Members of the Baldwin County Board of Education watched the final talent showcase of the year on Dec. 4 at Putnam County Primary School.
Principal of the primary school Dr. Fanicia Rogers introduced computer science teacher Ivy Carnes, agriculture teacher Christy Ezzard, art teacher Pegz Fazio, and counselors Shanqueetay Easley and Kourtney Mason as the showcase specialists for the night and spoke briefly on Putnam County Primary’s Schools ideals and goals.
“At Putnam County Primary School, every student matters and every moment counts,” said Rogers.
Carnes was the first presenter of the night and showed off what kindergarten, first-grade, and second-grade students are currently learning in her classroom.
Two kindergarten volunteers showed how to create digital art using the SAND program. Then, two first-grade students each showed their favorite games to play in Gasha Go, an online program that connects virtual games to Georgia standards.
Concluding the presentation, five second-grade students demonstrated how they are currently learning to code and build using the Lego Spike program. The students demonstrated using an entryway and carousel they built for their current amusement park theme.
Next, Ezzard and her student assistant spoke about agriculture in the classroom and introduced the audience to two turkeys cared for by her class. According to Ezzard, students interact with and care for a variety of animals throughout the school year.
Kindergarteners explore the basics of agriculture, first-grade students begin to learn about growing plants and how to chart growth and more, and second graders delve into the life cycles of living things alongside incubating eggs.
When asked why he likes agriculture, the student responded, “They (the animals) make my heart happy.”
Fazio also brought up a group of multigrade students to present their art to the audience. Art displayed during the presentation was a mix of art from state art champions and pieces exhibited in the Putnam County Primary School gallery earlier this year.
Fazio’s students stated they enjoyed art because it’s “fun,” “made their heart happy,” and “because the art room is nice.”
Finishing the presentations, Easley and Mason, with two student volunteers, went over the Zones of Regulation, a curriculum used to help students learn self-regulation and identify their feelings throughout the day.
The student volunteers led the audience and board members through different solutions to help a student in each zone. They would each demonstrate an action and then ask for the audience and the board to do it with them, if able.
“Each teacher has a morning meeting with their class to identify what zone students may be in. Students can be in more than one zone and change zones throughout the day,” said Easley. “The district bought the curriculum for us to teach, and we have used this resource with both our teachers and with parents so students can learn to self-regulate at home and school.”
Concluding the showcase, the audience was surprised by the appearance of the Pre-K Carolers. The carolers took to the stage inside the cafeteria and sang the Reindeer Pokey and Feliz Navidad.