Spotlight. Spotlight

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1 P O R T C H E S T E R - R Y E U N I O N F R E E S C H O O L D I S T R I C T Spotlight PORT CHESTER-RYE UNION FREE SCHOOL DISTRICT Success for Every Student Back to School September 2009 High School Teacher Wins Fulbright Will Teach in Hungary Port Chester High School teacher Joyce Mannel has been awarded a Fulbright Teacher Exchange grant to teach in Nyíregyháza, Hungary, this coming school year. She is one of only 60 U.S. citizens who will travel abroad through the Fulbright Classroom Teacher Exchange Program in the academic year. Ms. Mannel, who teaches English as a Second Language, will exchange teaching assignments with Hungarian teacher Laszlo Vasenszki. She left for Hungary in mid-august and has brought her 10-year-old daughter, who will share this experience. Mr. Vasenszki, who arrived in Port Chester at about the same time that Ms. Mannel was leaving, will live with Ms. Mannel s mother for the duration of his stay, and will assume Ms. Mannel s ESL teaching assignments at Port Chester High School. He teaches English to his students back in Nyíregyháza. The Fulbright award recipients are selected on the basis of academic or professional achievement, as well as demonstrated leadership potential in their fields. The program is sponsored by the United States Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs and is our country s flagship international educational exchange program. It operates in 155 countries worldwide. JOYCE MANNEL WILL TEACH IN HUNGARY THIS YEAR. Summer Programs Smooth Transition to Middle/High School Last summer, an enrichment program to help students transition into their new schools was piloted for rising 6 th and 9 th grade students. That program, funded under a 21 st Century Community Learning Center grant, was continued and expanded this year. MIDDLE SCHOOL JUMP START TO 6 TH GRADE All incoming 6 th grade students were offered the opportunity to take part in this summer s Middle School Jump Start Program and 51 students chose to participate. For Continued on page 4 Non-Profit Org U.S. Postage Paid Permit No White Plains, NY POSTAL CUSTOMER ECRWSS Back to School Issue PICTURED ABOVE LEFT INCOMING 6TH GRADE STUDENTS EMANUEL DIAZ, YADIRA JIMINEZ, SAMANTHA FRANCO AND KATIA LOPEZ READ FOR CONTENT, MEANING AND GRAMMAR IN THEIR JUMP START LANGUAGE ARTS CLASS THIS SUMMER. Spotlight PORT CHESTER-RYE UNION FREE SCHOOL DISTRICT

2 Spotlight MESSAGE FROM DR. DONALD K. CARLISLE, SUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLS P ort Chester, like most school districts, is joining the Internet revolution not only in our classrooms, but as a cost-effective and efficient way of sharing news and information with students, parents and interested residents. Over the past year, we have completely revamped our district web site: On it, you can find current district-wide news, including information for alumni, events including sports schedules, concerts and fundraisers, NY State School Report Card data, bus transportation forms and elementary school zone listings. You can keep up with Board of Education meetings, budget discussions and policies. Copies of our Spotlight issues can be found there. From it, you can any of our administrators, teachers and Board of Education trustees. The electronic calendar found on the site is continuously updated and is far more accurate than our paper calendar, which is prepared and printed in August. In short, the district site is a one-stop resource for two-way communications between the school district and residents. I encourage you to take advantage of this helpful tool. Similar updates have occurred with both the high school and middle school sites and this coming year, we will begin to reorganize and redesign the elementary school sites. Each school is organizing information in ways that best suit the needs of its teachers, students and parents. For example, students in grades 6-8 can now easily find a homework calendar and their teachers web pages, indexed by Team, on the Middle School site. Each school site contains its own calendar which includes district-wide events. Anything we can do to reduce the costs of printing, photocopying and paper allows us to put more resources into the classroom. Please take time to explore the district and school sites. If you have other information you would