DuPage Children’s Museum exhibit receives innovation award
The Illinois Association of Museums has presented the DuPage Children’s Museum in Naperville with an Innovation Award for its Wonder Room, museum officials announced.
The sensory-friendly Wonder Room offers a calming place in the museum and offers an experience that incorporates tactile panels linked to sensors, projects life-size nature images on the room’s curved wall and offers tranquil music and dimmed lighting, a museum news release said.
Children can work together to create their own landscapes and guests with low or no vision can feel and hear the art because of the sound and tactile aspects. It also helps museum guests to slow down for a while and regroup, the release said.
This is the first year the association has presented an innovation award.
District 203 board OKs new course curriculum for high schools
The Naperville District 203 School Board this week approved new high school courses and eliminated some that were not popular or had overlapping content.
A new course, American Sign Language 3, will be implemented in the 2024-25 school year and American Sign Language 4 will be ready for the following year. The upper level classes build on communication skills and focus on higher-level vocabulary and grammar.
Introduction to Engineering will be part of the Project Lead the Way curriculum ready for the 2025-26 school year. Students will be introduced to the engineering design process and apply math, science and engineering skills to design solutions to real problems. The class could spur more engineering classes in future years.
The board also approved eliminating a dozen courses starting in the 2025-26 school year. Among them are web page design, drafting and music appreciation.
A social studies class, Voices: Studies in Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, has content available in other history courses and honors biology will be eliminated because students can take the Advanced Placement biology class with a chance to earn college credit, district officials said.
DuPage County to offer May 4 workshop on pet CPR and first aid
DuPage County Animal Services is offering a public workshop that will teach pet CPR and first aid skills.
The course will be held from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, May 4, at the DuPage County government campus, 421 N. County Farm Road, Wheaton.
Registration is $100 per participant and spots are available on a first-come, first-served basis.
The course teaches first aid techniques for common emergencies pet owners may experience. Owners can also learn how to detect abnormalities and learn about early warning signs in pets.
Register through the Animal Services section at www.dupagecounty.gov.
Naperville church to hold daylong blood drive on May 5
The World Mission Society Church of God is hosting a blood drive from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday, May 5, at its 2920 79th St. building, a tradition since 2011 that’s collected more than 1,000 units over the last 13 years, officials said in a news release.
This year’s blood live theme is “Saving Lives with Love,” selected to recognize the spirit of Passover and extending the gift of life through blood donations, the release said.
The church has partnered with Versiti Blood Center of Illinois on the event. To schedule an appointment, go to donate.illinois.versiti.org/donor/schedules/drive_schedule/5609535.
