Maercker SD 60 -

In ELA class at Westview Hills, students participate in the literature circle model which is a collaborative reading strategy in which small groups read the same text and generate questions to guide discussion. Literature circles encourage student choice, deepen comprehension, and promote active, student-led dialogue about texts as they annotate using sticky notes. Check it out! #d60learns

🌟 Gold Standard Spotlight: Julie Reinert🌟
Julie’s collaborative spirit shines through her consistent partnership with parents and her classroom’s high expectations while maintaining a joyful, respectful environment where students feel seen, valued, and capable of success. Her enthusiasm for learning, especially in math, has inspired a true love for the subject among her students and is why she is The Gold Standard! 👏

Our community is hosting an online “Holiday Giving Tree” as a way for Maercker District 60 families and staff to help other District 60 families who may be in need this holiday season. District families have anonymously completed a request form and the items requested have been uploaded into our online “Giving Tree.” Families have requested gift cards in the denominations of $25 so that they may gift to their child or shop for something special for them.

If you are interested in donating gifts to our families, please sign up: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C044CA8AF2BA4FCC52-60523757-holiday

Once purchased, please drop off your gift donations directly to the office of your child’s school no later than Dec. 7.

The 6th grade again dominated the attendance challenge last month with an attendance rate of 96.2%. Will they hold their place for the month of November?

The Gold Standard Award celebrates those who truly live out our core values and staff portrait characteristics each day. So far this year 79 staff members have received a total of 123 Gold Standard recognitions! These recognitions celebrate staff for elite behaviors and actions that model our core values and staff portrait characteristics and are submitted by staff, families, and students.

The leadership team regularly reviews the submissions and we are pleased to highlight the 7 staff members earlier tonight who have exhibited elite level behavior aligned to our core values and staff portrait characteristics as Gold Standard Bearers.

Congratulations to the October 2025 Gold Standard Bearers:

-Julie Reinert - Maercker Intermediate School Teacher
-Courtney Benfield - Maercker Intermediate School Teacher
-Arlene Lopez - Holmes Primary School Teacher
-Laura Koshnitzke - Holmes Primary School Teacher
-Beatriz Solorzano - Holmes Primary School Instructional Assistant
-Don Enberg - Westview Hills Middle School Teacher
-Sam Williams - Westview Hills Middle School Teacher

It’s Substitute Educators Day! We’re grateful for the pros that step in when we need them to keep the learning going. Show your appreciation for your next substitute teacher!

Third graders at Maercker received their very own poetry journals! We can’t wait to see all that they create. #d60journals

November 15 was School Board Member Day in Illinois, which is a day to celebrate and recognize the dedicated community members who volunteer their time and effort to support school districts across the state.

D60 is grateful to the seven members of our Board of Education who work so hard for our schools, our students, and the community. Thank you Board Members!

Maercker D60 is looking for a Special Education Teacher to join the team at Maercker Intermediate School (grades 3-5) starting in January. Get more information and apply today!

https://www.applitrack.com/maercker/onlineapp/default.aspx?AppliTrackJobID=908&ref=

Today is Education Support Professionals Day! Our ESPs are crucial to the success of our students, supporting them from the moment they step on the bus to every moment in the classroom. We couldn’t do it without you!

These kindergarteners have been learning about birds. Using various tools, they mimicked how different beaks are suitable for different kinds of food based on their structures! #d60learns

First graders had a great time creating their own digital communities on a collaborative tool called Padlet. They were able to add captions to share how different people and places contribute to a community! #d60learns

The district’s food service provider, Whitsons Culinary Group, recently had a pop-up event at Westview Hills Middle School. With the help of Chef Camerron (Cam) Dangerfield, two-time Food Network Master Chef Champion, the Whitsons team prepared a honey fire chicken sandwich with tater tots, fruit, and vegetables. Thank you to Whitsons and Chef Camerron for this delicious experience! 🔥 #d60eats

Thank you to the Westmont Rotary Club who donated dictionaries to our third graders at Maercker Intermediate School for National Dictionary Day! 📖 #d60learns

Science you can eat: FACS students are making pizza and discovering how yeast works its magic to make dough rise. 🍕 #d60learns

Today, Westview Hills celebrated Veterans Day with the annual Veterans Day Assembly, attended by approximately 30 veterans and their families. This meaningful event honored the service and sacrifice of those who have served our country.

The program included musical tributes to the branches of the Armed Services, a performance of Taps, and a heartfelt Google Slides presentation recognizing the family members of staff and students who have served. We were also proud to celebrate one of our own, Mr. Colon, whose military service and continued dedication to our school community exemplify the values we honor on this day. Thank you Veterans! #d60learns

This Veterans Day, we honor all who have served.

First graders at Holmes have been experimenting with light this fall. They’ve learned all about how light helps us to see and that opaque objects make shadows! 🎃🦇 #d60learns

In health class, students participated in an empathy-building activity in which they created personalized shoes representing their emotions and the factors that evoke those emotions. Students then engaged in a reflective exercise by connecting with each of the displayed shoes to deepen their understanding of empathy and emotional awareness! #d60learns

In Spanish class, students learned vocabulary related to the different rooms and features of a house. After using Airbnb in Spanish to research potential places to stay, students collaborated in groups to debate which option is the best—conducting the discussion entirely in Spanish to enhance language fluency and cultural understanding! #d60learns