Technology Campus Chronicle

Dear OSES Families,

This year has been an extraordinary one for our competition clubs, and we couldn’t be prouder of our students’ achievements!

Our Math Competition Club soared to new heights, with students earning top placements in both the Kangaroo Math and Noetic Learning national competitions. Their hard work, critical thinking, and love for numbers truly paid off!

In Destination Imagination, our creative thinkers wrote and performed original plays that dazzled audiences and judges alike. We were honored to host the state competition right here at our school, showcasing not only our students’ talents but also our vibrant school community.

Our Science Olympiad teams demonstrated their scientific prowess by securing second and third place finishes in this year’s competitions. Their dedication to inquiry, experimentation, and teamwork was truly inspiring.

And in the Florida Lego League, we are thrilled to announce that the Orlando Science Team, the “Optimistic Orcas,” were selected to participate in the prestigious FIRST INSPIRES Innovation Spotlight competition! Their groundbreaking project, the LET 1: Lionfish Eradication Team, impressed judges with its creativity and real-world impact, tackling the invasive lionfish problem with innovation and heart.

We are incredibly proud of all our students and coaches who made this year such a success. These clubs exemplify the spirit of innovation, collaboration, and excellence that defines our school.

Michael Singleton

We are incredibly proud to recognize the outstanding achievements of our young mathletes who received numerous state and national honors in two prestigious math competitions this year!

Math Kangaroo 2025
Congratulations to all the students who participated in the 2025 Math Kangaroo competition at OSS! It was heartwarming to see your enthusiasm and love for mathematics.

We are thrilled to announce that our test center produced:

• 12 National Top 20 Winners
• 4 State Top 3 Winners

Your remarkable performance has made us all proud. Your hard work, dedication, and talent have not only earned you well-deserved recognition but have also inspired your peers and the entire OSS community.

Let’s keep the momentum going! We invite all math enthusiasts to join us again next year.
Mark your calendars: Math Kangaroo 2026 is on March 19, 2026. Registration opens September 15, 2025.

Once again, congratulations to all Math Kangaroo participants and winners — your success is a testament to your perseverance and passion for learning!

Noetic Learning Math Contest (NLMC) – Spring 2025
We are also excited to share the results of the 2025 Spring Noetic Learning Math Contest!

Congratulations to all participants, with special recognition for the following awards:

Team Achievement Plaques
Awarded to the top 10% of teams nationwide. Congratulations to our 5th, 6th, and 7th Grade Teams for earning this distinction!
A special shout-out to our 7th Grade Team for achieving the highest team score in the nation!

Team Winners
Recognizing the highest scorer from each grade level team.

Honor Roll
Awarded to the top 10% of participants in each grade.

Honorable Mention
Awarded to the top 50% of participants in each grade.

A huge thank you to our dedicated club sponsors — Ms. Ramphal, Ms. Jiawan, Ms. Polejes, Mr. Dadoboev, and Ms. Kim — for supervising the contest and supporting our students every step of the way. Your efforts make a lasting impact!

To all our mathletes: your dedication and excellence continue to raise the bar. We celebrate your success and can’t wait to see what you accomplish next!

Also, this summer, we’re offering a Competition Math Summer Camp, designed to sharpen skills and prepare students for upcoming contests.
Spots are filling quickly — be sure to register soon before it's full!

#OSESpride #MathKangaroo2025 #NLMC #MathChampions #STEMexcellence #OrlandoScienceSchools #FutureLeaders

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)

All students present on their testing dates have completed the end-of-year FAST assessments! We are so proud of our students and teachers for their hard work this school year—it certainly shows! If your student was absent, makeups will continue next week. Scores are posted in your Skyward Parent Portal (directions below).

If you are looking for academic summer focuses, check out your local library schedule, or sign up for any of the offerings from our schools, including STEM camp, math camp, and more, listed in our newsletter.

Reach out to Cayce Carter at Cayce.Carter@orlandoscience.org with any questions.

Kindergarten is having so much fun with our 26-day countdown! Each day we have a letter of the day which comes along with a fun craft turning the letter into an animal or object. This week we did P, Q, R, S, and T.

We are thrilled with how hard our students are working on their state progress monitoring tests, and we are so proud of everyone!

