Connors School Scoop
March 26th, 2021
Dear Connors Families,
We had an exciting week at Connors! Students had so much fun learning about the contributions of some amazing women in history and partaking in Mr. Sorafine's Math Fact Frenzy party. In addition this week Connors School Scoop includes:
- Summer LEAP Program Information
- Connors PTO Fruit Frenzy is next week!
- Steven's Math Olympiad Registration
- Connors Students Advance to the STEAM Tank Regional Competition!
- Congratulations to Makayla Mojica, Connors Student of the Month
- Congratulations to Ms. Chantee Hanberry, our All-Star Faculty Koala of the Week
- Connors Green Team Earth Day Planning Information
- Math Fact Frenzy Lunch Parties
- Women's History Month Learning Activities
- Picture Day Information
- Grade level Math, ELA, Science and Social Studies Learning Activities
- Move this World Parent Login Information
- Connors PTO Swag Sale
- Dates for Upcoming Events
I hope you and your family have a wonderful weekend!
All the best,
Principal Addi
Hoboken Public School District Summer LEAP Program
Connors pto Fruit Frenzy
Stevens Mathematical Olympiad
Date: Saturday, May 22, 2021
Time: 10 a.m.-1:45 p.m.
Location: Virtually via Zoom
The Olympiad has the following goals:
- To stimulate enthusiasm and a love for mathematics
- To introduce important mathematical concepts to students
- To strengthen mathematical intuition and creativity
- To attract bright middle and high school students to Stevens Institute of Technology
Students are offered 15 problems to solve in five divisions:
Grades 3-4
Grades 5-6
Grades 7-8
Grades 9-10
Grades 11-12
Registration
Registration is opened on Tuesday, March 23rd. Pre-registration is required for this event. Day of registration will not be accepted.
This event is free, but participants are required to complete a Math Olympiad consent form in addition to an online registration form. Participants must submit all pages of the consent for to successfully register.
Here is the link:
All-Star Koala Faculty/Staff Member of the Week
The All-Star Koala Award is a new faculty and staff recognition program at Connors. This award is given weekly by a faculty/staff member to another faculty/staff member. Whoever receives the Koala trophy on Friday is responsible for awarding it to someone else the following week. The only criteria is to give it to someone who has done something to make Connors School a better place. This is a way that we can personally THANK the people that we work with. Weekly, each award winner also receives a prize donated by our Connors PTO. If you would like to donate prizes to our faculty/staff award winners, please reach out to our Connors PTO at connorspto@gmail.com
Congratulations to Makayla Mojica! Connors Student of the Month - March 2021
Connors Green Team
Math Fact Frenzy
We had our Math Fact Frenzy party during lunch with Mr. Sorafine! Math Fact Frenzy parties are an exciting way to practice math facts by playing fun math games while listening and dancing to math songs! Students answer 10 math fact questions that are grade level appropriate and cover, addition, subtraction, multiplication & division. When students answer their 10 math fact questions correctly, they receive a free dessert. We had so much fun at our Math Fact Frenzy party! Click on the link to view our Math Fact Frenzy party!
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1SEY7ZAr7iJVUY4M2BFNRMBt21GUrKxgL/view?usp=sharing
STEAM Tank Regional Competition Here We Come!
The Multi-Tensil
Bria Wong
Liba Newfield
Smart Face Shield
Randy Colon
Amy Morales
Eleanor Zucker
Nahla Lisa
Saniyah Gibbs
The Pet Feeder
Grace Shoemaker
Nathaniel Goldberg
Madison McKeown
The Double Slide
Zendaya Crandell
Logan Morrissey
Jordyn McKenzie
The Donut Holder
Nivea Freeman
Jarely Garcia
Picture Day is Coming Up!
Onsite Students: Picture Day is on Wednesday, April 28th for Onsite Students. Here is the link to the picture day forms. Hard copies of the picture day forms will be sent home with the students as well. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ad540xooFCoVKQxoI_AKCngHyz1SBitW/view?usp=sharing
Remote Students: Picture Day is on Thursday, April 29th for Remote Students. Sign-up for picture day is completely optional. Remote families should sign-up to take their child’s picture in a specific time-slot on Sign-Up Genius https://www.signupgenius.com/go/805054EAFAF2EA6F49-picture
No class pictures will be taken this year.
