Connors School Scoop

Dear Connors Families,

This Sunday, September 25th at 10:00 am is our Connors Fall Festival! I hope everyone is able to come and join us for all of the fun!

JOIN US AT THE CONNORS FALL FESTIVAL THIS SUNDAY!

What: Connors Fall Festival, our annual back-to-school family event. Enjoy yummy treats (like donuts and apple cider!), magic by Dr. Magical, crafts, games, music, and even a visit from our Connors Koala mascot! Show your Connors pride with the latest and greatest items from the Swag Sale! And, support the PTO by participating in our amazing raffle with more than $3,000 in prizes (including $50-100 gift certificates to your favorite local businesses + free classes, massages, makeovers, magic lessons, and chiropractor sessions + incredible toys valued at up to $240 each -- check out the photos for a sneak peek!).

Who: All Connors families! (free and no RSVP required)

When: This Sunday, Sept 25 from 10-11:30am

Where: Connors Yard (enter through gate on 2nd Street)

Volunteers: Thank you to those who signed up to help at the event; we appreciate you! Michelle Mazurkiewicz will email you by Friday with important details. If you'd like to help at the event but have not yet signed up, please do so here. Reach out to Michelle Mazurkiewicz with any questions at MichelleAprilMaz@gmail.com.

More info about this event and all things Connors PTO on the PTO Google Site and PTO Facebook Group.

OnCourse

Please check your email to see if you received your login information from Oncourse. Also, for some families, the OnCourse email went directly to their spam folder, so please check there as well. If you still don't see your OnCourse login informaton, please email maritza.ramos@hoboken.k12.nj.us or aishah.tapia@hoboken.k12.nj.us, and they will send you your login information. Here is the link to the OnCourse Connect Parent Login Portal. OnCourse Connect Parent Portal Information This link will field numerous informational guides and also a FAQ. At this time, a welcome email has been sent to all parents/guardians, which includes your username/password login credentials. *Parents/Guardians can log in by visiting our website and selecting district log options " Oncourse Connect Parent/ Student Login Portal. Also, students have access to OnCourse connect and are able to sign on via single sign on option at this time.

Technology Chromebook Insurance

As a friendly reminder, chromebook insurance expires each year and you will need to renew it on a yearly basis. Please make sure that your chromebook insurance is up to date. Chromebook Insurance If your child's chromebook is broken, please fill out Hoboken Public School Technology Help Request for Parents, Guardians and Students Chromebook insurance is of no cost to children who receive free or reduced lunch.

Vote on our Koala Mascot Name

Please vote for our Koala Mascot Name based upon the top suggestions from our students, faculty and families. https://forms.gle/B63aoZVEeFWN9eFd7. Voting has been extended to September 30th.

Hispanic Heritage Month

This week for Hispanic Heritage Month, Ms. Olivia Rodriguez, one of our Connors parents led Hispanic Heritage Dancing in every homeroom at Connors! Our students had an incredible time! Thank you so much Ms. Rodriguez. If you would like to help lead some of our Hispanic Heritage acitivities at Connors, please email Lillian Colon and Olivia Rodriguez, two of our incredible Connors parents! lilliancolon79@yahoo.com and livirodriguez15@gmail.com

Connors PTO Class Liaisons

Please look out for the email from me with the information for your class PTO Liaison. Class social get-togethers are being organized by the parents of each class throughout the month of September.

Lunch

If you are ordering lunch for your child, please make sure that it is a choice that your child likes. If you would like school lunch, it is very important that you place your child's lunch order in advance. Here is the lunch order form for next week, (week 4), 9/27-9/30. September 27th-30th Lunch Order Form Each day, we offer a vegetarian option. Lunch is $3.75 per day per child and breakfast is $2.00 per day, however it is at no cost for all students who qualify for free or reduced lunch. Here is the detailed lunch and breakfast menu from Chartwells, which has all of the nutritional information. https://hoboken.nutrislice.com/menus-eula. Here is the At a Glance Breakfast Menu and the At a Glance Lunch Menu September. The week of 9/27-9/30 is "Week 4" on the menu.

