WIS Weekly

• Who needs support at home, in school, and in the community? ... Every Child!
• Who needs our guidance, attention, and patience today and every day? ... Every Child!
• Who will shape the future of our world tomorrow and in the years to come? ... Every Child!

WIS Family,

As I’ve observed classrooms, I’ve noticed that some students are struggling with their multiplication facts (0-12). This foundational skill is crucial for their mathematical success. When students haven’t mastered their facts, they tend to spend too long on tasks, which can lead to frustration and careless errors.

Mastering multiplication facts helps students complete math problems more efficiently and accurately, setting them up for success in more complex math concepts. I encourage you to support your child in practicing these facts regularly at home.

As always, please reach out to me anytime.

Mr. Longacre

slongacre@duneland.k12.in.us

For WIS students whose parents are divorced or are going through a divorce, Mrs. Hurst will be running a group one day a week during lunch & recess for 6 weeks. The goal of the group is to help students learn social & emotional skills to help them better adjust to the divorce. Also, to let students know that they are not alone and the divorce is not their fault. The 6th graders will meet on Tuesdays during lunch/recess and the 5th graders will meet on Wednesdays during lunch/recess. If you would like your student to participate, please fill out the form below by Monday, September 30th. If you have any questions, Mrs. Hurst can be reached at (219) 983-3710 ext.4042 or mhurst@duneland.k12.in.us

The first SAVE Promise Club meeting will be on Friday, October 4th before school from 8:15 a.m. - 8:45 a.m. SAVE stands for students against violence everywhere. The goal of the SAVE Promise Club is to make our school more welcoming and inclusive. We do this by hosting a quarterly new student lunch, making cards and delivering mugs of candy to students & staff who have lost a loved one, and planning school wide activities. The club will meet the first Friday of each month before school at 8:15 a.m. SAVE Promise Club members also do some activities during Trojan Time and lunch/recess. If you have any questions about the club, please contact Mrs. Hurst at (219) 983-3710 ext. 4042 or mhurst@duneland.k12.in.us.

If your student would like to join the SAVE Promise Club, please fill out the form below:

We are striving to achieve a 96% attendance rate this year at WIS.

5th Grade 94.932%

6th Grade 94.2593%

When needing to report a student absence, parents/guardians should call (219-983-3710) or email (mkowalecki@duneland.k12.in.us) the attendance secretary in the WIS office by 9:00 am on the day of the absence. If the school sends a student home early, then no notification is required.

Say Something Anonymous Reporting System FAQ

What is the Say Something Anonymous Reporting System?

It is an age-appropriate, evidence-informed program that trains youth and adults to recognize warning signs and threats of potential violence and to tell a trusted adult or use the anonymous reporting system via app, website, or telephone hotline. This empowers students, parents, staff, and community members to securely share safety concerns, helping school administrators and law enforcement members to prevent violence, suicide, bullying, self-harm, and other dangerous behaviors. Duneland School Corporation has been working with Sandy Hook Promise as we launch this program in our schools. All grade 5-12 schools will adopt this program this year.

How does the Say Something Anonymous Reporting System work?

Students and staff can submit a tip about concerning or threatening behaviors through the app, website, or a telephone call, 24/7/365. Every submission goes directly to a trained crisis counselor. The trained counselor vets the tip, gathers details, then shares the information and next steps with the school team and law enforcement (as needed). The team steps in to address the threat and provide solutions. Every District and school team has a trained Say Something response staff that includes administrators and law enforcement personnel.

Say Something is proven to prevent school shootings, suicides, and gun threats, as well as help reduce other acts of violence and victimization like bullying/cyberbullying, self-harm like cutting, drug use, and more.

How does the system work?

The Say Something Anonymous Reporting System can be used to report threatening or harmful

behavior, harassment, and more. Students can anonymously report a concern through

the Say Something Anonymous Reporting app, website or through a phone call. Students can also share screenshots of social media posts that are concerning. Highly trained crisis counselors immediately take action to ensure student safety and work to get the help and support students need.

What happens to the tip if the individual reporting is threatening to hurt themselves?

The Say Something Anonymous Reporting System’s National Crisis Center and local Say Something team members are specifically trained to recognize mental and emotional disturbances and effectively manage crisis situations. Law enforcement will be utilized in life threatening situations.

Do I have to use the Say Something Anonymous Reporting System? Does my student?

Using the Say Something Anonymous Reporting System is completely voluntary.

Who is running this program?

The Say Something Anonymous Reporting System is offered at no cost to schools by Sandy Hook Promise (SHP), a national nonprofit that was founded and is led by family members whose loved ones were killed during the Sandy Hook Elementary School tragedy in 2012. SHP has trained more than 14 million educators, parents, and students nationwide to recognize the warning signs of potential violence and the importance of sharing school safety concerns with a trusted adult.

How much are we paying for this program?

The Say Something Anonymous Reporting System is provided at no cost by Sandy Hook Promise, thanks to the charitable donations of their national grassroots network and philanthropic partners.

