School board: Kindergarten, 1st grade merger?
Facing an incoming kindergarten class of only seven or eight children, School Superintendent Dr. Michael Hynes on Monday outlined a plan for merging next year’s kindergarten class with the first grade.
“No decisions have been made,” Dr. Hynes commented later, noting that the Board of Education would have to approve any changes to the class structure.
Under the proposal for the next school year, Dr. Hynes said this year’s first graders would move into the second grade while current kindergartners would stay in the group for one more year as a new group of kindergarteners joined them.
The kindergarteners would be able to learn from their older counterparts as well as their teacher, according to Dr. Hynes.
“I don’t know if I like the sound of that,” parent Joanne Calabro said of the idea. She added that the plan would mean a class of 26 or 27 students would be handled by one teacher. “I thought we fought for smaller class sizes,” she said.
Dr. Hynes noted the teacher would also have a teaching assistant and teacher’s aide.
“And the teachers are happy about this?” Ms. Calabro asked.
Dr. Hynes said he would never propose anything that the teachers were not behind.
“It’s normal to feel nervous,” he said.
Dr. Hynes also announced that fourth and fifth graders would get a taste of junior high earlier than before as those grades could be “team taught” next year by a combination language arts/social studies teacher and math/science teacher. Those fourth and fifth grade students would begin to move from class to class for their core subjects.
“Math and science go together,” Dr. Hynes said, telling the audience the change would strengthen student learning in those core subjects. It also would allow students to go into different classes based on their ability.
Dr. Hynes said he was excited to be able to introduce such measures. “If the elementary school and junior high were in different schools, we wouldn’t be able to do this,” he said.
Board member Linda Eklund spoke out in support of the proposals. “If you’re familiar with the school 20 years ago, the students could go into the third grade for reading if they were younger and reading at a third-grade level. The vision we have is three schools within a school. A student that needs enrichment or support can go within the building to get the enrichment or support they need.”
As part of the structural changes, Dr. Hynes proposed new courses to be offered next year, including a journalism class. “We’re going to resurrect The Shelter Island School Starter,” he said, holding up an old copy of the periodical that was once the school’s newspaper. A school newspaper, he said, is akin to having access to “the pulse of the student voice,” he said, adding that the class could team up with the Shelter Island Reporter during the course of the year.
Dr. Hynes also proposed an Intel Science Research class, an AP Studio Art class, an Interactive Math 12 class and a History of Shelter Island class, which he said would be a plus as far as “having our students understand the underpinnings of our wonderful Island.” He said part of the course would be working with the Historical Society, Mashomack Preserve, and/or Sylvester Manor.
