A Message From Mrs. O'Shaughnessy
I hope everyone had a wonderful week. It was a busy one here at PS 88Q, but that is just how we like it!
This week, our Superintendent, Teresa Caccavale visited our school with Deputy Chancellor Ahmeds Team. Their focus was our early childhood department, but while they were here, we showed them all the things we are proud of! It was a wonderful visit, and our 3k and Prek Team shined! As they visited classrooms, and saw our kiddos in action, they were beyond pleased. Led by Ms. Diercks, the Chief Executive of Early Childhood, they spent most of the day observing, taking pictures and discussing how authentic and child centered our program is. We are so proud of the purpose and the work of early childhood. With 82 students between age 2 and 4, our early childhood program has grown drastically.
Something else we are very proud of is PS 88Q's performance in the NYS ELA and Math tests. The culture we build around standardized testing is very specific, WE NEVER TEACH TO THE TEST, BUT RATHER TEACH TO THE CHILD. Our approach to learning, digging deeper into how students learn, and increasing critical thinking skills has been our over arching strategy. Our overall proficiency in ELA and Math is the highest it has ever been, EVER! This is due to the hard work of all staff and families to create explicit learning, connect learning to home, and the ever present growth mindset in all classes. Families received their child's score in September. Students in all grades have taken their beginning of year assessments, and we are using this information to best teach each child. WE WILL EVEN DO BETTER THIS YEAR!!
This week we also had our first assembly. We are planning for many performances this year; some from our students and some from outside performers. Gathering together is important for many reasons. Ms. Canales and I talked about voice levels in large spaces. We practiced by using different levels for our affirmations: I can do hard things. I learn from my mistakes. I can reach my goals. We then watched the video below. Well, the first assembly did....and then technology problems reared its ugly head. The rain seemed to knock out the wifi. Ugh!!! Classes watched in their classrooms instead. Watch below to see the first 6 weeks! So fun!
Have a great week!
