Dear OSES Families,

Good luck to our Science Olympiad (S.O.) teams this weekend! We are proud to have three teams representing us in Jacksonville, Florida. Each year, our S.O. teams practice diligently from the start of the school year to prepare for these competitions. We are grateful for the dedication shown by every student, parent, and coach who contribute their time to this remarkable program.

The competition emphasizes teamwork and exposure rather than solely focusing on winning. Students involved in the S.O. program gain hands-on experience with STEM concepts, offering learning opportunities beyond the traditional classroom setting. Our S.O. program continues through 12th grade, providing an impressive extracurricular activity to include when applying to colleges.

If you’re interested in joining the S.O. next year, be sure to attend our parent information night—date to be determined. Go Orcas!

Sincerely,

Michael Singleton

My name is Shrika Velagapudi, I'm a junior at Orlando Science High School. I took up creative writing as a hobby this past summer, and recently had the wonderful opportunity to publish a nonfiction children’s book about 10 remarkable female scientists from around the globe who broke barriers and accomplished great feats in STEM. Traveling to India every summer, I was devastated to learn how many girls shared my same aspirations and dreams, but simply didn't have the resources or opportunities to bring them to fruition. This drove me to play my part as an advocate for STEM learning and overcoming systemic barriers: 100% of the profits made from my book, "STEMpowering Women", go to funding tech access and education for the millions of Indian girls living in poverty and denied opportunities.

"STEMpowering Women" is a compilation of varying women's journeys to success in the fields of STEM, as they conquer countless challenges and obstacles to prove the world wrong. Mentioned throughout this colorful, inspirational children's book are the tales and accomplishments of women scientists from all over the globe, such as Sally Ride, Antonia Novello, Marie Curie, and more. The aim of this book is to inspire young children, especially girls between the ages of 4 and 10, to take up careers in the field of STEM, and break gender barriers in this male-dominated area.

Due to supply issues at the OCPS level, we do not know if hot or cold lunch will be served. Please be prepared to have either lunch until further notice.

Breakfast and Lunch will be FREE for the 2024-2025 school year

If your child has food allergies and will require a special meal from OCPS please click on the link below to fill out the special diet order form

Special Diets for Food Allergies - Orange County Public Schools (ocps.net)

Today, we celebrated the K-6 class winners of our March Madness Fluency Challenge, and it was a GLOWING success!

Please review the schedule below for the upcoming FAST and Star assessment dates. If you have any questions, feel free to contact Ms. Carter at Cayce.Carter@orlandoscience.org.

Dear Orlando Science Elementary School Parents,

Please join me in congratulating our talented OSES Mathletes for showcasing their exceptional math skills at the Mathleague.org Elementary Orlando District Competition, held this past weekend at Carillon Elementary School.

We are proud to recognize the following students for their outstanding individual achievements. In total, 14 OSES students have qualified to compete at the Mathleague.org Elementary Florida State Competition, which will take place on Saturday, April 27th at Lake Whitney Elementary School in Winter Garden. We wish them the very best of luck as they prepare to represent OSS at the state level!

3rd Grade:

• Aadit Dixit – 2nd Place
• Lathish Saravana Kumar Divya Sundari – 3rd Place
• Aadhavan Parthiban – 4th Place
• Aarav Jindal – 5th Place

4th Grade:

• Akshat Singh – 6th Place

5th Grade:

• Sahil Parikh – 2nd Place
• Dhruv Tejomurthula – 3rd Place
• Vidwan Bathula – 4th Place
• Serena Lansel – 5th Place

6th Grade:

• Sadajit Swain – 1st Place
• Sahas Devathi – 2nd Place
• Pranil Bhowmik – 3rd Place

We would also like to extend our heartfelt congratulations to all participating students for their hard work, enthusiasm, and love of mathematics. Their dedication and performance are a testament to their bright futures.

This week in Kindergarten we have been hard at work on our Phonemic Awareness and Phonics skills. Students enjoyed using Pop Its to break apart words and using chart paper in WIN to make a collaborative poster of words containing r and r blends.

We have also been enjoying learning about money with our Lemonade Stand dramatic play center!

We are looking forward to an exciting end of the year, with our upcoming field trip to Legoland, followed by our first annual Kindy 500 and 2nd annual Kinder Carnival in May!

Exciting News from Ms. Nickerson's Class!

Ms. Nickerson's class was thrilled to celebrate their March Math Madness win with a spectacular Glow Party organized by our Academic Team. The students' hard work is truly paying off as we approach the end of the school year.