The Importance of Independent Reading
There is an abundance of research on the importance of reading. Often, families believe that reading will take place at school and children do not have to read at home. Interestingly, independent reading at home provides children with a tremendous academic advantage. The attached chart on the right is extremely powerful. It indicates that with just 20 minutes of reading per night for 5 days per week or an equivalent of 3600 minutes, children would conceptually gain 10 extra school days. Just think about it...if this was established as a habit and your child did this for eight years, they would conceptually gain 80 extra school days. So, who has a better chance of excelling academically? Children who read for 20 hours per day for 5 days per week or those who don't read regularly outside of school?
CogAT Assessment
Kindergarten
Ms. Fleischer Kindergarten Class
Students in Miss Fleischer and Mrs. Mussara's Kindergarten class continued their Women's History Month unit. This week, students learned all about Helen Keller. At the beginning of the week, the class learned that Helen used braille to read. Students then wrote their names in braille and identified places in Connors School that have braille writing. Next, students read a story about Helen's life and used the books to complete a timeline. Finally, the class became authors and wrote a class book inspired by Helen Keller. We learned that Helen Keller worked hard and never gave up. These fantastic writers connected to Keller's life by writing about a time that they worked hard and never gave up. Miss Fleischer and Mrs. Mussara are constantly amazed by the class and are so proud of their students. Check out this week's class video!
Ms. Pinkas' Kindergarten Class
This week we had a blast during math. We reviewed addition and subtraction, comparing numbers, and recognized 2D and 3D shapes. This week students discussed many attributes of 2D and 3D shapes. Students had to complete a 2D and 3D shape sort with minimal guidance and support.
We reviewed addition and subtraction by playing a game called Quiz Quiz trade. Students had to walk around the classroom with an addition or subtraction card. Once the music stopped, students would stand socially distanced from someone and solve their partners card. If it was correct they get a point. If they needed a hint, the card would be flipped and students would use the ten frame and counters to help them solve.
Ms. Rodriguez's Remote Kindergarten Class
We have been working super hard this week to prepare for our upcoming Linkit assessment. Students practiced several Math Investigations games such as, "Toss The Chips," where they choose the total amount of chips to toss and then record how many red and yellow counters combined equal that number. Student's also played, "One More, One Less," where they flip a card, build that many on a tens frame, and then roll a die that will either have a -1 or +1. They must decide if they should remove a penny (subtract) or add a penny based on the math symbol. Students record their starting and ending numbers as they play the game. We also practiced sequence counting skills, filling in the missing numbers and skip counting! These boys and girls are truly superstars and have earned so many Dojo points for all their hard work!! Kiss your smart, smart brain Kindergarten!!!
We have been working super hard this week to prepare for our upcoming Linkit assessment. Students practiced several Math Investigations games such as, "Toss The Chips," where they choose the total amount of chips to toss and then record how many red and yellow counters combined equal that number. Student's also played, "One More, One Less," where they flip a card, build that many on a tens frame, and then roll a die that will either have a -1 or +1. They must decide if they should remove a penny (subtract) or add a penny based on the math symbol. Students record their starting and ending numbers as they play the game. To tie in ELA, we read the story, " What's New At The Zoo, An Animal Adding Adventure," from Epic and solved the equations on each page. In addition, we practiced sequence counting skills, filling in the missing numbers and skip counting! These boys and girls are truly superstars and have earned so many Dojo points for all their hard work!! Kiss your smart, smart brain Kindergarten!!!
Ms. Watson's Kindergarten Class
Ms. Watson’s class had a BIG celebration this week! The whole class became published authors! Over the last couple of months the class has been working on writing a class book. They brainstormed ideas as a class, practiced their writing skills, and wrote rough drafts. Eventually they were ready to write a final copy. They worked so hard. Ms. Watson then sent the final copy to a company called “student treasures” and they made the book into a real published book! The book is called Hoboken: a Kindergarten Perspective written and illustrated by Ms. Watson’s class. This called for a big celebration! Families were invited to attend a “virtual author tea” on Thursday where each student read their contribution to the the book. The students practiced reading their pages over and over for the big day, and they did amazing reading to their parents, grandparents, and siblings over google meet! Ms. Watson is so proud of her new authors and cannot wait to read the future books they publish!
