Kudos to Otisville fifth-grader Leah Galligan and second-grader Brielle Bucksbee, who represented students as they read a heartfelt morning announcement noting the school's appreciation of Principal Julia Downey. October is National Principal Appreciation Month!
Instead of decorating pumpkins this year, Otisville Elementary involved the entire school in a scarecrow competition, with a grade-level scarecrows and scarecrows created by the school’s administrative offices created. Students were invited to vote (they could not vote on their own) on their top choice, all entries were presented anonymously. Take a look at the amazing creativity of all scarecrow designs! Winners, as selected by students:
1st Place:
“Beetlejuice,” concept created and scarecrow made by the Occupational/Physical Therapy Department.
2nd Place:
“Spider Witch,” concept created and scarecrow made by the Main Office.
3rd Place
“Unicorn,” concept created and scarecrow made by the School Psychologist’s Office.
Honorable Mentions
• Kindergarten for its “Bucket Filler Superhero Scarecrow”
• First-Grade for its “Book of Scary” words.
Elizabeth Hagerty’s Otisville fifth-graders, like all district fifth-graders, have been spending quality time during ELA lessons working on reading and writing personal narratives.
For her class, this recent lesson was near the end of the unit where students are writing a personal narrative about a time they were “surprised.” Students used organizers to make sure their stories were in a logical sequence. They were tasked with adding sensory details as well as similes and metaphors to give their readers a clearer mental image and to make their writing more interesting. Some of their topics included being surprised with a new pet, having a birthday surprise, a surprise snow day, and a surprise trip!
JOIN US!
Otisville Elementary's and the Elementary School's annual Halloween parades is just one week away! And you're invited to view the parades! It's one of our most memorable days of the year for our elementary students!
CALL FOR PHOTOS: Share a photo of your student's parade costume for a Halloween photo gallery!
It's Day 2 of Otisville Elementary's annual Fire Safety Program, made possible through the support of our local fire agencies. Our firefighter partners presented important life saving awareness assemblies to our Grades 4 and 5 students. Ask them about it!
It was Fire Safety Day today, Oct. 22, for our Otisville K-3 students! Thank you to our firefighter partners for teaching our students and reminding them about important life-saving information. Ask your student about this!
Kara Welsh's third-grade art students are learning about "Surrealism," studying the work of surrealist artists Salvador Dali, Frida Kahlo, and Rene Magritte.
They were challenged to create a surrealist work, where the objects are drawn realistically, but what's happening is dream-like or irrational. Students were able to choose what art material best suited the completion of their work- paint sticks, colored pencil, marker, or oil pastel. Most used a combination of materials!
Surrealism is an artistic, literary, and philosophical movement that originated in Europe in the 1920s and 1930s. Surrealism is a style in art and literature in which ideas, images, and objects are combined in a strange way, like in a dream.
Instrument lessons are an important part of a student musician's success! (But! They also need to practice at home!) Take a peek at Maria Fenfert’s Otisville “trumpeters” having their instrument-specific music lessons!
The trumpet is a versatile instrument that plays a central role in many types of music, including jazz, pop, and classical. It's often the lead instrument in a band or orchestra, carrying the melody. Trumpets are also known for their loud, bright sound and ability to project over long distances! The trumpet has a long history, dating back to 1,500 B.C. It was originally used as a signaling tool in wars, and later for entertainment. The trumpet has also been associated with royalty and celebrations, such as announcing the arrival of royalty.
COOKIE CRISP CEREAL AND DIVISION! Rachel Sebold and Stephanie Gove/Kirsten Reid’s Otisville third-graders have been learning about division in a very delicious way!
“Equal sets” is typically the first division strategy taught, so the teachers used Pat Hutchins’ “The Doorbell Rang,” a story about friendship, sharing and cookies --- and which gives a great introduction to basic math concepts --- as their introduction to equal groups in math.
In the book, the mother makes12 cookies for her son and daughter to share and they are happy because they each get six. Then two more people come and they have to split the cookies by four, then six, and finally 12.
Students used their recording booklets and modeled division using the Cookie Crisp cereal to represent the cookies the children get in the book utilizing the fair share method. What a creative way to have a hands-on math lesson using cookie manipulatives, which were happily eaten once the lesson concluded!
THINK PINK! The district is "going pink" on Thursday, Oct. 24 to support National Breast Cancer Awareness Month efforts!
Like all district second-graders, Nicole Martinez’s Otisville second-graders are continuing their ELA work learning about folktales, which are stories or legends that are passed down from generation to generation by word of mouth. They are often about common people and a fight between good and evil.
Her students have been reading the Indian folktale “The Tiger, the Brahman, and the Jackal.” It’s a perfect cross-curricular reading choice because it ties into their social studies lessons about early Asian civilizations.
In this folktale, students read about a trickster Jackal, who tricks the Tiger into getting back into a cage after a kind Brahman lets him out. This folktale can highlight how one’s mind/brain can be more powerful than strength.
Be part of the district's KINDNESS movement!
Support the good work of the Middle School's "Minisink Motivates" Club and by getting yourself some great KINDNESS apparel! The club will earn $6 from every order and will use it to spread kindness around the district!
AND...THAT'S A WRAP! Official school photo season concludes with Photo Day at Otisville Elementary today, Oct. 17. We saw so many gorgeous bows and handsome ties, too! Here's another peek at how keepsake school photos are created!
Otisville Elementary's and the Elementary School's annual Halloween parades are two weeks away! And you're invited to view the parades! It's one of our most memorable days of the year for our elementary students!
CALL FOR PHOTOS: Share a photo of your student's parade costume for a Halloween photo gallery!
Smile! Photo Day is tomorrow, Oct. 17! We're ready to create beautiful keepsake photos for you!
MORE pumpkins, cider and donuts, hayrides and fun games! Day 2 of Otisville Elementary’s annual Fall Festival was a great day for students! Thank you to the Otisville PTO and our faculty and staff for making it such a memorable event!
Pumpkins! Hayrides! Games! Cider and donuts! Otisville Elementary's Fall Festival continues today!
Gorgeous artwork always decorates the halls at Otisville, such as the “Reach for the Stars” project created by AnnMarie Guido’s kindergarteners!
Apple picking! Donuts and cider! Playing with friends! Enjoying the beautiful fall weather! What more could an Otisville kindergartener want?
Take a peek at the recent kindergarten class trip to Kendler Farms in Kerhonkson! Thank you to everyone who made the day so much fun and memorable for our youngest students!
