A Newsletter for the families and friends of Westchester Country Day School

From the Head of SchoolAs we begin the new year, I thought I would take a few moments to share

with you several of our programs here at WCDS that help students learn how to perform as members of a team in academic and creative settings. The ability to collaborate with colleagues and to work on a team to solve a problem or surmount a challenge sits high among the skillsets that will be highly prized in the coming years. These programs provide invaluable experiences for our students as they learn to collaborate and perform as a team at a high level. Academic competitions also hone critical thinking skills and teach students to think on their feet and to apply what they have learned to real-world and real-time challenges. I have asked a few of the faculty members who sponsor these teams to share with you a quick summary of what they are up to.

Enjoy,

Cobb

Elementary Battle of the Books—Vicki Sloop

We have twelve motivated book-loving fourth and fifth graders participating in Elementary Battle of the Books this year. Mrs. Hawley, Mrs. Tomlinson, and I are the faculty coaches. Mrs. Russell oversees the program as our library/media consultant. These dedicated students sacrifice their lunch and break time every Friday for a meeting in the library. After a time of literature discussion with our meal, we have a thirty-minute team practice time.

This year there are seventeen books on the reading list. Students are exposed to a variety of genres and reading levels. In addition to preparing for trivia questions for competition, we seek to help students dig for deeper meanings, make connections within literature, and develop their inference skills. A new emphasis this year has been placed on utilizing technology tools to help us meet our goals. Students have access to a special website where they can create competition-like questions based on the books they have read. Ultimately, our desire is to develop a deep and lasting love for reading for a student peer group with similar interests and goals. We compete in a regional competition in March with other independent schools.

Mock Trial—Cheryl Cunningham

WCDS is in its fifth year of competing in the North Carolina Advocates for Justice Mock Trial Competition. For the first time, we will have two teams of seven students competing against other teams from high schools across the state in the regional competition on Saturday, February 9, 2013, in the courtroom in downtown High Point.

This year’s case is Donovan v. Dempsey, a civil suit filed by a minor female soccer player who suffers more than one concussion during the course of her high school career and sustains bodily injury as a result. She is suing her club coach, the club soccer team, and its director in negligence for their not taking reasonable steps to protect their player from serious bodily injury. The defense is that the young teen was at least partially at fault in failing to take herself out of the game knowing she wasn’t feeling well and failing to follow through with

January 2013 Newsletter

In This Issue...

Headlines

Upcoming Events

Meet Your Wildcats

Arts Update

Athletics Update

For the College Bound

Healthful Hints

WAPA Notes and News

her doctor after her first concussion.

In Mock Trial competition, each team presents both sides of the case. Depending on which side a team is presenting, team members could be one of three lawyers or one of three witnesses. Students must learn to direct and cross-examine witnesses (or defend themselves on cross by an opposing team if they are witnesses). The lawyers make opening statements and closing arguments, learn and use the rules of civil procedure and evidence, impeach witnesses, make objections and defend them, all to a jury panel of local lawyers and a local judge. The jurors score each student on knowledge and execution of the above requirements. The competition is intense.

Of the many benefits this program offers, the most important are that our students learn to i) argue civilly, ii) think on their feet, and iii) compete in an academic endeavor. Every year that WCDS has competed, individual team members have brought home awards of best witnesses and lawyers. This year we hope to fill the gallery with friends and parents in support. We are fortunate to be coached by John Bryson, an attorney with Wyatt Early Harris Wheeler, a member of our Board of Trustees, and the proud father of two Wildcats, Miranda and Jonathan.

Model United Nations (UN)—Justin Martin

There are fourteen students in Model UN in Grades 9-12. I am the advisor for this organization. We hope to increase that number to twenty for the 2013-2014 school year.

Model UN focuses on a wide range of international issues which have included or will include all of the following: global security, the Eurozone crisis, global health, third world economic development, refugee crises, international education, climate change, and deforestation. We are competing at conferences during the 2012-2013 school year at Emory University, Duke University, and UNC Chapel Hill. We are considering other conferences for 2013-2014 at schools such as George Washington University and the University of Michigan.