like to see on-line, please contact me or your child s principal and let us know. MESSAGE FROM BOARD OF EDUCATION PRESIDENT ANNE CAPECI The Board of Education has always encouraged the pursuit of grant monies to both supplement the district budget and to pay for programs that our community could not otherwise afford. A good example is the New York State EXCEL Grant voters approved two years ago. Our district received $2.9 million in free money for construction and maintenance of our building infrastructure. Last summer, we used this grant to re-point the high school masonry, replace the roof at Edison Elementary School and install wireless Internet at the high school. This summer, we used the EXCEL funds to restore and modernize the high school auditorium. Probably the most visible portion of this work is on the auditorium s beautiful arched windows. For over 30 years, these windows have been bricked up. Now we are removing the bricks and installing energyefficient windows. When this renovation is complete in late fall, the light from those windows will illuminate new auditorium seats, a new floor, a new stage floor and new lighting. We are fortunate in our district to have auditoriums in all of our schools. This allows us to offer a strong performing arts program. Studies have shown that arts programs improve student literacy and critical thinking skills. The Board s support of the arts is just one more way to achieve Success for Every Student. As we begin another school year, we look forward to many wonderful concerts, plays and art exhibits and hope you will join us in celebrating our students many accomplishments. Page 2

3 Success for Every Student What s New in the Classrooms for Over the past two years, Port Chester has introduced a number of new initiatives aimed at improving teaching and learning. In the school year, teachers will focus on becoming more expert in those approaches. Literacy Literacy remains a core focus in all of Port Chester s schools, from Kindergarten through senior year of high school. Literacy training begins in the elementary grades using LitLife, a comprehensive method of teaching reading, writing and critical thinking skills. Using the LitLife methodology, the elementary faculty has devoted two years to creating a K-5 Language Arts curriculum map. This map ensures that, for the first time in a long time, all four elementary schools will be teaching the same curriculum to their students and that student outcomes can be shared district-wide, says Jessica O Donovan, Director of Curriculum, Instruction and ELL Programs. While each school will maintain its unique personality, the curriculum maps will offer parents the comfort of a guaranteed curriculum for all. Students must be surrounded by an array of books and other texts in order to achieve comprehensive literacy. For this reason, the district is always looking to expand K-5 classroom libraries. A few years ago, more than 18,000 new books were purchased for in-classroom libraries. This year, the focus will be on continuing to obtain high-interest fiction and non-fiction books to support reading across all content areas. We want to engage students thinking skills through reading and that means having different kinds of books on many different subjects so that all children can find books of interest at their level, says Mrs. O Donovan. School libraries will continue to be an important resource in each school. Last year, a library consultant hired by the district presented recommendations to the Board of Education on how to best serve students. Those recommendations are being considered as the district seeks to continue to improve all of its libraries. Because of the importance of early literacy, the district will be adding a new assessment tool called DIBELS (Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills) with K-2 students. As required under the federal Response to Intervention mandate, all K-2 students will be screened with this assessment three times per year. Having this information will help teachers to identify students who may be struggling in reading and to provide early extra help where they need it. STUDENTS WORK ON-LINE USING A SMART BOARD INTERACTIVE WHITE BOARD Social Studies This year, students in grades 1-5 will continue to be exposed to an online social studies curriculum that is Smart Board integrated. The material is