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A monthly newsletter for parents
of Joel School Students
April 2008
Dear Parents:
It was great seeing all of you
at conferences last week. While we believe that
frequent parent/teacher communication are an
integral component of student success, there is
something special about sitting with the teacher and
sharing details regarding performance and growth in
the classroom.
You may have noticed that our
students have selected playscape number one for
construction this summer. It is a wonderful plan and
offers activity opportunities for every Joel
student. The new model will be in essentially the
same place as our current playscape but will offer
much more recess fun.
Things are very much on track
with the Clinton Education Foundation’s 3rd
annual golf tournament. It will be at Fox Hopyard
again this June 26th and is proving to be
even better than last year. Of course it is only
spectacular because of your incredible support. We
have brochures on the counter in the office of each
school for both sponsorships and golf registration.
We accept credit cards, cash, checks, livestock, and
bullion. OK, maybe not livestock.
One of the biggest draws at the
tournament is our raffle/auction. Items such as
sports memorabilia, gift certificates, dinner,
product donation, service donation, or tickets to
shows and events were hugely popular in the past. If
you are (or you can convince someone who is) able to
provide us with items of this nature we would be
most appreciative. Last year we raised almost
$10,000 from the raffle/auction alone. Some items of
interest this year include;
·
African Photo Safari for Two
·
Fender guitar autographed by the band
Tower of Power with a special surprise.
·
Complete set of Calloway golf clubs
·
Golf at Yale golf course (Westchester)
·
VIP Passes to Barclays and Deutsche
Bank Championships (Boston)
·
Yankee, Red Sox and Mets tickets
We really need your help to keep this event at a
high level. This year, CEF contributed $20,000 to
the new playscape and offered four grants to staff
generated projects. They also manage the Brett
Renfrew scholarship fund. We couldn’t do it without
you! Any help you can provide will be most
appreciated.
Enjoy the warming weather .
Mr. Jack Gedney
Kindergarten News….April is a
busy month. We are continuing to work on addition
concepts, telling time and money. Guided reading
continues to be a focus with emphasis on reading
strategies.
First graders are wrapping up
non-fiction this month. The kids really seem to
enjoy this genre study. As you peruse the libraries,
try a few. We will be starting the study of
geometric solids (spheres etc...) and fractions this
month as we continue working on subtraction math
facts. Field trips and science workshops will
encompass some of our time this month as the weather
changes and we begin to explore spring. As always
-read, read, and
write a bit each day. Enjoy.
Second graders spent the month
of March exploring beautiful language and poetic
forms to become poets themselves. They experimented
with different forms of poetry as well as learning
to see the world through the eyes of a poet.
Geometry was a focus in math. Students manipulated
and investigated plane shapes and solid shapes and
were exposed to the language and vocabulary of
geometry.
3rd Grade News….The
month of March was a busy one for our third grade
students. Of course we all took the CMT’s without
accident. March was also poetry month. Students have
written many wonderful poems. We ended the month
with a trip to Southern Connecticut State University
to see the play “Charlotte’s Web”. Our students were
well behaved, both on the bus as well as in the
theater.
The Integrated Day 2/3 teachers
Mrs. Flynn and Mrs. Apgar will be beginning their
unit on quilts. This unit addresses geometry,
fractions, symmetry, tessellations, multiplication
and division. Through a wonderful literature study
of the many books regarding quilts and the
Underground Railroad, we also explore social studies
objectives regarding map skills and different
cultures and customs. We will connect this to our
continued International study through different
culture’s stories of the constellations. We will
write stories based on what we learned through these
experiences.
In Kindergarten Spanish, we
have begun a unit on El Hogar (The Home) and
we are starting with foods, such as leche
(milk), agua (water), pan (bread),
manzana (apple), naranja (orange) and
others. We are learning about foods that are eaten
in Spanish-speaking countries, how they can be
different from ours, and how to talk about which
foods we like. We have been singing a song called
Arroz Con Leche, (Rice with Milk!).
In first grade, students have
finished with their unit about the House, and are
now beginning to learn about the rest of la
communidad (Community), beginning with las
professiones (professions), which includes el
granjero (farmer), cartero (mailman),
bombero (fireman) and cocinero (cook).
