Technology Campus Chronicle

Dear OSES Families,

Celebrate Literacy Week, Florida! is almost here, and we are excited to join this statewide initiative from January 27 to January 31, 2025. This week is dedicated to raising awareness about the importance of reading and inspiring students and families to make reading a part of their daily routines.

Literacy is the foundation for all learning, and by fostering a love for reading, we help our students build the skills they need for success in school and beyond. Celebrate Literacy Week provides an excellent opportunity for us to come together as a community and emphasize the value of literacy in our lives.

Make sure that you have completed the consent form for your student(s) to be able to participate!

One of the highlights of the week will be our Book Character Parade on Thursday, January 30. Students are encouraged to come dressed as their favorite book characters and participate in a fun and festive parade. More information about this exciting event will be shared soon, so stay tuned!

Let's make this Literacy Week a memorable one by celebrating the joy of reading together! 📚✨

Michael Singleton

Principal

Dear OSS families,

Orlando Science Technology Campus (K-6) will be offering Saturday Leadership Academy for 3rd-6th grade students who would benefit from additional practice to master grade-level standards.

On each of the designated Saturdays listed in the link below, students will have a chance to get more in-depth, instruction with standards they are struggling with and take several practice tests/quizzes in preparation for the end of year FAST.

Based on the data from previous sessions, students who attended SLA experienced significant improvements in the end of year state exams. We believe that the additional support and tailored learning opportunities offered during SLA contribute to academic success.

Important Details:

• All students must have a completed waiver to attend, linked below.

• Instruction is from 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM.

• Drop off starts at 8:30 AM and students MUST be picked up at 12:00 PM (no later than 12:30 PM).

• Drop of and pick up location is building 2 cafeteria.

• Limited spots are available on a first-come, first-served basis.
• Sign up only for the days your child can attend to ensure active participation.

• Two or more absences will lead to removal from the program.

How to Sign Up:

• Follow the link [Saturday Leadership Academy Sign Up] to register your child for SLA.

• Submission of a signed waiver, Saturday Leadership Academy Waiver, is mandatory before attending SLA.

• For any questions or assistance, feel free to reach out to Ms. Greene, Alicia.greene@orlandoscience.org.

Art Contest (Grades K-3):

• Eligibility: Open to all K-3 students in Florida.
• Theme: Celebrating Florida’s African American Heroes and Their Contributions to Freedom.
• Submission Guidelines:
• Entries must be mailed to Volunteer Florida: Black History Month Committee, 1545 Raymond Diehl Road, Suite 250, Tallahassee, FL 32308.
• All entries must be received no later than 5:00 p.m. ET on Monday, February 3, 2025.
• Emailed, scanned, or faxed entries will not be accepted.
• Contestants are responsible for all shipping costs.
• Awards: Four statewide winners will each receive a $100 school supplies gift card and a one-year pass to Florida State Parks.

Essay Contest (Grades 4-5 and 6-8):

• Eligibility: Open to all Florida students in grades 4-8, including public, charter, private, home, or virtual schools.
• Theme: Celebrating Florida’s African American Heroes and Their Contributions to Freedom.
• Submission Guidelines:
• Essays should be no longer than 500 words, written in English, and typed.
• Each student may submit only one essay.
• Entries can be mailed to the address above or submitted electronically through the online submission form.
• All entries must be received no later than 5:00 p.m. ET on Monday, February 3, 2025.
• Emailed, scanned, or faxed entries will not be accepted.
• Contestants are responsible for all shipping costs.

• Awards: Six winners will be selected: two elementary school students (grades 4-5), two middle school students (grades 6-8), and two high school students (grades 9-12). Each winner will receive a 2-Year Florida College Plan scholarship provided by the Florida Prepaid College Foundation and a $100 gift card for school supplies.

Excellence in Education Award Contest (Educators):

• Eligibility: Open to any full-time educator working in an elementary, middle, or high school in Florida, including public, charter, private, homeschool, and virtual schools.
• Nomination Process:
• Nominations may be submitted by a principal, teacher, parent/guardian, or student.
• Entries can be mailed to Volunteer Florida: Black History Month Committee, 1545 Raymond Diehl Road, Suite 250, Tallahassee, FL 32308, or submitted electronically.
• All entries must be received no later than 5:00 p.m. ET on Monday, February 3, 2025.
• Contestants are responsible for all shipping costs.
• Awards: Four winners will be selected. Each Excellence in Education award winner will receive $2,500 from Volunteer Florida.

For detailed guidelines, entry forms, and additional information, please visit the official website:

https://www.floridablackhistory.com/student-contests/

https://www.floridablackhistory.com/educator-awards/

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)

Assessment AORs for FAST (Star) PM #2 were sent home today for students in Grades K-2. Please review your student’s scores via the Skyward Parent Portal and return the form to your homeroom teacher by Friday, January 31st. If you are having issues locating your score, please follow the steps in the handout below.

Next week is Florida’s Celebrate Literacy Week! The theme is “Constructing the Foundation for Success.” Students will have the opportunity to participate in various activities, including a reading marathon, book character parade, and learning buddies. See the flyer below for specific daily themes.

Please reach out to Ms. Carter (Cayce.Carter@orlandoscience.org) with any questions.

We have so many exciting things happening in Kindergarten!
This week, we have been learning about how Americans celebrate federal holidays, and we are beginning our new science unit about sound. Students enjoyed listening to everyday sounds and guessing what they were, such as lawn mowers and birds chirping. We are all continuing to improve upon our letter formation making small, tall, and fall lowercase letters. Next Week is Literacy Week as well as the 100th Day of School on Wednesday!

