Thomas G. Connors Read All About It
2nd Marking Period Newsletter
Principal's Message
Dear Parents and Guardians,
The first half of the school year serving as Principal of T.G. Connors Elementary School has been truly remarkable. We are continuing to build a family partnership in which each and every child and family is a part our school's journey for the success of every child.
Throughout the first two marking periods, we have continued to focus on the three priorities of Connors: Parent Partnership, Centrality of the Child, and Academic Excellence. Those priorities are embedded in our district’s mission, vision and goals. I would like to circle back to those priorities and share our progress in those specific areas during the 2nd marking period.
Parent Partnership
Research shows that effective schools have high levels of parental and community involvement as those partnerships are positively correlated to success in student academic achievement, positive behavior and school attendance. I truly cherish our partnership. I want every parent to feel welcome and to feel a part of our thriving school community. Parents and families have partnered with our staff to create exciting and impactful school and community events to further strengthen the bond between Connors and our family community.
Parent partnerships emanate Connors elementary school. Our PTO is bigger than ever and it is continuing to expand with every meeting. Our PTO is such an essential part of our school community. Whether it is fundraising, celebratory events, or school enhancement ideas, parents wholeheartedly donate their time and expertise to lend a hand. There was such a sense of school spirit and community at our International Dinner Night and the success of it could only be attributed to the collaborative efforts of our parent volunteers who shared food of their heritages, and dances of their cultures. Our amazing faculty is the connecting piece between our Connor families and our students' success. We so appreciate the collaborative effort of our faculty to help make our International Dinner happen. Our kids brought lots of energy and enthusiasm for the delicious multicultural plates and exciting dances. I cannot express enough how much I sincerely care for our Connors family.
Centrality of the Child
Student voices, interests and needs shape the planning of learning experiences that are relevant to each individual child. Each of our students have different strengths and weaknesses. Our goal is to celebrate and continue to develop our children’s strengths and assist our students and close the gaps where their skills might be more fragile.
At Connor Elementary School, we educate the whole child which includes Social Emotional Learning. During the 2nd marking period, we have expanded on the social emotional curriculum by introducing and utilizing Move This World across all grade levels. This Social Emotional Learning Program links the needs for movement with the development of self awareness, self management, social awareness, relationship skills and responsible decision-making skills.
Academic Excellence
Our students are continually immersed in academically stimulating and challenging educational programs. Our curriculum is rigorous, responsive and relevant. We are striving for each child to continuously grow academically. Teachers are closely monitoring the academic growth and achievements of each student by giving data-driven instruction.
We have also continued our school-wide focus on reading growth throughout the 2nd marking period. Teachers and faculty, as well as myself, have fostered a love of reading to mirror that love onto the students' views of reading. Studies show that children who read independently for pleasure become better readers, score higher on achievement tests in all subject areas and have greater content knowledge. I would like to share with you several initiatives that have already been underway during the 2nd marking period:
All classes at Connors continue our D.E.A.R program (Drop Everything And Read). During D.E.A.R time, our students read books of their interest and choice at their independent reading level. D.E.A.R time helps to foster a community of readers
Our Reading BEEs (buddies) program has continued throughout the 2nd marking period. Students in kindergarten and 1st grade look forward to hearing the stories their 4th and 5th grade buddies read to them, and the opportunity to show off their own reading skills to their older peers.
Christy Gaudio, our new reading specialist provides reading support for our second graders during ILP period using a combination of IMSE Orton Gillingham and the Leveled Literacy Intervention System by Fountas and Pinnell. Both research-based systems, will help to develop and strengthen Letter Name Knowledge, Sound Knowledge, Sight Words, Phonemic Awareness, Phonics, Fluency, Comprehension, Vocabulary.
The rest of this newsletter is a window into Connors. I hope you enjoy viewing the happy and engaged faces of our students while they are learning.