Pay Schools Account

In order to pay for school lunch, please ensure that you made a Pay Schools Account. Use the link below for the instructions that will walk you through the process of making a payschools account. https://www.hoboken.k12.nj.us/district_resources/food_services. In order to set up your payschools account, you will need your child's student ID. You can find your child's student ID in your child's email address. Example firstlast12345678@hoboken.k12.nj.us. The numbers in your child's email address is their student ID. In addition, you can login to Oncourse and find your child's student ID. The directions to login to oncourse are below.

Lunch Applications

Lunch Applications for the 2022-2023 school year were sent home with each child on the first day of school. We kindly ask that ALL parents fill out a lunch application, regardless of income. If you do not want to apply for the free lunch program and prefer to not list your income, please make sure to fill out Steps 1, 2 and 4 note that you are not interested in the free lunch program on the lunch application. Please return the lunch application to your child's homeroom teacher.

https://www.hoboken.k12.nj.us/district_resources/food_services.

Attendance:

If your child will be absent from school, please email connorsattendance@hoboken.k12.nj.us along w/ your child’s homeroom teacher with the following information:

• Child’s Name

• Reason for absence

• Date of expected return

• Any documentation for your child’s absence (i.e. doctor’s note, court note, etc.)

Early Pick-Up

If you are picking up your child early from school, please Email connorsattendance@hoboken.k12.nj.us along w/ your child’s homeroom teacher with the following information by 10:00 am.

• Time that you will be picking up your child

• Who will be picking up your child. Make sure that whoever is picking up your child is listed on your child’s approved pick-up list. Connors Parent/Student Information Form 2022-2023

• Parents will not be able to sign children out between 2:30 and 3:00 PM. After 2:30 PM, you must wait until regular dismissal time.

Technology Assistance

This link can help you address some of the frequently asked technology questions during the first weeks of school, Hoboken Public Schools Parent Tech Site.

https://sites.google.com/hoboken.k12.nj.us/guardians/home

Additional helpful sites/links

Hoboken Public School District Calendar 2022-2023

Connors Calendar of Events 2022-2023

T.G Connors School Directory 2022-2023

Connors Team 2022-2023

Who should I contact for assistance?

Connors Family Manual, FAQ's Connors Elementary School 2022-2023.

Connors PTO Google Site

2022-2023 District Assessment Calendar and Information to Parents

Important Upcoming Dates:

• September 15th-October 15th-Hispanic Heritage Month
• September 25th @ 10:00-11:30 am- Connors Fall Festival
• September 26th-Rosh Hashana, School Closed
• October 3rd-7th Week of Respect Activities T.G. Connors School WEEK OF RESPECT

We make it our priority to partner with parents in the academic growth and success of every child. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to contact us. Happy New Year to our Connors families that celebrate Rosh Hashana. Looking forward to seeing all of our Connors families on Sunday for our Fall Festival!

All the best,

Juliana Addi, Connors School Principal

Thursday the 22nd we had the pleasure of having Ms. Olivia Rodriguez come into all the homerooms and teach the students some steps from 3 different Latin dances; Salsa, Bachata and Merengue.

Students got to learn some salsa which is a dance that originates from Cuba and got popularized in New York in the 1960's. It is high energy and rhythmic dance, the students learned variations of the 3 step combo and got to put them together and form a little salsa "routine".

Bachata, a style of dance that originates from Dominican Republic is a little softer than the salsa. It This style is danced with soft hip motions, turns and side-to-side footwork in a 4 beat rhythm. Students learned the basic step, together, step, touch base of bachata and when that was mastered they even threw in their own spins!

Merengue, being the easiest dance of the 3 is the national dance of the Dominican Republic and is also important to national identity in the country. It is a type of danced walk most compared to marching as it is only two steps. Ms. Rodriguez taught students how to do this by having them transfer their weight from on foot to the other!

Can you guess the dance?

Connors parents and guardians had an incredible time at our Back-to-School Night "After Party". They celebrated the new school year as they got together with old friends and made new ones.

Dear Hoboken Community,

In honor of Veterans Day, the Hoboken High School Student Government would like to invite you to participate in a special program to honor our heroes. The front of our beautiful John F. Kennedy Stadium will be decorated with American Flags. Each flag will represent and honor members of our Armed Forces, past and present.

