School News

Springs School

Junior high students are getting ready to put on the musical, “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,” later this year. Students auditioned before winter break, and roles will be announced next week.

Fourth graders recently studied the Colonial Era in social studies. Each classroom set up a center, where students took turns completing activities like building a home out of craft sticks, drawing a landscape, creating an old school book, and learning about how children in colonial times played and kept busy.

Fourth graders also enjoyed a Pajama Day last week. “We had a book club with hot chocolate just like adults do with coffee,” said Ms. McGrath, who organized the event. Starbucks in Bridgehampton donated the hot chocolate.

The school is still collecting box tops to raise money for the PTA. Children are asked to bring in box tops from General Mills foods. When the school sends them to the company, it pays 10 cents for each box top. Last year, the Springs PTA earned $800 to help fund its activities.

Junior high students had a “Game Show” pep rally last Friday. Students had the chance to participate in a trivia contest and compete in different challenges. The game show is an annual event and one that students always look forward to.

Also in junior high, students in health class recently learned how to prepare healthy snacks and also create natural remedies to combat colds and flu. The program is run by the Anna Lytton Foundation and aims to teach students about health and wellness.

The eighth graders had a pancake breakfast fundraiser at the Springs Firehouse recently. They served more than 175 pancakes and raised nearly $2000. The money will go toward their trip to Boston in the spring.

Hampton Bays

Hampton Bays High School will offer AP Capstone diplomas through the College Board’s AP Capstone Diploma program starting in September.

The two-year program, which is only offered in about 1800 schools across the country, consists of two college-level courses, AP Seminar and AP Research, that use an interdisciplinary approach to develop students’ critical-thinking, research, collaboration, time management and presentation skills. Students will take AP Seminar in the first year, in which they will work on research papers and written arguments and presentations, followed by AP Research, in which they will design, execute, and defend a research-based program.

“We are very proud to offer this program,” Superintendent Lars Clemensen said. “The AP Capstone Diploma signifies outstanding academic achievement and attainment of college-level academic and research skills.”

Students must successfully complete both courses and score a three or higher on four additional AP exams to earn the AP Capstone diploma upon graduation. Hampton Bays currently offers 15 AP courses.

To help current juniors and seniors prepare for college, Hampton Bays High School had 10 alumni currently enrolled in college visit on January 4. The recent high school graduates, who now attend schools including Harvard University, Stony Brook University, Syracuse University, and the University of Vermont, spoke about the college application process, roommates, dorms, course selection, and the transition from high school to college.

To encourage a love of reading for its young students, the Hampton Bays Elementary School hosted a weeklong “Reading Together” event. During the week of January 7 through January 11, teachers read the children’s book “Flat Stanley: His Original Adventure!” by Jeff Brown to the students and engaged them in activities related to the story.

Riverhead

Riverhead High School’s Cooking Club and ceramics class have teamed up once again for the third annual Empty Soup Bowls event to benefit the Phillips Avenue Elementary School Food Pantry. It will be held at Riverhead High School, 700 Harrison Avenue, on Thursday, January 31, from 6 to 8 PM.

During the event, community members can purchase a ceramic bowl designed and handcrafted by high school ceramics students. Each bowl comes with soup prepared by the Cooking Club. Bowls are $5 for a small one or $10 for large one.

Westhampton

Three Westhampton Beach Middle School eighth-graders have organized a polar plunge to benefit East End Disability Associates. The event will take place at Rogers Beach on Saturday, January 19, at 1 PM.

Anthony Agudelo, Lauren Goss, and Reilly Mahon, each who has a loved one with a disability, discovered the common link during an in-school HerStory writers’ workshop in September and decided to organize a fundraising event.

The three students took it upon themselves to create the project by reaching out to East End Disability, obtaining beach permits, acquiring a coffee and hot chocolate donation from the Hamptons Coffee Company, and advertising the event.

“I’m so impressed with these students,” Kelly Russell, their critical literacy teacher, said. “They have worked hard doing all this in their free time.”

Tickets are $10 and can be purchased online at www.eed-a.org/polar-plunge.html. Donations are also welcome.

Tuckahoe

“Builders and Books,” a community service project started by Allyson Downs and her siblings to encourage a love of reading, visited second graders recently.

Allyson Downs and Emma McAuley brought hand-painted reading bags for each of the students in Antoinette Counihan and Jean Dodici’s second grade classes. Funded by a Southampton Youth Bureau grant, the bags were filled with books and information about local organizations the children can visit for more reading inspiration.

Bridgehampton

Alanah Johnson, a Bridgehampton High School junior, recently had the winning design for the secondary level Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports logo.

Her design incorporated the vision and goal of the PBIS team for students: individuality, safety, responsibility, and respectfulness. The logo was chosen by the PBIS team, which consists of teachers in the district, and will be used for future Bridgehampton PBIS materials sent to school families.