STARS Program Field Trip Slated for June 18th!

The annual STARS program end of year field trip is slated to take place on Saturday, June 18th.  All STARS students from grades 2 and 3 have the opportunity to participate in a trip to Stony Brook State Park, where students will have the opportunity to explore all the park has to offer!  As always, students' families are invited to join!

Permission slips have been sent home with students, but if you have any questions or concerns, or if you need another permission slip, please contact Tim Crowe at 607-324-1303 ext 1575! 

Teen Book Fest 2016

Each year, our readers group look forward to their end of the year trip to Nazareth College for the annual Teen Book Fest, and each year they have a blast!  This year was no different, with over 25 authors participating.

Over the course of the school year, ESD funding provides approximately 20 junior and senior high students with 6 books written by authors that will be present at the festival.  Over the course of the year, the students read these books, and come fest time, they get to hear the authors speak, meet the authors, and even get their autographs!

Not only is the program a lot of fun for our students, but it also does a great job in meeting our grant's goals!  From literacy to college and career readiness, Reader's Group is successful on so many levels!

The Teen Book Fest is huge event for school-ages readers in Western New York, and every year proves better than the last!

Final Chess Tourney Caps Excellent Year

For the past two years, HHS math teacher, Carl Kossow, has done an excellent job using chess to teach students math, strategy, sportsmanship and team work.  This year was even more successful than the last, with the Hornell team placing second in our end of the year tournament in Friendship, NY.

Chess group has been one of our most highly attended and popular programs for two years running!  In world dominated by smartphone screens and and digital devices, it's nice to know that students still want to engage in face-to-face interactions using a classic game as a platform!

Students facing off at Chess Group's final tournament!

Robotics FTC Excelsior Championship in Utica, NY!

The Hornell Senior High Robotics team, having successfully competed at the St. John Fischer FIRST FTC Regional Tournament, traveled to SUNY Polytechnic Institute in Utica, NY to participate in the NYS Excelsior Championship!  The students worked together to design, engineer, program and build a robot that brought our team farther than we've ever gone before!  While we didn't win at SUNY Poly, our team did an excellent job, and our students should take pride in the fact that they did so well this year!

The FIRST Technical Challenge, or FTC, is an international robotics program that holds tournaments yearly.  It uses robotics as a platform to challenge students to be the best they can be academicall and socially, while promoting gracious professionalism and careers in STEM fields.  Students who participate are eligible for millions of dollars in annual scholarships, in addition to many other excellent opportunities.  For more information on the FIRST organization, visit their website here.

Hornell FTC Team 620 - Lost Robot

One of Hornell's senior robotics team members showing their designing, engineering and building process!

Chess Tournament on 1/27 in Friendship, NY!

Each year, our Junior/Senior High Chess League works with other local teams to participate in a multi-school tournament, and this year's event is right around the corner!  This Wednesday, 1/27, the Hornell team, led by Coach Kossow, will travel to Friendship, NY, where they'll compete against other area teams.  Not only is this an exciting opportunity for our students to test their skills, but it gives them the opportunity to build relationships with students and coaches from other districts who also love the game.

The Hornell Chess Team uses chess as a platform to build many skills.  From creative problem solving to strategy and math to communication, students build all sorts of skills that will help them grow as students and individuals.

Coach Kossow oversees a match being played between some of HHS' finest chess players!

Programming Has Begun!

This year the Extended School Day Program has some great opportunities for Hornell City School District!  Here's a list of what we've got going on so far this year!

Bryant School S.T.A.R.S. Program: This 2^nd and 3^rd grade program takes place daily at Bryant School.  Focusing on homework help, PE, Art, ELA, History and STEM, this program is sure to help students struggling with their daily assignments.  The program also offers students a variety of field trips, all meant to enrich their education.

Hornell Intermediate School F.O.C.U.S. Program:  Just like the S.T.A.R.S. Program, but for 4th through 6th grade students!  Focusing on homework help, PE, Art, ELA, History and STEM, this program is sure to help students struggling with their daily assignments.  It also offers students a variety of field trips, all meant to enrich their education in a fun and meaningful way.

Junior/Senior High Extended Library Hours & Tutoring:  Every Monday through Thursday from 3:03 until approximately 4:45, the library will be open for student use, and there will be a tutor on hand to assist with assignments.  Last year there were over 4,500 instances of students using the library after school, and we're hoping to build on it this year.

After School Open Lab:  Once each week, high school science teacher Kelly Jackson open her lab after school.  Students who need to complete science labs are welcomed to do so in her room.  For more information on this program, please see Mrs. Jackson in the science wing!

Community Service Opportunities:  Each year we offer community service opportunities to our high school students.  Students currently rolled in Government, as well as students taking part in National Honor Society, are invited to volunteer to help with our S.T.A.R.S. or F.O.C.U.S. programs!  Not only is this a fun way for our older students to complete their community service requirements, it also gives those interested in pursuing careers in child care or education the opportunity to get their feet wet!  It also gives our younger students the opportunity to be mentored by high schoolers!

