As the East Hampton School Board continues to mull whether to build its own bus depot, an analysis of New York State Education Law by its legal counsel has shown that such a facility would have to be in the school district. The board is considering its own depot to save money and as a potential revenue-generating measure. It would enable the district to stop leasing commercial space from a private company for school bus parking and maintenance.

During a brief discussion at Tuesday’s school board meeting, Florence Frazer of Frazer and Feldman said the law “only allows very, very limited opportunities for school districts to have property outside the school districts.”

The discussion was a follow-up to public forums in October and November seeking public opinion. In November, a few people opposed the idea of a bus depot on the high school campus, saying the industrial nature of such a facility would have a negative impact on the neighboring community.

Following the meeting, Rich Burns, the superintendent, said Ms. Frazer’s analysis puts the district back at trying to put a bus depot on existing school property. “I wish we had more options, quite honestly,” he said. “Now I know our search is narrowing. I thought that there might have been a possibility down by the airport, as was suggested by some community members, but that’s really not an option.”

Mr. Burns said the district had met with town officials on Monday to “put a bug in their ear” about the issue. “Is there any land available in the district? Preliminarily, they said no,” he said. “At our next board meeting, we’ll say what our next step is going to be, and we’ll go from there. There’s the possibility of other sites on campus that we’re asking the architect to review and develop that won’t be intrusive to neighbors. We’re very sensitive to that.”

The East Hampton School Board will meet next on Jan. 5.

Gingerbread Houses

Families can work together to decorate gingerbread houses during four upcoming workshops at the Children’s Museum of the East End in Bridgehampton. The museum will provide a variety of edible decorations for workshops on Saturday and Dec. 12 at 10 and 11 a.m.

The cost is $30 per house, which includes admission, or $20 per house for members. Reservations have been suggested. Due to space restrictions, the museum has asked that no more than two children work on each house. Those who are not able to fit a workshop into their schedules can reserve a gingerbread house kit and pick it up at the museum starting tomorrow.

Ready to Baby-Sit?

Future baby-sitters will have a chance on Saturday to learn what it takes to do the job well. A workshop for sixth through eighth graders will be held at the Montauk Library from 1 to 4 p.m. Kids who complete the course will get a certificate to prove they are ready for the responsibility of caring for younger children. Advance registration is required.

Mad Scientists Welcome

The Group for the East End will help second through sixth graders get in touch with their inner mad scientists on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. at the Amagansett Library. Young scientists will make exploding lunch bags, milk rainbows, and experiment with dry ice. On Tuesday at the library, the same age group can practice some of the basics of computer coding at 4 p.m. Reservations are required for all programs.

Science and technology are also on the agenda at the John Jermain Memorial Library in Sag Harbor and the South Fork Natural History Museum in Bridgehampton this weekend. At SoFo, Melanie Meade will lead a program on wind energy for 3 to 5-year-olds and help them make their own wind-powered spinners. There is a $5 materials fee in addition to museum entry.

Aerodynamics and drag will be explored at John Jermain on Sunday as kids 7 and up make racecars using recycled materials and balloons. Advance registration is a must.

Melted Snowmen

The Hampton Library in Bridgehampton will lead 7 to 12-year-olds in a “melted snowman” ornament workshop on Tuesday at 4 p.m. At the East Hampton Library, also on Tuesday afternoon at 4, kids 4 and older can decorate holiday cupcakes.

The Dew Drop Prince

Whether you’ve seen “The Nutcracker” every December or never been to a production, there’s no denying that Tchaikovsky’s music is a kind of soundtrack of the season, lending holiday excitement to everything from car commercials to toy ads.

At Guild Hall this weekend, the Hampton Ballet Theatre School will offer four chances to see the full production, choreographed by Sara Jo Strickland, the school’s director. Costumes are by Yuka Silvera and lighting design is by Sebastian Paczynski.

