KES 2026 January Newsletter ⛄

We hope that you had a wonderful time with family and friends over break

and are ready for the start of a wonderful new year!

Since scheduling is a critical step in providing your child with the best program that our district can offer, it’s important that you have a good understanding of the course selection process at the secondary level. We are providing you with this information so that we ensure all students have access to the courses they request and class sizes in those courses follow our guidelines.

We ask that all families pay careful attention to the deadlines noted below.

January 21st at 6:30PM: Curriculum Night parent meeting at JJMS to review timelines and deadlines for Grades 5-7. JJMS Theater.

January 22: 5th grade parents will receive letters about 6th grade elective course choices.

February 3: 5th grade parents will receive an email with reminders about deadlines and course selections.

February 4: Students entering 6th grade will have access to the Portal for course selection of World Language and Music.

February 9: Portal closes to students for course selection

March 21: Email parents Parent Portal to verify course selections with deadline.

The KES KEY Committee is excited to bring back for the second year the MLK's Day of Action. The

purpose of this event is to provide students and families with meaningful, hands-on opportunities to honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s legacy through service, reflection, creativity, and civic engagement. Please mark your calendars and join us!

As part of the Katonah-Lewisboro’s health curriculum, we are using the Second Step Child Protection Unit in your child’s classroom.

Ms. Fulton, our school social worker will be pushing into your child’s class to deliver a specific curriculum based on your child’s grade. She will teach important skills such as:

• Personal Safety. Students will learn important safety rules such as never touching guns, always asking adults for help with sharp tools and never playing with fire. They will also learn ways to help them decide if something is safe or not.

• Touching Safety. Students will learn about safe, unsafe, and unwanted touches, and rules about touching private body parts. They’ll also learn to say no to unsafe or unwanted touches, and to tell an adult if someone breaks rules about touching private body parts.

• Assertiveness. These lessons will also give students a chance to practice asking an adult for help, telling an adult about an unsafe situation and being assertive to get out of unsafe situations.

The lessons will begin in January. If you have any questions about the Child Protection Unit or the Second Step program, please contact Ms. Fulton at jfulton@klschools.org.

Thank you for helping us to make our school a safe and supportive place where everyone can learn.

This month, the focus of the SEL classroom lessons is on Perspective Taking. This topic is important for students to appreciate that others may have different thoughts, feelings, and viewpoints. It encourages children to step outside their own experiences and consider how someone else might think or feel in each situation. The skills that will be shared are to help students develop empathy and foster respectful interactions, as they learn to recognize that their peers may respond differently to the same event due to their unique backgrounds and experiences. By practicing Perspective Taking, students enhance their social skills, improve their relationships, and learn to resolve conflicts more effectively.

As the chilly weather approaches, please be sure your child comes to school in clothing that is appropriate for outdoor play.

If the temperature, including the wind chill, is below forty degrees, students should wear the following:

• Warm coats
• Long pants

On snowy days in order to play in the snow (including sledding) students will also need:

• Snow pants
• Boots
• Hats
• Gloves

All students will be going out for recess so please make sure that your children are dressed appropriately.

If the temperature, including the wind chill, falls below twenty degrees, the students will stay inside for recess. Dr. Louis A. Corsaro, the school district physician, has advised us in these matters.

• Due to NYS medication guidelines the health office cannot apply Vaseline or lotion- please apply before school.
• Please ensure that emergency contacts are local and aware they are listed. Students going home sick are expected to be picked up within an hour of notification.
• Please ensure that all K/1 students have an extra set of seasonally appropriate clothes.
• Cough drops are prohibited at school due to being a choking hazard.
• Please review the lice statement on the health services website HERE, it is important for parents to regularly check children for lice at home.

The Literacy Leadership Team (LLT) has selected a new literacy curriculum for students in kindergarten through fifth grade.

Fishtank Plus will be adopted for language comprehension in grades K-5. For word recognition, students in K-2 will use UFLI Foundations, while children in grades 3-5 will transition over different times to programs focused on morphology: Morphemes for Little Ones and Morpheme Magic.

