Summer Wonders - Wheeling - Grades K - 6
Jack London Middle School
1001 W. Dundee Road, Wheeling
Jack London Middle School is located west of Elmhurst Rd. and east of Buffalo Grove Rd. on Dundee Rd. - A 10 minute ride from our previous Summer Wonders site in Palatine.
Weekdays:
Morning Program: 9:00 to 11:40
Full-Day Program: 9:00 to 3:00
Session I: June 18 - 29
Morning Program Courses for Kindergarten and 1st Grade students
| Snap, Crackle, Pop!: Mix, swish and create chemical concoctions that tend to pop, fizzle, and sometimes explode as you explore chemistry via hands-on experiments. |
| The Math and Science of Building: Tackle construction projects with string, straws, toothpicks, marshmallows, etc.; build polyhedra, towers and bridges. |
| Say Goodbye to Civilization: Create, construct and inhabit a simulated rain forest, with flora and fauna, monkeys on vines, boas in the rivers, and parrots in treetops. |
| Fairy Tale Festival: Imagine, dramatize, create and compose as you journey through the world of your favorite fantastic places, creatures, and fairy tales. |
Morning Program Courses for 2nd through 6th Grade students
| Computer Animation Lab: Create your own animations by combining text, sound and graphics in MicroWorlds. (Grades 2-6) |
| Geometric Design and Construction: Explore math and geometry by tackling 2-D and 3-D construction projects with paper, string, straw, toothpicks, marshmallows, etc. (Grades 2-6) |
| The Chemistry of Toys: Explore principles of chemistry�solubility, permeability, volatility, attraction�via hands-on fun and experiments with toys. (Grades 2-3) |
| Invention Lab: Create futuristic gizmos for the next millennium; build innovative thingamabobs for today; reconfigure great gadgets of yesteryear. (Grades 2-3) |
| Combustion and Pyrotechnics: Investigate physical forces and chemical combinations that tend to flare, fizzle, spark, and occasionally explode. (Grades 4-6) |
| Robotics: Design, construct and control (you hope) your own sound-activated, model robot. ($35 lab fee) (Grades 4-6) |
| Arctic, Desert, Jungle: Virtually experience foreign habitats and environments via hands-on constructions and inventive simulations. Do you prefer a grass shack, igloo, or adobe hut? (Grades 2-3) |
| Archaeology: Embark on a simulated dig to unearth ancient artifacts and fossils. Can you piece the clues together to recreate a lost civilization? (Grades 4-6) |
| Creative Reading and Writing: Compose stories, poems and prose�real or imagined, wild or tame�inspired by myriad artistic stimuli. (Grades 2-6) |
| Sculpture Studio: Create, shape, mold, model, and chisel 3-D masterpieces with paint, clay, papier-m�ch�, etc. (Grades 2-6) |
| Musical Theater: Grades 2-3 will perform I need a Vacation! and grades 4-6, Annie Get Your Gun. (Grades 2-6) |
Session II: July 2 - 13 (No classes July 4)
Morning Program Courses for Kindergarten and 1st Grade students
| Sleuthhounds of Science: Discover scientific secrets in a hands-on lab. Can spaghetti fly? Can a ball roll uphill? How many pounds can you lift with a sheet of paper? |
| It's a Bug's Life: Explore the world of creepy crawlies; hatch butterflies and ladybugs; design an ant farm; throw a honey-tasting party. |
| Games Mathematicians Play: Explore math games and puzzles; discover the properties of chance; manipulate pennies, dice, and other paraphernalia. |
| Bibliomagic: Transform your brilliant ideas and wild imagination into stories and pictures as you create your own book. |
Morning Program Courses for 2nd through 6th Grade students
| Computer Games Lab: Create your own games. Aficionados will develop video games in Game Maker. (Grades 2-6) |
| Fossillized Math: Solve ancient math puzzles; examine the primitive logic of Mayan, Egyptian and Roman number systems; discover why and how math ever happened in the first place. (Grades 2-6) |
| Chemistry, Physics, and Bubbles: Explore the principles of air, gravity, density, and surface tension; experiment with solutions; create huge, long-lasting, and/or crazy-shaped bubbles. (Grades 2-6) |
| It's a Bug's Life: Explore the world of creepy crawlies; hatch butterflies and ladybugs; design an ant farm; throw a honey-tasting party. (Grades 2-3) |
| Robotics: Create a cyber beetle that you can configure to be phototrophic or photophobic. Probe the schematics; solder the parts; modify; customize. ($45 lab fee) (Grades 4-6) |
| Game Makers : Invent your own games! Design the playing field; create the rules; improvise the objectives (make losing the goal?); play it your way! (Grades 2-6) |
| Chocolate-Ology: Discover it�from the humble cocoa bean to the world�s favorite culinary delight�via history, mystery, recipes and taste tests. (Grades 2-3) |
| Harry Potter-Ology: Simulate his fantastic adventures! Conduct wizard research; create potions; play Quidditch . . . but don�t get a screamer! (Grades 4-6) |
| Artist's Workshop: Create multi-dimensional masterpieces of mixed media, methods and muses, such as collage, printmaking, sculpture, drawing, pastels and watercolor. (Grades 2-6) |
| Musical Theater: Grades 2-3 will perform Once Upon a Lily Pad, and grades 4-6, Oklahoma! (Grades 2-6) |
Session III: July 16 - 27
Morning Program Courses for Kindergarten and 1st Grade students
