Dear OSES Families,

As we celebrate Teacher Appreciation Week, it's equally important to recognize and appreciate the invaluable contributions of our support staff. These dedicated individuals work tirelessly behind the scenes to ensure our school runs smoothly and our students receive the best possible care and support.

Our paraprofessionals (paras) play a crucial role in assisting teachers and supporting students with their learning needs. They provide individualized attention and help create an inclusive and supportive classroom environment.

The registrar is essential in managing student records and ensuring that all administrative tasks are handled efficiently. Their meticulous work keeps our school organized and helps us stay on top of important details.

Educational coaches are instrumental in guiding our teachers and enhancing instructional practices. Their expertise and support help our educators continuously improve and innovate in their teaching methods.

Our mental health counselor provides vital support to students, helping them navigate emotional and psychological challenges. Their compassionate care ensures that our students' mental well-being is prioritized.

The cafeteria staff serve nutritious meals to our students and work diligently to clean up the cafeteria, fostering a healthy and enjoyable dining experience. Their efforts contribute significantly to the overall well-being of our school community.

Aftercare staff provide a safe and engaging environment for students after school hours. Their dedication ensures that students have a positive and enriching experience even after the school day ends.

The front desk staff are the welcoming faces of our school, handling inquiries, managing communications, and ensuring that everything runs smoothly. Their friendly and efficient service is invaluable.

Our health assistant is always ready to address any medical needs that arise, providing care and support to students and staff alike. Their presence ensures that health concerns are promptly and effectively managed.

Finally, a special mention to Mr. Gaffney, who keeps our day-to-day operations running smoothly. From managing the morning and afternoon carline to coordinating substitutes, Mr. Gaffney's dedication and hard work are truly commendable.

Let's take this opportunity to express our heartfelt gratitude to all our support staff. Their contributions are essential to the success and well-being of our school community.

Warm regards,

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)

This week, Grade 3 and Grade 6 students took their final math assessments, while Grades 4 and 5 completed both ELA and Math assessments. Additionally, all K-2 classes have taken their ELA Star/FAST assessments. Next week, our K-2 classes will take their Star/FAST math assessments. We are incredibly proud of how our students are performing. Both students and teachers have worked tirelessly all year, and their efforts are truly showing!

Next Tuesday, students in Grade 5 will take their Statewide Science assessment. Please make sure students arrive on campus no later than 8 AM.

If your student needs to make up their assessment(s) due to absence or tardiness, please note that makeups will take place over the next two weeks, based on grade level and space availability.

Please see the directions below regarding how to access your student’s state scores. Thank you for your continued support! Reach out to Ms. Carter (Cayce.Carter@orlandoscience.org) with any questions.

Our students have been super excited while learning new things as the year is wrapping up! In math, we've been busy measuring objects and exploring their attributes, including weight and length. Our students are becoming curious little scientists as they compare, sort, and describe what they observe. In reading, we're diving into words with digraphs and consonant blends, while also building fluency with new sight words. Writing is growing strong too—students are working hard to craft complete sentences with punctuation and proper spacing. And we can’t forget the excitement building for our upcoming Kindy 500—students are gearing up for this fun and memorable event with lots of enthusiasm!

We have had an exciting week in First Grade! All classes have taken their STAR Reading test and just have the STAR Math test left to do. The kiddos have been working so hard to review all of the skills they have learned this year, and we couldn't be prouder of their progress! We are sending home the textbooks as we finish each unit. To cap off our Science unit about parents, offspring, and lifecycles, Ms. DiNuzzo and Mrs. Vancol's classes are raising ladybugs and Mrs. Quarterman and Ms. Keene are raising Painted Lady butterflies. Mrs. Vancol's class hatched four quail eggs, and the kids are doing their best to nurture them!

Thank you to all of the parents and students for the amazing outpouring of gifts, cards, flowers, chocolates, and hugs to show appreciation for the First Grade teachers. It is truly our pleasure to teach and mentor your students, and we are sad this school year is drawing to an end.

However, stay tuned for individual class emails regarding Field Day, First Grade's Glow Party, and other exciting events to round out the year!

