Woodland’s School Resource Officer, Det. Hansen joined Mrs. Wilinski's 3rd-grade art class as a special drawing model! The students have been practicing figure drawing and sketching from real-life objects and models, so they were excited to draw a real-life superhero—Det. Hansen!
Det. Hansen talked about her "superpowers," explaining that her most powerful tools are her ears and her voice. She uses them every day to listen to people and communicate with them, helping to solve problems and make a positive impact in the community.
In case you missed it before the Winter Break, the Woodland D50 Board of Education approved the 2025-2026 School Year Calendar at the December meeting. View the 2025-2026 Calendar HERE: https://5il.co/33x56
Today is Law Enforcement Appreciation Day!
Woodland would like to send a big thank you to our outstanding School Resource Officers, Det. Hansen and Det. Otachel. Your hard work, dedication, and commitment to our school community does not go unnoticed. You make Woodland a safer, more welcoming place for both our students and staff. We are incredibly grateful for all that you do to ensure the well-being of everyone in our school!
Please join us in showing heartfelt appreciation to Woodland's School Resource Officers, and all of the law enforcement officers at the Village of Gurnee and the Lake County Sheriff's Office for keeping our community safe.
Help Us Celebrate Amazing Woodland Teachers and Staff!
We are excited to launch the annual Village of Gurnee Teacher of the Year contest, with a new category for Staff Member of the Year! In the announcement linked below it explains the criteria for the awards, and links directly to both nomination forms. We look forward to recognizing additional staff members in partnership with the village. Nominate someone today!
Announcement: https://secure.smore.com/n/xg4wj
Website: https://www.dist50.net/page/gurnee-teacher-of-the-year
Nominations are due by Monday, Jan. 27.
Counting down the minutes until we are all back together in the W 💚
Get a good night sleep tonight Wildcats. Let's start 2025 with a ROAR!
Wishing you a Warm & Wonderful Winter Break!
Dec. 23 - Jan. 3: Winter Break
Jan. 6: Teacher Institute Day, No Student Attendance
Jan. 7: School Resumes - Welcome Back!
Holiday Parties at Elementary were packed with music, games, crafts, and lots of laughter! The Wildcats had a blast celebrating the start of winter break and wrapping up the first half of the school year. A big thank you to our wonderful parent volunteers for helping make this celebration extra special. Wishing all our Wildcats a fun and restful Winter Break! (1 of 2)
Mrs. Johnson, Mrs. Wilinski, and Mrs. Hunt show their holiday spirit on "Ugly Sweater" day at Elementary!
The first-grade students in Mrs. Wilinski’s art class had a great time bringing some snowy creations to life using mixed media. Take a look at their new, wonderful wintery friends! ⛄
Today, students at Elementary participated in the Hour of Code program. The goal of this initiative is to introduce students to computer science in an engaging and fun way, with the aim of sparking their interest in coding and the tech field for the future.
Students learned how coding impacts their daily lives, and had the chance to practice coding by customizing several different video game levels and programming Botby the Robot to navigate a path using a remote control.
Thank you to our dedicated Tech Integration Specialists and librarians for organizing and bringing this exciting learning opportunity to our students!
Last month, students at Elementary participated in Helping our Heroes as part of Spirit Week. Each day, they would bring in a different coin in an effort to donate to the Lake County Honor Flight - a program where donations enable Veterans to travel to Washington D.C. and visit the memorials dedicated to honor their service and sacrifice.
Today, with all the coins totaled up, a check of over $2,000 was presented to a member of the Lake County Honor Flight program by our Elementary Wildcats, Principal Reardon, and Wiley.
We are so proud of all the outstanding students at Elementary and what they accomplished to help serve our community!
On behalf of Woodland, our students, and staff, thank you to the Veterans and active military members in our district and community for your service. #LifeintheW
Do You Have Questions about Standards-Based Grading, Curriculum, Dual Language or Technology?
In the latest episode of the Woodland Wildcast, Dr. Machak and the Teaching & Learning Team discuss Curriculum, Standards-Based Grading, Woodland’s Dual Language program, and Technology in the classroom and beyond! Learn how this team comes together to support students and educators. #LifeintheW
https://woodlandwildcast.podbean.com/e/s2-e4-teaching-learning-in-the-w/
There is a lucky group of 3rd Graders at Elementary who have had the pleasure of working with Miss Carani for the past few months. Miss Carani is a student teacher who has been teaching with Ms. LeFevre. According to Ms. LeFevre, this has been a great experience for everyone as they all learn together! Please help us wish Miss Carani well as she works to complete her teacher preparation program. Her last day at Woodland is Dec. 20th.
We have had many other wonderful student teachers this year, and we are expecting a few more to begin with us in the new year. This is just one example of the next generation of educators making a difference for our students and in our schools.
#LifeintheW
Great job to the Elementary Intramural Choir on your performance at The Village at Victory Lakes! #LifeintheW
The Annual Holiday Food Drive was a success thanks to the generous donations from the Woodland learning community and our valued community partners. With your help, we served more than 80 Woodland families with extra food and warm coats, hats, and gloves.
Here are a few pictures of our team of volunteers setting up for the event, including Tobias Comfort Dog! A special thank you to the Warren Township High School students from Students of Service, National Honor Society, and Avanza for helping throughout the night.
Thank you to these Senior Readers for spending time with our Wildcats! 💚
During the school year, a group of senior volunteers from Warren Township spend time reading with Woodland Elementary students. Each reader has a different set up; they can read one-on-on, in small groups, or to the class as a whole. This program builds connections in the community and positively impacts everyone involved.
When asked about the program, one of the readers said she enjoyed getting out of her normal routine and into a busy multi-generational environment. She has free time and enjoys spending it reading with children. “It’s a wonderful way to spend my time and be active in the community.” 📚
Woodland Elementary students participated in Family Reading Night last week. This annual event is sponsored by the Illinois Secretary of State. It is held each year on the third Thursday in November. The goal of the event is for families to spend an evening reading together at home. Here are a few pictures of our students reading with their families.
In October we shared photos of Mrs. Bogdala's students reading to their friends in Mrs. Barton's class. Now Mrs. Barton's class has returned the favor!
Mrs. Barton’s class worked very hard over the past few weeks learning their books and practicing with both their voices and their talkers. Everyone did great reading, listening, and cheering on their friends. #LifeintheW
REMINDER: Students will follow a half day schedule on Nov. 25 & 26 for Parent Teacher Conferences, and the district is closed Nov. 27 - 29 for the holiday break. Have a great week Wildcats!
Conferences Half Day Schedule:
Primary - 10:40 a.m.
Elementary - 10:50 a.m.
Middle School - 11:35 a.m.
Intermediate - 12:20 p.m.
Elementary students had some very special visitors over the past few days! Members of the Gurnee Fire Department stopped by to teach students about fire safety, what to do if they need to make an emergency call, and what equipment firefighters need to do their jobs.
Students were given homework too:
💚 Plan a “meeting spot” outside the home with your family.
💚 Practice saying your address and phone number in case you need to call 9-1-1.
Thank you to the Gurnee Fire Team for stopping by and teaching our Wildcats about fire safety!
