⇪ Feature Photo: Exploring Culture Through Art ⇪
The SPECIAL EDition Newsletter is a publication of the Jersey City Public Schools Department of Special Education that highlights the latest student-centered events, activities, and trends throughout the district to keep families and educators informed.
Created by: Dr. Norma Fernandez, Superintendent of Schools, Dr. Gerry Crisonino, Assistant Superintendent, Megan Costigan, Supervisor, Jaime Merced, Lead Teacher
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Active Play Areas
By: Eric Pawlowski, Adapted Physical Education
As the year has progressed, two of our schools officially opened up Active Play Areas. These rooms at PS 8 Charles E. Trefurt School and PS 34 President Barack Obama Community School are utilized by our students to serve as a fun, safe, learning environment. These rooms encourage the students to exercise, and explore various skills that could be used to increase their confidence in their gross motor skills. Students who utilize these rooms take the skills that they have learned, and incorporate them during daily activities in all areas of the classroom.
Within the past few months students in Adapted Physical Education classes have focused on their physical fitness by doing obstacle courses that involve all types of movements and skills along with focusing on volleyball skills such as serving, striking, and the volleyball bump. An exercise we often do is an adapted push-up where students use chairs, walls, or agility balls to make push-ups more attainable, and as the children get stronger we will continue working towards the goal of full push-ups without any modifications.
The Department of Special Education's Holiday Toy Drive 2022
By: Heather Piechocki
The Department of Special Education values the relationships with so many members of the Hudson County community and beyond. Throughout the 2022 holiday season, it was amazing to witness so many people and organizations coming together to support our students with special needs. We are more than grateful for all of the generosity and hard work put forth to make our annual holiday gift giving event a success.
This past holiday season, over 1,000 of our students with special needs received a wrapped gift from their wish list. This included self-contained classes throughout Jersey City, as well as all of the students in The Regional Day School. This would not have been possible without the wonderful organizations listed below:
Advisors Mortgage Group, LLC, JC Emerald Society, Mr. Mark Hussey (in honor of our beloved Mary Hussey, Adapted Phys. Ed Lead Teacher), The Healy/Hussey families, Hudson Subaru, JCFD: Captain Mark V. Lee Sr. Toy Drive (Lee Family), All Saints Catholic Academy, Artists Avenue Musical Theater School, Keller Williams JC Life, Bayonne Rotary Club, BCB Bank, Global Harvest Fellowship, JCPS Department of Special Education Staff Members
Sharing Love in Music Therapy
By: Lucas McCarren
Mr. DiRenzi’s class at PS 15 was happy to share some love this year with an original song made with music therapist Lucas McCarren. Lucas and Mr. DiRenzi are so proud of the class for their hard work and were able to share the project with their families and loved ones.
The class spoke about how they love their families, parents, pets, and of course chicken nuggets! The class explored several contrasting instruments such as the guitar, piano, violin, and drums in this composition. Using the iPad to record the song is always an exciting experience for the class. The class was able to work together creatively while learning about the process of recording music.
We hope you love hearing the kids' voices as much as we do! Enjoy our Valentine's Day Song!
Assistive Technology at PS 26
By: Sandy Philips, School Psychologist, MA, PD, NCSP
Assistive technology has played an integral role in developing minds of youngsters at PS 26! Many would not have access to the vast learning opportunities offered by the JCPS if it was not for the availability of assistive technology. Many students are fortunate to have a supportive team of evaluators and service providers who assess the need for assistive technology and make it possible for them to access supportive devices that help them reach their full academic potential and ensure their wellbeing in school.
In addition to the services being provided in the classroom as well as the provision of specialized related services, having the access to assistive technology, such as a supportive soft helmet for safety and a Rifton chair, has helped him tremendously in reaching his current goal of developing his self-help skills. The student experienced significant challenges transitioning from home to a structured school setting only a few months ago. However, with the use of assistive technology, such as his Rifton chair and helmet, he has been able to successfully adjust to the classroom environment with minimal challenges.
We have countless students here at PS 26 who have made significant progress in their current settings, primarily due to the availability and use of assistive technology. Our school is the home of several self-contained special education classrooms with many students requiring specialized support in order to reach their full academic potential. We are very fortunate to have access to assistive technology which allows many students the opportunity to learn and thrive.
