The Springs School Board convened a special session Thursday morning to unanimously appoint Christopher Sarlo as interim principal.

Eric Casale, the current principal, will undergo spinal surgery on Jan. 6. He is expected to return to his post in February.

Mr. Sarlo was a principal of East Hampton High School and in 2005 served as the interim principal of the Springs School. As interim principal this time around, he will serve from Jan. 5 until Jan. 31.

 “I would like to assure you that we fully anticipate a smooth transition, with absolutely no disruption in the students’ educational experience during this time,” Elizabeth Mendelman, the board president, wrote in an email to parents. “Given his track record and history in not only our district but the surrounding area as well, the board of education has the utmost confidence in Mr. Sarlo and his ability to serve the Springs community.”

The Springs School begins its two-week winter recess on Monday. Classes will resume on Jan. 5.

“The Snowflake Man”

After a week with no school, families needing some out-of-the-house entertainment might head over to the Goat on a Boat Puppet Theatre in Sag Harbor on Saturday, where Puppetkabob will present “The Snowflake Man” at 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. Inspired by the true story of the man who first photographed a snow crystal, the show uses Czech-style marionettes to share this fascinating American tale. Tickets cost $12, $10 for grandparents and theater members, and $8 for siblings or additional children in the same group.

Movies in the Afternoon

At the Amagansett Library, family movies will be shown the day after Christmas and again on Friday, Jan. 2, at 2 p.m. Tomorrow’s selection is “Mary Poppins.” Next week, it will be “The Wizard of Oz.” Snacks will be provided.

On Saturday, children in kindergarten through third grade can make pinecone birdfeeders at 3:30 p.m. The library is also running its regular weekly story, craft, and toddler music programs over the holiday break.

Busy Holiday at CMEE

Children can get in touch with their artistic sides at the Children’s Museum of the East End in Bridgehampton on Saturday. Younger ones, 2 to 6 years old, will mix watercolors, glue, and salt to make colorful canvases at 10 a.m. The program costs $15 including museum admission, $10 for members. Also at 10 that day, there will be a foam board printmaking workshop for 6 to 10-year-olds. The hourlong drop-off program costs $25 including museum admission, or $10 for members.

Sunday is Waffle Day at the museum, when families can make their own brunch from 10 to 11 a.m. The cost is $20 including museum admission, $7 for members.

Looking ahead to New Year’s Eve, the museum will celebrate 12 hours early with noisemaker crafts starting at 11 a.m., a countdown to noon, and a ball drop. Members get in free. All others pay $10.

Finally, on Friday, Jan. 2, CMEE’s Pizza and Pajama night from 6 to 7:30 will include a reading of Denise Fleming’s “Time to Sleep,” about hibernation. This too is free for members and $10 for others.

The museum’s Kids Club, a 9:30 a.m. to noon drop-off program for ages 4 to 6, continues the day after Christmas and on Monday, Tuesday, and Friday, Jan. 2. Each day brings a different activity and includes a snack. The cost is $55 per day per child, $45 for members. Advance registration has been requested for all CMEE activities.

A Countdown for Kids

The John Jermain Memorial Library in Sag Harbor will host an early New Year’s Eve party for kids of all ages on Saturday from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., with games, treats, dancing, and, of course, a countdown.

Recycle It

In addition to its regular weekly fun, the East Hampton Library will host kids 4 and up for art workshops on Monday and Tuesday at 1:30 p.m. A recycled art fantasyland is on the agenda for Monday. Tuesday it’s cut-paper snow people. Sign-up in advance is required.

Part Nutcracker, Part Grinch

The young dancers of Studio 3 in Bridgehampton will present “Mixed Nuts,” a production that is part “The Nutcracker,” part “How the Grinch Stole Christmas,” tomorrow and Saturday at Bay Street Theater in Sag Harbor. The show includes ballet, jazz, tap, lyrical, and other dance forms in an original holiday story with classic Christmas characters.

Performances are tomorrow at 7 p.m. and Saturday at 1 and 7 p.m. Tickets cost $20 for adults, $15 for children under 10 and senior citizens. They can be purchased at the door.

Vacation Camps and Workshops

Working parents who don’t have two weeks off for the holiday break like their kids do or those who just want to get the little ones out of the house over the long school break will find vacation camps and holiday-break workshops at the Children’s Museum of the East End in Bridgehampton, the Y.M.C.A. East Hampton RECenter, Hampton Kids in East Hampton, and the Parrish Art Museum in Water Mill. Advance registration is required for all, because some will not run without sufficient enrollment and others will fill up quickly.

