This is the last Friday that we will be in school until January 12th. Our students did great this week and I am proud of how well they are keeping their focus on learning. We will be celebrating spirit week next week so encourage your child to participate in the events each day!
Winter Break
Just a reminder that Winter Break begins Friday, December 22nd and students return to school on Monday, January 8th.
Spirit Week Festivities
Monday - Pajama Day
Tuesday - Dress like your favorite character from a book, comic or cartoon
Wednesday - Ugly sweater day
Thursday - Wear pink for Rachel
Giving Change to Make Change
In conjunction with our students, staff and the Vondrak family, this Thursday, December 21st, we will do an indoor, all school walk in honor of Rachel Vondrak. Some of our 6th grade students have asked if we can collect change (pennies, nickels, dimes and quarters) and/or gently used soccer equipment because Rachel loved soccer so much. All proceeds will go to the US Soccer Foundation, PassBack program.
Student Council
Woodlawn Student Council is hosting our inaugural Ping Pong Tournament which will be held on Monday December 18th and Wednesday December 20th AFTER school in the gym from 2:30- 3:15 pm. You can show up either day to either play or to cheer on your friends and teachers. It’s $2 to participate and $1 to watch. All of the money we collect will go to Anidasso Health which will provide a water filter to a village in Ghana. Our goal is to raise $300 that will buy 1 water filter that can provide clean water for 1 village. Personally, I am channeling my inner Forrest Gump and looking to dish out a whooping on some middle school students.
PTO Blog
Please visit the PTO Blog
Community Service Club
The Community Service Club wrapped up our very successful toy drive. When the gifts were delivered to the children's hospital, the staff was extremely grateful. The hospital is currently at capacity and expects to be throughout the holiday season. Our donation was much needed and will bring lots of smiles! Thank you to the club for all your hard work and to everyone who donated!
Stevenson Placement
Parents, click here to see information on Stevenson placement
MAP Test Results
Winter MAP results will be sent home with your child on Thursday, December 21st. Make sure that you are looking for them!
Finally, I promised this earlier in the school year. Last year, Woodlawn created a few statements about who we are as a school and what we believe our school should be. The principal, the staff and students created individual belief systems from last year. This activity was so powerful that each of the schools in D96 have done something similar this year. I believe that our school, students and community trust the work that we do and support each other at all times. Woodlawn is a special place where we work at becoming the best school that we can possibly be. Here is a recap of what we created last year:
My vision: (Principal)
Woodlawn is a positive educational institution where all children are respected for their individual differences and supported as they work to become contributing members within our school community. Our Woodlawn staff is passionate about the role we play as an educational team, investing in the future success of the whole child.
Woodlawn will never accept any form of social injustice, whether written, spoken or implied that denigrates any member of our school community. During our school day, collaboration and respect for all is our expectation. Actions inconsistent with our core values will be evaluated and addressed on an individual basis with all stakeholders.
Our families represent a large variety of races, religions, and ethnic identities. We all come to Woodlawn with different home experiences, and it is this diversity that has helped us to achieve our successes. Students, community members, and staff are expected to bring these unique perspectives into our building on a daily basis, actively working to become one outstanding, inclusive Professional Learning Community.
We will continue to work to ensure that our school is safe for all students and is judgement free. This week our staff spent time evaluating how our District 96 Values connect with the behaviors we expect all stakeholders to emulate within our Woodlawn community. Our goal is to continue these dialogues with students and community members to ensure that all stakeholders have ownership in the expectations we will continue to uphold and reinforce at Woodlawn.
We Are Woodlawn.
Our Vision: (Woodlawn Staff)
Model for Others What We Expect From Others
All members of the Woodlawn community are expected to uphold high standards and build positive relationships with each and every stakeholder. We expect all stakeholders to adhere to the Woodlawn virtues of empathy, kindness and respect, improving upon the golden rule by treating others how they want to be treated.
Every Child, Every School, Every Day
At Woodlawn, we strive to understand all of our students, valuing them for their uniqueness and individual differences. We strive to create differentiated learning opportunities to learn every day to ensure their growth.
Best Practice, Not First Practice
We believe that ongoing professional development, collaboration, research, and data analysis help teachers to create a culturally responsive approach that uses multiple learning modalities to develop the whole child. Teachers will continuously reflect upon their instruction, encourage and demonstrate how students should own their learning, to while implementing lessons using a student centered approach and creating a differentiated learning experience for all.
Learning has No Boundaries
We believe that all children can learn and that a student’s potential is continually increasing. We challenge each student by providing them with the strategies and tools needed to be successful while holding high expectations for all of our students. We believe in equity. Every student will receive the support that he or she needs to ensure that success is limitless.
Celebrate Success
We recognize all of the successes and achievements of each stakeholder group. We celebrate our differences, promote awareness of our diversity, and understand that our differences will continue to strengthen our identity as an ideal school community.
Student Vision:
Woodlawn Values
In order for Woodlawn to reach its full academic potential, it is essential for its teachers, staff, and assistants to not only engage students in learning but to encourage their gaining of knowledge. Due to the fact that we, as well as the general student body at Woodlawn, greatly appreciate our teachers, we feel that wonderful teachers should possess characteristics that incorporate compassion, an unbiased mindset, wishes of equality among students and individuals, and a motivation to guide each student in accomplishing their goals. Moreover, academic success is achieved through higher education levels, so teachers should make learning more challenging and encompass various methods of teaching, whether traditional or non-traditional, in order for students to fully comprehend material. Our teachers and staff at Woodlawn are not only magnificent, but should be a precedent for teachers everywhere and in the future.
Teachers encourage Learning
The ideal Woodlawn would be a safe haven of knowledge where teachers should encourage and participate in learning activities while setting clear and concise goals for the classroom. Teachers would be able to provide the equal opportunities for students who endure struggles at home that affect their ability to perform academically and socially.
Opportunities
We are lucky enough to be in a school that provides as many opportunities as receive. As well as we are privileged enough to have the technology we do. But, in our ideal Woodlawn there are a few more opportunities we would have.
We would like more opportunities for choice in our classes
We would appreciate the opportunity to be trusted
We would like the opportunity to work more with teachers one on one
We would like the opportunity to have more structured group work
We would like the opportunity to be trusted with more responsibility
We would like the opportunity to express ourselves creatively
Challenged at High Levels
Here at Woodlawn students should have a fun enjoyable time. Students shouldn't be judged for their culture, skin color, height and size. Coming to school with a positive mind for education, and always make the best out of it. Respect the teachers because they always want the best for you, and trust them to express, in an open forum, their ideas for conversation. At Woodlawn Middle School students have the choice what sport to play, what club to participate in and etc. there should be no teasing and no judging for their decisions. We should always try to accomplish our goals and never give up. Woodlawn is overall a great school, with fantastic teachers and respectful students.
Community
We - collectively as a student body- wish for the community at Woodlawn middle school to be open, accepting, and connected with each other for the duration of education. We honor and embrace the ability to be able to interact with others, speak without discrimination, and develop relationships with other students -and teachers- in the mere action of attending school and participating in a variety of activities. We want everyone to be able to speak their minds and express their thoughts without fear or judgement of others, bringing to our school and community not only new opinions and ideas, but also a new and broader perspective of the world and its people. Being able to understand different views having to do with different topics can make our community even more closely knit and can unite and bring us together not only as a school, but also as a beneficial and unprecedented society.
This is what we want our Woodlawn community to be for future students.