The East Hampton School Board continued to tackle revisions to the district’s attendance policy last week, with one board member asking for stricter overall language and another asking to change the policy to avoid what she says is a practice that penalizes elementary students.

At the heart of the issue are unexcused absences — often resulting from decisions parents make to plan vacations outside of the usual school breaks — and the debate over whether teachers should prepare packets containing assignments or study guides that outline the concepts that the student will miss.

Current elementary school policy states that, “As a staff we have agreed not to honor requests to provide assignments or make up work for students who are out of school illegally.”

However, Jackie Lowey, a board member, said there were instances where packets or study guides had in fact been provided. She suggested the elementary school policy be rephrased to mirror the language proposed for the middle school policy, which states: “Teachers are responsible for offering students a general outline of material that will be covered, and not specific assignments while the student is out during an unexcused absence or absences.”

Ms. Lowey called that wording “a fair balance.”

“I do think that there are reasons sometimes why parents make decisions that are somewhat beyond kids’ control,” she said, “and I just want to make sure that when that happens, the kids are not penalized for it.”

Beth Doyle, the John M. Marshall Elementary School principal, said she understood how it might be possible to perceive the policy as one that penalizes students. However, she said, “Giving the packet was sort of saying we’re condoning this, which we’re not.”

Ms. Doyle also used the example of providing a general outline of topics to a first-grade student, saying it would not be helpful.

“We could say we’re working on two-digit addition, but the way we’re teaching two-digit addition in math right now is very different from the way most of the parents have learned it,” she said. “Of course, you can speak to the teacher to find out what they’re working on this week. And the most important thing in elementary school is that you’re reading every night and studying your math facts.”

“It seems to be working,” Ms. Doyle added. “Parents understand. We did have a few people who changed their trips or shortened their trips when they realized the impact of missing even one day of school, especially in the lower grades.”

Christina DeSanti, vice president of the school board, suggested that some students’ unexcused absences may have an impact on other students’ learning experiences, for instance if a teacher spends a significant amount of time helping a student who was absent catch up with the rest of the class.

Rich Wilson, a board member, said he would like to see tougher overall wording in the new attendance policy, perhaps mirroring what he described as stricter language and more specific consequences outlined in policies set by top-performing districts like Jericho and Manhasset.

Jericho’s approach to attendance, which is published on its website, is “every day counts.” The school cites “an evidence-based belief that regular classroom attendance is directly related to student performance and understanding,” and says absences totaling more than 15 percent of the school year — or approximately 27 days in a 180-day school year — mean a student loses credit for those courses. Manhasset’s published policy is similar, spelling out a maximum of 28 days and saying “regular school attendance is a major component of academic success.”

East Hampton’s current policy caps unexcused absences at 19 per school year and says, “To be successful in school, students must be present in classes and must actively participate in learning activities. Even when specific work can be made up after an absence, the valuable time on task missed with lost classes may eventually affect the achievement of goals. . . .” Those with more than 19 unexcused absences “will be denied course credit,” according to the current policy. However, the proposed high school attendance policy would drop references to a specific number of unexcused absences.

Mr. Wilson said students need as much classroom time as they can get now that tougher academic standards are being mandated by state and federal policy. “People have to understand, with this new curriculum, it’s not just a matter of memorizing things for one day and passing the test. Everything builds,” he said.

The board tabled the discussion of attendance rules pending further changes by its policy review committee.

The school board also tabled discussion of a policy regarding guns on campus after Ms. Lowey pointed out that the wording, as proposed, did not specify shotguns as among the weapons prohibited on school grounds. The school attorney, Jonathan Heidelberger, agreed to find a way to change the language so that shotguns are clearly prohibited along with the other types of firearms.

Nature Nick’s Menagerie

The South Fork Natural History Museum will have a free Earth Day open house on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. with lots of fun in store for kids. The highlight of the day will be a visit from Nature Nick and his live animals from 2:30 to 3:30 p.m. His menagerie includes a kangaroo, a monkey, a snake, and a bird of prey.

