Brandt's Quarterly Newsletter
2025-2026: Marking Period 3
See what our amazing scholars were up to during the third marking period!
INSIDE THIS EDITION
- Principal's Message
The awesome happenings in:
- Kindergarten
- First Grade
- Second Grade
- Third Grade
- Fourth Grade
- Fifth Grade
- Science
- CTY
- World Language (Mandarin)
- Physical Education
- Art
- Music
- Best Buddies
Don't forget to check out the:
- Counselor's Corner
- Nurse's Nook
Hello Brandt School Family -
As we celebrate the third marking period, I want to recognize the hard work and dedication shown across our school. From strong academic progress to creative performances and meaningful learning projects, our students and staff continue to make our community proud. This is an important time of year—one where we reflect on our growth while focusing on a strong finish.
Spring has brought a renewed sense of energy into our classrooms. Engaging lessons and creative opportunities are keeping students motivated as they prepare for upcoming assessments, performances, and end-of-year milestones. There is a clear sense of purpose throughout our school, and we remain committed to supporting every student’s success.
As we enter the final stretch, let’s continue to build on this momentum and support one another. The months ahead will be filled with celebrations and memorable moments, and I am grateful for the continued partnership within our school community. I hope you enjoy our latest newsletter.
- Mr. Bartlett
Kindergarten
Spring is in full bloom, and our kindergarteners have been busy little learners! Here's a peek at what we've been working on in class:
ELA: We’ve been diving into reading comprehension by identifying the problem and solution, as well as cause and effect, in fiction stories. When reading nonfiction texts, students have been practicing how to retell facts and understand the difference between fact and opinion. They are also working hard to become strong writers by adding details to their sentences and using temporal words to tell a story. Their writing is really starting to blossom!
Math: In math, we’ve been exploring data in a hands-on way! Students have been taking surveys, recording data on charts and graphs, and sharing their results with the class. We have also been working hard to master counting by 2s, 5s, and 10s. In addition, students have been strengthening their addition and subtraction skills and are even beginning to read and write their own word problems.
Social Studies: We celebrated and learned about Black History Month, Women’s History Month, and Arab American Heritage Month. We also continued learning about families and how we change as we grow. Students learned about the United States and explored important symbols, landmarks, and traditions that make our country special. They engaged in thoughtful discussions and showed great curiosity and respect as we learned about different cultures and histories.
We are so excited for all the things that the end of the year brings. Students are looking forward to our Walking Field trip to watch Encanto, the field trip to LifeTown, Field Day and finally, our moving up ceremony!
First Grade
ELA: Students have been building their literacy skills by exploring different variations of vowels and consonants, with a particular focus on r-controlled vowels. They have also been practicing how to change words from singular to plural, including recognizing and using irregular plural forms. In reading, students are developing their comprehension by using context clues to determine the meanings of words that have multiple definitions. In writing, they have been learning how to create a “How To” paper, carefully working through each step of the writing process to clearly explain a task or procedure.
Math: Students have been developing their math skills by learning how to collect and organize data in meaningful ways. They have been using bar graphs and picture graphs to represent their data and are able to write about their findings, explaining what the information shows. In addition, students have been practicing how to read graphs and compare numbers to better understand relationships within the data. First graders also celebrated the 100th day of school with engaging activities centered around the number 100, helping to reinforce number sense in a fun and memorable way.
Social Studies: Students explored the lives and contributions of influential figures in history in celebration of Black History Month in February and Women’s History Month in March. They also learned about the Olympics, gaining an understanding of its history, traditions, and the values of teamwork and perseverance. As part of the school-wide March Madness activities, students enjoyed learning about different colleges and showed their school spirit by creating and decorating their classroom doors to support their assigned teams during the basketball tournament.
Second Grade
ELA Reading: This marking period, students took a deep dive into Realistic Fiction to start thinking about main characters and their traits. We compared how characters change throughout a story and discussed problems and solutions in deeper detail. Students also continued to focus on a story’s setting and how it can change over the course of the book or story! We also continued to use text evidence in our comprehension responses and worked on restating our questions to provide deeper details in our answers. Additionally, we continued to work on our skills in the non-fiction genre. We looked at text features like time lines, bold words and headings to help us better understand what we are reading!