Given that our conference at Emory was our first one, we did not win any awards or anything of that nature but participated in committees on Environmental Protection, Special Political issues and Social, Cultural, and Humanitarian issues. At Duke, students will be participating in the following committees: Security Council, European Union, World Health Organization, United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), United Nations Population Fund, a Post-Kyoto Protocol committee focusing on climate change, and a historical committee, George W. Bush’s post-9/11 Cabinet.

By participating in Model UN, students develop skills in critical thinking, public speaking, analysis, synthesis, and debate as well as parliamentary procedure. These skills are critical to their success in college as well as enterprises beyond their collegiate years.

Envirothon—Jane Bowie

There are eleven Upper School students involved on this year’s Envirothon team. I am the teacher/sponsor, and Mr. Andy Miller with Davidson County volunteers his time to help prepare our students for this competition. Parent Gay James also assists with the group.

The students prepare for competition in five areas: Aquatics, Soil, Forestry, Wildlife, and Current Environmental Issues. In addition to a written test, students also will be expected to deliver oral and poster presentations on a problem they will be presented with the day of the competition. The problem is usually designing a camp, or some public facility in a specific area. They take what

Annual Fund Update

First Grade wins a trip to Pump It Up for reaching 100% participation in the Annual Fund by December 31. Congratulations!!

Thank you to everyone who has given to the Annual Fund so far. If you have not yet had an opportunity to make your pledge, please click here to do so today!

REMEMBER - pledge payments are not due until June 30, 2013.

Thank you for your support!

they have learned about the five areas above to come up with an environmentally “green” solution.

The students will compete in the Regional Competition at Catawba College in Salisbury, North Carolina, on March 20. There are usually about fifteen other schools that compete at the regional level. The state competition is April 19-20 at Cedarock Park in Burlington, NC.

This is an academic competition that students prepare for weekly throughout the entire school year. Besides learning many facts about the environment, the other goal of the competition is to make students more aware of their environment and current issues.

Middle School Mathematics Competitions—Debby Noyes

Twenty Middle School students sat for the American Mathematics Competition in November. The test is made up of problems that require bringing a variety of concepts together to solve complex mathematical problems.

In February, eight Middle School students will compete in Mathcounts. This competition has a Sprint Round, Target Round, and Team Round. Problems range in difficulty. Students must be accurate and quick to do well in Mathcounts.

Odyssey of the Mind—Deb Tuggle

Westchester’s Odyssey of the Mind program—a team-based, creative problem solving competition—enters its third year this winter with a record number of participants and teams. Nearly fifty students from our Lower and Middle Schools will prepare solutions to six different long-term problems to present to judges at the regional tournament in March. Additionally, we will be folding work on this year’s primary problem into our kindergarten program over the next few months as we prepare them to perform their solutions to our school family in the early spring. Click here to read this year’s problems. Many thanks to our 14 volunteer coaches: Raegan Atkinson, Susan Fagg, Kristina Hardy, Megann Huggins, Mary Beth Hunsberger, Marian Neacsu, Laurie Rives, Gwen Russell, Heather Schwartz, Marla Seelig, Martha Sexton, Vicki Sloop, Catherine Tanner-Harron, and Deb Tuggle.

HeadlinesStudents Make Presentation to Mayor

Sophomore Daniel Ayodele (from left), seniors Kristine Chukwuma and Kimberly Watson, and junior Lewis Miles represented Westchester’s Human Relations Club in a presentation to the mayor and city council on December 6, 2012. The presentations, which were made by every high school that is a member of the High Point Student Commissioners Human Relations Commission, were reports on the goals and important work each school is doing building unity in our community. The four Westchester students have been invited to represent Westchester and High Point at the national conference in April 2013.

