 |
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|
W E D N E S D A Y W E E K L Y
|
|
In this Issue
Upcoming Events
April 18
5 p.m.
Tell a friend!
4-6 p.m.
Sanford School
*Show continues through Wednesday, April 25, during school hours, 8 a.m. - 3:30 p.m.
April 19
Elementary Maker Morning
7:45-8:30 a.m.
Room 30
9:30 a.m.
Gym
April 21
10 a.m. - noon
Gym
April 23-27
Lobby
Bidding closes at 6 p.m., Friday, April 27.
April 25
7 p.m.
Great Room
May 1
Moms' Day
8:30 a.m./regular classroom start time - 11 a.m.
May 4
Professional Day
|
Expeditionary Learning Meets Montessori in WMS Middle School
Message from
Head of School Lisa Lalama
 |
|
|
for more from Lisa.
|
As we prepare to launch our middle school program in September, one of our most important tasks is to create the curriculum and align it with our 9-12 Program. In this and other ways, WMS is fortunate to be joining with PRIED Middle School, whose expeditionary learning model connects eager adolescents with real-world experiences that give depth and meaning to classroom activities.
As Maria Montessori wrote, "What the hand does, the mind remembers." During the early childhood and lower elementary years, this concept is demonstrated through the hands-on materials used to demonstrate abstract concepts in the Montessori classroom. As students grow older, this takes the form of "learning by doing."
During the sixth-grade year, WMS students experience expeditionary learning through their GCAP trip, as they visit the UN and meet with NGOs to prepare for a year-long fundraising project. In middle school, students will have even more opportunities to go out into the world, learn through hands-on experiences and make an impact on their community.
During the past few years, PRIED students' expeditionary learning experiences have included cooking for families with sick children at the Ronald McDonald House, touring the U.S. Supreme Court, working in a real DNA lab, camping in the woods, attending Broadway shows like "Stomp" (where they even met some of the performers), visiting art museums and exploring Civil War battlefields.
WMS middle school students will continue this tradition, meeting experts in various fields of study and exploring new places to make connections with the Montessori curriculum.
Research suggests
this approach fosters academic achievement, critical thinking and problem-solving skills. And while we know that a test score is not an education, students engaged in an expeditionary learning curriculum often outperform their peers on standardized tests.
Using this approach in conjunction with the Montessori approach, students will study language arts, literature, math, science, technology, history, Spanish and more. As you know, integrating the arts in all areas is a fundamental part of the WMS experience and will continue in the middle school. Our program will foster self-expression and creativity through the arts, and a view of the world beyond our campus through community engagement.
By leveraging what PRIED Middle School does well and combining these strengths with Montessori principles, we're designing a rigorous academic curriculum that satisfies the requirements of every area high school, public or private, and provides every WMS middle schooler a strong foundation for high school and beyond.
Throughout this process, we've been working with Mandy Reis, lead teacher at PRIED and the incoming WMS Middle School teacher, to shape a curriculum that provides both the structure
and
the freedom middle schoolers need to work at their own pace and reach their full potential. As they move through the two middle school years, students will be given increasing independence to explore areas of interest.
Middle school is a big step for every child; adding seventh and eighth grades at WMS is a big step for our school community. But we're ready. By building on PRIED's curriculum and experience and blending this with the Montessori philosophy that has guided WMS for more than 54 years, we're creating a middle school program that will be one of the finest in the area.
|
|
News & Notes
|
A big thank you to everyone who attended last Saturday's auction and gala at WMS!
Amazing spring weather was the cherry on top of an incredible evening of food, fun and fundraising. Growing Together: A Garden Gala & Auction would not have been possible without so many creative and dedicated supporters.
A special thank you to the members of our auction committee for the time and enthusiasm you dedicated to making this evening a success. Thanks also to the parents, staff and supporters who helped solicit gifts, create classroom gifts, sell tickets, hang decorations, clean up and more.
Thank you to our sponsors for their support:
Whether you donated goods or services, volunteered your time, made a monetary donation, purchased tickets (special thanks to those who purchased Auction Angel tickets for all our staff!) or bid on items, you made a difference by supporting WMS. Auction funds help us purchase materials for our classrooms, keep our campus and facilities beautiful, provide professional development and benefits for our staff, support our financial aid program and so much more.
You can still help support the auction by stopping by the fire sale in the lobby next week, April 23-27. All items start at 50% of their original minimum bid (or lower)! Tables close on Friday, April 27, at 6 p.m.
|
Please Join the WMS Board for the Annual Meeting - Wednesday, April 25, at 7 p.m.
The WMS Board holds the Annual Meeting to provide a chance for our members (parents and guardians of current WMS students), staff and community members to meet and hear directly from the WMS Board of Directors. It is also the time of year when members elect directors to the WMS Board. As a non-profit membership corporation, the gathering of board and members at the WMS Annual Meeting is a truly unique WMS tradition.
This year's Annual Meeting will be held at WMS on
Wednesday, April 25, 2018 at 7 p.m . in the
Great Room. Lisa
Lalama and the board will present information about WMS's finances and plans. The meeting
will last 60 minutes at most.
In preparation for the 2018 Annual Meeting, the board has nominated three candidates to serve
for three-year terms as directors. We are fortunate to have three alumni parents standing for
election, all of whom are continuing their board service: Susie Ventresca, Calissa Brown and
Paul Sakaguchi. Their terms will extend until the 2021 Annual Meeting.
