Scoot is a great game to play, particularly when it’s time for subtraction review!
Candace Gale and Cecilia Kosowicz’s IS third-graders paired up to work together on their subtraction review work! They did great work, by the way!
Scoot is a game that can be used to review or reinforce concepts in math and other subjects. The teacher places question cards around the room, and students move from one card to another answering questions. The game can be used to assess students in a variety of subjects, including math, language arts, and science.
JOIN US tonight, Dec. 2, for the Intermediate School Chorus Concert at 7 p.m.!
THE TRADITION CONTINUES!
Now in its 25th YEAR, the Intermediate School Fifth-Grade held its annual Thanksgiving luncheon on Nov. 26!
Fifth-grade teacher Mike Conklin offered comments before the luncheon began reminding everyone about the importance of being thankful, kind and generous and that there's always something to be thankful for. He also noted he believed they would remember this day during the rest of their school careers as well.
The luncheon was made possible due to the kindness and generosity of parents, faculty and staff who provided all turkeys, hams, side dishes and desserts and related treats to have a delicious hot Thanksgiving meal!
THANK YOU to everyone who contributed to the luncheon's success. Everyone had a great time eating and socializing...and they were very well-fed! SEE MORE photos on the district's Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/MinisinkValleyCSD
Motivational speaker, former Harlem Globetrotters player and eight-time Guinness record holder Corey “The Dribbler” Rich visited the Intermediate School yesterday, Nov. 25, for two character education assemblies showcasing his very cool basketball talents...which often included students and faculty! Take a peek at the fun
Most important: As Corey spoke demonstrated his skills, he spoke to students about the importance of working together with their “team,” treating others like you would like to be treated and the importance of working hard to achieve goals.
His incredible ball-handling skills include dribbling six basketballs at once! Cory has appeared on The Late Show with David Letterman, ESPN First Take, Comcast Sportsnet, Fox News and is widely considered the “World’s Greatest Dribbler!” Along with performing his amazing talents at NBA Halftime Shows, Corey travels the country inspiring students with his character education message: The 4Rs for success: Respect, responsibility, ready to learn and reading is power.
Character education programs take place in all our buildings throughout the year. THANK YOU to the IS PTO for sponsoring this important program!
The Intermediate School’s Girls on the Run (GOTR) program has been quite busy this fall! In addition to training, the group has been participating in lessons and activities that build confidence and character.
For its community project, the IS GOTR collected Thanksgiving food items which was recently delivered to the soup kitchen in Middletown for families in need.
The girls also recently completed a 5K run at Rockland Lake State Park! Well-done to all!
November is National Men’s Health Awareness Month! Join us and wear purple attire to help bring awareness to unique health issues of men!
Please join the efforts of the district's Buildings & Grounds team to bring awareness to important men's physical and mental health issues!
November is also "No-Shave November" and "Movember," movements created to encourage conversations about cancer awareness among men.
Call for photos: Share your student's purple attire for a forthcoming photo gallery by emailing to communications@minisink.com by 3 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 22!
GET WINGS and support the Class of 2025!
Buffalo Wild Wings in Middletown will donate 10% of your purchase on Saturday, Nov. 23 to support Class of 2025 initiatives. Make sure you bring this ticket!
HANDS UP!
Who needs jazz hands when you have “white board hands?”
Adrianna Ciccarelli’s IS fourth-graders are using “white board hands” to quickly answer rounding questions during math review. What a fun way to do work!
Lynda McKeon’s and Taryn Richards’ IS third-graders are getting really skilled at rounding two and three-digit numbers to the nearest 10 on a vertical number line!
During a recent lesson, students began by renaming numbers in unit form to help round to the nearest 10. This practice helps students to understand how many 10s are in the number and what the next 10 is. Then, they established the halfway mark between 10s. Students have to decide if the number is “more” than halfway or “less” than halfway. This practice helps the students round to the nearest 10 more efficiently.
This skill helps students to develop a greater foundational understanding of place value, estimation and simplifying numbers to make calculations easier in real-world situations where exact precision isn't always necessary.
