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German IV and V students from Sallie Culloton’s classes at High School West enjoyed a trip to see German masterpieces at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in December. They also visited a traditional German holiday market at Columbus Circle for lunch and shopping.
Ms. Gabriel’s second graders are learning about color and texture in our PLTW lesson - Properties of Matter. Look at their creative work, great job!
To ring in 2019, students at Mt. Pleasant Elementary School held a New Year’s celebration on Jan 4. Sponsored by the school’s Parent-Teacher Association, the students rang in the new year during their lunch periods. Dressed in their best attire, the festivities included a countdown video of the Times Square ball drop along with plenty of snacks and photos.
Ms. Brunet's first grade class at Mt. Pleasant Elementary School is warming up for winter by using descriptive writing. They spent the morning getting creative and sharing their favorite winter activity.
Mrs. Williams first-graders at Mt. Pleasant Elementary School are learning about desert habitats to prepare for their Project Lead the Way project on animal adaptations.
First-graders at Dogwood Elementary School got creative, and maybe a little bit messy, when they built their own log cabins on Dec. 14. Joined by invited adult guests, the young architects used pretzel logs, icing, gingerbread and other edible treats to come up with a one-of-a kind creation that they could enjoy at home.
St. James Elementary held its 10th annual “Nutcracker” performance on Dec. 20. Performed by the first and second graders, under direction of Mrs. Braunreuther, the students showed off their weeks of hard work to friends and family.
Led by the Accompsett TECHKNOW Kids Club, Accompsett Elementary School participated in the Hour of Code from Dec. 3-9. During Computer Science Education Week, all students spent one hour learning the basics of computer programming through both unplugged and plugged activities. Every class had the opportunity to visit the computer lab to crack the code with help from the fifth-grade TECHKNOW Kids Club.
Mr. Jackowski's fourth grade class wrote about their holiday traditions. They shared special moments about what they felt was important to them and their families.
Representatives from Amazon visited Mills Pond Elementary School on Dec. 10 to host an Hour of Code event. The students created their own apps or games and received an Hour of Code certificate to bring home. With interactive, hands-on activities, students learned computational thinking skills in an approachable way.
Students in Mrs. Waitz’s fifth-grade class at Mt. Pleasant Elementary School got creative using their five senses to incorporate figurative language, such as metaphors, into a winter writing piece.
Socks for Service drive raised over 150 pairs of socks to be distributed with thank you cards to the local Police Dept, Northport VA Hospital and an active Air Force Base on Long Island.
Ms. Gabriel’s second grade class enjoyed learning about the differences between rural, suburban and urban communities.
Third grade students worked hard researching and writing about something special from their families past. Today, they put their reports on display and were excited to share them with their relatives.
For its November meeting, the Board of Education opted for a change of scenery and held its meeting at Tackan Elementary School on Nov. 27. The board had the opportunity to tour the building, and Tackan students had the chance to present some of their classroom happenings and highlights to members of the board, administration and community members.
Mrs. Chester’s second grade class did an amazing job writing their sequencing Holiday Traditions stories.
Prior to the Thanksgiving break, students in Susan Picini’s class at Smithtown Elementary School engaged in STEM-based activities, working in groups to design, build and test Mayflower ships. The students created a blueprint, listed materials and built their ships. They tested to see if the ship was able to float and how many “pilgrims” their ship could hold without capsizing. They problem-solved to redesign and alter their ships if needed. The students used words such as buoyancy, capsize, vessel, and weight to describe their process. Finally, the groups reflected on their designs through discussion and writing.
The district’s School of Business in the Career and Technical Education department, along with the Smithtown Industry Advisory Board, sponsored the 24th annual Business Olympics on Nov. 15 at High School West. Sixty teams of more than 250 students from High School East and West competed in the challenge that focused on developing a successful mobile business. This year’s theme – What’s in the Box – challenged teams to create a subscription box to sell to prospective buyers. They had to create a promotional and marketing campaign for their box as well as a sample of their subscription box. Smithtown Industry Advisory Board members, district administrators and employees, local companies and organizations participated in the event and judged the students on their overall presentation. All student teams were required to have a Google Slide Presentation, a commercial for their business, promotional materials and a marketing plan for their subscription box. This year’s winning team was Team Default with members Andrew Camilleri, Kyle Flood, Stephen Godas, Nick Baiata and Jonathan Pofcher, all students at High School West.
