Middle Gate School Opens A ‘Great’ Place

By Larissa Lytwyn

Praised by officials including First Selectman Herb Rosenthal, Superintendent of Schools Evan Pitkoff, Assistant Superintendent of Schools Alice Jackson, and school board Vice Chair Lisa Schwartz, Middle Gate Elementary School officially opened its Middle Gate Great Room Family Center and Publishing Center on April 1.

Standing in the center of the Great Room, framed by ribbons, balloons and even in a cake decked out in Middle Gate’s red-and-white school colors, Principal Judy Gallo noted, “This [room] is a great place by which we can increase communication between Middle Gate and parents and their families.”

Eight years ago, Middle Gate administrators marveled at an elementary school in Orange that featured a special room for students to study, spend time with family and friends, or gather for extracurricular activities.

Middle Gate’s opportunity to develop a similar place arose when classroom space became available following the fifth grade’s districtwide relocation to Reed Intermediate School. Shortly after Reed’s opening, Ms Gallo established the School/Faculty Community Partnership Committee, made up of staff, PTA members, and parent volunteers, to develop Middle Gate’s own special room.

“With the help of donations from our PTA, we were able to create a space that is kid-friendly and inviting for those parents with toddlers who wish to volunteer at Middle Gate but often feel limited with their younger children around,” said committee member and parent volunteer Laura Biafore.

An area was designated for younger children with books, toys, games, puzzles, blocks, and a playrug. There is also a changing table, infant-appropriate toys, and a couch.

Last fall, Ms Biafore further developed the idea of a publishing center, also a feature of the Orange school, to “foster enthusiasm for writing and to encourage excellence in writing.”

Through PTA funds and donations from Newtown Hardware, Newtown Color Center and Stop & Shop, she purchased binding materials and two binding machines. She also took a class on how to bind materials.

“Since we began operating on January 26, we have published 170 student works,” Ms Biafore said, including 130 spiral-bound books and 45 hardbound works. Students wrote their own stories or pieces related to classroom and other academic activities.

In conjunction with the fourth grade’s unit on memoir writing, for example, library media specialist Robyn Cologna developed a book for each class in which students related a memory from their earliest years.

“The project was based on Jamie Lee Curtis’s When I Was Little,” Ms Cologna explained. “The students had to write about something from their childhood and compare it to their experiences today.”

Laura Biafore’s daughter Linda, for example, wrote about the time her younger brother accidentally hit her in the head with a matchbox car.

Today, she still bears the scar, a tiny white mark on the upper left corner of her forehead.

Both scenes are illustrated in her class’s book.

First grader Max Galassi wrote a story on his experiences in New York City, including his family’s history in the Big Apple.

One scene depicted how his parents often dined in the city while dating.

Others share memories of trips to sports arenas.

“Publishing their own work really makes the [writing] process come to life for students,” said lead teacher Judy Beers. “I think it has definitely increased our students’ enthusiasm for writing.”

There are also a number of reading and writing resources for parents to peruse. First grade teacher Kirsten Strobel, who dubbed the area the “Great Room,” discussed the value of texts including How to Get Your Child to Love Reading, by Esmi Raji Codell.

Ms Gallo thanked the committee for their “hard work and dedication.” A number of committee members, including PTA President Amy Cameron and first grade teacher Helen Miller, helped cut the thick red ribbon marking the official opening of the Great Room.

The Middle Great Room Family Center and Publishing Center is open flexible hours to the Middle Gate community. For further information, contact Middle Gate Elementary School at 426-7662.