WCDS Haunted by Ghosts and Goblins

For Halloween 2006, WCDS was home to many ghosts and goblins, as well as princesses, puppies, monkeys, and dragons. The youngest students performed Halloween poems and songs in the auditorium and later went trick-or-treating, stopping at each office and classroom. Kindergarteners in costume made a special field trip to the Lynn Care Center, bringing with them a bit of Halloween magic to the residents -- singing Halloween songs and reciting special fall poems to an extremely appreciative audience. In keeping with a long-standing school tradition, the upper school students created a special “haunted house” for the lower school students to tour during lunch. The “haunted effect” was greatly enhanced by materials on loan from the Flint Hill Volunteer Fire and Rescue Company, and the ghoulish residents adjusted the “scare factor,” depending on the ages of their student visitors. The day ended with all the lower school students changing into costumes for classroom celebrations while students in grades seven and eight enjoyed their own haunted house, courtesy of teacher Mrs. Welby Griffin. Among other “spooky” assignments, the students played a mythological variation of bingo, matching candy to mythological characters and creatures.

Musical Assembly

The October 25th WCDS Wednesday assembly featured the second grade class performing “I Can Learn.” Each student wore a costume to illustrate his or her learning topic, with a wide range of subjects represented, including sports, art, science, and medicine. The children enthusiastically sang and acted out the lyrics, to resounding applause.

Paul Reisler

WCDS happily welcomed songwriter Paul Reisler back this past week. Mr. Reisler worked with lower school students to write original songs to be performed at a concert on January 27th. The children generated song titles, lyrics, and melodies such as “Come Back for Me Across the Sea to Africa,” by grade two; “Taxi Blues” by grade six; and “Ghost in My Closet,” by grade one. Every Wednesday, WCDS students sing “Passion and Mercy,” the school fight song, which was written last year by the junior class with Mr. Reisler.

Spirit Week

Students at Wakefield Country Day spent the week celebrating “Spirit Week,” which culminated with a Homecoming Bonfire and Alumni Reception on Friday evening. Beginning with Red and White Day, students used their creativity to assemble costumes that demonstrated the theme of the day. Monday was designated as Clash Day, and sunglasses came in handy with all the bright colors and patterns on parade at the school that day. This was followed by Crazy Hair and Hat Day on Tuesday. Wednesday, the Preliminary Scholastic Aptitude Tests were administered to the eighth through twelfth graders, so everyone took a break. Spirit Week resumed on Thursday, with Literary and Historical Figure Day. If you happened to stroll down the halls that day, you were likely to meet a wide-range of notables, including Albert Einstein, Shakespeare’s Juliet, Cleopatra, several U.S. Presidents, the author Laura Ingalls Wilder, and the Hardy Boys, to name just a few. The grand finale was Friday’s Pirate Day, with both students and faculty getting in the spirit, with eye patches, hooks, and peg-legs, with each mate scarier than the next! Argh!!!

Friday evening’s alumni reception entertained representatives from the Class of 2006, all the way back to the Class of 1984. Most of the prep school turned out for the bonfire, which was presided over by the Flint Hill Volunteer Fire and Rescue Squad. During the bonfire, the Key Club raised money for charity with a car smash, and students enjoyed refreshments and games such as “capture the flag.”

Fall Festival

Cloudless skies and beautiful autumn scenery served as the perfect backdrop for Saturday’s Homecoming Fall Festival and Yard Sale. Neighbors filled the school’s parking lot and grounds for the better part of the day, enjoying an array of games and activities offered to help raise funds for various club and class projects. There was something for everyone, including the Key Club’s moon bounce; second grade’s elaborate face painting; Model United Nations Club’s cake walk; preschool’s “count the beans” challenge with bears as prizes; Yearbook’s “tic-tac-throw;” the Dance Team’s animal treats, jewelry, and tomato soup; the international students’ international name cards booth, and the third grade’s assortment of games for the little ones. Everyone was well-fed: kindergarten offered refreshments; fifth and sixth grades sold “all things chocolate;” first grade had mouth-watering fall pies and hot beverages; fourth grade offered caramel apples; pre-kindergarten staff and parent volunteers provided hot dogs and barbecue sandwiches; and Student Government served up some friendly competition with chili and cornbread.

