Our Winter Wonderland event was a resounding success due to the hard work and dedication of our amazing staff who volunteered their time to create such a magical evening for our students and their families. Special thanks to our Special Events Committee, led by longstanding staff member, Donna Burns, Assistant Director of Special Education. We hope all of the children who attended had a wonderful time!

We're excited to report that we have raised $25,000 since school has started! While we receive funding from the state and county to provide bussing and services to our students with special needs, we rely on the generosity of our donors to enhance all of the programs we provide the children and families we serve, so thank you! For those of you that have donated to our recent initiatives, including adopting one of our families, we can't thank you enough. Below you will find a video from a parent of one of our alumni explaining why she loves NIS. Please consider helping us before the end of the year if you are able.

Do you want to get more involved at NIS? Are you interested in holding fundraisers to help build and/or sustain all of the programs and services that make our school so special? Would you like to meet other families of NIS students? Come to our Parent Council meeting at 9:30 AM on 12/14/22.  Grandparents, foster parents, and any other care providers of current students are welcome!  RSVP REQUIRED.

Note from our Gym Teacher

November was a lot of fun! The children’s Turkey Trot and Obstacle Course was held during the week of November 13th. After training for 2 weeks during gym class, the students arrived all decked out in their running bibs ready to run during a 3 minute song entitled “Run,Run,Run”, then they cooled down tiptoeing or heel walking to another cool down song. Some classes also donned turkey hats or crowns. One class created turkey trot t shirts for their crew. All this contributed to the fun and excitement. Thank you teachers for your enthusiasm!

After stretching, running and cool down, the children each took turns negotiating an obstacle course consisting of stairs, balance beam, jumping mat, turtle shell balance and sliding down a hill on their bellies. Each child was awardee a turkey winner necklace which was well deserved! They were so proud!

The next week we had our second annual turkey trot and obstacle challenge for the Staff! 13 teams of 3 staff members competed completing 13 challenges. Running the track and jumping over hurdles, corn hole toss, balloon busting with your bum are just some of the challenges! Also contributing to the fun were 10 judges who made sure each challenge was correctly executed and was in charge of handing out a puzzle piece for completion of the challenge. You can imagine so much laughter and joy all this controlled chaos created!

Thank you so much for all the staff who helped to make these two events a success!

Winners were:

1st place: Taylor and Michael

2nd place: Doreen, Sara and Gerri

3rd place: Tara, Sam and Barbara 

Congratulations!!

This December the adapted physical ed classes will focus on the holidays! Marching with jingle bells, scootering to our friends house to drop off presents and pretending to be reindeer and leaping over the magic rope are just a few of the favorite lessons.

Special thanks to Ellie’s mom Crystal for donating the batting t. That gross motor basket is almost complete!!

Happy Holidays!!

-Miss Mary

For the safety of our students and their families, please do not park on the street along the front of the main site of NIS on Sills Road. We also ask that adults at all sites drive safely in our parking lots, especially during drop-off and pick-up. Thank you for your consideration.

Looking for suggestions for holiday gifts to help engage your child in sensory, fine and gross motor activities at home? Would you like ideas for gifts that promote language, cognitive and other skills? Look no further ...we've complied a list for you, including gifts to help improve visual-perceptual and bilateral integration skills, as well as pre-writing skills.

Our monthly special event was hosted by the speech department. All the activities were designed to expose our kids to different foods. Research shows children need multiple exposures to food before it even can touch their lips. If you have a student currently enrolled at NIS and you have questions or need more ideas, please reach out to the speech therapist in your child's classroom. 

The NIS STEM program was developed to enhance our curriculum and incorporate the unique qualities that science, nature, and learning embrace. This program adapts the Creative Curriculum, aligns with the NYS Learning Standards, and encourages independent and collaborative learning. The curriculum allows for lessons and activities to be scaffolded to meet the needs of all students. Lessons and activities are created in accordance with the schoolwide seasonal themes. Topics include science, seasonal changes, habitats, life cycles, engineering and math. All lessons are hands-on and lead students to investigate, analyze, interpret, and construct. The STEM program encourages a student's core knowledge to develop in a fun and natural environment. This program also assists in helping students to regulate and engage in a place of beauty and serenity.

The outdoor classroom is made possible through donations. Please consider donating to this important new initiative by donating monetarily or by purchasing an item from our Amazon Wish List. Don't forget to shop on Amazon Smile to make your donation go further! Thank you!  

Thanks to those of you who volunteered, came to our special events, contributed to our classrooms, made monetary donations, and/or donated to our Adopt-A-Family or Amazon wish lists. Special thanks to Woodside Nursery & Garden Center for their help with our Winter Wonderland event. If you would like to learn different ways you can help our nonprofit school, contact Susan Cali, NIS Director of Development.  

Proud affiliate of Kinexion!

NIS | 631-924-5583 | Email