The Fall 2023 Before & After School Activities session will run from Tuesday, September 26th to Thursday, December 7.
- Registration: Is now closed.
- Time: After school classes meet from 3:45pm to 4:45pm. Before school classes meet from 8:10-9:10am.
- Before school classes: Please note that these classes require parents/guardians to volunteer at least one time to take attendance when you drop your child off (it only takes 5-10 minutes and we tell you exactly what to do!)
- Early dismissal days: There is no after school on early dismissal days, but there is before school.
- After school dismissal: Students are to be picked up at the gym entrance at 4:45pm sharp.
- Tardiness: If parents/caregivers are more than 10 minutes late for pick up more than once, we will cancel the student's participation. Thanks for understanding.
- Make ups: If school closes or an instructor is out sick, we will do our best to schedule make up classes. In some instances, we may not be able to make classes up.
- Families in need: Please contact Mrs. Barbara Milone for information on financial assistance.
Please contact Barbara at mpptovp@gmail.com with any questions.
Meadow Pond PTO After School Activities Course Catalog
*Fall 2023*
**All activities are after school unless otherwise indicated**
M O N D A Y S
Intro to Tennis (8 classes, Grades K-2)
The class will introduce tennis to students in grades K-2. Tennis coaches will bring in mini tennis nets, racquets and low compression balls to teach the lessons in the gym or the blacktop outside when the weather is nice. Fun games will be incorporated into learning basic strokes with our goal of getting your child to be able to rally and hopefully love the game.
Learn to Play Guitar (8 classes, Grades 3-5)
The class will focus on learning the most important chord shapes to prepare your child to play their favorite songs. Instructor Dave Pilchik creates a very fun environment to learn to play. Price includes guitar rental, which your child can bring home for the duration of the program.
EmpowerED Martial Arts (Grades K-3)
EmpowerED: Back to School Confidence Builder combines martial arts basics with essential life skills like focus and discipline. Boosting both physical fitness and self-esteem, it's the perfect way to prepare for a successful school year. Join us in this transformative journey toward academic excellence and confidence. Upon completion of the course, students will stand taller, both physically and mentally. They will have cultivated a heightened sense of self-esteem, bolstered by the knowledge that they possess the skills to overcome adversity and thrive academically. This transformative experience paves the way for students to embrace the upcoming school year with resilience, optimism, and an unwavering belief in their capabilities.
T U E S D A Y S
Beginning French (10 classes, 2-5) **before school**
By means of interaction, games and songs, the aim of this program is to instill in a relaxed way, a positive feeling for French vocabulary with emphasis on pronunciation and reading skills. Students will learn to read and write simple text and be enabled to use everyday expressions.
Yoga & Mindfulness (10 classes, Grades K-5) **before school**
Introducing Yoga and Mindfulness at a young age is the best gift parents can offer their children. Through the ancient techniques delivered in a fun and accessible way, kids learn self-regulation, strategies for better focus, and stress management. Yoga helps them become stronger, more balanced, and more resilient. Age-appropriate yoga postures, breathing, relaxation, and meditation techniques are delivered through nature and seasonal-based stories, games, and art.
Everyday Spanish (10 classes, Grades 2-5)
By means of interaction, games and songs, the aim of this program is to instill in a relaxed way, a positive feeling for Spanish vocabulary with emphasis on pronunciation and reading skills. Students will learn to read and write simple text and be enabled to use everyday expressions.
Challenge Island: Amusement Park Island (10 classes, Grades K-5)
WHAT’S MORE FUN THAN AN AMUSEMENT PARK ADVENTURE?!! Roller Coasters, Ziplines, Spooky Mansions, Arcade Games, Oh My! Challenge Island kids love adventure and designing and building cool new engineering projects! STEAM learning, laughter and tons of fun! Child-directed brain power at its best! Buckle your seatbelts because here we gooooooo!
- ROLLER COASTER CLIFF – What’s an Amusement Park without roller coasters and their many loops, curves and hills. We observe the impact of the height and steepness of the rides we build on the velocity of the ‘riders’! And make sure they cover the longest distance possible and land in a given target!
- ZIPLINE ZONE – It’s a race to the finish as our STEAM TEAMS construct the fastest and most slick zipline rides around! We focused on the key components of ‘Slickness’ – or a lack of friction – to move across our ride with little resistance. As well, we worked on perfecting the ‘Balance’ of each ride to enable an even distribution of weight to remain upright and steady.
- CATAPULT COVE – Who likes to play games at the arcade at the amusement park?!! Well now’s your chance to build your own game by engineering a catapult that can fling a soft item across space to hit a target. It’s all about fun AND the concepts of stored energy and elasticity to get that bullseye!
- AND MANY, MANY MORE ADVENTURES!
Beginning Acting (10 classes, Grades 1-5)
Through a series of fun theatre games and improvisations, children learn the fundamentals of acting for theatre from a professional actress with over 30 years of experience in stage, film and television. While the course is perfect for children who have a natural flare for acting and who would like to further explore their talent, the main focus of the class is for children to draw on their imaginations and develop confidence in self expression in a safe group environment. The theatre games and improvisations are designed to encourage spontaneity, trust, and respect within the group. Drawing from their improvisational works, actors will then create group scenes which they will perform for each other.
