September 2022 Newsletter

MAKE A GIFT
Superintendent's Message

Greetings!

School is back in session and Lexington's students are happy to be "back in the nest!"

This year's start of school marked a return to an almost pre-Covid normal. Athletics and school clubs are back and plans are already underway for the Drama Club's December production. While this year's Deaf Awareness Week activities were quieter than in prior years, Lexington was honored to have some of its students represented in the World Federation of the Deaf's official video for the International Week of Deaf People 2022. 

Thanks to the efforts of our faculty and staff, I'm proud to announce that Lexington has achieved Level II Thinking Map status. Other exciting initiatives this fall include a new internship experience with the Queens Museum and the addition of an art therapy program at the Mental Health Center. 

Sincerely,

Russell O. West

CEO/Superintendent

Lexington "Rocks" the First Day

Faculty and staff wore their Lexington blue to greet students on the first day of school. Students received a rousing Bluejay welcome, complete with pom-poms, a drum beat, and everyone's favorite school mascot. Click below to view our "Welcome Back to the Nest" video. 

Green Mountain National Forest Partnership

Lexington students traveled to Vermont on September 11th for a weeklong career exploration program hosted by the Green Mountain & Finger Lakes Division of the US Forest Service (USFS). During the week, students learned about land and water stewardship and conservation. They installed heat shields on picnic tables at Chittenden Brook Campground and donned wetsuits to study fish habitats.

Students stayed at Liberty Hill Farm in Rochester, Vermont, and enjoyed the hearty meals and caring for the farm animals. Lexington staff - Joyce Neier, Jacque Fresolo, and Angela Langone - chaperoned the students. Lexington would like to thank Beth and Bob Kennett (Liberty Hill Farm), Holly Knox (USFS), and everyone at Green Mountain & Finger Lakes National Forest for providing our students with this wonderful experience. 

Click here to see a slide show of the trip!

Student Internships at Queens Museum

Queens Museum staff met with HS4 students Luzdary, Malikha, Jose, Omar, Ricardo and Nesiah on Wednesday, September 28 to orient them to an  exciting new internship experience. Museum Director of Administration Daniel Samaniego, Front of House Manager Justin Singleton and their colleagues gave the students a warm welcome. The students will be traveling to the museum with High School teacher Judy Schechter and Instructional Assistant Danny Biland every other week to learn how to digitize and organize museum records. The students are excited at the prospect of learning marketable skills and at the idea of teaching museum staff some ASL!

Is There a Martian in the House?


Save the date - December 8th and 9th - for this year's Drama Club production! One of the cast members is a Martian, but can you guess who before the curtain falls? This fun and interactive mystery will be presented in ASL with English and Spanish interpretation. 

Want to be a sponsor or place an ad in this year's Drama Club program book? Click here for more information.

Varsity Soccer

The Varsity Soccer Team kicked off its 2022 season on September 24th with a game against Marie Philip School (Massachusetts). It was a challenging match with the Bluejays losing 1-9 to the Galloping Ghosts. Hunter L. scored the lone goal. Braynerd D. made 11 saves and Irnaldo V. was credited with 3 saves. The team's 2022 schedule is posted on our website. Click here to view!

Family ASL Classes

Lexington's ASL classes for families of Lexington students will begin on October 11 and 12. For the fall session, classes will be offered for one hour, once a week, for eight weeks. There will be no classes the week of Thanksgiving. Parents, siblings, grandparents, aunts and uncles, and guardians are welcome to attend the free classes. Registration ends Monday, October 3rd! Use the below links to register. 

Desk Pets Spark Love of Writing

Elementary 5 teacher Jessica Sackman has introduced Desk Pets as a way to engage her class of third and fourth graders in writing. Each month, students choose a Desk Pet (small animal eraser) to adopt. Students name their pets, fill out adoption certificates, and keep their pets in small plastic containers on their desks. The students research where their pets live, what they eat, and their habits. Students then use Circle Thinking Maps to describe their pets and create illustrated books. Ms. Sackman includes discussions on pet care and responsibility as part of the project.

Students proudly display their Desk Pets.

The Desk Pets in their "homes."