Class Creates Cultural MealLatin American Caribbean Studies class (LACS) had an interesting “assignment” recently. The class’s

teacher, Mr. Thomas, reports: “We had just finished covering the ancient Mayans and were in the middle of covering the Aztecs. Their

homework for the weekend was to come up with/find some Mayan and Aztec food recipes to prepare in class, and we created the following:

Mayan MenuSopa de Lima (chicken and lime soup)Guacamole, homemadeSalsa, homemadeMango and Papaya SmoothieMayan Chocolate Cake

Aztec MenuMazatles (authentic Mexican tacos, steak simmered with peppers and onions in a corn or flour tortilla)Aztec Calendar SaladAztec Hot Chocolate (homemade hot chocolate with cinnamon sticks and dried guajillo chiles)

“After being sick and absent from school the day before the planned meal, I was worried that the students might forget what they had to do or that the assignment was going to be a train wreck, but they pulled through and then some, as all of the food turned out amazing! Plus, the experience of cooking and preparing all of the food in the cafeteria with Mrs. Evans was equally as amazing. She was great with the seven seniors and one junior in my class. The students who were part of the Mayan group were Nicole Danch, Markel Johnson, Luke Puckett, and Julie Tugwell. The students who were part of the Aztec group were Mary Kate Farris, Tyler Fairly, Clayton Brewer, and Meghan Ingram. They all did a wonderful job with this assignment.”

Third Graders Make Community from Milk CartonsMs. Robinson’s third graders created their own special

community during social studies classes. The students created neighborhoods, stores, businesses, parks, and of course, a school named Westchester Country Day School out of their used milk cartons.

The students have been studying about different communities from Native American tribes to our modern day rural, urban, and suburban communities. “Understanding what makes each kind of community special helps us to respect people who live differently than we do,” says Ms. Robinson.

News from Middle SchoolThe Middle School

Wildcats were filled with holiday spirit that they shared throughout the month of December! From performing in a festive holiday concert, to collecting and distributing 344 items of food for Hasty Elementary and coats for the Newcomer’s School, Middle School Wildcats shared their enthusiasm and blessings with all. Twenty-five of our middle

schoolers helped put together 66 boxes of food and gifts for local families; this includes over 150 children, some of whom are homeless.

After completing their service learning endeavors, students enjoyed holiday parties with their families in their advisory groups. A great time was had by all with food, games, singing, and gift-giving galore.

Since this is the season of gift-giving, Middle School faculty turned our focus to each child’s gifts as we made the decision to encourage and celebrate the collaboration and character attributes of our students in our annual awards ceremony. As the students ended 2012 taking exams, the Middle School faculty reflected upon an idea voiced by Pat Bassett, the president of the National Association of Independent Schools, as he encouraged faculty to rethink the purpose and consequences of focusing on academic competition in Middle School. Bassett encourages educators to promote a love of learning and celebrate integrity. To this end, we will no longer be recognizing the top three scholars in each grade, but will continue to celebrate the awards that focus on compassion, empathy, inclusion, and leadership. Our students lead by example daily in these endeavors!

Meet Your WildcatsName: Susan Fagg

Title: Director of Annual Fund & Special Events

Family: Husband Bill; children Libby, Lily, Mary, Molly, Sam, Meg, Callie, and Jake; dogs Oscar, Pepper, Dora, and Buster

What was your favorite subject in school? History

What book are you reading? Remodeling magazines

Name of the last movie you watched: Pitch Perfect

Favorite Restaurant: Marisol

Dream Vacation: Anywhere with a hot sun, no phone or TV, a good book and my husband!

Something most people don’t know about you: I love to play Mah Jongg!

Favorite thing aboutWestchester:As a parent – the great staffAs a staff member – the great staff

Operation Smile Welcomes Special SpeakerOur school’s Operation

Smile Club invited Dr. Coridalia Scott, a health coordinator for Operation Smile, to speak to the Upper School student body about what it means to be a part of Operation Smile and her experience with the organization. Following the speech, the club held a bake sale and, thanks to Westchester’s faculty, staff, and students, was able to raise enough money to give the gift of a smile to a child with facial deformities. The club expresses its thanks to the Westchester community for its support!

