News from the Hill
January 13, 2017
Principal’s Message
Dear Parents/Guardians,
It’s been a great week! Today, we enjoyed a Martin Luther King Jr. Peace March, as the first graders paraded around the school singing songs about peace, holding signs and candle lights and modeling the values that we all hold so dear. It was truly beautiful. I saw unity as students from other grade levels filtered into the hallways to watch and wave; I heard acceptance as teachers and students together sang to the strumming of the guitar; I felt love- love for each other and for our Hillside community. What a special experience for Hillside! Thank you to our first grade teachers and students for reminding us of the importance of peace and kindness.
On Tuesday night, our Integrated Co-Teaching (ICT) consultant, Jessica Enright-Polanish, presented the Hillside ICT model at our PTSA meeting. The presentation is up on our Hillside website under Hillside Headlines at http://www.hohschools.org/ This was a wonderful opportunity for parents to learn more about the benefits of this inclusive program.
Thank you to our 2nd and 3rd graders for signing up for our H.E.A.R.T. pilot program. Our PTSA is busy creating rosters for our course offerings and will communicate this information with parents next week. We look forward to the launch of our program on January 23rd!
We are having challenges at Hillside with Pokémon cards. As a result, we have notified the students that these cards are no longer permitted in school. We ask for your kind assistance in enforcing this policy.
I would like to remind you that our March report cards will be online in the eSchoolData Parent Portal, an online tool designed to enhance the communication and involvement of parents in their child’s education. The Portal provides you with 24/7 access to your child’s information. We will be using the Portal for trimester report cards. If you would prefer a paper copy, please let your child’s teacher know. Also, the Portal will be used for class placement information in August. This will alleviate the worry of waiting for the mail to arrive. To register your child, please access the tools at the following link: http://www.hohschools.org/domain/968
As you are probably aware, many students at Hillside have been diagnosed with gastrointestinal (stomach) viruses and strep throat. Also, this is flu season and the New York State Department of Health is reporting that influenza is widespread. Consequently, our custodial staff is taking necessary cleaning and disinfecting measures to prevent the spread of these viruses. In addition to wiping down surfaces, a focus will be given to doorknobs and handrails to help eliminate germs. Furthermore, we have reminded teachers to reinforce the importance of hand washing. We ask for your partnership in containing the spread of these illnesses by following the procedures outlined in our Parent/Student Handbook at http://www.hohschools.org/domain/969. Additionally, you can assist us in keeping Hillside healthy in the following ways:
- Please keep your child home if they are ill or complaining of feeling sick until they are symptom free.
- Encourage your child to wash his/her hands often using both soap and water. Singing "Happy Birthday" twice should be enough time to help kill the germs!
- Coughs and sneezes should be covered with elbows to prevent the spread of illness.
- Send in a hand wipe with students' lunches to ensure germ-free hands before eating.
Finally, we look forward to seeing you at the 3rd and 4th Grade Winter Choral Recital on Tuesday, January 17th at 3:45 PM. You are in for a treat!
Wishing you a wonderful weekend with your families,
Amy Cazes
Principal
Classroom News
Kindergarten
The children are really enjoying the our Five Senses unit! We have been discussing our five senses and how they can keep us safe on the playground (e.g. our sense of hearing allows for us to hear the whistle to come inside after recess). This has been a very “hands-on” unit where we have been exploring with a variety activities such as feely bins for learning the sense of touch and a “Taste Museum” where we will use our senses to describe some different foods (sweet, sour, salty and bitter).
We have also started a new unit in math and will be working on exploring measurable attributes of objects such as length, weight and volume in a very hands-on way. We have been comparing a variety of objects to see which object has “more of” or “less of” the attribute and the children have been describing the difference. We have also been identifying whether the number of objects in one group is “greater than,” “less than,” or “equal to” the number of objects in another group by using matching and counting strategies. Wow, all this amazing math in Kindergarten!
First Grade
Our first grade classes ended the year with an incredible Sing- A-Long! Our music was inspired by a book we read to our classes called, We Dream of a World. Our students had the opportunity to discuss and write about their wishes for the world we live in, and more importantly, talk about ways to make positive changes happen. To this end, our first graders participated in the “Pajama Program”, an organization that provides pajamas and books to children in need. The first grade teachers would like to thank all those who were able to support this initiative!
Our math work continues with learning strategies for solving problems with counting on and taking from ten. Children are working on using drawings and number bonds to show how to solve subtraction problems. Most recently, children are working with subtracting 8 and 9 from teen numbers.
Our new content unit, History of the Earth, has also started. During this study, children will learn about the geographical features of the earth’s surface . They will also learn about the various layers and its characteristics. Children will also explore the importance of rocks and minerals and how they impact our everyday lives.
