Mrs. Kozak’s and Mrs. Valdemira’s class at Tooker Avenue Elementary School showed off their science knowledge by experiencing static electricity first hand.

Students in Katie Belpanno’s virtual class at Tooker Avenue Elementary School in the West Babylon School District have been learning about counting and number order to five during their math lessons. After reading the poem “Five Little Pumpkins,” the class worked on fine motor and math skills by creating their own version of “Five Little Pumpkins.” They cut out all of the pieces and then followed directions to assemble the gate, put the pumpkins on the gate and number the pumpkins.

West Babylon School District celebrated Red Ribbon Week and pledged to live a healthy, drug-free life during the week of Oct. 19-23. This year’s theme is “Be Happy. Be Brave, Be Drug Free.” The week kicked off by the staff and students coming to school dressed in red.

Throughout the week, the schools held different theme days in the fight against drugs and alcohol. Hats and creative caps were worn to school to “put a cap on drugs” while teachers and students wore mismatched outfits to show that they won’t get mixed up in drugs on a different day. The schools each created their own themed days such as superhero day, pajama day, bright color day, crazy clothes day, tie-dyed/’60s day, blue/gold day and backward shirt day so students can “turn their backs on drugs.”

Throughout the district, teachers are taking learning outside the walls of the classroom and finding creative ways to teach their students outdoors in this new learning environment.

The social distancing requirements are changing the way teachers conduct lessons and they are adapting by finding new methods. Bringing lessons outdoors has made for more hands-on learning as well. At John F. Kennedy Elementary School, students went on a leaf hunt. First, they discussed playing the role of scientists as they looked for different kinds of leaves. The students investigated the leaves carefully and collected just a few of each type. They went back to the classroom and sorted the leaves by shape and category.

At South Bay Elementary School, students did a science walk outside to determine if things were warm. At Forest Avenue, students did a math lesson utilizing Math and Movement number line hopping mats. Math and Movement is a program that uses multi-sensory learning approaches to teach students skills to succeed in math. This year, the fourth grade students at Forest Avenue will be focusing on looking at the subject areas holistically. “Math and Movement are the beginning steps toward taking our students ‘outside’ traditional learning, providing them with choice, and fostering a sense of ownership and awareness in the different pathways we take as life-long learners,” the teachers said.

At Santapogue Elementary School, fifth graders recently went outdoors for a lesson based on the book “Mr. Peabody’s Apples.” They learned an important lesson: glitter is like gossip; once you say something, you can’t take it back. At Tooker Avenue Elementary, students in Mrs. Kozak’s and Mrs. Valdemira's class are learning about the parts of speech as part of their ELA curriculum. They were able to enjoy the fresh air as they went on a noun hunt. When they went back to the classroom, they separated the nouns into categories. As an extension activity, they went on to write stories using some of the nouns they found outside.

Senior High School and Junior High School students are socially distanced and enjoying the great outdoors in their language arts classes. It was a great way to stay safe, get some sunshine and feel inspired while writing their personal narratives.