Please consider honoring these great men and women by purchasing a flag for their service. Each flag costs $5.00 and will represent an honoree for their service.

To honor a hero, fill out the form and return it along with your donation in the form of a check or money order made out to: Hoboken HS Student Council. The cost is $5.00 a flag.

All forms must be completed and returned by Friday, October 28, 2022.

Thank you very much for your support of our Hoboken Heroes.

Christopher Munoz

Hoboken HS Student Activities Coordinator

Mail to: Hoboken High School

Attn: Christopher Munoz, Student Council

800 Clinton Street

Hoboken, NJ 07030

On Saturday 9/17/22 the Hoboken Board of Education hosted its second annual soccer clinic at JFK stadium. Approximately 75 students from all over the city of Hoboken from ages 6-13 were able to develop their soccer skills. The students were able to practice dribbling, passing, shooting, game scrimmages and learn the skill of being a goalie. A special thank you to our Head Boys Soccer Coach Andrew Paredes and our Assistant Girls Soccer Coach Christine Caradonio for recruiting their High School and Middle School players to assist our campers with this clinic.

We hope everyone was able to enjoy a great day and we look forward to hosting this again next season.

Ms. Fleischer, Ms. Watson, Mrs. Schain, Ms. Bartolotti, Mrs. White, Ms. Romanowski and Mr. Donovan

Math:

This week in math we continued working on numbers, quantity and counting. Students are learning the calendar routine, writing numbers, and sorting math manipulatives around the classroom. They enjoy completing the number color by the code word puzzles during independent practice in order to follow single step directions.

Social Studies:

Students are continuing to grow their knowledge on communities. Students have been focusing on EMTs’, Doctors’, and Nurses this past week. We are learning that each member plays an important role in keeping our community safe. We are still tying in the importance of Police Officers and Firemen. Students understand that these community helpers are related to one another, but they also have individual roles. Throughout the course of the school year we will continue to grow our classroom community by learning about one another and working together to complete tasks.

Writers Workshop:

This week in kindergarten we focused on making a book for our parents for back to school night. The students brainstormed different things that were their “favorite”. We then drew a picture and labeled what we drew. The students' books had their favorite color, food, TV show, outfit, subject, book, and activity. The rest of the week we focused on our essential question, “Who is in your family”. The students worked in their reading wonders workbooks. We discussed and drew who was in our family, things we do with our family, and places we go with our family.

Readers Workshop:

It has been another fantastic week in Kindergarten. This week in Reader's Workshop, students read the story Fun Together. While reading, students identified the sight word of the week can. Students then challenged themselves and used both sight words, I and can, in a sentence. Kindergarteners also focused on the letters Ii, Jj, Kk, Ll, Mm, Nn, Oo, Pp, Qq, & Rr. The children practiced writing their letters, saying the sound for each letter, and even identifying a few words that began with each letter. We are so excited for next week to begin our final week of Smart Start! Keep up the phenomenal work, Kindergarten Friends!

Science:

We had a great week in science! We began the week by reviewing various structures and their functions. It is amazing to hear our kindergarten students using these vocabulary words as they identify objects around the classroom and school. We also turned it into a quiz game. For example, what are two objects in the kitchen with the same function but have different structures? A fork and a spoon!

After listening to the story, The Three Little Pigs, we discussed the properties of the materials used to build each type of house. Kindergarteners have been working in small groups to build models of each type of house from the story: brick, stick, and straw. We will then test the strength of each house as the big, bad wolf huffs, puffs, and tries to blow each house down! Check out the photos below!

Ms. Sheridan, Ms. Klag, Ms. Vayda, Mrs. White and Ms. Stinson

ELA Readers' Workshop:

This week our essential question was, "What can you imagine?" Students listened to fairy tale stories such as, "Jack and the Beanstalk" and "The Three Billy Goats Gruff." In our reading/writing workbook, students drew pictures and wrote what makes a fairy tale. Some of their drawings included giants, golden eggs, once upon a time, and castles. We also used graphic organizers to help us retell the stories with key details. Students reviewed sounds and blends for the following letters (c, f,o,d,h,s,e,b,i,ll).

