Grundy Ave School Newsletter
~ October 2018 ~
Welcome Back!
Welcome back to another school year filled with fun and learning! We hope you had an exciting summer with family and friends and now have settled in a routine for back to school.
This month we celebrated International Dot Day which is based on the book, The Dot by Peter Reynolds. The idea behind the story is that it encourages us to be brave about expressing ourselves. It gently reminds us to start small and explore the ideas we have. Our students are very creative! Just make a dot and see where it takes you! We also participated in the Sandy Hook Promise, It Starts with Hello! We also had fun with our first Spirit Day, dress like a cowboy!
Our upcoming events for October include a visit from the Holbrook Fire Department to support our safety theme. Our first Family Connect Night will be on October 3rd, which means no written homework and special memories to be made with families. Please send me pictures so we can display them in our school. We will also have our Halloween Parade. More information to come home via email and all school information can be found on our home page, here . The PTA also has many activities planned including, school pictures, a Yankee Candle Fundraiser and more! Please support this incredible group and join today! Your membership supports ALL students through programs and field trips at Grundy Ave.
Grundy is continuing with our Book of the Month initiative to use a piece of children's literature to support Character Education. The teacher and students will read and discuss these books which will help students learn about some of the pillars of good character and leadership. The book of the month for September is dedicated to KINDNESS. It's a great way to kick off the school year. It is titled, Be Kind. Our STEAM initiative was held during the summer with our game board of #SummerSTEAM challenges. Many of our Grundy families participated in these fun events. Thank you to those who had fun participating.
As you can see, Grundy is off to a great start to the school year. If you have any questions, comments or concerns, you can always reach me at 631-471-1820. Happy Autumn!
Mrs. Amato
Kindergarten news...
September has gone by so fast. All of our Kinders are doing such a fantastic job!! We have learned so much. We have established routines for unpacking and packing up, we have learned new letters and how to write them. We are also working very hard learning how to write our first and last names.
One of the most exciting things that Kindergarten has done so far is learn about Johnny Appleseed. We wrote facts about him, we learned about the life cycle of an apple and we tasted different color apples and made a graph showing the classes favorite color apple. We are having so much fun in Kindergarten!
First Grade news...
We are off to a fantastic start in first grade. We are learning and having so much fun each day! We have begun launching into our readers and writers workshop where we are learning and practicing the routines of great readers and writers. In math, we are learning all about shapes. In social studies, we are learning about being good citizens and showing kindness. We have learned that good citizens help others, take care of the earth, are kind to animals, act respectfully and follow the rules. We look forward to more learning and fun in October!
Second Grade news....
Second grade had a great first month of school! We read the book First Day Jitters on the first day of school. It taught us that it is okay to get nervous. We learned that teachers get nervous too! We really enjoyed celebrating International Dot Day with our friends. Some of us made beautiful pictures using dots and some students participated in a STEAM activity using candy dots and toothpicks. Mrs. Degen’s fifth grade students even helped out. We all made our mark and had a great time! Second graders have been enjoying math with all the fun games we have been playing using dice and dominos. We “bonded” with our friends during Math. It is such a pleasure to see the joy on the children’s faces admiring our number bonds in our hallways. Learning how to be a good citizen has helped us with the rules in our class. The main character Percy Isaac Gifford in Back to School Rules really helped us learn how to get an A+ for behavior and told us to always remember to have fun! We are looking forward to a successful year with this fabulous bunch of children!
Third grade news...
Third grade has had a fantastic start to the 2018-2019 school year! It has been great to see our old friends and welcome many new students to our school!
We spent a lot of time this month getting to know one another and learning all about kindness. The third grade enjoyed reading this month’s book, Be Kind, and discussing ways we can spread kindness throughout our school.
It was fun Celebrating International Dot Day with a fun STEAM challenge. We learned how to create the tallest tower using index cards and dot stickers! This was a great team building experience!
Fourth Grade news...
The first month of school has been very productive for our fourth graders. The students spent the first few weeks getting to know their new classmates and learning the daily routines of fourth grade. We have had many book discussions about kindness and making all students feel included. We have launched our reader’s workshop and students are learning how to effectively discuss books with their turn and talk partners. They are also working responding to their independent readers and increasing their reading stamina.
This month we will begin our Project Based Learning activity. It will focus on how New York geography effects how we live, work, and play. The students will investigate occupations and recreational opportunities found in New York using Google classroom. They will research and work collaboratively with their peers to create their final project. We are looking forward to this exciting endeavor.
Math facts (addition, subtraction, multiplication and division) are an important part of our math curriculum. Please have your child practice these on a daily basis to increase their fluency.
We are looking forward to a great school year!
Fifth Grade news...
Fifth grade is off to a great start! We have spent these first few weeks getting to know one another, learning new routines and getting our classrooms ready for a year full of hard work and fun!
Our reader’s and writer’s workshops are off to a great start. For writing, the children have started to study memoirs and we will continue to work on our own personal narratives for the next few weeks. In math, we are exploring numbers and working with place value in a variety of ways. We have also begun to learn about Earth’s structure in our Science lessons. We are busy!
We have so many exciting things planned for our fifth graders this year. It is sure to a fun filled, rewarding year for our students!
News from the Resource Room...
Resource Room is off to a fantastic start! We dove in to our writing and shared what we did over the summer vacation! Some of the things we wrote about was family vacations, fun times at the beach, a visit to the Sachem Public Library, and much more. Resource Room is a place where learning is fun and where we always try our best!
News from the Reading Room....
We are excited to share that the Remedial Reading department is utilizing a reading program called i-Ready for grades 2-5. Log-in information will be sent home for your child to access the program at home.
What is i-Ready?
i-Ready is an online program that will help us assess your child’s individual needs and monitor their progress throughout the school year.
