Fall Festivals

It was great to see so many parents join us today during our Fall Festival. Each class celebrated the season with autumn-related crafts and academic centers. All materials and supplies were generously donated by the South Manor PTA. Thank you! A good time was had by all...

In2Books

In2Books is a literary pen pal program between selected second graders and Mrs. McCoy's tenth grade English honors class at ESM High School. Three or four times a year, our students and the high school students are provided with books that are appropriate for second graders. Various genres, such as fiction, non-fiction, biography, and fairytales are included. The students write letters, back and forth, to discuss the literature. The high school students serve as excellent role models! Today, our boys and girls had the opportunity to meet their pen pals when the high school students came for a visit!  Upon conclusion of the program, in May, we will visit the high school for a reading/writing celebration.

Comparing Masses of Objects

Students in Mrs. Castoro/Mrs. Curtin's second grade class worked in the Science Lab today to compare masses of objects. First, they looked at a group of objects and guessed which had the least mass and the most mass. Then, they used a balance scale to compare the masses of two objects at a time and recorded their results. The last task was to put all the objects in a line, from smallest mass to greatest mass and determine if their guesses were correct. Here are some photos of our scientists.

Meet Chloe

Animals make ideal reading companions. Bidawee's "Reading to Dogs" program provides a fun, non-judgemental environment where children can improve their literacy skills. Teachers report that children participating in "Reading to Dogs" demonstrate improved reading skills and improved self-confidence.  Mrs. Austin, our second grade teacher, and Chloe have been certified to be a therapy team. They have undergone reading training through Bidawee. Chloe is a shih tzu and is a hypoallergenic dog, so we do not have any allergy concerns.  Here is a picture of the children in Mrs. Austin's class reading to Chloe, who is sitting on her special quilt!

LEGO Education StoryStarter

Today, we hosted a visit from Fawn Silver, Director of Kidz Under Construction. She introduced our second grade students to the LEGO Education StoryStarter program. StoryStarter is a hands-on tool that inspires students to collaborate while creating original strories or communicating about books. Our students listened to the book, Speckle the Spider, and then recreated the beginning, middle, and end of the story using LEGO bricks. Children worked collaboratively and then wrote about their creations. Each second grade classroom has a StoryStarter kit which will soon be enhanced with the addition of the computer software that accompanies it. The "spider" theme coincides with our Journeys' theme this week and the reading of The Diary of a Spider.

PBIS Activity

Every month, two role model students from each class are chosen to participate in our school-wide PBIS activity.  This month, children decorated pumpkins as a decoratiion for their classoom door. Congratulations to the students who were chosen for their positive behavior!

Fire Safety Day

Today we hosted a visit from the Manorville Fire Department. The brave and dedicated firefighters in our community taught our students about the importance of having an escape plan and knowing two ways out!  The children watched a video, enjoyed a puppet show, and met Sparky, the fire safety dog. The boys and girls saw live demonstrations and even had the opportunity to shoot water from the fire hose! Each child is coming home with a t-shirt and cup, compliments of the Manorville Fire Department. Thank you for a great day! Be safe!

Read for the Record

Read for the Record is a national event, sponsored by We Give Books and the Pearson Foundation. It promotes early literacy and encourages people all over the country to read the same book on the same day. South Street School participated again this year by reading the selected picture book, Otis, by Loren Long. Otis is a story about friendship between a little red tractor and a calf. Eighty children and their families listened to the story on the evening of October 3, 2013. Each family had an opportunity to meet Otis the tractor, thanks to the Long Island Livestock Company. Children also has fun making farm-related crafts. We love bringing literature to life at South Street.

Pinwheeels for Peace

To celebrate the International Day of Peace on September 23, students at South Street School took part in an international art and literacy project known as “Pinwheels for Peace”.

The students created colorful pinwheels featuring words and images about world peace. The pinwheels were assembled in the classroom and then “planted” on the athletic field in the shape of a peace sign.

Pinwheels for Peace is an art installation project started by two art teachers in Florida in 2005 as a way for students to express their feelings about what’s going on in the world and in their lives. In 2012, more than 4 million pinwheels were spinning in over 3,500 locations, including the United States, Europe, Asia, Australia, Canada, the Middle East, Africa and South America. This is the sixth year that South Street School has participated in the program.

We would like to thank the Manorville Volunteer Fire Department for providing their aerial ladder to help capture photographs during this event.

Welcome to my blog!

I've created this blog to keep our South Street School families up-to-date with the latest and greatest events and news! I am so proud of our K-2 students and would like to share their educational journey with you this year.