SS IN THE NEWS

Sandshore counselor honored

Elena Melekos rocks. Sandshore's counselor was honored in the Teachers Who Rock program, sponsored by the New Jersey Education Association, St. Elizabeth University, and radio station WDHA-FM. Her nomination letter, written by first grade teacher Tracy Church, was read on the air.

“Ms. Melekos ensures that students have an excellent academic experience by providing essential social and emotional support in addition to academic support,” Church wrote. “She collaborates with students, teachers, parents, and administrators to identify and nurture specific strengths, needs, and interests, and develops plans for achieving goals. This is an important role, but now more than ever this role has proved to be of the utmost importance during the pandemic when students are really struggling with their emotions and virtual learning.”

Melekos joined the district as Sandshore’s school counselor in 2018.

Brooke Abramson shows off her interpretation of the work of Georgia O'Keefe

Celebrating Women's History Month

Students love the ability to choose the topics they want to learn and the activities they’d like to complete to apply or demonstrate their learning. That’s why choice boards are so popular. They’re menus of topics and activities that allow students to be in the driver’s seat of their own learning. Research has shown that this instructional strategy increases engagement, motivation, skills, and retention.
 
On March 19, the district celebrated national Women’s History Month with a day devoted to learning about the contributions of women past and present, and celebrating influential women in their own lives. Sandshore students were provided with choice boards for their unique grade levels, and each student selected four to complete over the course of the day.
 
Kindergartners, for example, had choices that included learning about women in sports (e.g., Wilma Rudolph, Venus and Serena Williams) and learning about several inspirational women (e.g. Sonia Sotomayor, Jane Goodall, computer scientist Katherine Johnson). Fourth-graders had choices such as learning about artist Georgia O’Keefe and Vice President Kamala Harris. On the following school day, students shared with their classmates what they learned and the activities they completed.
 
The instructional supervisors from each elementary school worked together as a team to develop the choice boards for the district’s elementary students.
 
The special day began with a video from Kimberley Markus, the district’s executive director of innovation and personnel. In 2017, Markus became the second woman to serve as the commissioner of education at the New Jersey Department of Education. As commissioner, she was charged with oversight of the education of the New Jersey’s 1.4 million students.

Students explore Budd Lake from their desks

Fifth-graders recently learned about Budd Lake and the flora and fauna of the region from a MOHS graduate and former Sandshore student.
 
The classes spoke through Google Meet with Lauren Theis, director of education at the Raritan Headwaters Association. The association is comprised of a group of scientists, educators, and volunteers that help protect and preserve the 470 square-mile North and South Branch Raritan watersheds.
 
Using photos and sound clips, Theis took students through a variety of topics including the fish and aquatic animals in Budd Lake, the plant and wildlife in the area, and the glacial origin of Budd Lake. She also provided students with websites to help them learn more about conservation, and offered safety tips to follow when out hiking.
 
The 50-minute presentation augmented the information that students learned in the fifth grade science unit “Matter and Energy in Ecosystems.”