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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
November 1
WMS Soccer: WMS vs. Pilot School
(rescheduled from October 18)
WMS Soccer Field
5-6 p.m.
Great Room
November 4
10 a.m.
Tell a friend!
November 6-10
November 8
5-6 p.m.
Great Room
10:30 and 11:15 a.m.
Tell a friend!
November 10
6 p.m.
Gym
November 15
5-6 p.m.
Great Room
November 21
Grandfriends' Day
8:30-11 a.m. (begins at students' regular classroom start times)
Classrooms & Great Room
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Message from
Head of School Lisa Lalama
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Each November we come to you, our supporters, to ask you to participate in our Annual Fund. For this year's theme, we're celebrating the WMS Difference. What an opportunity! The WMS Difference surrounds us. Where else will you find a school that is truly dedicated to the growth of each child? Where can you be assured your child and your family are known, by not only their teachers, but by the entire community? What is the difference WMS makes in your family's life?
When I arrived at WMS over 15 years ago, I was excited to be a teacher in the 9-12 Program. I welcomed the opportunity to learn more about the school and to figure out what I could bring to the community. Throughout the years, as I've learned more about other schools and other educational practices, I've discovered so many WMS differences. As a teacher and Head of School, I've had the opportunity to take new ideas and put them into practice. I've been able to build relationships with students, families and staff that have offered me great learning, support and growth. I've had the chance to ask questions about how we do things and thought about how changes would serve our students and their future growth. This is the WMS difference. It is evident in our community from the youngest children to the seasoned staff to the many alumni who are proud to count WMS as one of their first homes away from home.
WMS is different. Our community is strong. We work together to hone our practice and bring the best in education for our students. We ask questions of ourselves and each other - questions that help us grow and stay strong. The WMS difference is you and it is a difference that lasts. Please stop by the lobby next week or share the WMS difference on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook using #WMSdifference. Your support makes a difference.
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News & Notes
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Get Your Dancing Shoes Ready:
It's Dance Party Time!
Please join the fifth-grade class on Friday, November 10, from 6 to 7:30 p.m. in the gym for dinner, dancing, dessert, raffle prizes and more. Tickets are $10 per person (with a $5 discount for parties of four or more) and may be purchased in the lobby after school every day next week, as well as on Friday morning, November 10, and at the door before the dance. All ages are welcome.
The dance party is a fundraiser for next year's sixth-grade trip to New York City and the Global Citizenship Action Project (GCAP) conference.
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Picture Day Orders Due November 3
Picture Day order forms are due back to the front desk by this Friday, November 3, if you do not place your order online. Please note that you will need the password printed on your order form to order pictures online.
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Financial Aid Application Open for
2018-19 School Year
The deadline to be considered for a first-round award is Friday, January 5, 2018. Financial aid applications completed after January 5 will be considered as funds allow.
Financial aid grants are made for one year only so you must re-apply each school year.
Please contact Business Manager Nancy Oddo with any questions.
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Tell a Friend About Play and Learn at Brandywine Hundred Library
WMS has partnered with Brandywine Hundred Library to offer
Montessori "Play and Learn" to the community.
Led by WMS teachers and administrators, this free, monthly class reinforces the learning partnership between parents and their young children. Parents and children learn about WMS and the Montessori Method in a comfortable, classroom-like environment with activities including Morning Meeting, songs, movement and work time with Montessori materials.
Please tell a friend to join us for our next class on November 8 at 10:30 or 11:15 a.m.!
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Tomorrow's Leaders
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Northern Exposure: Ava Gulino (WMS '10) Reaches New Heights
WMS alum Ava Gulino doesn't shy away from a challenge - even if it's the colder climate she now inhabits as a sophomore at Bates College in Lewiston, Maine.
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Ava climbing Champlain Mountain in
Maine's Acadia National Park
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"Living in Maine has been very positive," she said. "A lot of people comment about how freezing it gets in winter, and I always say, 'I don't know when else I would live in Maine.' I've learned a lot in my time here."
Ava has also learned plenty since her time at WMS. After graduating in 2010, Ava attended Talley Middle School, where she enrolled in the International Baccalaureate (IB) Middle Years Programme - a rigorous, five-year academic program
that encourages students to make connections between their studies and the real world and to become critical thinkers
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"I think the IB program prepared me a lot for college," she said. "It was a bit of culture shock going into Talley Middle - it was much bigger. But the experience also gave me more of an appreciation of Montessori."
She went on to attend Mount Pleasant High School, where she earned her IB diploma in 2016 through the IB Diploma Programme - a continuation of the Middle Years Programme.
While she was pursuing the IB program in high school, Ava was also working toward earning her Girl Scout Gold Award - the highest achievement in Girl Scouts. Her Gold Award project
served Family Promise of New Castle County, a nonprofit that supports homeless families and helps them find permanent housing. Ava was instrumental in creating a system to better organize the glut of household items in the Family Promise attic - a space where families can find items like silverware, bedding, baby toys, lamps and more for their new homes. She also organized a bedding drive to collect blankets, comforters and sheets - the items in highest demand for families once they secure permanent housing.
Ava graduated from high school in 2016 as a National Honor Society member. Since she had yet to decide on a career path to pursue, Ava embraced Bates College's liberal arts focus and its long history of inclusiveness - founded by abolitionists in 1855, Bates was the first co-ed college in New England.
"Another reason Bates appealed to me is you have time to declare your major - you cannot declare your major until the end of sophomore year," she said. "Liberal arts has been a good way to dip my toe into a lot of different subjects."
Outside the classroom, Ava is also exploring a few different areas of interest. As a freshman, she linked up with the Bates radio station
and started her own radio show. "Freshman don't get the best time slots, but I convinced a girl in my hall that we should do a show together," she said. "We hosted a show from 6 to 8 a.m. every Wednesday."
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Ava as a 9-12 student at WMS in 2008 |
Ava has since joined the radio station board and works on special projects like organizing the station welcome party and testing new recording equipment. Her current radio show time slot has improved since freshman year - she now co-hosts a show called Oh hi, Mark,
playing folk, indie and alternative music from 10 p.m. to midnight every Wednesday.
Reflecting on her years since WMS, Ava knows her Montessori experience has influenced many choices she's made. She still clings to the early love of learning WMS instilled in her as a preschooler and elementary student.
"Montessori has definitely fostered such an appreciation for learning and wanting to learn more," she said. "Montessori allows you to be curious and interested in different things and ask questions."
As a college student, Ava's love of learning continues.
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I find myself in class really excited to learn," she said.
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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
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.
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