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Middle School Transition FAQs
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The FAQ's below are designed to address common questions and concerns families may have during the transition to middle school in the 2026-27 school year. We recommend that you periodically check this page for responses to newly added FAQs. Thank you for partnering with District 58 to help make the transition to our new 6–8 middle school model a successful experience for your student and family.
If you have a question regarding the District 58 middle school transition, please submit those questions using the button below. If you have questions about your specific child, please contact your elementary school or middle school principal.
We are currently gathering many inquiries and will include the submitted questions and responses in our developing FAQs below, which we expect will be helpful to many families.
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Student Registration for new and returning students for the 2026-27 school year will open on Friday, February 13, 2026. Please view the information below to register your student. We ask that families please submit registration by Friday, March 13, 2026.
GO TO REGISTRATION PAGE FOR FULL DETAILS & INSTRUCTIONS
Why Early Registration Matters
Registration is the first step in a complex process to plan for the upcoming school year. By registering your child by March 13, you help District 58 effectively prepare to meet student needs. Early registration allows us to:
- Confirm student enrollment: Accurately estimate the number of students who will attend our schools next year.
- Plan staffing needs: Determine the appropriate number of teaching and support staff positions.
- Hire and retain quality staff: Recruit and retain high-quality educators and staff members for open positions.
- Prepare resources: Plan transportation needs and begin ordering instructional materials and other essential resources.
- Create schedules: Develop student and staff schedules based on anticipated enrollment and individual student needs.
Thank you for supporting a smooth transition to next school year by registering early!
District 58 will continue to contract with Thomson Reuters CLEAR, a third party vendor, to automatically verify student address information. The vendor will use parent and/or guardian names and addresses to crosscheck the information against other public electronic databases, such as utility companies, DMV records, property tax records. This service has been safely used by many surrounding school districts to verify student residency information, including District 99.
In some circumstances, additional documentation will be needed:
- Families of all new students
- Families of all kindergarten students (regardless of preschool attendance or current siblings in the District)
- Families that annually lease their residence
- Families that provide an affidavit of residency
- Families whose residency is not able to be electronically verified
If the District is unable to verify your address, you will be contacted by your child's school office to verify your residency in order to register for the 2026-2027 school year.
Verifying residency is an effort to protect taxpayers and district resources by identifying non-residents attending District 58 schools. Illinois law mandates that parents demonstrate residency prior to enrollment in school and allows for periodic verification to validate compliance with the law.
Join us for your middle school's 6th/7th Grade Welcome Night!
We are so excited to see our families on Wednesday, May 6 at 6:00 PM (OMS) and Thursday, May 7 at 6:00 PM (HMS) for Incoming 6th and 7th Grade Welcome Night. During this presentation, we will talk about the middle school experience in District 58 and student support, among other logistics and information. We hope that you and your incoming student can join us!
FUTURE SPARTAN NIGHT - May 7 at Herrick
FUTURE SENATOR NIGHT - May 6 at O'Neill
Both Herrick and O’Neill Middle Schools will host Sneak Preview on Wednesday, August 19 and Thursday, August 20 to help incoming students transition to the middle school environment. The Sneak Preview program is fully funded and supported by the Education Foundation of Downers Grove District 58. Students participate in a 1 ½ hour session for two consecutive days. Please see the flyers below to register and learn more. If you require transportation, please choose the session that has transportation available.
HERRICK SNEAK PREVIEW - Aug. 19 & 20
O'NEILL SNEAK PREVIEW - Aug. 19 & 20
This is an opportunity for students to pick up final schedules, walk their schedule, organize their locker on Tuesday, August 25 from 5:00-7:00 PM.
HERRICK LOCKER SET-UP - Aug. 25
O'NEILL LOCKER SET-UP - Aug. 25
Both Herrick and O’Neill provide parents/guardians with a weekly newsletter via ParentSquare. The purpose of this is to share important school information and upcoming event details for families and students. As this school year nears the end, you will be added to the distribution list for future newsletters.