At the Y.M.C.A. in East Hampton, a full-day camp running from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. will be offered for 5 to 12-year-olds on Monday, Tuesday, Friday, Dec. 26, and again on Dec. 29, Dec. 30, and Jan. 2. The cost is $65 per day, per child, with discounts for additional days. All six sessions cost $355 per child. Camp forms are available on the Y’s website or at the center and must be filled out in advance of attendance.

At Hampton Kids on Daniel’s Hole Road, a kids club for ages 2 to 12 will be offered starting Monday and continuing every day through Jan. 2 with the exception of Christmas and New Year’s. Parents can enroll children in a half day from 9 a.m. to noon or from noon to 3 p.m., or a full day from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The program will be offered only in the morning on Saturday and Sunday. The cost is $100 per day including snacks, lunch, tokens, and use of the bounce house. A half day costs $40. Members pay $70 or $30. Siblings will receive a 10-percent discount.

At CMEE, a kids club for 4 to 6-year-olds will be held on Monday, Tuesday, and Friday, Dec. 26, from 9:30 a.m. to noon, and again at the same time on Dec. 29 and 30 and Jan. 2. This drop-off program will include circle time, arts and crafts, science or cooking, snack time, and a story time. The cost is $55 per day or $45 for members and includes admission to the museum.

At the Parrish Art Museum, where classes always fill up quickly, there will be art workshops Dec. 29 through 31. Sessions for kids 4 to 6 will run from 10 a.m. to noon, and those for kids 7 and older will be from 1 to 3 p.m. The cost is $40, $30 for museum members.

Also at CMEE, kids 2 to 6 can make snow globes on Saturday at 10 a.m. following a reading of Wong Herbert Yee’s “Tracks in the Snow.” The workshop costs $20, $15 for members.

“How Santa Got His Job”

At the Goat on a Boat Puppet Theatre in Sag Harbor on Saturday, Nappy’s Puppets will present “How Santa Got His Job,” a show about all the things young Santa tried before he finally landed the job he has today. Shows are at 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. and cost $12, $10 for members and grandparents, and $8 for children under 3 or each additional child.

Crafts, Crafts, Crafts

Snow, togetherness, giving, gingerbread. Programs at local libraries will focus on the things that make this time of year what it is.

At the Hampton Library in Bridgehampton, kids can drop in all day tomorrow and Saturday to make handprint crafts. On Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday, the library will have all the materials needed for holiday gift labels.

Snow globes are on the agenda during a family program at the Amagansett Library on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. On Sunday at 2 p.m., kids in kindergarten through third grade can make a bead craft ornament to help them ring in the new year. The library will show the film “Mary Poppins” on Friday, Dec. 26, at 2 p.m. Snacks will be provided.

Children 4 and older will make poster collages about family and friends on Monday from 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. at the East Hampton Library. On Friday, Dec. 26, from 2 to 3 p.m., they’ll mix and measure to make a gingerbread treat they can bake at home.

Rose Kelly has danced just about every role in “The Nutcracker,” except that of the Sugar Plum Fairy, but this weekend the 15-year-old Hampton Ballet Theatre School student from Bridgehampton will take on the starring soloist role normally danced by a professional, even in student productions.

“It’s a huge accomplishment for me as a dancer,” Rose said before a rehearsal at Guild Hall on Monday. “It’s a really amazing part, and it’s a lot of fun to dance.” 

Rose will partner with Nick Peregrino of the Suzanne Farrell Ballet in Washington, D.C., in the grand pas de deux, which is the finale of the classic Christmas ballet set to Tchaikovsky. “To be supported by a professional dancer is very different, but a really good experience,” Rose said.

She remembers looking up to the older students when she was just a preschool dance student. “I can’t believe I made it here,” she said, as a group of younger dancers talked onstage with Sara Jo Strickland, the school’s director. “We were once those little dancers,” she said to Vincenzo James Harty, who, like her, began studying with Ms. Strickland at the age of 21/2.

“She’s like a second mother to me,” Vincenzo wrote in an email on Tuesday. He recalls his first role in “The Nutcracker” when he was 21/2 “I was a polichinelle, and although I don’t remember much of the actual performance (besides the excitement of shuffling alonginside the darkness of Mother Ginger’s skirt, and finally the fabric opening up and seeing the audience and the lights for the first time), I must’ve been so thrilled that I walked right to the edge of the stage and almost fell off.” He has loved the theater ever since.