Important Reminder for First Grade Parents: Our iFLY Field Trip is next week! Please ensure students leave their backpacks at home and bring a disposable lunch to enjoy at the venue. This promises to be an exhilarating STEM experience for all!

As we near the end of the school year, don't forget to reach out to your student's teacher for additional resources to help them prepare and review for end-of-year testing.

In Science, Mrs. Yeaman's class has been thrilled to learn about animals and their fascinating life cycles. Last week, the 2nd graders had an amazing time on a fun Field Trip to SeaWorld. They enthusiastically explored and learned about animals and their unique habitats. This week, we are bringing our exciting learning experiences back into the classroom. Students have selected an animal to research and are now in the process of transforming their research into creative 3D models. They are enthusiastically collaborating to bring their models to life. We will be proudly sharing our models with the class next week.

Dear 3rd grade families,

This week we’re reviewing our year in math and reading to get ready for the may 1st and May 6th tests in ELA and math. In reading we’re reviewing through the whole year, focused on central idea, comparing and contrasting

We’re learning about fractions and making equivalent fractions. We’re also about to start telling time. Science and social studies are things we’re reading about. Don’t forget the Travel fair is the 16th and floats are due. Also please send in those permission slips for our trip to Marine Science Center after testing. Slips are due the 21st of April.

Dear Parents and Guardians,

This week in our ELA class, students delved into Seeds of Change, the inspiring story of Wangari Maathai. Through our discussions, we explored how the events in her life shaped her into a leader and changemaker. This story encouraged students to think critically about perseverance, environmental responsibility, and the power of individual action.

In Social Studies, we examined the rich contributions of diverse ethnic communities to the history and culture of Florida—both past and present. Our studies highlighted the impact of Native American, Latin American, Asian American, and African American communities in shaping the state’s identity, traditions, and progress. Students reflected on how these cultural influences continue to enrich our lives today.

We encourage families to continue these conversations at home! Ask your child about Wangari’s journey and discuss how different communities have contributed to Florida’s vibrant history.

Thank you for your support,

Mr. Mateer

Sixth grade Life Science has been both fascinating & frightening! As we focused on Human Body Systems, students worked together to study the digestive system in a lab. They did an improvisation of how the body uses physical & chemical digestion to chew & digest food, grab nutrients, and produce waste. In addition, we wrapped up the Human Body Systems unit by dissecting Bull Frogs. Students were able to see the structures and functions of the body that we had studied in this hands-on lab. Currently, students are focusing on Classification, Evolution, and Ecology. They selected a specific Biome that they will research, organize l, and share a (4) part project in small groups. They will create a detailed Food Web Poster, a 3D Ecological Pyramid showcasing the Biome Ecosystem, a Digital Book presenting classification, adaptations, keystone species, biodiversity assessment, biome characteristics, abiotic/ biotic factors, endangered/ threatened species, global distribution, limiting factors, along with symbiotic relationships. The book will also feature images, graphs, charts, and maps. The grand finale is creating a minute golf hole inspired by the biome. It must be visually engaging, functional, and contain challenges for the golfer. The best part is that students will set up a miniature golf course on the outside pavilion with their class. Students will have the opportunity to golf the entire course that they created. It's always a win when students enjoy what they are studying and have the opportunity to be creative together! In STEM Earth & Space, students are creating Recycled, Sustainable, Futuristic Cities. It is built entirely out of recycled items and must showcase how they will sustain sources of food, water, energy, waste, housing, transportation. In addition, it must include at least (1) futuristic component. Builds should be complete just in time for Earth Day!

Thursday, March 27th, Sadajit S earned third place in his category INTELLIGENT MACHINES, ROBOTICS, & SYSTEMS SOFTWARE at the Florida State Science Fair in Lakeland, Florida. In addition, Sadajit was recognized with a special award for his project idea from Nasa Kennedy Space Center & received a certificate. His project was Designing a STREAM Machine Learning Tool for Predicting Water Quality for Various Water Bodies. Congratulations Sadajit for all of your hard work on this award-winning project at State!

In order to help keep our families informed of the latest legislative updates regarding their student's education, a Parent Rights Resources page has been added to the school website.

Recent updates include:

• Internet Safety
• District Health Care Services
• Special Magistrate

The mission of Orlando Science Elementary School (OSES) is to provide a well-rounded education with special emphasis in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM), while using research-based and innovative instructional methods in a stimulating learning environment. OSES is committed to the social-emotional learning and character development of all students.