2019
Newsletter
Join us June 10th for SBES Learning Celebration!

On June 10, we invite parents, siblings, and other family members to visit our Learning Celebration with students. Students will be showcasing their growth and learning this year through various activities, displays, and examples of their work. The schedule for our Learning Celebration will be as follows:

Kindergarten: 12:45 - 1:05 PM
Grade One: 1:05 - 1:25 PM
Grade Two: 1:25 to 1:45 PM

Since we understand that time away from work can be difficult toward the end of the year with so many events at school, please don’t worry if you are unable to attend. We have created the schedule such that students at other grade levels will also be the audience for the grade level “on display” at each of the times listed above. Thus, all students will have an audience to view their work and share in the joy of their growth and learning. 

Check out our latest  webinar  on strategies to read aloud with your child at home.


You can find this and other resources on the  Parent Resource   page of the SBES website .
Project-Based Learning
in 2019-2020 at Stony Brook


Over the past four months, Stony Brook teachers have been studying project-based learning and looking at the possible implementation at Stony Brook. We are thrilled to announce that all grade levels at Stony Brook will incorporate Project-Based Learning (PBL) in some of our curricula units during the 2019-2020 year. Staff members are participating in professional development this summer and additional training will occur during the school year. We believe that the implementation of PBL will deepen your child’s understanding of concepts and will improve their problem-solving skills, communication skills, and ability to collaborate with others. In addition, we fully anticipate that student engagement and motivation will improve. If you want to learn more about project-based learning, here is a quick video of one example with a kindergarten class and a unit on life science:  http://www.theexpeditionschool.com/about-2/project-based-learning/

We also want to thank you for the opinions that you expressed as part of our School Council survey. It is clear that we all see project-based learning as one way to further improve student learning at Stony Brook! 
News from the
Library Media Center
Students in Kindergarten Technology classes have been hard at work practicing their addition and subtraction skills through the programs such as Starfall and ABCYa. They have completed the Kindergarten Math page and are very proud. They have even explored a few 1st grade math programs, which was very exciting! They also have some favorite math songs and love reading books with Backpack Bear.

Grade 1 worked together on a Coding program called LightBot. This program is an educational game for learning software programming concepts. The students were very excited and engaged as they worked with their partners to solve the puzzles and get the LightBot to light the bulb.
Grade 1 has also completed Butterfly Life Cycle Project using KidPix. Their computer illustrations include one or more stages of the life cycle of a butterfly and a fact about their illustration.
In Grade 2, students have been busy creating their own animal research project. They have conducted research of an animal of their choice in library and using digital resources such as National Geographic for Kids and the San Diego Zoo site. With their information, students are putting together a visual presentation in KidPix. They have learned how to save a file to their desktop, copy and paste images, and type in text from their research fact sheet. Students have also spent time using our new typing program called Typing Quest to develop their typing skills. They will present their final product to their class. This has been a very exciting process!
Some Grade 2 classes also had a visit from Eddy Elementary 4th grade students to work collaboratively on a ‘Makey-Makey’ project. The 2nd graders were paired with a 4th grade peer and had the opportunity to create a piano using a makey-makey board, alligator clips, playdough. They even learned how to play a few tunes, like Happy Birthday, Hot Cross Buns, and Baby Shark!
So
much fun!


June 7th will be the last
day to check out books
from the library.
Students are having fun trying to match Stony Brook staff members with their pets!
The Brewster Ladies' Library
Summer Reading Program launches
June 25th!
Check out the website
for more details!


Our Stony Brook Community welcomes the Brewster Whitecaps back for another season at their first home game on  Wednesday, June 12th. Our Second graders have been invited to sing the National Anthem at 4:50 p.m.and Mr. Gauley will be throwing out the first pitch. This is a great privilege to be asked and we hope to see you there! 
Play Ball
Stony Brook Elementary School
384 Underpass Road
Brewster, MA 02631
508-896-4545