Dear Lower Lab Families, Although I write to you on a weekly basis, I wanted to use this edition of Lab Talk to review and synthe- size the work that we have accomplished this year as a school community. This year we all took to the idea of enriching the “sense of community” and demonstrating the role of being an “agent of change” by choosing kindness and demonstrating empathy. My first experience with this incredible “sense of community” occurred on my first day of school. Gina took it upon herself (like she often does so well) to inform most of you that it was not only the first day of school but also my birthday. I was greeted at the front door with smiles, handshakes, cards, and many students asking me if I already knew their name. What it is to be an inquisitive, innocent, and expressive five year old child? Students were already demonstrating to me that they were going to hold me to my word of knowing each child’s name by the winter break. Many continued to test me each morning and afternoon until I proved my belonging to this community (much like a rite of passage). Not too long after, did I get to experience the dunk tank at the Lower Lab Fall Fair. Sure, I ended up drinking a considerable amount of water; however the energy and caring from students and parents alike at this event were contagious. Fast forward to the Ronald McDonald Fun Run, and the pride that many of the students had in wearing their t-shirts. To many, the shirts symbolized the participation in raising money for families and children in need. During the winter, we participated in GLSEN’s No Name Calling Week where each day, as a school, we celebrated kindness and the importance of being an up-stander and not a bystander through various activities. Our “Put-Up Wall” is still hanging proud, showing the kindness and empathy that takes place throughout the halls and within the classrooms each day. During one of my Principal–Parent Book Clubs where we read Wonder by R.J. Palacio, one of the parent participants suggested incorporating Weekly Precepts into the school. I immediately took to this key idea and we have continued to celebrate a different student each week by asking him to select and read a precept. This continues to remind us all to further develop our own kindness, empathy, and happiness here at school and at home. Do we still have room to grow and continue this very important work? Absolutely, and because of active and inspired parents, teachers, and children we are taking this work outside of the school building start- ing this coming fall. Lower Lab Cares, a group of motivated parents and teachers alike, will coordinate monthly community service projects throughout the city where we can “lead by example” in helping others and other communities. Not only will participating Lower Lab students experience the social and emotional development within the walls of our school, but with Lower Lab Cares, we will now be taking these understandings and practices outside to help others. This experiential learning and acts of A Message from continued on page 2 p.2 p. 18 p.2 Middle School Admissions Data p. 15 Extracurriculars p.3 from the PTA Co-Presidents SLT p.5 p.9 from Denise Pérez P.S. 77 The Lower Lab School SUMMER ISSUE June 2015 In this Issue Announcements Highlights Mr. Goldspiel
Transcript
Dear Lower Lab Families,
Although I write to you on a weekly basis, I wanted to use this edition of Lab Talk to review and synthe-
size the work that we have accomplished this year as a school community. This year we all took to
the idea of enriching the “sense of community” and demonstrating the role of being an “agent of
change” by choosing kindness and demonstrating empathy.
My first experience with this incredible “sense of community” occurred on my first day of school. Gina
took it upon herself (like she often does so well) to inform most of you that it was not only the first day
of school but also my birthday. I was greeted at the front door with smiles, handshakes, cards, and
many students asking me if I already knew their name. What it is to be an inquisitive, innocent, and
expressive five year old child?
Students were already demonstrating to me that they were going to hold me to my word of knowing
each child’s name by the winter break. Many continued to test me each morning and afternoon until
I proved my belonging to this community (much like a rite of passage). Not too long after, did I get to
experience the dunk tank at the Lower Lab Fall Fair. Sure, I ended up drinking a considerable amount of
water; however the energy and caring from students and parents alike at this event were contagious.