Junior/Senior High Robotics/STEM:  Students design, engineer, build and program robots, then compete against teams from other districts at regional, state, and/or national level.

Junior/Senior High Teen Book Fest Reading Group: Students are given brand new copies of books written by young adult authors and meet throughout the year for discussions.  This program culminates with a trip to the annual Teen Book Festival at Nazareth College, where students meet the authors they've been reading all year!

Junior/Senior High Writer's Circle:  Students meet weekly to work on and peer review books they write themselves.  At the end of the year, the student-written books are bound and published with an ISBN and all!

Junior/Senior High Earth and Sky:  This program offers an in depth and interesting study of our planet, solar system and universe, and is perfect for students interested in science and space.  Throughout the year, this group takes multiple field trips to enrich their studies.

Junior/Senior High Chess Club:  This group will learn how to play chess, and win!  They’ll learn strategy, team work, and the science behind playing chess, and they’ll even have the opportunity to play in tournaments against other schools!

Wildlife Defenders Visit Hornell Intermediate School

The Wildlife Defenders, a division of Bridges for Brain Injuries, visited the Hornell Intermediate School to show off some of the great animals they use for rehabilitation.  Students from the STARS Program also took a field trip to see their presentation.

From Lemurs to Crocodiles, students had the opportunity see some really cool animals they wouldn't see otherwise!  This was the 5th time The Wildlife Defenders have been to our district, and every visit is better than the last!

3rd Grade STARS Field Trip - Museum of Play - 4/18

On Saturday, 4/18, our 3rd Grade STARS students have the opportunity to travel to the Strong National Museum of Play in Rochester, NY.  The museum, which boast a myriad of educational, fun, and interactive exhibits, highlights how play has changed over the years while exploring the way play boosts learning, creativity, and discovery while illuminating cultural history.  With the world's most comprehensive collection of toys, games and play related materials, this is bound to be and education and enjoyable trip for the STARS students!

For more information on The Strong National Museum of Play, please visit www.museumofplay.org/

Hornell students on the front steps on Seasame Street!

Earth & Sky to visit Ithaca Science Center on 4/18

Our Earth & Sky Program will be paying a visit to the Ithaca Science Museum this weekend!  What's more, they'll also be talking the Sagan Planet Walk!

The museum, which boasts several interesting exhibits for all ages, is always a great time for our Earth & Sky students.  With everything from live animals to interactive sustainability exhibits, they certainly have something for everyone.

The Sagan Planet Walk, starting in Ithaca Commons and Ending at the museum, is a scale model of our solar system.  It gives students the ability to visualize our solar system in a way they wouldn't be able to otherwise.

For more information on the Ithaca Science Center and the Sagan Plaet Walk, please visit www.sciencenter.org/

Writers Group to Travel to Rochester 4/18

This Saturday, 4/18, our Jr./Sr. High writers group is set to make a couple of key stops on their journey to being published!  First, they'll take a behind the scenes tour of the Pittsford Barnes & Noble store in Pittsford, NY.  Of course, they'll also have some free time to take a look around one of Western New York's most impressive and well-stocked bookstores.

After a quick break for lunch, students will travel to Rochester Writers & Books Creative Writing Center, where they'll tour the facility and get a taste of what type of programming is available to burgeoning young writers in the Rochester Area.  Writers & Books is arguably our area's leader in promoting creative writing for young people in Upstate New York, so our students are very excited to have this opportunity.

For more information on Writers & Books, visit www.wab.org/

ESD/SVP Grant Extended Another Year!

We were happy to hear the New York State Education Department has offered current Extended School Day/School Violence Prevention Grantees a 1 year extension!  Having the grant for another year means that we will be able to provide another year of excellent programming for the district's students and families.  From academics to social skills, we're proud of all that our program has to offer, and we look forward to its continued growth.  Next year, we will be looking to bring back our current programming and add some new things into the mix!

If you have any ideas or suggestions, please feel free to contact me!

Culinary Group Boasts Biggest Turnout To Date - Wegmans Trip Scheduled for Thursday 3/5

Our Jr/Sr High Culinary Group, led by Pat White and Pat Lamphier of Cornell Cooperative Extension and Chef Ken Sanford of Wegmans, has had a great turnout so far this year.  Each week the program continues to grow in popularity, and it's proving both fun and education for our students.  Each week, Chef Sanford teaches our students how to cook a particular dish, and it's always healthy, nutritious and delicious.

This coming Thursday, our students will be taking a field trip to Wegmans, where Chef Sanford and Store Manager Brett Ahrens will give our students a behind the scenes look at how a large scale grocery store operates.  Furthermore, they'll be introduced to a professional kitchen and have the opportunity to use some of Wegmans resources.

YMCA February Break Program Successful

Over extended breaks, The Extended School Day and 21st Century Grant programs team up with the Hornell YMCA to provide scholarships in the YMCA's Care For Kids program.  Designed to enrich the lives of Hornell's while offering them a safe enviornment, the program has always proven beneficial to the students who enroll.  This year was no different.

