The Wildcat

• PTO information
• Character Education
• SchoolStore
• Parent book club
• ILEARN Checkpoint Information
• Girls B-Ball Info
• Absenteeism Information
• IREAD information
• Extracurricular
• Cafeteria Information
• Arrival and Dismissal

Monday, September 8th-4th & 5th grade girls basketball try-outs 2:30-4pm

-K-Kids Meeting 2:20-3:20pm

-SchoolStore Fundraiser begins

Tuesday, September 9th-4th & 5th grade girls basketball try-outs 2:30-4pm

Thursday, September 11th--4th & 5th grade girls basketball try-outs 2:30-4pm

Friday, September 12th-4th & 5th grade girls basketball try-outs 2:30-4pm

PTO Dates

9/10 Fuzzyline Restaurant Night 5-8pm 50/50 raffle at the restaurant

9/12 Membership Forms Due

9/12 $1 Popcorn

9/16 Room Parent Tea 2:30PM in the Cafeteria

9/18 $1 Crazy Hair Day

9/18 PTO Meeting 2:40PM in the Library

9/19 PTO Volunteer T Shirt Form Due

Click the link to purchase: https://square.link/u/G17JNcFK

9/19 $1 Popcorn

When: September 8, 9, 11, 12

*no tryout Wednesday September 10th

Time: 2:30-4:00

Where: Johnston School Gym

Need: You MUST have a PHYSICAL turned in (to Mr. Zabrecky) by September 4th.

*Games will be from September through October 15th. Games start at 3:00 pm.

*We will practice Monday thru Friday excluding Wednesdays. (2:30-4:00)

Coach Zabrecky

Be on the lookout for a colorful Book Buddy Lanyard coming home soon!

You will find important information about a safe and easy way your family can help our school get the essential tools our students and teachers need to succeed. It will also let you know how your child can win fun prizes just for helping!

📖 The Anxious Generation – Chapter 1: The Decline of Play-Based Childhood

Jonathan Haidt opens the book by examining how play has nearly disappeared from modern childhood. In past generations, children spent hours outdoors with friends, making up games, solving disputes, and learning to navigate the world on their own. These experiences helped build resilience, independence, and social intelligence. Today, however, children’s time is often dominated by adult-led activities, academic pressures, and screen use. The decline of free play is not just a nostalgic concern—it has developmental consequences. Haidt argues that this shift has left kids less prepared to handle stress, solve problems, and build relationships.

Reflection Questions:

• How much opportunity does your child have for free, unsupervised play each week?
  
  

• In what ways can you safely encourage more independence and exploration in your child’s day-to-day life?

Anyone can access it here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLk2iNrwl0pdy-TG4SObKStZgXvXlmC91b

Or download a digital copy or audiobook through the library app, Libby.

Stay tuned for a book club meeting in December to discuss the book once the "virtual" book club ends.

3rd, 4th, and 5th Grade Families,

This year, your child will participate in ILEARN checkpoints as part of Indiana’s statewide assessment program. These checkpoints help provide valuable information about student progress and growth throughout the school year.

Please see the attached document from the Indiana Department of Education for more details about the purpose of these checkpoints and what you can expect. We encourage you to read through the information carefully.

If you have any questions after reviewing the attachment, please don’t hesitate to reach out.

Thank you for your continued support.

3rd grade ILEARN Checkpoint Guidance for Families.pdf

4th grade ILEARN Checkpoint Guidance for Families.pdf

5th grade ILEARN Checkpoint Guidance for Families.pdf

Dear Parents and Families,

Welcome to the beginning of your child’s K-12 educational journey. As we prepare for an exciting year at School Town of Highland (STOH), we want to take this opportunity to reiterate the importance of reading by the end of third grade and share information regarding the supports that will be available to your child to help them learn to read by this important milestone.

The ability to read by the end of third grade is crucial for your child to access all future learning. We know that to maximize student learning, it is essential that our parents/families and educators work together to support our young learners. In addition to the school-based supports described below, we encourage families to read to their child for 30 minutes each day. Reading together at home, visiting the library, and fostering a love for books can make a significant difference.

School-Based Support To Help Your Child Learn To Read:

1. Universal Screener: To provide the best support for your child, it is important to understand the skills that they are succeeding in and the skills that they need additional support to master. Kindergarten through second-grade students will participate in a universal screener, and results will be shared with parents/families. This allows schools and families to work together to provide personalized support as early as possible.

2. Multiple Opportunities To Demonstrate Reading Proficiency: Students will proactively participate in the IREAD assessment in second grade, with the option to participate in a summer retest opportunity. Offering multiple opportunities for students to participate in IREAD before third grade provides another early indicator of whether a student is on-track to read by the end of third grade. This information will inform continued collaboration between our educators and families to provide necessary reading support. Students who demonstrate reading proficiency in second grade will not be required to test again. Students who are still working to master foundational reading skills will receive additional support and will have another opportunity to participate in IREAD in third grade, both in the spring and during the summer. All IREAD results will be shared with parents/families.

