Another great week here at Woodlawn! So many positive things are happening and today was another special lunch day for our students. Always a great day. Next week we will be having a spirit week so check out our flyer below.
We have a half day of school on Friday, February 17th. Students will be dismissed at 11:10 AM.
There is no school on Monday, February 20th.
Evening chat with Mr. Grana & Mrs. Groncki
This Monday, February 13th, from 7-8 p.m. come to Woodlawn to chat with the principal and AP that get to spend hours with your student on a daily basis. We will be here to talk about Woodlawn, middle school, or any other topic that seems interesting to you. We have a lot of stories that we can share with you and hope that you are able to make it. We are planning on being in our Learning Center.
Valentine's Spirit Week
Black History Month
To honor Black History Month, I would like to share this with the Woodlawn community:
Each year the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH) selects a theme for Black History Month. This year’s theme is “Black Resistance.” The ASALH website has information on the origins of Black History Month, a deep dive into Black Resistance, both in the past and in recent history, as well as a list of previous year’s themes for Black History Month.
In this article from NPR, three sections provide an overview of the history of Black History Month, as well as highlight this year’s theme of “Black Resistance,” connecting relevant information regarding race and civil rights from the past to the present.
Team Leader Chat
Each Friday, Mrs. Groncki and I have a meeting with our school leadership team and talk about a number of things. Today, the pulse was taken on where the grade levels are at behaviorally.
Here is the basic feedback we received:
6th Grade - Kindness concerns/friend issues. Students are saying things to each other that are popular on social media that do not align with our school expectations. Overall behavior and dress code is better.
7th Grade - Students are focused on their phones and Apple watches. There is a lot of running and pushing in the hallways and the lunchroom has been a challenge. There has also been bathroom misbehavior, including making a complete mess. On the plus side, the students are generally very nice.
8th Grade - The 8th graders are using their phones or Apple watches to meet up in the bathroom to hang out. Usually in groups of 10 or more. Classrooms are going well.
So…I will be working on these things. If you are keeping score at home:
Tech/Social Media 3
Grana 0
SHS Math Circle
We are excited to announce that Stevenson is hosting our annual Math Circle on April 8 and 15 from 9 AM to 12 PM! The Math Circle is a great opportunity for students to explore math ideas, solve problems, and compete with their friends in a fun environment. In the past, guest speakers for the Math Circle have included Professor Po-Shen Loh and 3blue1brown, as well as Stevenson alumni with careers in mathematics. Registration costs $35, which covers a custom t-shirt and practice materials for the first 80 students that sign up using the link below. Historically, this number has been filled VERY fast, so we urge students and parents to sign up as soon as possible to ensure a spot at the Math Circle. The deadline to sign up is March 17. If you have any questions, please reach out to Mr. Kim at [email protected].
Link: https://shsmathteam.com/stevenson-consortium-math-circle/
NEW *5Essentials Survey for Parents/Guardians*
Beginning January 24 through April 2nd, District 96 invites you to share your thoughts on the inner workings of your child’s school. On behalf of the Illinois State Board of Education, the Illinois 5Essentials Survey will be administered online by UChicago Impact at the University of Chicago.
As a parent, this opportunity will allow you to share your thoughts on the important elements of school effectiveness in a survey about your child’s school. Your participation will help us understand the conditions at your child’s school and guide our improvement. Parent identity and survey responses will be kept completely confidential and will never be connected to you or your child.
Please visit http://survey.5-essentials.org/illinois/survey/parent/ to begin the parent survey. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact UChicago Impact Client Services at 1-866-440-1874 or [email protected].
PLEASE TAKE THIS SURVEY.....
NEW *D96 Dual Language Program*
Do you have an entering kindergartner or know of a D96 resident who does? Are you interested in your child having a bilingual school experience?
The District 96 Spanish/English Dual Language Program was designed several years ago to implement instruction across the curriculum that provides an opportunity for students to develop a deep academic proficiency in two languages. In the Dual Language Program, 50 percent of the academic curriculum is delivered in Spanish, and 50 percent of the academic curriculum is delivered in English.
Families interested in enrolling their incoming kindergartners in the Spanish/English Dual Language Program can indicate so on the registration form while completing the kindergarten registration process that begins March 1, 2023. This process should be completed by April 15, 2023, to be entered into the Dual Language Lottery. Please note that indicating interest in the Dual Language Program does not guarantee acceptance into the Dual Language program.
Please visit our District 96 Website to learn more about the optional Spanish/English Dual Language Program (https://www.kcsd96.org/curriculum/dual-language) and our Dual Language Lottery (https://www.kcsd96.org/curriculum/dual-language-lottery).
**District 96 will be hosting a Virtual Parent Night at 6:00 to 7:00 P.M. on MARCH 8 for parents of incoming Kindergarten students who are interested in learning more about the Dual Language Program.**
Please visit the PTO Monthly Blog.
