There hasn’t been enough snow yet to build a snowman, but first graders at John G. Dinkelmeyer Elementary School are relating to the popular winter symbol to improve their math skills.

On paper snowmen and snowflakes, students created fact families. Each youngster wrote the different addition and subtraction equations for a group of three single-digit numbers. The projects were hung in the hallway to showcase the knowledge of Dinkelmeyer’s budding mathematicians!

Date Added: 1/16/2025

The North Bellmore School District is proud to announce that 28 students have been selected to participate in this month’s All-County Music Festival, hosted by the Nassau Music Educators Association. Fifth and sixth grade musicians from the band, chorus and orchestra were selected based on their NYSSMA solo performance scores and teacher recommendations.

Ensemble rehearsals take place at schools throughout the county during the weeks of Jan. 6 and Jan. 13. Weekend concerts are held at the LIU Post Tilles Center. 

Congratulations to the following musicians on their All-County selections:

John G. Dinkelmeyer Elementary School – Band: Ethan Andreau and Nicholas Truglio; Chorus: Jake Duverneau, Charlotte Giannetta, Brooke Murphy, Elliot Renz and Brooke Sheehan; Orchestra: Arianna Lettieri and Alayna Mangels.

Martin Avenue Elementary School – Orchestra: Isabelle Dang.

Newbridge Road Elementary School – Band: Elianna Lopez; Chorus: Nina Cannistraci, Henry Cohen, Marion Chelsea De Jesus and Kyra Devlin; Orchestra: Lauren Corace.

Park Avenue Elementary School – Band: Andrew Udilovich; Chorus: Marco Artale, Xcenia Benden, Veronica Calise, Elianna Macaluso and Micah Millington; Orchestra: Temitayo Otuyemi.

Saw Mill Road Elementary School – Band: Frank Figueiredo; Chorus: Rebecca David, Isabella Rodriguez and Eliana Weissman; Orchestra: Mariam Subhan.

The students learn under the direction of music teachers Skylar Berkley, Christopher D’Orio, Maritza Lopez, Ed McCullagh, Carol Ng, Alexander Roff, Patrice Ryan and Lisa Uckardes.

Click here to view the District Boasts 28 All-County Musicians slideshow.

Date Added: 1/8/2025

Reflecting both as a class and individually, second graders at John G. Dinkelmeyer Elementary School thought about the different ways they could spread kindness during the holiday season.

Each student decorated a large paper light bulb, filled with potential good deeds, for the “Light it up for kindness” bulletin board. Children listed ways they could be kind in school, at home and within the community.

Second grade teacher Jen Kafka said that after reading “Have You Filled Your Bucket Today?” by Carol McCloud, students talked about ways to fill each other’s buckets during the holidays. Each class brainstormed ideas, such as doing chores at home, giving compliments to classmates and making charitable donations.

Children then took the time to self-reflect on individual acts they could do, which were written on the light bulbs and hung together for a second grade kindness showcase. 

A literacy lesson quickly became a charitable endeavor for third graders at John G. Dinkelmeyer Elementary School. After reading a book about Asiatic black bears, or moon bears, they decided to help the endangered species.

The book, “Moon Bear” by Brenda Z. Gulberson, is part of the Fountas and Pinnell Classroom curriculum. The author’s page provides an age-appropriate description about the plight of moon bears, many of which are held in captivity for bile farming. Students in Julia Kriegel and Samantha Paolillo’s class decided they wanted to do something to help.

First, students wrote a letter to Principal Danica Brugge, expressing their desire to do a fundraiser. The idea was enthusiastically approved and they got work. Their simple fundraiser asked students to contribute $1 to the cause.

Enlisting the help of their third grade peers in Cindy Quinn’s and Dana Rudnet’s classes, students made posters promoting the fundraiser to hang around the school. They also spoke about it during the morning announcements.

When the fundraiser was done, the class collected about $400 to donate to AnimalAsia, and organization that is devoted to helping moon bears by restoring captive animals to health and building sanctuaries. Both Dinkelmeyer students and staff contributed to the cause.

“We were pretty happy to donate money for the moon bears so we can help save them,” third grade Luke Butler said.

“We want them to be OK and we don’t want them to get more hurt than they already are,” added Brielle Otero.

As an incentive, the class with the most donations would get a gift – a stuffed black bear. Ms. Kriegel said that she is very impressed by her students not only for their eagerness to help, but by their ability to devise and implement a fundraising plan.

“I’m so proud of their enthusiasm, their creativity and their desire to be the good in the world,” she said.