Candace Gale’s and Cecilia Kosowicz’s IS third-graders, like all district third-graders, are perfecting their plotting and labelling skills during math lessons. This is important because it teaches students how to organize and visually represent data, allowing them to analyze information, identify patterns, and draw conclusions which is a crucial skill for understanding and applying math in everyday life. Students also have the opportunity to work on their critical thinking skills by interpreting data and communicating findings effectively through graphs.
Here's another great school food drive that will welcome your support: The Elementary School PTO/Intermediate School PTO Food Drive!
IS/ES families: Missing anything?
IS/ES security aide Kevin Murphy is reminding you to think about this, as he's currently the trusted keeper and safeguarder of a very large selection of sweatshirts and jackets --- as well as other items--- that are missing their owners!
You'll be able to take a firsthand look during the upcoming IS/ES Parent/Teacher Conference days, but check to see what might be missing in your closets now. Once these conferences are completed, any unclaimed items will be donated to those in need.
CAN YOU HELP?
The High School's FBLA Club is hosting its annual Food Drive, with donations being accepted through Friday, Nov. 22.
Community donations may be delivered to the high school's main entrance, where it will be collected for distribution.
Intermediate School students, faculty and staff may have noticed that IS/ES School Security Aide Kevin Murphy had a very able assistant helping him make rounds in recent days! IS third-grader Kinsley Starkey won a recent IS PTO contest which allowed her to go on patrol with Mr. Murphy. She was presented with a special badge which allowed her to accompany Mr. Murphy and provide her valuable assistance, observations and counsel! That also included a stop by Superintendent Monahan’s office, where she shared some of her suggestions!
Joan Giardina’s IS fourth-grade art students are learning about the importance of scale in composition, using cat stencils!
In art composition, scale refers to the relative size of an object or artwork in relation to another object or the viewer's body. It can also refer to the relationship between different parts of an image.
Support the Class of 2025 and add to your collection of outstanding Minisink Valley attire! The selections are great to wear for any occasion and for any event in any building!
HAPPY HALLOWEEN!
Briana Barrett’s and Nicole VanderDrift's IS fifth-graders are masters at completing the Candy Corn Tower STEM Challenge...on National Candy Corn Day! First, students had to brainstorm and sketch their candy corn tower design with their group. Then, they had 20 minutes to use 25 toothpicks and 25 candy corn pieces to build their design. The highest tower reached 7.75 inches tall! Well-done!
It’s not over yet, Yankee fans! Think positive….and as part of that positivity, the Intermediate School presented students with their Aaron Judge ALL RISE Summer Reading Programs certificate received earlier in the week!
Congratulations and well-done to Callan D'Antono, Nico Santiago, Rehan Usman and Mariah Carrion Castenada!
The Aaron Judge ALL RISE Foundation, founder of this group and the Yankees’ captain, is a nonprofit that aims to inspire children and youth to become responsible citizens. Its summer reading program is a literacy initiative that encourages children and youth to read. This past summer, Minisink Valley invited all students to participate in this summer reading initiative, organized by Physical Education Teacher Theresa Uhelsky.
Every Intermediate School student was invited to pick a pumpkin from the "IS Pumpkin Patch" on the way to their buses today, Oct. 29!
The Intermediate School’s annual GREAT PUMPKIN Decorating Contest, sponsored by the IS PTO, was a grand success and great time for all! All classes, under the guidance of IS Art Joan Giardina, designed and decorated a unique class pumpkin. All were on display and everyone voted on their favorite (Note: they could not vote on their own pumpkin). Take a look at these very creative pumpkins! The votes were tallied and the winners are:
•Fifth-grade: “Devil Bat,” created by Briana Barrett/Nicole Vanderdrift/ Kendra Soule’s class
•Fourth-grade: “King Bob,” created by Jessica Venettozzi’s class
•Third-grade: “Hot Chocolate,” created by Andrew Fenner’s class
Mrs. Giardina delivered the coveted GOLDEN PUMPKIN trophies to the first-place winners for each grade level, who will now proudly display them in their classes. THANK YOU to the IS PTO for providing these very awesome trophies!