The LLT spent the last three months researching, analyzing, and gathering feedback on many different options for our new literacy curriculum. Visit the literacy curriculum website to watch the Board of Education presentation (starting 51:05), read about the LLT's step-by-step process, and learn when grades will transition to the new curriculum. We are excited for this new chapter in our students' education and look forward to partnering with our teachers in its implementation.

Each month, we will be providing curriculum highlights from each grade level. Please know that these are snapshots and do not reflect all the curriculum and learning in the classroom.

Students in kindergarten will continue to strengthen their conventional reading skills through decoding CVC words and adding to their knowledge of high frequency words. Kindergarteners will build their reading “powers” as they share and celebrate with new stories and partnerships. In their writerly life, children will begin writing to teach others. They will work through the writing cycle to plan, illustrate, write, and share “How To” books. Craftsmanship is a priority as children write with their reader in mind. As we continue through the month, children will begin to expand their knowledge of addition in a variety of ways. In math, students will compare numbers to ten and begin to understand addition and subtraction. In social studies, students will continue to learn about their identities, families, and traditions.

Students in first grade will start 2026 by exploring nonfiction texts in both reading and writing. Using text sets, they will learn that curious readers consult multiple sources to deepen their understanding of a topic. Students will continue practicing strategies for decoding longer words, part by part. First grade readers will also work with blends, digraphs, phonograms, and suffix endings to strengthen their ability to read genre specific vocabulary. In writing, students will start with the topic they know best, themselves, by creating their own identity book. Once completed, they will move on to writing nonfiction books about their experiences in the classroom. In math, students will add three numbers and develop a stronger understanding of the equal sign. During our social studies time, students will explore maps as well as life today and in the past. In science, they will step into the role of light and sound engineers as we begin our study of light and sound.

Students in second grade are looking forward to kicking off lots of exciting new learning in 2026! In writing, students will learn how to share strong opinions about favorite books, fun places, and special people while supporting their ideas with clear reasons, evidence, and examples. They are especially excited for a special event to show off their pawsome writing. In reading, students will continue building their reading strategies tool belt and applying these skills as they tackle longer books. Our word work will continue to focus on syllable types. In math, addition and subtraction will remain a focus as students work with numbers up to 1,000. In science, students will explore how Earth’s surface changes by studying different landforms. We will also extend our learning about landforms into social studies as we explore how landforms affect how people in different communities live, work and play.

Students in third grade will begin a new unit on Character Studies. Students will learn how to grow ideas about characters, notice patterns in their actions, develop theories, and track how the main character changes throughout a story. In writing, students will continue working on nonfiction writing, strengthening their ability to organize information, include clear facts, and revise their work. In math, third graders will build fluency with addition and subtraction within 1,000 and use these operations to solve word problems. In science, we are excited to begin a new unit of study on weather, where students will explore patterns and learn more about how weather affects our world.

Students in fourth grade will begin a social studies unit on the impact of European exploration in North America, and New York in particular. We will be launching our first essay writing unit, in which students will begin crafting personal and persuasive essays, about topics that are important to them. As we grow our understanding of essay structure, we will begin selecting important or historical figures about which we will conduct extensive research and craft persuasive essays. In math, students will be developing their understanding of fractions, equivalent fractions, and continuing practice with multiplication and division strategies.

Students in fifth grade will be exploring text complexity as they learn about strategies for effective non-fiction reading. They will then start to discuss Mexico, immigration, and the Great Depression as they read the historical fiction novel Esperanza Rising. In writing, students will continue to expand their expository skills and focus on writing literary essays. Division with decimal divisors and dividends, as well as problem solving, will be the focus in math. In science, fifth graders will take on the role of food scientists as they study the properties of matter. In social studies, students will begin to study European exploration of the Western Hemisphere.

As per our Response to Intervention District Plan mandated by New York State benchmarks, or screenings, will begin in mid-January for students in grades K-5. The assessments are administered as a whole group and individually, depending on the grade and subject area. The results of the screening along with other school data will be reviewed by the KES RTI Team (Principal, Assistant Principal, School Psychologist, Interventionists, Classroom Teachers). If your child qualifies for services, changes their level of services, or exits services based on the criteria outlined across the district, you will receive parent communication in February

As part of the implementation of the new Computer Science Digital Fluency Standards,Technology Teaching Assistant, Tenesha Mezzo will continue teaching lessons in each classroom, K-5.