The school’s resident guest artists, Adam and Gail Baranello of A&G Dance Company, will dance the role of the Arabian Prince and Princess. And Nick Peregrino of Ballet Fleming in Philadelphia will return to the East Hampton stage as the Dew Drop Prince. Students will dance other key roles in the production. Rose Kelly will be the Dew Drop Princess; Abigail and Caitlin Hubbell will share the role of the Sugar Plum Fairy.

Show times for “The Nutcracker” are tomorrow at 7 p.m., Saturday at 1 and 7, and Sunday at 2. Advance tickets are $25 for adults, $20 for children under 12 at 855-222-2849 or hamptonballettheatreschool.com. Tickets will cost $30 and $25 at the door.

From the Young Cowgirls

The students in a Young Cowgirls workshop will perform original pieces that they conceived and directed on Wednesday at 7 p.m. on the Guild Hall stage. The eight-week workshop was led by Kate Mueth and the Neo-Political Cowgirls with the aim of empowering girls through dance, theater, and performance art. Admission will be free.

Outdoorsy Holiday

When the weather gets cold and there’s not much color in the outside world, it’s especially fun to watch the season’s birds descend upon a peanut butter and seed-covered pinecone strategically hung in just the right tree outside a window. On Saturday at the South Fork Natural History Museum in Bridgehampton, families can help decorate a holiday tree for the birds, then make some bird-friendly decorations to take home. The workshop begins at 3 p.m. There is a $3 materials fee, and participants have been encouraged to take a shoebox to carry their decorations home in.

On Sunday from 6 to 8 p.m., weather permitting, kids 8 to 12 have been invited to join in a program on the Geminids meteor shower, which is at its peak on Sunday and Monday. “We’ve learned that in past years as many as 120 meteors painted green streaks across the sky in just one hour,” the museum wrote on its website.

Crystal Possehl will lead kids in making a constellation projector and then take them outside to see the early meteor showers. In case of rain or heavy cloud cover, the program will take place on Monday at the same time. Reservations have been requested.

Gingerbread a-Go-Go

For those feeling industrious this weekend, there are no less than five opportunities to make gingerbread houses, with all the materials provided.

At the Children’s Museum of the East End in Bridgehampton, workshops will be held on Saturday at 10 and 11 a.m. The cost per house is $30, $20 for members, and the museum has requested that no more than two children work on each house. Also in Bridgehampton, the start time for the Hampton Library’s free workshop for ages 5 and up is 11 a.m.

At Guild Hall, Citarella is providing the materials and the professional guidance for a workshop on Saturday at noon. The cost per house is $20, $15 for members. The Montauk Library will have a free gingerbread house workshop on Saturday from 2 to 4 p.m.

Space is limited in all workshops, and advance registration is required.

Art of Origami

Kids 4 and up can explore the art of origami on Tuesday at 4 p.m. at the East Hampton Library. On Wednesday, those 6 to 8 will learn to make constellation glow jars from 4:45 to 5:30.

The family movie this afternoon at 4:30 at the library is “Minions.” Next Thursday’s movie is “The Polar Express.”

Perpetual Calendars

At the Amagansett Library on Saturday and Sunday, kids will make perpetual calendars, an old way of keeping track of birthdays and other special dates. A workshop for grades three and up will be offered on Saturday at 2 p.m.; one for grades two to six is on the schedule for Sunday at the same time.

The Sag Harbor School District is expected to release information soon about a formal appraisal of the former Stella Maris Regional School, the purchase of which is being explored. Several closed-door sessions to discuss real estate have been held dating back to the summer. The property’s most recently advertised sale price is $3.5 million.

Katy Graves, the district superintendent, said during Monday’s school board meeting that she would spend the rest of December putting together a survey that will contain information as well as questions for the community to consider. “It’s not simple to move through that information,” she said.

Should enough residents express interest in purchasing the former Stella Maris, which closed at the end of the 2010-11 school year, Ms. Graves said a vote would be scheduled for May or June.

The survey will be distributed electronically and be available for comment for at least three weeks. Ms. Graves said she would work out a way for residents who do not have computers, or don’t know how to use them, to participate.