ELA Writers' Workshop:

To go along with our essential question, students used their imagination to write about their own magic bean. Everyone was very creative and did a great job practicing editing their sentences using CUPS (capitalization, understanding, punctuation, spelling). We also practiced writing about our favorite part of a story and explaining why in complete sentences.

MATH:

This week during Math, first grade students continued to work in small groups learning all about ten frames, adding 1 or 2 more and using math talk to explain their thinking. Students worked with partners to cover a number that is 1 or 2 more than a given number on a card. Students were challenged by using "wild cards" to choose a number that would help them complete a row on a gameboard. Students continue to learn how to work in small groups, rotating to different math activities which include completing IXL and working closely with their teachers at the guided math table.

Social Studies:

This week in social studies we started to do our article of the day. We read a nonfiction article to the students and then as a class discussed all the interesting facts we learned. The students wrote one fact that they learned in their book of knowledge notebook. They also illustrated a picture to go along with their writing. They did an awesome job with this! We also are continuing our chapter about families. We discussed the different responsibilities each family member has in our homes.

Fabulous First Grade Family:
First graders have been doing so well staying organized and taking care of their school materials! The first grade desk fairies have come to all our rooms and left special surprises for all our students!!

Ms. Garcia, Ms. Rinaldi, Ms. Eakin, Ms. Criqui and Ms. Romanowski

ELA:

This week in ELA, students completed their Orton Gillingham phonics assessments. This included a sounds assessment and spelling assessment. For the sounds assessments, the teacher dictated a sound and students had to write the letter that made that sound on a line. Since there were 36 sounds, this assessment was broken into two segments to allow students to have a break. During the spelling assessment, the teacher dictated a real or nonsense word and the students had to spell it. Since this assessment was a little longer, it was also broken into small chunks. After the assessments, students studied words that contain the short a and short i sounds. Additionally, as a group, we read the book “Big Red Lollipop.” Afterwards, the students identified the characters, settings and some events in the story. The teacher modeled how to identify these elements by using a different story. Then the students worked in a group so they could all help each other in order to come up with the elements.

Math:

This week in math, students explored using different manipulatives, such as connecting cubes and pattern shapes, in order to count to 50 and make different shapes! The students also began to identify the name and value of coins. Each student was given their own coins so they could feel and observe them. In order to help them with remembering the name and value of the coins, the students and teacher made up a song that included some hand movements to make it more multisensory.

Social Studies:

This week in social studies, we finished going over the remaining "Kid for Character" traits. We started off every lesson by saying our "Kid for Character" pledge as a class. Each day, we read a read-aloud about a different character trait. After that, we completed an activity about the character trait of the day. We ended the week by recapping all of our "Kid for Character" traits and discussing how it is up to each one of us to always be a "Kid for Character".

On Thursday, we had two very special class visitors come to our rooms. First, we had Ms. Olivia Rodriguez teach us how to dance merengue and salsa in honor of Hispanic Heritage month! We ended our dance lesson by doing the Macarena, and playing freeze dance. We had such a great time learning with Ms. Rodriguez! Our second visitor was Officer Anthony Feskin. He came to teach our class all about pedestrian safety. We were such great listeners, so Officer Feskin gave us a pencil and a safety coloring book to take home! Thank you to both of our class visitors. We had a great time learning with you!

Science:

We had a great week in science! Students continued to learn about properties of matter and focused on color, texture, and flexibility. We practiced identifying the properties of different objects in the classroom by completing a scavenger hunt.

After observing and sketching toy monster trucks, we even had some fun racing the monster trucks in the science lab. The enthusiasm by the students was awesome!

Ms. Januse, Ms. Hall, Ms. Schmidt, Mrs. White, Ms.Criqui, Ms. Layson,

Ms. Goodwin and Ms. Stinson

Math:

This week in Math, students continued their work with skip counting. We skip counted and created charts for 2s, 3s, 5s, and 6s. While creating our charts, students were asked to identify patterns in order to look at the relationship between certain numbers. Students found that both 2s and 4s shared multiples as well as 3s and 6s. Students were able to describe and compare characteristics of sets of multiples in order to understand that doubling or halving one factor in a multiplication expression doubles or halves the product.