On Sunday at the museum, 6 to 10-year-olds can learn how animals adapt to their habitat. Kids will then come up with their own invented creatures during a program at 10 a.m. Advance registration has been requested.

Spring Ballet

The young dancers of the Hampton Ballet Theatre School will present their spring ballet tomorrow, Saturday, and Sunday at Guild Hall’s John Drew Theater. The program includes “The Littlest Mermaid,” an original ballet conceived and choreographed by the school’s director, Sara Jo Strickland, and “Les Sylphides,” choreographed by Michel Fokine to music by Chopin. Older students will appear in the latter, while the talents of younger students will be showcased in the former.

Show times are tomorrow at 7 p.m., Saturday at 1 and 7 p.m., and Sunday at 2. Tickets cost $25 for adults and $20 for children in advance; $30 and $25 at the door. Advance tickets can be had by calling 855-222-2849.

The Big Egg Drop

How on earth can an egg dropped from the top of the Children’s Museum of the East End’s tall pirate ship ever survive without breaking? That’s the question that the museum’s annual Egg Drop Challenge will answer on Saturday from 9:30 a.m. to noon. Kids of all ages will be given the materials to make cozy containers to protect their eggs. Admission to this popular event is $14, $2 for members. It’s usually sold out, so advance registration is a must.

The museum also announced this week that it is opening its doors to low-income families free of charge. As part of a national Museums for All initiative, those who have an Electronics Benefits Transfer card will be able to present it for free admission to CMEE, which is the first museum on Long Island to extend this offer.

Recycling as a Craft

In the spirit of Earth Day, the Amagansett Library will have kids making crafts from recycled items after a story time on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. On Sunday at 2 p.m., those in third through sixth grade will have a chance to make a letter square for the library’s alphabet quilt or to take home. Those in kindergarten through sixth grade can illustrate a poem after school at 3 p.m. on Monday to help celebrate National Poetry Month.

For Earth Day

An Earth Day story and craft time for ages 4 to 6 will happen on Tuesday at 4 p.m. at the East Hampton Library. On Wednesday at the same time, kids 4 and older can make recycled robots.

Movie Night

The young-adult movie at the Hampton Library in Bridgehampton tomorrow night will be “The Maze Runner.” Show time is 7 p.m.

Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo’s new state budget includes more funding for public education, with the impact of that money expected to vary by district.

According to numbers released on April 1 by the state, the Sag Harbor School District will receive $140,835 more in the 2015-16 year than this year. Jennifer Buscemi, the school’s business administrator, said it is slightly more than the district initially guessed it would receive.

“The additional funds will be used to fund any program changes” in the second draft of Sag Harbor’s budget, Ms. Buscemi said in an email. “Since state aid funds less than 5 percent of our overall budget, slight changes in our year-to-year state aid do not have a significant impact on the delivery of educational programs for our students,” she said.

The state numbers show that the Springs School is slated to receive, overall, about $288,530 more than this year’s total. Among other things, the money will offset the cost to send district students to the Child Development Center of the Hamptons charter school and help pay for special education services. Thomas Primiano, the school treasurer, said the increases were “a nice surprise.”

“In our earlier budget presentations, we were trying to find areas to help close our budget gap,” Mr. Primiano said. “Having more state aid than we thought . . . directly helps us do that.”

Amagansett will receive about $18,900 more next school year, and Bridgehampton will receive about $38,200. Montauk will receive about $84,000 more.

East Hampton, where state support makes up about 4.3 percent of the district’s total budget, will receive an increase of about $186,000.

The East Hampton School Board finished shaping its proposed 2015-16 budget on Tuesday, making room for intramural sports, a competitive dance team, more art supplies for the elementary school, and another section of a popular middle school science elective.