ELA Writing: This marking period was a busy one for second grade writers! Students started off the marking period with revisiting personal narratives. The 2nd grade writers moved through the writing process as they wrote stories based on personal experiences. Students started with a brainstorm, then wrote a rough draft, revised and edited and finished up with a final copy! It always feels so good to publish a final draft. After personal narratives, the students moved into our favorite writing piece…realistic fiction!! The 2nd graders took time to explore realistic fiction books before beginning their own. Once they were ready, students brainstormed ideas about characters, settings, and realistic problems/solutions their characters can have. After coming up with an idea, the students went through the writing process again! They wrote rough drafts, revised by adding more detail, edited and then made their final copy. Afterwards they had an author celebration to celebrate their hard work! Being an author is so much fun! We are moving onto Poetry to celebrate National Poetry month and will also explore opinion writing!
Social Studies: This marking period in Social Studies we have been able to focus on a few special months to truly help us understand ourselves, and the world around us. We had Black History Month in February, Women’s History Month in March, and are currently working on understanding and appreciating Autism Awareness Month. We have also had a great time researching different colleges during March Madness and learning how to take some great notes and finding out some great information!
Math: This marking period in Math, 2nd graders dove deeper into math concepts of data collection, analyzing data and measurement. During our data unit, students were able to successfully collect data based on various survey questions and turn the data they collected into a variety of graphs including bar graphs, picture graphs, tally charts and line plots. In our measurement unit, 2nd graders learned how to accurately measure different items using a 12 in ruler. They were also able to differentiate between standard and nonstandard units of measurement. Students also learned how to determine which unit of measurement is most appropriate for measuring certain objects. We had a great time with the hands on and interactive aspects of these units. We also had a great time exploring and analyzing word problems! We thought hard about when our problem had 1 step vs. 2 steps to solve!
Third Grade
ELA: This quarter students in Third Grade took a deep dive into their third grade Reading Wonders curriculum. Through a variety of books and articles, students explored several different themes including: What makes different animals unique? How can one person change the world? What do we know about Earth and its neighbors?
Students will begin their fourth novel study Charlotte's Web by E.B. White. Students will be given an opportunity to study the evolution of E. B. White's Newbery Honor Book. It is a tender novel of friendship, love, life, and death that will continue to be enjoyed by generations to come. It contains illustrations by Garth Williams.
Math: Students also focused on developing ideas about collecting, representing, describing, and interpreting data. Students use bar graphs, pictographs, and line plots to represent, describe, and compare categorical and numerical data. They solved one- and two-step "how many more" and "how many less" problems using information presented in the graphs. Students also generated measurement data in inches, half-inches, feet, and yards.
Social Studies: This quarter students used the provided resources to research and learn about influential African Americans who helped shape our world. Students also explored the amazing Women of History, third grade students learned how those in history created change, helped navigate our society into a more perfect union and how they continue to honor those legacies.
The concepts of this unit helped to promote civic responsibility and help to establish a life-long process of a citizen’s role in their world. Students completed the unit of study understanding the importance of their civic choices and how those choices affect the lives of those around them.
Fourth Grade
ELA: During this marking period in ELA, students continued their exploration of the novel, Wonder, by R.J. Palacio. This heartwarming story follows a young boy with facial differences as he navigates school for the first time in 5th grade. The book teaches essential lessons about kindness, demonstrating how even the smallest act can have a significant impact. This unit emphasizes predicting future events, asking thoughtful questions, and making personal connections, allowing students to develop their comprehension skills as they read.
Throughout this marking period, students have been honing their writing skills by completing LATs, RSTs, and narratives in a timed setting. This practice is essential for mastering various writing styles.
Math: For Math, we started this marking period with fractions and decimals. Students built on their prior knowledge and developed new strategies. They focused on adding and subtracting fractions and practiced converting improper fractions to mixed numbers. Through hands-on activities and problem-solving exercises, students strengthened their ability to compare and analyze fractions and decimals in real-world contexts. They demonstrated tremendous growth by connecting these topics to real-world applications. To reinforce their learning, students completed engaging review sessions by playing Jeopardy, working on task cards, and completing study guides.