Fast forward to the Ronald McDonald Fun Run, and the pride that many of the students had in wearing
their t-shirts. To many, the shirts symbolized the participation in raising money for families and children
in need. During the winter, we participated in GLSEN’s No Name Calling Week where each day, as a
school, we celebrated kindness and the importance of being an up-stander and not a bystander through
various activities. Our “Put-Up Wall” is still hanging proud, showing the kindness and empathy that takes
place throughout the halls and within the classrooms each day. During one of my Principal–Parent Book
Clubs where we read Wonder by R.J. Palacio, one of the parent participants suggested incorporating
Weekly Precepts into the school. I immediately took to this key idea and we have continued to celebrate
a different student each week by asking him to select and read a precept. This continues to remind us
all to further develop our own kindness, empathy, and happiness here at school and at home.
Do we still have room to grow and continue this very important work? Absolutely, and because of active
and inspired parents, teachers, and children we are taking this work outside of the school building start-
ing this coming fall. Lower Lab Cares, a group of motivated parents and teachers alike, will coordinate
monthly community service projects throughout the city where we can “lead by example” in helping
others and other communities. Not only will participating Lower Lab students experience the social
and emotional development within the walls of our school, but with Lower Lab Cares, we will now be
taking these understandings and practices outside to help others. This experiential learning and acts of
A Message from
continued on page 2
p. 2
p. 18
p. 2Middle School Admissions Data
p. 15Extracurriculars
p. 3from the PTA Co-Presidents
SLTp. 5
p. 9
from Denise Pérez
P.S. 77 The Lower Lab School SUMMER ISSUE June 2015
In this Issue
Announcements
Highlights
Mr. Goldspiel
2
LAB TALK June 2015
kindness will reinforce what the students are learning and practicing here
at school while becoming “agents of change” themselves.
In the book Wonder by R. J. Palacio, the school principal, Mr. Tushman,
often shared many of the messages and expectations that I have always
had for my students, my own two children, and myself. Towards the end
of the book, Mr. Tushman says, “Because it is not enough to be kind. One
should be kinder than needed. Why I love that line, that concept, is that it
reminds me that we carry with us, as human beings, not just the capacity
to be kind, but the very choice of kindness.” I truly believe that we, as a
community, have accomplished this for us and our students.
Have a very safe and enjoyable summer.
Regards,
Michael
From Mr. Goldspiel, continued
MIDDLE SCHOOL ADMISSIONSClass of 2015
87% PUBLIC SCHOOLS
87
Baruch Academic 1 Salk 10 Baruch SP 1 Spruce Street School 1 Clinton 1 Wagner Academic 1 East Side Middle 26 Wagner SP 16Lab Middle 5
District Schools Acceptances
Citywide Acceptances
NEST +m 1
13
13% PRIVATE SCHOOLS
Final Placements
Baruch SP 1 Salk 8 East Side Middle 22 Spruce Street School 1 Lab Middle 5 Wagner Academic 1 NEST +m 1 Wagner SP 14
PUBLIC SCHOOLS
PRIVATE SCHOOLS
Collegiate 1 The Windward School 1Fieldston 1 Trevor 1Marymount 1 UNIS 1 Riverdale 2
Lower Lab School
From the desk of
Ms. PérezDear Lower Lab Families,
It is hard to believe that the school year has come to an end! I hope you
agree with me when I say that this has been a very special and suc-
cessful school year for our children, both academically and socially. As
I reflect on this school year, I am filled with great pride at our students’
immense desire to serve and give back to our school community, and so
I wish to share with you a little about some of our volunteering programs
and new initiatives.
Peer Mediation
For nearly a decade, the Peer Mediation program has proven to be a
cornerstone in our school, serving to provide our students with the tools
necessary to resolve conflicts peacefully. This year the program consist-
ed of 36 Peer Mediators who were trained by our Peer Mediation Parent
Coaches on social-emotional coping strategies that will help children
manage feelings of anxiety and training sessions focused on active
listening, perspective-taking, and anxiety-taming techniques. During the
perspective-taking session students completed an exercise called “The
Robbery Report,” which involved mediators re-telling the same story sev-
eral times to see how it would change. In the Anxiety Taming Technique
session, our mediators learned of four-distinct techniques that could be
utilized with disputants to help calm them down during mediation or any
situation. We are thankful for the commitment of our Peer Mediators
and PM Parent Coaches* who diligently volunteered their energy and
talents to bring these unique opportunities to our student body.