The board will vote on the $66.1 million budget on Wednesday. It will be put up for public vote on May 19.

The figure represents a 1.55-percent increase in spending over last year’s budget. If approved, it would carry a 1.62-percent increase in the tax levy, which is less than what East Hampton would have been allowed under New York’s tax cap law. The tax rate for homeowners would increase by 1.35 percent, rising to $51.71 per $100 of assessed value.

The aforementioned additions come courtesy of New York State lawmakers, who finalized their own budget in Albany two weeks ago. East Hampton will receive $185,758 more from the state than school officials initially projected. The district will use $100,000 of that money to lower the tax levy increase it had initially proposed.

According to Richard Burns, the superintendent, the district made that move “as a thank-you to the taxpayers for passing last year’s budget, when we went over the cap.”

“We’re going to spend as much money as we need to ensure that our kids are getting a great education in this district, but we’re not going to spend the money just because we can spend it,” said Jackie Lowey, a school board member, during Tuesday’s meeting.

When it came to finalizing the proposed budget, the school board agreed to include about $3,300 for more supplies in the elementary school art program, $4,000 to establish a middle school intramural sports program, about $15,300 for a competitive dance team, and $3,800 for a new French horn in the high school music program. The board also agreed to fund a second section of Science Olympiad, which is taught as an elective class at East Hampton Middle School, at a cost of $30,000.

Other additions include $27,000 for a new utility vehicle for the buildings, grounds, and custodial department, and $18,000 for a school bus GPS system.

The additions did come at the expense of a couple of items that were axed from the budget, including the eighth-grade trip to the Museum of Natural History and an annual health fair.

School boards in Amagansett, Sagaponack, and Montauk have finalized their proposed 2015-16 budgets.

In Amagansett, the budget totals $10.5 million, with a tax levy of $8.75 million. Members of the school board were unanimous in voting to adopt it, said Eleanor Tritt, the district superintendent. It represents “a slight decrease in the tax levy,” she said.

Last month, Amagansett’s board approved a five-year tuition contract with the East Hampton School District. Tuition to East Hampton is approximately 25 percent of the Amagansett district’s budget.

Montauk’s school board also unanimously adopted its budget, which amounts to $18.99 million with a tax levy of $17.12 million. The associated tax levy increase would be 1.83 percent. School officials anticipate the tax rate rising from $53.90 to $54.89 per $100 assessed value.

Jack Perna, Montauk’s superintendent, said, “we’re being conservative” with the budget. Because of increased state funding, he said, the district will be able to “put back” items that were in jeopardy, including before-school and after-school programs, an afternoon bus run, and a full summer school program.

A representative of the Sagaponack Common School District said the school board on Monday approved a $1.772 million budget, which represents a 1.09-percent increase over the previous year.

The Wainscott School Board was expected to adopt its proposed $3.06 million budget last night. School boards in Springs, Bridgehampton, Sag Harbor, and East Hampton are expected to adopt their budgets next week.

Residents of the various districts will vote on their school budgets on May 19, a Tuesday.

Jack Perna, the superintendent of the Montauk School District, was among those who responded Monday at a League of Women Voters of the Hamptons forum on potential school mergers, sharing his vision for the consolidation of all the districts on South Fork.

“I’d rather see a larger merger than just East Hampton or just Southampton,” Mr. Perna said. “I’d rather see the two towns on the whole fork merge. . . . We could make a bigger difference that way.”

Mr. Perna was not alone at the forum in supporting consolidation. Chris Dyer, superintendent of the Tuckahoe School District, and Scott Farina, superintendent of the Southampton School District, said they still favored merging their  districts, even though their voters had differed on whether a merger should take place. Voters in Tuckahoe, where taxes would have decreased, overwhelmingly favored a merger; voters in Southampton, where taxes would have increased, did not.