Social Studies:

This week students compared and contrasted maps and globes in order to get a better understanding of our world! We learned about the seven continents and the five oceans. We also learned map elements such as map keys, map scales, lines of longitude and latitude, and our cardinal directions. Students were able to explore these concepts using the curriculum's hands-on resources, including desk maps and globes.

Third Grade Thrills:

This week third graders became non-fiction authors! They created an all about me resource using non-fiction text features, a skill that we are learning in both social studies and ELA. Students created maps, graphs, diagrams, glossaries, tables of contents, and more. It was so fun getting to know each other, while also demonstrating understanding of our new third grade skill!

Third graders also experienced another "thrill" this week... learning the bachata dance! Students celebrated Hispanic Heritage Month by exploring the culture through dance. Thank you Ms. Olivia, mom of third grader Noah, for helping us learn our new moves!

ELA:

The third graders continued to learn a lot this week as we read three more chapters of our Core Novel, Who Was Coretta Scott King? by Gail Herman. Students worked in groups to identify direct evidence in various texts, and then used this skill to improve their RACES responses. Our students also worked together to reread sections of the text and create their own collaborative timeline of Coretta's life. Students continued to use text features to identify relevant information, and then used their newfound expertise to create their own "All About Me" posters using a variety of text features. During writing time, students began learning about personal narratives and are excited to write about their special summer memories.

How to help your 3rd grader at home:

When helping your child with their ELA night writes try a few of these tips! First, orally plan out your child's idea using the RACE graphic organizer provided. Then, have them use post-its to highlight their cited evidence from the story that "shows or proves" their answer/idea. Lastly, you can use the provided sentence starters given to each child by their teacher to assist your child in completing the graphic organizer. See photo below for reference!

Science:

In Ms. Stinson's 3rd grade PLTW class we have begun our unit on Motion and Stability. Here you can see these amazing 3rd graders setting up their launch logs in preparation for their first set of science vocabulary words. We will need to know these words before we start to read our first story "Save the Tiger". I absolutely love how eager and organized my Fabulous 3rd graders are!

Ms. Rodriguez, Ms. Schulz, Ms. Arciero, Ms. Goodwin, Ms. Layson and Mr. Donovan

ELA:

Phenomenal 4th Graders strengthened their non-fiction reading skills by focusing on expository texts about natural disasters and processes that change the earth's surface. Students analyzed headings and diagrams, compared information, and practiced the reread strategy to find text evidence. They enjoyed working with groups again, and are developing their discussion skills.

Math:

This week in Math, the Phenomenal 4th Graders continued their study in our first math unit- Arrays, Factors, and Multiplicative Comparisons. Students continued discussions of arrays, learned new vocabulary, and challenged themselves to solve multiplicative comparison problems. They continued with activities of playing Factor Pairs & Multiple Turn Over with their peers.

Social Studies:

This week in Social Studies, the Phenomenal 4th Graders learned about Cesar Chavez for Hispanic Heritage Month. They continued research on this topic as they researched Hispanic Influencers and foods. Students will work on various projects and presentations throughout the month.

How to help your 4th grader at home:

In math students are continuing to build upon their knowledge of multiplication and arrays. It is important that you have a consistent routine at home for practicing your child's math facts (addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division). Your child should also continue to practice skip counting at home. Students with the ability to quickly recall math facts will be more successful as they are introduced to more complex problems this school year!

Science:

This week 4th grade students used what they learned about speed and energy to complete the following activity. Students explored the relationship between the speed and energy of an object by assembling a simple model of a pendulum and documenting the changes to the system that can increase or decrease the speed of the object. Changes to the system will include varying the amount of potential energy by altering the mass or initial height of the objects.

Ms. Ortiz, Ms. Schultes, Ms. Pokorny, Ms. Layson and Ms. Hirniak

ELA:

This week, fifth graders continued to practice the following comprehension skills: ask and answer questions and the author's perspective. We dove deeper into the Reading Wonders text, as well as within our novel, Outcasts United. In addition, students practiced long vowels through regular and irregular spelling patterns, and analyzed a student model of an argumentative writing piece. Next week, we will continue to work on our comprehension skills, and start to draft our own argumentative writing pieces!