Ms. Wesemann’s second graders have been busy sharpening their reading and writing skills for the upcoming STAR test! To retrieve what they learned this year, students explored cross-curricular assignments culminating in designing a mood board and writing a poem in Google Slides using their favorite season and fun figurative language. They even brought their seasons to life by building LEGO models that were as colorful and unique as their imaginations! The classroom was buzzing with excitement during presentations, and the creativity didn’t stop there. Now, the students are diving into their book club project—a comic strip that shows off their skills in visualizing and comparing and contrasting the main characters from Gone Fishing!

The Girls in Aviation Club is soaring to new heights with their First Annual OSES Powder Puff Paper Airplane Derby (named after the 1929 event)! After learning all about the invention of the airplane and the four forces of flight—lift, weight, thrust, and drag—our second and third grade girls put their knowledge to the test by designing and folding their own paper planes. They didn’t stop there—they used leftover recycled items from the Earth Day Competition to build a creative and eco-friendly airport! The planes are all lined up and ready for judging in the design competition, and excitement is building for next week’s flight contest. We can’t wait to see which planes fly the farthest, the highest, and the most loop de loops!

WOW! What a week in 3rd grade it has been. This week we made it to the finish line and completed all the FAST tests. WAY TO GO 3rd GRADE!

The Field Trip is coming up on Tuesday 5/13. The buses leave promptly at 8:00, so students must be at school no later than 7:45. We will return at 4:15. Field Day is scheduled for 5/20 - please sign and return the consent forms. Next week the students will take their end of year IXL diagnostics and practice step up skills for 4th grade.

4th graders have successfully completed the FAST (Florida Assessment of Student Thinking) Test!

We are incredibly proud of our students for their hard work and dedication in preparing for this important assessment. They approached the test with enthusiasm and resilience, effectively demonstrating their knowledge and skills in both English Language Arts (ELA) and Mathematics.

The 4th-grade teachers would like to extend our heartfelt gratitude to you, our parents and guardians, for your unwavering support during the preparation for the FAST Test. Your encouragement at home has significantly boosted our students' confidence and positively impacted their performance.

This week it all comes together! After months of hard work, we are taking our final FAST Tests! I am excited to see all the wonderful growth that our students have accomplished. We had fun this week doing escape rooms and playing Jeopardy to review our standards. On Friday we will be having a science review day to study for our 5th Grade Statewide Science Test. Next week is our placement exam for Math! It is a busy week of tests, but I know we are all going to excel!

As we wrap up our final Character Education units, students across all grade levels have been engaging in meaningful lessons and activities.

In Kindergarten and 1st Grade, students explored various character traits and how they relate to building strong friendships. 2nd Grade recently concluded a unit on conflict resolution and self-esteem, developing important interpersonal skills. 3rd Grade created an interactive Blooket game as part of their bullying prevention unit and are now diving into discussions on self-esteem.

Our 4th Graders completed creative conflict resolution posters— they look awesome! They’ve now started exploring the topics of stereotypes and self-esteem. 5th Grade wrapped up a unit focused on understanding positive and negative self-esteem, as well as the factors that influence it.

Looking ahead, students will begin watching a movie in Character Education that supports the standards we've been studying throughout the semester. If you haven’t already, please return the signed permission slip with your child or email it to Ms. Bagnati by next week.

Lastly, we had an exciting school-wide ORCA Day last Wednesday! Students rotated among their grade-level teachers and enjoyed fun, interactive lessons that reinforced our school’s ORCA core values. It was a fantastic celebration of what our community stands for!

Students are hard at work on their Biome themed Mini Golf Holes! Stay Tuned!

In Spanish class, students were working on a STEM project focused on Mayan Pyramids, connected to our discussions around the Cinco de Mayo celebration.

We’d love your input! Please take a moment to vote for the best Mayan pyramid using the Google Form linked below. There are about four pyramids per class period, and we kindly ask that you vote only once. Each project includes the names of the students who created it and a brief description about it. Thanks for your cooperation!

Students in the No-Bake Cooking Club are having a blast! They’ve created delicious treats like cheesecake cups, puppy chow, frappes, s’mores pudding parfaits, and chocolate-covered strawberries. This week, they started making cake pops and will decorate them next Friday—what a sweet way to learn! 🍭

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.