We have some great end-of-year events coming up! Monday 5/19 Field Day, Friday 5/23 Kindy 500, and 5/28 Kinder Carnival.

1st Grade News
This week was full of excitement and celebration in 1st grade! Mrs. Quarterman’s and Mrs. Keene’s classes released their butterflies, saying a heartfelt goodbye to a special part of the butterfly life cycle. Meanwhile, Ms. DiNuzzo’s and Mrs. Vancol’s classes released their ladybugs into the world after learning all about their unique and fascinating life cycle.

In addition to our science fun, students have been working hard preparing for the STAR Math test. We’re so proud of their effort and determination!

We are thrilled to share that 90% of our 1st graders are heading to 2nd grade as proficient readers—what an amazing accomplishment! We can’t wait to see the same level of growth and success in math.

This year, you’ve learned so much and grown in so many ways—academically, socially, and as individuals. We are incredibly proud of each and every one of you. Keep shining!

🌟 Special Shout-Out!
We want to send a heartfelt congratulations to Mrs. Quarterman, not only for being an amazing teacher but also a proud mom. Her son, Erik Quarterman, is graduating this week from right across the street at Orlando Science High School. While there, Erik participated in the dual-enrollment program and has also earned his Associate of Arts (AA) degree from Valencia College—all before graduating high school! What an incredible achievement. Congratulations, Erik and the entire Quarterman family—we’re so proud of you!

From the 1st grade Team: Ms. DiNuzzo, Mrs. Vancol, Ms. Keene, Ms. Bayno, Mrs. Quarterman, and Ms. Nickerson

It’s hard to believe we’re already in the final weeks of school! The year has flown by, and we’re so proud of everything our second graders have accomplished. Here’s a peek at what we’ve been up to and a few reminders as we wrap things up.

Math:
We just finished up Topic 14, all about gathering and showing data. The kids learned how to take surveys, make tally charts, and read and create bar graphs. They had a great time surveying each other on favorite snacks, colors, and more—and it was fun seeing them turn their data into graphs. It’s been a hands-on way to apply their math skills in a real-world way!

Science:
We wrapped up Chapter 4 in science, which focused on land and water habitats. Students compared how animals and plants live differently depending on where they are—whether it’s in the desert, a forest, the ocean, or a pond. They had great discussions and were super curious about how living things adapt to survive in different places.

Reading:
We’ve been reviewing author’s purpose—talking about why authors write. Is it to persuade, inform, or entertain? The kids are getting really good at spotting the clues that help them figure it out. This has helped them become more thoughtful readers and even inspired some to try writing their own pieces with a clear purpose!

Social Studies:
In social studies, we’ve been learning about American symbols and how they connect to big ideas like freedom, bravery, and unity. We’ve talked about the flag, the bald eagle, the Statue of Liberty, and more. It’s been a great way for students to understand how these symbols tell a story about our country.

A few important reminders:

• Field Day is coming up on Monday, May 19th. Permission slips are due asap!

• Permission slips for our movie day on Friday, 5/23 and our end-of-year activities are also due asap. We want everyone to be able to join in.

It’s been such a great school year. We’ve seen so much growth from every student, and we’re truly grateful for all your support at home. Thanks for being such an important part of our classroom community.

Mrs. Jiawan

Hello 3rd Grade Families!
We’ve had a fantastic week full of learning, exploring, and fun adventures! Here’s a peek at what we’ve been up to in class:

🐠 Field Trip Fun!

We had an amazing time at the Marine Science Center on Tuesday! The students loved seeing sea turtles, touching marine animals, and learning about ocean life. Thank you to all the chaperones who helped make this trip a success!

📖 Reading

We’ve started an exciting book study on Jake Drake by Andrew Clements! The students are enjoying Jake’s funny and relatable stories. We are working on identifying character traits, making predictions, and finding evidence in the text. Ask your child what Jake has been up to this week!

➕ Math

Our mathematicians are stepping up to 4th and 5th grade concepts! We’ve been stretching our brains with challenging problems and reviewing key skills to get ready for next year. Keep practicing those math facts at home!

🧪 Science

This week we explored the force of gravity! We learned how gravity keeps us on the ground and affects everything that moves. Students had fun with simple experiments to see gravity in action.

