Happy New Year and welcome Woodlawn families to 2023! It was a terrific break and the staff is so excited to be back and working with our students again. We are right around the halfway point of the school year and in a great groove of learning.
No School this Monday, January 16th in observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
8th Grade Parents - Simplifying Stevenson
This is a terrific program put on by D96 and Stevenson High School where you will meet Principal, Troy Gobble and current Stevenson High School students who will be presenting and answering your questions about what to expect for all freshmen in the fall. I recommend that you check this one out.
Pre-Registration Open for Incoming 2023-24 Kindergartners
Pre-Registration for incoming 2023-24 kindergartners is now open.
The 2023-24 Kindergarten Pre-Registration is open to students who live within District 96 boundaries and will be 5 years old by Sept. 1, 2023.
To begin the Kindergarten Pre-Registration process, parents must email all required documents to the administrative assistant at Willow Grove Early Learning Center at [email protected].
Parents need to supply the following:
- Student’s Birth Certificate or Passport or Visa
- Parent/Guardian Photo ID (Passport or Driver’s License)
- Proof of District Residency (a current mortgage statement or current lease or property tax bill)
- Current Utility Bill
- Click the link to download & complete: RESIDENCY FORM
- Click the link to download & complete: HOME LANGUAGE SURVEY
- Click the link to download & complete: ENROLLMENT FORM
After the submitted documents are approved, families will receive a Pre-Registration link to complete by January 31, 2023. Students pre-registered by January 31 will receive a free Willow Grove T-shirt. (T-shirts are not available after this pre-registration period.)
Families needing to pre-register their child in person may contact Kimberly O’Neill, administrative assistant at Willow Grove Early Learning Center, at [email protected] or at (847) 541-3660.
Learn more about Kindergarten in District 96: https://www.kcsd96.org/wg/kindergarten-in-kcsd96
Got questions? Email Kimberly O’Neill, administrative assistant at Willow Grove, at [email protected].
ACCESS Testing
The State of Illinois requires identified English Learner (EL) students to annually participate in the ACCESS testing to determine current English language proficiency in Listening, Speaking, Reading, and Writing. Our ACCESS testing window will occur from 1/17-2/22. Each school’s testing schedule is unique and will only impact students who take the ACCESS test. Students taking ACCESS do not need to prepare anything ahead of time.
Visit the PTO Monthly Blog!
Incoming Freshman Dance Placements
Students have access to the freshmen dance placement document in the D96 virtual backpack. Here is the link if you are interested in that as well.
Vernon Area Public Library -
Volunteer from home, earn service hours!
The teen volunteer program organized by Vernon Area Public Library allows students to
volunteer right where they are, when they are able.
● open to grades 7–12
● spring session starts January 10 and ends April 14, 2023
● no applications or training
● choose volunteer project/s that interest you
● volunteer from home, as your schedule allows
● no minimum or maximum hours
● a great way to do some good and earn service hours!
To learn more about this Vernon Area Library program, visit VAPLD.info/TeenVolunteers.
Questions? Email Teen Volunteer Coordinator Diane Presta at [email protected] or call
224-543-1485 during library hours.
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Finally, I work in a middle school. I have always said that middle school teachers are like middle school kids, just a little off-center. Elementary teachers are like elementary kids, always in touch with their feelings and very kind. When a topic of conversation came up at school this week, thinking it was fairly benign, I was taken aback by his strong reaction to my taste. The topic-- presets on my car radio. I splurge and spend $5 a month for satellite radio and vow to never go back to commercial radio. With this subscription, I have filled the numerous slots with what I refer to as my top 12 because, after that, it is too much work to search around. So when a gentleman who I have worked with for years, music shamed me this week, I felt the place to best get the last word was right here in the blog. I acknowledge that my taste may not be for everyone, but I try to balance things out. Yes, I have the 70’s station (which my children lovingly refer to as the oldies station), 80’s, 90’s, Pop Rocks, Beatles, Classic Rock, Classic Vinyl (same as classic rock), and Road Trip radio. The shaming came when I listed The Blend (soft rock), The Bridge (softer rock), and Yacht Rock (softest rock) radio. The last three are where the music shaming began. Being the youngest of four, I never had access to the radio and had to listen to what my siblings and/or parents liked. So when Christopher Cross, Ambrosia, or England Dan and John Ford Coley come on, I am all in. Wait, now that I put it in writing…he may have a point. Ugh, I have musical issues.