Summer recreation in full swing

School may be out for the summer, but in District 13 the buildings are hardly empty. Two of the schools are hosting the annual summer recreation program, as nearly 400 children come to learn and play each day.

Children are kept busy from 9 a.m. to 12:20 p.m. every weekday. Wheeler Avenue and Howell Road school students are attending camp at Wheeler, and Willow Road School is playing host to its students and those from James A. Dever.

Summer Recreation Principal Denise DeMeo said the heat has been a factor this summer, often keeping students from playing outside and making the schools’ air-conditioned spaces more inviting. There are sprinklers running outside, though, to provide relief for children.

DeMeo said that when the weather is bearable, the goal is to give them as much time outside as possible, whether it’s in the sprinklers, out on the blacktop or on the playground. “It’s a play program,” she said.

Children also have time for arts and crafts, supervised by a certified educator. Stefanie Cacchioli, the art teacher at Willow Road during the year, is also supervising the summer art classes there. She said she has students make a lot of “summer-inspired” projects such as sea creatures and beach scenes.

“I think they look forward to coming in and creating every day,” Cacchioli said. “They like leaving every day with something to bring home to show what they did.”

Children entering grades 2 through 6 are supervised by high school- or college-age counselors. Each group has one counselor, a junior counselor and a volunteer. Students entering kindergarten and first grade are led by a certified teacher.

Kristina Cicio, a North High School and Willow Road School graduate, is one of those leaders. She just graduated from Molloy College with a degree in education. Cicio attended the summer recreation program as a child, then later worker her way up to counselor. This summer she is leading a group of incoming kindergartners. The best part about her job, Cicio said, is seeing the smiles on the faces of the kids when they are having fun.

The younger students spend some time learning as well. There are literacy activities, and children also learn some of the routines of school so they are ready for September. But Cicio said they most enjoy their playtime. “They do like to be outside,” she said. “Enjoying the sun is always a plus.”

Field trips include outings to the Sandee Lanes bowling alley, the Malverne Cinema 4 and Hot Skates. During the program’s final week, there is a DJ block party at each school, at which parents are invited to come and party with their children.

This year’s building supervisors are Marc Gold at Wheeler Avenue, who has been with the program for 30 years, and Anthony Turco at Willow Road. Turco said his priority is to make sure the children stay safe and have fun. But, he added, it’s the staff that really makes a difference. “I’m not the one with the kids every day,” he said. “It’s my counselors. My job is just to make sure everything in running smoothly.”

There is also a summer hockey program at Wheeler, run by phys. ed. teacher Rob Primeggia, and 226 students are signed up. A music program, run by the Central High School District, features many of the District music instructors the children are familiar with.

A three-week ESL program for incoming kindergarten and first-grade students is held at Wheeler Avenue. Children learn literacy skills and find out what it’s like to be in a classroom and follow the rules. “I see a huge difference in the three weeks,” said ESL teacher Terry Sales, “because some of them have come in and never been to school before.”

District 13 also has a six-week summer special education program at Willow. Students are placed in it based on a recommendation from the Committee on Special Education. Lisa Sells-Asch, assistant superintendent for special services, says the purpose is to prevent a regression of skills the students have already mastered.

Summer recreation ends on Aug. 4 and the special education program wraps up on Aug. 11.