refreshed and updated on an ongoing basis so it remains current. The curriculum integrates social studies with literacy instruction and is designed to promote high-order thinking skills and collaborative learning. Smart Boards are changing classroom teaching. These electronic touch-sensitive, interactive whiteboards open the classroom to the world at-large and make learning come alive. Smart Boards combine the features of a tablet computer and a whiteboard, providing for dynamic, visually-exciting learning. They are linked with the teacher s classroom computer and act as a large projection screen at the front of the room. Science Earth Science will once again be offered as an accelerated 8 th grade course to students who are nominated by their 7 th grade science teachers. Last year was the first year this class was offered and 98% of the students passed the Regents exam. Page 3

4 Spotlight DISTRICT-WIDE SUMMER PROGRAMS SUMMER PROGRAMS SMOOTH TRANSITION TO MIDDLE/HIGH SCHOOL Continued from first page five weeks, four mornings a week, these students got a head start on 6 th grade Science, Math and Language Arts, practiced switching rooms and teachers for each subject, and enjoyed afternoon enrichment, including fitness classes lead by local Girl Scouts, a Boys & Girls Club program on peer pressure, and activities including bowling, trips to the PepsiCo garden, and a visit to the USS Intrepid Museum. In Science, Mr. Tiederman led students in a study of ecology. In Math, Mr. Fazio introduced 6 th grade concepts including bilateral and radial symmetry. In ELA, Mr. Gryzlo and Mr. Fanelli focused on reading for content. Art teacher Mrs. Garcia combined the Science, Math and Language Arts lessons into interesting art projects. Students recycled materials into art that demonstrated symmetry and used words cut from newspapers to create a recycling story. They also used recycled materials to make beads and jewelry. HIGH SCHOOL JUMP START TO 9 TH GRADE This year, we wanted to do something different to motivate students by having them engage in project-based learning, said Dr. Mitchell Combs, Port Chester High School Principal. Our teachers asked participating students to answer the question: Should a developing country degrade its environment to improve the quality of life for its people? Mr. Kazim s Social Studies class studied China, Brazil and India. Students were divided into teams by country. They studied their country s economy, history and geography and created threedimensional maps of the environmental impact of their government s economic decisions. Ms. DellaVecchia s Living Environment Class completed four required 9 th grade labs and studied how organisms adapt to live. Again the focus was on China, Brazil and India. Students also created a solar oven and made s mores one morning outside the high school building. And in Language Arts, Ms. Pasqualini guided the students toward writing a persuasive essay taking a position on the environment vs economic development question they were asked to consider. At a final presentation to parents and guests on July 30 th, students defended their conclusions, presented Public Service Announcement videos, and displayed their work. (ABOVE) INCOMING 6TH GRADE STUDENTS GOT USED TO CHANGING CLASSROOMS FOR EACH SUBJECT, PART OF THEIR TRANSITION FROM ELEMENTARY TO MIDDLE SCHOOL. (ABOVE RIGHT) STUDENTS APPLIED WHAT THEY LEARNED TO ART PROJECTS, SUCH AS USING RECYCLED MATERIALS TO CREATE JEWELRY AND BEADS. (RIGHT) MR. TIEDERMAN S 6TH GRADE SCIENCE CLASS STUDIED ECOLOGY. Page 4

5 PREPARE STUDENTS FOR SUCCESS Success for Every Student (RIGHT) INCOMING HIGH SCHOOL FRESHMEN WORKED ON PRESENTATION BOARDS FOR THEIR JULY 30TH ORAL REPORTS ANALYZING ENVIRONMENTAL VS ECONOMIC ISSUES IN BRAZIL, CHINA AND INDIA. (BELOW) PART OF THEIR ASSIGNMENT WAS TO CREATE A 3-DIMENSIONAL MAP OF THEIR TEAM S COUNTRY OF STUDY. NEWCOMERS SUMMER ACADEMY FOR 1 ST AND 2 ND GRADE ENGLISH LEARNERS Approximately 80 students from all four elementary schools attended a five-week summer enrichment program held at the JFK Magnet School. The theme of this year s Summer ELL Academy was Under the Sea, which provided an integrated program combining literacy, math and science with extra English language support. Activities included a visit to Rye Beach and visits by experts from the Norwalk Maritime Aquarium and the Hudson River Museum. KATHY BURNS (RIGHT) FROM THE MARITIME AQUARIUM BROUGHT A TRAVELING TOUCH TANK TO THE JFK GYMNASIUM, WHERE STUDENTS HAD THE CHANCE TO LEARN ABOUT CRABS, MUSSELS, CLAMS AND OTHER LONG ISLAND SOUND CREATURES. (ABOVE) MS. BURNS SHOWED THE STUDENTS A HORSESHOE CRAB AND EXPLAINED ITS ANATOMY. THE CHILDREN HAD A WONDERFUL TIME TOUCHING THE CRAB AND THE OTHER MARINE LIFE. Page 5