Whether or not you plan to attend the Annual Meeting, we invite you to vote by signing and returning the ballot
sent via e-mail on Sunday, April 15 with the notice of the Annual Meeting. Each household may submit one ballot.
Please put the ballot in the ballot box in the lobby of WMS (there are a few extra ballots available at the front desk) by 5 p.m. on April 24, 2018.
Thank you in advance for participating in these important and unique traditions at WMS. My fellow directors and I welcome this upcoming opportunity to share with you.
In partnership,
Anna Quisel
Chair, WMS Board of Directors
|
Sign Up for This Summer's Specialty Camps - Archery, Shakespeare, Programming
 Take your campers' days to the next level this summer with one of Camp Montessori's half-day
specialty camps. This summer's specialty camps offer elementary and middle school campers a chance to log some archery target practice time, travel back in time to Elizabethan England with Shakespeare, or take a crack at Python programming (computers, not snakes).
Specialty camps include:
- Archery I - June 25-29, ages 8-12
- Shakespeare Adventure - July 16-20, ages 7-12
- Python for Beginners, July 23-27, ages 9-14
|
|
This Saturday: Attend the Girl Scouts' Indoor Carnival
Support the WMS Junior Girl Scout Troop at this Saturday's
Indoor Carnival for girls ages 4 to 9.
Carnival activities include a ring toss, face painting, art projects, a duck fishing game, fortune telling, relay races and more!
Where: WMS Gym
When: Saturday, April 21, 10 a.m. to noon
Cost: $2 per girl (siblings are welcome)
|
|
|
|
Tomorrow,
April 19
, join the Primary students at
9:30 a.m. in the gym
for a spring concert of
Dreams and Lullabies
.
Enjoy the sweet sounds of the Primary classrooms' young voices as the children sing lullabies, including an Assamese song they learned as part of WMS's arts integration initiative and focus on the culture of Assam, India.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
May 11 is Phillies' Teacher Appreciation Night
Friday, May 11, is the Association of Delaware Valley Independent Schools (ADVIS) Night and Teacher Appreciation Night at Citizens Bank Park, where the Phillies will take on the New York Mets at 7:05 p.m.
Teachers, students and their families may purchase discounted tickets online in sections 107 and 108 ($8 off) using the coupon code ADVIS. For more details, view the ADVIS flyer. |
Today's Learners
|
|
Environmental Detectives Solve Scientific Mysteries in the 9-12 Classroom
by Upper Elementary Lead Teachers Joanna Breger, Margo Long and Shelley Robyn
Scientific investigation is about gathering evidence to solve the mysteries of the natural world. In the Upper Elementary program, students have been learning about scientific investigation through the "
Environmental Detectives
" curriculum - a unit from the Great Explorations in Math and Science series that challenges students to crack a case involving
a mysterious fish die-off.
As they work together as environmental detectives, the students apply scientific investigation skills to an imaginary scenario that replicates real-life environmental issues they may encounter in their own communities.
The "scene of the crime" is the Gray Area, a watershed that includes forests, a city and town, a coast, three rivers, a lake and a pond. The people of the Gray Area are proud of their natural resources and enjoy recreational activities on the Missterssippi, Rafta and Fo Rivers as well as on Lake Adaysicle. However, a fish die-off that began five years ago has everyone concerned. The upper elementary student detectives are on the case!
As environmental detectives, 9-12 students conduct various tests including using live
daphnia
- a type of small water crustacean - from each body of water to help determine possible chlorine pollution from the local water slide. They also perform pH and sediment tests as well as two simulated field tests for phosphates and algal bloom. Once students determine which waterways have a problem, they attempt to identify the source of the problem.
As they await the results of the fish autopsy report, student investigators attempt to resolve contradictory results by sifting through various documents, such as records, newspaper articles, charts, graphs and even "secret documents," and integrate all this information with their own test results. A game simulating deer population dynamics led to graphing the populations of deer and mountain lions over a series of years. A deeper look at the graph helped students to notice trends and determine the effect the mountain lions had upon the deer population. They will draw on this graphing exercise to
help them arrive a step closer to solving the mystery of the dying fish in the Gray Area.
 Along the way, they meet suspicious characters such as Elmo Skeeto, a local hunter, and Anton Alogue, whose company cuts trees for wood. Rancher Bo Vyne claims that phosphates from fertilizer might be caused by the local golf course or green lawns rather than from her ranch. Avery Wun commutes to Synchrony City, a town near the Gray Area, to work everyday and is very concerned about the environment.
Though everyone has their suspicions, the source of the problem is still unknown as of the week of April 16.
Once the mystery is solved, students will transition from their roles as environmental detectives to those of local decision-makers. As community board members, they will brainstorm solutions to the problems they conclude are most likely killing the fish. After debating the pros and cons of each proposed solution, they will vote on whether the solutions should become new environmental policies for the Gray Area.
Throughout the investigation, groups work together - reading, brainstorming, debating. "Headquarters" - Room 10, where the list of suspects and evidence are posted - is abuzz with activity. Students are excited to uncover the next clue, hear the next character's statement and (hopefully) solve the mystery.
|
|
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 The Wednesday Weekly shares WMS news and events that are relevant to the families in our community.
Please send submissions to
wednesday-weekly@wmsde.org
by 4:30 p.m. on the Friday prior
to the issue in which you wish to include your information. Content may be edited for length
and style and may be held for a future issue due to space constraints.
For more information, contact Noel Dietrich, Director of Advancement & Communications.
|
|
| |
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|
|