This week in First Grade students have been learning about the different American symbols like the Liberty Bell, Washington Monuments, and the American Flag. In Math students are learning the standard and expanded forms of numbers. In Science, students have learned stars are different colors and what those colors mean. We also discussed how stars are not scattered evenly in the sky by experimenting with salt.

Please remember next week we will celebrate our 101st Day of School by dressing as Dalmatians on January 30th and Literacy. Students must have a parent consent form turned in to participate. Field trip forms and fees are due next Friday, January 31st.

As we navigate through another exciting week of learning, we want to take a moment to express our heartfelt appreciation for your continued support and partnership.

This week, our students have accomplished so much, and we are thrilled to share some highlights: Students are grasping essential math concepts with enthusiasm! Students are learning the foundation of multiplication through arrays and skip counting. Start practicing multiplication facts (0,1,2, 5, 10) as classes go head-to-head in March to see who knows their facts. Through hands-on learning experiences, students have been exploring rocks, soil, and natural resources. This has sparked curiosity about the world around them. Students are discovering the importance of various roles in our community and how they contribute to our society. In reading we explored how we can accomplish big things when we have confidence and the right attitude. It's inspiring to see our students embrace these qualities!

A few reminders:

• Please remember that the field trip form for SeaWorld is due by February 24th.

• Next week is Literacy Week! We can't wait to build a love of reading through our fun themed days.

This week in Mrs. Patel’s class, we dove into fractions in math, and the students are really getting the hang of it. We also wrapped up our poetry unit, where everyone had a chance to explore different types of poems. The kids really enjoyed getting creative with their writing and sharing their work with each other. It was wonderful to see their personalities shine through their poetry!

In Social Studies, we’re continuing to learn about different regions and the unique features that make them special. In Science, we’ve been exploring forms of energy, and the kids are showing a lot of curiosity as we connect these concepts to real-life examples.

Overall, it’s been a busy and exciting week filled with hands-on learning, creativity, and plenty of fun in the classroom!

First of all, the 4th grade team wants to say congratulations once again to all students who earned awards for the first semester. If you were able to make it to the awards ceremony, we hope you had a wonderful time. If not, please look forward to the awards ceremony at the end of the year. Students: keep up exemplifying our ORCA core values and earn even more awards for the second semester!

In class, Mr. Mateer’s ELA students have been working hard this semester (and it shows in our iXL diagnostic scores!) The students took the ELA iXL diagnostic #2 this week and are showing excellent growth across the board. Don’t forget, no matter where you are as a learner, the goal is always to grow. Besides iXL, we have been working on turning our class into a STEM museum with posters detailing some of the Earth’s most extreme environment. From the Dead Sea to Antarctica, look forward to seeing what the classes have come up with for their exhibits.

Our current module for reading has been about the wonders of the world we live in. Students have had the chance to read and learn about the Mariana Trench, the Grand Canyon, the Aurora Borealis, and more. Ask them what their favorite wonder of the world we live in was.

As a reminder, payment and permission slips for the St. Augustine Field Trip (which takes place on Tuesday, March 11th) are due on Monday, February 3rd. Please be sure to indicate if you are interested in being a chaperone on the form, but do not pay until you are notified by your teacher that you were selected. Also, be sure you are ADDitions approved (even if you were in the past, it’s best to check and confirm your status!)

Thanks to everyone, our students and the support from the families, that is helping to make this year such a productive one.

The 4th Grade Team

Another awesome week in 5th grade has come and gone! We had a wonderful time in reading class learning about the arts and artists that created it. One of the artists we focused on was Rita Moreno who changed many of the discriminatory practices in Hollywood. We used out Fab Four reading strategies of prediction, summarizing, clarifying, and questioning to help us comprehend what we are reading. We also practiced the skills of finding the main idea and making inferences. In Social Studies we are learning about the causes of the American Revolution. In Science we are starting our Science Fair Projects and looking for testable questions!
Next week we will be taking our first field trip to the Marine Science Center! Please remember to wear clothes and shoes that can get wet and a change of clothes to change into before coming back on the bus. Make sure the lunch your child brings is disposable, so it is easier to manage.

We are very excited for Literacy Week! Please remember to bring a book on Wednesday so we can have a great Drop Everything and Read Day.

It has been a pleasure getting to know our new classes and students this semester! In Character Education, we’ve been focusing on understanding our rules and expectations, while also practicing active listening. This week, we’ve been honing our collaboration skills, learning how to work through disagreements in group settings. In class, each grade has been engaging in fun and educational activities to build these skills: Kindergarten and 1st grade have been practicing conversation skills; 2nd grade focused on explaining ideas through a drawing activity; 3rd grade challenged themselves to create the longest paper chain; 4th grade worked together to build a creative structure, first without speaking and then without using their dominant hand; and 5th grade used teamwork to save Fred, a gummy worm, using only 4 paper clips. I’m excited for a successful semester ahead with all of our students!

It was a pleasure teaching Spanish students last semester. As we begin the new semester, I’m still getting to know my new group of students, and so far, they’ve been amazing!

Students have been practicing the ABCs and numbers in Spanish, as well as working on short conversational greetings and improving their Spanish pronunciation. This week, they received the SSC rubric for their research project on the Spanish-speaking country they were assigned last Friday; the rubric was explained in class. The SSC Project is due on February 28th and will be a combination of classwork and homework. I encourage students to attend tutoring on Monday for assistance with the project and to improve their Spanish pronunciation.

We also began working on a Comic Strip, where students will draw their favorite characters and write a Spanish conversation they’ve practiced in class.

Please remember to check Google Classroom daily for updates, reminders, and pictures from the board.

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.