| Up, Up, and Away!: Explore bubbles, balloons and airplanes via hands-on projects with wind, force and gravity. Launch balloon contraptions; race paper airplanes; create huge bubbles! |
| Eating Up Science: Experiment with sundry edibles, like grapes, soda, milk and yeast; discover chemical reactions as you explore the physical properties of freezing, heating, leavening, aeration, etc. |
| Math to Boggle the Brain: Tackle logic puzzles; ponder math riddles; solve sequencing secrets. |
| Medieval Mania: Explore the age of castles, knights and flying unicorns. Build a castle; design your coat of arms; throw a feast . . . and don�t forget to feed your dragon! |
Morning Program Courses for 2nd through 6th Grade students
| Computer Logo Lab: Grades 2-4 will explore programming in Logo; grades 5-6 will create programs using Lego Robotics. (Grades 2-6) |
| Math Games and Brain Teasers: Explore tangram tricks and magic squares; challenge classmates at number games; create your own math puzzles to baffle them. (Grades 2-6) |
| Electronics and Robotics Lab: Assemble and reassemble assorted robots that walk, crawl, jump, hop, etc. ($25 lab fee) (Grades 2-3) |
| Science Wizards: Explore weird phenomena, like smelly balloons, singing spoons, popping Zots and jumbled-up Jell-O, via hands-on lab projects. (Grades 2-3) |
| Crystal Chemistry: Invent, mix, swish and experiment with your own solutions to create crystal formations. Will yours grow big, strong, and beautiful, or flop? (Grades 4-6) |
| Roller Coaster Physics: Explore the interactions to which we entrust our lives when we board a roller coaster, such as acceleration, velocity, and forces centrifugal and centripetal; design and construct mini models; create the ultimate balance of speed, thrills and safety. (Grades 4-6) |
| Medieval Mania: Explore the age of castles, knights and flying unicorns. Build a castle; design your coat of arms; throw a feast . . . and don�t forget to feed your dragon! (Grades 2-6) |
| Biblio-Mania: Create your own book! As author, illustrator and publisher, transform your brilliant ideas and wild imagination into stories and pictures. (Grades 2-3) |
| Trial By Jury: Goldilocks and Big Bad Wolf are arrested for breaking and entering? Stage your own courtroom dramas. Bring justice to fairyland! (Grades 4-6) |
| International Art: Create, emulate, sculpt, paint, craft and construct as you explore divers artistic media and methods of exotic cultures. (Grades 2-6) |
| Musical Theater: Grades 2-3 will perform When I Grow Up and grades 4-6, You�re a Good Man, Charlie Brown. (Grades 2-6) |
Program Structure / Application / Placement
For all students at Summer Wonders, mornings consist of three 50-minute classes. Projects and activities elicit active, hands-on participation. Kindergarten and first grade students explore themes through literature, art, science, drama, math, and movement. A nutritious snack is served mid-morning. Curricula for students in 2nd through 6th grades encourage the development of problem solving skills and creativity.
Locomotion, the exciting afternoon component of the Full-Day Program, provides hands-on discovery structured around specific themes. A creative blend of activities allows play, impels the integration of motor and thinking skills, minimizes competition, and supports and maintains the educational philosophy of The Center for Gifted. Full-Day students bring sack lunches, which are refrigerated. After lunch, students enjoy outdoor play and a quiet story time. Then, in groups with their age peers, 2nd - 6th graders rotate to different classrooms while younger children remain with one faculty group for the afternoon.
Apply early! Download and complete the application and mail it in with the required deposit of $150 per two-week program. Please use regular first class mail only as students are placed according to the postmark dates of their applications rather than the date they are received. Applications received without deposit(s) will not be processed. Applications are not accepted by phone, fax, email, or online. New students may submit teacher recommendations separately.
Parents are notified of their children�s enrollment status within two weeks of application, or, for new students, following review of their teacher recommendations. Enrollment packets with class schedules, parent seminar information, maps, etc are mailed a week or two before each session begins.
Tuition and Payment
Session I: Morning Program $295; Full-Day Program $455
Session II: Morning Program $270; Full-Day Program $425
Session III: Morning Program $295; Full-Day Program $455
A deposit of $150 per session must accompany the application and will be credited to tuition.
The balance of tuition is due as follows: Session I on June 6; Session II on June 20; Session III on July 3.
Please make checks or money orders payable to: Summer Wonders
Extended Care
Organized, nurturing supervision by quality staff is offered from 7:00am to 9am to all students and from 3:00pm to 6:00pm for students in the Full-Day Program. Charges for extended care are payable daily, as incurred.
Refunds / Withdrawls
If a student withdraws before a program begins, a $50 processing fee is retained. The remainder of tuition paid will be refunded upon written request. No credits or refunds will be issued once a program begins, or for absences for any reason. The Center for Gifted does not offer sibling discounts.