Math:

This week we took an assessment on the order of operations. Students did a wonderful job. We then shifted into multiplication. Students learned 3 multiplication strategies and added them to our reference binders. We then created Math posters for a multiplication problem where students had to write a story problem, had to create a picture for the problem, and then had to solve the problem either using one of the multiplication strategies we learned or a multiplication strategy they are comfortable with. We also played a math game where students had to multiply multiples of 10 to compare multiplication problems to determine which product is greater and understand that when we are “just adding zeroes” the value of the number changes. Students were able to learn that we can multiply or divide by multiples of tens to increase and decrease the value.

Social Studies:

This week students started Hispanic Heritage Month by going on a scavenger hunt around the classroom. Through the Scavenger hunt, students learned the origins of Hispanic Heritage month and important facts and details. Students then proceeded to pick a Hispanic country and begin a research project on this country. Through the research project students are learning about the foods, the landforms, the currency, the political leaders, and creating maps and flags. This project will be continued and expanded next week.

Science:

This week in 5th grade science we learned about states of matter. We discussed as a class the 3 main states of matter; solids, liquids, and gases. As a class, we examined their properties and determined the shapes and volumes of each of them. Students then worked independently on applying their skills, and tested their knowledge of the different states of matter in their science textbooks.

This week was especially cool as we started our core novels! Students have been working hard as we begin to read a biography about an important figure in our country. This has lead to great class discussions, and questions! Students also had a great time celebrating Hispanic Heritage month by learning the Salsa! We love how hard students have been working to get our routines down, and make our classrooms feel like home!

On Mondays - Wednesdays during the Individualized Learning Pathway (ILP) period, students who have qualified to participate in the Johns Hopkins Center for Talented Youth (CTY) programming engage in a wide array of verbal course offerings that address their specific strengths and interests. Johns Hopkins CTY believes in researching and advancing ways to identify and nurture academically talented learners. CTY furthers research, guides educators and families and inspires students from diverse communities and backgrounds to pursue their intellectual passions and create the world of tomorrow.

This week, we would like to highlight one of the CTY courses offered to our Hoboken students this fall:

Young Readers Series: Dragon Tales

For centuries, readers have been charmed and enchanted by stories about dragons. This course allows students to join in the fun by reading novels featuring mythical lands and secret mountain caves where fiery dragon battles set the sky ablaze. Some dragons care for their humans while others revolt against their masters, and someone must end the mayhem before it’s too late. In this course, students read three unique narratives that explore humans’ attitudes and connections with dragons, from fear to fascination and friendship. This course will teach students to dig deep to find the similarities and differences between several texts while having fun reading about these captivating mythical creatures!

This Thursday Mini PGP was filled with engaging learning activities and dance moves! To celebrate the beginning of the Hispanic Heritage Month, students learned dance moves and completed a variety of enrichment activities!

GK

Students began working on the Mini Book About Spain, which is one of the Hispanic countries with rich culture and traditions. Students did a great job completing the activity!

G1

Students were introduced to the importance of Hispanic heritage Month and dived into exploring and learning about one of the most iconic Mexican painters, Frida Kahlo. We completed the read a loud about Friday and played a game to test the knowledge buds about Frida's life and her work. Students did an amazing job!

G2

Students were glowing with an excitement after learning that they will be acting out and composing their own play these upcoming months. We looked at the examples of other students' Reader's Theater Presentations and analyzed their performance to better understand the nuances of the presentations and what elements to be on the look out when performing in front of the audience. We will be reading "The Lion and The Mouse" play and dive into the story to analyze the Story Elements that will aid students to create and their own plays later in the Fall semester!

G3

Students began learning about different types of engineers and their jobs. They watched a video about different types of engineers and then completed an activity where they identified if a particular activity is something that is part of an engineer's job. Students voted with thumbs up or down when agreeing or disagreeing with the particular job provided in the activity. This was a great introduction to the role of the engineers in the world. Students had a great time and did a great job!