 “We really want to have as much participation as possible by the community,” she said. Ms. Graves noted that the district’s information technology staff was working on a way to protect the survey’s results against fraud.

For Dylan Breault, a senior at Bridgehampton High School, the Young Artists and Writers Project High School Playwriting Program was bigger than any classroom writing assignment, and the program’s culminating performance on Saturday will be bigger than a school play.

That’s because the original play he wrote through the YAWP program was chosen to be performed at the Avram Theater at Stony Brook Southampton — one of 5 out of more than 50 submissions from high school students in YAWP workshops at the Bridgehampton School, Pierson in Sag Harbor, Eastport-South Manor, Southampton, and related summer writing programs.

Dylan’s play, “Hoping for Change,” is about two brothers coping with a serious family emergency. The 10-minute play took him about five weeks to write, he said, and the characters were inspired by members of his own family.

The YAWP program is “something I wanted to do since ninth grade,” he said. “I really got into it . . . I wanted to write something that people would understand and connect with.”

On Saturday, Dylan will play a character much like himself. His friend Milo Youngerman, a Bridgehampton School sophomore, will portray his brother. It is the first time on stage for both student-actors.

“This is bigger than a school play because it’s a big start,” Dylan said. “It’s not just for people you know in school.”

The YAWP program brings students and teachers together with professional actors, directors, and theatrical designers, many of whom who are affiliated with Stony Brook Southampton’s M.F.A. program in creative writing and literature. They spend several weeks together in students’ English classes or summertime writing sessions.

“Hoping for Change” will be directed by Valerie DiLorenzo, a professional actress, director, and vocal coach, who called it “a creative accomplishment and a personal accomplishment.”

“For him to live it, write about it, and then live it onstage is very inspiring,” Ms. DiLorenzo said.

Will Chandler, director of the program, said it is aimed not only at empowering students but also at helping them fine-tune their writing skills.

“They’re finding out who they are. We don’t censor them. We ask questions,” Mr. Chandler said. “They get to how they feel. They get to what they think. We’re asking them about their writing, but in the end what we’re really asking is to tell us about themselves.”

Tickets to Saturday’s performance are free, and there will be a pizza party following the show, which begins at 7 p.m. and includes two comedies and three dramas. All the plays are family-friendly, although Mr. Chandler advised parents that some have strong language. Reservations may be made by email with [email protected].

East Hampton school officials heard an update on Tuesday on the progress of the district’s new Google Chromebook program, in which every fifth and ninth-grade student along with some in other grades who are taking ninth-grade-level classes received a Chromebook computer to use in school and at home.

During that night’s school board meeting, Chuck Westergard, the district’s manager of information systems, told the board he has seen “constant, steady growth” in the use of online educational tools.

“It seems to be ramping up,” Mr. Westergard said. “I was also impressed with how well the teachers got going. . . . It’s new and it’s great, but it can be overwhelming when you’re starting a brand-new thing, and I’d just like to commend all the teachers who have taken on this project.”

The district purchased 400 Chromebooks over the summer, distributing 366 to students and 10 to staff members. A handful were reported as defective or damaged. The district has a stock of 21 devices as backup. Only two instances of missing Chromebooks have been reported, and they have since been recovered.

Mr. Westergard said the district is seeing some damage to the Chromebooks, such as cracked screens and chipped corners. “We can tell that there are a lot of people who have not taken advantage of the few recommended things that we did suggest, like to get a cover,” he said. “They were $11 to $14, depending on the one you pick out . . . and they make a big difference in how well the device is going to hold up.”

Christina DeSanti, the school board vice president, suggested the school principals look into selling Chromebook covers in the school stores.

The board also heard an update on the administration’s plan for spending the approximately $273,000 the district will receive from New York State’s Smart Schools Bond Act. Bob Hagan, the district’s director of learning technology and instruction, said it will be used on a thorough upgrade of the technology infrastructure, such as the wireless bandwidth, over the next few years. The state’s Education Department has already approved the plan.