Vincenzo, also 15 now, will dance the solo role of the Dewdrop Prince this weekend for the second year in a row, but will also have three other roles. He is one of only two boys in the production, a position that sometimes comes with added pressure. “You’re expected to do any partnering that’s needed, but it’s fun too.”

His Dewdrop Prince dance in “The Nutcracker” is seven minutes long. “Every year you’re working your way up to these levels and thinking how you can be better,” he said. “I just want to keep trying to be better.”

Rose’s part includes four dances, one after the other, no small feat for a young dancer. “It takes so much energy, and also partnering is different and it’s sometimes hard,” she said. She has partnered with Mr. Peregrino before, in the school’s spring production of “Cinderella,” “so it was a little easier to dance with him this time.”

“Ballet is my life,” Rose said. “It’s every breath I take and it’s always been that way.” She attends Bishop McCann Mercy High School in Riverhead and hopes that dance will be in her future. Vincenzo, who is from East Hampton and is home schooled, has his sights set on a medical profession, perhaps as a veterinarian, but said that whatever he does, performing arts will have to be a part of his life. He is also a tenor with the award-winning Brooklyn Youth Chorus.

“Dance helps you a lot because you have to have a great stage presence and a sense of your body,” he said.

Rose, Vincenzo, and Mr. Peregrino will be joined on stage by the students of the Hampton Ballet Theatre School along with some parents and local actors.

Ms. Strickland choreographed “The Nutcracker.” Working with her once again are Yuka Silvera, who designed and sewed the costumes, and Sebastian Paczynski, the lighting designer. Performances are tomorrow at 7 p.m., Saturday at 1 and 7 p.m., and Sunday at 2 p.m. Tickets are $25 in advance, $20 for children through hamptonballetheatreschool.com or 888-933-4287, and $30 and $25 at the door.

“This year, all of the girls have really grown up and gotten stronger,” Rose said of the Hampton Ballet Theatre troupe. “They know the dances by heart. It’s going to be a stronger production and the dancers are absolutely amazing.”

“Every year we progress more and more, and I think that this year will probably be the best yet,” Vincenzo said.

Since the Conservatory of Danse Arts closed its doors this year, this weekend’s production will be the only South Fork staging of “The Nutcracker.” However Studio 3 of Bridgehampton will present “Mixed Nuts,” a multi-dance blending of “The Nutcracker” and “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” next weekend at the Bay Street Theater in Sag Harbor. Shows will be Friday, Dec. 19, at 7 p.m. and Dec. 20 at 2 and 7 p.m.

The Montauk School District got its first dose of the Affordable Care Act on Tuesday and what its implementation will mean to the district.

Karen Theiss, the school nurse, told the board that there are three phases it must go through before the program goes into effect by January 2016. Ms. Theiss has been attending workshops on the program at the Board of Cooperative Educational Services in Westhampton Beach for the past year.

Tuesday’s meeting was the first phase, which requires that the district look back over the last year to get a clearer view of how many on staff are insured or may become insured by the district. Currently, the school’s insurance plan covers 67 employees and costs $24,500 for a family plan and $10,800 for a single person. Those who are insured by the district make a contribution of 8 percent toward the cost.

The second phase involves an administrative period in which school officials look over the time period covering Oct. 15 through Dec. 31, 2014, to establish what provisions will be required of the district. “It’s a snapshot of sorts,” the nurse said.

The third phase includes a stability period at which time the implementation will take place, from Jan. 1, 2016, through Dec. 31, 2016.

As far as insurance coverage for substitute teachers is concerned, the district will be required to offer an employee affordable insurance if he or she works a period of 26 weeks, 30 hours per week. If a substitute should take a break longer than four weeks, then the district is no longer required to offer coverage. If the substitute teacher returns then the time frame begins anew.

The board also learned at the meeting that the school playground surface, which was laid 10 years ago, will soon be replaced with a fine mulch. The surface now is shredded rubber tires that some feel is not sturdy and not hygienically safe. The cost to resurface is $75,000 and includes removal of the old tires and additional drainage. American Recreational Product won the bid for the fiber replacement, which Jack Perna, the district superintendent, described as fine wooden chips, not as big as mulch, but larger than sawdust.