*PM Parent Coaches: Debbie Fuchs, Elizabeth Hoseman, Lauren Levy,
Leslie Mora and Susan Wong
3
LAB TALK June 2015
From Ms. Pérez, continued
Literacy Leaders
This year, our 5th graders developed and partici-
pated in a new initiative we refer to as the Litera-
cy Leaders Program. Twice a week, approximately
20 5th graders visited K-2nd grade classrooms
between 11 am and 11:25 am to support with
literacy-based activities. The activities ranged
from conducting a whole-class read aloud,
reading with a student or group of students, to
re-organizing a classroom library. The benefits
of this program are multi-faceted, as it provided
the 5th graders with the unique opportunity to
deepen their own leadership and literacy skills.
Meanwhile, our K-2nd grade students benefitted
from the additional small-group reading support,
while developing bonds with our upper grade
students. In addition, from the stories shared by
our volunteers and K-2nd grade teachers it is
evident that this program reinforced the habits
and skills that are necessary to support our
young students grow as readers and writers.
I am thankful to our K-2nd grade teachers for
welcoming our 5th graders into their classrooms,
and to our 5th graders for graciously offering
their time and energy to our younger students in
this nature.
Book Clubs & More…
During the course of this school year, I facilitated
the first ever all-girls book club with 16 3rd grad-
ers. The book club met every Thursday for
a seven-week period during lunch and recess.
As a club, we discussed and analyzed the
themes of creativity and social norms as depict-
ed in Andrew Clement’s popular book Frindle.
Participation in this club served to further enrich
our students’ discussion and questioning skills,
while allowing our 3rd graders an opportunity to
formulate new friendships within the grade. In
the school years to come, I hope to host similar
book clubs with different grade levels as way to
continue to foster the reading and discussion
skills established by our classroom teachers.
In the spirit of supporting our classroom teach-
ers and students with literacy, this school year
Mr. Goldspiel and I worked with three creative
3rd graders to establish a student-run school
newspaper. After much planning, the decision
was made to host the Newspaper Club as an
after-school program offering in the fall. I
encourage our 3rd–5th graders to join the
Newspaper Club to learn about the process of
publishing a news blog, while helping to report
the happenings in our school and the world. This
after-school Newspaper Club will be led by a
Teacher Assistant, with my support as
editor-in-chief and advisor.
As I reflect on the success of these initiatives
and programs, as well as other significant
programs in our school (e.g., Morning Greeters
and Classroom Monitors), I continue to be
amazed by our students’ dedication to making
our school a better, warmer place. More signifi-
cantly, you should know that I feel really grateful
for the opportunity to closely collaborate with
our children.
Thank you for your incredible support this school
year; I wish you all a happy and restful summer
with plenty of time to reconnect with loved ones.
I look forward to seeing you in September!
Denise
PTA UpdatesClass trips, publishing parties, music assemblies, celebrations and the science fair gave us lots of reasons to be at school over the past few weeks!
It was great to see how much work the children did this year and how much they’ve grown. The PTA has also done a lot of work over the past few weeks.
We approved our budget and elected new board members who will take their roles effective July 1. We welcome two new Co-Presidents, Joelle Soleymani
and Amy Gillston, and the many other new board members who will work together to maintain the programs we currently support and help us grow even
more. We thank everyone who has served over the 2014/2015 school year on the executive board. The programs the PTA support would not be as
successful if it wasn’t for the entire community’s participation. It is truly a major accomplishment for our PTA to be able to do what it does considering
the size of our school and we have all of the families to thank for that. The PTA has budgeted to spend approximately $1,500 per child during the 2015-
2016 school year which includes the following: our music teachers, physical education teacher, teaching assistants, professional development for our
amazing teachers, our Latin program, recess supplies, track team, classroom supplies, the copy machine in the office, all of our wonderful enrichment
programs (including Chess, Architecture, Debate and Wingspan), and much more! The budget is ambitious, but based upon what we accomplished
together this year and with your continued support, we should be able to meet our goals.
