WJHS Highlights

The Wilmette Junior High concluded their season this past weekend at the University of Illinois in the State Competition. The Wolves finished 11th out of the 46 schools that qualified. The top performers received medals for 5th in Optics. Three students were 3rd in Experimental Design. Two students placed 5th in Disease Detectives and two students were 4th in Tower. Two more students placed 5th in Solar Power. However, the Wolves fell short of reaching their goal of being in the top ten in the state. The season was highlighted by winning the Crown Point Invitational in January and Regional Champions in March. Mr. Nelson is proud of the season's success and is fortunate to have worked with such talented and hardworking students. Mr. Nelson attributes the success of the season to all the support from the parents.

Building on what Ms. Forti shared last week, I thought I would share a few ways that students worked with Artificial Intelligence, or more specifically Generative AI, this year. Some of the Photography classes tested out the Generative Fill feature in Photoshop to make their photographs take on fantastical new forms. Whether the base photo was taken at the beach, or here at school, seeing the transformations and creativity was amazing. Students in some Writing classes also dabbled with the GenAI tools from the labs at Google. This video highlights how GenAI can be designed to enhance our creativity, rather than simply for production purposes. The students used these tools to inspire their writing.

Beginning April 22 and running through May 3, students in grades 5-8 will be participating in the Panorama MESH (Mindsets, Essential Skills and Habits) assessment of social-emotional competencies and school environment. The MESH is comprised of a series of questions that cover the areas of Self-Management, Social Awareness, and Emotion Regulation. It also looks at Supportive Relationships at school, School Safety, Sense of Belonging, and Valuing of School.

This assessment aligns with the SEL competencies taught using our Responsive Classroom curricular materials, and results from the assessments are used to help us as we continue to gauge the effectiveness of our social-emotional supports and programming in the district. For more information about the social-emotional objectives at your child’s grade level, and other general information about SEL in District 39, please visit the D39 Social Emotional Learning Website.

WJHS MANDARIN STUDENTS’ FIELD TRIP SPONSORED BY IGNITE

The PTO was pleased to sponsor the field trip to Chinatown this past Wednesday for 7th and 8th grade Mandarin students. The students received a guided walking tour, lunch and admission to The Chinese American Museum of Chicago and the Chinese American Cultural Institute. Thank you to our wonderful teacher Brenda Su for taking the students on this great enrichment opportunity! And thank you to our parents who support the WJHS PTO’s iGNITE Fund for Enrichment!

8TH GRADE GRADUATION PARTY - SAVE-THE-DATE

Each year the PTO sends off the graduating 8th graders with a festive party to celebrate all their years in D39! This year’s party will be on a FRIDAY NIGHT, May 31st from 7:00-9:30pm. More information to come about this inside-only fun party!

THANK YOU TO ALL PARENTS WHO HELPED STOCK-THE-SHELVES

We really appreciate our parent community stepping up and making sure we let our teacher/staff community know we care! Thank you to all who donated to “stock-the-shelves” this month.

28 DAYS LEFT IN THE SCHOOL YEAR - VOLUNTEER TODAY!

✅Lunch server - Please spend 1 hour of your time to help serve food to students in the lunch line on any given day. The lunchroom staff really appreciates our help! Sign up HERE

✅Courtyard volunteer - Can you spare 30 minutes of your time during the day? Monitor this relaxing space during lunch recess. Open to 7th Graders on Wednesdays and to 8th Graders or Fridays. Sign up HERE

D39 EDUCATIONAL FOUNDATION NEWS

“IF” Family Movie Night tickets are now on sale. Join us for a fun family evening out on Friday, 5/17 for OPENING NIGHT of one of the most anticipated movies of the year, IF starring Ryan Reynolds! IF is a live action/animated comedy written and directed by John Krasinski that tells the story of a young girl and her neighbor (Ryan Reynolds) who find themselves able to see imaginary friends. THREE SHOWINGS at The Wilmette Theatre: 4:30pm (for families with younger children) and two theaters will show it at 7:15pm. THIS IS NOT A DROP OFF EVENT. https://d39foundation.org/

Board of Education Meeting

The Board of Education will gather on Monday, April 29 at 7 pm at the Mikaelian Education Center for its monthly business meeting. During this meeting, the Board will be presented with the district’s December 1 Child Count report and hear committee reports. Additionally, the Board is expected to approve the hiring of several outstanding new District employees for the upcoming school year, including the Assistant Director of Curriculum and Instruction. Agendas and materials for all Board of Education meetings will be posted online the Friday prior to the meeting.

Parent Education Event

Make plans now to join us virtually via Zoom on Wednesday, May 8 for our last Parent Education event of the academic year. This presentation, titled “Supporting School Transitions,” will give our families tips and information ahead of their child(ren) transitioning from 4th to 5th grade and 6th to 7th grade. There is not an in-person option for this presentation. Register online to reserve your spot and visit our D39 Parent Education website for our full schedule of events, registration links, and archived recordings.

Join the Fun at the D39 Educational Foundation’s Family Movie Night!

The D39 Educational Foundation is hosting a Family Movie Night on Friday, May 17 at the Wilmette Theatre for the premiere for the live-action/animated film “IF.” Showtimes are 4:30 and 7:15 pm. Tickets are $15 for adults and $12 for children, including a free small popcorn. There will also be a 50/50 raffle for interested attendees as a way to support the mission and work of the Educational Foundation. Visit the D39 Ed Foundation website for more information and to purchase your tickets.