And finally, the board granted maternity leave to Rachel Kleinberg, the school librarian, from Feb. 23 to September.

Seven Student Plays

The Young Artists and Writers Project will present seven short plays written by and starring East End high school students on Saturday night at Stony Brook Southampton’s Avram Theater.

The free program marks the culmination of the project’s annual High School Playwrights Festival, in which more than 100 students from Bridgehampton, Pierson, Southampton, and Eastport-South Manor High Schools and summer workshops are mentored by theater and writing professional associated with Stony Brook Southampton’s M.F.A. program in creative writing and literature. Showtime is 7 p.m.

The young-adult program is led by Emma Walton Hamilton and Will Chandler. The plays have been staged by professional directors. “Learning dramatic writing is a great way to improve overall writing skills,” Mr. Chandler said in a release, “but what we’re really teaching them is that each student has a ‘voice,’ and we want to hear it.” Reservations for Saturday’s program can be made with Mr. Chandler at [email protected].

“Frozen” Onstage

The world’s most popular ice queen, Elsa of “Frozen,” will visit the Southampton Arts Center along with her sister, Anna, and Hans for “Frozen” shows on Sunday at 10 a.m. and 12:30 and 2:30 p.m. Broadway performers will play the parts in a half-hour production, then mingle with fans for pictures afterward.

Tickets cost $30 per person and are available through the center or online through the Southampton Chamber of Commerce, a sponsor.

Fairy-Tale Spectacular

Fairy-tale princes and princesses will be on hand at the Bay Street Theater in Sag Harbor on Saturday and Sunday at 2 p.m. when Stages, a Children’s Theatre Workshop hosts a Holiday Fairy Tale Spectacular.

In addition to a live musical performance, the afternoon will include a “princess beauty boutique,” a “royal tattoo parlor,” and a chance for kids to be photographed with their favorite characters. There will be an ice cream sundae bar for children and wine and cheese for parents. The party is a celebration of Stages’ 20th anniversary and also a fund-raiser for its scholarship fund. Tickets cost $20 for children, $25 for adults. They can be reserved through Bay Street.

Gingerbread House Workshops

The smell of gingerbread will be in the air this weekend at Guild Hall in East Hampton and the Children’s Museum of the East End and Hampton Library in Bridgehampton, with gingerbread house workshops at all three spots on Saturday. Workshops are at 10 and 11 a.m. at CMEE and cost $30 per house, including museum admission, or $20 for members.

The Hampton Library workshop will start at 11 a.m. and is free. At Guild Hall, the fun begins at 12:30 p.m. The cost is $20 per house or $15 for members. Space is limited in all cases, and advance registration is a must.

Nature at the Holidays

Kids and families will find plenty to do through the South Fork Natural History Museum in Bridgehampton on Sunday, beginning with an adventure at the Morton Wildlife Refuge in Noyac for 5 to 7-year-olds at 10 a.m. Children will use magnifiers, binoculars, and other tools to explore the preserve.

At the museum and also at 10, families can help decorate a holiday tree for birds and make an ornament that will delight their own backyard birds. Later that day at 2 p.m., teen scientists can study the nature of waves with Melanie Meade. Reservations are required for all programs.

Mad Science and Edible Campfires

Tea, ornaments, holiday cards, and “mad science” are on the schedule at local libraries this week. At the Montauk Library on Saturday from 2 to 3:30 p.m., a family time will have people getting crafty with holiday decorations.

At the Amagansett Library, kids in kindergarten through sixth grade will become mad scientists on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. as they learn to make milk rainbows, dancing raisins, and elephant toothpaste employing basic chemistry principles and common kitchen items. On Sunday at 2 p.m., families can make holiday cards and handmade envelops. Paper and other materials will be provided.

Salt-dough ornaments will be the project of the hour at the John Jermain Memorial Library in Sag Harbor on Sunday at 1:30 p.m. The program is for ages 4 and up; advance registration is required.

At the Hampton Library, Sunday will bring tea, a story, and treats for kids 4 and older at 2 p.m. Kids 7 to 12 can make a campfire that they can eat during a program on Tuesday at 4 p.m. On Friday, Dec. 19, the library will provide supplies for holiday handprint crafts. People can drop in at any point during library hours to take advantage.

