RPS Update

On Wednesday, Superintendent Dr. Susie Da Silva joined First Selectperson Rudy Marconi, Board of Education Members, Director of Public Works & Facilities Jake Muller, and representatives from the Farmingville Elementary community for the ribbon-cutting for the new kindergarten playground. While Dr. Da Silva held the ceremonial scissors and cut the ribbon, the event recognized the contributions and shared commitment of our town partners and the FES PTA, represented by Leah Schmeidel and Eliza Baker. FES principal Nancy Caron and assistant principal Jackie Doty joined kindergarten faculty and students on this glorious fall day. FES kindergarteners had plenty of time to swing, climb, and slide on this accessible playground built for everybody. 1RPS

Please help RPS go green by checking your students' e-Backpack weekly for important information. Community organizations and groups can submit flyers for inclusion by emailing Christine Melagrano.

Please check the your school calendar for important dates. The Board of Education committee meeting calendar is ongoing so please review the District calendar periodically for additions. RHS Robotics is still looking for volunteers for its annual competition; see more information about getting involved and attending the event in the flyer.

On Saturday, over 50 robotic teams from 12 different schools will face off in the 6th Annual RECF Robotics Competition at Ridgefield High School. This free event is open to spectators of all ages.

RHS Robotics Club advisor Michael Murphy ("Mr. Murf") explains that the morning qualification round begins with two-versus-two faceoffs, with teams from different schools randomly paired. Student teams of 2 to 7 members have designed and built custom robots to tackle this year’s challenge: stacking pins. Judges will rank the teams throughout the morning, and the top-ranked teams will earn the right to select their alliance partners for the afternoon finals. Because of this format, strong collaboration during the morning rounds is essential for every team.

RHS Robotics senior leaders Connor Graves and Ayan Bhowmik showed their engineering design notebook, a part of the competition. Their extensive notebook features detailed CAD drawings and step-by-step documentation about how they engineered key components, including their robot's claw. It’s a lot of work! Beyond competing, these senior leaders mentor underclassmen in engineering, coding, design, and practical problem-solving.

Not all club members focus on competition. For instance, member Andres Erazo showcased a custom elevator mechanism he is building alongside Mr. Murf. The team is also actively engaging the broader community. Head of Outreach Alex Fostervold showcased the club's "wall of robots" and recently represented RHS with other students at Barlow Mountain Elementary’s STEM Night to inspire younger students (photos below). Additionally, team members headed to the University of Bridgeport on Friday to conduct live robotics demonstrations.

Best of luck to all our RHS Robotics teams this weekend! Go, Tigers!!!!!

Please visit the RPS Teaching and Learning webpage for informative presentations and resources.

During Tuesday’s professional development day, elementary teachers came together to explore Visible Learning: Teaching Students to Drive Their Learning, an evidence-based approach pioneered by education researcher Dr. John Hattie. A principle of Visible Learning is that student outcomes improve when teachers make instructional goals transparent and help students reflect on their progress. Students understand where their learning stands, embrace mistakes as natural stepping stones, and build the confidence to navigate new challenges independently.

These PD sessions, facilitated by RPS educators Jamie Palladino and Katerina Savvaides, gave practical advice on how teachers can empower students to take active ownership in the classroom. For example, District Math coach Jamie Palladino talked with second-grade teachers about leaning into students’ strengths in doubling (9+9) to encourage mastery of “almost doubles” (9+7). Mr. Palladino presented strategies for how to use the think!Mathematics curricular resource to help students select tools to guide their learning—e.g., a number line or manipulatives.

Recently, RHS English teacher Matthew Goetz presented at the annual conference of the New England Association of Teachers of English (NEATE), sharing strategies for helping students embrace uncertainty, take intellectual risks, and engage authentically in classroom learning.

RHS math teacher, Dr. Monica Housen attended the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) national conference in Denver to receive the 2026 Outstanding Reviewer for Mathematics Teacher: Learning & Teaching PK12 award. Read more about this prestigious honor in the September issue of RPS Update. Congratulations!

Last weekend, Farmingville Math Specialist Amanda Cody presented at the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) national conference in Denver. Joining the Unlocking Number Sense: Playful Pathways to Decomposing Numbers PK-2 and From Counting to Reasoning: Enhancing Students' Efficacy With Addition and Subtraction

This year, RPS fifth graders study Costa Rica, building on the Spanish vocabulary from their third-grade unit on Puerto Rico and fourth-grade study of Mexico. The monkey Miguel pairs with RPS Elementary Spanish teacher Sra. Quattrocchi to teach students about the colors of the Costa Rican flag, the capital, the country's incredible nature and geology, and its motto, “Pura Vida.”

Sra. Maddie Marek reports that second graders move around the classroom to identify which habitat each animal lives in—the savanna, desert, or jungle—and why they think it lives there! This integrated unit brings learning to life by weaving together Spanish vocabulary, inference strategies, science concepts, and geography.