To honor Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. first graders will participate in a peace march through the halls of Hillside. They will carry signs that send peaceful messages and sing the songs, “We Shall Overcome” and “This Little Light of Mine.” We hope that this experience will last in their memories for years to come.
Second Grade
We ended December with the conclusion to our Tall Tale unit. The students wrote their own tall tales. In groups, the students undertook a STEAM project to create an object from one of the tall tales we read in class.
In Math, we continue to work with the addition and subtraction algorithms, including place value, the mechanics of the algorithms and problem solving.
With the New Year, we have begun our formal work with nonfiction texts. Our first unit is an introduction that focuses upon the text features of nonfiction. The students will explore nonfiction books and look closely at the features. A short research task will be undertaken regarding a life cycle of a living thing. Each student will create a nonfiction book with the life cycle as a subject. The student created books will include the various text features of nonfiction.
In science, in addition to the life cycle work noted above, we will begin our work with the water cycle and erosion.
Communications Class K-2
Happy New Year! We had fun setting New Year’s resolutions!
In Kindergarten, the students will be exploring the Five Senses. Our focus will be on using our five senses and how they can keep us safe on the playground (e.g. our sense of hearing allows for us to hear the whistle to come inside after recess). This will be a very “hands-on” unit where we will explore a variety activities such as feely bins for learning the sense of touch and a “Taste Museum” where we will use our senses to describe some different foods (sweet, sour, salty and bitter).
In first grade, the students ended the year with an incredible Sing- A-Long! We will be starting a new content unit, History of the Earth. \ During this study, children will learn about the geographical features of the earth’s surface . They will also learn about the various layers and its characteristics. Children will also explore the importance of rocks and minerals and how they impact our everyday lives.
Also, to honor Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. first graders will participate in a peace march through the halls of Hillside. They will carry signs that send peaceful messages and sing the songs, “We Shall Overcome” and “This Little Light of Mine.” We hope that this experience will last in their memories for years to come.
Communications Class 3-5
The students are excited about our ELA unit this month. We are reading books about winter and all of the fun things you can do in the snow!!! We just finished reading The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats. The students are answering comprehension questions and sequencing events using these texts.
In Math, we have come back to multiplication and are learning different strategies to solve problems with multiples of 6, 7, 8 and 9. The students are using repeated addition, skip counting, arrays and multiplication tables to solve these problems.
In science, we are classIfying living versus nonliving things in our world. We are also learning how animals and plants survive in the winter.
Integrated Learning Class 2-4
In Math, 3rd and 4th grade continue learning all about multiplication. 2nd grade is focusing on addition, subtraction and place value. In Language Arts, we are working on comprehension of various genres and are writing personal narratives and starting our exploration of expository writing. In Science, 2nd is learning about the water cycle while 4th is learning about Living and Non-Living things. 3rd grade is on to Owls! We are wrapping up our project on the ruins of Cahokia outside of St.Louis, Missouri. This project involves read-alouds of research material, problem solving during planning and construction of models of one of the ruins, and learning to work together and how to resolve differences of opinion in positive ways.
Third Grade
To celebrate the successful completion of our ELA/Science unit on Frogs, third graders participated in our fourth annual “Great Frog Race”. Each class raced plastic frogs across the small gym floor. The top three racers from each class then participated in a final race. Everyone enthusiastically cheered on the racers, and a good time was had by all.
Our new math unit is our “Multiplication and Area” module. This unit will continue our work with multiplication, as students explore area as an attribute of two-dimensional figures and relate it to their prior understandings of multiplication.
In ELA, students are learning about theme in fiction stories to help them become stronger readers. They ask themselves: How did the main character grow or change throughout the story? What life lesson can the reader take away from the story? Teachers are reading books to the class such as: Imogene’s Last Stand (perseverance), Officer Buckle and Gloria (cooperation), and Rechenka’s Eggs (kindness). Each week students are reading fiction stories in guided reading groups to strengthen strategies that help them identify, and learn about, various themes. They are writing to analyze and explain themes they notice, and how they relate to their own lives.
Each class had a special guest reader come in to read one of his favorite books - Mr. Johnson! His use of special voices for each of the characters added to the fun of listening to the story.
Fourth Grade
4th graders are putting the finishing touches on our ELA Unit on Fiction and Personal Narratives. It was great fun to read all of the stories students had to share. There were so many exciting adventures and special events. Now we are embarking on our new unit in Non-Fiction. 4th graders are learning to recognize non-fiction elements such as sub-titles, captions, charts and graphs, and they are using this information to strengthen their comprehension. As we move forward, it would be helpful for you to read magazines, and even the newspaper with your children at home. Encourage them to point out the features they know.
In math, students have been busy mastering the art of multiplication, specifically in the area of standard algorithms when multiplying 2 digit by 2 digit numbers. Next up will be our foray into long division! While initially a bit intimidating, students will grow to love the steps of division and become quite skilled using them. Please remind them to review their multiplication facts, since we know that multiplication and division go hand in hand.