Students use Circle Maps to plan their writing projects. 

Mental Health Center Adds Art Therapy 

Lexington's Mental Health Services Center recently added art therapy to its offerings for deaf and hard of hearing clients. Art therapy integrates psychotherapy (verbal or sign language) with some form of art media and process. Art therapy may be used in combination with other types of therapy to provide a unique approach for helping clients express feelings, emotions, and history, and to improve mental health, cognitive abilities, behavior, and sensory-motor functions. Art therapy is also an effective treatment modality for children and adults with developmental, medical, social, and psychological issues.

Clients do not need to be skilled artists to benefit from art therapy sessions. Art therapy can be provided both in person and remotely. Confidential inquiries should be directed to: Lexmentalhealth@lexnyc.org, or 718-350-3143 (voice), or 917-832-1682 (VP). 

Lexington Achieves Level II Thinking Maps Status

Under the guidance of Jane Moran, Executive Director of Instruction & Curriculum (pictured right) and Cindy Roberts Figueroa, Supervisor, Professional Development & Assessment (pictured left), Lexington has achieved Level II Thinking Maps status. Thinking Maps is a set of 8 visual patterns, similar to graphic organizers, that correlates to specific cognitive processes. Lexington uses Thinking Maps® across all grades and content areas to build the critical thinking, problem-solving, comprehension, and communication skills necessary for academic success.

Deaf Awareness Week

Lexington classes celebrated Deaf Awareness Week, September 19-24, with handshape activities, ABC challenges in ASL, and by learning about technology that Deaf people use in their daily lives (e.g. videophones, vibrating alarm clocks). Students in Jared Lopatin's English classes hosted read-a-louds (pictured) for younger classes. 

Several Lexington students were included in the World Federation of the Deaf's official video for International Week of Deaf People. Preschool and elementary students, with help from staff, demonstrated how to sign the phrase "International Week of Deaf People." Check out both of the videos below. 

Video link to official video for International Week of Deaf People 2022.

School Supplies from Staples

Staples Store #171-Woodside (51-10 Broadway)  has come to the rescue once again by providing school supply kits to Lexington students. Through the generosity of their customers, Staples associates collected 49 boxes (12 kits per box) of school kits for use by students. Kits contained pencils, pens, highlighters, a permanent marker, erasers, glue, and a glue stick. 

Mid-Hudson Valley Deaf Camp

The Mid-Hudson Valley Camp, Deaf Camp, takes place on the grounds of the Marist Brothers Center in Esopus, New York, for a week each summer. The camp began in 1976 and celebrated its 40th year in 2015. The camp welcomes deaf elementary and middle school-aged children from throughout the New York City area. Dana McMenamin, a speech-language pathologist at Lexington, runs the program with two other professionals, a mental health counselor from the Department of Education and the PPS supervisor from St. Francis de Sales School for the Deaf. 

The camp runs independently of the schools and allows deaf children to meet peers from other schools. This year, 23 students from Lexington joined as campers. Six high school students, and one IA, Wayne Stelmach, from Lexington volunteered their time as counselors. 

You can tell by their smiles that these campers can't wait to return next year.

High School students (l-r): Hunter L., Ohenewaa, Heriberto, Hunter C., Cristhian, and Salvatore volunteered at the camp.

Summer STEM Project

Middle School students in teacher Suhanthi Knower's (pictured far right) and IA Patricia McKenzie's (pictured far left) summer school class enjoyed a special STEM project. First, students researched honey bees and their habitats. Then, they used Legos to recreate the honeybees habitat. By incorporating motors and simple machines into their models, students were able to use WeDo software to write programs to make their honeybees "fly." Students then shared their research and projects with their peers.

Students shared their software code with help from IA Patricia McKenzie. 

Students developed PowerPoint presentations to share their research with peers. 

Middle School STEM Sewing

Summer school is a great time for STEM activities. This year, Middle School IA Teresa Moore shared her sewing talents as part of the STEM program. Under Ms. Moore's direction, students selected fabric, measured, ironed, and used a sewing machine to create colorful tote bags. Students were very proud of their completed projects!

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