All the best,
Juliana Addi, Principal
Dean's Message
Hello T.G Connors School Community,
It is hard to believe we are already half way through the school year. As the Dean of Students and programs, I am happy to report our holistic approach to education is really taking shape here at Connors. As you all know, our Move this World program is well underway and we have been receiving such positive feedback from our students, teachers, and parents on the immediate impact it has had on our students. In addition to Move this World, our support specialists are engaging our students in various social and emotional learning groups to assist students with emotional awareness and regulation, communication skills, and conflict resolution. I have always stated that my goal is to ensure that students are learning, happy, and safe. I would like to thank our school community for their continued support in making Connors a school that is growing in all facets of education.
As Dean of Students, I also monitor and support students and families with school attendance. Attendance in all grade levels is important, as excessive absences disrupt the continuity of the instructional process and limits the ability of students to complete the curriculum requirements successfully. I am here to support your family with any questions regarding attendance and to assist with any strategies to optimize all of our students' success.
I am looking forward to our continued collaboration and to support the amazing milestones and experiences your children will continue to have at Connors.
Your Dean,
Mr. Sorafine
Fun Fridays with Mr. Sorafine
"Happy" Fun Friday Video Montage with Dean Sorafine
Kindergarten Highlights
Social Studies
Building Lifetime Readers and Writers
Sight Words
CVC Words
Guided Reading
Mathematicians
Practice
Makes
Perfect
Kindergarten Scientists
First Grade Highlights
Mathematicians At Work
Readers and Writers
Retell Time
1st Grade Art Highlights
Our 1st grade student's artwork is on display at "The Little Local", 519 Adams St.
In the art room with Mrs. Musella, the 1st grade students were able to develop their observational drawing skills by drawing a cactus plant. We discussed the idea of line repetition when creating patterns and identifying patterns found in nature. The following 1st grade students have their artwork on display at the coffee shop The Little Local, 519 Adams St. Hoboken. @thelittlelocalhoboken
Alessia P., Domenica B., Sacha B., Nicholas P., Abigail M., Alexandra D.
Congratulations!
Second Grade Highlights
Math Games
Social Studies
ELA
Mathematicians at Work
Third Grade Highlights
ELA
Mathematicians
Social Studies and ILP
Learning About Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Connors School Video Montage
Fourth Grade Highlights
Reading Buddies with Dr. Kerry Magro
ELA Snapshot
Math Problem Solving
Geometry Focus
Mini PGP
Fifth Grade Highlights
Math Centers
ELA Focus
Social Studies
Ms.Sogluizzo’s fifth grade students researched different causes that led up to the Civil War. Next, they read a readingaz.com leveled reader, 1865: The End of the Civil War, which explained major events and battles during the Civil War. After that, students worked in cooperative groups to create timelines of these major events with explanations of each one that they presented to their peers.
Mini PGP
5th Grade Biologists
Physical Education
Windows into Connors Classrooms Video Highlights
Sensory Hallways
Musicians in the Making
School Events and Happenings
Green Week
Green Camp-Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle!
In Green Camp, our Connors Koalas learned how to Reduce, Reuse and Recycle. Students learned they can "Reduce" by turning of the lights when they are not in use. In addition, they can turn off the water when they are brushing their teeth and they can walk instead of drive to school.
Students learned to "Reuse" by bringing reusable bags to the supermarket as well as wear hand me down clothes. We also talked about the importance of donating clothes and explained how the earth benefits by keeping waste out of landfills. In addition, donating items is an act of Kindness and is a way to help anyone who needs it.
We then talked about recycling and why it’s important to recycle correctly. David, the recycling coordinator for Hoboken, went over the rules for recycling. He taught the slogan for recycling plastics, "1,2,5 empty clean and dry". Students learned why it is important to wash and dry your recycling before putting it in the bin as well as which night to put out which recyclables. The kids then got to practice sorting and recycling themselves utilizing the recycling bins.
Thank you so much to our Connors Green Team for initiating and leading our Green Week. The students had a blast and learned so much!!