By pooling student populations, resources, space, and ideas, Mr. Perna said programs could be expanded and new ones begun. He suggested that a regional system could establish specialized high schools, for concentrations on science and technology, the humanities, or the performing arts. He also said it would ease the pressure that paying tuition puts on the small districts, such as Montauk, Amagansett, and Springs, that send students to high schools in other districts.

“I’ve been saying it for a long time,” Mr. Perna said after the meeting. “I’ve talked to BOCES [the Board of Cooperative Educational Services], but it doesn’t seem to go anywhere.” Because state law  requires people in both communities to vote to approve a merger, Mr. Perna said, “as long as the state doesn’t change the law, I don’t think it will ever happen.”

Two feasibility studies had concluded that a merger between Tuckahoe and Southampton would be beneficial. “The merger was going to be a win-win,” Mr. Dyer said. “We were going to have educational opportunities for our kids, and we were going to have fiscal responsibility for our taxpayers.”

Now, Mr. Farina said, the conversation has shifted. “I think we need to start behaving in a way as if we are participating in a merger through shared services. There certainly are ways that districts can get together. . . . Until we get over that hump of the taxpayers voting for mergers, I think we need to do that.”

The Bridgehampton and Sag Harbor Districts, which have their own high schools, were also represented at the forum.  Katy Graves, the Sag Harbor superintendent, said yesterday that Mr. Farina was on the right track. “As we share more services, it will develop more trust and more successes, and I think that’s the route we need to go. The mergers concern people because we haven’t developed that trust yet.”

“We need to recognize the traditional model of having separate little districts . . . really doesn’t bring us quality education,” Mr. Dyer said.

Julie Lutz, chief operating officer of Eastern Suffolk BOCES, reported that 30 school districts in the state had studied mergers since 2010, but none had moved ahead. “I firmly can say that I believe, and I think we have good evidence, that we can provide better educational programs for students with many more economies of scale” if districts are merged, she said.

New York State Assemblyman Fred W. Thiele Jr., who also took part in the forum, said that a bill that would allow small districts to form regional high schools was making its way through the Legislature. Suffolk County also has a law that allows centralized high school districts, he said.

According to Mr. Thiele, centralized high school districts have not been favored by the New York State Education Department, although it may be willing to take another look. “The regional high school bill would allow existing school districts to join together and not give up home rule, but enter into an agreement to provide for a regional high school which could have a separate governing board.”

Discussion of school district consolidation is not new on the South Fork. In 1992, a Suffolk County panel suggested that 14 districts between Westhampton Beach and Montauk be joined into one or two larger districts. State officials, including then-Gov. Mario M. Cuomo, urged six of seven local districts, excluding East Hampton, to combine into one or more.

In 1997, however, a state study of consolidation of the East Hampton, Montauk, Springs, and Amagansett districts concluded that neither a merger nor a centralized high school district was financially feasible. Such a merger was again broached in 2002, when representatives of the Montauk, East Hampton, and Amagansett districts met to discuss it. At the time, Mr. Perna was behind a centralized high school district, while Dominic Mucci, then superintendent of the Springs School District, favored studying the possibility.

With New York state’s standardized English and math tests coming up, the Teachers Association of Sag Harbor is hoping to reach parents who have questions about how to opt out of the tests.

In a letter posted on Facebook on Tuesday via the group South Fork Alliance for Common Sense Education, the union announced it has planned a forum for parents to learn about the opt out movement. A documentary called “Standardized” will be screened. The event is planned for tonight at 6:30 p.m. at the Old Whalers Church, which is at 44 Union Street in Sag Harbor.

“We want to give the community a chance to talk and open the discussion,” said Anthony Chase Mallia, a seventh-grade math teacher in Sag Harbor. “A lot of parents have questions about the implications of opting out, and have been asking a lot of the teachers.”

The state tests in English are scheduled over the course of three days next week, and the math tests are scheduled for three days the following week.