Four Seniors Named to NHSSeniors Haleigh Breece, Sarah Kate Christiansen, Walker Rose, and Julie Tugwell have been admitted

to the National Honor Society. They will be formally inducted in the spring at the annual NHS induction ceremony.

Mock Trial Teams Head to RegionalsWestchester’s two Mock Trial teams will compete at the regional level of the North Carolina Advocates

for Justice High School Mock Trial Competition at the downtown High Point courthouse on February 9. Both teams will argue both sides of a civil case suit for damages by a female soccer player who sustained concussions and was seriously injured as a result. Our teams will compete against teams from across the state. The following students are on this year’s teams: junior Lewis Miles, Lead Counsel; seniors Claire Councill and Walker Rose; juniors Baxter Bruggeworth, Arinze Chukwuma, Tommy Frungillo, Prajan Marhatta, Tracey Neza, Erica Sawyer, and Cameron White; sophomores Tommy Boggis and Catherine York; and freshmen Ryan Beale, Ariana Winkle, and Caroline Womack. John Bryson is our outside counsel. Parents and friends are invited to support us during the competition.

Faculty UpdatesMiddle School English teacher Sterling Smith married Natalie Frith on November 22.•Middle School Art teacher Victoria Nixon married Ben Bailess on December 2.•Middle and Upper School music teacher Jaime English and her husband, Josh welcome Johanna •Lynlee English on December 14.

2013 - 2014 School YearApplications for new students in grades PK - 11 are now being accepted for the 2013-2014 academic

year. Screenings will be held in January and February. If you know someone who is interested, please contact the Admissions Office.

Yearbook Orders Due!!All yearbook orders must be in by January 25!! Click here to order yours today!

Welcome New Wildcat11th GradeMr. Daniel CrookerMr. and Mrs. George Crooker (George and Fonda)

And We’re Off!

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SAVE THE DATE!Saturday, May 4, 2013

Upcoming EventsSteel Magnolias AuditionsMonday, January 7, and Tuesday, January 8, 3:30-4:30 p.m., in Mrs. Noyes’s room. This audition is open to Upper School female students only. There are six women in the cast.

HomecomingHomecoming/Spirit Week begins Monday, January 7! Please join in the fun as students are encouraged to dress in a “theme” each day. Please note that the Lower School students will participate on Thursday and Friday only. Monday - America DayTuesday - Blast from the Past DayWednesday - Character DayThursday - Pajama DayFriday - Blue/White Day Homecoming is Friday, January 11. Come out and support your Cats as they take on Trinity School of Durham in basketball: 4:00 p.m. - JV Boys5:30 p.m. - Varsity Girls7:00 p.m. - Varsity Boys The Homecoming Court will be presented at the conclusion of the Varsity Boys game. We will honor our 2013 Athletic Hall of Famer Alex James, ‘75, between the Varsity games (full story, next page).

Paws NightMonday, January 14. No homework!

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day HolidayMonday, January 21. No school.

Teachers’ Professional DayTuesday, January 22. No school for students.

Next Step Meetings, Grades PK-4Thursday, January 24, 5:30 p.m., in the Lower School classrooms

Rising Upper School MeetingThursday, January 24, 7:00 p.m., in the Library

Grades 6 - 12 Talent ShowWednesday, January 30, 7:00 p.m., Rives Hall

Big Cat/Lil’ Cat Club NightWildcats in Grades PK – 8 are invited to a fun day of clinics, arts and crafts, snacks, dinner, and Wildcat basketball and cheerleading action -- all under the supervision of the varsity athletes and coaches! Clinic participants will be included in the evening’s varsity girls and boys games! Click here for more information and registration.