“If we invest in a robust system, we could have 100 people in here working on the system and it would work just fine,” Mr. Hagan said. “This way, if every K to 12 child and adult and community member walked in with something, our goal is to not slow down one bit.”

Walking Dunes Adventure

Children on a backpack adventure with the South Fork Natural History Museum on Saturday will explore the Walking Dunes on Napeague, seeking out wildlife, plant life, and other things of interest.

Crystal Possehl will lead the adventure, which is for kids 5 to 7. Young explorers will use magnifiers, observation jars, crayons, and a notepad to study and record their findings. The program begins at 10 a.m. 

Back at the museum in Bridgehampton at 10:30, Eric Young will read to 6 to 11-year-olds from his book “The Rainbow Almond Tree,” about the Costa Rican rain forest. 

At the Libraries

Kids can decorate cupcakes to look like turkeys or pilgrims or anything else the Thanksgiving holiday brings to mind during a session at the Montauk Library on Saturday from 2 to 3 p.m. Treat boxes will be provided, should the cupcakes remain uneaten. Today from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m. at the library, children in kindergarten through third grade will plant amaryllis bulbs with the Horticultural Alliance of the Hamptons that should be in bloom right around the Christmas break. 

At the Amagansett Library, elementary students will weave Thanksgiving placemats on Sunday at 2 p.m. 

Teenagers looking for community service hours or who are simply moved by the early holiday spirit can stop by the East Hampton Library on Saturday between 2 and 4 p.m. to make holiday cards for veterans and wounded service members. 

On Sunday at the John Jermain Memorial Library, kids 7 and older can learn to make a portable knitting loom and try it out from 2 to 3 p.m. Yarn will be available. 

Advance registration has been requested for all library programs. 

Cooking Workshop at CMEE

The smell of corn muffins will fill the air at the Children’s Museum of the East End on Saturday as families with kids 3 to 6 measure, mix, and bake from 10 to 10:45 a.m. The cost of the cooking workshop is $17 including museum admission, $5 for members. 

Looking ahead to Thanksgiving weekend, the Parrish Art Museum will have an open studio and activities for families on Friday, Nov. 27, and Nov. 28 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Activities will be free with museum admission.  

Shinnecock Family Day

Representatives from the Shinnecock Nation Cultural Center and Museum will be on hand Saturday to share traditional stories, dancing, singing, and food as part of an open house and family day of thanksgiving at the South Fork Natural History Museum in Bridgehampton. The free celebration will focus on ways of giving thanks for Long Island’s natural environment and will run from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. A $5 donation or a nonperishable food item for local food pantries has been requested.

Christmas Karaoke

Christmas karaoke, ornament design, cookie decorating, and a photo booth are in store at a family holiday party hosted by Camp SoulGrow on Saturday at the Montauk Yacht Club. The fun runs from 1 to 3 p.m. and is free, although donations will be accepted for the nonprofit camp.

A Trunk of Props

Jester Jim will open his trunk of props for an interactive show at the East Hampton Library on Saturday at 2 p.m. Young artists age 4 and up can use wire and pipe cleaners to make their own sculptures tomorrow at 2. On Wednesday, they’ll make found-object sculptures from 4 to 5 p.m. Next Thursday’s family film at 4:30 p.m. will be “Shaun the Sheep Movie.”

Holabird and Friend

Katharine Holabird, the creator of the Angelina Ballerina and Twinkle series of books, will bring her books to life with the help of a local performer on Saturday at 10 a.m. at the Children’s Museum of the East End in Bridgehampton. The cost is $15, including museum admission. Members will get in for free.

Looking ahead to Friday, Dec. 4, the last Pizza and Pajama Night of the year at 6 p.m. will include a reading of “Maisy Makes Gingerbread,” a chance to mix up some gingerbread dough for baking at home, and a lighting of the museum’s indoor windmill. The cost, which includes pizza, is $10. Members get in free.

