Students' interest sparked by fire prevention posters
BY DAVE BENJAMIN
Staff Writer

JACKSON - A fire prevention poster contest winner from St. Aloysius School will be moving on to compete at the county level.

Fifth-grade pupils from St. Aloysius School, Bennetts Mill Road, recently participated in the second annual fire prevention poster contest sponsored by the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs Division of Fire Safety and the New Jersey State Fire Prevention and Protection Association.

"Students were asked to come up with original ideas that depict fire safety in the home," said Olive Taylor, school spokeswoman. "The topic of the contest was 'Prevent Cooking Fires: Watch What You Heat.' "

The fifth-graders were judged on the local level by members of the Jackson Fire Department and the winning poster is about to move on to the county level and may well be considered for the state level.

"I am very proud of our students and I am happy to see that [one students] will be showcased at the county level," Principal Elizabeth O'Connor said.

Taylor said the children came up with some very creative and artistic posters and three of the students were awarded ribbons for first, second and third place at the school level.

St. Aloysius winners were Kevin Yoon, first place. His winning poster depicted a huge dragon breathing colorful flames. The poster said, "Not paying attention to what you're cooking is like asking a dragon to burn your house down."

Kevin said he loves to draw and was very happy to participate in the contest. His poster will be moving to the county level.

Alyssa Laguerta received a second-place ribbon for her poster, which depicted a kitchen with several suggestions on how to keep safe by never putting towels near the stove, always keeping an eye on the food you're cooking, never putting metal in the microwave and keeping a fire extinguisher close by.

A third-place ribbon went to Kelsey Sobieski, whose poster depicted a kitchen with appliances. The poster also made several recommendations for safety in the kitchen: Never walk away when cooking; put pot holders under pots; no metal in the microwave; and no towels near the stove.

Fifth-grade teachers Diane Componile and Jennifer Nase coordinated the children's participation in the poster contest.

"All of those who participated did a great job," said Componile. "We actually made a lesson out of the content with a discussion about fire safety and then the children came up with their own ideas. We are sure it was very difficult for the judges to pick a winner."