The New Hyde Park/Garden City Park School Board held a rare special meeting last Monday basically to appoint various teachers so that they could start after Labor Day. Further, the board adopted a new reading curriculum so that it could be implemented at the start of school.

The main teacher appointed was Sharon Rebecchi, an art teacher, who will be assigned to both Garden City Park School and the New Hyde Park Road School. She is a New Hyde Park native and attended the Hillside Grade School and graduated from New Hyde Park Memorial High School.

Other teachers appointed, as emergency conditional substitute teachers, include Dena Marie Farano, Craig Henshall, Jennifer Lloyd and Gina Marie Antioco.

Teachers who received reclassifications with salary corrections include: Janine Bonaire, Cindy Talbot, Nancy Castle, Bernadette Zabrouski, Rosellen Picciano, Marilyn Salierno and Anna Marie Quinlan.

Carol Gonzales and Carla Musacchia were moved from permanent cafeteria monitors to teacher aides.

The board also approved a request for a fundraiser from Inter School PTA. The fundraiser is to sell pocket size district calendars for the 2004/2005 school year. The price will be $5 each. The money will be used to provide programs for students and parents.

Next on the agenda was a presentation by Director of Curriculum and Instruction Diane Zirilli and Principal of Garden City Park School James Svendsen giving an overview for the Language Arts Curriculum modules to be put in place district-wide in grades K through 6 effective immediately.

Zirilli explained that during the summer she worked with Svendsen with a langauge arts curriculum module committee consisting of teachers in various grades as well as the senior reading teacher. The committee included Janine Bonura, John Contatti, Regina O'Keefe, Marilyn Podell, Sheri Susa and Val Unger.

Zirilli said, "As a result of their work the grade level modules represent a reorganization of the existing Literacy Place skills and strategies, spelling and grammar elements.

"These in turn reflect the Language Arts curriculum previously adopted by the district. In addition to the Literacy Place piece, grades 1-6 have ELA task practice in each of the five two-month modules. There are three options available to the staff regarding these modules: 1) Teachers who prefer to use all the units in the entire Literacy Place series, as well as all supporting pieces may continue to do so. 2) Teachers who have prior permission to 'opt out' of Literacy Place may also continue to do so. 3) All other teachers must follow these modules.

"There were several reasons we created these Language Arts modules:

"First-we wanted to ensure a more consistent delivery of the grade level skills and strategies in very class on every grade level district-wide. The modules also provide a blueprint for substitutes and leave replacement teachers.

"Second-each of the five modules represents a 2-month period. Therefore, each module provides clear guidelines for both pacing and specific skills and strategies to be covered during this time period.

"Third-mandating only four Literacy Place stories in a two month period will free teachers to tap other literary resources, thus providing a richer, more varied foundation to showcase the skills and strategies mandated in a particular module. To this end as well, each two month module also requires the students read independently or with instruction a minimum of five books or the equivalent. This will further enhance the literacy of all students.

"Fourth-since most students below fourth grade have not been exposed to the tasks and demands of the state assessments as yet, the inclusion of ELA aligned reading, listening and writing practice sections in each module will provide authentic and repeated opportunities for learning.

"Once we have completed a full year of district-wide implementation on every grade level, students in grades two through six will be comfortable with the tasks and format, thereby growing their ability to perform tasks independently and de-emphasizing the need for 'test prep' in fourth grade. Sixth graders will be properly 'warmed up' for their eighth grade ELA.

"Since this is a 'work in progress,' we expect to polish and tweak the modules at the end of the year. To this end, feedback sheets are included after each module.

"In closing, as teachers on all grade levels become more and more familiar with tasks and demands of the state assessments, they will be asked to look to align the class tests and assignments of every subject taught to ELA format in order to maximize higher thinking skills as well as testing comfort level. Since all state assessments are moving towards alignment with these types of reading, thinking and writing tasks, this will enable us to prepare our students at every grade level to succeed to the best of their abilities."

Zirilli added, "To further enhance and support this, we will begin to develop standards for other subjects during our Monday and school staff development sessions."

New Hyde Park/Garden City Park Superintendent Joseph Rudaitis said that Diane Zirilli and James Svendsen would also be present at the regular school board meeting on Sept. 13 at 8 p.m. at the Manor Oaks School to further discuss the reading program with the public.

Having heard all the proposals the board adjourned.