Blog

I’m so angry I made a sign

Posted on by Chris Robertson

At 10:00am today, the Middle School students exited the school and spilled into the front parking lot.  Dressed in bright orange shirts, some with orange headbands wrapped around their heads, they formed an amoeba-like line.  Carrying signs of protest, they began to march around the perimeter of the campus.  The energy was a mixture of nervous excitement – this was a new experience and they were doing it together.

After walking around the campus, they made their way to the front of the school and stood in a line facing route 25.   As cars passed, some beeped in support, others sped by.  After a few minutes, the students gathered in a circle around the metal tree sculpture for a moment of silence.  As the students were about to enter the building, I asked them to stop and took the picture you see above.  The variety of signs were both creative and clever.  A heavy wind began to blow and shivered one student’s sign – I am so angry I made a sign.  If the adults aren’t willing to take action, the young people will.  Its time for adults to listen.

Lower Elementary – Eli Whitney Museum Trip

Posted on by Karen Sankey

We enjoyed our field trip to the Eli Whitney Museum this week. We learned about magnetism and ecosystems. The children got to use their hands and their creativity to make a magnet project while learning about the ecosystem of a butterfly. They learned what butterflies need to survive as well as the dangers to them, including predators, loss of habitat, and insecticides. The children learned how magnets work; magnetic fields, and the opposing ends of a magnet. They made their pendulums work by turning the magnets over to make the predator, city, and insecticide repel and the flower garden attract the butterfly. We had a wonderful trip. It is always great to experience learning outside the walls of our classroom. Thank you very much to David, Liz, Magda, and Jenna for accompanying us on this trip. Your help is much appreciated!

Ms. Stephanie: Yoga and Matching Work

Posted on by Stephanie Thomas

Wilder’s mom, Elle Nicholson, visited our environment last week to provide a wonderful yoga experience for the children. Elle first captured the children’s interest with a book about yoga and then modeled several poses for the children. The children were so excited to participate and show off their moves! The cat, dog, butterfly, and snake are just a few of the poses they practiced. At the end of their session, Elle gave each child a flower. She warmly encouraged the children to smell their flowers as a way to inhale and exhale deeply. This was a wonderful experience for all of us. Thank you, Elle!

In this week’s pictures, we have a few children showing their matching work. We have six small vehicle figures that have matching cards. The children pick up one vehicle at a time, we discuss its name, purpose, and colors and find its matching card.

We have another matching work in the environment, which is a bit more challenging. We have a small bag filled with different wooden geometric shapes. The children are pulling the shapes out of the bag, naming them if possible, and then matching them to an outline drawing of these shapes.

Middle School: A Week in Review

Posted on by Michelle Lamb

Happy Friday, everyone! Middle School had a full week beginning with a trip to the American Museum of Natural History in Manhattan. Students visited the Hayden Planetarium and viewed their current show, Dark Universe before exploring the museum.

Students also chose new electives for the third trimester! They will be participating in either Scrabble, frisbee golf, or big ball volleyball on F days.

Finally, Middle School prepared for a pizza & salad night before this week’s parent-child night! Cookies were baked, aprons made, and tables were set beforehand. Service was provided by our students and made the night a delicious success. Following the dinner was a lively game of parent-child dodgeball. Who knew the parents were such competitive dodgeball players?! Thank you to all who came to support!

Reminders:

**Science Fair is next Wednesday night, April 25th from 6:30-8pm! 

**Middle School trip forms are due to advisors by April 25th! All are attached to an email sent on Wednesday.

Upper Elementary: Spirit

Posted on by Brian Comstock

This week the play director, Miss Linda came in to work individually with students for the upcoming play, James and The Giant Peach. As we practice songs and lines daily the students become more comfortable with the flow of the play. Mrs. Sankey recently sent out an email requesting parent help for the play. Please lend a hand if possible. We appreciate your help and participation in making the play come together for the students.

On Monday, we celebrated the April birthdays of Julian, Kayla, John Patrick and Morgan with a birthday breakfast.  It’s always a nice treat to share a healthy breakfast and spend time with family and friends as we recognize birthdays to kick off the week! If your child has a birthday in May, be on the lookout for an invitation to join us in the classroom for the May Birthday Breakfast.

Last week we sent home blue packets containing information about our overnight trip to Nature’s Classroom. Please review the information and fill out the forms to be returned to us. If your child does not plan to attend the overnight trip please email me so I can plan accordingly for the cost of transportation.

Ms. Cynthia-Fly Like a Butterfly!

Posted on by Cynthia Wilson

 

On Tuesday the children were surprised by the arrival of our live caterpillars. Each day they get to observe how much the caterpillars have grown and we will watch the metamorphosis of a butterfly. They also get to explore the life cycle through objects and pictures we have available in the environment.

“Fly like a butterfly, fly like a butterfly, fly like a butterfly in the sky. Now get your antennas. What do you see?”

This is the song the children sang while in the butterfly yoga pose. It is a fun and calming pose to do with children. Have them teach it to you!

This week we are finalizing our color mixing exploration. The magic continues as we mix blue and red together! It is so much fun to watch the expressions on their faces as they see the new created color, purple. The children used the red and blue watercolors to make coffee filter butterflies.

Next Wednesday we will continue with the show and tell activity. Please help your child find one purple item that he or she can share.

Favorite Book: The Very Hungry Caterpillar By Eric Carle

Mrs. Santayana: Earth Day, Every Day!

Posted on by Rhodora Santayana

We depend on the Earth for the air we breathe, the food we eat, and the water we drink. The Earth supplies energy to heat and cool our homes, operate factories, and run automobiles. This is why caring for the Earth is so important.

A healthy Earth allows us to live longer and healthier lives. It provides us with beautiful things to see and fun things to do. Taking care of the Earth is everybody’s responsibility.

The children learned that recycling helps keep Earth clean. We can recycle cans, bottles, paper, and plastic. People can make new things from trash, then not as much trash is left on Earth. Plastic yogurt cups can be recycled into toothbrushes and worn out toothbrushes can be recycled to make special plastic such as benches.

As the children now know, “being green” means that you care about the environment and that you do what you can to help the Earth. Recycling paper and cans, reducing waste by helping pick up litter, carrying a lunch bag that can be used over and over, and protecting wildlife are all examples of “green” activities.

Mrs. Carroll’s Class: Like A Butterfly.

Posted on by Cindy Carroll

 

 

 

“Like a butterfly, I am growing and changing and finding my true colors in life. I am finding my wings so I can fly and soon be on my way!” -Unknown

The children are enthralled by the arrival of our caterpillars and are anxious to observe the metamorphosis our butterflies will experience to become the graceful insects we love. From the egg to the caterpillar and the chrysalis to the adult, learning about the lifecycle of a butterfly is exciting. This week we have been busy. Your little entomologists have been learning about metamorphosis on a deeper level, fully involved in watching the process occur. We have entered our first journal entry into the class butterfly journal, recording changes as the children notice them in the habitat. We are learning the new vocabulary words life cycle, chrysalis, and metamorphosis, reading butterfly stories, using butterfly writing prompts, and singing butterfly songs. We will continue to watch and enjoy this amazing metamorphosis…both the butterflies’ and your children’s.

Have a wonderful week,

Cindy & Samantha