J.M.S. News...
By Donald F. Gately, Ed. D - April 2017
Community Service Sock Drive
The community service classes held a ‘sock drive’ for the homeless this past winter. Led by Chase Frank and Avery Frank, we collected 851 pairs of socks! We are thankful and sincerely appreciate the Jericho community for the hundreds of donations that came pouring in and for the support we received.
The community students were very passionate about improving the lives of individuals and families close to home. As a result, they did a lot of research regarding homelessness on Long Island and concluded that they would drop off the socks to the Bethany House of Long Island. The Bethany House is dedicated to improving the lives of homeless women and children on Long Island. Bethany defines its mission as a response to its belief that each person deserves and needs adequate food, clothing, and shelter, provided in a nurturing and sustaining environment. Students who dropped off the socks reflected upon their experience, which provoked deep, valuable conversations in class. As a result, many students are inspired to continue with greater community service events in the future.
We are proud of the community service students. A special thanks to Mrs. Margery Frank and Mrs. Stacey Landsberg and to all the parents involved in the process.
Community Service Teacher,
Spiridoula Theotokas
Quote of the Week of April 3-7:
Quotes for the Month of April:
April 17-21: “You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.” – Wayne Gretzky
April 24-28: “Education is not the preparation for life; education is life itself.” – John Dewey
Monthly SEL Theme for the Month of April: HOPE (RESILIENCY)
I believe that Joseph Sugarman's quote captures the meaning of and the need to be resilient. In being resilient we learn that hope believes in tomorrow because we have learned to see with our hearts.
The heart decorations in our middle school office symbolize to our school community, that we not only educate the mind, but also the heart. By seeing with your heart, you are able to understand how hope looks, acts, and feels. It is our obligation, as adult mentors, to practice hope, share it, and pass it along by becoming your SEL coaches. If we do so, your hearts will see what is invisible to the eyes.
Classroom News!
Team 6A:
In Social Studies we are continuing to discover the wonders of ancient China. In ELA we have been honing our argumentative writing skills and independently reading action/adventure novels. Be sure to check out our vocabulary video! Here's the link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pgxIAzQv5Q0&t=10s In math we’ve been learning about equations and inequalities. In Science we are discussing the changing states of matter as it moves from a solid to t liquid to a gas.
Team 6B:
Team 6B continues to share their Personal Best Day presentations. We've had some amazing displays of talent, including: rock climbers, origami masters, fencing champions, a service dog expert, a hockey star, and robot builders... to name a few! Team 6B always invites students to share their unique qualities with each other. We always encourage each other to do our Personal Best! Let the sharing continue...
Team 6C:
As part of Personal Best Day 2017 Team 6C students choose topics to share with their peers. We learned about everything from competitive Lego building to making delicious whipped cream. What a great day of learning.
Team 6D:
Team 6E:
Most of us probably remember the classic science experiment of cleaning a penny with a mixture of vinegar and salt. There is always something so magical and exciting about tossing in a dirty penny and seeing a beautiful clean and shiny penny come out. Team 6E assembled various solutions and proceeded to soak tarnished pennies in those solutions hoping to clean them. Students waited a few minutes and then check on them. While we waited, we hypothesized. Which solutions might work? Which ones might not work? Which solution did we think would work the best?
After a few minutes we dried our pennies with a paper towel and examined the results. We asked many questions. Which solution produced the shiniest penny? Were you surprised any of the solutions worked? After a little studying we decided to see what would happen if we let the pennies soak a little longer. We popped them back in to their corresponding bowls and left them to soak for a few more minutes. Some solutions worked better than others. Ask your child to tell you about their observations. Abraham Lincoln has never shined so bright!!
