Niagara Rises

For those of you that know me, you know that my son attends kindergarten at Maple Ave School here in the Falls.  Since he started last year in the Pre-K class, we have been impressed with the school and the teaching staff.  Last year we were lucky enough to be placed with Mrs. Spanbauer and Mrs. Asklar.  Rhys was able to learn the school rules and learn how to interact with the students and teachers in a great classroom setting.  These teachers went out of their way to encourage him.  At the end of the year Rhys was in the school’s talent show and everyone was so happy for him.  The staff did a great job supporting his love of singing.  The talent show was a perfect cap to the year.

This year he has been placed in Mrs. Kajfasz’s class.  It has been a great fit for him.  I went in the week of Halloween to do a class project with the students.  We were in small groups in the hall working on the project.  Every teacher or school employee that passed by us stopped and interacted with the kids telling them what a great job they were doing (or how cute or scary their project was).  The kids were so happy to show off what they were doing.  Many of the staff passing asked me where we had bought the items.   The class participated in the Halloween Parade later that week and had a very nice party in their classroom. 

On November 6th, the school hosted their Family Fun Night.  Thanks to the help of the NU Swim team, the night was a great success.  There were games and prizes for the kids and an awesome basket auction for the adults (although sadly I did not win anything).  It is a great feeling of community for the kids and parents alike.

I write about this not only to pat these teachers and staff on the back, but also to say that most people assume that a city school setting is something that is not community or family oriented.  I think for those of us that call Niagara Falls home, there are many areas that we can be proud of.  I personally am happy that my children are (and will be) attending the Maple Ave School.   Maple is a school that cares about their students and that really shows in the interaction the staff has with the students and the families.

Thank you Maple Avenue Staff, you are all SUPER