Our rising 6th graders show off their inner acrobat at Sky Zone!

Joseph Giandurco, a 6th Grade Social Studies & Science Teacher at Ponus Ridge Middle School, is Carver’s longtime Lead Program Coordinator there. Christy Counts, a Nathan Hale Middle School 8th Grade teacher of Language Arts is the Director of our B.A.R.K. After-School Program and our 6th Grade Summer Transition Program there. They each recently took their rising 6th graders attending our Summer Transition Programs at each middle school to Sky Zone!

Sky Zone is the originator of wall-to-wall aerial action, and they never stand still. They’re always working to invent epic new ways to play, gather, and compete. The only way to understand it is to come to experience it.

And that is just what our rising 6th-grade summer students entering their respective middle schools in the fall experienced.

Our students let go of gravity and grabbed some air on the sprawling wall-to-wall trampoline courts. They challenged each other to show off their inner acrobat.

The Foam Zone is all about big air and soft landings. This is the ideal area to practice their most daring stunts safely into a pool of huge foam squares. Part trampolining, part parkour, part skating vert ramp.

The Wall added an entirely new dimension to the aerial experience, offering a canvas for a different type of expression—no harness necessary. Carver kids put their strength and stamina to the test as they hang over the pit, free climbing this challenging bouldering wall.

Carver kids reached new heights while flipping and jumping and climbing!

Sky Zone is part of CircusTrix, the world’s largest developer, operator, and franchisor of trampoline and active entertainment parks with a network of more than 300 global locations.

The garden at Nathan Hale Middle School is one of our best teachers!

Christy Counts, an 8th Grade Language Arts Teacher at Nathan Hale Middle School, is the Lead Program Coordinator of our B.A.R.K. Afterschool Program there as well as the leader of our 6th Grade Summer Transition Program at the school. She is good at convincing rising 6th graders to ditch their phones and come dig in the flowerbeds at the school. Ms. Counts provides the opportunity, the right tools, and encouragement for our young people to discover that they love gardening.

Whether it’s flowers or vegetables, caring for plants helps teenagers develop responsibility. They also gain a sense of accomplishment and self-confidence as they raise small sprouts into full blooming beauties.

Plants require sufficient sunlight and water, but also have individual needs. Our young gardeners get to experiment and learn what is best for each plant, experiencing the benefits of their efforts over time.

Research shows that spending just a few minutes outdoors, surrounded by grass, trees, and plants can boost a teen’s ability to focus and concentrate. Having our students help weed the garden, prune the shrubs, or water the plants— they find they can concentrate better when they get back to work.

Teens that grow their own food are more likely to enjoy eating healthy. Tasting the fruits of their own efforts often inspires them to eat more of the items they grow themselves.

Carver kids follow in Galileo's footsteps by investigating Newton's laws of motion

Rising 6th graders attending our Summer Transition Program at Nathan Hale Middle School are determining the relation between elapsed time and distance traveled when a moving object is under constant acceleration.

Christy Counts, an 8th Grade Language Arts Teacher at Nathan Hale Middle School, is the Lead Program Coordinator of our B.A.R.K. Afterschool Program there as well as the leader of our 6th Grade Summer Transition Program at the school.

How do you find distance from velocity and time? Just ask Ms. Counts’s students. When velocity is positive on an interval, we can find the total distance traveled by finding the area under the velocity curve and above the t -axis on the given time interval. In other words, Velocity is the change in position (x), or distance, over time. If you know the change in position and the amount of time taken to complete the journey, you can determine velocity. Similarly, if you have any two of these variables, you can always solve for the third.

Carver kids learn that filmmaking is the ultimate team sport

Marge Costa is a longtime videography teacher for Carver students and is involved in the Carver and Norwalk communities in many other ways, including as Executive Director of the Norwalk Education Foundation.

Here Marge is teaching a group of rising 6th graders this summer the art of video editing. Christy Counts, a Nathan Hale Middle School 8th Grade teacher of Language Arts and House Leader, and the Director of our B.A.R.K. After-school Program and our 6th Grade Summer Transition Program, shared these images of Marge teaching students attending the Summer Transition Program there.