6 Spotlight Puntos Sustantivos de lo Resaltado Mensaje del Dr. Donald K. Carlisle De Port Chester como casi todos los distritos escolares están disfrutando de la revolución del Internet no solamente en nuestros salones de clase, pero como un efectivo costo y una vía eficiente de compartir noticias e información con los estudiantes, padres y residentes interesados. En el transcurso del año pasado, nosotros hemos cambiado completamente la dirección electrónica de nuestro distrito: En esta, usted puede encontrar las noticias más amplias y recientes del distrito y cualquier otra información. Desde esta página usted puede escribirle a cualquiera de nuestros administradores, profesores y a la junta de fideicomisario. El calendario electrónico que aparece en la página esta continuamente siendo actualizado y es mucho más preciso que nuestro calendario la cual se prepara y se imprime en Agosto. También actualizaciones similares han comenzado a ocurrir en el sitio de la página electrónica de la escuela secundaria y de la escuela media de Port Chester. Para este nuevo año escolar que se acerca, nosotros comenzaremos a actualizar la página electrónica de la escuela elemental. Cada escuela esta organizando la información en diferentes vías donde mejor pueda suplir la necesidades de los profesores, estudiantes y padres. Por ejemplo, los estudiantes de los grados 6-8 ahora pueden fácilmente encontrar un calendario de tareas, las páginas electrónicas de sus profesores, el índice por un equipo sobre la página electrónica de la escuela media. Cada página o sitio electrónico de cada escuela contiene su propio calendario la cual incluye los diferentes y amplios eventos del distrito. Yo lo invito a usted para que tome ventaja de este servicio y así mismo haga uso de esta herramienta la cual es de muchísima ayuda. Noticias en los salones de clases en el año La Literatura es importante en todos los grados. En la escuela elemental nosotros estamos usando LitLife, la cual es un método compresivo para enseñar a leer, a escribir y a trabajar en las habilidades decisivas para pensar. Como parte de nuestro empuje a la literatura, nosotros expandiremos este programa a las librerías de los salones de clase de los grados K-5, entonces de esta manera las librerías de nuestra escuela continuaran siendo un importante recurso en todas las escuelas del distrito. La materia de Estudios Sociales para los grados 1-5 estarán usando un currículo de estudios vía electrónica, la cual es un tablero integrado inteligente Smart Board integrated. La materia de Ciencias Naturales una vez más será ofrecida como un curso acelerado del grados 8, para aquellos estudiantes quienes están en el grado 7 pero que han sido nominados y elegidos por sus profesores de Ciencias. El año pasado fue el primer año cuando se ofreció este curso y un 98% de los estudiantes paso el examen regente del estado. Academia de verano para los nuevos estudiantes del 1 y 2 grado quienes están aprendiendo ingles Aproximadamente 80 estudiantes de todas nuestra cuatro escuelas elementarías asistieron a un programa de enriquecimiento que se llevo a cado por 5 semanas del verano en la escuela de JFK Magnet. El equipo este año fue Under the Sea traducido debajo del mar, la cual proveyó un programa integrado combinando la literatura y la ciencias con un apoyo extra en el lenguaje del ingles. Las actividades incluyeron, salidas cortas a la playa de Rye y visitas por expertos del Acuario Martime de Norwalk y el Museo del Río Hudson. Los estudiantes experimentaron un toque de tanque Touch Tank para aprender como primera mano, acerca de las langostas, mejillones, almejas y otros sonidos de mas creaturas de Long Island. Exitosos programas para una transición suave, continuaron este verano Los programas de enriquecimiento para ayudar a la transición de los estudiantes para sus nuevas escuelas fue continuo y expandido este año. El programa de JUMP START en la escuela media para los grados 6 Todos los estudiantes que pasaran al grado 6 se les ofreció la