WIS Weekly
September 12, 2022
May 1, 2023
It's all about OUR KIDS!
- Who needs our support at home, in school, and in the community? ... Our Kids!
- Who needs our guidance, attention, and patience today and everyday? ... Our Kids!
- Who will shape the future of our world tomorrow and in the years to come? ... Our Kids!
Dear Families,
Profanity has become increasingly common in children’s everyday speech— no doubt, this is a reflection of the frequency with which they hear inappropriate language in popular media, casual conversations of adults, and, of course, their peer groups. The commonplace use of profanity in general society, however, does not mean that it will be tolerated at WIS.
We realize students use profanity for a variety of reasons. Some swear to gain the
attention of their teacher or classmates. Some swear to impress their peers. Some
swear to express strong emotions, such as anger, distress, or frustration. Some may
even swear to attack someone who has hurt them. In any event, profanity can be offensive, especially to bystanders who may be within earshot of the foul language. Inappropriate words and phrases spoken out loud create a disrespectful tone in the classroom, halls, cafeteria, playground, and anywhere on the school grounds where students are gathered.
Westchester teachers and staff strive to promote respect among all of our students. In addition, we will seek to identify the underlying reason(s) for a student’s use of profanity so that we may suggest alternative expressions. I ask for your support in this effort. Please have regular conversations with your children regarding the use of profanities in public. Remind them that there are other ways to express frustration or disappointment (e.g. talk it out with a close friend, record their feelings in a journal, etc.). When having these discussions, please remind them of our school’s expectation for mutual respect among peers, staff, and guests to our building. Children need to understand that using profanity is a choice.
Respectfully,
Mr. Longacre
Scheduled eLearning Day TOMORROW, May 2nd
The Duneland School Corporation will participate in a scheduled eLearning day and will follow the 2022-2023 eLearning Guidelines for a scheduled Online eLearning day - PLANNED ASYNCHRONOUS.
ILearn Testing, May 4th
5th grade: Social Studies
Thursday, May 4th
May the force (or the scores) be with you. Or perhaps the dark side calls you? Regardless, today, May the 4th is Star Wars Day. Please dress to honor those events that happened a long time ago, in a galaxy far, far way.
This is the way.
May 8th-12th....Teacher Appreciation Week
Have you ever driven past a school at 6am on a Monday morning or at 2pm on a Sunday afternoon? If you have, chances are you’ve seen a teacher’s cars in the parking lot. Any time I go to work in my office during non-school hours (which is very often), I’m more likely to see other teachers than not. If they're not at the school, they're probably grading or planning from home well into the night and over the weekend. Many people don’t realize the amount of time and heart teachers put into their careers. It’s a fulfilling and rewarding, yet often thankless and tiring job.
So what can we do to celebrate teachers? We can start by helping clear WIS Teachers Amazon list and providing snacks and supplies that will bring a smile to their faces all week long. Thank you for your donations and also please consider writing your student's teacher a letter of thanks. :)
Clear here to donate!
Run Club
A look into WIS classrooms...
5th Grade Curriculum
Language Arts
We began to read the novel Holes and got through the first 15 chapters! We focused on character traits, plot mountains, and how to keep track of “a story within a story”. We also continued to read IRAs by one author/illustrator and had a chance to compare similarities of the style of the books, even while reading different genres.
This week on Tuesday 5/2, the eLearning day, students will take an **open book/open notes quiz** over the first part of Holes. All read aloud recordings are available in the module any time a student is absent. We will also begin an IRA unit focusing on tall tales to finish up the year.
Math:
Last week students completed the Math I-Learn. To switch gears we watched the movie, Hidden Figures, in class on Thursday and Friday. Students enjoyed combining some classes and being able to relax a little after the test!
This week, we will be looking again at Order of Operations and Measures of Central Tendencies as well as interpreting different types of graphs for e-learning.
Social Studies
- Students reviewed the American Revolution this week.
Science
- Last week, the students began learning about plant and animal adaptations. We ended the week by dissecting owl pellets!
- Your student should be bringing a blue note home today. This note provides information about an upcoming walk to the Bird Sanctuary. Please be sure to sign and return the bottom portion to your student’s science teacher.
- This week we will continue working on adaptations.
6th Grade Curriculum
Language Arts
Sixth grade ELA students will continue with The Westing Game and take notes and work together as they piece the puzzle together.
Sixth grade HA classes will continue with King Arthur and His Knights of the Round the Table.
Math
- Students have officially finished the math portion of the ILEARN testing. Students appeared to work hard and put forth their best effort. NWEA/MAPS testing will be happening in the next few weeks. This will be our end of the year test. The data provided by this test will allow teachers to see how much growth students have achieved academically over this past school year.
Science
- This week in science, students will continue reviewing for the upcoming iLearn on May 4th. Please make sure to have the student iPads completely charged, get a good night's sleep, and have a good breakfast. On Tuesday, please have your student complete the e-learning attendance activity as well as the assignment. On Friday, students will be using microscopes to look at various items from the world around them.
Social Studies
- This week students are going to work on a map of Mexico. They will identify, color, and label cities, bodies of water, and several of the physical features of Mexico.
Related Arts rotation this Thursday, May 3rd
Related Arts
Art
- Students in art class are learning about the 20th century American artist, Wayne Thiebaud. Students are creating 3D cakes in the shapes of forms with a slice missing. The students are using their previous knowledge of value (blending/ shading) and texture to create their cakes in their own personal unique ways. Students will learn oil pastel techniques to apply color to their finished design.