Congratulations to our graduating 5th graders and their parents. For those “graduating” parents, thank you for all that you have done for Lab and the
PTA during your years here. With your generosity, both financially and with your time, you have helped to make Lab the amazing school that it is! Finally,
as Danielle and Jen prepare to end their tenure as PTA Co-Presidents, we want you to know what a privilege it has been to be your Co-Presidents and
how grateful we are to have served such a wonderful community!
We wish everyone a wonderful summer and we will see you in September! Many thanks,
Jennifer Klein, Danielle Resk, and Len Silverman
4
LAB TALK June 2015
thank youthank you
5
LAB TALK June 2015
SLTDear Members of the PS77 Community,
As the school year winds down, we wanted to
update you on some initiatives that the School
Leadership Team (SLT) has been working on
this year. As background, the Lower Lab School
Leadership Team (SLT) is a 12-person committee
made up of an equal number of parents and
teachers and the Principal. The group is advisory
in nature and is dedicated to the evaluation and
enhancement of our school’s programs and their
effects on student achievement.
CEP Goals
The primary purpose of the SLT is to assist
the Principal in developing and implementing
the CEP (Comprehensive Education Plan). The
CEP is a one-year plan that guides schoolwide
planning and development and, as mandatedby
the DOE, must be updated each year. Although
it is a one-year plan, it often takes several years
to accomplish the goals and therefore the goals
are often carried over and tweaked each year to
facilitate their accomplishment.
This year’s CEP goals and how they were
developed are as follows:
1. By June 2015, 50% of teachers will have
facilitated a professional learning event for their
colleagues. This is a continuation of last year’s
goal to improve teacher engagement by allow-
ing for opportunities for collaboration among
colleagues. Teachers attended professionalde-
velopment sessions outside of school offered by
various groups, including Metamorphosis (math),
Teachers College Reading and Writing Program,
etc. and have the unique opportunity to share
their key “take-aways” with colleagues.
2. By June 2015, at least 75% of teachers will
engage in using a variety of formative assess-
ments in the classroom that are aligned to the
CCLS to monitor student learning, provide feed-
back to students, and promote self-assessment.
This is a continuation of last year’s goal to im-
prove the use of assessment of instruction and
reporting on student achievement. The Report
Card was aligned with the Common Core and
the companion and student exemplars were
provided so that parents would have a better
understanding of the varying gradation of
student work required to reach certain achieve-
ment levels at our school. Students also
engaged in self and peer assessments through
student-friendly rubrics and checklists with
accompanying models.
3. Build student media literacy skills through
the integration of skills in 50% of classrooms
through projects and/or daily activities. This
was a new goal which will be continued as we
develop more technology. One of the things we
did this year was to provide a media responsibil-
ity program for parents and 4th and 5th grade
students which was run by the NYU Child Study
Center. The goal next year is to have the program
earlier in the year in smaller groups for the
students (with the possibility of expanding it to
3rd grade as well).
4. By addressing social-emotional growth, we will
decrease our number of suspensions and class-
room removals by 25 % by June 2015. The whole
school community will foster social-emotional
learning, with an emphasis on self-restraint and
self-awareness and coping with frustration and
worry to create an environment where all
teachers, students, and staff feel nurtured and
safe. This goal was to be achieved through fifth
grade advisory groups, the anti-bullying curric-
ulum, peer mediation and the development of
other curriculum dealing with frustration, worry
and anger.
