from Mr. Brooke's Desk Recent Events. It was on Monday morning before our students arrived back to campus that our faculty and staff joined together to grieve and pray corporately for the community of Nashville who had experienced such a tragic loss over our Spring Break. WCGS has always been committed to prayer and will continue to ask the Lord to provide comfort and peace in a way that only He can. Thank you for continuing to lift up the Nashville community with us in the days ahead. Such an event causes many to think of the safety features and protocols we have in place at WCGS. While best practice would be to not share ALL of our security measures, we believe it will be both informative and encouraging for you to know some of the key items and steps we have taken over the years to ensure that our school community stays safe. Background checks are run on all employees, parent volunteers, and drivers who come on campus or participate in field trips. We have numerous cameras inside and outside our building that are on continuous watch throughout the school day. All exterior doors remain locked (aside from our lobby to the locked office) and monitored during the school day. Additional safety measures have been implemented in recent years at all points of entry, including our classroom doors.

The Winfield Police Department conducts annual reviews of our safety procedures and gives positive feedback that we are in line with best practices for our building and protocols. Our teachers have been trained by the Wheaton Police Department in intruder response, and we frequently review our procedures with our faculty and staff. We hold additional meetings with teachers that involve scenario-based decision-making, allowing us to have more frequent dialogue with teachers about situational response. The Winfield Police Department conducted multiple training sessions with their officers in our school building on intruder response, so that they are extremely familiar with our campus if a situation were to arise. We recently installed the Blue Point Alert System throughout our building, which allows for extremely efficient and clear communication throughout our building and to first responders. This system should be fully activated in the immediate future. WCGS continues to remain vigilant. We have a dedicated team that continually researches, reviews, and updates our crisis management systems. This includes our Campus Life Coordinator, administration, and support staff. In addition, we are working closely with our Board of Directors to ensure that we are considering all the layers of protection available and necessary for the continued safety of our school. Thank you for praying alongside us for wisdom and direction in this important area. Joshua 1:9, Psalm 46:1-2

Easter. On behalf of our entire team here at WCGS, I want to wish you a blessed Easter weekend. I was so grateful for our Easter chapel service and found it to be such a worship-filled experience. Passages of Scripture from all four gospels unpacked the remarkable grace and peace that can only be found in our Savior, Jesus Christ. I am praying that our community would understand the depth of the Easter celebration and the good news that we have in the sovereign plan of our Lord. Luke 24:5b-6a - “Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; he has risen!”

from Mr. Painter's Desk MAP Growth Testing in April. Similar to the Fall, our students will be taking the MAP Growth Assessment in April. All students will be taking one test in math and one test in reading. Each test will average approximately one hour and will be taken in their homeroom with their homeroom teacher. Below are the testing dates for students at the various grade levels: Tuesday, April 11 – Friday, April 14: Grades 6 – 8 Monday, April 17 – Friday, April 21: Grades K – 5 It is extremely important that your children are in attendance on these days so that they take the test with their class. Please make this a priority. Thank you!

Claire Dibble. We have been blessed to have Claire Dibble on our 5th grade team for the last 2 years. She cares deeply about the relationships she has with her students, teaches with creativity and passion, and has a heart for young people to know Jesus on a deeper level. Claire and her fiancé, Packard, will be getting married this summer and will be relocating to Indianapolis. She will continue teaching and pouring into students in some capacity in Indiana next year, wherever the Lord opens doors. Please be in prayer for Claire and Packard during this transition. She will be greatly missed by this WCGS community!

Patio. As most of you (and the students!) have noticed, we have a new patio outside our kindergarten doors on the east side of our building. The work was completed over spring break, and we have already seen the benefits of this addition for our families. Our main reason in pursuing this project was from a safety standpoint, knowing that it would create more space during drop-off and pick-up. But as an added benefit, it has eliminated a lot of mud in a high-traffic area! We are grateful to the WCGS Auxiliary for funding this project, and look forward to the enhancements that they will make with additional seating and planters in the coming weeks. Thank you!

