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Summer 2014 |
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Congratulations to the Wolcott Community on a Fantastic First Academic Year
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Upcoming Events
Summer School
June 23 - July 31st
Wolcott School 4th Annual Golf Outing
July 28th
ISACS New Teacher Institute
July 14-17
Transportation Information Meeting
August 6th
Family BBQ
August 24th
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Wolcott School Awarded Two High Honors
Wolcott's facility garnered much attention this year, receiving two high honors - the Good Neighbor Award for architecture and Gold Level LEED Certification.
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Partnership with Talcott Elementary 
Wolcott students led a literacy and mentoring program at our neighborhood school. Our students enjoyed reading with Talcott's bi-lingual preschoolers. We look forward to growing this program next year and impacting more students.
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Summer Reading Suggestions from English teacher Claire Walter
If you have 15 minutes in the morning....
Read a cover story from The New York Times. This has many benefits: staying current on current events, use of digital features and assistive technology via the web, and instant conversation over morning coffee. As the summer unfolds, you may find yourself dipping into other sections or following a story through its news cycle.
If you have a long, lazy afternoon stretching ahead of you....
Read a novel. There are a few ways to find the perfect summer read. Check out The Young Adult Library Services Association book list, The 2013 Editor's Choice for Young Adults book list, The Young Adult Library Services Association Best Graphic Novels list, or the Outstanding Books for the College Bound and Lifelong Learners book list and find something that peaks your interest.
If you have lulls in the conversation over dinner or a very long car trip ahead of you...
Read something as a family. Audiobooks are a great way to pass the time on cross country adventures. Through mobile devices, everyone in the family could theoretically listen on the train and then discuss over spaghetti. For this summer's audio book, I am suggesting Into Thin Air.
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Wolcott Students Sign 2013-2014 Memory Books
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Wolcott Partnership with
Chicago Humanities Festival
 Wolcott English teacher, Claire Walter, has been selected to participate in the Chicago Humanities Festival's EdLab: Journeys. Wolcott School launched a partnership with the Chicago Humanities Festival this year by participating in their "Stages, Sights, and Sounds" educational outreach program. Thanks to this partnership, Wolcott English classes attended a live performance of Alvin Sputnik's Undersea Adventure and worked with a guest teaching artist on pre and post performance activities.
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 Head of School Happenings
Wolcott has officially finished its inaugural year. What an incredible experience it has been! From the ground up, students created the school culture as they chose and designed their mascot, elected a founding student government, planned their first Spring Dance, launched the Talcott Elementary School reading buddies program, and claimed the second and third floor lobbies as student lounges. Even more impressive to me was the clear academic growth as I watched students construct argumentative essays in Global History, create prototypes using principles of electrical circuitry in physics, solve complex problems in mathematics, dialogue in Spanish, and recite and interpret Macbeth's famous soliloquy of lament in English.
At the opening and close of the academic year, students, parents and faculty and I participated in individual Learning Plan meetings. These meetings were a personal highlight of my year. Whether students demonstrated their accomplishments in the areas of reading, written language, mathematics, executive functioning, vocabulary or self-advocacy, one reality became clear - students made tremendous growth both in academics and in self-confidence. I am a true believer in the work of Carol Dweck of Stanford University and her research about mindsets, fixed and growth. At Wolcott, our curriculum is built on nurturing a growth mindset - one where each student appreciates that abilities can be developed through dedication and hard work. This year at Wolcott, we celebrated as we watched students transform their attitude toward learning and their goals for the future and strive for a growth mindset.
To my talented faculty and everyone in the community who helped make Wolcott a reality, many thanks and congratulations.
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From the Admissions Office
As a parent, I just lived through the experience of watching my child prepare to transition to high school. It was interesting to experience it first hand after having counseled hundreds of other people's children in the same journey during my career in high school admissions. I would like to share a few lessons learned:
Do your research and consider all options!
When exploring the best fit for a student, look at the whole child. Are there options that will allow your child to be more engaged in school, support and challenge them in new and more intensive ways, allow them more time to pursue their interests and hobbies and enable them to grow beyond academics?
If you find the right school, do not get discouraged by logistics or tuition demands!
I have seen families eliminate the best option for their student because they did not think they could handle the logistics or tuition demands. Ask many questions before
concluding that these are real obstacles.
Here is how we handle these two issues at Wolcott:
Transportation - Every student receives a student-discounted Ventra card. For students who arrive by commuter train (over half our students last year), we offer a free bus service from three downtown train stations.
Our need-based tuition assistance program offers support to a wide range of families with different financial needs.
Call Wolcott to schedule a tour.
Applications are still being accepted for 9th, 10th and 11th grades for the 2014/15 Academic Year.
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Wolcott Students and Faculty Visit Irons Oaks Environmental Center
Wolcott students and faculty finished the school year strengthening the Wolcott community through team building exercises.
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Wolcott Welcomes Two Accomplished Professionals To Our Community
 David Grott joins us as our new psychologist. David has over 20 years of experience working with faculty, parents and students, providing assessments, evaluations, counseling and consultation. David works to develop a compassionate and supportive environment which fosters the development of student self-determination. Previously, David was a School Psychologist and an Off Campus Coordinator at Deerfield High School. David holds a B.A from DePaul University and a Ph.D in School Psychology from Loyola University of Chicago. He is a licensed Clinical Psychologist as well as a nationally certified School Psychologist. David enjoys live music, collecting guitars, long rides on his motorcycle and travels with his family.
 Daphne Sajous-Brady joins us as Learning Strategies Coordinator and Learning Specialist. For nearly two decades, Daphne's educational and professional experiences have focused on supporting individuals with learning differences across the life span. She has taught in several school settings, including a school in her home country of Haiti, a Cook County public school, the Francis W. Parker School and, most recently, as Director of Student Support at the Ancona School. She also worked as a diagnostician conducting psycho-educational assessments in the Adult Learning Clinic at Northwestern University. Daphne holds a B.S, M.A and Ph.D from the Communication Science and Disorders Department at Northwestern University. Daphne enjoys reading, spending time with her family and walking, biking and roller blading by the lake.
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Wolcott School's 4th Annual Golf Outing
All Golfers and Sponsors Welcome
Monday, July 28th at the Lost Dunes Golf Club in Bridgman, Michigan
To participate in or sponsor the golf outing or to explore other ways to support Wolcott, please contact Kelly Ramos, Director of Development, at (312) 610-4927 or kramos@wolcottschool.org.
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