3. Free Summer Learning Opportunities: Students who need additional reading support after participating in the spring administration of IREAD in both second and third grade will have an opportunity to participate in a summer reading course provided by STOH at no cost to families. This course will be taught using instructional practices aligned to the science of reading, which research shows is the most effective way to help a child learn to read. If a student struggles to read at the end of third grade, after receiving significant learning support, state law requires students to be retained in third grade (as a last resort), with some exceptions. The following students are eligible to receive a Good Cause Exemption (GCE) and are thus exempt from this requirement. Students eligible for a GCE include:

● A student who has previously been retained in third grade;

● A student with an intellectual disability or the student's Individualized Education Program specifies that retention is not appropriate, and the student's case conference committee has determined that promotion to another grade is appropriate;

● A student who is an identified English learner (EL) who has received services for fewer than two years and has an Individual Learning Plan (ILP) committee that determines promotion to the next grade level is appropriate;

● A student who achieved a performance level of “Proficient” or “Above Proficient” on the third-grade ILEARN Mathematics assessment; or

● A student who has received two or more years of intensive intervention in reading aligned to the science of reading and was retained more than once during kindergarten, first grade, or second grade.

To ensure students continue to receive the maximum support for their unique learning needs, all students who have not passed IREAD, whether they are retained in third grade for an additional year or are promoted to fourth grade, will continue to receive reading support and will retake IREAD until they pass or upon completion of sixth grade.

Thank you for reading this letter and for allowing us to partner in your child’s future success! We encourage you to contact child’s at any time with questions or concerns.

Sincerely,

STOH Elementary Principals

Pack 297 Meets at American Legion Post 180 in Highland two Monday's a month at 6:30 - 7:30 pm. They are a family pack who welcomes both boys and girls.

Breakfast is $1.75

Lunch is $2.25

You can find both menus here: https://www.schoolnutritionandfitness.com/index.php?sid=2809100435083594&page=menus

Birthday treats can be purchased through the cafe ONLY: https://www.schoolnutritionandfitness.com/schools/sth_2809100435083594/catering/Updated_BDay_Treat_form_3.21.24.pdf

Go here for free/reduced lunch (this needs to be renewed yearly): https://www.schoolnutritionandfitness.com/index.php?sid=2809100435083594&page=lunchapps

• Doors open for students at 7:35 a.m. daily. Students who eat breakfast at school will be allowed entry beginning at 7:20 a.m. Anyone arriving after 7:50 a.m. will need to buzz and come into the main office to sign in.

• Cars will enter the parking lot off Duluth Street (right turn only) and follow the curve to drop off students. Please pull up as far as you can and drop all your students off at one time. Have your children ready with their backpacks, lunch money, hugs, and kisses, so that when you stop they may exit the car quickly, and we can keep the drop-off line moving. The line can become backed up onto Duluth Street very quickly which causes safety issues for our parents, as well as other drivers.

• Please drop off curbside only. Avoid dropping children off where they have to cross the street, this is extremely dangerous. It will be your responsibility to cross them if you choose to do this.

• Please be mindful of other drivers and walkers. We know many of you have to get to work, and we want all children to be able to enter the building safely and on time.

• Doors C and B will be utilized for entrance as usual. Drop-off is-K, 3, 4 at Door B, and 1 and 2 at Door C.

• 5th graders and Lifeskills class will use Door G.

At the end of the school day, the following doors will be used for dismissal:

• Grade K will exit through door J (FIVE minutes before the rest of the grade levels)

• Grade 1 will exit through door C (main doors)

• Grade 2 will exit through door B

• Grade 3 will exit through door J

• Grade 4 will exit through door I

• Grade 5 and Lifeskills class will exit through door G

• Bus riders will exit through door J (a few minutes prior to the remainder of the school being dismissed where the buses will be waiting).

Cars may enter the parking lot off Duluth Street and follow the curve to pick up or park in the parking lot to walk up to get students.

We would like to thank you in advance for your cooperation as we strive to keep our Johnston families safe.

Please don't hesitate to contact us in the office for any ideas, thoughts, concerns, or words of encouragement! We are all part of this large extended mix of wonderful people we affectionately refer to as our Johnston Family.

Email: aharring@highland.k12.in.us
Website: https://www.highland.k12.in.us/o/jes
Location: 8220 5th Street, Highland, IN, United States
Phone: 219.923.2428
Facebook: facebook.com/johnstonpto
Twitter: @harrington_jn