In science, we are finishing our unit on Living and Non-Living things. Among other activities, students worked together to create collages that demonstrated knowledge of how to classify biotic and abiotic things. As we move ahead this month, we will return to our study of social studies. We will learn about the explorers who arrived on the shores of North America and began changes in life on this continent that we still feel today.
Art
A lot of projects are either beginning or ending in the Hillside Art Studio. Please check out the hallways in Hillside to see some of the projects completed by the fourth graders (printmaking), first graders (snowpeople) and second graders (collages). Check out the Hillside Art Blog for regular updates - http://www.hohschools.org/Page/1225
Music
Ms. Concra’s General Music:
Before break we studied Tchaikovsky's “The Nutcracker”. Each grade focused on different aspects of the music and theatrical performances. As we move into the new year, Kindergartners are listening to Saint-Saens’s “Carnival of the Animals”. 1st grade is continuing solfege studies. We just added ‘la’ to our repertoire. 2nd grades are using their basic rhythm knowledge to notate some of our classroom songs. 3rd graders will continue their studies of reading, writing, playing, and listening to music in duple and triple meters. 4th graders will begin listening to and studying Felix Mendelssohn's “A Midsummer Night’s Dream”.
Mr. Campbell’s Class:
Fourth grade students are beginning to improvise on the American folk songs Long, Long Ago and Home on the Range using the xylophones. They started the improvisation process by learning the a simple bassline, then improvising the rhythm of bassline. Next they learned several harmony parts using solfege and are beginning to improvise the rhythm of those parts. Third grade students are just starting to study classical composers. So far they have learned about and listened to Antonio Vivaldi and Johann Sebastian Bach. Second grade students are continuing to sing rounds in two parts and are beginning to learn about tempo- how fast or slow a piece of music is. First grade students and Kindergarteners are learning to play simple rhythmic ostinatos (short rhythm patterns) using hand drums and rhythm sticks. Ask them to sing you Cold Frosty Morning or Twirling and Whirling!
Physical Education
We are looking forward to Family Dance night on February 10th. The students will be working on our dances soon. Please help your students remember their sneakers on days when they wear their snow boots. Sometimes the children forget their sneakers and they are unable to participate in physical education.
FLES
Kindergarteners are now working towards identifying quantities of objects in Spanish that are not in order! They are writing the numbers in both word and number form and are representing each quantity on a ten frame! In first grade we are reviewing the numbers students already know how to say and Spanish (0-10) and practicing different ways to represent the number: number bonds, pictures, and base ten blocks. Second graders are extending their knowledge to saying and representing numbers 0-30 and representing those numbers in various ways (number bonds, pictures, and base ten blocks). Meanwhile, in third grade students are still mastering how to initiate conversations with others and asking different questions to get to know a person. Finally, fourth graders are working on piecing together conversations from a word bank, discussing what it means to be a fluent reader and acting out dialogues in class.
As a friendly reminder, don’t forget to visit the FLES website, nunez-fles.weebly.com to find the latest updates, resources for at home practice and much more!
From the Library
Our theme for the next couple of weeks is “New Year, New Books!”. We were so excited to return to a large shipment of new books for the library. Many new series such as Secret Agent Jack Stalwart, Nancy Drew and the Clue Crew, Hardy Boys Adventures, Mermaid Tales and more have been added to our collection, as well as a great selection of graphic novels and the biography series “Ordinary People Change the World” http://ordinarypeoplechangetheworld.com/.
New picture books that we have been sharing with the children include “Quit Calling Me A Monster!” written by Jory John and illustrated by the very talented and hilarious Bob Shea, who will be visiting Hillside in March for Reading Month, “Planet Kindergarten” by Sue Ganz-Schmidt,”Poopendous” by Artie Bennett, and “Who’s the Grossest of Them All” by Susan McElroy-Montanari. Moving forward, we will be book-talking the new books with the students, as well as encouraging them to book talk with one another!
From the MakerSpace
MakerSpace is still buzzing with Ozobots! I was thrilled to hear that many students were gifted an Ozobot this holiday season - they surely have become a favorite! Students were challenged to a “Winter Scavenger Hunt” maze, coding the Ozobot to make particular stops at winter items (snowman, hot chocolate, cookies, presents, and holiday lights) on it’s way through the maze before choosing a path to exit. It was so wonderful to hear the collaborative conversations of the groups, working together to problem solve and complete the scavenger hunt. Students in K-1 classes were introduced to the book, “Not a Box”, by Antionette Portis and collaborated with a partner to build an original “not a box” creation out of recyclable materials. Visit my Twitter feed @hohjned to see pictures of students at work.
Hillside Elementary School
Website: www.hohschools.org
Location: 120 Lefurgy Avenue, Hastings-on-Hudson, NY, United States
Phone: 914-478-6270