oportunidad de tomar parte de este programa de verano ofrecido por la escuela media de port chester que ofreció dicho programa Jump Start la cual contó con la participación de 51 estudiantes. Durante el transcurso de cinco semanas y cuatro mañanas a la semana, todos estos estudiantes tomaron un paso en las materias de Ciencias, Matemáticas, y artes de lenguaje; practicando así el cambio de salones, un profesor por cada materia, y disfrutando de una tarde de enriquecimiento. Las lecciones de Ciencias, Matemáticas, y Artes del Lenguaje fueron incorporadas a proyectos muy interesantes de arte. Los estudiantes reciclaron materiales mezclados junto con el Arte la cual demostró simetría y el uso de palabras recortadas de papel periódicos para así crear una historia a punto de material reciclaje. Ellos también usaron material reciclaje para hacer proyectos de joyerías. El programa de JUMP START en la escuela secundaria para los grados 9 Los profesores pidieron la participación de los próximos estudiantes de los grado 9 para explorar gústeles o no un país desarrollado la cual debe usar su ambiente para mejorar la calidad de vida de los habitantes de este. Los estudiantes estudiaron economía, historia y la parte geográfica de China, Brasil y la India. En una presentación final para los padres e invitados el día 30 de Julio, los estudiantes defendieron sus conclusiones, presentando videos de anuncios al servicio publico y proyectaron también imágenes en tercera dimensión de sus países de estudio junto con un ensayo persuasivo que ellos escribieron en la clase de artes del lenguaje. La escuela secundaria se enfoco en el éxito para todos la escuela secundaria de Port Chester se ha venido enfocando en un estimulante promedio para los estudiantes. Los estudiantes de los grado 9 estudian las materias básicas académicas. A los estudiantes de los grados les ofrecen un programa fuerte de cursos electivos y cursos de preparación para la universidad. Parte de este esfuerzo es a través de un equipo teaming en el grado 9. Los equipos de los grupos de estudiantes con un equipo de profesores se formo con el objetivo de tener una transición para más independencia académica. Esta es una práctica común en la escuela media, pero es menos común una vez que el estudiante haya alcanzado ingresar a la escuela secundaria. La ventaje de los equipos es que este les da una estructura a los estudiantes. Un grupo de profesores trabajan con un equipo de estudiantes durante todo el año escolar. Estos profesores se reúnen continuamente para revisar el currículo. Ellos también comparan sus observaciones acerca de los estudiantes de manera individual para poder divisar estrategias comunes y así ayudar inmediatamente a los estudiantes quienes están quedándose atrás. Estos programas han ayudado a incrementar el porcentaje de éxito entre nuestros estudiantes.

7 Success for Every Student High School Focuses on Success for All Freshmen Teaming Gets Students Off to a Good Start With a successful honors program and proven ESL and remedial curriculum, Port Chester High School has been diligently refining its program for its students in the middle. These students are sandwiched between the students who enroll in all honors courses and those whose performance is monitored closely by federal and state testing mandates, says Dr. Mitchell Combs, high school principal. We want to challenge them, and we encourage them to challenge themselves. While freshmen focus on core academic subjects, upperclassmen are offered a strong program of electives and collegepreparatory courses. These include Psychology, Multiculturalism in America, Environmental Studies, College Math, Human Biology, Conceptual Physics, Practical Chemistry, Music Production, Studio in Computer Art, Creative Crafts, Art History, Shakespeare, Creative Writing, Film Structure & Criticism, Television Production, and Drama. The History of New York City and Forensic Science were added in recent years and are very popular. Some of these courses offer the "middle" student rigorous Regents alternatives, and other courses offer options for studying niche areas beyond traditional courses. As in past years, there is a focus on getting freshmen off to a good start. We know that if students are successful in 9 th grade, then they are far more likely to graduate on time, says Dr. Combs. We want to appropriately support their initial