WCGS PARENT SERIES

Continuing the Discussion

Save the Date - Coffee with the Administrators. Please join us for our final Parent Series event, Coffee with the Administrators, on Tuesday, May 2, from 9:00-10:00 am outside at the courtyard west of the playground. It will be a time to reflect on the school year, give feedback regarding our parent partnership, and share how we can support your family in the upcoming new school year. Please plan to grab a cup of coffee and join us! The registration link will be available in next week's Thursday Notes.

MARK YOUR CALENDAR

Upcoming Events Friday, April 7

NO SCHOOL - Good Friday

Saturday, April 8 Sunday, April 9

EASTER - Christ is Risen! BIRTHDAY: Susan Macaluso (Director of Curriculum and Instruction

Monday, April 10

BIRTHDAY: Joanne DeGroot (Development Coordinator) Staff Appreciation Week Hot Lunch - Culver's 9:00 am Moms in Prayer (Commons)

Tuesday, April 11

BIRTHDAY: Jacqueline Lauriat (6th Grade Teacher, STEAM and Jr. High Coordinator) Staff Appreciation Week MAP Growth Testing (Grades 6-8) Hot Lunch - Shane's Deli 1:15-3:25 pm Concert Band/Jazz Ensemble Trip to DuPage Care Center 3:30-4:00 pm Yearbook Club (Last One) 4:00 pm Girls' Soccer @ Schaumburg Christian 7:00 pm 6th Grade Parent Meeting (Substance Abuse Unit)

Wednesday, April 12

BIRTHDAY: David Wright (Music Teacher) Staff Appreciation Week MAP Growth Testing (Grades 6-8) Hot Lunch - Barone's Pizza 8:00 am Honors Orchestra 9:30 am Women's Bible Study (Mooncotch home) 3:30-4:30 pm 2nd Grade Writing Club (Room 215)

MARK YOUR CALENDAR

Upcoming Events Thursday, April 13

Staff Appreciation Week MAP Growth Testing (Grades 6-8) 4:00 pm Girls' Soccer @ Elgin Academy 4:00 pm Co-Ed Track Meet @ Timothy Christian

Friday, April 14

Staff Appreciation Week MAP Growth Testing (Grades 6-8) Popcorn Day Zerio Waste Day 3:00 pm Girls' Soccer vs. Benjamin (WCGS)

Saturday, April 15

READING RESOURCES

Library News Used Book Exchange. On Friday, April 21, we will be having our annual Used Book Exchange. Students will be able to bring in gently used books (appropriate for children in grades K-8) from April 10-20. Students will get 1 book buck for every book they bring in, up to 12. On Friday, April 21, students can come to the library to shop with their book bucks. The cost to participate is $3, which will help to fund our summer reading program. We will need parent volunteers on April 21 to help set up, supervise, and pack up at the end of the day. More information will be sent out soon.

Procedural Note. Occasionally a library book gets lost or damaged beyond repair. Don’t worry—it happens to everyone eventually. (Even the librarian’s family!) If that is the case, please let Mrs. Brown know, and please do not purchase a replacement copy of the book yourself. We will let you know the replacement cost so that you can send that in to the library with your child. We can take cash or a check made out to WCGS. Thanks for helping us keep our library in great shape!

ON CAMPUS NEWS

Notable Notes Mary Poppins Tickets Available Next Week! The WCGS Junior High is proud to be presenting the Broadway musical hit, Mary Poppins, on Thursday, April 27 (7:00 pm), Friday, April 28 (7:00 pm), and Saturday, April 29 (3:00 pm). Tickets are available to the general public beginning Tuesday, April 11, at 12:01 am. The tickets are $12.00 and will be available on April 11 for purchase online through the school website on the Fine Arts Page.

