District Profile
About the Schools - Elementary School

Carrie E. Tompkins Elementary School
10 Gerstein Street
Croton-On-Hudson, NY 10520
Phone: (914) 271-5184
Fax: (914) 271-5337
Website: http://www.croton-harmonschools.org/CET/CET.html

The Carrie E. Tompkins Elementary School is a neighborhood school dedicated to meeting the needs of the individual child. The school environment where our children learn is warm, nurturing and promotes respectful interchange between all members of the CET community.

Reading/language arts as well as our math, science and technology blocks are taught for extended periods of time throughout the school day to enable our children uninterrupted learning time within each subject area. During the reading/language arts block, students spend their time honing their reading skills through literature and phonics and strengthening their comprehension abilities in all genre areas and appropriate reading levels. Reading and writing instruction occurs within the workshop model and many of the strategies we use are modeled after the Columbia Teachers College Reading and Writing Workshop. Strategies employed within the workshop model are the best that literacy education has to offer. In the Reading Workshop, two primary strands of instruction are taught. The first, the grapho-phonic structure, helps our students to understand the English language and supports the phonics configurations within the written word. The second area of focus is that of comprehension strategies, which teaches children specific ways to question and respond to literature so they fully understand the author’s intent and the ideas within the book.

In the Writing Workshop, students learn to create published works of writing in multiple genres as they learn the foundational strategies and the mechanics of writing during the writing process. Genre studies common to the Writing Workshop include Personal Narrative and Small Moments writing, Non-fiction, Poetry and writing with the audience in mind. Revision strategies and the nuts and bolts are taught throughout the genre study and include strategies used to make student writing the best it can be. Specific authors as well as mentor text are celebrated throughout the Writing Workshop process so students can emulate the works of published authors as they learn.

Each day, our students spend extended time exploring the mysteries of math. In the primary grades, workbooks and manipulatives such as beans, cubes, and buttons provide concrete examples to help children make meaning of new mathematical concepts. Textbooks as well as spinners, measuring tools and other manipulatives support learning in the intermediate grades. Our students enjoy mathematical enrichment in grades three and four, which allows students to expand their understanding of mathematical concepts and apply them to the real world beyond CET.

The curriculum in other subject areas is also carefully structured. Social Studies in the lower grades center around the neighborhood, family and community whereas the older students investigate the world and U.S. History.

Hands-on science is often integrated with social studies or math units and our students learn through discovery and use the scientific method as their inquiry model for all scientific concepts.

Technology is integrated into the curriculum at CET. Computers are located in each classroom, the library and our computer lab. CET also enjoys the use of a mobile, wireless lab that can be integrated within the classroom and can be used on a regular basis in conjunction with instruction. Our Library/
Media Center is the hub for research using books, the Internet and storytelling. A library/media specialist instructs students on the ways to use the traditional library setting as well as the world wide web. Our librarian teaches these skills in conjunction with our computer specialist and classroom teachers.

n River is a rich resource for all grade levels in the learning process. At the Teatown Reservation, children learn about nature, tap for maple sugar and develop frogs from tadpoles in an extensive science study. The Bronx Zoo and the Museum of Natural History are sites often visited as well as historic Van Cortlandt Manor, which provides experiences in living history.

A variety of approaches are used to assess the progress of CET students. Students take part in the assessment practices as required by the New York State Education Department in grades 3 and 4. In addition to paper and pencil tests, student writing folders follow them from year to year so we may gauge the growth of the individual student as we carefully select samples of their written work, which demonstrates their progress.

The elementary staff also continues their learning process by working together on professional development activities. Outside experts are brought in to work with our staff on new programs and refine their skills as practitioners and pedagogues in the area of instruction, reading, writing, science and mathematics. CET teaches all children, including those with special needs, within our own classrooms. Children that require more specialized instruction enjoy the continuity of the classroom setting as our educational practitioners provide services within the mainstream setting and allow students to grow and develop within a collaborative environment. All classrooms within the CET community enjoy the instructional practices of a team of co-teachers and the classrooms reflect the needs of the student population and employ the strategies that will help them develop as individuals. Additionally, it is not unusual to see many different activities going on within one classroom setting at the same time. Our instructional practices are geared to meet the individual needs of each child and allow for instructional practices that are best suited for their learning.

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