Arts Update from Ann ParksIn December we enjoyed Snow Biz, our Lower School holiday celebration. In January we’ll have show

biz to look forward to. On Monday and Tuesday, January 7 and 8, auditions for our Upper School drama production, Steel Magnolias, will be held from 3:30-4:30 p.m. Keep a look out for sign ups for the MS/US Talent Show, which will grace the Rives Hall stage January 30. Dust off the ukulele and practice your comedy routines--it’s sure to be a night of fun and amazing talent. Also beginning January 15 and running through February 22, our Middle School visual artists will have work displayed at High Point’s Theatre Art Gallery. We also welcome back in January new mom Mrs. Weiss who will teach the Lower School art classes. Art, music, and drama…there’s no business like show business!

Athletics Update from Coach SchwartzWildcat RoundupIn the athletic world, the focus of the month of December shifts to preparing for exams and spending

quality time with family, so the athletic schedule is a little quiet. The winter sports season will get off to a bang the first week of 2013 with lots of Wildcat action!

After Homecoming weekend, the Middle School and Varsity schedules kick into conference matches, which all of our teams have a chance to win! Our swimming program has the most swimmers we have had in years, and our 2nd year Middle School team is providing a great punch to the swimming program.

During this holiday season and the beginning of 2013, I want to thank all of our Wildcat fans, coaches, players, and teachers for all of the support throughout the year. The entire coaching staff represents the values that are so important to everybody associated with Westchester, and our student-athletes are striving for excellence in and out of the classroom. The rest of the winter season is going to be filled with many memories and some exciting championships, but the relationships that are built among teammates and coaches will last a lifetime. May all Wildcats have a happy and healthy 2013! – Coach Schwartz

Basketball Standout is 2013 Athletic Hall of Fame Inductee

Alex James, a standout athlete from the Class of 1975, will be inducted into Westchester’s Athletic Hall of Fame during the school’s Homecoming on Friday, January 11, at 6:45 p.m.

“Westchester has been fortunate enough to graduate several of the Triad’s greatest athletes who have left our halls and gone on to make amazing accomplishments in their sports, and we are thrilled to have this opportunity to recognize one of them this year,” says Adam Schwartz, Athletic Director at Westchester Country Day School.

James was a standout basketball player at WCDS, earning MVP awards in 1973, 1974, and 1975, as well as All-Conference and Conference Tournament MVP in 1974 and 1975. He was named All-Northwest North Carolina in 1974 and 1975. James put Westchester basketball on the map and led the Wildcats to uncharted success during his four years as a starter for Westchester. He continued his career at Harvard University as a student-athlete during the late 1970’s.

Nominations for the Hall of Fame were solicited from all Westchester alumni. Criteria for the award included an athlete, coach or friend of WCDS who has been out of high school for at least five years and who has demonstrated excellent athletic achievement, defined by but not limited to earning All-State and/or All-American status while at WCDS and/or collegiate/professional participation. The final selection was determined by a committee comprised of alumni, faculty and staff, and members of the athletic department.

For the College BoundParents of sophomores and juniors should have

received their students’ PSAT score reports on Thursday, January 3. On this day I met with students in each sophomore and junior English class, helping them understand their test scores and giving them suggestions about how they can raise their scores during subsequent testing. Information on these reports is invaluable in helping students assess areas of weakness, and information available online through the feature My College QuickStart can offer students suggestions about how to improve in these areas. While one should view PSAT scores as indicators of performance on the SAT, it is important to keep in mind that these scores generally rise over time, especially when the student makes a concerted effort to improve vocabulary, reading comprehension, and math skills. Please feel free to contact me with questions or concerns about PSAT score implications. Sophomores will take the PSAT again next October as part of the National Merit Scholarship Program.

