The Bellerose Avenue Leadership Council club is teaching fifth grade students about what it takes to truly be a leader. The club, led by School Psychologist Lisa Quartararo and teacher Deborah Ronan, currently has 13 students and is meeting virtually. Thus far, the club has been involved in collecting donations for Northport High School’s cereal drive and sharing kindness messages for arriving students, among other positive initiatives.  

The club has been learning about the 13 different leadership qualities and having students apply these skills by developing different projects. The application is to better the lives of others through different outreach projects within the school and community. The club is also student driven, so the students decide what projects they would like to accomplish and then develop a plan of action. Students then assess each week what they have accomplished and what they need to continue to do. Each project has a team leader that guides and communicates with members and administration.  

Student welcome messages for their “good morning campaign” ranged from “Be Yourself” to “Have a Great Day!” Looking ahead, the students are planning for additional food drives and an animal shelter drive.  

Bellerose Avenue first graders are learning about perseverance through yoyoing as part of their participation in the “Ned’s Mindset Mission” assembly. The assembly, which focuses on “never giving up, encouraging others and doing your best,” uses yoyoing as a metaphor for how to practice persistence and do your personal best.  

Following a larger lesson on “Ned’s Mindset Mission,” physical education teacher Kathleen Catania taught yoyoing to further enforce the message of persistence. The yoyos, which were purchased for students by the school’s PTA, were handed out and used in class. Students spread out as they focused on the various steps of yoyoing, such as rolling up the yoyo, keeping the string taught and getting the hand of holding the yoyo correctly. As students started struggling with using the yoyo, they learned about doing their best and focusing on one small task at a time. Each student’s yoyo was also customized to their height to help with the practice.  

Students will continue learning their new yoyoing schools and applying the lessons to other school projects as well.