The i-Ready Diagnostic is an adaptive test that adjusts its questions to suit your child’s performance. Its purpose is not to give your child a score or grade but instead to determine where they need the most support.
i-Ready Instruction provides students with lessons based on their individual skill level and needs, so your child can learn at a pace that is just right for them. These lessons are fun and interactive, with games and characters to keep your child engaged.
How will i-Ready help my child?
i-Ready will help us determine how we can best support your child in meeting their learning goals and will provide lessons that fit their individual needs. Past data shows that students who used i-Ready for more than 45 minutes per week grew 44% more in Reading than the average student.
News from the Speech Department...
Articulation and Phonology Strategies
· Use a mirror with your child so they can see what their tongue does and where it goes when they say a sound.
· Don’t directly correct sounds that your child has not worked on yet. Wait for your child to have the new skill presented in a more isolated way than connected speech. At some point, your therapist will let you know if your child is at the stage where gentle reminders may be effective during connected speech.
· Use revision to address articulation. Revision is the technique where you repeat what your child has said, but with the correct pronunciation. (Ex: Child: “Look at bu!” Adult: Look at that bug! Go bug, go!”)
· Talk to your child as you go through your daily routine. This is a chance to model correct productions, use revision, and stimulate language development.
· Read to your child. Use reading as a way to surround your child with the targeted sound and the correct production.
Building Leadership Team news...
Grundy’s Building Leadership Team consists of Mrs. Amato, our building principal, Mrs. Troise, Mrs. LoManto-Riley, Mrs. Liuzzi, as well as three wonderful parents – Mrs. Kristin Egan, Mrs. Mary Tarantino, and Mrs. Lila Williams.
Our team consists of five action teams that include teachers and parents. Each team has a teacher facilitator to guide the team in ways that will benefit Grundy’s community. We would like to encourage all parents to join an action team. We realize that everyone has extremely busy lives and it is difficult to attend meetings during the school day. You may be able to contribute to an action team in many other ways. You can help by making calls, sending emails, making a flyer, making posters, sorting items for our brand new Makerspace, etc… There are so many ways to be a part of the Grundy community. Think about it! Please consider joining an action team. Let Mrs. Troise know if you are interested. You can reach her at ttroise@sachem.edu.
MIND ACTION TEAM: This action team will focus on academics as well as overall mindset. Study habits, the power of positive thinking, goal setting, and perseverance will be issues that are addressed.
BODY ACTION TEAM: This action team will focus on healthy choices and healthy practices. Physical activity, food choices, nutrition, and healthy body image will be issues that are addressed.
HEART/SPIRIT ACTION TEAM: This action team will focus on empathy, compassion, and meaningful, beneficial socialization. Self-awareness and self-confidence will be among the issues that are addressed.
STEAM/MAKERSPACE ACTION TEAM: This action team will focus on creating a collaborative work space for making, learning, exploring, and sharing. This space will provide hands-on learning experiences, help with critical thinking skills, and even boost self-confidence.
BEAUTIFICATION ACTION TEAM: This action team will focus on maintaining a safe and attractive learning environment for students. School beautification projects can offer much more than physical improvements to the school buildings and grounds. This team will be responsible for educational and personal development, as well as community building opportunities.
We are looking forward to a fantastic school year! J
News from the Art room...
Welcome back! The students have started their school year off with a lot of creativity. We celebrated “International Dot Day” on September 15ish. International Dot Day coincides with the book The Dot, by Peter H. Reynolds. In the book the main character¸ Vashti, sat in her chair not knowing what to draw in art class. With some encouragement from her art teacher, and with the words of “just make a mark, and see where it takes you”, Vashti was inspired to create many “dot” paintings. The students used this same inspiration to help them create their own dot for a hallway display.
The students are currently working on some great autumn inspired art work. Stay tuned to the hallways to see their creations!
Please follow me @grundyartroom on Twitter and Instagram.
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News from the gym....
· This year, Grundy welcomes Mr. Murphy to our physical education program. Mr. Murphy is a student teacher from Hofstra University and he will be working with all students through October.
· Grundy Physical Education is off to a good start! All grade levels are quickly learning the class routines and warm up exercises. Our beginning strength exercises have been up-planks and curl-ups. Whenever possible, we encourage students to continue their strength exercises at home.
· K thru 2 classes are currently participating in a “Chasing & Fleeing” unit. Focus has been on safety, teamwork, cooperation, locomotor skills, and spatial awareness.
· 3 thru 5 classes are starting a soccer unit. So far we have introduced control dribbling, sole trapping, pull backs, and two-touch passing. As the unit progresses, students will be moving into small sided soccer games.
News from the Math room....
TEASE YOUR BRAIN!!!
Logic games and logic puzzles are a great way to support the development of a growth mindset. Developing a growth mindset is an essential part of our jobs as educators. We have a responsibility to teach our students how to persevere through difficult problems, and how to manage the frustrations of “not knowing the answer.”
While perseverance is something we work on throughout our day, one of my favorite way to develop a growth mindset is through logic games and logic puzzles. It is a great way to develop visual-spatial skills while students work through each challenge.
Games such as Rush Hour, Rubik’s Race, Temple Connection, Laser Maze, and Gravity Maze to name a few, help develop parts of mathematical thinking that are too often overlooked. I encourage you to find time in your daily/weekly schedules to include opportunities for your children to develop their logical thinking skills.
Project Based Learning
Grundy Avenue School
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Website: www.sachem.edu/Grundy
Location: 950 Grundy Avenue, Holbrook, NY, USA
Phone: 631-471-1820
Facebook: facebook.com/GrundyAvenueElementarySchool
Twitter: @GrundyAve