Team 7A:
To celebrate Black History Month, Mrs. Brill, Mrs. McDonough and Ms. Vevante gave Team 7A's students a chance to show off their artistic and poetic talents to reflect research about one of the many real- life figures mentioned in the novel Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson. This beautifully written memoir, told mostly in free verse, tells the story of a young woman growing up during the 1960's and 70's and how her life was influenced by the events of that era. Her very personal memories of growing up in the South, and later in Brooklyn, the love and support she receives from her family, and the extraordinary events that shape her as both a person and a writer touched us all! Students were given a choice as to which historical person or group prominent during the Civil Rights Movement they wanted to research. Then, they used images, quotes, and haiku to teach one another how that person brought about change. Our celebration was complete when some of our very generous students brought in some of the many foods that Jacqueline mentioned that were traditional to her family and to the South, and/or that time period. Mrs. Brill downloaded a fabulous playlist that had us all dancing! We teachers never cease to be amazed at the caliber of work our students bring to an event such as this one, and would like to thank all everyone who contributed all the tasty treats for our wonderful celebration of this very special literary work.
Team 7B:
On Sunday, March 19, a number of students from Team 7B competed in the Long Island History Day competition at Hofstra University. Alyssa Kamitsis, Sara Chan, Sydney Sabesan, Ana Markovina, Andrew Lee, & Brian Park did a terrific job representing not only themselves and their team, but our whole school as well. Congratulations to all! Special congratulations to Sara for moving on to the next round, the New York State History Day competition in Cooperstown!
Team 7C/8C:
Team 7/8C had a fun filled month of March in math class. The 7th graders discovered different applications of proportions and specifically focused on how they can be used in both geometry and statistics. The students tackled two major questions, “Are toy cars really scale models of their real life counterparts?” and “Is water bottle flipping really that difficult?” The answer to both of these questions turned out to be a big NO! Through these activities students were able to determine scale factors between two different objects, apply classroom knowledge to real life situations, and know the different betwixt experimental and theoretical probability. (Did I mention they’re working on Shakespeare in ELA?) The 8th graders tackled some other difficult tasks as well. They learned how to use scatter plots to represent real world data and were able to bring closure to an age old question that yes, your foot size is equal to the length of your forearm (or just about). In Algebra I, students underwent the same task Greek Mathematician Diophantus did in 283 AD by deriving the quadratic formula and using it to solve equations.
Team 8A:
Students on Team 8A finished reading and analyzing one of William Shakespeare's plays called The Taming of the Shrew. They then acted out a modern version of their own creations. Fun was had by all!
Team 8B:
Students on team 8B are using Nearpod to share and discuss ideas from their mobile devices. The use of algebra tiles is a great way for students to really experience factoring and discover relationships for themselves. They were also able to recognize that there are many ways to approach a mathematical situation.
Favorite Recipes from the World Language Department!
What’s cookin’?
What is the best way to a person’s heart? Food!
Jericho Middle School World Language Teachers all love to cook (and eat)!
Here are a few of our favorite recipes,
which we hope your family will love as much as we do.
CHINESE CHICKEN FRIED RICE
Ingredients
- 1/2 tablespoon sesame oil
- 1 onion
- 1 1/2 pounds cooked, cubed chicken meat
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 large carrots, diced
- 2 stalks celery,
- chopped 1 large red bell pepper,
- diced 3/4 cup fresh pea pods,
- halved 1/2 large green bell pepper, diced
- 6 cups cooked white rice
- 2 eggs
- 1/3 cup soy sauce
Preparation
- Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and sauté until soft then add chicken and 2 tablespoons soy sauce and stir-fry for 5 to 6 minutes.
- Stir in carrots, celery, red bell pepper, pea pods and green bell pepper and stir-fry another 5 minutes. Then add rice and stir thoroughly.
- Finally, stir in scrambled eggs and 1/3 cup soy sauce, heat through and serve hot.
LES CRÊPES
Ingredients for the batter
- 2 ½ cups of flour
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 3 eggs
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 3- 3 ½ cups of milk
Filling
- For dinner: ham, cheese, vegetables
- For dessert: butter and sugar (traditional crêpe), Nutella, fruit
Preparation
- Combine flour, eggs, sugar, and oil in a large bowl. Use an electric mixer to combine ingredients. Add milk in a little at a time while mixing to prevent clumping.
- Grease a flat non-stick pan or non-stick flat griddle with a paper towel and vegetable oil. Take a ladle of batter and pour into the pan. Make sure the layer of batter is very thin. Cook until it starts to get brown and then flip. You can now add your filling. Fold over and serve!
