Northport K-8 School students from kindergartners to eighth grade enjoyed Northport’s annual Field Days recently held at Sportsmen’s Park. Students and teachers attended the Field Days in rotations with their classroom and elective teachers assisting to make sure all students were safe and enjoying the event. Activities included the 50 yard dash, 100 yard dash, jump rope, hula hoops, javelin throws, grass relays, crab races and the tug of war. This year was the first year that middle schoolers have been invited to participate in the events. Clownfish team teacher Sandra Tyndaler said, “The students thoroughly enjoyed the well organized event. The students were … Read More

Students from Janet Balletta’s class at Mariposa Elementary recently presented their animal research projects for their parents and classmates. Students researched their favorite animals and created innovative animal projects out of cereal boxes integrating language arts, technology, and oral language skills. The culminating activity was the students giving an oral presentation of their projects. Students were recognized for their participation, and celebrated their success with their family and peers. Neisha Caldwell, left, and Shane Spellacy, right, won first and second prize for the most original and unique animal projects.

Fifth grade Bayshore Elementary School student Grayson Waugh will participate in the upcoming People World Leadership Forum in Washington, D.C., June 17-22. Grayson is the only local student who will attend the conference designed to teach students about leadership and how iconic leaders throughout history have handled world events. Varioius hands-on activities, relevant professional speakers, small group workshops and visits to significant memorials, museums and monuments will present Grayson with insight into the importance and essemtial need for inspired and informed world leaders. Grayson will also have the opportunity to create lifelong memories and lasting friendships with other leadership ambassadors … Read More

Student scientists Riley Kicker, from left, Shayne Nurse, David Todd, Kassidy Allie Stephenson, and Kaylee Andrews are joined by Kaylee’s younger sister Sara as they prepare to time the rate of sinking for various “plankton” creations designed by attendees of the recent Environmental Perspectives showcase of Arts and Sciences at Fort Pierce Westwood’s Marine & Oceanographic Academy. Students and guests alike were amazed at the scientific results!

At the recent Environmental Perspectives showcase of Arts and Sciences at Fort Pierce Westwood’s Marine & Oceanographic Academy, freshmen Lauren Martinez, from left, Caitlyn Richardson, and Aneesa Dial guided attendees in creating fish prints of various inhabitants of our south Florida waterways.

Katelyn Whitaker was involved in the recent Environmental Perspectives showcase of Arts and Sciences at Fort Pierce Westwood’s Marine & Oceanographic Academy. Katelyn is shown with her artwork.

St. Lucie County Circuit Court Judge Dan Vaughn recently visited Southern Oaks Middle School. Seventh grade students have been learning about the three branches of government in their civics classes this year. Judge Vaughn spoke with the students about what it means to him to be a judge, and the education needed to become one. The students were eager to ask Judge Vaughn questions about the judicial branch of the government and how it works. Judge Vaughn explained to the students about the history of the robe, which seemed to be a big cause for questions. He also discussed courtroom … Read More

Mariposa Elementary School recently held its Spirit Night at Chick-Fil-A of the Treasure Coast Mall. Chick-Fil-A helped the third grade team raise funds for their upcoming field trip to Legoland. Thank you to Mr. Kiedis of Chick-Fil-A and to all the families who came out and supported the event. Pictured are third grade teachers Monica Almeida, from left, Judy Graham, and Theresa Delancy who manned the Spin-A-Prize booth at the event.

Mariposa Elementary School recently held another Read to Succeed Night. Families came and participated in the activities. Special guest for the night was Bruce Shwedick of the Reptile Discovery Program. He brought with him a 15 pound yellow shelled tortoise from Brazil, a 25-pound Alligator snapping turtle, a nine-foot long reticulated python, and Banana Girl (a 16-foot albino python!), among others. Everyone learned from the information Mr. Shwedick shared about these awesome reptiles! Pictured is Alanna Rivera bravely touching Banana Girl!

