Author: WENDY MUNAO

At Mariposa Elementary, our very own first grade teacher, Ms. Toni Baptiste, recently received a grant from PetCo for their Pets in the Classroom program! Her class now has a special addition, Sebastian, a hermit crab, that will help the students learn about animals and their environment. Students will understand that living things have needs to help them grow. This will also provide students a great experience for careful observation to better understand the natural world. Congratulations Ms. Baptiste!

Mariposa Elementary’s 5th grade Monarchs received a well-deserved recognition for their participation in the NEED Project. This project encourages and rewards student leadership and innovation by sponsoring a Youth Awards Program for Energy Achievement.  Students in the NEED program, led by Mrs. Carla Bargeron, were awarded the Florida Elementary runner up for their excellent job educating younger students in energy conservation. Exceptional teachers and students are invited to attend NEED’s National Recognition Ceremonies held each June in Washington, DC. There, they are recognized for their efforts at the state and national level for their active role in the energy conservation … Read More

Second and Third Grade students at Mariposa Elementary challenged their families and friends to chess this week! Students came to school dressed up as chess pieces, ready to teach their families how each piece moves. Families enjoyed some chess poems and a brief explanation of how to play. Then students challenged their peers and relatives to a game of chess! This family game night was made possible through a grant called “First Move,” which teaches students to play chess through online videos, computer games, and weekly chess practice. Students spend 45 minutes each week learning chess strategies and skills. Chess … Read More

Students in Mrs. Whalen’s First Grade class from Mariposa Elementary visited Busch Wildlife Sanctuary to learn more about animals, habitats and conservation.  Pictured here are Karina Arocho, Shayna Sherman, Aiden Lucero and Rossilyn Grasso, learning fun facts about box turtles from the Staff at Busch Wildlife Sanctuary.

Mariposa Elementary held its “Pastries for Parents”. Families came and enjoyed breakfast while shopping at our Book Fair. Shown in the picture is John Wright, Christopher Wright, Jackson Wright and Geneva Wright. They were some of the early birds at the event. Also during the book fair, we held an event which included help for volunteers to complete their online applications. There was an author presentation and shopping at the Book Fair. Author, Mrs. Janet Balletta, presented her book, ‘The Legend of the Colombian Mermaid.’ Parents and students enjoyed sweet treats while they shopped for their favorite books.

Mariposa Kindergarten Students celebrated Dental Health Month with Dr. Cook’s Dental office’s amazing Hygienists. They gave the students a fun interactive experience to help them overcome their fears of the dentist office and instructed them on correct brushing and flossing methods. In the this picture Abigail Baptiste is the Hygienist and Troy Bradley Jr is the patient as they role-play a visit with the Hygienist. Also, Dylan Claesgens and Mya Daniels played the happy tooth and sad tooth holders. The hygienists showed foods and the students had to decide if it was a food that made their teeth happy or … Read More

Beth Forbes’ First graders conducted an experiment in science. They predicted items would either float or sink in a tub of water. Each student had an opportunity to gently drop something into the tub. Most of their predictions were correct…however, they had two surprises: a tiny paper clip plummeted to the bottom, and a pencil floated on top of the water! It was fun…learning…a good day in first grade. Pictured from left to right in the first row are Jakoby Riley, Sofia Delgado Ortiz, and Karli Rubin. Pictured in the Second Row is Thomas Rivera, Symora Dowe, Leana Nguyen, and … Read More

On Friday, February 6, Mrs. Yost and Dr. Perry visited Mariposa’s second and third grade classes who were participating in the District’s pilot chess program called First Move. From the beginning of the year, these students and their teachers have learned how to play chess and even to develop strategies as they played the game. The picture shows Mrs. Yost and Dr. Perry with Mrs. Balletta’s second graders who were playing a match against other children in the class.

The Veterans of Foreign Wars and its Ladies Auxiliary annually recognize the nation’s top classroom elementary, junior high and high school teachers who teach citizenship education topics regularly and promote America’s history and traditions effectively.  Teachers who promote civic responsibility, flag etiquette and patriotism are prime candidates for this award. The local VFW’s of Martin County, St Lucie County, Indian River County, Okeechobee County, Glades, and Hendry County are proud to elect Michelle Smith, second grade teacher at Mariposa Elementary School in St Lucie County, this year for the elementary award. Michelle was first nominated by Rosemary Ayers, Veterans and … Read More

At Mariposa, Mrs. Elizabeth Forbes, first grade teacher, volunteered to serve as the Unicef Coordinator.  She turned this into a learning experience for her students.  She had enough coins to allow her first graders to sort, count, make patterns, and even count by 5’s and 10’s.  What an opportunity!  So now these first graders know their coins! First graders at Mariposa helped count change during the school’s UNICEF drive. From Left to Right are Sofia Delgado-Ortiz, Juliana Gutierrez-Garcia, Dominic Delancy, and Taylor Wildes.