PE
- This week in PE, students will be playing some fun games to celebrate the end of our rotation. On Thursday, students will rotate related arts and new students will be starting their flag football unit on Friday.
Music
- This week in music class, students will be learning songs in 3/4 time signature, and they will also learn to play the dotted quarter note and dotted eighth note rhythms found in new songs on the Orff instruments.
Middle School Football Callout Meeting TONIGHT!
There will be a call out meeting for all current 6th grade students that are interested in playing football at the Middle School next year. Plan to meet at the CMS Lunch Room and use Entrance 19. Meeting will begin at 6pm.
Attention 5th grade families...May 11/12 upcoming visit to the bird sanctuary!
Dear WIS Families….
As part of our study of ecology, ecosystems, and plant/animal adaptations, we are planning to walk with our students to the Westchester Migratory Bird Sanctuary. The Bird Sanctuary is located just across the street from WIS, at 1150 South 11th Street.
Students in science periods 1, 4, and 7 will go on Thursday, May 11, 2023.
Students in science periods 3, 5, and 8 will go on Friday, May 12, 2023.
We will be out of the school building for approximately 60 minutes (or less) for each class. Students will be walking approximately 1.5 miles, round trip. While at the bird sanctuary, students will walk on gravel, dirt, and mulch paths, conducting a “scavenger hunt” of various concepts that were learned during our unit of study. They will bring their iPads and take pictures of what they find. Upon returning to WIS, students will be adding their photos to a Google Doc, which will be submitted via Canvas.
Traveling with students will be Mrs. Buhring, Mrs. Steinbeck, and Officer Joe Christian. In addition, Mrs. Hurst, Mr. Longacre, and Mrs. Seiss may also join the groups.
Students should dress appropriately for the weather, and wear comfortable walking shoes. They may also bring a hat to wear, if they wish.
Please fill out the bottom portion of the handout your student has brought home TODAY and return it to school with your student no later than Tuesday, May 9, 2023.
If you have any questions, feel free to contact us at:
Sincerely,
Mrs. Buhring
Mrs. Steinbeck
Mark your calendar...
Tuesday, May 2nd
Planned Asynchronous eLearning Day
Thursday, May 4th
Spring Choir Concert
May 8th-12th
Teacher Appreciation Week
April 4th - May 12th
Run Club meets on Tuesdays & Thursdays
Parents please pick up at 4:15
April 18th - May 12th
ILearn testing window
Please make sure your student brings a fully charged iPad and earbuds daily
Parents and Guardians, check out April's edition of Helping Children Learn
Red Cross Blood Drive at Yost Elementary...May 10th
There are many gifts of value in our world, but none are more precious than the gift of life. You can become a part of the lifesaving process. Please consider supporting the Red Cross on May 10 at the Yost Elementary School cafeteria for the original building's last ever blood drive. Nurses and staff will be on hand from 2-6 pm for all community members willing to roll up a sleeve and make a donation. The Red Cross has set a spring goal of 96 donations. Each donation has the potential to affect the lives of three recipients! If you are able and willing to donate, please schedule an appointment at Redcrossblood.org and type in code YostElem.
Duneland Summer School 2023
Duneland K-7 Summer Learning Programs
Click here to register
Summer School Bus Stops
LIMITED transportation will be provided for Summer School students. Centralized bus stop locations throughout the district are determined based on ridership. These bus stops will be posted by Friday, May 19.
Duneland School Corporation Camps
CHS Basketball Camp
Lady Trojans Basketball Camp
Chesterton Soccer Camp
We are excited to announce our dates and times for this summer Chesterton Soccer Summer Trojan Camp. We will be running the camp the week of July 24-27. The camp will be divided into three different age groups and run for one hour for second grade and under and one and a half hours for 3rd grade and above each evening.
CHS Summer Youth Football Camps
Football Call-Outs / Summer Camp
CMS Football Callout Meeting
All current 6th and 7th grade students and parents attending LIS /
WIS / St. Pat's and Discovery who are interested in Playing Football at CMS or Pop Warner in the Fall of 2023!
Click here to see the flyer!
Chesterton Football Position Camps
Intermediate and Middle School students entering Grades 5 - 6 - 7 - 8 in the Fall of 2023 (each camp is limited to the first 35 kids that sign up for that camp date)
Click here to sign up!
Helpful Links
2022-2023 Duneland School Calendar
(REVISED 6/6/22)
Skyward
Class schedules, grades, bus routes, ILearn, and lots more!
eLearning 2022-2023
Teachers will post schedules by 9:00 A.M. on the eLearning day. Click the image to download the pdf.
2022-2023 Procedures for Delaying/Closing Schools
Please review the DSC Procedures for Delaying/Closing Schools in case of inclement weather.
Westchester Campus
Westchester Intermediate School
WIS Mission:
WIS provides a safe and engaging environment where students are empowered to explore their talents, build on their curiosity, embrace high expectations, and become responsible, caring citizens.
WIS Vision:
WIS inspires learners to become independent, critical thinkers collaborating in an environment where responsibility, adaptability, and reflection are modeled and developed.
Email: slongacre@duneland.k12.in.us
Website: https://www.duneland.k12.in.us/Domain/14
Location: 1050 South 5th Street, Chesterton, IN, USA
Phone: (219) 983-3710
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/westchesterintermediate/