I hope everyone is enjoying this amazing run of weather! The calendar may still say Spring, but it sure feels like Summer! Thank goodness our entire building is air-conditioned.

As we enter our final days of the 2023-2024 school year, we do a lot of reflecting, preparing and planning, for both this year and next year. For our grade 5 families, it is the end of their child's days at PS 88q, but it is never an ending to their connection to PS 88Q. Even after they graduated and move on, we are always here for the students and their families. Your child's years in elementary school are the longest they will ever be in a school. Middle School is three years, and high school only four years. For many of our grade 5 graduates, this completes their 7th year at PS 88Q, with a beginning in Pre-K.

Grade 5 families, look for an important email this week regarding all things related to graduation and additional celebrations.

As for next year, our planning continues. Our Social Justice Committee is planning a kick off event for next year, It is called " A Cultural Fashion Runway Show". I will be sharing their email this week with families, in the hopes that some of our school community can connect us with outside support. To view the letter, and the scope of this initiative, click here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/12m5Wzn5ag_nKkwx5FbDfX-HYhB-RH_BC/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=101513461094107957206&rtpof=true&sd=true

With three weeks remaining of the school year, here are some important dates:

No School June 17th (Eid)

No School June 19th (Juneteenth)

Grade 5 Commencement (June 20)

Last Day of School (June 26th )

Have a great week!

We are so excited for this weeks performance of Finding Nemo. PS 88Q has been part of the Disney In Schools Program for 10 years. Ms. Bawer, Ms. Fogarty and Mr. Nolan have been the backbone of this program for its entirety at PS 88Q. This past week, they were honored at a special performance on Broadway, as PS 88Q has sustained this program for 10 years! Through the pandemic, the vision of theater was continued, due to the passion and hard work of this trio. This week, all of the hard work of the staff and cast comes to fruition, as their performance of Finding Nemo takes the stage! We welcome all of our families, past, current and future families too! Below, find a video that highlights the Disney in Schools program, and you will even spot our very own Ms. Bawer! The show will be live streamed as well. Link will be shared this week.

This past week, Mr. Canales, Ms. Corniel and I (Mrs. O'Shaughnessy) did a pop up visit at IS 93 to visit our former students. We have done this before at IS 77 (hint, look for us this week there again). Once a PS 88Q'er, always a PS 88Q'er! We wanted to stop by to see our former students, who are now in 6th, 7th and 8th grade just to remind us that we are still here if they need us. Check out a few pictures from this AMAZING VISIT!

PS 88Q was selected to perform at the very competitive Queens Borough Arts Festival. Hundreds of schools compete for this opportunity to perform at this venue, including all elementary schools, middle schools and high schools. Our fourth graders, under the direction of Mr. Alboum, were selected and performed in the beautiful Kupferberg Center for the Arts at Queens College. Below is the link for their amazing performance.

Last year, District 24 hosted a wonderful day at the bandshell in Forest Park. All school participated, performed and created a fun day for all. This year, it is being held on June 8th and it will be even better! Our band and our GRYC dancers will be performing again. Stay tuned for more details!

We can't wait for the Staff-Student Basketball Game! On Monday, June 10th, our brave staff members are suiting up to play our Grade 5 basketball team. Catch us live streamed!

https://youtube.com/live/oi0wZDcoks8?feature=share

One of the most common questions I receive from families is "How do you reorganize the students each year?" I will explain the process.

Each clerical day, our teachers meet (grades 3K-4) to move students to classes in the next grade. It is completely tentative, as over the summer, students discharge and many others register. Teachers meet with profiles on each student, and we reorganize equally. What does that mean? Students are reorganized heterogenously, a mix of many academic levels, strengths and needs. Additionally, our ENL students are placed in all classes, rather than in one. Students with an IEP are automatically placed in their determined setting (12:1 or ICT). Students who applied to Gifted and Talented and accepted the offer, automatically continue in the G and T track.

Throughout your years at PS 88Q, your child will most likely be in the ICT setting. For most grades, we have two, if not three some years, section on a grade. We have two different ICT settings.

• NEST ICT: We have a Kindergarten and Grade 1 Nest ICT. We are honored to be one of only 83 schools in the city to have this class. This past school year, Ms. Becker and Ms. Agostino were the kindergarten NEST teachers. For more information regarding Nest, click here https://steinhardt.nyu.edu/metrocenter/nest
• ICT (Integrated Co--Teaching):There are two teachers—a general education teacher and a special education teacher. The teachers work together to adapt materials and modify instruction to make sure the entire class can participate.