Head of the Class
By: Jennifer Valdora
In November, the New Jersey School Boards Association awarded the Jersey City School District an Exemplary Program Award. The district was recognized for its Fun Friday programming which provides innovative, inclusive activities for all students. This award highlights the partnership between the Department of Special Education and the Jersey City Free Public Library. The partnership continues to expand to provide additional resources and events to all the students in Jersey City.
Register in advance for future Fun Friday events:
Exploring Culture Through Art
By: Melissa Cook
On February 24, 2023, students in Ms. Doblosky and Ms. Patel’s 5th grade classes at PS 15 enjoyed a day at The Montclair Art Museum. Every year, Mr. Thomas, the art teacher, takes the 5th graders to the museum to observe the art exhibit that is featured during this time. This year, students were able to experience the art of Vanessa German.
Vanessa German is a self-taught sculptor, painter, poet, and performance artist who resides in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. She calls herself a citizen artist and is interested in art as a form of healing and protection, especially for African Americans. Her primarily female power figures explore themes of strength, love, and justice while engaging with the complicated history of race in the United States.
Students were led around the exhibit by a guide who stopped to explain the history and the meaning of each piece of artwork. Students engaged in conversation and had discussions about what they thought the artist was trying to say and how each particular piece of work made them feel.
After observing all of the artwork, students were led into a classroom and had the opportunity to create their own original piece of art to express their individuality.
Fun Filled Activities in Ms. Jenna's Class
By: Jenna Columbia, PS 26
In the month of February, Miss Columbia's PreK class at Patricia M. Noonan Elementary School engaged in fun-filled activities. The class participated in the school's Black History Museum. For the museum, the students were introduced to the traffic light. They learned about the meaning of three traffic light colors and about the African American inventor, Garrett Morgan. Students completed the lesson with a fine motor and color matching traffic light craft.
The students also made “Thing 1 and Thing 2” headbands for Read Across America Week and they learned about kindness during Valentine’s Day. The students enjoyed the day with crafts and making a card for their parents.
C.H.A.M.P.S. Program: Alphabet Fun
By: Heather Piechocki
The students in Ms. Gonzalez's class at PS 8 are hard at work developing their understanding of alphabet knowledge — the ability to recognize and name uppercase and lowercase letters, recognize letter symbols in print, and know that there are sounds associated with each letter. Alphabet knowledge is a key pre-literacy skill and lays the groundwork for future reading success. During Language Arts, Ms. Gonzalez's students have been practicing letter and sound recognition by completing various hands-on activities.
Read Across America
By: Danielle Dima
Special Education Lead Teachers were invited to various school buildings throughout the district from administration and Reading Specialists to be guest readers for Read Across America. Ms. Dima read "One Love" by Cedella Marley and incorporated a Social Emotional Learning discussion. This book was inspired by Bob Marley's famous song "One Love". Students and teachers enjoyed the lyrics and illustrations!
The Power of Our Stories
By: Emilee Davis
In honor of Black History month, Ms. Emilee’s Art Therapy classes were introduced to the work of American artist and activist, Faith Ringgold. Born in Harlem in the 1930s, Ringgold was surrounded by the art and culture of the Harlem Renaissance.
Ringgold’s art combines the traditional handcraft with her love of storytelling to create a series of ‘story quilts’. In 1980, Ringgold took her famous story quilt series ‘Tar Beach’ and published her first children’s book. Students read Ringgold’s “Tar Beach” and discussed the art style and story themes. Students then started their own story quilts. They began their stories by creating drawings of ‘if I could fly…’. Then they added layers of painting and collage to incorporate quilt elements. As we continue the project, students reflect on themes of boundaries and collaboration, cause and effect, and telling your own story.
Terrific Timelines
By: Heather Piechocki
Students in Ms. Shahid's class at PS 5 recently learned about chronology and the importance of using timelines to make historical information easy to read and remember. To practice this important skill, students created their own personal timeline posters. They chose important events in their lives from birth until present and used pictures and brief descriptions to represent the data. After completion, they presented their projects to their classmates.