Juniors should plan to take the SAT Reasoning Test twice before the end of this school year, once in the winter and once in the spring. The SAT test will be administered again on January 26, but the regular registration date has passed. Students can still register by paying a late fee as long as they do so by January 11. Additional SATs will be given on March 9 (registration deadline February 8), May 4 (registration deadline April 5), and June 1 (registration deadline

May 2). Juniors who plan to apply to very selective schools should take the SAT Subject Tests on June 1. Juniors may also want to consider taking the ACT on June 8. Students should register online for these tests at either the College Board website (SAT tests) or the ACT website.

Mark your calendars now for two very important upcoming programs. On Wednesday morning, February 13, I will be meeting with members of the junior class, along with their parents, at 8 am to talk about their upcoming college search and application process. Then, on Wednesday evening, April 17, parents and students of all ages are invited to hear Jared Rosenberg, Senior Assistant Director of Admissions at UNC Chapel Hill, as he addresses trends in college admissions.

Congratulations to seniors Claire Councill and Patrick Williford who have been named semifinalists in the Morehead-Cain Scholarship competition at UNC Chapel Hill. These outstanding seniors will interview at the regional level in early January. Other seniors offered scholarships to date include Tyler Fairly (Hampden-Sydney College and Wingate University), Mary Marshall Fariss (Hollins University), Meghan Ingram (Meredith College), Jan Luehr (Catawba College), Oby Nwamu (Mercer University and Stetson University), Abbey Perdue (Anderson University and Campbell University), Walker Rose (Presbyterian College), Will Thomas (Roanoke College and Stetson University), and Tristan Winkle (Geneva College). College acceptance notices received since our last newsletter include:

Haleigh BreeceCollege of Charleston

UNC WilmingtonUniversity of South Carolina

Leah CaffeyNC State University

University of South CarolinaSarah Kate Christiansen

Savannah School of Art and Design

School of the Art Institute of Chicago

UNC WilmingtonUniversity of South Carolina

Kristine Chukwuma Roanoke College

Nicole Danch Penn State University

Elizabeth Folk NC State University

UNC Wilmington

Avery Goho Clemson University

Christian James UNC Wilmington

Alexis King Florida State University

Lizzy Lawrence Appalachian State UniversitySavannah School of Art and

DesignJan Luehr

Catawba CollegeOby Nwamu

Mercer University Stetson University

Abbey Perdue Western Carolina University

Luke Puckett Carson-Newman College

East Carolina UniversityHigh Point University

University of Tennessee

Walker Rose High Point UniversityPresbyterian College

UNC WilmingtonWill Thomas

Roanoke CollegeKennedy Thompson NC State University

Leigh Tyson NC State UniversityKimberly Watson

NC State UniversitySavannah Wellington College of CharlestonUniversity of Alabama

University of South CarolinaPatrick Williford

NC State UniversityTristan Winkle

Geneva College

Betty Flythe, College Placement Advisor

Healthful Hints from the School NurseAt the beginning of each New Year, I publish my “things learned” list. Some items are from years past and

there are always a few new items added each year. There are always one or two giggles that are worth sharing by this time of the year.

Here we go…

A little boy stopped by my office while his class was visiting the library and reported that he hurt his back this weekend and he’s not sure if it is a muscle spasm or a disc problem. I guess we’re teaching some anatomy in the early Lower School grades!

I still remember a little Lower School student that came into the health room with a scant nose bleed and so I cleaned him up and applied some Vaseline to the outside of his nostrils due to them looking chapped. Later that day when school was out I received a call from his mom and she said that “Johnny” came home and told me you put gasoline in his nose …we laughed together…oh the things children say!!!

I thought that I would also list a few things that I have learned from my students over the years and some things that my students have learned.

