Dear OSES Families,

Track Shack’s annual Smile Mile run is this Saturday, March 8th. Our school has participated in this event for almost a decade and received recognition for participation. The event itself is so much more than a run. It serves as an opportunity for students to see each other outside of school and be a part of a “team.” You will see OSES students cheering on other OSES students, even if they only recognize them. It’s a great time for staff to come out and do the same, in addition to socializing with each other. Parents get a chance to meet their student’s friends, in some cases for the first time. All students receive a beautiful medal for completing the run and a shirt that can be worn any Friday. I, for one, look forward to being outside on a beautiful day. Say hi if you see me.

Michael Singleton

My name is Shrika Velagapudi, I'm a junior at Orlando Science High School. I took up creative writing as a hobby this past summer, and recently had the wonderful opportunity to publish a nonfiction children’s book about 10 remarkable female scientists from around the globe who broke barriers and accomplished great feats in STEM. Traveling to India every summer, I was devastated to learn how many girls shared my same aspirations and dreams, but simply didn't have the resources or opportunities to bring them to fruition. This drove me to play my part as an advocate for STEM learning and overcoming systemic barriers: 100% of the profits made from my book, "STEMpowering Women", go to funding tech access and education for the millions of Indian girls living in poverty and denied opportunities.

"STEMpowering Women" is a compilation of varying women's journeys to success in the fields of STEM, as they conquer countless challenges and obstacles to prove the world wrong. Mentioned throughout this colorful, inspirational children's book are the tales and accomplishments of women scientists from all over the globe, such as Sally Ride, Antonia Novello, Marie Curie, and more. The aim of this book is to inspire young children, especially girls between the ages of 4 and 10, to take up careers in the field of STEM, and break gender barriers in this male-dominated area.

Due to supply issues at the OCPS level, we do not know if hot or cold lunch will be served. Please be prepared to have either lunch until further notice.

Breakfast and Lunch will be FREE for the 2024-2025 school year

If your child has food allergies and will require a special meal from OCPS please click on the link below to fill out the special diet order form

Special Diets for Food Allergies - Orange County Public Schools (ocps.net)

This week, we kicked off our March Madness Math Challenge! Students can view their grade-level brackets in each hallway. Students and classes can earn prizes for passing fluency challenges.

Next week is the 2025 OSES STEM Fair. Students in grades K-2 will display their class projects, while the top two projects from students in grades 3-5 will be showcased. We will also feature boards from our 6th graders who competed in this year’s Ying Expo. Families may use this link to sign up for a time slot to visit the STEM Fair – all attendees MUST be ADDitions approved and bring a photo ID. STEM Fair Attendance Link

In Kindergarten we have had a busy week! Students in all classes have worked hard on their STEM fair experiments in science. In Ms. Volden's class we have learned why it is important to wash our hands and how germs and viruses make us sick. In reading we have read some new fables such as Little Red Riding Hood and The Grasshopper and the Ants. Students loved comparing the new versions in our textbooks to those traditional tales on Epic. For math we have begun our new topic on measurement!

Please remember the Legoland permission forms and payments are due next week, on Thursday the 13th!

This week, we celebrated Read Across America with the theme "Celebrate Diversity!" Students read books about respecting differences, including names, cultural foods, clothing like hijabs, and skin colors. They rotated to different classes to listen to books read by other first grade teachers. We also kicked off March Math Madness! Students are showing enthusiasm as they complete quizzes and earn water bottle stickers along the way. Keep up the great work! All classes successfully finished their STEM projects, which will be displayed at the STEM Fair! In our class, we conducted a gummy bear experiment to explore the question, What liquid will make a gummy bear grow in length? Students made predictions and observed changes using the scientific method. Parents, please check your email for important steps regarding our upcoming iFly field trip, including signing and returning permission forms, submitting payment, and completing the online waiver. Also, check OSES for any missing assignments, as grades are due Tuesday, and report cards will go out next week before Spring Break. Thank you for your continued support!

This week in second grade, we’re having a blast with a variety of exciting activities! In math, we're diving into place value, learning how numbers are built from hundreds, tens and ones. We'll also be comparing fairy tale stories, examining how different tales have similar themes and structures. In science, we’re exploring how our bones and joints work together to help our bodies move. We are also using the scientific method to guide us as we complete our science fair projects. Plus, we’re learning about Native American culture, discovering traditions, stories, and customs. It was a great week full of discovery and fun!

What an incredible few weeks we've had in our classroom! Our young scientists absolutely shined during our science fair presentations. I was truly blown away by the creativity, hard work, and scientific thinking on display. The projects were so impressive that I needed to call in reinforcements to help select our science fair candidates!

We also completed our Black History Month timelines, where students showcased the powerful influence children had on the civil rights movement. These timelines highlighted young heroes who stood up for change and made a difference in our nation's history.

Our unit on radiant energy came to an exciting conclusion this week! Students built their very own solar ovens and conducted a delicious experiment to test if solar energy could heat up a marshmallow. The verdict? It absolutely did! Watching the students' faces light up as their marshmallows began to melt was a highlight of our science studies.

Another major accomplishment was completing our opinion essays on "Do Animals Belong in a Zoo?" To support their arguments with real evidence, we took a field trip to the Central Florida Zoo! This hands-on experience allowed students to make observations and gather information to support their writing. It was wonderful to see how the visit influenced their perspectives.

As always, thank you for your continued support at home. Your third graders continue to amaze me every day!

Spring break is almost here! Reminder that the gradebook will be closed on the 11th and to ensure everything is turned in on the 10th as 4th grade will not be here when grades are due.

St. Augustine is this coming Tuesday, March 11th. Please make sure to drop off your child by 7 AM to ensure everyone makes it in time for the buses to leave. It is a long day, and we will not be returning to school until 6:30 PM. Ensure your club teachers or carpools know. Reach out to your homeroom teacher if you have any questions.

In math, we are wrapping up representing data through mean, median, mode, and range. I have added an anchor chart from my classroom that students can use to prepare for their test on Monday and their study guides.

Hello OSES Families!

This week has been a busy one in 5th grade. For Science we are wrapping up topics 14 and 16 revolving around the Organization and Development of Living Things and Heredity and Reproduction. Students also turned in their Stem Fair Projects. We'll be taking our Science PMA 3 next Tuesday.

For Math, Accelerated is finishing up topic 7, revolving around Geometry by recognizing formulas and nets for prisms and pyramids.

This week in Ms. Pitoniak’s class students have been reviewing important informational standards about logical fallacies, identifying rhetoric, and applying reasoning to arguments. As we move to wrap up informational standards and move into a novel study, students are still practicing their elaboration and evidence skills in preparation for the upcoming state test on April 1st.

Frog dissections are happening next week in science! Students have been looking forward to this extremely tactile and hands-on lab throughout the entire school year. It’s always a highlight.

Please don’t forget to submit final payments in SchoolPay for the grade level field trip to SeaWorld that will be happening on Friday, April 18th.

In order to help keep our families informed of the latest legislative updates regarding their student's education, a Parent Rights Resources page has been added to the school website.

Recent updates include:

• Internet Safety
• District Health Care Services
• Special Magistrate

The mission of Orlando Science Elementary School (OSES) is to provide a well-rounded education with special emphasis in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM), while using research-based and innovative instructional methods in a stimulating learning environment. OSES is committed to the social-emotional learning and character development of all students.