The Green Drop
Move This World
Dear Connors Families,
I am excited to share some updates with you regarding T.G. Connors Elementary School social emotional learning initiatives this school year. Social emotional learning (SEL) is the process through which children and adults acquire and apply the skills necessary to understand and manage emotions, set and achieve goals, feel and show empathy for others, establish and maintain positive relationships and make responsible decisions. The initiatives we have selected will continue to contribute to a strong school culture in which all students feel safe, supported and valued.
Social and emotional learning (SEL) is the process through which children and adults understand and manage emotions, set and achieve positive goals, feel and show empathy for others, establish and maintain positive relationships, and make responsible decisions.
There are five core competencies that the Move this World curriculum is based on:
Self-awareness: The ability to accurately recognize one’s emotions and thoughts and their influence on behavior. This includes accurately assessing one’s strengths and limitations and possessing a well-grounded sense of confidence and optimism.
Self-management: The ability to regulate one’s emotions, thoughts, and behaviors effectively in different situations. This includes managing stress, controlling impulses, motivating oneself, and setting and working toward achieving personal and academic goals.
Social awareness: The ability to take the perspective of and empathize with others from diverse backgrounds and cultures, to understand social and ethical norms for behavior, and to recognize family, school, and community resources and supports.
Relationship skills: The ability to establish and maintain healthy and rewarding relationships with diverse individuals and groups. This includes communicating clearly, listening actively, cooperating, resisting inappropriate social pressure, negotiating conflict constructively, and seeking and offering help when needed.
Responsible decision-making: The ability to make constructive and respectful choices about personal behavior and social interactions based on consideration of ethical standards, safety concerns, social norms, the realistic evaluation of consequences of various actions, and the well-being of self and others.
Playworks During Recess
Social and emotional learning doesn’t stop at the classroom door. The strategies kids practice at recess stick with them. We are creating a recess environment that encourages self-management, relationship skills, and social awareness.
Friendship Groups
We have begun an initiative with the 3rd-5th grades involving SEL groups weekly. The curriculum is based on the Sanford Harmony Social Emotional Learning Program. All of our third to fifth grade students are a part of a weekly group that focuses on various topics such as team building, conflict resolution, empathy, personal strengths, peer conflict and building positive relationships with others. Classes meet with the school counselor, school social worker, school psychologist or Dean of Students covering a different topic weekly.
This year we will be using Move This World as our foundational social emotional learning program. Move This World uses fun and engaging videos to teach core social emotional skills and will help your child develop the confidence to express their feelings authentically, manage their emotions healthily and navigate challenges successfully. I want to take a moment to explain what you can expect from Move This World.
How it works:
Your child will watch and engage with short interactive videos at the beginning and end of the
school day. Each video is tied to a core social emotional learning competency, including: self
awareness, self management, social awareness, relationship skills and responsible decision
making skills.
What you can expect:
As the year progresses, you can expect and encourage your child to carry the skills they will
learn through Move This World at home. They might begin to ask you some questions about
how you’re feeling or how you manage stress (and they might even offer you some suggestions,
too!)
You’ll hear your child use Move This World vocabulary, such as: the 10 Emogers (emotional
management strategies), the Emotional Building Blocks (vocabulary words focused emotions) or
the Positive Pivot Scale (a framework used to respond to challenges).
You might see your child experimenting with new ways to express themselves, setting new and ambitious goals for themselves or developing new ways to problem solve.
Additional resources and opportunities will be shared throughout the year to help you reinforce social emotional learning in your homes. In the meantime, if you’d like to explore social emotional learning a little bit more, we encourage you to take a look at Move This World’s blog and resources:
Sincerely,
Juliana Addi, Principal
International Dinner Night
Holiday Sing-Along
Connors Family Holiday Sing-Along Video Montage
Student of the Month
December
Kindergarten: Janyvah H.
1st Grade: Dylan P.
2nd Grade: Jordyn M.
3rd Grade: Isabella G.
4th Grade: Samirah W.
5th Grade: Noah L. (District Student of the Month)
January
1st Grade: Alessia P.
2nd Grade: Jaleah R.
3rd Grade: Jeremiah P.
4th Grade: Mia C.
5th Grade: Samantha C.