We began Unit 4 in the middle of this marking period, which focused on measuring and classifying shapes. Students started by practicing estimating and measuring length using both U.S. standard and metric units. They learned to convert between larger and smaller units while calculating the perimeter of various shapes. As we dove deeper into classifying two-dimensional shapes, students explored polygons and quadrilaterals, specifically distinguishing between squares and rectangles. They learned to identify and classify shapes based on their properties, making connections between different types of figures.
We announced the start of our next unit, Unit 7: How Many Packages and Groups? In this unit, students strengthened their multiplication and division strategies to tackle multi-step word problems involving all four operations. They learned to represent these problems with variable equations and verify their answers using mental math and estimation techniques, such as rounding. A major focus was on multiplying four-digit numbers by one- and two-digit numbers using place value strategies. To make multiplication more engaging, students solved problems through various methods, including arrays, equations, area models, and the box method. We also incorporated hands-on activities and math games to ensure that learning remained fun and interactive!
Social Studies: During this past quarter in Social Studies, we focused on the power of kindness while participating in The Great Kindness Challenge. Students reflected on the importance of friendship and explored various ways to promote kindness within our school community.
Additionally, we began reading about Black historical figures to kick off Black History Month. The principles we explored included Empathy, Diversity, Community & Unity, Collective Value, and Restorative Justice.
As we continued our studies, students explored the growth of English colonies, specifically the New England, Middle, and Southern Colonies. They engaged with videos and readings to gain a deeper understanding of these regions' histories and developments.
In discussions about American independence, students learned about the events that led to the Revolutionary War. They examined the differing priorities of England, the colonies, and Native Americans during this time and predicted the implications of the war's conclusion.
March marked our exploration of Women's History Month, where we discussed significant women throughout history and honored their incredible contributions. Students researched trailblazing female basketball players and showcased their accomplishments through mini-projects, presenting their work with confidence and creativity. They also explored a digital library to read about influential women of their choice.
Additionally, our fourth graders began learning about Autism Acceptance Month. They watched videos on what Autism acceptance means and engaged in discussions about treating all individuals with kindness. Students shared personal experiences and were encouraged to ask questions. We concluded the month with impressive presentations on notable men and women in basketball, celebrating our March Madness Month!
Fifth Grade
ELA: During the third marking period, students began their learning with 10 Days of Abraham Lincoln, where they explored key moments in Lincoln’s life and presidency. Through this text, students focused on skills such as sequencing events, cause and effect, and analyzing how perspective influences decision-making. Students examined important historical events and discussed how Lincoln’s experiences shaped his leadership and the nation’s future.
Students then transitioned to The Watsons Go to Birmingham, a powerful historical fiction novel set during the Civil Rights Movement. Throughout this unit, students analyzed point of view, perspective, character development, and setting, while also identifying major themes such as family, resilience, and tolerance. In addition, students engaged in paired text analysis, comparing the novel to informational and historical texts to deepen their understanding of the time period and strengthen their ability to compare and contrast ideas across multiple sources. These activities supported students in making meaningful connections between literature and real-world events. At the conclusion of the novel, students completed a culminating project to demonstrate their understanding.
In addition to novel studies, students strengthened their writing skills through narrative and expository writing, as well as a Research Simulation Task (RST). In this task, students compared Abraham Lincoln to another U.S. president, using credible sources to analyze and support their ideas. Throughout the marking period, students focused on developing strong thesis statements, organizing their writing, and supporting their responses with clear, text-based evidence.
Math: During the start of Marking Period 3, fifth grade mathematicians completed Unit 6: Between 0 and 1, where they built a strong foundation in decimal concepts. Students explored place value, represented decimals on grids and number lines, and practiced rounding, ordering, and comparing decimals. Through hands-on activities and real-world applications—such as budgeting and calculating costs—students also learned to add and subtract decimals with accuracy and understanding.
Students then moved into Unit 7: Races, Arrays, and Grids, which focused on multiplication and division of fractions and decimals. Students used a variety of models, including arrays, area models, fraction bars, and grids, to deepen their understanding of these operations. They also explored the relationship between multiplication and division, applying these skills to solve multi-step problems and real-world scenarios, including measurement conversions.