Adventures in Art (10 classes, Grades K-5)
We'll be exploring many exciting art techniques this fall! Projects change each term so that both new and returning students will find the class fun and challenging. We'll make colorful miniature clay sculptures, create drawings and paintings with unusual materials, and much more. The element of discovery will stimulate our creativity and help us develop as well-rounded artists.
W E D N E S D A Y S
Outdoor Play and Ga Ga Pit (10 classes, Grades 1-5)
Outdoor play helps children grow socially, helps develop healthy ways of forming new friendships and using their imagination to entertain each other. Sign up and let's get some sunshine, fresh air, and activity together!
Learn to Garden (10 classes, Grades 2-4)
Students will learn what plants need to grow through a variety of hands-on activities. Students will help take care of the vegetable and flower gardens at Meadow Pond and will also plant seeds to take home.
Hip Hop Dance (10 classes, Grades K-5)
Hip Hop Dance is a high-energy class, with age appropriate and upbeat music. Instructor Kim Alcott brings out students' own individual style and personality and incorporates fun games. Students must wear sneakers and comfortable clothes for moving.
T H U R S D A Y S
Beginning Piano (9 classes, Grades 2-5)
Welcome to the world of Beginning Piano! For the beginning piano class, we will learn basic fingering technique and finger numbering, all repeated in a pattern. We will learn key names based on visual recognition, all repeated in a pattern. We will learn a simple song such as Happy Birthday by rote. There will be an introduction to simple notation based on note location (as a step up, step down, two steps down etc). There will be a sharps and flats explanation as well as rhythm explanation. We will do a "spider" game modeled after Hanon exercises (five consecutive steps up and down), a "see saw" game (swinging wrist right and left) to relax wrist action. We will learn to play a simple song by printed musical notation, and students will be introduced to a scale.
Comic Crafting 101 (9 classes, Grades 3-5)
Learn to employ simple techniques to create your own comic book adventures! Build storycrafting and illustration skills as you design characters, choose settings, and advance the plot - then bring your stories to life both visually and with words, turning simple lines and shapes into fantastic scenes and images! Designed for a wide range of levels of ability from beginners to advanced storycrafters. Active and gamified to captivate even the most distractable participants!
Soccer with JJFC (9 classes, Grades K-3)
John Jay Futbol Club is a soccer club specializing in the lifelong learning of youth soccer players focused on providing an accessible and engaging soccer program that delivers exceptional training, developing the whole player in a positive environment for young people.
Digital Photography (Grades 2-5) **No Class on Thursday October 5th**
Digital Photography will introduce students to the still image as an art form and help them explore Photography and Community. Along with technical acumen, they will learn concepts including Point of View, Perspective, Composition and Context and utilizing critique and analysis as students create written Artist Statements about their photographs. The program culminates with a Gallery Exhibition for which students plan, execute and critique their work. Each student will receive one 5x7 print of their best work to take home. Instructor will provide Point and Shoot cameras and memory cards.
F R I D A Y S
Chess (8 classes, Grades 1-4)
Join your school chessmates for a winter of fun matching your skills across the board. Beginners will learn the moves and rules of chess, as well as instruction on opening, middle and endgame with strong emphasis on playing! Children will play supervised games and practice the art of checkmate on diagrams tailored to their level. Students at the intermediate level will be grouped to learn at a higher level playing against more competitive opponents and advanced strategies.
Ballet/Tap (8 classes, Grades K-3)
** Children should wear black leggings and bring ballet and tap shoes. Inexpensive ballet and tap shoes are available on Amazon, Target, etc.*** Students will be introduced to ballet and tap, learning the basic terminology and the foundation of dances. They will enjoy creative movement, rhythm, tempo, balance coordination, flexibility while learning through a variety dance games. Your child will also enjoy simple and fun exercises in creative dance and music exploration.
*NEW* After School Activities (ASA) Committee
Seeking K-2 parents for the After School Committee!
Help us continue to offer engaging after school classes for Meadow Pond kids. We have three open coordinator roles; each will work with after school vendors to coordinate on dates/details for the next (winter/spring) session and fill out required forms. This is not an ongoing commitment - we'll need your help during planning, about 6-8 weeks before the start of the next session.
Open roles:
- Sports coordinator
- Dance/music coordinator
-Art/STEM coordinator
If you’re interested, or have questions, please reach out to Barbara Williams at mpptovp@gmail.com
The MPES PTO board is seeking volunteers to work closely with the PTO VP to organize and run our after school activities. ASA is an important fundraiser for the PTO, and the funds raised go right back to the school to support enrichment activities such as field trips, building improvements and supplies not covered by the school budget, and so much more. We’ll work as a team, divide and conquer, and bring engaging activities to Meadow Pond!
The Committee’s responsibilities include:
- Partnering with the PTO VP to plan ASA sessions in winter, spring, and fall;
- Identifying classes and instructors to build each session’s schedule;
- Liaising with instructors and BOCES (which partly subsidizes some ASA classes);
- Liaising with school administration;
- Developing promotional materials and managing registration; and
- Answering parents’ questions.
If you’re interested, or have questions, please reach out to Barbara Williams at mpptovp@gmail.com