At 2:00 p.m, the focus shifted to the soccer field, where the alumni gave the prep school athletes a run for their money in a hotly contested soccer match. The teams were fairly evenly matched, but ultimately junior Alex Shafran carried the day with a winning goal in the closing minutes of the second half. The final score was WCDS Prep School – 2, WCDS Alumni 1. By the time the sun went down, it could be accurately stated that several hundred Wakefield friends and family members left the school tired but happy after attending an old-fashioned community fair, which provided not only fun but also raised funds for a host of good “causes.” Proceeds from table rentals for this year’s yard sale will be added to the school’s “portable computer lab” fund.

The day’s celebration was capped by an evening Homecoming Dance attended by students in eighth through twelfth grade, interspersed with cameo appearances by recent graduates.

8th Grade Physical Science Class

Taking advantage of the beautiful fall weather, WCDS’ eighth grade physical science teacher, Ann Pankow, recently engaged her students’ attention with a “Slow Flyer Lab,” conducted on the school’s front lawn. The exercise was one of several experiments designed to give the students a “hands-on” understanding of the laws of physics. The class, divided into groups of three, used three timed-trials of the flight of paper airplanes to calculate velocity, using distance over time measurements. Mrs. Pankow is conducting labs every week with her physical science class, to help her students better-conceptualize scientific principles.

Religious Customs Shared at Assembly

At this week’s Wednesday assembly, Head of School Kathleen Grove spoke to the students about the different religious holy days being observed this month, mentioning Yom Kippur, and she then introduced WCDS Moroccan exchange student Imane Belhaj to speak about Ramadan. Ms. Belhaj shared some of the details surrounding this Islamic period of fasting and self-denial – explaining that the purpose of fasting during Ramadan is to experience the hunger of poverty and to increase one’s spiritual focus.

Middle School Enjoys Fall Mixer

Fulfilling their pledge to plan social activities throughout the year for all the Wakefield students, this past weekend Student Government leaders organized a “Fall Harvest” dance for the middle school students. Nearly 40 students gathered for an evening of dancing and socializing.

Little Students Visit the Pumpkin Patch

Preschool, PreK and Kindergarten students had a special treat this week – they spent the better part of Wednesday at Hartland Orchard. The field trip included a hayride, a picnic and apple-picking.

SCHOOL SPIRIT HIGH AT WCDS

On Thursday, October 5th, school spirit echoed across the campus grounds during the school’s first pep rally of the year. The student body gathered on the hillside overlooking the soccer field, the dance team led the students in cheers, and Athletic Director Mike Kenney introduced the two soccer and three volleyball teams. Kathleen Grove, Head of School, then engaged the students in competing cheers by grade level, with ninth grade emerging as the winner.

LOCAL FIRE COMPANIES VISIT WCDS

In recognition of National Fire Prevention Week, on Tuesday, October 10th, students in preschool through third grade had the opportunity to explore the fire engines and EMT vehicles brought to WCDS by the Flint Hill and Chester Gap Volunteer Fire and Rescue Companies. The students listened, wide-eyed and attentive, as the volunteer fire men described their equipment and advised the students on how to respond to a fire emergency. Students and faculty alike expressed their thanks to the squad members for volunteering their time to visit WCDS, and the little ones especially appreciated the souvenir stickers, fire hats and coloring books that were handed out. Observed Head of School Kathleen Grove, “We deeply appreciate having within our community dedicated public servants such as these young men. The knowledge and information they share with our students is extremely important, and their hands-on approach to teaching fire and safety rules is extremely effective and leaves a lasting impression."

LIONS CLUB CONDUCTS SIGHT AND HEARING TESTS

The Rappahannock Lions Club, in keeping with their generous tradition, once again brought their trailer to Wakefield Country Day School and spent the better part of the day on Friday, October 13th, providing sight and hearing tests for the students and faculty. Kathleen Grove, Head of School, expressed the school community’s gratitude for the service this club provides throughout the county.