Over February break, we were able to provide 22 students from the Bryant School S.T.A.R.S. and Intermediate School F.O.C.U.S. programs scholarships.  Our students had opportunities to swim, participate in music and art classes, engage in all kinds of games and physical activities, build social and interpersonal skills, and improve literacy skills.  The program has always been successful, and we can't thank the YMCA enough for the role they play in this partnership.

HHS Robotics Team - State Tournament

While the weather didn't allow our Senior High Robotics team to stay for the entirety of the state tournament, we're very proud of the hard work the student engineers put forth.  Furthermore, our students were the epitome of gracious professionalism, working with other teams to ensure that everyone at the tournament had the opportunity to participate, learn, and meet new people.  The process of designing, building, programming, and troubleshooting their robot took months, but the hours the students logged afterschool proved fruitful.  To date, this berth in the state competition is the robotics team's biggest accomplishment, and we're looking forward to next year's competition!

Hornell's team, Raiders of the Lost Robot, with coach and mentor, Paul Woughter.

3rd Grade STARS - Corning Museum of Glass Field Trip

Earlier this month, the 3rd Grade STARS program had the opportunity to take a guided tour of the Corning Museum of Glass!  When the students arrived at the museum, they started with a 1.5 hour tour of the museum's historical and art galleries, which culminated in a live hot glass show.  After the show, students were taken to the innovation center, where they learned the scientific properties that allow glass to be one of the most versatile mediums for both art and practical applications!

The trip was a blast for the students, and the docents that guided the students on their tour were awesome.  Thank you so much to the museum and docents for providing our students with a ruch and valuable learning experience!

Robotics Group Wins Regional Tournament!!

For the past 3 years, the Hornell Robotics team has been involved with the FTC Robotics Competition.  For 8 weeks at the beginning of the school year, the students design, engineer, program, and ultimately build a robot of their own design.  They then take their robot to the regional competition to compete against other area robotics groups.  They've always done well at the competitions, but this year they won!

Their win earned them a berth in the Upstate New York competition, where they will compete against robotics programs from all over New York State.  The Competition takes place on 2/8 at PACE University, just outside of New York City.

Hornell's FTC Robotics Team, "Raiders of the Lost Robot," with coach and champion of industry, Paul Woughter.

S.T.A.R.S. and Earth & Sky - Rochester Museum and Science Center Field Trip

On Saturday, 12/6, our 3rd Grade S.T.A.R.S. Students and our Earth and Sky Students had the opportunity to visit the Rochester Museum and Science Center for an enjoyable and educational day!  With three floors of exhibits and and a great interactive area, RMSC has a ton to offer our area.  Students learned about everything from dinosaurs and other animals to the history of Rochester and the people who first inhabited it.  In the interactive area students went on rides, read the weather report in front of a green screen, and even climbed a rock wall!  The day culminated in the museum's planetarium, where students took in a very interesting film on dinosaurs!

Three of our students enjoying RMSC's dinosaur exhibit!

S.T.A.R.S. Students Visit Alfred University Campus!

Checking out fossils!

Our 3rd grade S.T.A.R.S. students recently visited the Alfred University Campus for an afternoon full of science enrichment.  First students visited the geology department, where Dr. Pilgrim, with the help of a couple of AU student volunteers, showed the students the university's vast collection of fossils, rocks, and minerals.  Next, students moved on to water testing, where they conducted several scientific experiments on water samples taken from AU's Foster Lake.  Finally, the students got their hands dirty when they made their very own fossils by pressing shells into clay and filling the imprints with plaster of paris!

Earth & Sky Students Visit Rochester Gem and Mineral Show and Letchworth State Park

Every year our Earth & Sky students look forward to visiting the annual Rochester Gem and Mineral Show, which is hosted by the Rochester Lapidary Society.  This year, as years before, was an afternoon filled with fun and educational activities.  The Gem Show, put on at The Main Street Armory in Rochester, is one of the biggest Gem Shows in the North East.  With so many displays and vendors, our students got the opportunity to see Gems and Minerals they wouldn't get to check out otherwise, making this event one of the highlights of Earth & Sky every year.  On the way home from the show, instructor Kelly Jackson took the students to a scenic overlook at Letchworth State Park where they ate lunch and took in the park's natural beauty.

Earth & Sky - First Field Trip Scheduled for 10/25 - Rochester Gem and Mineral Show!

The HHS Earth & Sky Group's annual trip to the Rochester Gem and Mineral Show is right around the corner, and with that comes an exciting day of Earth Science Enrichment!  On Saturday, October 25th, Earth& Sky students will depart for the event, which is put on by the Rochester Lapidary Society.  With everything from educational displays to gem and mineral vendors, the trip is always a huge hit.  After departing the Gem & Mineral Show in the afternoon, students will stop at Letchworth State Park, where they'll go on a hike, check out a wide variety of WNY's plant life, and have a meal at one of the park's many scenic overlooks!