Kat Mellen’s seventh-grade Spanish classes at Scotts Ridge Middle School recently brought Hispanic Heritage Month and Día de los Muertos together through an interdisciplinary, hands-on cultural project. To celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month, students selected influential Latino and Latina figures who have made positive contributions to American culture, including artists, writers, athletes, and leaders.

Working independently or in pairs, students conducted their research entirely through books, a long-lost research skill! After learning proper citation techniques in the Library Learning Commons with librarian Rachel Durand, students used their Spanish language skills to write about their chosen figures entirely in Spanish.

Students then connected their research to Día de los Muertos by creating traditional ofrendas, incorporating the important elements, symbols, and decorations used to honor and remember loved ones. Each student or group presented their ofrenda in Spanish, explaining the significance of its components and design while sharing what they had learned about the traditions and cultural meaning behind the celebration.

Of course, not everyone featured on an ofrenda was actually deceased! Several groups chose soccer superstar Lionel Messi, which may be bad luck for him, but he has been dead to Sra. Mellen ever since he left FC Barcelona! Through this project, students celebrated the lasting influence of Latino and Latina figures while developing a deeper appreciation for the history, traditions, and cultural connections that make these celebrations so meaningful.

RHS band, choir, and strings students leave for Los Angeles today. Led by their intrepid teachers George Beratis, Lauren Verney-Fink, and Shane Peters, and supported by parent chaperones, students will have so much fun playing, learning, and soaking up the California air. We expect a full report when they return.

East Ridge Middle School art teacher Hillary Lewis has been scrambling to get the school's gallery ready for conferences this week, and her work has paid off. From sixth-grade Zentangles to seventh-grade still lifes to eighth-grade linocut prints and mixed-media works inspired by the artist Jim Dine, the gallery looks fantastic. What an impressive showcase of some of the amazing work ERMS students completed this fall.

Please read the latest RHS Athletics newsletter here. Congratulations to our RHS Girls X-C team (photo above) for placing second in the CIAC Class L Division Championships!

The weather this fall has been very cooperative for RPS runners and PTA fun run organizers. October's dry fields saved many sneakers. Thanks to our students’ stamina and families' generosity, we raised funds to support our schools. View photos from Scotland and Branchville below! See Veterans Park and Farmingville Elementary principals supporting their schools in the October 23 issue of the RPS Update. Barlow Mountain and Ridgebury get moving in the Spring! 1RPS

Nothing but smiles from these speedy Scotland Elementary runners during their Scotty Sprint.

Branchville Elementary students recently laced up their sneakers for the annual Beaver Boogie fun run! BES families lined the field to cheer as kids raced, jogged, and danced their way through lap after lap. The celebration continued inside the cafetorium with a lively sing-along led by BES music teacher Ms. Betsy Anderson. A huge thank you to the BES PTA, our volunteers, and every family who came out to make this beloved tradition such a success.

Members of the RHS football team are visiting elementary classrooms this fall to share some stories with our youngest students as part of an initiative to spread love of reading! Elementary principals report that teachers and students love having these good sports and role models!

Last week, the Scotts Ridge Library Learning Commons (LLC) hosted Read to Therapy Dogs Day. Librarian Rachel Durand invited students to come to the LLC during learning lab and recess to read books aloud to the SRMS therapy dogs. Ms. Durand writes, "students were so excited to come down, grab a book off of the cart, and snuggle up with the dogs in our library’s cozy corners."

As students read aloud, the dogs settled in and enjoyed the storytelling, many of them falling asleep to students’ reading. The day created a cozy, cute, and fun reading experience that let students take a break from their busy schedules.

With the introduction of the district-wide 20/20 Reading Challenge, students are learning the importance of reading outside the classroom. Events such as Read to Therapy Dogs Day are intended to break the stigma around reading for pleasure and introduce students to the concept in a low-stakes environment.

The SRMS LLC plans to host similar events throughout the school year and invites students and families to try reading to their own pets at home!

Based on analytics, we think some of our regular readers missed our October 30 issue of RPS Update. Maybe today's rainy weather will give you time to catch up on the PTA Social Emotional Learning workshop, Farmingville Wears Pink for Breast Cancer, Gilded Age Monopoly at the Alternative High School, and see Halloween photos from all the schools! Here are more photos that came in after last week's deadline, including Elementary Spanish teacher Jill Quattrocchi dressed as Mexican painter Frida Kahlo and photos (credit @simonmnedezphotography) from Dance and Cheer at the Football game on Friday.

Editor's reminder: We love sharing photos and stories from the RPS Community every week, so please continue to reach out! At times, we make errors, which we correct in the next newsletter; to avoid confusion and cluttering inboxes, we resend a corrected newsletter only when necessary. You can reach out to Alison Pratt to submit stories, corrections, and feedback.

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