Throughout the marking period, students also reviewed and strengthened key skills such as multi-digit multiplication and division, interpreting remainders, and fraction operations. A variety of engaging activities such as games, collaborative problem-solving, and hands-on tasks supported student learning and helped reinforce important concepts.
Social Studies: Fifth grade historians began Marking Period 3 by exploring the events leading up to the Civil War, building a strong foundation of background knowledge. Students examined key topics such as industrialization, regional differences, major compromises and acts, the Election of 1860, and the growing divide between the Union and Confederacy. They analyzed different perspectives during the Antebellum period, including the experiences of various groups, and worked with primary and secondary sources to better understand the causes of the conflict.
As the marking period progressed, students transitioned into studying life during the Civil War, exploring how the war impacted soldiers, women, and people of color. They learned about significant events such as the Battle of Fort Sumter and other major battles, while also examining military strategies, leadership, and daily life during wartime. Through activities such as timeline creation, project-based learning, and source analysis, students developed a deeper understanding of how events were connected and how the war shaped the nation. This progression of learning has prepared students to move into the next unit on Reconstruction and the rebuilding of the United States after the war.
Kindergarten
Our next unit in Science Dimensions focused on on Plants and Animals. We began by studying different systems and how the plants and animals live and survive together. We studied the desert, the forest, the ocean, ponds and modern zoos. We learned about what plants need to live and grow. We started the lesson by reviewing and discussing the differences between living and non-living things. We also talked about what we enjoy most about spring, including seeing more sun, growing flowers or playing outside. We created a poster by adding names and pictures to post-it notes and voting for our favorite.
Our bonus lesson centered on the Artemis II space launch. We talked about what the astronauts were going to do and how long their mission would take. We enjoyed watching the videos posted by NASA and the beautiful close up pictures of the far side of the moon. We wrote some facts in our interactive notebooks and illustrated the moon.
CTY
Over the last few weeks, students in the Gifted and Talented program recently visited the Meadowlands Environment Center to make real-world connections to their Creative Problem Solving Modules (CPSM). Each grade level participated in hands-on, STEM-based activities aligned with at least one unit of study.
Grade 5: students explored solar energy, learning how the Sun influences Earth, weather, and daily life, and observed it safely using special equipment.
Grade 4: students investigated how plants and animals survive through adaptations like movement, protection, and feeding. They engaged in simulations, live animal interactions, and collaborative problem-solving tasks.
Grade 3: students examined how wind and water impact land and structures, using models to understand challenges engineers face.
Grade 2: students studied the salt marsh ecosystem, acting as field biologists to observe and identify living organisms. They also explored how plants and animals depend on one another within a food chain.
The trips provided meaningful, hands-on experiences that deepened students’ understanding across disciplines while fostering inquiry, problem solving, and real-world application aligned to CPSM, NJSLS, and Gifted & Talented learning goals.
World Language
In Mandarin class, the students began the third marking period learning the unit of "Food" and talked about the traditional Chinese food we eat during Lunar New Year. The kindergarten and first grade students were working on the unit of “Colors” as well as reviewing skip counting up to 10,000. They are learning the unit of “Days of the Week”. Second graders started the unit of “Lunar New Year Food”. They learned the vocabulary of common Chinese food and how to order food at a Chinese restaurant. Third graders started the lesson about western food; fourth and fifth graders started the lesson about dessert and drink. They did a great job demonstrating how to order different kinds of desserts and drinks, making feedback and payment in Mandarin.
Next marking period, the students will be working on the unit of “Fruit” and will also learn the culture and the celebration of the Dragon Boat Festival. Fourth and fifth graders will be working on a new project about Chinese culture.
Physical Education
This quarter in Physical Education, students actively developed their skills through a wide variety of engaging and purposeful activities. A strong focus was placed on basketball fundamentals, with students practicing dribbling, passing, and shooting through differentiated instruction tailored to each grade level. Younger students built foundational skills through structured practice, while older students applied these skills in dynamic activities such as Dribble Tag, partner passing drills, and modified gameplay. Even with schedule adjustments, including weather interruptions and assemblies, students remained focused and resilient, demonstrating steady growth in coordination, control, and confidence.
