Island Dispatch, 2007-12-14

              Island Dispatch 20 Pages December 14, 2007 Niagara \w Publications proud publishers of Island Dispatch Lewiston-Porter Sentinel Grand Island Penny Saver Niagara-Wheaffield Tribune www.wnypapers.com for Home Delivery of the island Dispatch Call 773-7676 Vol. 63 No. 39 773-7676 $1.00 Fantasy Island page 5 Award Winners page 6 All-America page 14 Historical Society hosts Holiday Open House by Donna M. Webb Lewis F. Allen would have been proud. River Lea, the" farm house he Built around 1873, was beautifully bedecked for the holidays last weekend. Located in Beaver Island State Park, River Lea, the home of the Grand Island Historical Society, was one of several places featured during the Holiday House Tour on Saturday, Dec. 8. On Sunday, Dec. 9, the Society held its annual Christmas Open House, complete with warm cider and cookies. About iO ladies, dressed in 1870s attire, acted as docents and provided guests with interesting information about the various rooms in River Lea. "Lewis Allen's nephew was Grover Cleveland, which is why the house is still standing," said Carolyn Doebert, the Historical Society's director-at-large. In the 1961-1962 period, "the Historical Society..was born and saved the house from demolition," Doebert added. In 1964, it became tile home of the Society. . As a young man, Cleveland - who later became our nation's 22nd and 24th president- worked on his uncle's farm. He also kept the herd books, which detailed the genealogy of the cattle Allen raised. The Erie County Fair was founded by Allen so that he could exhibit his cattle and farm Standing near the Christmas tree at River Lea is Jennifer Long, one of the docents who provided information to those who visited during River Lea's Open House on Dec. 9.. , A very merry 'Kissmas' by Michelle Paternostro This year's "Kissmas Bash" was again a success - truly a show to remember. Not only was it sold out, but there were also a variety of concertgoers in the audience. Thousands of people filled HSBC Arena, ranging in ages and hometowns. Screens on the sides of the stage showed various camera views during the performances. The bands performed excellent live, often improvising in between songs, keeping the audience involved.The crowd was filled with screaming fans, cheering for their favorite groups and answering the band's shout-outs to Buffalo and "Kissmas Bash." Boys Like Girls opened the show with its most popular songs. Backstreet Boys AJ, Brian and Nick made an appearance introducing Good Charlotte and, throughout the concert, made special announcements and introduced the artists. Scan Kingston's performance was .energetic and Simple Plan was greeted with screams of approval. The- last act was Hinder, whose performance was speckled with shout-outs as well. While the favorite of the night was Simple Plan, coming back to "Kissmas Bash" to promote its Simple Plan guitarist David Desrosiers. (photo by John Stuart) Math Mentors helping teachers help teachers by Kathy Duff Grand Island Central School's Math Mentors project "is a great example of our attempt to provide imbedded teachers," stated Dr. Karen Karmazin, assistant superintendent of curriculum and instruction.The, district's program, which aims to help math teachers help their colleagues in all five Island public schools. Karmazin made the comment by way of introducing high school teacher Mike Grosso, who heads up the program, at Monday evening's Board of Education meeting held at Kaegebein Elementary. Grosso told trustees that the state math curriculum has seen "great changes over the past seven years," necessitating greater cooperation and exchange of ideas among math teachers from kindergarten through 12th grade. Seven mentor teachers across the district receive additional training, provide support to their colleagues and engage in "risk-taking" (i.e. they generate new ways to teach). Grosso further explained that within the mentors' two-year commitment, they each work with two to four protegees. Of particular interest to all math mentors is helping teachers effectively utilize the district's "smart board" technology, interactive white boards that Veronica E. Connor Middle School students have been using extensively this year. Grosso noted that it is interesting that classroom teaching techniques at the sixth to eighth grade level have "moved up" to the high school level and that math mentors have been key in helping this happen. Grosso said that when he started teaching on Grand Island more than a decade ago there was virtually no communication among buildings regarding math. That has completely changed. Communication to parents regarding curriculum changes has also improved. Math mentors are developing a community education course for parents that will educate them on the Everyday Math program their elementaiy-age children are learning. In other curriculum news, Karmazin announced plans for Grand Island High School and Erie County Community College to work together to bring a college SEE SCARY, continued on page 8 ■SEE MSS, continued on page 3 SEE HISTORICAL, continued on page 5 Monday iviciciniess LARGE CHEESE PIZZA $Q25 PLUS TAX 2131 Grand Island Blvd. LiHBSfIMHMHiIMHH ! Linda jJipfrfol j ; Kufzbach wPPtB j j Associate Broker CjH j i 628-1719 &jM j 773-2573J^8; / J^wnl /Jj II othe awl mm j IpK§?MSIC each otfice independenHyl i* North owned & operated J •