Click here for the Woodlawn Daily Announcements
Finally, here are some fun facts about the Super Bowl that will amaze those who you watch the Super Bowl with. As the game is going on, throw out one of these facts to sound like a real football aficionado.
- Teams that win the coin toss are 24-32 in Super Bowl history. This includes an 0-8 mark in the past eight Super Bowls.
- Travis Kelce and Jason Kelce are the first brothers on opposing teams in a Super Bowl.
- The combined ages of Patrick Mahomes, 27, and Jalen Hurts, 24, tie them with Brett Favre and Drew Bledsoe as the youngest pair of opposing quarterbacks in any Super Bowl.
- Super Bowl LVII will mark the 15 straight postseason games the Chiefs have either hosted at home or at a neutral location.
- Historically, the teams that outrush their opponent in the Super Bowl are 41-14.
- Chiefs linebacker Willie Gay Jr. and Eagles wide receiver A.J. Brown won a state championship on the same high school team in Starkville, Mississippi in 2015.
- Philadelphia is the first team in NFL history to have four players record 10 sacks in a season.
- 12 NFL teams have never won the Super Bowl (4 have never even been). The four teams that have never even been to a Super Bowl are the Houston Texans, Jacksonville Jaguars, Detroit Lions, and Cleveland Browns. The other eight teams who have been to the Super Bowl and lost are the Minnesota Vikings (4 appearances), Buffalo Bills (4), Atlanta Falcons (2), Carolina Panthers (2), Arizona Cardinals (1), Tennessee Titans (1), and Los Angeles Chargers (1).
- Every player on both teams in the Super Bowl gets a fancy loaner car to drive around all week. The Cadillac Escalade is the most popular car chosen.
- The University of California at Berkeley is the top school for producing quarterbacks that start in the Super Bowl. The most recent was Jared Goff in 2019 (Rams). The other UC quarterbacks were Joe Kapp, Craig Morton, Vince Ferragamo, and Aaron Rodgers.
- The NFL doesn’t pay bands/artists for performing at the halftime show. The NFL only covers the expenses and production costs but does not pay the performers themselves. Even Beyonce herself was not paid a penny to perform in the Super Bowl. What they do get is exposure and lots of it. Millions of people are tuned in to the halftime show, often even more so than to the actual game. After the 2020 halftime show, Shakira’s Spotify streams went up by 230% and Jennifer Lopez’ went up by 335%. So, the artists end up benefitting quite a bit anyway.
- Super Bowl XLVII saw two brothers coaching against each other for the first time ever. Jim Harbaugh, with the San Francisco 49ers, and John Harbaugh, with the Baltimore Ravens, made history in 2013. It was also known as the Harbaugh Bowl or the Har-Bowl. John’s team won 34-31.
- The NFL has traditionally not held the Super Bowl in stadiums with a climate of fewer than 50 degrees Fahrenheit unless it is covered or has a retractable roof. That is why most of them are held in warm-weather cities, 11 of the 55 being in Miami. Only four have been held in northern cities.
- Everything is over-the-top at the Super Bowl and that includes the coin toss. A quarter simply will not do. Highland Mint crafts a specific unique coin to use for the toss, with an image of the Lombardi Trophy to signify “heads” and another image representing the current Super Bowl for “tails”.
Food/Ad Factoids
- The Super Bowl is the second-highest eating day for Americans (behind Thanksgiving).
- 8 million pounds of guacamole is consumed on Super Bowl Sunday.
- 1.45 billion chicken wings will be eaten.
- 11.2 million pounds of potato chips.
- 16.1 million people will miss work on Monday following the Super Bowl. (I blame the chicken wings)
- 19.4 percent of viewers say that the commercials are the best part of the Superbowl.
- Super Bowl ads generate 4x more engagement than a regular ad.
- 63% of Americans say funny ads are their favorite.
Top 5 Super Bowl Facts for 2023:
- $6,382: The average cost of a ticket to the past five Super Bowls.
- $5,738: Lowest price of a Super Bowl LVII ticket on the resale market just after the conference championships (35% increase from 2022).
- $1B: Estimated economic impact for the greater Phoenix area economy in 2023.
- 17.8M: Americans plan to watch the game at a bar or restaurant.
- 204%: 20-year increase in the cost of a 30-second Super Bowl ad (hitting a record cost of $7 million for a spot in 2023).
- There is a Super Bowl bonus for the winning team of 150K, while the losing team gets a mere 75K.
- In a survey of what would you give up to watch your team play in person, these were the top 3 responses:
35% of people said drinking for one year
28% of people said their favorite food
21% of people said all vacation days for one year
I hope that everyone enjoys Super Bowl Sunday! And yes, I will be here on Monday!