Marge has a deep experience in video production, working for CBS Television Stations as a producer for 10 years before starting her company, Aries Video Productions. 

Marge worked to create Norwalk's annual film festival that includes films from around the world, Norwalk students, and local filmmakers.

One of her documentaries was accepted into 19 film festivals and has won 8 awards. She is the recipient of an Award of Distinction at the Canadian International Short Film Festival, the Gold Award (Best Short Doc) at the Documentary Short Film Festival in Toronto. She received an award as a female filmmaker at Best Shorts Competition in California. Her film has also won Best Documentary Short at the New Haven International Film Festival, The Alliance for Women in Media Festival, and the American Filmatic Awards.

Marge’s love of film compelled her to share her talents with Carver kids for many years. A number of her students go on to work in TV production, including at Channel 12 news.

Laser tag is beneficial for our rising 6th graders

There are a ton of benefits to introducing our kids to laser tag. First, it teaches them some integral life skills and they won’t even know it’s happening – kind of like hiding vegetables in cookies.

Christy Counts, a Nathan Hale Middle School 8th Grade teacher of Language Arts and House Leader, and the Director of our B.A.R.K. After-school Program and our 6th Grade Summer Transition Program, shared these images of her students attending the Summer Transition Program there playing Laser Tag in the school gymnasium.

Develop Teamwork Skills

A key component to success is working as part of a team. Players need to be able to recognize their team members and work together towards a common goal, winning (or trying their best).

Encourages Socialization

It can be nerve-wracking for some kids to play on a team where they may not know everyone well. Playing in these situations is actually hugely beneficial because being a part of a team means communication is central to success. It’s hard to be nervous when you’re busy focusing on locating members of the opposite team and working with members of your team to launch a successful attack.

Promotes Physical Activity

When the weather isn’t cooperating such as when it’s raining or too hot to spend much time outdoors, Laser Tag is a winner. Our students stay moving as you navigate the course, trying to avoid being tagged by opponents.

Communication Skills

Varying levels of play means that communication is key! Sharing tips and tricks with team members is a vital way to win. Everyone who enters the course is at a different skill level which means communication is central to success.

Rising 6th graders attending our Summer Transition Program at Ponus Ridge Middle School visit the Lockwood-Matthews Mansion Museum

Joseph J. Giandurco, a 6th Grade Social Studies & Science Teacher at Ponus Ridge Middle School, is Carver’s longtime Lead Program Coordinator there. Here, Mr. Giandurco and his rising 6th graders attending our Summer Transition Program visit the Lockwood-Mathews Mansion Museum.

The Mansion is regarded as one of the earliest and most significant Second Empire Style country houses in the United States. Built by renowned financier and railroad tycoon LeGrand Lockwood from 1864-1868, the Mansion, with its unparalleled architecture and interiors, illustrates magnificently the beauty and splendor of the Victorian Era.

Lockwood’s financial reversal in 1869, and his untimely death in 1872, resulted in the loss of the estate then known as “Elm Park,” through foreclosure, in 1874.  In 1876, the property was sold to Charles D. Mathews and his wife Rebecca. Mathews, a prominent importer from New York, and his family, resided in the Mansion until 1938. In 1941, the estate was sold to the City of Norwalk and designated a public park.

The Mansion was a technological marvel of its time: it had indoor hot and cold plumbing, gas lighting, ventilation, and a central heating system that burned a ton of coal a day. Indeed, there is no comparable mansion museum in our state. Built during the Civil War and still inhabited during the Great Depression, there is no institution in Connecticut that is better able to bring to life these significant events in American history.

When the building was threatened with demolition in the 1960s, concerned citizens galvanized to save the Mansion in one the most important and hard-fought preservation battles in Connecticut’s history. These local preservationists succeeded in saving the Mansion in 1965, and later formed the Lockwood-Mathews Mansion Museum of Norwalk, Inc., a 501(c)(3), which was designated a National Historic Landmark, in 1971.

