5th-graders at Crompond Elementary School take advantage of different seating options.

On a recent afternoon in a fifth grade classroom at Crompond Elementary School in Yorktown, students are scattered around the room, learning in small groups. Some are reading on bean bags arranged in a circle, others are sitting on the floor working at a low table. Several students are  rocking on wiggle stools, and some are standing at a high top table. Everyone appears to be engaged in deep discussion.

 

This hive of productive activity is part of a flexible seating initiative being piloted by two teachers at Crompond Elementary, thanks to a grant from the local education organization, Yorktown Foundation for Excellence. General education teacher Tori Cavallo and her special education co-teacher Katelyn Fornaro applied for the grant when they saw a need for diverse seating options and arrangements that would encourage collaboration and critical thinking in their students.

 

"As students move forward, they're going to need to be able to work collaboratively, think critically and communicate with each other," says Cavallo. "So we wanted to provide a classroom that would give them those opportunities throughout the day."

 

The flexible seating concept compliments the Yorktown Central School District's commitment to ESTEAM (Empathy, Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics), an educational approach brought to Yorktown this year by Superintendent Dr. Ron Hattar.

 

"The central principle of ESTEAM," says Dr. Hattar, "Is the development of empathy in students as a foundation upon which to collaborate, problem solve in groups, and think creatively and critically. Flexible seating promotes that kind of learning."

 

Research shows that flexible seating options, which can be easily and quickly moved around to accommodate small groups, are beneficial in developing 21st century learning skills. Katelyn Fornaro says many parents walk into the room and remark that their workplaces look just like the classroom.

 

"Adults are not sitting in a cubicle with a desk and a chair anymore," says Fornaro. "You find a place to set up your laptop and you get to work. So I think we're providing students with an environment that is going to make them successful in the future."

 

Fourth grade teacher Adele Kivel started her own version of flexible seating several years ago when she realized her students did their best work in a comfortable, homey atmosphere. Her classroom is organized into groups of furniture she found at garage sales. There are no desks.

 

"The children share their ideas with one another much more easily because they are in little groups and they are actually talking to each other," says Kivel. "They're fully engaged."

 

"It's pretty fascinating when you're in either one of the classrooms," says Crompond Principal Lori Roberts. "The children are very inclusive of others and one may look at the seating as a distraction, but it isn't because they're working in an environment that best suits them."

 

A number of other teachers at Crompond are now adopting their own versions of flexible seating as they witness the success of the seating initiatives in their colleague' s classrooms.

 

Crompond's library media center is also getting a new seating chart.  It was renovated this past summer to include an ESTEAM lab, outfitted with flexible seating and a long, glass wall. Teachers bring their classes into the lab to work on projects that require the students to think collectively about how to solve problems, big and small. The next phase includes knocking down a wall in the attached learning lab to create even more flexible, open spaces that enable students to do their best work.  

Eleven Yorktown High School student-athletes signed letters of intent to attend their chosen colleges and universities next year. The signing ceremony was held Tuesday in the library at Yorktown High School. YHS Principal Joe DeGennaro calls these students "excellent role models, talented athletes and incredible young adults."

 

The following is a list of seniors who signed letters of intent.

 

Top row:

Louis Ragusa--Pace University, Division 2--Boys Lacrosse

Brett Makar--University of Maryland, Division 1--Boys Lacrosse

Hunter Embury--Marist University, Division 1--Boys Lacrosse

Brandon Meyreles--St. Joseph's College, Division 1--Boys Lacrosse

Jamison Embury--Marist University, Division 1--Boys Lacrosse

 

Bottom row:

Brianna Buck--Iona College, Division 1--Softball

Angelique Serrano--Molloy College, Division 2--Softball

Ciara Frawley--Cornell University, Division 1--Girls Lacrosse

Ellen O'Callaghan--University of Pennsylvania, Division 1--Girls Lacrosse

Caroline Garti--Lafayette University, Division 1--Girls Lacrosse

Reilly Koch--College of St. Rose, Division 2--Softball  

Balloons Over Brookside parade

The parade of proud third-graders holding aloft brightly colored volcanoes, globes, and squirrels snaked down the hall and turned a corner, revealing even more students with floats, or 'balloons', in the style of the Macy's Day Parade. Parents lined the halls, applauding the grand finale of a six-week project for the entire third grade at Brookside Elementary School.

 

"They worked so hard," says Brookside Principal Deirdre Amerling. "We started by reading the book "Balloons Over Broadway", and from there the students planned, designed, and built floats, learning a lot about perseverance, determination, and collaboration."

 

This is the first year the Brookside third graders have tackled such an involved ESTEAM project. ESTEAM is a Yorktown Central School District initiative incorporating empathy (the 'E' in ESTEAM) with the study of science, technology, engineering, arts and math. Each area of study was included in Balloons Over Brookside, from measuring the perimeter of the parade route, to experimenting with baking soda and vinegar to inflate balloons. The students say they got frustrated, and even shed some tears in the process, but they didn't quit.

 

"It was all about never giving up and to keep trying, keep going until you get it," says third-grader Ryder Brennan.

"The empathy part of the project was being kind and helping others when you're working with them," adds third-grade student, Mia San Domenico. "You have to listen to your partners and not insist on your idea, so the project will get done."

 

The ESTEAM concept is taking root at both kindergarten through third grade schools in Yorktown, Brookside and Mohansic Elementary. The idea is to teach students to work collaboratively, think critically, and not to be afraid to fail. And through it all, think about helping others.

 

"Research says that five year olds are egocentric," says Mohansic Principal Susan Berry. "But we're finding that through our guidance, lessons, and conversations, they understand that their actions affect people."

 

A recent ESTEAM project at Mohansic focused on a character in the book "Spookley the Square Pumpkin", who couldn't roll down the hill with the other pumpkins because he was square. The second graders first discussed how Spookley must feel about his situation, then they designed and created a solution to make him feel better. One student crafted several square pumpkin friends to keep Spookley company. Everyone came up with a different idea.

 

"I made Spookley a sphere," says second-grader Ryan Lodewick, "so when other pumpkins were rolling he could roll too and not feel sad anymore."

 

With the district's on-going commitment to character education, the ESTEAM concept pulls that empathy element into the STEAM projects at Brookside and Mohansic. Teachers strive to make relevant connections for the students so they understand why the lessons are important to them, and how they might affect them now or in the future. The students are often asked how they can help, and how someone might feel. The key, says Principal Susan Berry, is to start the dialogue at this age.