Families will be issued a Chromebook and charger at Locker Set Up Night or within the first few days of school. Please help us remind your students to charge them every night.
The Herrick and O’Neill PTA offers a school supply order opportunity for families to order all school supplies that then get mailed to your home. This PTA is currently setting up the system with the new supplies for the 26-27 school year. When the system is ready for ordering, Miss Humphris and Dr. Perkins will send out communication.
All incoming 6th-grade students must have an updated physical examination and immunization record on file by October 15, 2026, to avoid exclusion from school. Any student interested in participating in any school sports throughout the year, must have a completed sports physical on file in the nurse's office prior to tryouts and/or joining a team. Families may use either the IESA Physical Form or the Illinois Child Health Examination Form. Physicals are valid for 13 months from the date of the exam.
We encourage families to email all required documentation to HEMedicalRecords@dg58.org for Herrick Families or ONMedicalRecords@dg58.org for O’Neill students as soon as possible. Please note that this email address is for form submissions only and is not monitored for questions.
Students at the middle school level get changed for Physical Education. Holy Cow Sports is the District 58 Middle School supplier of Gym Uniforms. Uniforms can be purchased starting mid-April.
The prices are as follows:
- T-Shirt Short Sleeve - $12.75
- Shorts (Regular Length) - $18.00
- Shorts (Long Length) - $19.50
All incoming students are encouraged to complete a reading activity over the summer. The Summer Reading List will be shared later this spring.
The first day of school is a full day of school on Thursday, August 27, 2026.
We encourage families to visit Food Services for details about the meal programs available at the middle schools, as well as sample menus.
Specifics about lunch will be shared in detail at the upcoming Future Spartan/Senator Nights this spring. We encourage families to attend these sessions to learn more and have any additional questions answered.
We encourage families to visit Transportation and Bus FAQs for information about busing provided by District 58.
More information about busing will be shared in detail at the upcoming Future Spartan/Senator Nights this spring. We encourage families to attend these sessions to learn more and have any additional questions answered.
Here’s what a typical day in the life of a middle school student will look like:
Students will follow a structured nine-period schedule that balances academics, enrichment, and support. Each day includes Math, Science, Social Studies, a double block of English Language Arts, Physical Education, two Exploratory classes (may include performing music and/or world language), and an Advisory/Lunch period. This structure ensures strong core instruction while giving students regular opportunities to explore interests and build skills beyond the core subjects.
Building maps and recent renovations are designed so many grade-level classrooms are located near one another, allowing students to move through the building more efficiently and with greater confidence. Advisory takes place with grade-level peers and focuses on connection, social-emotional learning, and student support.
Beyond the school day, students will have access to a wide range of sports, activities, and clubs throughout the year, helping them stay connected, discover interests, and build a strong sense of belonging within the school community.
Specifics about the school day will be shared in detail at the upcoming Future Spartan/Senator Nights this spring. We encourage families to attend these sessions to learn more and have any additional questions answered.
The structured schedule for Advisory period is designed to ensure continuity and consistent student access to academic content. It incorporates dedicated time for team building, Second Step, Rush Executive Functioning, and targeted student support.
Students will have 23 minutes scheduled opposite their lunch period with grade-level peers, creating additional time for connection and support.
The schedule further provides opportunities for student leadership across grade levels, helping students build responsibility, collaboration skills, and a strong sense of community.
All students at the middle school level receive their schedule before the first week of school. Each school will send out a message to all families when schedules are live for families and students to see. There will be extra copies with student locker information available during Locker Setup Night on Tuesday, August 25.
The school day schedule in 2026-27 will allow for two periods of exploratory classes (or performing music and/or world language classes) daily. Exploratory classes will be offered on a trimester basis and will vary depending on grade level and other selected opportunities.
Students will not be able to self-select the trimester-based exploratory classes. Those will be assigned to students based on their schedule, and whether they choose to take performing music and/or world language.
Students will have access to a range of new and revamped exploratory courses, including
- Visual Art
- General Music
- STEM
- World Language Exploration
- Family and Consumer Science
- Technology & Learning
- Career Exploration
Additional information and details will be shared with incoming 6th and 7th grade families will be shared on February 2.
