Another great after-school activity at Elementary is Art Club! Mrs. Wilinski and Ms. Hunt welcome these creative Wildcats to come to the art room after school to make beautiful artwork. The students in these photos are working on a project inspired by Iris Scott and her Shaking Dog artwork. As the art teachers guide students through the lesson, they always offer multiple opportunities for "artist's choice" when describing ways the young artists might personalize their work. #LifeintheW
The March BPAC Meeting was a huge success! Thank you for joining us to learn more about the importance of Mental Health in Education.
Save the Date for the final BPAC meeting of the 2024-2025 School Year on Wednesday, May 21, 2025. Follow the BPAC webpage for additional information: https://www.dist50.net/o/dist50/page/bpac
#LifeintheW
One of the great after-school activities at Elementary is Game Club! Together with Mr. Roth and Mr. Ballesta, these Wildcats get together and play a variety of new and classic games. Recently, the club learned how to play Catan Jr., a kid-friendly version of the popular game Catan. The students had a great time learning how to trade resources, build settlements, and strategize with their friends.
The Game Club is a fun way for students to unwind after a busy school day while learning new skills and making friendships. Whether it’s Catan Jr., a classic board game, or a competitive card game, the Wildcats are always excited to see what new games the club has in store.
Join us for the next Bilingual Parent Advisory Committee (BPAC) Meeting!
Date/Time: March 12, 2025, 7 - 8 p.m.
Location: Woodland Intermediate
Topic: Mental Health
English: https://5il.co/38pqh
Spanish: https://5il.co/38pqj
Join us for an informative and engaging BPAC Meeting with SGA Youth & Family Services discussing the importance of mental health in education. There will be crafts and games for the kids in attendance organized by Woodland teachers and Warren Township High School student volunteers from “Avanza”.
Ms. McGinn’s 3rd grade class had a special visit from a former Wildcat and current Blue Devil—Miss Metro East, Brooke Herod! She spent time with our wildcats and shared an important message about keeping your heart healthy. Brooke talked to the students about how they can use their unique talents, along with activities they enjoy, to keep their hearts healthy and make a positive impact in their community. Thank you Brooke for taking the time to help our Wildcats stay healthy!
Free Webinar: Turning Everyday Activities Into Learning Opportunities -
Woodland is excited to invite you to our upcoming free webinar where we’ll explore creative ways to transform everyday moments into valuable learning opportunities for your student. Discover how learning doesn’t have to be confined to books, screens, or worksheets—there are countless opportunities for learning and growth all around us. Don’t miss out on this chance to engage with your student in fun and educational ways!
When: Monday, March 10, 6 - 7 p.m.
Location: Virtual - join from the comfort of your home!
Presenter: Javonne Aponte, from Scholastic Education Solutions
Target Audience: Families with students in Early Childhood through 5th Grade
Register Now! https://www.dist50.net/page/parent-university
We hope you will join us for this exciting learning opportunity!
Woodland Celebrates School Social Work Week, March 2 - 8, 2025
Woodland school social workers provide emotional support, guidance, and resources that enhance our students’ academic and personal growth. From working one-on-one with students, to leading small groups, to developing strategies for overall student well-being, we appreciate your tireless efforts to advocate for students. Thank you for the incredible work you do every day to be supportive, inclusive, and always striving for the best in each student. #LifeintheW
Woodland was honored to host a group of educators from Birmingham City Schools for a day of learning in the W! They spent the day touring Woodland's Dual Language classrooms to learn about our program and see it in action. They are currently building a similar program for their students which will make them the first school district in Alabama to offer dual language programming! Thank you for visiting our schools 💚 #LifeintheW
The Woodland D50 Board of Education will meet on Thursday, Feb. 27, 2025 at 6 p.m. If you are unable to attend the meeting in-person, you are welcome to watch it on Woodland Live.
https://www.youtube.com/cha.../UCoPwYawoj-1bYdnQ7hJQbUQ/live
Community Agenda: https://5il.co/38lor
Please note!
The meeting starts at 6 p.m., but the first item on the agenda is a closed session. The public meeting will begin immediately following the closed session when the Board of Education returns to open session at approximately 7 p.m.