Members of Fort Pierce Central High School’s Student Council surprised their valued resource, their teachers. Tillman’s Famous BBQ provided a catered lunch to help the students honor the teachers during Teacher Appreciation Week.

32 middle and high school students from St. Lucie Public Schools competed at the 2013 Florida History Fair in Tallahassee on May 6. All entries were based on this year’s annual theme, “Turning Points in History: People, Ideas, Events.” Students who placed in either first or second place at the District History Fair held on March 2 were eligible to advance to the state competition. Two students from Treasure Coast High School, Faith Percival and Ashlyn Rust, received the Native American Heritage Award from the Florida Governor’s Council on Indian Affairs for their website entry “Spanish Conquest of the Inca … Read More

Southern Oaks Middle School students students were mesmerized by the seriousness of tobacco use and what it can do to your body and brain in a recent presentation. Students were shown half of a human brain and a monkey brain from a tobacco user. The presenter was a former employee of the tobacco industry who shared many funny stories which kept the students interested, and have not stopped talking about it.

Students in Christine King’s and Felicia Cobb’s fifth grade classes at Allapattah Flats K8 have been working hard during their after school tutoring program. They have been working with the Art in History curriculum where they interact with text that explains the historical significance of an important artifact in history. The students shown in the photo were assigned the Terra Cotta Warriors of the Qin Dynasty (pronounced “chin”). They read about the history of the Qin Dynasty and the significance of the warriors. After about two weeks of research, they designed their own unique Terra Cotta Warriors shown above. Pictured, from left … Read More

The cadets of the Jaguar Battalion from Port St. Lucie High School presented the Colors for the Senior Awards Ceremony recently at Indian River State College from three programs — Educational Talent Search, St. Lucie Upward Bound, and Upward Bound Math and science. The ceremony began with the presentation of the Colors, by the Jaguar Battalion, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance. The cadets that participated were cadet Staff Sergeant Robert Hopkins as commander holding the National flag, cadet Corporal Lily Durst holding the State flag, cadet Staff Sergeant Cole Herndon and cadet Sergeant Tyrone Salazar as the guards. Pictured, … Read More

Fourth grade students at Allapattah Flats K-8 School have spent the school year learning about Florida’s history as part of their Social Studies curriculum. As a culminating activity, the fourth graders recently took a field trip to St. Augustine. The students were able to visit the Old Jail, Florida Heritage museum, Fort Castillo de San Marcos, Historic St. George Street, and ride on a narrated trolley tour. The students were able to see the pages of their textbooks come alive and learned many interesting facts about our state’s history from the many tour guides and landmarks. This was a memorable … Read More

Students in Marta Almiron’s kindergarten class at WestGate K8 School recently got a presidential-sized surprise recently when they received a response letter from the White House. The students had written letters to President Barack Obama in November, 2012, congratulating him on his victory, and Ms. Almiron sent the letters to the White House. I thought the letters were just too cute to keep them for my self, so I mailed them to the White House. President Obama sent a response, along with his autographed photograph, and a picture of First Dog Bo. Pictured are the kindergartners with their prized letter … Read More

Northport K-8 School’s youngest authors share their secrets to publishing a well planned, revised, edited and  well written, illustrated book as they meet in the Media Center with their classes. Kindergarten student Isaac Muniz, from Melody Nieves’ class, and Fabian Allen from Lorri Lamm’s second grade class, sit together to share their stories. Isaac’s book, titled “SpongeBob” and Fabian’s book, titled “The Day I Was A Super Hero,” were instant success stories with students as they moved from buddy to buddy sharing their stories and their secrets to effective writing! The promotion of positive interactions can be attributed to a school culture … Read More

Second grade students at Savanna Ridge Elementary School in Kristi Collins’ classroom who reach their reading goals earned dog tags to show how many points they earned on Scholastic Reading Counts. The students are given the opportunity to read and take assessments online to show their progress. Each time students take the assessment, they earn more points and are awarded the next level dog tag. The points start at 25 and go up to 250. Many students are at the 100 point level and some have even reached the max of 250! The students look forward to getting the dog … Read More