'Mathapalooza' program motivates students

The students of Maryellen McLaughlin, a teacher of third- and fourth-graders in the program for gifted and talented children at the Clifton Avenue Grade School, Lakewood, designed a new program called Mathapalooza to teach math skills to their friends and classmates.

In a weeklong project, they developed 25 different learning centers, addressing New Jersey's Core Curriculum Content Standards for fourth grade math. The students were divided into teams and were given a schedule to follow in order to visit the five daily stations and complete the tasks. The students had to work cooperatively and complete the tasks in the allotted time frame.

The themes were derived from the curriculum clusters and included Fabulous Fractions, Gorgeous Graphing, Mazing Measurement and Perplexing Probability, Geomania, and O'Algebra.

The stations addressed various learning modalities of the students. Each day provided a wide range of activities using manipulatives, computer games, measurement tools, puzzles, playing cards and more.

May 4 Food Frolic event

will benefit Girl Scouts

A Food Frolic fundraiser hosted by the Ocean County Girl Scout Council's alumnae group, the Order of the Evergreen/Ocean, will be held May 4 at St. Barbara Greek Orthodox Church, 2200 Church Road, Toms River. Doors will open at 6 p.m., with drawings at 7 p.m. For a donation of $5, guests will receive 25 chances to win shopping bags filled with food. Proceeds will benefit Scouting in the Ocean County area. No one under 18 will be admitted. Details: (732) 349-4499.