A joyful place to learn, create, and excel

“I love dogs, and I believe that life is better with a dog in the room,” says Middle School History Teacher Becca Hunsicker. Earlier this month, that room was the “CBS Mornings” television studio! @cbsmornings

But first, a bit of (barking) background: Ms. Hunsicker has been raising guide dogs since she was a middle school student herself and involved in her local 4-H club. “I really enjoyed being a part of a group of kids who all had a shared love of puppies and a shared purpose,” she says.

“It`s the perfect service project. People often ask how I can give the puppy back after caring for and loving them for over a year. While it`s always a bittersweet moment, I say goodbye with immense pride in my now-grown dog and know that he or she is going to be a valuable partner for a visually impaired person.”

Ms. Hunsicker and a friend are currently raising a puppy named Gayle. “Gayle is named after Gayle King, one of the hosts of ‘CBS Mornings,’” she explains. “When our Gayle was a baby, she was on the show. Now that Gayle is a year old, she and two of her siblings, Nate and Tony, also named after the show’s hosts, were invited back for an update.” And this time, Ms. Hunsicker was with her!

“The experience was exciting and a little nerve wracking!” she says. “It was fun to see behind the scenes of live TV, and I saw that it involves a whole army of people who work efficiently to make the experience seamless for the viewer.”

Closer to campus, Wheeler middle schoolers also get the chance to learn about Ms. Hunsicker’s work with guide dogs – and it’s always a hands-on lesson!

“As a 7th-grade teacher, I participate in AGILE, where students choose from a variety of mini-courses for a three-day period. For the past few years, I`ve taught a class called ‘Service Dogs’ which explores the history of service dogs, the role of raiser families, characteristics required for service dogs, and training protocols. The highlight is always when students get to meet a Guiding Eyes puppy, see the puppy`s emerging skills, and give the puppy lots of hugs!”

Thanks to Ms. Hunsicker and Gayle for sharing their story. You can watch their @cbsmornings segment at the 🔗 in our bio.

If you’ve been inside Madden Gym on our Providence campus lately, you’ve likely noticed the new @WheelerWarriors Award display in the lobby, or the mural by alumna Elaine Phuong ’26 and the bold “One Wheeler” tribute that are displayed above. These additions are part of a series of updates celebrating our student-athletes and our Wheeler Purple and Gold pride, in partnership with the Facilities and Athletics teams.💜🎉💛

Other wonderful additions include photo collages of our warriors in action and Field Day moments on the wall leading to the Athletics Department, as well as a hard-to-miss, larger-than-life graphic on the gym’s exterior window façade. It was designed by our very own digital communications specialist, Chelsea Arceo!

Other updates are (much) less visible but just as impactful, including new HVAC systems in the Dance Studio and weight room, that will bring welcome relief to those spaces during the warmer months.

“These improvements are important because they allow us to better showcase our incredible athletic history and the success of our student-athletes,” says Director of Athletics Sean Kelly ’02, P’35, P’37. “Our students are exceptionally talented in so many areas, especially academics and the arts, that our rich sports tradition can sometimes get lost. The improvements help us tell that story, celebrate the accomplishments of those who came before, and proudly share it with current and prospective families. Most importantly, they reinforce that athletics is an important part of who we are and the overall student experience here at Wheeler.”

It started simply: on one of their first nature walks of the year, Pre-K’s Peaceful Pines began collecting hickory nuts and acorns along the way 🌰. Their excitement and curiosity about their finds quickly grew into a month-long exploration filled with investigation, discovery, and learning.

First, they looked closely at the hickory nuts and acorns, comparing and contrasting them and documenting their observations with a Venn diagram. From there, students cracked them open to investigate what was inside, created detailed observational drawings, and made predictions before testing whether they would sink or float.

The learning continued as students explored the question 🔍, “How many hickory nuts are in this jar?” In attemping to answer it, they practiced estimation, rote counting, one-to-one correspondence, and numeral recognition. As their collection grew, they returned to another question: “How many are there now?” They also used the nuts, acorns, and other natural materials to build sets along a number line, matching quantities to their corresponding numerals.

“What began with a few treasures discovered on the trail naturally wove its way through science, math, and art, and continued to evolve as the children discovered more and asked new questions,” shared Nest Teacher Meaghan Daniels. “This is what we love about emergent learning in early childhood: children’s curiosity provides the spark, and intentional teaching helps us discover just how far that curiosity can take us.” 💡🌲