🌎 Social Studies

We’re reviewing the 50 states and learning what makes a community special. We discussed different types of communities (rural, suburban, and urban) and what people need to live and work together.

Thanks for being such a great part of our 3rd-grade journey!

Hey Fourth Grade Families!

We are finally closing in on the end of this year, and that comes with so many different emotions. Summer is right around the corner, and students (and teachers) are excited about the upcoming time to rest and recharge. However, that doesn’t mean we’re done learning just yet! At Orlando Science, we like to always be taking steps forward in our education, even if we’re having a bit of fun doing it.

This week, 4th grade got to create personal passion presentations to share with the other students. Everyone was encouraged to create a project to show off something they are knowledgeable about or just plain love and wanted to share. It was a great time, and I loved learning about everyone’s interests!

In addition to these projects, students in Mr. Mateer’s class are doing research on ancient civilizations and working on narrative writing. It has been an absolute delight to work with all the 4th graders this year and we could not be prouder to see them moving on to 5th grade to continue their journey as Orcas!

In fifth grade, we are still testing while also working on fun projects to help students ease the stress of testing.

Next week, students will be taking several assessments:

• Tuesday – Science PM#3 Assessment

• Wednesday – Math Placement Test

• Thursday and Friday – IXL Diagnostic for Math and Science

Students are also finishing up their Sustainable World Project, where each group built part of a sustainable city. The groups created a farm, a transportation system, an amusement park, a marine conservation center, and an eco-friendly city. All projects were built using recycled materials collected from our classroom recycling bins.

Last week, we finished reading Out of My Mind by Sharon M. Draper. This week, students will begin a new project where they can choose from a choice board with the following options:

• Write the Next Chapter – Imagine what happens next and continue the story.

• Character Diary Entry – Write a diary entry from the perspective of a character.

• Email the Author – Write a thoughtful email to Sharon Draper, reflecting on the story.

• Assistive Technology Research Project – Research and present a real-life assistive device that could support sIn fifth grade, we are still testing while also working on fun projects to help students ease the stress of testing.

• Next week, students will be taking several assessments:

• Tuesday – Science PM#3 Assessment

• Wednesday – Math Placement Test

• Thursday and Friday – IXL Diagnostic for Math and Science

• Students are also finishing up their Sustainable World Project, where each group built part of a sustainable city. The groups created a farm, a transportation system, an amusement park, a marine conservation center, and an eco-friendly city. All projects were built using recycled materials collected from our classroom recycling bins.

• Last week, we finished reading Out of My Mind by Sharon M. Draper. This week, students will begin a new project where they can choose from a choice board with the following options:

• Write the Next Chapter – Imagine what happens next and continue the story.

• Character Diary Entry – Write a diary entry from the perspective of a character.

• Email the Author – Write a thoughtful email to Sharon Draper, reflecting on the story.

• Assistive Technology Research Project – Research and present a real-life assistive device that could support someone like Melody.

The final weeks of school are bursting with hands-on learning in the STEM Lab! From dissection to design, students across all grades have been actively exploring science and engineering. Second graders demonstrated their knowledge of the human body by creating life-size anatomical drawings. Fourth grade dissected flowers to uncover the secrets of plant biology, while fifth grade examined owl pellets and dove into circuitry, conductors, and even video game creation using MakeyMakey kits. First graders became engineers, designing parachutes, and our kindergarteners continued their exciting journey into the animal kingdom. It's been a thrilling time of discovery and creativity!

For STEM 6th Grade,

This year has been a great year for everybody. As we approach the end of another incredible school year, our innovators have created and shown their skills in different building projects and working under pressure with challenging STEM tasks.

The unit that we worked on focuses on how students solve problems, increasing students' collaboration as they communicate their ideas in class. They use the EDP process which involves steps engineers follow in solving problems in everyday life and making technologies as solutions. Students were provided with different stories of animals with different needs. These animals were missing one of their body parts and the students' challenge was to build a prosthetic for them. By the end of the unit, they will be able to present what they learned about the field of biomedical to biomechanical engineering as well as how prosthetics work.

In STEM Environmental Science class, students were able to do an indoor camping that allows them to learn about survival tips, first-aid and share their experiences in camping. Students had fun doing the activity and were able to gain more insights about the lesson.

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.