Mahopac Middle School Students Invited to Writing Colloquium | |
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Young writers from all over the region gathered at Putnam Northern Westchester BOCES last week for the Young Authors Middle Level Colloquium. Teachers from districts such as Mount Pleasant, White Plains, and Mahopac led workshops where students refined their writing skills through narrative exercises, poetry activities, and more.
Out of 48 middle school students from six different districts, eight were from Mahopac Middle School. The students had all demonstrated a passion for writing. They were able to sign up for two workshops that appealed to them and had a chance to share their writing with the group at the end of the program.
“We host a high school-level program as well,” said PNW BOCES Director of Curriculum and Instruction Fred Ende. “It provides a similar structure of workshops and immersive writing experiences. It’s really special for students with a passion for writing to get the chance to connect with other students who share their interests. Giving students a chance to engage like this at the middle school level is rare, and it’s been wonderful to see them explore their passion.”
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In the Ekphrastic Flash Fiction workshop, run by White Plains Schools’ Coordinator of English 7-12, Douglas Cronk, students were challenged to create vivid descriptions and original stories inspired by visual art. Meanwhile, at the Spontaneous Stories workshop, Mahopac Middle School’s English Language Arts Teacher Karen Haitoff guided students through an exercise in adaptability, allowing their writing to be influenced by random elements printed on comically large custom dice.
“There are often only one or two students in a classroom who are really passionate about writing,” Haitoff said. “This gives those students a chance to see that there are others like them. They get to go into an environment full of people who share their passion, they get to see firsthand that they aren’t alone.”
During the graphic novels workshop, students like Mahopac Middle School eighth-grader Sofia Dinardi were asked to think about the flow of a story through the lens of comic panels. Along with the other workshop attendees, she was asked to recreate or invent a scene and present it in comic book-style panels.
“I decided to recreate a scene from ‘The Fault in Our Stars,’” said Dinardi. “I chose the scene where the main characters are sitting on the bench but I’m going to change it to make a different ending.”
At the end of the workshop, students shared a piece of their writing with the other attendees. This brave step is something that many adults might struggle with, but the students took the final challenge in stride, reading narrative pieces, poetry, and stories they had written that day, as well as some writing samples they had brought from home.
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Mahopac Celebrates Music in Our Schools Month at Board of Education Meeting | |
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The Mahopac Central School District celebrated Music in Our Schools Month at the March BOE meeting. The meeting began with a performance of “Phantom Train” by William Owens by members of the seventh and eighth-grade All-County Orchestra. In case you missed it, check out the performance here.
Mahopac is lucky to have so many talented student musicians and the meeting was jam-packed with awards for our young performers. In all, 91 students from the sixth grade through high school were selected to perform in All County and Area All State ensembles, including Maxine Van Nortwick, who will perform as part of the New York State Band Directors Association Honor Jazz Ensemble. For a full list of the student musicians that were recognized at the meeting, click here.
Concluding the celebration of Music in Our Schools Month, Heather Palkewick, who serves as music department chair, chorus teacher, and musical director, announced that the Mahopac CSD had once again received the Best Communities for Music Education Award from the National Association of Music Merchants. Palkewick presented the certificate of the award to Superintendent Christine Tona and the Board of Education.
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Student Musicians Impress at
2024 Pops Concert
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On March 13th, 2024, Mahopac High School put on the 2024 Pops Concert, opening with a performance of “The Mandalorian” by Ludwig Göransson by several Mahopac CSD orchestral groups. Both curricular and extracurricular ensembles performed songs from all across the popular culture spectrum from “In Sleep He Sang To Me” from The Phantom of the Opera to a medley of songs by Bruno Mars. There was even an appearance by a giant puppet of Mars created by Sean Flanagan’s art class with the guidance of local giant puppet building expert and Austin Road Art Teacher Chris Williams.
Check out this incredible performance, which was made possible by student musicians, music staff, and volunteers, below:
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Mahopac High School Seniors Speak Before Board of Education on
Career and Technical Education Center
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In a Board of Education meeting full of celebration and recognition, March’s BOE Meeting proved to be a showcase of all of the incredible talent and drive exhibited by Mahopac’s students. Two exemplars of those virtues took to the podium during the meeting to speak about their experiences at the Putnam Northern Westchester BOCES Career and Technical Education Center, a program that was very important to them both.
“I became interested in teaching thanks to my third-grade teacher, I want to recreate the environment she created in her class,” said Mahopac High School senior Hannah Nygard. “Ever since then, I’ve been trying to get into teaching, and I found that opportunity at BOCES.”
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“When I was younger, I realized that the usual bell-to-bell school structure was not for me. When I tried to focus, all I could think about was going home to tinker with one of my machines,” said Mahopac High School senior John Ruzza. “Being the hands-on learner that I am… I sought out my guidance counselor and enrolled in the electrical program at PNW BOCES. It continues to be the best decision that I’ve made in my academic career.”
The Career and Technical Education Center offers students a critical opportunity to get hands-on experience in fields that interest them and aren’t always taught in mainstream curricula. Nygard and Ruzza are just two students who have benefited from the program and the staff at both Mahopac Schools and PNW BOCES are excited to see where they will go next.
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Mahopac Counselors Forge Admissions Connections at Prestigious Colleges | |
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Mahopac’s High School counselors play a critical role in the success of Mahopac High School’s students. To best serve our students, high school counselors visited a variety of college campuses during superintendent’s conference days. They toured such prestigious campuses as Fairfield and Yale University and received in-depth overviews of student life, admissions requirements, majors, study abroad programs, student organizations and clubs, as well as current admissions trends.
College visits enable Mahopac High School’s counselors to stay abreast of admissions requirements, foster connections with admissions representatives, and increase their knowledge so they may help students explore various post-secondary opportunities.
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Mahopac High School Senior Scholarship Opportunities | |
Mahopac families, clubs, and organizations want to support seniors with post-graduate plans through scholarship opportunities. Seniors should visit the Senior Awards Website to see which scholarship opportunities are a good fit for them. | |
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Kindergarten Registration for the
2024-2025 School Year
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Kindergarten registration for the 2024-25 school year will be held from January 1st, 2024 - March 31st, 2024. Check out the attached documents to register.
English Document https://5il.co/2bd71
Spanish Document https://5il.co/2bd70
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Ad Hoc Advocacy Committee Opens
Suggestion Box
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The Ad Hoc Advocacy Committee invites our community to provide any concerns/issues/policies for the Advocacy Committee to discuss and consider advocating for/against. Your information will remain confidential and only your suggestions will be shared.
On behalf of the Mahopac Advocacy Committee, thank you for your participation!
Advocacy Suggestion Box
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23 student athletes from the MHS Class of 2023 are currently playing at the collegiate level. | |
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Mission Statement
The Mahopac CSD develops educated, upstanding citizens with practical life skills through rigorous preparation for the real world.
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Mahopac Central School District
100 Myrtle Avenue, Mahopac, NY 10541
Phone: 845-628-3415 Fax: 845-628-5502
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