Enrichment Programs
To assess this year’s enrichment programs,
teachers on the SLT spoke with their colleagues
in each grade to determine their satisfaction
with the current enrichments and any additional
areas of interest. We were particularly focused
on the new programs, including the Suzanne
LeFleur author program and having NDI
National Dance Institute) and debate in 5th
grade. By and large, the teachers were very
happy with the current programs. We agreed to
continue all the current enrichment programs
except that typing, although still given in third
grade, will use a different program piloted this
year and there will be passwords given to
students in grades 4 and 5 to continue to use
on their own. Therefore, the enrichment
programs for the 2015/2016 are anticipated to
be as follows:
Kindergarten Chess, Spanish
1st Grade Center for Architecture,
Spanish
2nd Grade Salvadori, NDI, Spanish
3rd Grade Symphony Space, Writing
Program with Suzanne
LeFleur, Latin and Typing
4th Grade Wingspan, Latin
5th Grade Debate, Latin, NDI
In addition, we are still exploring various
resiliency programs to be piloted next year,
likely in 4th grade.
6
LAB TALK June 2015
Student Report Card Reform
One of the goals of the SLT this year was to
finalize the use of a report card that was aligned
with the Common Core and that would provide
more information to parents about the level of
student work assigned to certain achievement
levels specific to Lower Lab. The school issued
the standard report card issued by the Depart-
ment of Education (using STARS Classroom
web-based system) as well as a supplement to
the standard report card to provide more
information. The supplement offers details about
the Lower Lab-specific curriculum content and
achievement standards for our students as well
as behavioral measures. This year the supple-
ment was distributed at the end of March. Next
year the goal is to distribute the supplement
prior to the March parent-teacher conference
so that parents (and teachers) have more
information as a basis for discussion at the
conferences. The supplement will also be
distributed at the end of the school year in June
so that parents can see the progress made over
the course of the year.
Technology Upgrade
An SLT goal this year was to begin the process
of improving technology at Lower Lab. Lower Lab
submitted two grant proposals for Resolution
A grants to New York City Council Member Ben
Kallos. Resolution “A” (Reso “A”) projects are
school specific capital improvement or enhance-
ment projects that are funded through individual
grants which are allocated by the Borough
Presidents or members of the New York City
Council. The current plan is to create a media
center in room 235 that would house approxi-
mately 32 iMacs and to upgrade the rolling carts
to be used in the classroom as well. The long-
term goal is to develop curriculum using
computer technology, including using the
computers for class projects (such as in Word
or Excel), instruction on the use of various
programs such as the creation of word docu-
ments and power point, teaching computer
safety, general computer literacy and even
possibly teaching coding.
Lower Lab has an excellent reputation (which
was evidenced by the results of the quality
review process that took place this year) and it is
important that we continue to maintain that
reputation by not only meeting the Common Core
standards, but looking to exceed them while
engaging the students in an enriching
environment. As always, we will continue to
search for more and better ways to enrich our
children’s lives while continuing to focus on
providing them with an excellent education.
If you have any questions or input, please feel
free to contact any of us. We wish everyone
a wonderful summer!
From Ms. Pérez, continued
The School Leadership Team
YAEL LIEBERMAN
Upper Grade Parent Representative
KRISTIN BRODERICK
Lower Grade Teacher Representative
DANIELLE RESK
PTA Co-President, Parent Representative
STEPHANIE GOODMAN KAHN
Upper Grade Parent Representative,
Chairperson
DENISE GREENE
Lower Grade Parent Representative
LINDSEY KUBERA
Special Education Teacher Representative
MICHELLE LISS
UFT Representative
TAMMY BIEBER
Special Education Parent Representative
ERSZI KARKUS
Lower Grade Parent Representative
DONNA SEFERIAN
Upper Grade Teacher Representative
SARAH MORAN
Specialist Teacher Representative
MICHAEL GOLDSPIEL
Principal
Remember this, one Fall Fair ago?
Sure, I ended up drinking a considerable
amount of water; however the energy and
caring from students and parents alike at this
event were contagious.