Sports Clinics

Indoor soccer, flag football, volleyball, and inline skating clinics start next week at the Sportime Arena in Amagansett. Offered in conjunction with the East Hampton Town Recreation Department, the clinics run for eight weeks and cost $125.

Monday will include volleyball for ages 10 to 13 from 4 to 5 p.m. and flag football for ages 6 to 12 from 5 to 6 p.m. On Tuesday, it’s inline skating from 5 to 6 p.m. for ages 4 to 9 and roller hockey for ages 6 to 12 from 6 to 7 p.m. Dodge Ball for 8 to 13-year-olds will start on Friday, April 17, from 4 to 5 p.m. Saturday soccer for kids 6 to 12 runs from 9:30 a.m. to noon starting April 18. A basketball clinic for 6 to 12-year-olds runs Saturdays from 11 a.m. to noon, also starting April 18. Registration is at the arena at 320 Abraham’s Path.

Spring Ballet

Tickets are on sale for the Hampton Ballet Theatre School’s spring ballet, which opens at Guild Hall in East Hampton on Friday, April 17. Performances will be that night at 7 p.m., on April 18 at 1 and 7 p.m., and April 19 at 2. The cost in advance is $20 for children, $25 for adults. Day-of tickets will be $25 and $30.

The student dancers will perform “Les Sylphides,” choreographed by Michael Fokine with music by Chopin, and “The Littlest Mermaid,” an original ballet by Sara Jo Strickland, the school’s director.

Tickets can be reserved at hamptonballettheatreschool.com or by calling 855-222-2849.

Minecraft Maniacs

Young Minecraft fanatics will find kindred spirits at the Bay Street Theater in Sag Harbor on Sunday from 2 to 4 p.m., when the theater and two teens, Mason Cohen and Miller Croke, host a game-playing session for kids 11 and older. Only a lucky 10 kids will be able to participate, but parents and students alike have been invited to watch the adventure unfold on Bay Street’s big screen.

Those who wish to take part using their own laptops or devices have been asked to email [email protected]. There is a suggested donation of $10 per participant.

Natural Wonders

How does a dainty butterfly avoid succumbing to its predators? What other natural defenses to creatures employ to keep from being eaten? Children 7 to 10 can learn all about them during a program on Saturday at 1 p.m. at the South Fork Natural History Museum in Bridgehampton.

Children ages 3 to 5 will use their senses as they explore a trail behind the museum on Sunday at 10 a.m. At 2 p.m., children 7 to 10 can learn about plant parts through a close-up study of flowers, bulbs, leaves, and roots. There is a $4 materials fee for this one. Advance registration is required for all museum programs.

Salad Days

A salad workshop at the Children’s Museum of the East End on Saturday will have kids 3 to 6 choosing from veggies to chop, dice, and slice and then turn into “people” that they can “dress” and eat. The fun happens from 10 to 10:45 a.m. The cost is $20 including museum admission; $7 for members.

At the Libraries

Quilting, movies, crafts, and games are on the schedule this week at local libraries.

Tonight, the East Hampton Library will screen the wildly popular “Frozen” at 5 p.m. Those who attend will be entered into a book raffle. Advance ­registration is suggested.

After listening to a story about recycling, families can work together to make magnets out of recycled jar lids on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. at the Amagansett Library. On Sunday at 2 p.m. in Amagansett, kids in third through sixth grade have been invited to make a square for an alphabet quilt, which they can take home or donate to the library for a collaborative project. At the same time, kids in kindergarten through sixth grade can help the library celebrate National Poetry Month by illustrating a poem.

An Amazing April family craft and game time at the Montauk Library will happen on Saturday from 2 to 3:30 p.m.

Local legislators and school officials will discuss school district consolidation on Monday, at a public forum hosted by the League of Women Voters of the Hamptons.