The Tyler Project has changed the date of an upcoming East Hampton walk for awareness and prevention of suicide to Saturday. Initially it was to be held last Thursday.

Sign-up for the fund-raising event will begin at noon at Herrick Park; the walk will kick off at 1 p.m. The route will take participants to Main Beach, where there will be drinking water and a bus to take them back to the starting point. The registration fee is a suggested donation of $20 and includes a T-shirt. Literature pertaining to local mental health resources will be available.

According to Marjorie Winslow, the treasurer of the Tyler Project, the proceeds will support several initiatives the project has undertaken. So far, the group has distributed copies of the book “The Grieving Student: A Teacher’s Guide” to administrators and school psychologists in all local districts.

The Tyler Project has launched Project Hero at the Montauk School and the East Hampton Middle School, set up the East End Peer Network for teenagers and older youth, and brought safeTALK crisis communication training to the area through the Family Service League of East Hampton. The organization is also exploring bringing the Express Yourself character-education program into schools.

All of this has occurred in the last year and a half since the organization was established in memory of Tyler Valcich, a Montauk resident who died at the age of 20.

“We have been working with the schools to find whatever programs they feel would be helpful, to see that it doesn’t happen again,” Ms. Winslow said. “We feel we are moving forward and making a positive impact, and we hope to continue to do so.”

It started off like a typical school science fair, with teamwork and research for a presentation on a scientific concept. Only the fair was to be held at one of the foremost science academies in the world, and the audience was to stretch far beyond peers and parents. So maybe it wasn’t at all like a typical school science fair.

Six Ross School students spent the last several weeks preparing a presentation on environmental sustainability and its role in a school curriculum, which they delivered at a workshop at the Pontifical Academy of Sciences in Vatican City on Nov. 14, in front of an international audience of scientists and educators.

“We were given the chance to do something that many people aren’t, so we had to speak for them,” said Diego Vanegas, an eighth-grade student. “It was a big role. It was very important. Being at the Vatican, I felt very joyful. This was a great opportunity.”

The students discussed issues such as animal extinction, loss of finite resources, and energy sources, and why these issues concern them. “There were many points to address,” Diego said. “At the end we talked about how it is all connected.”

Malik Basnight, a senior, said, “Over all, it was a great experience to be given the opportunity to travel to Rome not just to see the city but also to go to the Academy and speak and have your words actually mean something that could possibly change people’s minds and change society.”

He acknowledged being apprehensive going into the presentation. “Most of the nervousness came from being around people who have such influence on the world,” he said. “There were scientists who were absolutely brilliant, and they were there listening to you, so you wanted to do the best you could do.”

Carrie Clark, the Ross School’s dean of cultural history, said the students performed admirably in their presentation. “They were really, really fantastic,” Ms. Clark said. “I heard so many words of commendation from the attendees on how well the students had done.”

The students took in sights like the Colosseum and the Pantheon, observed Rome’s well-known architecture, and visited several museums. But while they were there, they were shocked to learn of the Islamic State terrorist attacks in Paris.

“It kind of paralyzed me for a moment, knowing it was so close,” Malik said. “That was a moment of wow, okay, this is a real thing that happened. It was definitely an eye-opening moment for me.”

The students were accompanied on their trip not just by teachers but by the school’s founder, Courtney Sale Ross, who had been named honorary president of the workshop. It was titled “Children and Sustainable Development: A Challenge for Education.” According to a release from the Ross School, the workshop was inspired by Pope Francis’s recent encyclical on climate change. The workshop originated with an idea to involve children in environmental education issues and was further developed by Mrs. Ross along with other academic professionals from around the world.

“I have long advocated that sustainability should be a foundational principle in the way that we teach our children, and in fact it is our ethical and moral obligation to make sure they receive this education,” Mrs. Ross said in a statement.

Diego and Malik said the idea of sustainability means a lot to them and to their classmates.

“I would like everyone to know that everyone’s actions affect the world,” Diego said, “and not just themselves.”