Gingerbread Story at CMEE

The smell of gingerbread will be in the air at the Children’s Museum of the East End this weekend. Tomorrow, during the museum’s monthly Pizza and Pajama Night, kids will listen to “Maisy Makes Gingerbread” by Lucy Cousins and then learn how to make it themselves. The program is $10, free for members. Reservations are also being taken for gingerbread house decorating workshops on Saturday and Dec. 13 at 10 and 11 a.m. The cost is $30 per house, $20 for members. (Houses are built in advance.)

Global Holidays in Song

Robin Greenstein and Stuart Marcus will sing songs in half a dozen languages to celebrate almost as many winter holidays during a family concert at the Amagansett Library on Saturday at 2 p.m. Audience participation will be encouraged, and percussion instruments will be provided. The library has requested advance registration.

Hands-On at the Library

It will be all holidays all the time at the East Hampton Library this week, with a bookmaking workshop thrown in the mix to give kids a chance to make a gift with their own hands. There’s a story time and craft session on Tuesday at 4 p.m. for ages 4 to 6 and a snowman craft workshop on Wednesday at 4 for kids 4 and up. Miss Lori will sing songs of the season with little ones up to age 3 on Friday, Dec. 12, at 10:30 a.m., and at 3:30 p.m. that day, children 4 and older can try their hands at accordion books, pop-ups, and more from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m. Advanced registration is requested for all programs.

Fold, Tape, and Paddle at the Y

A cardboard boat regatta for families at the Y.M.C.A.-East Hampton RECenter tomorrow night at 6:30 will have teams of three to six people building and attempting to paddle boats made only from cardboard and duct tape.

Materials, as well as pizza, will be supplied by the Y. Boats, which must have four sides and a bottom, are to be constructed at the event, but can be planned out in advance. And here’s a wrinkle: No cutting tools will be allowed. When the boat-building is done, each team will designate a member to try to paddle it from one end of the pool to the other. Teams can register with Norma Bushman by phone at the RECenter or by emailing [email protected].

On Sunday, the children in the Y.M.C.A.’s cultural arts classes will present “A Trip to the North Pole” in the East Hampton High School auditorium at 2 p.m. Tickets are $6 and can be purchased in advance at the Y or at the door.

Web of Life

“Did you know that there is a chain connecting you to a worm?” the South Fork Natural History Museum asks. Young scientists 6 to 10 years old can explore the surprising connections found in the food web during a program at the museum on Saturday at 10 a.m. with Crystal Possehl. Participants will help lay out a food web connecting the living things on the South Fork and will finish by dissecting an owl pellet to find out what owls eat. The program carries a $6 materials fee; admission to the museum for nonmember children 3 to 12 is $5. Reservations are required.

“Angelina” Readerina

Katharine Holabird, the creator of the “Angelina Ballerina” series about the adventures of a dancing mouse girl and her friends, will read from one of her books on Saturday at 11 a.m. at BookHampton in East Hampton. Tutus are not required, but will be welcomed. Also on Saturday, at 10:30 a.m., Canio’s Books in Sag Harbor will host a holiday story time for kids 4 and older.

Museum Magic

At the Children’s Museum of the East End, fans of Angelina Ballerina may still have a chance to hear the series’ author, Katharine Holabird, read from and sign copies of books in her new Twinkle series tomorrow at 10 a.m. The reading costs $15 and is free for museum members.

On Saturday, children 6 to 10 can make Model Magic figurines at 10 a.m., while younger ones 2 to 6 work on cinnamon dough ornaments in a separate family workshop at the same time. The Model Magic costs $15, or $10 for members; the ornament workshop is $15 plus museum admission.

Sunday at 10 a.m. marks the return of Waffle Sundays at the museum. Families can make their own waffles and eat them, too, at 10 a.m. The cost is $20, including admission, or $7 for members. Looking ahead, a Pizza and Pajama Night on Friday, Dec. 5, will include a reading of “Maisy Makes Gingerbread” and some gingerbread baking from 6 to 7:30 p.m. for $10, free for members. Reservations are also being taken for gingerbread house workshops on Dec. 6 and Dec. 12 at 10 and 11 a.m. The cost of $30 per house, or $20 for members, includes entrance to the museum.

They’re Brave

Kate McMullan, a children’s book author, will be at Canio’s Books in Sag Harbor tomorrow at 11 a.m. to read from her new one, “I’m Brave,” illustrated by Jim McMullan, her husband. Both will be on hand to sign copies.

