Port Jefferson Students Celebrate the Festival of Lights

From Port Jeff Schools:Students in Edna Louise Spear Elementary School celebrated the Festival of Lights with activities throughout the school.

Amy Castaldo’s third-grade class welcomed two parents who shared a celebration of Hanukkah with them. Stacey York and Natalie Litman taught the students about the history of the dreidel and the meaning of its letters. The students then tried their hand at the traditional game. They also learned about some of the symbols and traditions of the holiday and enjoyed potato latkes with applesauce. Mrs. York then read the book “How the Kvetch Stole Hanukkah,” a fun story with rhyming patterns and a story structure similar to “The Grinch.” “The story gave the students a little background knowledge of the history of Hanukkah, and helps them understand the true meaning behind the traditions,” said Mrs. Castaldo.

Kindergarten students in Melissa Martin’s class began a recent morning with a geometry lesson. After learning about triangles, hexagon, rectangles and squares and listening to “Sammy Spider’s First Hannukah,” they created their own paper menorahs.

Photo courtesy of the Port Jefferson School District