Gratitude can help people focus on what they have, instead of what they lack. Cultivating a grateful mindset can be as easy as a short daily activity of simply jotting down a few sentences in a journal.

To help students increase feelings of gratitude, Todd school counselor Gillian O’Connell applied for a grant from the Briarcliff Manor Education Foundation to gift each fourth-grade student in the school with a copy of the book “A Simple Seed: of Growth, Gratitude and Giggles,” by Katie Wood.

How many of us are guilty of reading a book while eating, accidentally spilling coffee on it, or dog-earing a page when we can’t find a bookmark?

Although many of us read online, holding a physical book certainly has its own magic that we are not ready to give up on just yet. Making sure we take care of paper books is important, though; even more so when it is a library book.

Second graders in Erin Kassas and Jade Palancia’s class learned the ABC’s of book care during ENCORE class in the library.

Nicole Hesari, a third-grade teacher at Todd Elementary, has a small statue on her classroom bookshelf inscribed with “World’s Best Teacher.” This memento, given to her by a student, seems fitting given her recent recognition. Last week, during the district's Superintendent Conference Day, Superintendent Dr. Jim Kaishian honored her with the Briarcliff Teacher of the Year Award.

When Shems, a Todd fifth grader in Cindy Yaeger and Taylor Mitchell’s class, lived in New York City, he remembers seeing homeless people and thinking how life can be unfair.

“I asked myself ‘how come we get to be full while others have to starve?’” he recalled. “I live in Westchester, but I still see homeless people in places like White Plains, and it makes me feel really guilty.”

This was the reason he opted to do his fifth grade Capstone project about homelessness in New York City.

The Capstone project is the culminating project in fifth grade and involves students working in teams of four or five and conducting extensive research about a particular subject, such as homelessness, like Shems’ project.

Second graders at Todd Elementary School have been exploring gravity and aerodynamics in STEAM class using paper napkin parachutes made with either yarn or a string. Oh, and of course – a teddy bear.

Todd Elementary School second grade teacher Debi Fried is retiring this year. We talked with her about a funny incident involving her directing traffic, her most memorable moments and her plans for retirement.