Summer Soccer Camp. The 2nd Annual Wheaton Soccer Camp will be held at WCGS June 19-23. Take your game to the next level - technically, mentally, physically, and spiritually. Two camps are being offered: Young Warriors Camp for ages 4-9 will be held from 9:00-10:00 am ($110) and Next Level Warriors Camp for ages 9-15 will be held from 10:15 am-2:15 pm ($350). For more information and to register visit warriorwaysoccer.com

ON CAMPUS NEWS

Notable Notes WCGS Fine Arts Camp. This year's camp, "Pixar's Great Adventures," will be held June 1923 from 9:00 am-12:15 pm with a Variety Show on Friday, June 23, at 7:00 pm. The camp is available for students who will be entering grades 2-8 in the Fall of 2023. Come join us for this week-long camp as we explore the fantastic characters that have been created through the Pixar films. Whether our campers enjoy Monsters, Inc., Cars, Ratatouille, or Brave, our qualified staff will teach them to express each student’s creativity through art, dance, drama, and music! Students will perform drama and dance and create art projects based on some of Pixar’s greatest hit movies. Your children will be challenged, energized, and have their creativity sparked throughout this action-packed week! Students will perform at the Friday evening Variety and Art Show. Each student will receive a camp T-shirt and a daily mid-morning snack. Invite your friends and neighbors. Brochures are available here. Early-bird registration is available! There are only 6 spots left!

STAY CONNECTED

Community Corner Crochet Workshop.

Learn the basic stitches of crochet as we make a granny square together. All supplies included. Where: The Rodriguez Home, 31W690 Percheron Lane, Wayne. When: Saturday, April 15, 10:00 am-12:30 pm. Cost: $60 per person. Light refreshments will be provided. For more information call or text (630) 936-8352 or email [email protected]

Outreach 50th Celebration. Outreach, the Christian social service organization that was founded by local churches, is celebrating 50 years of partnering with the Church to transform lives in our community. On Saturday, April 22, Outreach invites you to join the celebration. Festivities include a family friendly 5K Run, Walk, and Wheel taking place in Wheaton and a Celebration Dinner followed by an evening of worship with Kari Jobe at Willow Creek Community Church in South Barrington. You may choose to attend one event or all three! All ticket sales benefit Outreach’s youth development, family stabilization, transitional housing, and counseling services. Please join us as we continue the work of helping people become all that God intends them to be. For more information, please visit www.weareoutreach.org/50.

STAY CONNECTED

Community Corner Masterpiece Ministries. Masterpiece Ministries is a Christian arts ministry with the mission to help high school students (rising 9th-12th graders) discover and develop their gifts in the arts and encourage them to become wholehearted followers of Jesus Christ. Our ministry is founded on Ephesians 2:10, “For we are God’s Masterpiece, He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things He planned for us long ago.” and seeks to help students understand that because God created us in his image, we too are made to create beautiful things that point to Him. During one week of camp each summer students receive encouragement and equipping from professional artists and are challenged to consider how their art and faith can intersect in their daily lives through the songs, videos, photos, poetry, paintings, illustrations, etc. they create and then share with the world. This summer we are offering two camps - one in June and one in July and we would love for your students to join us for one of these weeks! The June camp is in Lebanon, TN at Cumberland University, June 25July 1. The July camp is in Wheaton, IL at Wheaton College, July 16-22. You can learn more about Masterpiece Ministries or register students for camp at our website. Feel free to email Amy Hogan with any questions you may have.

STAY CONNECTED

Community Corner Co-Curricular Expo Wheaton Academy invites Future Warriors in grades 6-8 to attend the Co-Curricular Expo on Monday, April 10, 6:00-8:00 pm, for an evening filled with adventure! Experience the many ways you can get involved and find a place to belong in our community. Meet teachers, talk with other students who have the same interests, hear from coaches, see demonstrations, and participate in fun activities. Register here.

Outreach 5K Run, Walk, and Wheel. Join Outreach for their 5K Run, Walk, and Wheel on Saturday, April 22, at 10:00 am at Clare Woods Academy in Wheaton. When you participate, you're supporting your heart and community! Create opportunities for people in vulnerable situations by providing hope where barriers exist and a path toward independence. Register at weareoutreach.org/5k.