- Mr. Goldspiel
“ ”
7
LAB TALK June 2015
Best Wishes to the Class of 2015
and to our
graduating peer mediator coaches
8
LAB TALK June 2015
2015-16 Budget
NOTE: Student Enhancements include our Computer Consultant, Social/Emotional Learning Programs, Science Lab Funds, Recess Supplies, Peer Mediation, Yearbook, School Teams, Class Trip Scholarships, Graduation Funds and Health Safety Programs
Assistant Teachers, $240,000, 48%
Enrichment Programs, $70,000, 14%
Music Teacher/Foreign Language, $60,000,
12%
Teacher Development/Supplies,
$55,000, 11%
Student Enhancements, $41,900, 8%
Principal/PTA Support Funds, $15,000, 3%
Administrative Support, $21,700, 4%
Assistant Teachers
Enrichment Programs
Music Teacher/ForeignLanguageTeacherDevelopment/SuppliesStudent Enhancements
Principal/PTA SupportFundsAdministrative Support
NOTE: Student Enhancements include our Computer Consultant, Social/Emotional Learning Programs, Science Lab Funds, Recess Supplies, Peer Mediation, Yearbook, School Teams, Class Trip Scholarships, Graduation Funds and Health Safety Programs
Assistant Teachers, $240,000, 48%
Enrichment Programs, $70,000, 14%
Music Teacher/Foreign Language, $60,000,
12%
Teacher Development/Supplies,
$55,000, 11%
Student Enhancements, $41,900, 8%
Principal/PTA Support Funds, $15,000, 3%
Administrative Support, $21,700, 4%
Assistant Teachers
Enrichment Programs
Music Teacher/ForeignLanguageTeacherDevelopment/SuppliesStudent Enhancements
Principal/PTA SupportFundsAdministrative Support
Congratulations, Kristin!On behalf of the the entire Lower Lab community,
a very special congratulations to
Kristin Broderick who celebrated her 20th year at Lower Lab this year!
The impact that Kristin has made on countless first graders, their families and her colleagues
over the past two decades is truly inspiring and immeasurable. We are all so lucky to have an outstanding educator
in our midst, who gives the best hugs and happens to throw the best Dance Parties!
Congratulations, Kristin, and thank you for the past 20 years! Here’s to at least 20 more!
9
LAB TALK June 2015
5th Grade Activities
Highlights
10
LAB TALK June 2015
Highlights
11
LAB TALK June 2015
12
LAB TALK June 2015
Poem in Your Pocket, 30 April 2015
AlonEby Maya LevanonI am alone
Amongst the raucous crowd
Swirling around me in a maddened whirlpool
Confused yells and the dark feeling of anxiety fill around me
But they don’t touch me
Worried looks on people’s faces
Their eyebrows drawn up
The tip of their ears are crimson
And their foreheads dripping with nervous sweat
But there I am alone
13
LAB TALK June 2015
Highlights
Poem in your Pocket Day at Bryant Park. Schools from all over NYC participated and Lower Lab presented six poems this year!
14
LAB TALK June 2015
Highlights
IMPACT DAY at Lower
Lab is a fixture the first friday of
June and we appreciate all the
volunteers who acted as
chaperones/crossing guards
keeping our students safe.
Thank you to Deloitte for your
generous donation!
Deloitte is the reason we were able to supply all the students with brightly colored 2015 Field Day T-Shirts! Funds also went to purchasing team bracelets, equipment for the games and first aid supplies. Mr. Goodman planned an amazing array of activities! Thank you to all the parents who came to the East Meadow.
The best thing to do in the rain is smile.
Field Day on or not?
15
LAB TALK June 2015
Chess TeamExtracurricular Activities
It has been a remarkable year for Lower Lab Chess!
A year ago, only two Lower Lab students competed in the State Championship in Saratoga Springs.
This year, we returned with a team of 11 students who braved frigid temperatures and snow storms
to compete in this two-day event. In January, 17 Lower Lab players competed in the citywide
Championship in Brooklyn. Each of these events was attended by close to 1,000 chess players
from hundreds of schools. Finally, nine of our students went to the 2015 National Elementary K-6
Championship in Nashville, TN, and participated among over 2,000 elementary school students
from around the country.
The results of our Lower Lab chess team from all of these events were impressive and the experi-
ences were extraordinarily memorable. In all, the Lower Lab chess team has competed in 14 chess
tournaments from October through May of this school year, achieving multiple individual top honors
and team victories. Our team has also generated quite a buzz in the scholastic chess community
given the rapid growth and achievements of our team in the past year.
