Bellew Elementary Students Express Their Gratitude

Thankful students at West Islip’s Paul J. Bellew Elementary School took the stage on Nov. 25 to share their expressions of appreciation during the school’s second annual Gratitude Assembly.

One student from every classroom was selected by the school’s character education team to read and present an letter at the event, which culminated activities during Bellew’s month-long study of gratitude.

Many of the children selected wrote about the special people in their lives they appreciate, including parents, grandparents, brother-in-laws and even the school crossing guard. The students invited their special guests to the event and presented them with their letters and gifts of flowers, donated by Towers Flowers of West Islip.

At the end of the assembly, the students connected the classes’ paper gratitude chains to form a giant one more than 100 feet long, serving as a colorful representation of all they had to be thankful for.

“This assembly is amazing because it reflects what’s in the hearts and minds of our young people,” principal Rhonda Pratt said. “Hearing the children read and seeing how their expressions of gratitude touched others was inspirational.”

Photos by West Islip School District.