A topic summary of these Digital Citizenship lessons can be viewed HERE.

You can find the complete CSDF Standards HERE.

January Library Curriculum: New Year, New Skills

January in the library is all about strengthening nonfiction and research skills across grade levels.

Students in Grades 3–5 will sharpen their research abilities by exploring topics of their choice, learning how to turn questions into effective keywords, take notes, and locate reliable information using the library catalog (Follett Destiny). Through interactive activities like fact-finding challenges, students will build confidence as researchers.

Our primary students (K–2) will also explore nonfiction through engaging winter-themed topics, using books and simple research to learn about hibernating animals and other fascinating aspects of the winter season.

In kindergarten, students will continue to demonstrate proper mallet technique while learning to play various songs including “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star” on the Bell sets. Students will be performing in small groups to help reinforce playing music as an ensemble. Students will continue to differentiate and explore vocal qualities (speak/sing/whisper/shout) through song and dramatic play. Additionally, students will reinforce the concept of beat and show that they can maintain a steady beat while singing and playing non-pitched instruments(rhythm sticks, hand drum, maraca). Lastly, students will explore and experiment with singing loud and quiet.

In first grade, students will continue to explore the basics of music through fun and interactive activities. They will learn how to read simple music notation and play melodies on Orff instruments like xylophones, reinforcing their understanding of pitch and rhythm. Students will also develop part independence by performing in small ensembles, practicing listening and interacting with others while maintaining their own musical part. They will experiment with dynamics and playing music at different volumes. Lastly, students will perform multicultural songs to celebrate Lunar New Year, deepening their understanding of cultural traditions through music.

In second grade, students will continue preparing for Special Person’s Day by learning songs that celebrate kindness. They will continue to focus on performing music with dynamics and expression and working toward a balanced, unified ensemble sound. In addition, students will perform multicultural songs to celebrate Lunar New Year, deepening their understanding of cultural traditions through music.

In third grade, students will continue to refine their recorder skills, focusing on proper hand placement, breathing, and tone production. They will practice basic recorder exercises to improve breath control and note transitions. Students are encouraged to practice with their recorders at home to help solidify the skills they learn in school. Additionally, students will continue to explore the concept of dynamics, practicing how to change volume and create more expressive performances.

In fourth grade, students will continue learning the music for the grade-level production Schoolhouse Rock Live Jr. They will continue to study the script and explore leading roles as they prepare for auditions. We plan to complete casting by the end of the month.

In fifth grade, students will begin to learn the basics of playing the Guitar. Building off their prior knowledge and learning of Ukulele last year, students will explore the similarities and differences between the two instruments. Students will learn proper playing technique on the guitar and play in small and large groups. Additionally, students will play in 2- and 3-part harmony on the guitar, developing and strengthening their part dominate playing. Lastly, students will experience 5/4 time signature.

To start off the month of January, students in PE class will be participating in fun games using our large omni kin ball. The students get so excited when they walk into the gym and see this ball waiting for them! We will play games of Air Square with grades 3-5 and Team Asteroids with grades K-2. After two weeks of omni kin ball fun, the students will be engaged in some of our winter/snow themed activities. We have a lot of fun lessons planned which include snowman tag, ski jump tag, snowball mania, snowman takedown, and build a snowman. We wish you and your family a very happy holiday!

DASA seeks to ensure a safe and supportive environment for all students, free of discrimination, intimidation, harassment, taunting and bullying. If you are aware of an incident or have a concern, please contact one of us listed below. You will be asked to complete the BOE Incident Reporting Form (see "button" below for attachment).

Cristy Harris, Principal and KES Dignity Act Coordinator 763-7700 or charris@klschools.org

Kweon Stambaugh, Assistant Principal (designee) 763-7705 or kstambaugh@klschools.org

Jessica Fulton, Social Worker (designee) 763-7669 or jfulton@klschools.org.