Open Studio at the Parrish

The Parrish Art Museum in Water Mill will cater to families tomorrow, Saturday, and Sunday with open studio hours from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. each day. Drawing inspiration from works in the collection or the current exhibitions, “Steven and William Ladd: Mary Queen of the Universe” and “Alan Shields: In Motion,” families can let their own creative juices flow. The open studio is free with museum admission.

For Thanksgiving Week

The post-Thanksgiving week will be busy at the local libraries, with things for kids to do almost every day of the week. Tomorrow, kids 4 and older can explore the “wonders of wood” during an art program from 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. at the East Hampton Library. On Wednesday, the same ages can make Olaf sock-body snowmen from 4 to 5 p.m.

At the John Jermain Memorial Library in Sag Harbor, kids who take in a photograph can make a frame for it with the help of Valerie DiLorenzo on Saturday at 10:30 a.m., while holiday music plays in the background. Singing will be welcomed. It will be over the river and through the woods to grandmother’s house on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. during a story and craft time for all ages at the Amagansett Library.

At the Hampton Library in Bridgehampton, snow globes are in the forecast in a program for 7 to 12-year-olds from 4 to 5 p.m. on Tuesday. All ages have been invited to join in a holiday garland workshop at the library on Friday, Dec. 5, from 4 to 5:30 p.m.

Jungle Bob

Jungle Bob will visit the South Fork Natural History Museum in Bridgehampton with his collection of snakes, lizards, turtles, tarantulas, and other exotic creatures for a “live animal extravaganza” for all ages on Saturday at 11 a.m. Space is limited and advance reservations are a must.

On Sunday at the museum, kids 6 and older can learn about fossils and how they were made, then make their own versions to take home. There is a $5 materials fee for the program, and advance registration has been suggested.

Last week at the Watermill Center, just as dusk approached, a dozen dancers clad in black pants, black turtlenecks, and black socks were warming up, effortlessly moving through various ballet positions, from demi-plié to grand plié and back again.

As they moved, 10 families entered the room with young children in tow, all stunned into silence as classical music by Jordi Saval, a Spanish conductor and composer, played in the background.

“They’re warming up their muscles so we can dance together,” explained Alvaro Restrepo, a Colombian dancer and choreographer, who led his company, El Colegio del Cuerpo, based in Cartagena. “Muy bien. Very good,” said Mr. Restrepo, who spoke in both Spanish and English throughout the afternoon. “That’s how a dancer becomes a dancer, by practicing every single day.”

Since March, a group of 3 and 4-year-olds who attend Bridgehampton Head Start, with their parents, have participated in monthly workshops at the Watermill Center. Free of cost, the aim is for families to create art together and in so doing help to expand the center’s reach far beyond its annual summer gala to a local cultural institution whose doors are open year-round, with private tours offered nearly every Saturday.

Currently, Bridgehampton Head Start provides preschool and early-intervention services to 56 of the South Fork’s neediest families, living from Riverhead to Montauk. Each family lives at or below the federal poverty level, which, for a family of four, translates into a 2014 income of $23,850 a year, according to the U.S. Department of Heath and Human Services.

Carol Burnett, Long Island Head Start’s community outreach and recruitment coordinator, said that among the 22 centers scattered across Long Island, the Watermill family art program is the only known partnership between a cultural institution and a local Head Start program.

Founded by the visual artist Robert Wilson, the Watermill Center opened its doors in 2006. It is housed in what was formerly a Western Union research facility. According to William Wagner, its new managing director, the industrial building was also the birthplace of the fax machine.

Each year 15 artists from a variety of disciplines and backgroundswork in residence. Mr. Wagner sees great value in welcoming working families and their young children; a population, he readily admits, that might not otherwise walk through the center’s (somewhat difficult to find) front entrance.

“We are so excited to be working with these kids and getting them to think in a completely different way,” said Mr. Wagner. “Something that happens here could inspire them to be a performer or a creative artist.”

Though Mr. Restrepo led last week’s workshop, as part of his weeklong residency, the monthly Head Start program is typically run by Andrea Cote, who works as a teaching artist. As soon as she guides a group of young people into the performance hall, she said, she sees their energy expand, their minds bursting with possibilities.

Ms. Cote generally leads the group through 90-minute sessions integrating movement and rhythm exercises, typically involving a craft project and also a tour of the 20,000-square-foot building and six-acre grounds.

Besides Head Start, the Watermill Center runs various educational programs with the Hayground School, the Ross School, Southampton Intermediate School, and the Bridgehampton Child Care and Recreational Center, among others.