Ms. Jagla’s 2nd Grade Dual Language students practiced measuring with rulers today. In class, they were given the task of using rulers to find the distance between two points in the hallway. They started by making educated guesses about how many rulers it would take to cover this distance. Then, they laid the rulers end-to-end and counted them to see who had guessed correctly. Everyone helped Ms. Jagla count the rulers, and they found out that many of these Wildcats were spot on with their educated guesses!
Thank you to everyone who joined us for Woodland's Black History Month Community Celebration on Saturday, Feb. 22! We hope you enjoyed the performances, the art show, the music, the crafts, the Black Dads Rock! Panel... and spending time together. An extra special thank you to the event planners, volunteers, and community organizations that put together such a wonderful celebration! #LifeintheW
Storytime in the library with Ms. Bing! In this photo she is reading Nigel and the Moon, and you can see Invasion of the Unicorns on the table beside her. The students at Elementary are reading each of the books that were nominated for the 2025 Monarch Award: Illinois' K-3 Readers' Choice Award.
Ms. Rose’s class has been working on a special project to help students explore global differences, learn about geography, and understand the value of kindness and love.
Their goal is to receive Valentines—cards, letters, or postcards—from all 50 states and other countries around the world! During February, the students have enjoyed receiving “happy mail” not only from family and friends but also from people they’ve never met!
Her classes total number of Valentines so far:
- 43 total Valentine’s
- 8 countries: USA, Chile, Belize, Mexico, Romania, India, Switzerland, and Australia (2)!
- 22 states: Oregon, California, Arizona (2), Montana (2), Colorado, Texas, Louisiana, Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin (2), Illinois ( 7), Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, Tennessee, South Carolina (2), North Carolina, Florida (4), Maryland, New Jersey, Massachusetts & Hawaii
Join us for the Woodland PTA 50 meeting tonight at 7!
The monthly PTA meeting is a great place to get information about upcoming events and to connect with other parents. Tonight's meeting will be virtual, so you can join from anywhere. We hope to see you there!
Sign up in advance to receive the zoom link: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0D4AA4A623ABF9CF8-54620904-woodland#/
A huge thank you to our Operations & Facilities Team for the long hours you put in to clean up from the winter snow storm! Here are a few cool photos they shared. #LifeintheW
Due to the forecasted weather this evening, we are moving our WISE (Woodland Inclusion and Special Education Empowerment Parent Group) meeting to a virtual format. Please join us! Meeting Details and Zoom Link - https://secure.smore.com/n/24p1c8
Topic: Supporting Your Child in the Community
This training helps parents navigate the unique challenges their children face in community settings. Through engaging activities, participants will learn strategies to improve communication and manage behaviors. The program also focuses on empowering parents to advocate for their child's needs and build confidence in public interactions. By the end, parents will have access to resources that support their child’s independence and success in the community.
Just last Friday, these area Superintendents got together to record a Wildcast on the topic of school closures and eLearning Days. The conversation resumed on Monday in advance of the winter snow storm we are expecting today. ❄️
Listen to the latest episode of the Woodland Wildcast to hear local Superintendents discuss school closures! In this episode, Dr. Machak talks with Dr. Correa from Gurnee School District 56 and Dr. Woestman from Warren Township High School about the different factors that weigh into their decision making. Learn how these neighboring school district Superintendents work together to keep our students safe.
Woodland Wildcast: S2, E5 - https://woodlandwildcast.podbean.com/e/s2-e5-gurnee-area-superintendents-discuss-school-closures/
Mrs. Zerante’s 2nd-grade students practiced budgeting in class by planning a party! In teams, they worked together to decide on everything from the party’s venue and decorations to the pizza and drinks, making sure each item fit within their budget. This a great skill for these young Wildcats to start practicing!
Not by the hair of my chinny-chin-chin!!! (or Finny-Fin-Fin) The first graders in Mrs. Hansen's class took a deep dive on the many versions of the Three Little Pigs story. They read several versions together in class. This allowed them to make predictions when reading a new story, and make connections to previous versions. Then it was time to bring the story to life. The students constructed houses and then tried to blow them down. #LifeintheW 🐷🐷🐷
Not by the hair of my chinny-chin-chin!!! (or Finny-Fin-Fin)
The first graders in Mrs. Hansen's class took a deep dive on the many versions of the Three Little Pigs story. They read several versions together in class. This allowed them to make predictions when reading a new story, and make connections to previous versions. Then it was time to bring the story to life. The students constructed houses and then tried to blow them down. #LifeintheW 🐷🐷🐷
