Fall Photos

top left, clockwise: Harvest Day at IMES. Walk & Roll to School at KES. MPES kindergarteners create Identity Webs with family members. Halloween fun at JJMS. Best Buddies Clubs at JJMS and JJHS help build friendships and support belonging in our schools.

Pumpkin Math Turns Learning into a Celebration

Rattle, rattle, roll! The first graders were all smiles as they shook little cups and spilled out ten little beans. They eagerly counted how many were painted in pumpkin orange and how many were little white ghosts and charted the results. What added to the excitement of the simple math game was that the students weren’t playing with their classmates—they were paired up with their parents, grandparents and other family members!

Black and Orange Family Math Games are a first-grade favorite tradition at Katonah Elementary. The morning combines growing math skills with seasonal fun and special visitors! It was just one of many pumpkin math activities that took place at Katonah-Lewisboro’s elementary schools this fall. MORE

'HYAAAH' Homebase Happenings

Students in Kerrie Ghiozzi’s classroom are gathered around different tables, working on different tasks. One group is cutting out cardboard teeth. Others are pulling a white gauze material apart to make a spooky effect. Everyone is focused and having fun; it’s almost first period and they have just a few more minutes to finish up their Monster Door!

They point to their eighth-grade Homebase student leader, Kaitlyn. “She’s everywhere,” said one of the students. “She’s got the plan.”

Homebase is a thirty-minute pause that begins each day. Students are assigned to a Homebase; each one includes a mix of sixth, seventh and eighth graders. While students use Homebase to charge their devices and get organized, it’s also a time to connect. Some days include an activity or conversation led by a seventh or eighth grade Homebase leader. Other are more freeform … like making Monster Doors in the two weeks preceding Halloween! MORE

Red Ribbon Week Opens Positive Conversations on Substance Abuse

There, on top of the lockers in B hallway—it’s a red rubber duck! And another, nestled next to the windows on the bridge! Some students had seen the poster about the red ducks and were keeping their eyes open for the little toys. Others stumbled on them by surprise.

The red ducks are one of the inventive ways that Samantha Wagner, John Jay’s Student Assistance Counselor, opens a conversation with students on substance use. MORE

Accessible New Playground Brings Students Together

Welcome to John Jay Middle School’s new accessible playground! The contemporary equipment is designed to provide fun and challenging experiences for users of all abilities while letting them feel safe and in control. The inclusive, student-centered commons turned a little-used piece of parking lot into a rejuvenating recess option.

“We’ve wanted to provide an inclusive playground at John Jay Middle School for many years,” said Assistant Superintendent for Business Lisa Herlihy. An interfund transfer, and a $100,000 Community Resiliency, Economic Sustainability, and Technology Grant from Senator Peter B. Harckham’s office, made it possible. MORE

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