Excellence in Youth

INTEREST & TALENT DEVELOPMENT FOR ALL LEARNERS!

The Excellence in Youth (EY) Program at Westside Community Schools provides expanded learning opportunities for students with high ability, in addition to fostering and encouraging talent development in all students.

Welcome to the EY Website!

Students -
This is your place to explore new ideas, try fun challenges, and discover what you’re passionate about! You’ll find lots of activities, projects, and opportunities to learn and create. Dive in, be curious, and see where your interests can take you!

Parents & Teachers -

There is lots of great information for you too! Check it out!

EY Website

All About Digital Badges

Our digital badges are learning opportunities that celebrate specific skills and accomplishments a student achieves. By focusing on personalized learning, badges empower students to chart educational journeys built around their unique strengths and personal passions. When students pursue learning tied directly to what excites them, engagement naturally skyrockets. Our digital badging system allow learners to dive deep into niche interests—whether that is computer programming, creative writing, or graphic design—while leveraging their natural aptitudes to master complex concepts at their own pace and in any space!

The EY badges are available to all students and accessible through our EY website.

EY Badges

Digital Dozen Winners!

The Excellence In Youth Team is thrilled to shine a spotlight on our star student, Yash P., from Swanson, the FIRST recipient of the Digital Dozen Award for the 2026-2027 school year! This award is earned by WCS students who complete 12 digital badge projects from the EY Website (ey.westside66.org), which is accessible to students across the district. It takes hard work, grit, and dedication to earn these badges, and this bright star should be proud of this shining accomplishment! Congratulations to Yash P.!

Yash P.

Swanson

The Excellence In Youth Team is thrilled to shine a spotlight on our star students, Varun S. from Swanson, Anja K., Sully S. and Claire T. from Sunset, and Dillon H. from Rockbrook as the latest recipient of the Digital Dozen Award for the 2026-2027 school year! This award is earned by WCS students who complete 12 digital badge projects from the EY Website (ey.westside66.org), which is accessible to students across the district. It takes hard work, grit, and dedication to earn these badges, and this bright star should be proud of this shining accomplishment! Congratulations to Varun S.!

Varun S.

Swanson

Anya K.

Sunset

Sully S.

Sunset

Dillon H.

Rockbrook

Claire T.

Sunset

Wow!

Westside students have completed over 650 learning badges so far this school year. That is amazing!

EY Students - Which badge should we create next?

Voting available from October 30th until November 30th

Votes are anonymous but results are public

Voting available from

October 30th until November 30th

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SIGMA Math Contest

During the month of October, Sixth grade EY students participated in math contest called SIGMA. SIGMA is a mathematics league that promotes problem-solving through competition. SIGMA provides opportunities for students to apply their mathematical knowledge in a fun and engaging format.

HIllside

Bradley L.

Robert M.

Elliott S.

Noah W.

Loveland

Joe J.

Theo H.

Peter M.

Peter R.

Oakdale

Damian E.

Khalil I.

Jude W-S.

Vincent B.

George B.

Maxwell I.

Luke L.

Paddock Road

Jaxson E.

Atticus P.

Emmett L.

Warner H.

Prairie Lane

Evelyn A.

Olivia S.

Cassy R.

Levi C.

Rockbrook

Matthew L.

Remi S.

Dillon H.

Ellis C.

Matthew S.

Sunset Hills

Margaret H.

Vinny K.

Owen O.

Henry P.

Swanson

Ananya I.

Johan P.

Varun S.

Westbrook

Tony H.

Caleb C.

Elle N.

Jonas J.

Westgate

Jasper G.

Edith K.

Anthony N.

Other Events & Contests

November

Geography Bee School Finals

November 2nd-6th

Spelling Bee School Finals

November 30th-December 3rd

December

District Spelling Bee

Friday, December 18th

Middle School

Click on the WMS Enrichment tab to view the variety of enrichment opportunities your Westside Middle School students can explore! There are Math & Science Weekly Challenges, Writing Contests, and more!

WMS Enrichment

Go check out the WMS Enrichment site!

Students can earn candy for answering the Weekly Math Challenge and/or the Science Question of the Week!
We have a running Current Events Competition on the Social Studies Enrichment page - encourage your student to get involved by taking the Weekly Current Events Challenge and emailing me a screenshot of their score! Prizes awarded each month!
There are writing contests available on the Language Arts Enrichment page!
Quiz Bowl and Classics Book Club are up and running! Send Mrs. Sindt an email at sindt.kathleen@westside66.net if you want to join!

Parents - please remind your WMS students to check their emails. Emails are the best way for me to communicate enrichment opportunities!

Science Olympiad Event

On October 15th, 12 WMS students braved the rain to travel to Gifford Farm to compete in their Science Olympiad against teams from other schools! Below are the events in which students took part, as well as our team's placements!

Science Jeopardy

1st place: Aliza B. & Ava B.

2nd place: Celia G. & Natalie S.

3rd place: Gus S. & Chris S.

Build a Catapult

3rd place: Gus S. & Chris S.

Buoyancy

1st place: Arju A. & Joe B.

3rd place: Ryan T. & Ojus S.

Straw Towers

1st place: Ava B. & Aliza B.

2nd place: Gus S. & Chris S.