First-graders at Mills Pond Elementary School made pumpkin pie to celebrate Thanksgiving on Nov. 20. The students learned how to measure and mix ingredients to create this holiday dessert. They worked together taking turns and sharing the things that make them thankful.
The “Let’s Go Yankees” cheers could be heard even outside the building as Mt. Pleasant Elementary School welcomed New York Yankees manager Aaron Boone on Nov. 27. Boone visited the school as a guest judge as part of the Hess Corporation’s STEM Curriculum Guide along with Hess general manager Justin Mayer. Fifth-grade students in Jeff Faragasso’s class, who have been working with the Hess STEM program for a few years, were challenged to design their own obstacle courses as part of the program. Using Hess’ 2018 RV with ATV and motorcycle (which comes equipped with the STEM guide) – and being as creative with their designs as they wanted – the students showed off the obstacle courses and tested velocity, speed and kinetic energy by racing the vehicles down the ramps in the gymnasium. Boone selected the team with the most creative design and the most challenging design and served as the timekeeper as the students raced all the cars down the most challenging course. “Seeing the creativity, teamwork, intelligence and the time they have put into these courses has been really fun,” Boone said. The Hess STEM program combines the elements of science, technology, math and engineering into hands-on classroom activities. Hess STEM engages grade school students in practical experiences that demonstrate how concepts apply in the real world. Hess’ general manager worked with the students on the activities within the 2018 curriculum guide that explore practical transportation issues, such as fuel efficiency, potential and kinetic energy for producing motion, and motorsports.
To support the district’s social-emotional initiatives in the classrooms, kindergarten students at Mills Pond Elementary School recently created a kindness quilt. The students read “The Kindness Quilt” by Nancy Elizabeth Wallace and discussed its message. Each kindergartner then created a square to add to the quilt.
Starting with a musical performance that took the audience on a trip around the world, third-grade students at St. James Elementary School celebrated Heritage Day on Nov. 16. As part of their Heritage Day project, students had to locate an historical document that was linked to their family history in some way. Each student then traced their family heritage back to that document to show their lineage. Students designed their own posters featuring their family history as well as family crests. Invited guests joined the third-graders in the multipurpose room to show off their projects and go on a “scavenger hunt” to find clues about their ancestry. Back in the classrooms, the celebration continued as students and guests sampled different ethnic food prepared by each family.
Students in Tim Murphy’s Project Lead the Way science of technology class at Nesaquake Middle School were recently tasked with designing their own roller coasters. Students performed test runs for their roller coaster experiment while following certain criteria and constraints. They designed their tracks to collect data pertaining to potential and kinetic energy of their roller coaster at given points throughout track.
As a way to say thank you for their service, members of the National Junior Honor Society from Accompsett Middle School welcomed local veterans for an afternoon of snacks and games on Nov. 7. Students used the opportunity to connect with the veterans, some of whom were family members and friends. They spent the afternoon enjoying each other’s company, playing games and sharing stories.
On Oct. 24, Dogwood Elementary School joined together for Unity Day assembly and peace walk. Students and staff dressed in orange to send a unified message against bullying. Each grade shared their pledge to prevent bullying and spread kindness. The entire school community participated in a peace walk outside and worked collaboratively to spell out “peace” in formation.
First-graders at Mills Pond Elementary School recently learned about the importance of Election Day when the school held its annual election of the forest. Students met their three candidates – Bartholomew Bear, Fitzgerald Fox and Betsy Beaver. They learned all about the importance of having a voice and what it means to be able to participate in the voting process.
The SEL Faculty Council is focusing on helping all children feel connected socially. This "PSA" was created by 5th grade students who seek to help younger children understand how to reach out to one another, so that everyone has someone to play with during recess.
Click here to view the PSA