1st Grade
Ms. Garcia's 1st Grade Class
ELA: This week students were finishing up their “All About Animals” books as part of our “How-To” writing unit. Students had to pick an animal that they wanted to write about, use a graphic organizer, and apply previous knowledge from their current science unit to write their book. Upon completion, we will be having a writers celebration where the students will share their books with the class!
Math: This week students determined the missing number in an equation relating 3 numbers, and visualized, represented, and solved story problems about unknown change. Students had to use numbers, pictures, words, and/or notations to represent a solution to a problem. They used their whiteboards and math manipulatives to help them.
Level Up Party: On Wednesday first graders in room 303 earned a level up ice cream party! The students worked really had to level up on Raz-kids! They enjoyed ice cream and got to play a fun minute-it-to-win-it cup stacking game!
Ms. Guadio's 1st Grade Class
This week in Readers’ Workshop, students learned that compound words are formed by combining two or more words to create a new word with a single unit of meaning. Morphological knowledge, or the ability to identify and manipulate the smallest units of meaning within a word, contributes to students’ abilities to read and understand words as well as comprehend texts. One approach to developing students’ morphological knowledge is by explicitly teaching them to identify and determine the meaning of compound words. In honor of the first days of spring, we used this new knowledge to grow compound flower gardens:
Plant two words in a little sun shower.
Look what grows, it’s a compound flower!
Women’s History Month This week, students used knowledge and writing skills learned about writing informational texts gained during Writers’ Workshop to research and write an All About Influential Women book during Social Studies. Their books will introduce their readers to women who have paved the way for women’s rights and supply facts about their lives that will both engage and inform their readers. Students are still in the drafting stage of the writing process but are planning on publishing by the end of Women’s History Month in order to add these books to our nonfiction library and encourage others to celebrate the life and work of influential women all year long!
Ms. Schultes' 1st Grade Class
Students in Ms. Schultes’ class have been researching animals, their habitats, and their offspring. They have found information on Epic and are now using what they’ve learned to create dioramas. Students started working on the outside of their “habitat” and will soon create clay animals (including a parent and their young), plants, and other animals that live in the habitat. We can’t wait to see how these come out!
Ms. Sheridan's Remote 1st Grade Class
Social Studies
Dreams really do come true, and we are seeing this through the lives of many important women who persisted and never gave up on their dreams. This week, we enjoyed learning about Amelia Earhart and Eugenie Clark who were two very brave and inspirational women. Mrs. Sheridan's remote first grade dreamers imagined what it would be like to fly their very own plane and the journey it would take them on. Their responses were thoughtful and detailed!
Math Workshop
During our remote math classes this week, students took part in a Math Workshop session where we were able to review Investigations math games together in a smaller group setting. Students participated in screen-sharing which allowed us to play along and work together using each others virtual playing cards. Solving problems and adding equations as a team makes learning fun!
Ms. Vayda's 1st Grade Class
Social Studies:
We have been focusing on many famous influential women. Our most recent project required students to interview a woman in their life. They had a set of interview questions to ask and fill out. The questions focused on important life events, family, work, and the future. Now that students completed this part, they are writing their own biography book. As part of Women's History Month, students have been reading biographies daily, which helped them begin this process. Once they complete their books, we will present them to the class!
ELA:
Readers' Workshop
This week in ELA students learned the rule for when "y" says the long "e" and "i" sound. They practiced this skill by reading and sorting words. Then, they read multiple books to search for words ending in "ey" and "y." During guided reading we focused on sequencing events as well as determining the main idea along with key details. Students had practice building and reading compound words. They will be making a fun craft only using spring compound words.
Writers' Workshop:
This week we began the next unit in Writers' Workshop. At the end of this unit, students will be able to write a "How-To" book. They all completed the brainstroming process and selected a topic to write about. The next step is writing a strong introduction with a hook, naming the topic, and listing the material/ingredients. After this, we will beging writing out the steps with detail and transitions. After students write about at least 3 of the steps, they will think of a strong closing sentence. Once they publish their first book, they will make a video to go along with their book. Students had fun watching Ms. Vayda's example of her "How-To" with her dog.
