At PS/IS229K, we believe that providing our students with enriching curriculum is essential to their growth and success. Our middle school students have the opportunity to participate in our 3-D printing and robotics enrichment classes, which provide a unique and engaging learning experience. Our experienced instructors will lead students through a variety of projects and activities, teaching them valuable skills that will serve them well throughout their academic careers.

Students take a hands-on approach to learn the ancient Japanese art of paper folding. Origami provides a wide range of educational benefits, such as problem solving, developing math skills, as well as strengthening social skills (listening and following directions), patience, foster thinking/imagination, and improving fine motor skills. This enrichment class will guide students to creatively fold paper with intent and turn them into wonderful creations they love. Our goal for the class is to explore each student’s creativity while also learning and having fun in an exciting way. 

The Art enrichment is open to all students in grades 6-8 who are interested in exploring their creativity in various art projects such as drawing, painting, sculpture, collage, and printmaking. Members of the Art Club participate in many school and district art activities, including the annual Fall Art Poster and Window Painting Contest sponsored by the Bay Ridge Community Council, the District 20 Art Show, the P.S./I.S. 229K-Dyker School Art Festival. Members also help create stage sets for our school's Winter and Spring Concerts. They make banners, create decorative backdrops and design 3D sculptures. Also, many members of the Art Club are interested in applying to high schools specializing in the visual arts. Part of the application process requires students to present an art portfolio and to produce a drawing in front of the selection committee, similar to an audition. During Art Club, students work on their artwork to build a strong portfolio. Our school's Art Club is a place where students discover their potential, have fun, and produce beautiful artwork.

In this enrichment class, we grow our vocabulary, work on problem solving, and even test our math skills by learning about and playing the classic word game, Scrabble. Whether you are familiar with the game or have never played before, we make sure that everyone learns the basic strategies of the game and has the opportunity to compete individually or with a partner each week. Twice a year, our club members host and participate in a Scrabble tournament open to the entire middle school. 

Our Literature Circle/Book Club Enrichment Periods provide students with an opportunity to share information and the pleasure of reading. The main purpose is to encourage students to read and bring a community of readers together to learn and discuss something that matters to them. Our Literature Circle/Book Club Enrichment Periods promote a positive, nurturing time for students to talk and read in an enjoyable and relaxed manner. 

In visual arts enrichment, we explore and create art that meets the eye and evokes emotion. We do so by expressing skill and imagination using various mediums and techniques. These include drawing styles (graphite and colored pencils, pen and ink, and watercolors), mixed media (collages, assemblage, found objects, and Altered books), and digital art (computer-generated images, manipulated photographs, and scanned and manipulated images). Does it sounds complicated? No, it is not! We smile while we work. We try new things, loosen up and work together in a creative atmosphere, work with people we love, be ourselves, and trust our inner voice. Visual arts enrichment is fun.  

If you enjoy problem solving, competing against others, working with team members to achieve a common goal, or participating in math related games and activities then The Math/Marketing Club is the place to be. This enrichment will focus on problem solving.  We will conduct problem-solving based competitions between students, involving challenging math related questions. These will occur between teams, or student versus students. This will be done regardless of the different grade levels. There will also be a focus on the field of marketing.  Students will be introduced to the concepts involved in product design and delivering a product to a desired target market.  Students will work with their groups to design a product and later present this marketing campaign to the entire group.  We will also do other math-related enrichment activities, such as math games (E.G. Math Jeopardy), math in the real world (etc.), and other problem-solving activities to add variety to the sessions.  

This enrichment strives to create student engagement with their school, neighborhood, and city. Students discuss ways to address societal problems through active engagement and active participation. They develop skills and confidence while discovering they have a voice and a role in improving the lives of others. Prior groups have collected and distributed toys to hospitalized children, supplies for homeless veterans, food to a local food bank, and planted flowers around the sides of the school.  

In music enrichment, students explore and learn to play various modern/popular instruments.  This year students learned the ukulele, but future explorations could include the guitar or bucket drums.  Reading music is not required for this class. Instead, students learn to play different popular songs by listening, repeating, singing along, and practicing with their classmates.  Instruments & equipment are provided by the school. 

In Film Study Enrichment, we will be exploring various aspects of film and how we can properly analyze characters and their development throughout a story. Film is a powerful medium to help us reflect on our own life experiences and prepare us for those to come. By bridging Social Emotional Learning with film, we can better understand our actions and become more empathetic individuals. In between film viewings students will be having group discussions, engage in meaningful writing prompts, and projects.