Team plaques and trophies are displayed in the Lower Lab trophy case outside of the school
auditorium so please stop by to take a look!
Led by our dedicated parents and wonderful coaches, our chess team has gone through a full
season of learning and competition. Every chess player has made great strides in their chess skills
and has had moments of incredible personal achievement in addition to the team accolades listed
above. However, what is most notable is the camaraderie and sense of teamwork these kids have
developed as they cheered each other on at these tournaments. Players made friends in different
grades as they came together as a team. And despite the competitive nature of the game, they were
also able to form great friendships with players from other schools.
Chess is a game that requires concentration, analytical thinking, and discipline, and it can also be
a lot of fun! We are calling all Lower Lab students who have any interest to come play chess with
us. Each tournament has sections for beginners up to masters and students of all skill levels are
welcome. In the past year, we have had many new students join us at tournaments and team events.
Please contact us at our new email address [email protected] or look for the Lower Lab
chess newsletters for updates on chess news and activities. We hope Lower Lab Chess will keep
going and growing!
Chess Team Achievements2015 National Elementary K–6 Championship (May 2015, Nashville, TN)
• K-3 U 800 – 2nd place
2015 New York State Scholastic Championships (February 2015, Saratoga Springs, NY)
• Primary Reserve – 3rd place
2015 Greater New York Scholastic Chess Championships (January 2015, Brooklyn, NY)
• Primary U1000 – 2nd place
• Primary U400 – 8st place
• K-1 U500 – 4th place
NEST+m Chess Tournament (May 2015)
• Classic – 3rd place
• Reserve – 1st place
• Primary – 1st place
• Novice 1 – 1st place
Avenues Chess Tournament (April 2015)
• Primary K-3 U600 – 2nd place
• Boosters K-8 U800 – 2nd place
NEST+m Chess Tournament (March 2015)
• Classic – 1st place
• Primary – 1st place
• Booster – 1st place
PS 6 Chess Tournament (February 2015)
• U400 – 1st place
• U700 – 1st place
MLK Jr. Day Tournament (January 2015)
• EL Rookie Section – Tied 1st place
16
LAB TALK June 2015
Mighty Milers & Track
It was another successful year for Lower Lab School’s Mighty Milers running club and Track & Field
team. Our Mighty Milers running club, 1st–3rd grade, had a total of 59 students that participated in
the program. Over a course of 28 sessions, our team accumulated a total of 1,430 miles by running
laps in practice. Every student on the team ran enough total miles to earn prizes for the half marathon
and full marathon. We also had a strong group of parent volunteers that assisted us with keeping
attendance and running with the students. The Track and Field team (4th and 5th grade) had a total
of 50 students that participated in both the practices and meets. As a team, we had several notewor-
thy performances in the track meets such as the boys relay team which won its heat in the meet at
George Washington High School. All of our students have shown tremendous improvement in both
their running technique, speed and endurance in practice and at the meets. To conclude the season,
16 of our students will compete in the all-city championships at Icahn Stadium in Randall’s Island. Our
TA Sean Rochlani as well as parent volunteers Mina McKiernan, Jane Kim, Deborah Goldberg, Leslie
Hanson, William Resk and Justin Soodek have done an outstanding job assisting Mr.Goodman with the
programs. We look forward to seeing more students join these teams next year.
17
LAB TALK June 2015
School Wellness Council (SWC)Our School Wellness Council, led by a group
of parents and staff, has achieved a variety of
health and wellness goals in its first year of
existence. We’ve collaborated with the PS 198
PTA to change to an alternative lunch menu,
which provides students with healthier lunch
options. We’ve formed a partnership with WITS
(Wellness in the Schools). WITS provided our
school community with a free family fitness
fun night, which was held at East Side Middle
School. This event allowed our families to
participate in Zumba, Yoga, Soccer and Martial
Arts classes. Through family donations at this
event, we were able to hire Simply Sports, a
company that has recently begun to provide
our students with the option to participate in
organized recess activities such as dodge ball
and Capture the Flag on Fridays. Finally, we
partnered with the Office of School Wellness to
bring the MTI (Move-To-Improve) program to our
school. MTI is a program that trains classroom
teachers to lead students in fitness breaks in
the classroom.