2nd Grade
Ms. Cofranceco's 2nd Grade Class
Social Studies:
During the month of March, the second graders celebrated Women’s History Month by creating pennants of famous women. Students used their chromebooks to conduct research to learn more about their assigned famous woman. After much research, the students used what they learned to create a pennant of their famous woman. Check out their great pennants!
Ms. Sene's 2nd Grade Class
In Social Studies, we are learning about the government, specifically our local government in Hoboken! Students worked in pairs of two to learn about someone currently a part of our government. Students used a shared Google Doc to answer questions and conduct research about Ravi Bhalla, Michael DeFusco, and Michael Russo. Each pair helped their partners by checking each other's work. Students then used their research to "Teach it to Us!" Each pair taught the class by providing an overview of who they researched and how that person is or is not helping Hoboken.
Ms. Barsuokva's 2nd Grade Class
Students in Ms. Barsukova's 2nd Grade Remote Class read a Realistic Fiction story called Happy New Year which is about comparing the ways people celebrate New Year in both China and the United States. Students learned that people in China use lanterns as part of their custom to decorate their houses and use red paper with messages to hang outside their homes with writings about best wishes, happiness, and luck. To conclude the week, students took part in the hands-on activity of creating lanterns and writing thoughtful messages that have different wishes. Students did their absolute best to complete the project and learn the customs of another culture and the ways in which they celebrate the New Year!!
SCIENCE
Students in Ms. Barsukova's 2nd Grade Remote Class further explored the nature of tide pools. They did sketch of the three different tide pools to closely examine the differences of high, middle, and low tide. Students had fun noticing the differences between the tides through sketching!
3rd Grade
Ms. Waxman's 3rd Grade Class
Our goal in Social Studies this week was to make Landform Dinosaurs! Students gathered details from a slideshow about all the different landforms on Planet Earth. Students showed what they knew in a game of Kahoot! before identifying 10 of the most common landforms on the globe. Students then analyzed each piece of the dinosaur's body and surroundings and correlated each to a known landform. We had so much fun puzzling it out!
4th Grade
Ms. Corea's 4th grade Remote Class
Students in the Connors 4th grade remote class have been learning about cause and effect in language arts class. They understand that the cause is why something happens and the effect is what happens. The students created personalized cause and effect posters to show understanding.
Effect: Connors 4th graders created Cause & Effect posters.
Cause: Connors 4th graders know that the effect is what happened and the cause is why it happened.
Ms. Rodriguez's 4th Grade Class
4th Grade Learners have been practicing their English Language Arts prominent standards for informational text, including referring to details in the text, analyzing text features, and identifying text structures. Through discussion techniques, students held thoughtful conversations to evaluate answer choices and provide supporting evidence.
308 Students have been using IXL to master a variety of 4th grade skills in Language Arts and Math . In addition, students have challenged themselves to extend their learning by practicing 5th grade skills!
Ms. Schulz's - 4th Grade Class
Students in the 4th grade continue their study of Women's History. Students interviewed an influential woman in their lives. They asked questions such as, How did your childhood influence who you are today? Have you had to overcome any obstacles in your life? What were they? What is your favorite school memory? What are two things that you have done that make you feel proud? Which women do you respect and look up to? What advice would you give to young people? The students interviewed their mom's and various family members. The students learned a lot, especially to enjoy school and study!
5th Grade
Ms. David's 5th Grade Class
We are almost done reading Coraline in 306! This week we blended character traits, events, and themes into a poem! This week, the students learned what an acrostic poem is. An acrostic poem uses letters in a topic word to begin each line. All lines of the poem relate to or describe the poem. During this lesson, we started with CORALINE. On an interactive Jamboard, the students and I collaborated and wrote down the events that happened up until this point of the novel. We added some alliteration "Curious Coraline", included a sequence of events, and added a cliffhanger at the end of the poem! All of the elements of great storytelling were showcased through this poem. For independent work time, the students wrote their own acrostic poems about themselves. Some wrote adjectives describing themselves, while others told stories. The outcome of their final products was a success!
Mr. Donovan's 5th Grade Class
Language Arts
This week in class, we're reading “O Captain! My Captain! By Walt Whitman. This piece was written as a reflection of one's experience during the Civil War. As we read, we will be discussing the themes of Admiration, Patriotism, and Suffering as they relate to the text.