transition to the demands of high school until freshmen develop the independence to be successful on their own. A 9 th grade teaming program was introduced in Teaming is a well-supported and common practice in middle schools but is less common once students reach high school. Port Chester freshmen are grouped with a team of teachers and have a dedicated guidance counselor and assistant principal. According to 9 th grade Assistant Principal Kristi Detor, We ve seen that the caring, positive connections that we make with students demonstrate to them that adults at the high school are here to help them succeed. "While it has been rewarding to see the enormous growth in student participation in honors, Advanced Placement and other college level courses, says Dr. Combs, it is also gratifying to see the needs of hundreds of other students met by exciting and motivating alternatives that keep them interested and involved in their education. These programs help us meet our goal of making life-long learners of all of our students." Master Teacher Jorge Santos Takes Assignment at Park Avenue School JORGE SANTOS, PICTURED HERE WITH LAST YEAR S JFK/ELC KINDERGARTEN STUDENTS, WILL SERVE AS COMMUNITY SCHOOLS COORDINATOR AT PARK AVENUE SCHOOL THIS YEAR. THIS IS A NEW POSITION AT THE SCHOOL, WHICH IS ADOPTING THE FULL SERVICE COMMUNITY SCHOOL MODEL. MR. SANTOS WILL ALSO SERVE AS ACADEMIC INTERVENTION SPECIALIST AND WILL SUPPORT THE SCHOOL S DUAL LANGUAGE PROGRAM. HE HAS TAUGHT IN THE PORT CHESTER SCHOOLS FOR THE PAST 15 YEARS. Page 7

8 Spotlight Don t forget to check the District web site for current information PORT CHESTER-RYE UNION FREE SCHOOL DISTRICT TEACHERS TAKE TIME OVER SUMMER TO PERFECT THEIR SKILLS Given the number of new approaches to teaching and learning that have been implemented during the past two years, teachers spent many hours over the summer perfecting their craft. This year will focus on continued implementation and refinement of the LitLife initiative in the elementary schools. LitLife curriculum workshops were held over the summer to continue developing the Language Arts curriculum maps. Other literacy professional development was focused on middle and high school teachers. In July, the district held one Level One Institute and one Level Two Institute in Responsive Classroom techniques. Responsive Classroom emphasizes social, emotional and academic growth using strategies that engage students, improve academic progress and reduce discipline problems. Approximately 50 teachers and teaching assistants sat in 30 hours of intensive training. In total, the district has trained more than 120 elementary staff members in Responsive Classroom techniques during the last two years. These offerings continue to demonstrate the ongoing district commitment to this excellent initiative in whole-child education and classroom management. New Faces in 2009* Port Chester High School Christopher Kazim, who was a teaching assistant at the high school, will be a special education teacher. He received a Masters in Education degree from Long Island University and a BA from Purchase College, SUNY. Joseph DeProssino, special education teacher, joins us from Horace Greeley High School (Chappaqua), where he was a teaching assistant last year. He has his Masters in Education from Mercy College and both a Masters of Business Administration and a BS from Mount St. Mary s University. Laszlo Vasenszki, will teach Joyce Mannel s ESL classes this year. Like Ms. Mannel, Mr. Vasenszki is a Fulbright Exchange Teacher. He arrived in August from Nyiregyhaza, Hungary, where he teaches English. JFK Magnet School Ivelisse Acevedo, classroom teacher, joins the district from the Ossining school district. She holds an MS from Pace University and a BA from Empire State College, SUNY. She will be teaching 2nd grade. Monica Barreto, who was a teaching assistant last year, will teach 1st grade at the JFK/ELC. She has a BA from Providence College and is working on her Masters at Manhattanville College. *New hires as of 8/10/09. Additional staff could join the district after this date. BOARD OF EDUCATION ANNE CAPECI, PRESIDENT JAMES TAYLOR II, VICE PRESIDENT JAMES E. DREVES, TRUSTEE BLANCA P. LOPEZ, TRUSTEE JOHN TOURI, TRUSTEE DR. DONALD K. CARLISLE, SUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLS CARYN FURST, SPOTLIGHT EDITOR DESIGN & LAYOUT SCHOOLS FIRST Page 8