What about privacy?

All data from our school community within the Say Something Anonymous Reporting

System is owned by the district.

Do you have further questions?

Please reach out to Mr. Longacre slongacre@duneland.k12.in.us or Mr. Hernandez mhernandez@duneland.k12.in.us

We are excited to announce that this year’s yearbook will include both Westchester Intermediate School (WIS) and Westchester Middle School (WMS). Yearbooks are available for $30.00, and you can order directly through this link: Order Yearbooks Here.

Sixth grade students will have the opportunity to participate in both WIS intramural sports and Westchester Middle School athletics. If your child wants to participate in middle school sports, they must have a current physical on file, dated after 4/1/24. Sixth grade students can ONLY participate in Middle School Cross Country, Westling, and Track and Field. This fall, students can participate in Middle School Cross Country. Mr. Rich Gross rgross@duneland.k12.in.us is the athletic director for Westchester Campus. Please reach out to Mr. Gross with any questions.

Homecoming Parade participation call-out: The CHS Homecoming Parade will take place at 5:00 PM on Friday, September 27th. Participants will begin lining up at 4:00 PM in the South parking lot of the former Chesterton Middle School campus (specific directions to come).

Any school/community groups and organizations interested in participating in the annual CHS Homecoming Parade should complete this Google Form by Thursday, September 19th. Please direct any questions to CHS Assistant Principal Adam Tenbarge at atenbarge@duneland.k12.in.us, or call the CHS Assistant Principals' office at 219-983-3730.

Parade Route, Homecoming Royalty: The CHS homecoming parade will leave the South lot traveling east on Porter Avenue to S Calumet Road, Calumet Ave to Broadway, Broadway to S 6th Street, and ends back to the former CMS campus. The parade will be followed by the CHS home game against Portage at 7:30 PM. Homecoming Royalty will be crowned at halftime of the football game.

6th grade:

The team came in 12th out of 14 teams.

Top finishers were

Nathan Seaman 15:16

Harry Colburn 15:30

Mikey Cruz 15:32

Congratulations to Dylan White who

placed 1st at the Willowcreek Invitational!

Language Arts

• Last week students finished reading the novel Swindle, and took a test over the novel. This week, we will do a compare/contrast between the Swindle book and movie. We will also be focusing on skills related to theme, main idea, and summarizing. Honors ELA - Last week students finished reading part 1 of The Odyssey, and began charting the Hero's Journey of Odysseus. This week, we'll be working on theme, main idea, and summarizing using different Greek myths.

Math

• Last week, students took their first test (CSA) on whole number multiplication. Students who scored below a 70% will work with staff on remediation and will have a chance to retake this assessment and improve their grade. Many of the mistakes we noticed were with basic math facts. A way to support your student is by practicing basic math facts. If you need suggestions on how to do this, please contact your student’s math teacher. This week, we are starting to look at dividing whole numbers. Yes, this will include multiple digit long division! We will be learning a few ways to solve these problems so do not be surprised if it does not all look familiar. We will be learning the standard algorithm (old school long division) as we progress. As always, Get More Math and IXL Math path are great ways for students to get extra practice at home.

Social Studies

• Last week, we began learning about the relationship Native people had with the land. This included the different environments they lived in, and how they adapted to them. Students also worked to create a Winter Count showing the most important events of their first 10 years.

Science

• Last week, we spent some time learning about density and buoyancy, and continued perfecting our engineering skills. Students were tasked with creating a boat using ONLY foil. The students were given the challenge to create a boat that would hold the most washers. This week, we will begin our physical science unit. Students will learn about properties of matter, states of matter, how matter changes states, and much more! Students will receive their science textbook this week!

Language Arts

• This week we will start our Dahl and Narrative unit in Amplify, our online text. Students will continue to practice skills they have learned in standards: RC.1 and RC.2.

Math

• This week in the wonderful world of numbers . . .We continue our study of fractions. We are focusing on addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. We also are using equivalent fractions and converting improper fractions to mixed numbers. Fractions are an important building block in students' mathematical foundations. Understanding how they work is crucial for success in Algebra and other math courses. Students need to study their notes/vocabulary. A charged iPad is very important for daily work in math. Please help your child remember to do this.

Social Studies

• This week in Social Studies our focus will shift towards Ancient Greece. A look at the geography of the area, trade developments amongst city-states, and life in Athens and Sparta will be investigated. There are no scheduled CFAs or CSAs this week.

Science

• We will be finishing the engineer design process unit with a CSA on Monday. Moving onto standard MS-ESS1-2, we will explore the vastness of space by studying galaxies and constellations. We will learn about the different types of galaxies, including spiral, elliptical, and irregular, and understand how they are formed. We will also discover how stars are grouped together to form constellations, and learn to identify key constellations visible from Earth. Students will be creating a galaxy of their choosing and choosing two constellations to research for a poster.

PE

• In PE this week, we are starting our Soccer Unit. We will be playing some lead-up games and then finish with soccer games.