Mrs. Ortiz's 5th Grade Remote Class
What a jammin (pun intended) week for the 5th grade remote students! This week during Math we learned about geometric patterns while calculating area and perimeter and plotting points on coordinate grids. As an extension students worked as grocery store workers, they had to stock the shelves with grocery items before their boss came back. Students were able to drag and drop grocery items such as bananas, meat, oranges, bread, and butter onto the coordinate grid based on the given coordinates. As another extension activity, students were able to work as zoo keepers. They had to create animal enclosures for the giraffes, monkeys, parrots, lions, and frogs and had to calculate the area and perimeter of each enclosure in order to order supplies. In science, we wrapped up our Systems in Space unit by researching a constellation and creating a presentation to teach their peers about the history, the location, and their attraction to the constellation chosen. Many students were very excited to learn about the zodiac constellations and all said that they wanted to move to the equator line so that they could see every constellation, since people who live in the northern hemisphere and southern hemisphere only see some constellations. For ELA, we are starting to wrap up our core novel Coraline, students discussed how Coraline has changed from the beginning of the novel to the end, they each stated what they believed the theme was for this novel and found text evidence to support their assertions. For Social Studies, students read about the Battle of Fredericksburg and the Battle of Antietam. Students then chose one battle to cover as a news reporter. Students interviewed civilians during the battle to find out their reactions to the battles that caused thousands upon thousands of deaths. I think my favorite activity this week though was when we joined as a family and wrote and created a heartfelt card for one of our peers. It's incredible the bond that we have created together, it shows that even though we are remote, we are still a 5th grade family who is there to support one another.
Mr. Azzarto's Music Class
In first grade the students are learning to identify various notes and rests. Visually identifying notes and rests is the first step in learning how to read music, which is known as "the universal
language".
In third grade we formed our first rock band! Learning how to play instruments in a group setting is the foundation for learning how to play in the Connors Band next year. We used a cajon, Orff instruments, claves, and an electric piano. You'd be amazed at what fits on a cart! Here is Ms. Januse's class rocking the song "Circles" by Post Malone.
Ms. Favino's Physical Education Class
The themes in PE for this week were sportsmanship, and teamwork. The learning outcomes for the week was for students to be able to correctly perform locomotor skills as a way of cardiovascular exercise, and for students to understand why sportsmanship is important. Students participated in an obstacle course race, and “the number game” where students had to communicate with one another to win the game. After each round of cardiovascular exercise, students monitored their heart rates to see how hard they were working. Students did an excellent job working together this week!
Ms. Jia's Mandarin Class
This week students started to learn the countries of the world in Mandarin. We started by exploring where students’ and their teachers’ parents, grandparents and great grandparents were from. We pleasantly found that 21 countries are represented. They are USA, China, Canada, Ireland, Scotland, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Turkey, Czechoslovakia,
South Korea, India, Israel, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Malaysia, Philippines and Australia. These countries are all mentioned by students and some teachers. We then located these countries in the map of the world.
The 12 countries we learned are as follows in Pinyin, Chinese characters and English:
1. Mei guo/美国/USA
2. Zhong guo/中国/China
3. Ri ben/日本/Japan
4. Ying guo/英国 /England
5. Fa guo/法国 /France
6. Yi da li/意大利 /Italy
7. Jia na da/加拿大 /Canada
8. Mo xi ge/墨西哥 /Mexico
9. Ao da li ya/澳大利亚 /Australia
10. De guo/德国 /Germany
11. E guo/俄国 /Russia
12. Han guo/韩国 /Korea
Mrs. Musella's Art Class
In the art room with Mrs. Musella the Kindergarten and 1st grade students were able to become active listeners when following a direct drawing lesson and illustrate a cute bunny rabbit. They explored the elements line, shape and color and recognized that when we put simple lines and shapes together we can create an awesome illustration, next they add all their personal touches such as hair, bows, dress, crowns, etc. These bunnies looked amazing and what cute details they added. This type of lesson allows every child to be successful by building their drawing confidence and having fun at the same time. I love my lil artists, they always make me sooo proud!
Mr. Ryan Sorafine
Friendly reminder:
We recognize that from time to time there are circumstances that require you to pick up your child from school early or drop them off late. Please be mindful of the importance of your child's education to be exposed to the curriculum consistently without interruption. We ask that if a circumstance arises that your child will be missing part of the scheduled school day that you contact the school prior. These specific circumstances should be limited to:
- Medical or dental appointments
- Family emergency
- Court appearance
- Such good cause as may be acceptable to the administration.