Though adults typically attend his workshops, Mr. Restrepo welcomed the opportunity to work with such young children.

“I am more and more interested in working with younger kids,” he said earlier this week. “That’s when the body is more available and awake and ready to absorb all kids of things. There aren’t fears of being ridiculous. There’s no judgment.”

Last week, he gathered participants in a circle, with everyone first sharing their first names and country of origin. The company’s dancers, mostly in their 20s, are primarily Colombian, with one from Venezuela and another from Texas. Families came from Ecuador, El Salvador, Brazil, Mexico, and Romania.

“The children are getting something out of it, but their parents and families are getting even more. Their creativity is being sparked, too,” said Ms. Burnett. Though each workshop is capped at 10 families, with siblings and extended family members welcome, Ms. Burnett sees the program in particular demand during the winter months, as seasonal work dries up and free time becomes more plentiful.

“It’s magical,” said Ms. Burnett. “It’s the first time many of these parents and their children have ever stepped foot into a museum. It’s exposing them to something that’s so foreign. These are families that are trying to get through the day and get food on the table and make rent. When do our families have time to do art as a family?”

Mr. Restrepo led the group through various exercises, with everyone sliding around on the black lacquered floor in either socks or bare feet. Two dancers stood at the center of the room, one acting as the “sculptor,” the other designated as a piece of clay, being manipulated in various shapes and positions. 

Franco, 3, quickly squashed any feelings of self-consciousness and approached the center of the room, his tiny body, clad in a khaki jacket and blue pants, lithe and malleable.

New to Bridgehampton Head Start this fall, Franco initially didn’t speak and had trouble sitting still. But at last month’s mask-making workshop, teachers and administrators saw a side of the child not evident in the classroom. They saw him come to life.

Wendy Soni, his mother, who is originally from Mexico and now lives in Hampton Bays, works as a personal trainer at Southampton Gym. “He’s come into himself,” she said, proudly watching her son in command of an entire room. “He’s going to be a dancer.”

Daphne Gil, the center manager, watched Franco with tears in her eyes.

Later on, as Ms. Soni worked with a dancer during another partner exercise, Franco approached his mother, again in search of the spotlight.

“You watch, Franco,” said Mr. Restrepo with a laugh. “You cannot always be the star.”

For many years, the Montauk Public School has had a lenient attendance policy. School administrators recognized that since the hamlet is a seasonal resort, families often cannot take vacations in summer and do so instead during the winter months. Some vacationing families have used the time before and after school holidays to take extended trips, which adds to the number of school days their children miss.

At a school board meeting in September, however, teachers said that with the inception of New York State standardized testing, otherwise known as Common Core, student attendance has become more important than ever. They pressed the point at a meeting of the board on Tuesday.

The teachers association had written to board members two months ago asking that they review and revise the current attendance policy, which, the letter stated, was instituted before the stakes were made higher and the ramifications were not as widely felt as they are in today’s performance-based model.

“Newly implemented state programs such as Common Core and the Annual Professional Policy Review of teachers established aggregate assessment that are, in our opinion, adversely affected by absenteeism and, to a lesser degree, of tardiness,” the letter states.

Moreover, it says, students who go away for long periods are sometimes tutored by those with little knowledge of New York State curriculum and the Common Core method of teaching. Absentee students miss out on valuable lectures and group work, with a resulting decline in their grades and knowledge of content. The lack of consequences for poor attendance and frequent tardiness produces little motivation to be in school and on time, the letter says.

On Tuesday, Collette Clancy, a teacher, handed out documents with graphs showing the length of time students are absent or away before and  after Christmas, winter break, testing periods, and Easter break. When they return from long absences, she told the board, it changes the whole dynamic of the classroom.

It is a persistent problem, Ms. Clancy said in an email message, and one that has been brought up before. The teachers are marginalized in their call for action, she said, adding that they understand that Montauk is in an unusual situation, but also that things will not change unless the board of education says so.

Jack Perna, the superintendent, seemed a bit miffed that the graphs and other information were not screened by him before the teachers went before the board. He told Ms. Clancy that in the future she should let him know in advance what would be presented to the board.

In other school news, Gregg Chavious, a senior external auditor, said the district received an “unmodified opinion” regarding its audit, which is the highest rating a school can receive. The district invested 80 percent of its budget into instruction, he said, up one point from last year. “This district is in good financial standing,” he said.