Rubhandsanitizeronyourhandsfor20seconds;don’t justcoatyourhands.♥Don’tstickyourfinger inyoureyeafterapplyinghandsanitizer.♥Sometimesyoujustneedalittlebreakinyourday.♥Feelingcoldmaymeanyoureallyhaveafever.♥Notallsorethroatsarestrepthroats.♥Eatagoodbreakfast.♥Ifyoudon’teatagoodbreakfast,youcangetaheadachebeforelunch.♥Ifyougetaheadachebeforelunchbecause you didn’t eat breakfast, you can go to the nurse’s office and she will usually give you a little snack. ♥Benice.♥Loveothers.♥Thereareactuallydifferentkindsofsmart.♥Ifyoublowinyourcat’searthreeorfourtimes,thecatwillturnandbiteyourlipandwon’tletgoforatleastaminute.♥Don’tputthingsinyournose,especiallyyourfingers.♥Washyourhands.♥Pinchyournoseifyouhaveabloodynose.♥Legosdofitinsideafirstgrader’snostril.♥Anicepackcansolvemanyproblems.♥Give,give,give,serve,serve,serve.♥Alwayswearyourseatbelt.♥Don’tquituntilyou findtheanswer.♥Felt tipmarkersarenot thebest thingtouseaslipstick.♥ThezigzagpathofthecharactersinFamilyCircuscontinuesintoUpperSchool.♥Boysexcused to go to the bathroom from math class will dawdle on their way back up the hallway, stopping at the water fountain, looking in classrooms to see if they know anyone in that class, then the next class, thenthenextclass.♥Bringingafriendwithyoutothenurse’sofficeisatrendthatcontinuesthroughUpperSchool.♥Thereareactuallydifferenttypesofbeautiful.♥Ifyoutwirlaround20timesontheplaygroundyouwill throwup.♥Rainbowsandalsdonotgivetoesprotectionwhenconfrontedwithheavydoors.♥Prettyhighheeledshoesgiveyoublisters.♥MostUpperSchoolstudentswillcometoschoolsickiftheyhaveatestthatday.♥Sometimesyouhavetotakethetestbeforeyouarefinishedstudying.♥Ahuggoesalongway.♥IfyourmomgivesyouTylenolforafeverinthemorningandsaysyoucanstillcometoschool,youcan’t.♥Ifyouthrewupallnightandintothemorningandyourmomsaysyoucancometoschool,youcan’t.♥Becaring.♥Ifyouarenearabathroomandyouhearthetoiletflush,thenhear“Uhoh,”it’sneveragoodsign.♥Youreallycanlaughuntilyoucry.♥Ifyourboyfriendbrokeupwithyouduring2ndperiodstudyhall,youcangotothehealthroomanddecompress.♥MiddleSchoolersaregenuinelyfunny-notnecessarilycutefunnyorsweetfunny,butfunnyfunny.♥Ifyouthinkyoubrokeyourhandinlastnight’sgame,butyouhadthe“toughact”on,youcangotothehealthroomthenextdayforiceandanopinion.♥Thehealthofficealwayshasmusicplaying.♥TheschoolnursewillalwaysLOVEherstudentseveniftheyareattheirWEAKESTmoments.♥Sometimes,abottleofwaterworksbetterforacoughthanacoughdrop.♥Band-aidscomein100differentsizes.♥Brightlycoloredwristwrapsareahitwithfirstgradersallthewaythroughtheirsenioryear.♥Thisisagoodplacetogrowup.♥Anurseunderstandswhatachilddoesnotsay.♥

Thank you for sharing your children with me!

Wishing you a happy, healthy New Year! Beth Kennedy, RN, Director of Health Services

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Westchester Country Day is a college preparatory school that seeks to educate each child toward moral, academic, artistic, and athletic excellence in a nurturing, family environment where students, teachers, and parents support one another. By respecting the student and honoring learning, Westchester aims to cultivate informed citizens who are ready for a rapidly changing world and to graduate students who view the pursuit and wise use of knowledge as a lifelong joy.

WAPA Notes and NewsBook Club

The WAPA Book Club will meet January 9 at 8:00 in the library. We will discuss the book Room by Emma Donoghue.

Our books for February and March are as follows: February16 - The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls March 16 - The Innocent Spy by Laura Wilson

All are welcome!