Bon appétit!
BAKED CLAMS AL GANGIDINO
Ingredients
- 2 dozen Little neck clams on the half shell
- 2 cups of breadcrumbs ( I like 4C seasoned) season with salt & black pepper, pinch of red pepper
- extra virgin olive oil
- 3 garlic cloves (pressed)
- handful of fresh parsley (chopped)
- 1/4 cup of white wine
- 1/2 lemon (squeezed)
- 2 tablespoons of butter
Preparation
- In a bowl mix breadcrumbs, garlic, parsley, wine, lemon. Pour oil into mixture until coated. Spoon mixture into clams.
- Arrange clams in a tray and put 2 tablespoons of butter in the middle of the tray.
- Bake at 375 10 minutes. Then broil for 2-3 minutes or until toasty brown.
Buon appetito!
TORTILLA ESPAÑOLA
This is the classic tapa, served all over Spain. It is typically eaten for lunch or dinner or as a snack at parties. Unlike how omelets are typically served in the United States, Spanish tortilla is best served at room temperature or cold.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 2 pounds baking potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch slices
- salt and pepper to taste
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 onions, sliced into rings
- 6 eggs
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley
Preparation
- Heat 1/2 cup olive oil in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Add half of the potato slices, and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about15 to 20 minutes. Remove potatoes and place in a large bowl, leaving oil in the skillet. Cook the remaining potatoes in the oil until tender, and add them to the bowl, leaving oil in the skillet. Gently toss potatoes with salt and pepper to taste.
- Meanwhile, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Stir in onion rings, and gently cook until soft and golden brown, about 15 minutes. Spoon onions onto a plate, and allow to cool while the potatoes finish cooking.
- Whisk eggs in a large bowl until smooth. Stir in cooled onions and cooked potatoes.
- Heat the skillet with the reserved oil over low heat. Pour in the egg, potato, onion mixture, and gently cook until the sides have started to set and the bottom has turned golden brown, 8 to 10 minutes. Loosen the tortilla with a spatula if needed, and then place a large plate on top of the pan. Turn the skillet upside down. Turn the skillet right-side-up and slide the omelet back into the pan. Return the skillet to the stove, and continue cooking until the tortilla has set in the center, about 4 minutes.
- Slide the tortilla onto a serving plate and allow it to cool to room temperature. Cut into wedges and sprinkle with parsley to serve.
¡Buen provecho!
Tips from the Middle School Nurse!
The Spring is Here……..Its the perfect time to start promoting physical activity as a way of life for your entire family. Physical activity has many health benefits. It can help children build healthy bones,muscles,joints and helps to maintain optimal weight. This will put your child on the path to a healthy lifestyle.
The Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans recommends:
60 minutes of physical activity for children at least 5 days a week.
30 minutes of physical activity for adults at least 5 days a week.
Start slowly and build up:Start by adding steps to your day such as walking,riding a bike (wear your helmet), a family hike or dancing. Consult with both your physician and your child’s doctor before starting a new activity program.
Benefits of physical activity: Research shows daily activity can help children in the following ways: improved test scores,grades, and time management skills. It can also increase self confidence and self esteem as well as reduce anxiety and stress.
Resources:https://.hhs.gov/fitness/beactive/physical-activity-initiative/index.html
Dates to Remember...
April 7: 3rd Marking Period Ends
April 10-18: SCHOOLS CLOSED
April 20: Board of Education Meeting - MS Library - 7:15PM
April 24: Diversity Day
April 25: 6th, 7th and 8th Grade Guidance Evening Hours - 7:00PM–9:00PM
Recognizing that other commitments often make it impossible for parents to find time to meet with counselors during the regular school day, we will continue a program of evening meetings this year. If you would like to meet with your child's counselor but are unable to do so during the school day, please call the counselor in order to schedule an evening appointment.
April 26: Quarterly Grades Posted Online
Jericho Middle School
Email: dgately@jerichoschools.org
Website: jerichoschools.org
Location: 99 Old Cedar Swamp Road, Jericho, NY, United States
Phone: (516) 203-3600
Twitter: @JerichoMS