G4

Students were introduced to the overview of the Mock Trial. Everyone was very excited to learn that they will participate in the Mock Trial and take on the pretend roles of the participants of the court. We began with the vocabulary terms and its meanings to clearly understand the roles of the people that take part in the trials of the Mock Trial. We made a Foldable to record the vocabulary terms. In addition, we watched a brief video model of the Law Fair/Mock Trial done by the 3rd grade and talked about the noticing's and wonderings about the video. We had amazing conversation!

G5

Students have been introduced to sustainability and sustainable development which is an important part of our current society status. They took an Ecological Footprint Quiz where using their prior knowledge they had to calculate the amount of resources they use daily. The results were very interesting to analyze. Students will continue using the Ecological Footprint Quiz to measure and calculate the footprint of other people from the provided educational texts. It was a great start to the Mini PGP in 5th Grade!

This week in PE was a fun one as students focused on aspects of fitness and teamwork. Students participated in the first of 3 PACER tests for the year and had the objective of getting as many laps as possible for the test. Students exceeded my expectations and it was great to see them cheer their classmates on. To finish the week students participated in a fitness based obstacle course race with the goal of scoring more points than other teams. Students showed sportsmanship and teamwork skills throughout the lesson. See you next week!

The week of September 19th was “Music Math” time for some of our younger grades. All music is based on note and rest values. The students are in the process of memorizing what each note and rest looks like and how many beats they are worth. In the 2nd grade the students practiced drawing all of the various notes and rest, while in the 3rd grade they answered some pretty complex note and rest mathematical equations.

In Ms. Rinaldi’s class the students drew all of the various notes and rests used in western music. Visual recognition of music notation and learning how to draw the notation will get them ready to be able to memorize their time and space values. Here is Lucas Appell showing the class how to draw a half note rest. Perfect Lucas!

In Ms. Schmidt’s class, the students answered various “Music Math” equations about note and rest values. Some included addition and subtraction within the same question. This skill is extremely important in order to learn how to play the recorder. The students must be fluent in reading time values. Without this knowledge they will not be able to play as a band. Don’t worry, they are making major progress and will be ready come winter time when they will receive their recorders! Here is Ms. Schmidt’s class holding up their answers to a long “Music Math” equation on the slate boards!

This week theatre started the planning and creating process of devised theatre. Devised theatre is the adaptation or creation of a script. Students answered questions about themselves and the future of this world in order to set up our playwrights next week. Next week we will be splitting into different creative teams to work on every aspect of our end of the marking period showcase!

Our kindergarten and 1st grade friends learned about The Dot this week in art class for International Dot Day! We listened to the story of Vashti who disliked art class because she was convinced she couldn't draw. Her teacher encouraged her to begin with a simple dot and her creativity soared. We talked about how it's okay to be angry with your art and feel frustrated - Sometimes all you need to do is take a break. Coming back to our work with a fresh perspective can help our creativity! We created colorful dots using oil pastels, crayons, and paint. After we completed our dots, we gave our art a nice *chefs kiss* and admired our hard work.

Comic Book Creation:
This week children talked about creating characters and different traits they’d like them to have: such as “kind” “help people” “be tall”, and sketched their signature character. The class learned about Manga comics, that were created in Japan, and means fanciful pictures. Children started creating their own Manga comic strip, using how-to-draw sheets as a guide. All their creativity was placed in their respective portfolios, to be presented at the end of this class. It’s so encouraging to hear how much they love to draw, and take to each lesson with such enthusiasm. On Wednesday we will work on character personality development.

Hip-Hop:

This week in class we continued with our warm up and stretches. We added some across the floor exercises. We are working on learning skills that will eventually be incorporated into our dance. Miss TK

Dance Academy:

Here is what we were up to in Dance last week!

Tuesday-

We warmed up and did across the floor. Students learned kicks and grapevines. Then we played a game to end class.

Thursday-

We played a game where they each came up with their own dance move and we put it together into a routine. Then we stretched and did some across the floor, working of the skills we learned in the previous class. Miss Sarah and Miss Claire

Email: juliana.addi@hoboken.k12.nj.us
Website: http://www.hoboken.k12.nj.us
Location: 201 Monroe Street, Hoboken, NJ, USA
Phone: 201-356-3684