Carver's rising 6th graders learn that jumping for joy is good exercise and that the only way to keep your balance is to keep moving!

If Carver kids ever watched the Olympics and thought "I could totally do that," they had their chance! Our rising 6th graders enjoyed all of the fun when they tried their Olympic moves out at Sky Zone in Norwalk.

Michael Richards, a Social Studies Teacher at West Rocks Middle School, and his colleague Joe Giandurco at Ponus Ridge Middle School, are each Carver’s longtime Lead Program Coordinators for our after-school and summer transition programs at those two middle schools.

Sky Zone is the originator of wall-to-wall aerial action, and they never stand still. They’re always working to invent epic new ways to play, gather, and compete. The only way to understand it is to come to experience it.

And that is just what our rising 6th-grade summer students entering West Rocks and Ponus Ridge Middle Schools in the fall experienced.

Our students let go of gravity and grabbed some air on the sprawling wall-to-wall trampoline courts. They challenged each other to show off their inner acrobat.

The Foam Zone is all about big air and soft landings. This is the ideal area to practice their most daring stunts safely into a pool of huge foam squares. Part trampolining, part parkour, part skating vert ramp,

The Wall added an entirely new dimension to the aerial experience, offering a canvas for a different type of expression—no harness necessary. Carver kids put their strength and stamina to the test as they hang over the pit, free climbing this challenging bouldering wall.

Carver kids reached new heights while flipping and jumping and climbing!

Sky Zone is part of CircusTrix, the world’s largest developer, operator, and franchisor of trampoline and active entertainment parks with a network of more than 300 global locations.

Images of After the Bell at Ponus Middle School this summer!

Volunteer Max Kim introduces the challenges and joys of Lacrosse to our summer campers

Max Kim (left) and his friend Jake Mclane (back left) teach Carver summer campers how to play lacrosse

Volunteer Max Kim organized and leads a lacrosse clinic for our summer campers at the Carver Community Center. Max attends Greens Farms Academy (GFA) and is a member of the GFA lacrosse team. Max also donated the equipment for our campers to use.

Max’s friends Josh Kitt (GFA), Alex Barbagallo (GFA), Jake Davis (Staples High School in Westport), and Jake Mclane (also Staples) are assisting Max in bringing the lacrosse clinic to our summer campers.

Max also plays for CT Wolves Lacrosse. CT Wolves Lacrosse recruits, mentors, and develops exceptional student-athletes who want to compete academically and athletically at the highest youth, high school, and collegiate levels. Founded by John Mathews, the club was established at the end of the tournament season in 2018. Mathews is also the Lacrosse Head Coach for GFA.

Recreation Director Shannon Bates has been expanding Carver’s sports programming through the years to include Basketball, Soccer, Tennis, Dance, and more. Adding Lacrosse and Volleyball programs are next. Community members like Max and his friends, along with volunteer coaches from the Norwalk Lacrosse Association, are enthusiastic partners in helping introduce the sport to our kids this summer and beyond.

Lacrosse is a fast-paced game. It is the modern version of the North American Indian game in which two teams of players use long-handled, racket-like implements (crosses) to catch, carry, or throw a ball down the field or into the opponents' goal. It’s demanding physically and has the hardest conditioning of any sport. Players are always running if they are not sprinting. It’s constant movement — and constant fun!

Stay tuned for news about additional Lacrosse programming during the school year. Thank you, GFA and Staples Lacrosse Boys!

Carver campers challenge their limits and collect over-the-top memories at Quassy Amusement & Waterpark!

Our After the Bell summer campers enjoyed the day at Quassy Amusement & Watrerpark! Founded as an amusement park in 1908, Quassy is located in Middlebury. It sits on the south shore of Lake Quassapaug. Quassy is one of only 11 remaining “trolley parks” in the United States today, according to the National Amusement Park Historical Association.