The Kindergarten Team at Mariposa Elementary showed their amazing collaborative planning abilities as they put together an extremely engaging end-of-unit Gingerbread Day. After a week-long unit that involved comparing and contrasting different versions of the Gingerbread Man stories, the students illustrated their own gingerbread characters. The week ended with the students decorating gingerbread cookies and building Gingerbread houses of their own. The fun projects helped bring the stories to life. Mariposa’s Kindergarten Team pictured from left to right are Camelia Lebron, Sue Caldwell, Kari McIntyre, Laura Wollff, Greta Hyatt, and Linda Auciello.

Fifth grade students, Heather Heath, Tuan Tran, Levi Gonzalez, and Sophia Lopez in Carla Bargeron’s Science resource class at Mariposa Elementary recently completed an exciting science unit.  Students first learned about landforms and volcanoes and then worked in teams to design and construct paper mache’ volcanos.  Students also learned about the steps in the scientific process and physical and chemical changes in matter.  Mrs. Sandra Bushby and the fifth grade students were thrilled as they conducted “explosive” experiments with their hand-made volcanoes and gooey “lava”. Aka jello chemical changes can be fun!

Superintendent of Schools, Genelle Yost, and Executive Director of Schools, Pam Dampier, visit Mariposa just in time to join the Heroes Breakfast!  Heroes Breakfast is a special recognition of our veterans and community helpers that help keep us safe at school and at home.  Teacher, Mrs. Michelle Smith, coordinated the Heroes Breakfast program this year, where students read poems that they had written thanking our veterans for keeping us safe!

In our Mariposa Elementary School’s N.E.E.D. group, “We learned about solar energy and went to teach kindergarten. We passed out solar beads and asked them to make a hypothesis, but we used the word “guess” so they knew what we meant. When we got outside, they stood in the sunlight, and their faces look amazed when they saw the color changing. I’d have to say I had so much fun teaching the little kids about solar energy. They were so well behaved, and just by looking at their faces, I’m pretty sure they liked the little lesson as much as … Read More

The students in Mrs. Auciello’s Kindergarten class at Mariposa Elementary started the year with a fun activity to practice counting objects accurately with one to one correspondence up to 10. Pictured is Jessie Hindman who very accurately used his play-dough to make the number 8 and to count out 8 play-dough circles to match. The students are off to a great start this year!

Mariposa Elementary recently had their Spring Music Concert. This was an “interactive” concert. Not only did the students perform, but the audience and parents also participated with singing, dancing, and playing instruments. What a fun evening for all! The concert included the Chorus, the Handbell Choir, and the Band. Pictured is the Mariposa Hand Bell Choir including Tnanazia Young, Mikaelah Charles, Sophia May, Nelson St. Louis, Stephanie Diaz, Jeremy Rosas, Kylie Christiansen, Sydnee Rubenstien, Lea Cesiro, and Chloe Gillis.

All the Kindergarten students at Mariposa Elementary enjoyed a hands-on experience at the 4-H Farm. This field trip enhanced their classroom lessons on animals and learning about gardens as they were able to touch the fur of a donkey, pony, horse, calf, goat, sheep and even a pig. Jabari Monds, Jake Legentus, Anthony Sarver, and Lumarion Gardenhire wait in anticipation of getting to feel the hair of the donkey. They looked at the similarities and differences of the animals to compare and contrast and had fun learning about what our farm friends do for us!

First grade students in Michelle Smith’s First Grade Class at Mariposa Elementary each have their individual goal folders. Inside their goal folders are sight words, math concepts (numbers, 3D shapes, etc.) and chunks (digraphs/blends/word families). The students pair up each week to practice their goals and congratulate one another when they reach their goals. Their teacher, Mrs. Smith, checks their goals each week and helps students create new goals for themselves as they achieve each objective. “I’m so proud of you!” Deven Harris tells classmate Abigayle Conner, as she passes her sight words page in her Goal Folder. “The students … Read More

Mariposa Elementary has been extremely fortunate to have Ms. Marjorie Ovsiovitch as our Americorps volunteer this year. Ms. Ovsiovitch has helped numerous children close their learning gaps while enjoying time with her. She is kind, dedicated, and loyal to our Monarchs. The students’ eyes light up when it is their special time to read with Ms. O. She truly is a treasure here at our school. Pictured are first grader, Isabella Perez, and Ms. Ovsiovitch.

The fifth grade students on the N.E.E.D. (National Energy Education Development) project team at Mariposa Elementary School are busy focusing on learning and teaching energy sources to students in other grade levels within the school. Mariposa Elementary is the N.E.E.D. state elementary school of the year, and a national finalist. This year’s group is highly motivated and working towards attending the national awards ceremony in Washington D.C. this June. Pictured, from left, are team members Cathy Smith, Justin Locklar, Hannah Wright, Monica Kalina, Mary McCartney, Mikayla Sampson, Tnanazia Young, Johann Vianna, Allysha Lillard, Jan Feliciano, and Adam Archer.