Back to School: September, 2019

First Day of School, Curriculum Night, School Photos, KES Picnic, 5th Grade Car Wash, PTO General Meeting, Chalk the Walk, Boo Hoo/Yahoo!, and schedules back on track!

This can only mean one thing… you have officially survived the first month of school. 

Congrats, parental units. You made it. 

We have had an exciting few weeks here at KES with teachers, students and parents all moving full steam ahead. 

Chalk the Walk was a fun time that filled our school sidewalk with uplifting messages and art to welcome our kids on the first day of school. 

The First Day of School brings emotions for both parents and kids. Whether you were feeling nostalgic about your little one starting Kindergarten (boo hoo) or ready for your energetic 4 th grader to be back at school (yahoo!)… our Boo Hoo/Yahoo! event was a success. We had a great turnout where parents began drafting their littles college essays! Just kidding… we all just hung out and had a great time! 

The 5th Grade Car Wash is always a highlight for the community and having the local fire department stop by is always a treat. 

The KES Picnic welcomed many new families to the school. Head Custodian, Mr. George Cook threw down some dope tracks on the turntables and the popcorn machine did not stop popping bags of buttery corn! 

School Pictures went smoothly thanks to the many volunteers who shellacked our kid’s hair back into place. 

Our first PTO General Membership Meeting had record attendance which only gets us even more excited about the coming year. Our programs are greatly boosted thanks to parent volunteers like you, so we thank you for your enthusiasm. 

It’s officially fall y’all, which means the Halloween Fair is next! Stay tuned for all the spooky details and ways to participate as we celebrate the 40 th anniversary of this not-to-be-missed event.

2019 Science Fair

Katonah's youngest scientists asked some fascinating research questions at the Third Annual KES Science Fair. Through their experiments and research for the Science Fair, students are encouraged to see science as a real and vital part of their lives. Local professional scientists and KLSD faculty and administrators in lab coats engaged the students in thoughtful conversations about their research, allowing KES students to celebrate what they learned as well as consider the different potential career opportunities an interest in science can bring. Science fairs spark life long curiosity for students and we can't wait to see what innovations and technologies KES students will continue to develop when they wear their own white lab coats!

PARP Character Day

KES was buzzing with excitement on Character Day! To mark the end the month long PARP (Pick A Reading Partner) celebrations, our creative kids transformed themselves into a wide variety of characters from their favorite stories. Character Day is a fun way to celebrate the joys of reading by bringing stories to life. The students attended their monthly sharing assembly in costume and they were all smiles checking out each others costumes. Principal Harris and many of our KES teachers also celebrated by dressing in costumes for the day. Thank you so much to all of our administrators and teachers for generating such enthusiasm and positive energy by celebrating reading with our children. 

PARP Starry Story Night

Pick A Reading Partner (PARP), celebrated throughout the month of March, is one of KES students' favorite months of the school year. Administrators, parents and students came together at KES for Starry Story Night to share in the laughter and excitement of their favorite faculty and staff reading (and, in some cases, performing!) the student's favorite stories. For parents, this is an opportunity to share in the magical learning environments that our KES teachers and administrators create for their students. The love our students have for learning, and for their teachers and administrators, is clear to see on Starry Story Night. Students come dressed in their pajamas, clutching their favorite stuffed animals, eager to be whisked away on the adventures of storytelling. 

Winter Family Square Dance

Thank you to to all volunteers who helped put together a fun, heart warming Square Dance, bringing some fun cheer into a cold winter season. The children enjoyed each other's company, as well as some popcorn and pizza, while they learned the steps to square dancing!

Holiday Sharing Drive

As we got closer to Winter, the Holiday Sharing Drive Committee, Nicole Mata, Dana Cuiffo and Dana Yatsko, worked together with other parent volunteers and students to gather and deliver food to the Community Center.  It was a huge success; thank you to all who participated!

Fall Events

Beloved PTO traditions like the Back to School Picnic, Walk To School Day & the Halloween Fair are events that give not only students, but also parents, the opportunity to gather together and community build. The children love these events because they are fun & parents love them because they help foster meaningful community connections. At our Back to School Picnic, we dedicated a bike rack to former Assistant Principal Terry Costin; the children were very excited to see him & the new bike rack! Walk to School Day was loads of fun as the children walked with their parents, peers and KES staff members into the KES Courtyard where there was music to greet them! Many thanks to PTO Halloween committee members, Julie Creech & Teryn Kendall, and all parent volunteers they recruited who helped create the spooky magic of the Halloween Fair. The Fair is a great fundraiser and also a fun way to get to know other parents in your children’s class. The costumes are adorable and original because nowhere does Halloween quite like Katonah!