Art

• This week in art class, students will begin our lesson and project incorporating warm and cool colors, along with line qualities and characteristics.

Music

• This week in music students will begin to explore organization of sounds to express an emotion or tell a story. 5th graders will be using classroom instruments/sound sets while 6th graders will be utilizing the Garageband app. All students should have their iPad for music class. Wired headphones/earbuds are recommended.

PLTW

• This week in PLTW, the 5th graders will research different types of robots and will begin to build a testbed with a VEX Robotics kit to learn about how different sensors work. The 6th graders will be introduced to the Micro:bit and will practice writing algorithms and using flowcharts.

Media

• This week students will be discussing the three elements of basic communication (sender, message receiver), as well as loops and positive vs. negative (bullying) communication.

Our Trojan Cafe has a new look! We have a new serving area with 2 lines to serve our students. We will also have new trays available for our students to use during lunch.

Please help your student memorize their student identification number, as they will need to know this number in order to purchase their lunch.

Here are the meal prices for the 2024-25 school year.

Elementary Breakfast Price: $1.45

Elementary Lunch Price: $2.55

Intermediate/Middle/High Breakfast Price: $1.60

Intermediate/Middle/High lunch Price: $2.95

• iPads are the property of Duneland Schools. Students should keep the devices in operable condition.
• Students should refrain from downloading apps, pics, etc. that are not permitted under school and/or corporation policy.
  
• Students are required to bring their charged iPads to class.
• Our Intermediate curriculum is designed to utilize iPads for lessons, remediation, and enrichment activities.

5th and 6th grade students are not allowed to use their personal communication devices (cell phones and smart watches) during the instructional day. Items used for communication should be stored in lockers to be kept safe throughout the day. If students need to contact a parent/guardian during the day, they are welcome to do so from the office. Classrooms also have phone access. Similarly, students are not permitted to wear personal earbuds with bluetooth capabilities attached to their phones (e.g. Air Pods, etc.). Students will need to use their school-issued iPad earphones for Exact Path lessons and select ILEARN testing sessions. The only time audio ear pieces are permitted are for teacher-assigned classwork and medically-approved needs.

Westchester is committed to supporting students' use of technology. To get your problems solved as fast as possible, choose one of the following methods:

1. Open a new Incident IQ online:
   1. AV number is typically located on a sticker on the back/bottom of the device
2. Open a Incident IQ ticket by sending an email to: helpdesk@duneland.k12.in.us
   1. Please be sure to include email address, student or staff name, and a description of the problem
3. Contact Westchester's tech aide (Ms. Bennett) in WIS Library/Media at 219-983-3710 or fbennett@duneland.k12.in.us.

1. Chesterton Girls Basketball Winter League at Chesterton High School

• Girls in grades 2nd-6th
  
• Registration is open now until September 26th.
• Player Evaluations on October 6th, League begins November 17th
• Register at www.chestertongirlsbasketball.org

2. Chesterton Girls Basketball Middle School Winter League (Club1 League)

• Girls in grades 7th/8th
• Registration opens Monday, September 16th
• League begins Nov. 10th and runs for 4 weeks at area schools.
• Register at www.chestertongirlsbasketball.org

3. Chesterton Girls Basketball Fall Girls Hoops & Handles Skills Academy

• Girls in grades K-8th
• Registration opens Friday, September 13th
• Ball Handling, Shooting, Offensive and Defensive concepts
• Register will open on www.chestertongirlsbasketball.org

DUNELAND TRANSPORTATION

Information regarding student bus transportation for the 2024-2025 school year is available on DSC website under the Transportation Department.

TRACK STUDENT'S BUS WITH MYSTOP APP

The Duneland School Corporation Department of Transportation has now made My Stop available to our families.

My Stop is a web-based application which will allow parents to access live bus GPS information using a smartphone, tablet, or computer and securely view the current location of your child’s bus on routes. The system also provides the bus’s estimated time of arrival at your child’s bus stop.

Please read the attached letter to parents for more information on how to use My Stop to track your child's bus.

To make an appointment please call 219-763-8112. Let NorthShore know you are a Duneland School student or staff member and that you would like to make an appointment at the Duneland School Clinic located at the old CMS.

The Chesterton High School Girls Basketball program is hosting a trivia night fundraiser on Saturday, October 5th, in the Chesterton High School cafeteria. Join the Trojans for a night of trivia, food, basket raffles, music, and fun! Bring an entire trivia team with costumes and compete for prizes. Or, you can also purchase individual trivia seat tickets as well. To purchase trivia tickets, make a donation, or if you own or work at a business that is interested in being a winter season sponsor, please visit www.chestertongirlsbasketball.org. We are a 501c3 Not-For-Profit Group and all transactions have no processing fees and receipts are issued immediately for tax purposes. If you have any questions, please contact Chesterton High School Head Coach Candy Wilson at chestertongirlsbbchs@gmail.com.

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/