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W E D N E S D A Y W E E K L Y
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In this Issue
Upcoming Events
Information Night for Parents of Rising First-Graders*
5-6 p.m.
Great Room
December 6
Make Sale
3-5 p.m.
Great Room
Celebration of Reading
3-6:30 p.m.
Great Room
December 8
Tree Dedication in Memory of Jane Miner
11 a.m.
Toddler playground
December 19
6-9 Winter Concert
9:30 a.m.
Gym
December 20
December 21
December 24-January 1
Winter Break - building closed
(no Saturday access December 22 or 29)
*Parents may earn co-op hours for attending Information sessions.
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Celebration of Reading
Message from
Head of School Lisa Lalama
Do you remember the book fairs of your childhood? School children look forward to them. There is nothing like exploring a room full of books, perusing the titles, opening them to look at illustrations or beginning to read a story to see if it suits your taste. Honestly, some of the best days in my school years were the days new books arrived.
At WMS we do book fairs a bit differently. We still have shelves and tables of books. We make the fair an afternoon of celebrating reading. In past years we have had the pleasure of having authors visit to read their books aloud to the shoppers in the room. We've had arts experiences where children can make their own bookmarks. We've had children read to the group, from beginning readers to those who are older and more experienced. It is a wonderful day at WMS, a true celebration. And this year your children are holding a Make Sale, offering items they have been busily creating in the Maker (STEAM) Studios.
I am an avid reader and am never without a book. This didn't begin when I became an adult. It has its roots in my childhood. I loved to read and would read anything I could get my hands on. My tastes have evolved, but I still enjoy a good mystery just as I did when I was consuming Nancy Drew books as a child. I still yearn for the quiet spaces in my day when I can read, think and be carried away through the characters or ideas in the books I'm reading. Reading is a habit for life. Yes, we live in a faster-paced world with various forms of media available 24/7. Reading stands the test of time. We hope you'll join us for the Celebration of Reading tomorrow in the Great Room, and don't forget to stop by the Make Sale. We'll see you there!
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News & Notes
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Attend the Book-Inspired "Make Sale" at the Celebration of Reading
Please join us for our first WMS "Make Sale" from 3-5 p.m. at the Celebration of Reading.
Every WMS student has worked hard to make book-inspired creations.
The toddlers, Primary and Lower Elementary students used recycled books to create thank-you note cards, paper flowers and tea lights inspired by the books "Journey," "Charlotte's Web" and the "Pete the Cat" series. The Upper Elementary students made pine cone fire starters and book lights inspired from their summer reading of "Hatchet." And our middle-schoolers made bookmarks using the 3D printers. We'll also have a few surprise participatory art installations.
We hope you can join us!
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Now Accepting Admissions Applications for WMS Siblings for the 2019-20 School Year
by Tiffany Harrison, Director of Admissions
A number of parents have expressed an interest in enrolling siblings of current WMS students and I am delighted to announce that the admissions application is open for 2019-20 school year. I want to ensure that current families are given priority in the admissions process. Please submit applications for WMS siblings by January 11 to be given priority in first round decisions. New families have begun to submit their applications for 2019-20. Spaces are especially limited in the Toddler and Primary Programs. We currently have a waitlist in the Toddler Program for this school year, and I predict we will have one for next school year as well. Feel free to contact me at [email protected] if you have any questions about enrolling a WMS sibling.
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Today's Learners
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Taking a Closer Look: 9-12 Students Explore Cells, Genetics and Humanity
What does it mean to be human?
Have you ever asked yourself this question? Talk to some 9-12 students about it, and they may have a few things to say: it's the essential question they have been exploring since the start of the school year.
Buildi
ng on their lessons from
earlier this fall about scientific classification
, the Upper Elementary students have been learning about the pa
rts of a cell and comparing animal and plant cells. To help them better understand
an
d remember the functions
of each part of a cell, the students created posters with analogies. For example, the cell wall protects the cell like an army protects a country, and the endoglasmic reticulum takes and gives chem
ical compounds to and from the nucleus like Robin Hood takes money from the rich to give to the poor, while the cytoplasm holds everything together like glue. Got all that?
Next, students studied the parts of the microscope and took a closer look at plant and animal cells. They prepared slides with onion and elodea (a water plant) cells and compared them to human cheek (using swabs of their own cheek cells) and blood cells (which they did NOT prepare themselves!) under the microscope.
"With plant and animal cells, students explored what makes us different than plants, and what makes us different than other animals," said 9-12 Lead Teacher Allie Colflesh. "There are things that make us the same - common designs - but we're all unique. Why are we different than an ape or an elephant? What features set us apart as humans?"
This w
eek, the 9-12 students are starting to apply what they've learned about the differences between plant and animal cells to
explore genetics. They will examine their own heredity, and explore family traits,
including those determined by dominant and recessive genes. So don't be surprised if a 9-12 student starts quizzing you about whether you can roll your tongue, asks you to smile t
o reveal dimples, or tugs on your ears to see whether you have attached or detached earlobes - they're just researching recessive gene traits. It's all part of their quest to better understand what it means to be human.
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 The Wednesday Weekly shares WMS news and events that are relevant to the families in our community.
Please send submissions to
[email protected]
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.
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