Each one of our classrooms follow the same curriculum, and our teachers plan as a grade. All classes take the same assessments, and diagnostic tests. All classes are of equal number as well. Teachers and administration do take into account students as individuals when reorganizing as well. This is done in June, as after June 26th, all staff are on vacation (except me). The week before school, sometimes two weeks before, all families receive an email with their class and teacher. You may ask why not in June. Many things change in a school over the summer, from registrations, discharges and sometimes teachers decide to retire, take a sabbatical, or change schools.

On the horizon: I have applied for a dual language program, and am confident that in the 2025-2026 SY we will have our first dual language kindergarten.

If you have any questions about your child's placement next year, please email me @ loshaughnessy@schools.nyc.gov

Even when school is out, you can still enjoy free breakfast and lunch(Open external link)! Our 2024 Free Summer Meals Program is here for you all across New York City, and it's totally free for anyone who's 18 years old or younger. You can find these meals at specific places like select NYC Public Schools, community pool centers, parks, and libraries. And guess what? You don't need to sign up, show any papers, or have an ID to get these meals. Just head to one of our spots and enjoy a delicious breakfast and lunch. Have a great summer filled with good food and fun!

As summer approaches more additional information will be available.

Service Information

• All dates, times, locations and menus are subject to change.
• Thursday, June 27, 2024 – Friday, August 30, 2024
• There is no service Thursday, July 4, 2024 (4th of July)
• There is service Friday, July 5, 2024 (Day after 4th of July)
• Breakfast Service Time: 8am - 9:15am
• Lunch Service Time: 11am - 1:15pm
• Text: NYCFood to 304-304 (standard text messaging rates may apply)
• Call 311
• Find A Free Breakfast & Lunch Location Near You(Open external link)
• Open Community Locations(Open external link)(Open external link)
• Open Community Halal Locations(Open external link)

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Summer Reading

Reading is like any skill: it takes practice! Over the summer, reading together can help your child continue to develop their literacy skills and avoid any learning loss that might occur over their time outside of the classroom.

Our Summer Reading Guide—available online at schools.nyc.gov/LiteracyResources—is a great first step on your family’s next reading adventure. It contains tips for reading at home, recommended titles for students in all grade levels, resources where you can find books, and more. In addition to the guide, our Literacy Resources webpage also features at-home activities and other recommended reading lists that will help foster a lifelong love of reading and learning.

This summer, we also encourage you to use our Citywide Digital Library, Sora. Sora is the quickest and easiest way for NYC students to access thousands of e-books and audiobooks in multiple languages. You can log in to Sora using your NYC Public School credentials at soraapp.com/library/nycschools.

Dear New Yorkers,

As we enter graduation season, I want to share a reminder about college and career pathways: it’s never too early, and it’s never too late.

It’s never too early to start preparing our young people for their futures, as last week’s 529 Day reminded us. That’s why we have NYC Scholarship Accounts available for every New York City Public Schools student in Kindergarten through second grade. Funding from the City, the Mayor's Office of Equity & Racial Justice, and NYC Kids RISE allows us to invest an initial $100 in each child’s account. Communities, organizations, businesses, and alumni can raise money for these accounts as well. As soon as a parent or guardian activates their child’s account, we allocate an additional $25—and parents can open and connect their own personal accounts to save as a family, too.

It’s also never too late for our students to forge new paths. Sometimes the journey through high school can take a detour, and our Transfer High Schools and Young Adult Borough Centers are here to help when that happens. I'm proud that we've secured continued funding for the Learning to Work initiative that ensures students receive additional support to both catch up on credits and Regents and experience paid work-based learning with our employer partners.

And as a reminder for our Class of 2024: it's also not too late to complete your FAFSA and TAP for financial aid! You can contact an NYCPS advisor after school on Tuesdays through Fridays for virtual support, and CUNY is also hosting in-person support on several campuses this spring.

Every child deserves to grow into a career they enjoy that provides financial stability. At NYCPS, we are reimagining the school experience and prioritizing career-connected learning to help our students discover—or rediscover—their passion and purpose. I want to congratulate the thousands of students in our schools who are preparing to take their next steps, including the 10,000-plus high schoolers who participated in our signature FutureReadyNYC career pathways program this year, as they launch bold futures in the world of work.

Soaring high,

David C. Banks

Chancellor