D75 Superintendent’s Message
December 2024
From math to dual language and reading, our students have made tremendous progress since August.
Now, as we reach the halfway point of the 2024-25 school year, it’s worth looking back on how far we’ve come these past four months. One of the best ways to show what they’ve been learning is to let the students tell us themselves.
This is exactly what we’ve done during our School Board meetings in September, October and November. Representative groups of students from Washington, Mechanics Grove and Carl Sandburg have taken turns presenting on their learning to our School Board.
In November, Carl Sandburg Middle School students gave a presentation on their Dual Language program (in both Spanish and English, of course) with a focus on oral literacy and a portfolio activity board. The presentation also recognized the goals on which the school has been focusing to support student achievement. Nine Carl Sandburg students modeled oral literacy (in both English and Spanish) and invited Board Members to participate.
Mechanics Grove elementary students gave a presentation on the Reader’s Workshop model in September, explaining how the model is used and described its various components. Students then gave examples to Board Members showing how the model works by working individually with them to reflect, react and respond as readers to a particular passage from a book. The Reader’s Workshop model is helping Mechanics Grove to meet the District’s strategic goal of showing continuing improvement in literacy and math annually based on appropriate standardized assessments.
In October, Washington administrators presented an update on Mathematics Instruction and Assessment, one of the District’s School Improvement Plan Goals. The update showed initiatives in place and how they are designed to improve math learning. Students then showed School Board Members some of the games they are playing to improve their math skills.
The presentations were all impressive. It’s one thing for students to do well in the classroom. It’s much more challenging for elementary and middle school students to stand up in front of School Board Members and explain what they’re learning.
The presentations were all very impressive. Not only did the students show how much they are learning, but they proved what kind of learners they are by displaying great maturity, enthusiasm and fearlessness in speaking in front of the School Board.
We’re proud of our students and the leadership and guidance they’re getting from our teaching staff. It’s great to have this to build on going into the second half of our school year.
Sincerely,
Dr. Kevin Myers
Superintendent, District 75