Families will also receive information on February 5 about selecting performing music (available to 6th, 7th and 8th grade students) and world language classes (available only to 7th and 8th grade) by Friday, February 20.
Starting in 2026-27, additional opportunities will be available for students to expand their interests and skills during the school day.
Performing Music (6th, 7th and 8th grade option)
- Performing music includes band, orchestra, choir
- Starting in 2026-27, performing music will no longer be an early bird class; these classes will occur during the school day. Choir and band/orchestra can occur simultaneously and will be scheduled as one period in a student's school day. Choir can also be taken independently as a class period if a student is not in band/orchestra.
- Students who are currently enrolled in band or orchestra and wish to continue those programs in middle school should indicate “yes” for the program in their course selection form sent to families on February 5.
- All students are eligible to participate in choir, regardless of prior enrollment.
World Language - Spanish and French (7th and 8th grade option)
- World language courses (Spanish or French) are high school–level classes taken for a proficiency credit. These courses move at a higher pace and include regular practice, nightly homework, and regular assessments to support and assess student learning and success. While our current programming is a one-year class, we will be moving to a two-year world language commitment, starting with our incoming 7th graders. This will allow students more time to practice, reinforce, and deepen their language skills.
- Students who choose world language in 7th grade are committing to a two-year program (7th and 8th grade) to earn one year of high school world language credit. There will not be an 8th grade only option moving forward.
- Currently, World Language classes are offered as a one-year class in 8th grade. That option will continue in the 2026-2027 school year for our incoming 8th grade students only. There will not be a one-year world language option after the 2026-2027 school year. This course also earns one year of high school proficiency credit.
The new schedule in 2026-27 allows students to have 2 exploratory periods in their day. These classes are scheduled on a trimester-based rotation, so the students do not select what the exploratory classes are on their schedule. We will assign those based on grade level.
Performing music and world language courses are scheduled during exploratory periods. The scenarios below show how schedules may look by grade.
For example, a 7th-grade student who selects Spanish and Choir would follow the 7th Grade Scenario #3, which fills both exploratory periods and does not allow space for additional exploratory classes.
6th Grade Example Scenarios
1. One performing music class (band/orchestra &/or choir) and one exploratory class
OR
2. Two exploratory classes
7th & 8th Grade Example Scenarios
1. One performing music class (band/orchestra &/or choir) and one exploratory class
OR
2. One world language class and one exploratory class
OR
3. One performing music class (band/orchestra &/or choir) and one world language class
OR
4. Two exploratory classes
Students are reidentified for Gifted instruction at the middle school, using criteria outlined in our Gifted identification process. Middle School Gifted instruction occurs during a student's ELA block.
For more information, please visit Gifted and Talented Program.
Student Services staffing is being thoughtfully planned to ensure equitable, consistent supports for students in the new middle school model. We want to reassure families that students who receive special services will continue to have their individual needs met, and transition planning is already underway to provide continuity of services and a smooth adjustment to the middle school environment.
School counselors are meeting regularly to prepare for additional and revised curriculum and to support students both academically and socially. Transition meetings for fifth- and sixth-grade students are scheduled and moving forward smoothly, with careful attention given to students who may benefit from additional supports. Student schedules will be built to maximize learning opportunities while ensuring appropriate services and accommodations are in place. Special Programs teams are actively preparing for incoming students, and a new Peer Buddies program is being developed to expand inclusive opportunities and foster a strong sense of belonging for all learners.
We encourage families to view the video on Transitioning to Middle School with an IEP.
The District is currently in the process of making decisions regarding the sports and activities that will be available in 2026-27. Please watch for more information to be shared with families after spring break, and we will update the FAQs at that time.
The Champions before and after-school care is an elementary school program and will not be available for middle school students next year. Families are encouraged to attend the upcoming Future Spartan/Senator Nights this spring to learn more about available programs and extracurricular opportunities for middle school students.