In addition to basketball, students participated in creative and cooperative activities that combined fitness with academic learning and teamwork. Activities such as Fitness Bowling and Human Bowling integrated movement with math, reading, and problem-solving, encouraging students to think critically while staying active. Units in hockey and scooter hockey introduced students to new skills like stick-handling, passing, and spatial awareness, while reinforcing safety and cooperation. Fitness stations, scooter relays, and running games further supported the development of strength, endurance, agility, and overall physical fitness in preparation for the Pacer Test.
Throughout the quarter, Physical Education continued to emphasize not only skill development but also the importance of lifelong health and positive social interaction. Students consistently demonstrated teamwork, perseverance, and sportsmanship while supporting one another in a fun and inclusive environment. These experiences helped build confidence, reinforce healthy habits, and show students that physical activity can be both enjoyable and meaningful. The progress and enthusiasm displayed this quarter reflect a strong foundation for continued growth in both fitness and personal development.
Art
Over the past few weeks the students have been extremely busy working effortlessly on so many contests and posters!
We began with the Earth Day Poster, “Our Planet, Our Future!” Students were asked to design a poster using elements such as reducing, recycling, clean air, no pollution, go green & many more elements of why Earth Day is so important to us. They did such a beautiful job designing these posters and I am so proud of each and every one of them.
We then proceeded with our most favored contest, The PATH poster contest. Students were asked to design a Summer themed poster with the title, “Have a Great Summer! From PATH”. Students chose to design beach pictures, sunsets, fireworks, picnics, flowers, pools, vacations and everything Summer related and why we love it so much. They did a fantastic job and I am excited to find out the results of both these contests! Looking forward to an amazing end of the year with so much more art to come.
Music
Throughout the marking period our K-5 students at Brandt are continuing to add more concepts to their musical toolbox of learning. In Kindergarten, they learned the sound of science and were able to create different types of sound using Groove Pizza.
Our 1st graders focused on melody, tempo and rhythm by using the ever-popular boomwhackers by playing familiar songs such as "Try Everything" from Zootopia, & "Eye of The Tiger" from the rock and roll group Survivor.
In 2nd Grade, our young learners participated in Quaver's Music Madness, a March-Madness style bracket which focused on listening to 16 different songs from Four Corners of the World. Exposing our students to music from different countries expands their minds and makes them think outside the box when celebrating different cultures.
And....as an added bonus, our 4th & 5th grade band students focused on preparing music for the Spring Concert, both @ Brandt and Hoboken Middle School, where our 5th graders got a chance to work the HMS Band and feel what it's like to be a middle school band student.
At Brandt School, music is definitely all around us!
Best Buddies
Our Brandt Best Buddies program is going strong! We've had so much fun having our 4th and 5th grade volunteers collaborate with Mrs. Spadoro's kindergarten class this year. In March, the big kids brought the kindergarten class "pet" Ollie the Octopus into their classrooms to give a sneak peak into being a student in 4th/5th grade. The big kiddos loved sharing their activities with Ollie with their littlest buddies. See the newsletter below for more!
In April, students are working together on an Earth Day service project - cleaning up trash in and around Columbus Park. We're so excited to give back to the community together.
Counselor's Corner
Our school celebrated Read Across America Week in March, a time dedicated to encouraging a love of reading and celebrating the power of books. Students across all grade levels participated in fun literacy activities throughout the week.
One of the highlights was welcoming Officer Spano and Officer Oquendo, who visited our school to read to some of our very lucky kindergarten and 1st grade classes. The students were excited to have special guest readers, and it was a wonderful opportunity to show how reading connects our whole community. The officers did a fantastic job engaging the students and sharing their love of books.
Brandt’s 5th graders kicked off March Madness in the most exciting way—by taking on the staff in a fun-filled game of Knock Out during recess! Students and teachers brought their competitive spirit, teamwork, and lots of energy to the court. It was a fantastic way to build school spirit and celebrate the start of the tournament. We even had a special guest, Dr. Johnson join us this week for the fun!!!
Nurse's Nook
Please see newsletter below!
Warmly,
Cassandra Nuovo, BSN, RN
School Nurse
Joseph F. Brandt. Elementary School
201-356-3697
