this event run very smoothly! Please use the link below to sign up for a volunteer spot.

Please click on the links below to access important resources.

Contact Information

If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact us.