March 2015

     

4th Graders have been celebrating National Women's History Month! We have been researching, reading and writing about amazing women like Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Marie Curie, Elizabeth Blackwell, Clara Barton, Florence Nightengale, Esther Morris, Harriet Beecher Stowe, Susie King Taylor, Fannie Farmer and more. In the technology lab students have been using Kidspiration to create digital chronological timelines and graphic webs about their famous females. In addition, we have reviewed the proper MLA citation for books, and where to locate the bibliographic information we need.

                                                                                                  
 

iFeliz primavera! Happy Spring! First graders are learning all about Pets! Can your child tell you how to say any pets’ names in Spanish? So far we have learned el perro (the dog), el gato (the cat), el pez (the fish), el hámster (the hamster), la tortuga (the turtle) and el conejo (the bunny)! We have played charades, where students say “Yo soy ______/I am _____” to act out and describe the pet… and we have shared our interests about them as we move around the classroom, using “Me encanta/I love, Me gusta/I like and No me gusta/I don’t like.” Another fun activity was a partner activity in which students had to tell their amigos how to color in the pets on their activity sheet (Example: El gato es rojo/The cat is red). This was a good review of colors, which students should feel comfortable with by now! Each class, first graders review the date, weather and share how they are feeling. We also count from 1-15 and stretch/move different body parts. Please be sure to ask your child

March is Youth Art Month!  We are celebrating this Youth Art Month with a students' art exhibition at the Mendham Public Library.  The art exhibition is held during the month of March until the middle of April.  Due to the limited space, the exhibition holds a sampling of students' artworks, but they are all inspirational and beautiful.  The following students' artworks are displayed: Abby Acevedo, Kristin Ackerman, Sophia Applebaum, Zoya Ayub, Sophia Babits, Kenny Barnacle, Tori Borchard, Ava Caulfield, Ellie Clark, Timmy Cocuzza, Max Dellaratta, Matthew Delvento, Cara Dolan, Charlotte Fourie, Anthony Greco, Sara Hackett, Mary Hall, Declan Higgins, Caitlin, Murphy, Saya Neff, Jeremiah Ng, Lizzie Parker, Skyler Pela, Alex Pyznar, Robert Raimondo, Ryan Raimondo, Raaghav Reddy, Marin Rizzo, PJ Rooney, Kaitl Rostiac, Catherine Rudd, Julia Schoenbrodt, Josh Simonsen, Joey Skuraton, Ally Sparno, Dasha Zubarev, James Zupa, and the entire 4th grade class.  Congratulations!

Kindergarteners have been recognizing and expressing the elements of  the long, cold winter by painting snowmen, cutting and pasting snow kids as well as making collages with such things as newspapers and cotton balls.  In doing this, our kindergarteners are recognizing and applying different materials to create art.  This month, we have been exploring printmaking and have started to make some spring prints.  March came in like a lion(hence, the mask), and will leave us with some beautiful spring prints.

The third graders have been learning how to play the recorder in music.  They can show you the proper way to hold the instrument and can play the pitches B, A, and G.  They have played some fun games on the SMART Board such as Bubble/Circle Game, What’s in the BAG, and St. Patrick’s Day Fun on the Recorder to solidify skills.  They learned the following songs: Queen B, Just A, Just G, Hot Cross Buns, and Frog in the Meadow.  They are developing the ability to read the pitches G A B on the treble clef music staff.  Learning how to read pitches on a music staff is like learning how to read and speak a foreign language.  It will take time and repetition.  We will get comfortable with BAG (or GAB) songs before we move on to E, which will require using fingers of both hands on the recorder.  Here are the three pitches third graders have learned so far:
                             

The weather is getting nicer and nicer.  The snow is starting to disappear.  The Hilltop “Gymsters” are ready to take what they have learned outside.  They can shoot hoops, jog, ride their bikes, go for speed walks, and even set the volleyball to each other in the driveway.

We just completed our unit on Animal Walks and some tag games.  Ask your son or daughter to show you what a seal, dog with a broken leg, or even the inchworm looks like. They are strengthening  their upper and lower bodies.   They also know the muscles they are using.  I bet they can name the muscles in the arms, try it, ask them.