Chris Dyer, superintendent of the Tuckahoe School District, will examine the impact of consolidation on academics and extracurricular activities, while Heather McCallion, Southampton’s school board president, will discuss the financial ramifications. Assemblyman Fred W. Thiele Jr. will talk about the state’s role, and Julie Lutz, chief operating officer of the Eastern Suffolk Board of Cooperative Educational Services, will explain the role BOCES would play in a merger.

Judi Roth, chairwoman of the league’s education committee, will moderate the panel. Members of the audience will have the opportunity to ask questions.

“This is an issue that has interest throughout the East End, and particularly on the South Fork,” Mr. Thiele said on Monday. “It’s good to have a public forum out there and get public input on the issue.”

“The bottom line ultimately is, can you improve the quality of education for the students on the South Fork? I would hope that we’re not just looking at money or tax issues, but also whether there are opportunities to improve the quality of education.”

“School Mergers: What You Need to Know” will begin at 7 p.m. at Rogers Memorial Library, 91 Coopers Farm Road in Southampton.

Goat on a Boat Presents ‘The Joshua Show’

Joshua Holden, a puppeteer and performer whose production “The Joshua Show” won best performance and audience favorite awards at the Puppeteers of America’s National Festival in 2013, will perform at the Goat on a Boat Puppet Theatre in Sag Harbor on Saturday at 11 a.m. and 3 p.m.

Mr. Holden brings a combination of puppetry, live music, tap-dancing, and physical comedy to “The Joshua Show,” which is a story about friendship and the importance of being yourself. Tickets cost $12, $10 for members and grandparents, and $8 for siblings and children under 3.

Pasta, Pizza, and Pajamas at CMEE

Special offerings starting tomorrow at the Children’s Museum of the East End in Bridgehampton will keep kids busy during the April break. Fresh pasta making is on the menu for a drop-off program for 4 to 7-year-olds tomorrow from 10 to 11 a.m. The cost is $24 including museum admission, $12 for members. Tomorrow night is Pizza and Pajama Night, with a reading of Frank Asch’s “The Earth and I,” watercolor landscape painting, and pizza, of course, starting at 6 p.m. It’s free for members, $10 for others.

Children of all ages can plant seedlings on Saturday at 10 a.m. in a program that is free with museum admission. Kids 4 to 7 have can make soda bottle planters with parents’ help on Monday and up-cycled birdfeeders in a drop-off program on Wednesday. Both cost $24, or $12 for members. Finally, next Thursday all ages are invited to work on a community mural at 10 a.m. The fun is included with museum admission; reservations are recommended for all CMEE events.

Creative Writing for Teens

Older students who like to write can fine-tune their skills during a weeklong creative writing workshop for teens with the Young Artists and Writers Project at Stony Brook Southampton. It runs Monday through Friday, April 10, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. each day.

Participants will work with professional writers on poetry, fiction, memoir, and dialogue skills and end the week with a completed piece of writing. The cost is $525 for the week, with some scholarships available. Registration is at stonybrook.edu/yawp or by email to [email protected].

Spring Break Week at SoFo

The South Fork Natural History Museum in Bridgehampton will have special April break programs all week. The first is a story time at 1 p.m. on Saturday that will include a reading of Alan Baker’s “Two Tiny Mice: A Mouse-Eyed Exploration of Nature,” and a walk in the field behind the museum. Nature and science programs for all ages are planned each morning at 10 a.m. Monday through Friday, April 10. Monday they’ll explore pond life. Tuesday it’s birding in the field behind the museum. Children will learn about insects on Wednesday, study the basics of electronics next Thursday, and take a spring field walk on Friday, April 10.

After ‘Wormy Cakes’ Comes ‘Frozen’

A solar printing workshop for kids 4 and older will be held at the East Hampton Library on Tuesday from 2 to 3 p.m. Kids 5 and older can make edible “wormy cakes” on Wednesday at the same hours. Don’t worry, no ­real worms will be used. Next Thursday, there’s a family movie night at 5 p.m. with a screening of the wildly popular “Frozen.”