Our school was one of only nine schools
selected to participate in the MTI All-Star Focus
school program, which is committed to using
MTI during classroom instruction as a way to
support comprehensive PE programs for all
students. Finally, several members of our School
Wellness Council have assisted Mr. Goodman
with the management of both the Mighty Milers
running club (1st–3rd grade) and the Track &
Field team (4th and 5th grade).
If you are interested in learning more about the
SWC or joining the committee, please contact
Michael Goodman.
18
LAB TALK June 2015
Announcements
Have a wonderful and safe
summer vacation!After-School Programs Fall 2015
JUNE 8th, 2015 – 2 Page Quick Reference -‐ Abreviated!
This information including dates, schedules, policies and procedures is subject to change. READ full 9 page JUNE BROCHURE before registering!
Lower Lab After School Program
Come play with us this Fall! Plan your play dates at school! The Lower Lab Afterschool Program is organized by parent volunteers on behalf of the Lower Lab PTA. We can be reached at [email protected]. All About After School The Afterschool Program is available to students enrolled at PS 77, The Lower Lab School. The program begins at 2:35pm and all classes meet once a week. Students will be dismissed to the auditorium, where they will be supervised while they have a snack, relax, chat with friends, read or do homework. Classes generally begin at 3pm and run until ending time listed. Some classes are held off-‐site (Ice Skating and Gaga). Extended Care is offered for an additional fee until 5pm for classes that end earlier. Children must be picked up at school when the class ends. There is no busing home from afterschool. On-‐Site Supervision On-‐site supervision is provided by Lower Lab Teacher Assistants who work with your children during the school day in the classrooms. Alyson Murphy will be returning in the fall and continue to work with us as an After School Supervisor. At least 2 additional TAs will also assist her daily. They can be contacted at [email protected] or at 646-‐591-‐9293. Schedule and Holidays The Fall 2015 semester will run from Monday, September 21st through Friday, January 29th. All classes exclude school holidays on the NYC DOE calendar and half days (i.e. teacher conferences). The days with no afterschool are listed in the full June brochure, and will be updated again in August to reflect the most current information from NYC DOE. No classes will also be offered the week of February 1st – 5th. Spring 2016 semester will begin Feb 8th. Registration, Tuition and Fees Registration will be held during the first week of school in September. Exact date/time and link are listed in the Full June brochure. All enrollments will be on a first come first served basis. We suggest you register early as some classes do fill up fast! The full June Brochure also lists additional information on fees, policies, procedures, code of conduct and other important information. Please READ the full version of the brochure before you register!
SEE FULL 9 PAGE JUNE BROCHURE FOR ALL POLICIES, PROCEDURES, FEES AND DETAILS ABOUT OUR PROGRAM! THIS IS MEANT TO BE A QUICK REFERENCE FOR CLASS LISTINGS ONLY.
The Fall 2015 Semester will run from Monday, September 21st through Friday, January 29th.
Registration will be held during the first week of school in September. Exact date/time and link are
listed in the full June brochure. We suggest you register early as some classes do fill up fast! The full
June brochure also lists additional information on fees, policies, procedures, code of conduct and
other important information. Please READ the full version of the brochure before you register!
Lower Lab CaresWe are starting a Lower Lab organization focused on creating opportunities for interested students,
parents and staff to get involved in a wide range of community service-based projects in NYC on
a monthly basis. More details coming in September...
MICHAEL GOLDSPIEL Principal
DENISE PÉREZ Assistant Principal
GINA GOODMAN Parent Coordinator
DANIELLE RESK PTA President
KELLY LIST Editor
HAZEL HOCKE Creative Director
MIRIAM POLLACK Director of Communications and Technology
