The district held its second annual Hispanic Heritage recognition event on Oct. 23, honoring five students – one per each of the district’s schools – who are Hispanic, Hispanic-American or of Hispanic heritage and have demonstrated outstanding civic and community engagement.

The honorees for 2018, chosen by a committee of Islip language teachers from each school, were Kayley Guzman Morales of Islip Middle School, Adrian Lopez of Wing Elementary School, Amanda Mardones of Maud S. Sherwood Elementary School, Bianka Morales of Islip High School and Isabella Sarmiento of Commack Road Elementary School.

The recognition ceremony, held in the middle school library with the students’ families in attendance, coincided with National Hispanic Heritage Month, which celebrates the histories, cultures and contributions of American citizens whose ancestors came from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean and Central and South America.

Nonfiction author Sarah Albee recently visited Sherwood, offering presentations for each grade level. She discussed how she became a writer and her methods for developing her book ideas. Second-graders learned how to conduct research, while third-grade students became human note cards as Albee explained her process of sorting information when she creates her books.

“The presentation was interactive and the students had a great time,” said Principal Chad Walerstein.

Students in Jennifer Beck’s classroom at Sherwood recently explored the video discussion platform Flipgrid for the first time, and shared a little about themselves as readers.

“We have FlipGrid fever,” said Beck. “We will be using it throughout the year to promote student voice and choice.”

With English Language Learner students and families in attendance representing 23 different nations and 17 different languages, Islip’s annual ELL Parent Orientation on Sept. 26 provided parents with information on the programs and services their children are entitled to, based on New York State Department of Education regulations.

This year’s event, which kicked off in the school’s auditorium with a welcome from Priscilla Zarate, Islip’s coordinator of ENL and world languages, also gave the parents an opportunity to meet with their corresponding English as a New Language teachers and ask questions.

Meanwhile, the students gathered in the cafeteria for an enjoyable session of board games, books, and arts and crafts, and all who attended left with backpacks filled with school supplies, books and other goodies donated by the Town of Islip Youth Bureau, Book Fairies, Panera Bread and Kid to Kid.

Taking an unexpected opportunity in the midst of poetry exploration, students in Islip’s EXCEL program for the academically gifted recently learned how to whistle with a blade of grass.

Before delving into a poetry lesson which included reading poetry excerpts outdoors and stretching students’ creative muscles with a writing activity, EXCEL Program Coordinator Julia Johnson gave the students time to close their eyes, focus on their breathing, run their fingers through the grass and take a moment to feel connected to the natural world around them. For the writing activity, the students were asked to create a list of “10 Things I Know to Be True,” and one student noted that they could whistle with a blade of grass.

“I grabbed the ‘teachable moment’ and asked them to raise their hands if they want to learn how to do this, and so it happened,” said Johnson. “It wasn’t planned, which is what made it so priceless.”