As the warm weather is upon us please remember to send your child to school with a water bottle or two for them to stay hydrated throughout the day. At this time our water fountains are still not being used due to COVID guidelines.
We do have water available if students forget or run out throughout the school day.
Quote of the Day: "Winning doesn't always mean being first. Winning means you're doing better than you've done before."
-Bonnie Blair
Speed Skater
Mr. White - A Note from our Counselor!
Week of March 29th
Counselor’s thoughts: I will continue on with last week’s list of the basics of a child’s good mental health with # 2, self-confidence and self-esteem from MHA (Mental Health of America)
Nurture Children’s confidence and self-esteem
Praise them- Encouraging children’s first steps or their ability to learn a new game helps them develop a desire to explore and learn about their surroundings. Allow children to explore and play in a safe area where they cannot get hurt. Assure them by smiling and talking to them often. Be an active participant in their activities. Your attention helps build their self-confidence and self-esteem.
Set Realistic Goals - Young children need realistic goals that match their ambitions with their abilities. With your help, older children can choose activities that test their abilities and increase their self-confidence.
Be Honest - Do not hide your failures from your children. It is important for them to know that we all make mistakes. It can be very reassuring to know that adults are not perfect.
Avoid Sarcastic Remarks - If a child loses a game or fails a test, find out how he or she feels about the situation. Children may get discouraged and need a pep talk. Later, when they are ready, talk and offer assurance.
Encourage children - To not only strive to do their best, but also to enjoy the process. Trying new activities teaches children about teamwork, self-esteem and new skills.
Ms. Margolis - Calm Down Techniques
Calm Down Techniques
Learning how to calm down and relax when you are upset, feeling stressed or frustrated can be hard! For children, finding ways to get back on track can be even harder. Learning some simple ways to calm down and refocus in order to problem solve can take some practice. There are some simple things that you can teach your children to do when they are feeling stressed, angry or frustrated in order to get back on track. You may want to keep a list of some ideas and suggest one of these techniques at home the next time your child needs a break:
- Go to a "chill" spot - finding a safe and cozy place to go at home can help
- Go outside for a walk- fresh air is always helpful to clear your mind
- Take some deep breaths (count to 10 or 100 !)
- Listen to soothing music
- Think of something you are grateful for
- Start a journal
- Loosen up with yoga, stretching or meditation
- Give a hug to someone at home
- Watch a funny video
- Have a light snack or drink
With some practice, your child will learn which techniques work best for them.
Self Esteem is Blooming!
Pomptonian
Pomptonian is happy to announce another edition of the Nutrition News with award-winning pediatrician, author and keynote speaker, Dr. Jill Garripoli Pedalino. Dr. Jill and Pomptonian’s Corporate Dietitian, Toni Bowman, will be discussing “National Nutrition Month.” Here is a link to the video:
Parents, would you like to learn more about Move this World? Would you like to use Move this World at Home? Use the following credentials to login after clicking the link in the title.
Username: connors.family
Password: hoboken123
Connors School Spirit Wear
Would you like to purchase more Connors School Spirit Wear? Click on the link below to view our Connors School Spirit Wear. If someone wishes to purchase an item, please email the swag team (swagconnors@gmail.com) and the swag team will contact you.
Connors PTO Meetings
Our Connors PTO will be meeting the 2nd Tuesday of every month at 12:00 pm virtually.
Here are the Connors PTO meeting dates for the 2020-2021 School Year
April 13th
May 11th
June 8th
Click below to join the meeting:
meet.google.com/nqs-hhna-dkb
- March-Women's History Month
- March 29th-April 1st-Connors PTO Fruit Frenzy
- April 1, 1:00 pm Early Dismissal
- April 2-9, Spring Break (No School)
- April 12th-16th Remote Learning Week for All Students
- April 13th: Virtual PTO Meeting at 12:00 pm meet.google.com/nqs-hhna-dkb
- April 20th-CogAT Assessment for all 1st Grade students and all new 2nd-5th Grade Students
- April 22nd, 2021-Earth Day
- April 28th-29th is Picture day