We will be taking surveys about what people want to
be when they grow up (“¿Qúe quieres ser?”) and
tallying results. Also in both kindergarten and
first grade Spanish we will be making exciting
preparations for la fiesta del Cinco de mayo.
Second Grade students are
continuing to learn about foods and nutrition in
Spanish. They have learned several frutas
(fruits) and traditional foods that come from
Mexico. They have been reading La Oruga Muy
Hambrienta (The Very Hungry Caterpillar)
and are now about to write their own version of the
story. Their orugas (caterpillars) will be
eating Mexican foods instead of frutas as
they make their transformation into beautiful
mariposas (butterflies).
Third Grade and ID students are
continuing their adventure through el bosque
lluvioso (rainforest) in Central America. They
have completed a pasaporte (passport) as they
learned about several Central American countries.
They studied products that are grown in the Central
American rainforest, as well as some animals that
come from that region.
P.E. News……Starting
Monday, April 21st, classes will be
outside (weather permitting). Children should be
dressed appropriately. Sneakers should be
worn for comfort and safety. We will be starting
Frisbee activities followed by track and field. The
Sports-A-Thon for K/1 will be held on May 15th
(rain date May 29th) and for grades 2 and
3 May 21st (rain date May 28th).
Volunteers are still needed. FOJ has sent home a
separate letter with a schedule and contacts. Zip
wire notices will be going home in early May.
What’s Happening in
Music? In music classes we are making many
connections to Poetry Month, spring, rain,
and Earth Day. Poems that the children read
and write can be turned into songs when they create
melodies to sing rather than speak the lyrics.
Poems can also be enhanced with rhythms, melodies,
and sound effects that the children will create
using classroom instruments. We can be inspired to
write a poem when listening to a beautiful piece of
music. Listen to the Rain is a book that
poetically tells us a story about a rainstorm that
starts as a pitter-patter, grows to torrential
downpours, and finishes with sounds of rainwater
dripping and running in gentle streams as the sun
comes out. This lyrical book, evoking the beauty
and the mystery, the sounds and silences of rain,
inspires us to recreate the rainstorm using
classroom instruments.
The students in all grades have
been learning about the Instruments of the
Orchestra. Kindergarten students are introduced
to this body of instruments and learn about the four
families of instruments: string, woodwind,
percussion, and brass. In each grade level,
students advance in understanding of the
instruments, how sound is produced within each
family, the science of sound, and are able to name
instruments by sight and sound. We sing songs about
the instruments and the orchestra, and we listen to
lots of orchestral music, from a great variety of
composers, time periods, and genres. The children
are becoming connoisseurs of great music!
From the Library Media
Center…The media center is always a busy place!
Third grade and ID students have been visiting the
San Diego Zoo website. This is one of the very best
resources for information on animals. We visited the
section “animal bytes” but you can also see video
clips and there is a special kids section. Visit it
with your student. When you are searching for
something with your child on the Internet, use the
Joel School Library catalog to find age appropriate
sites for your child. Go to the Clinton Public
Schools webpage, then to CPS Libraries. When you get
to the Joel catalog, click on WebPath Express. The
sites that come up will note the grade level that
the site is directed to. Using WebPath
Express is a way to be sure your children are using
safe and appropriate sites. Second grade
students had a wonderful time hearing from Linda
Gramatky Smith, daughter of the author of the Little
Toot books. She showed some of his original
illustrations as well as shared how he got his ideas
for the stories. April is “National Poetry Month”.
April 30th we will be celebrating “Poem
in Your Pocket Day”. Everyone in Joel will be
carrying a poem with them to share with anyone who
asks “What’s in your pocket?” We did this 2 years
ago and it was great fun. Poems and pockets will be
available although I’m sure many classes will be
working on poems this month.
From the Art Room…Kindergartners
have examined the expressive qualities of Vincent
Van Gogh's artwork. They designed "vases of flowers"
and painted their designs with a limited palette of
tempera colors. The kindergartners are studying the
changes of the seasons and are working on symbolic
images for each of the four seasons with a
watercolor resist technique. The first graders are
approaching the end of their clay unit. They
created impressive "ocean" clay pictures combining
the three methods of hand building. They will be
glazing soon and will bring home their clay pieces
as soon as they are glaze fired. The second graders
are studying the architectural design of medieval
castles. They will soon begin a castle design made
from a clay slab incorporating some stamped, carved
and pierced design elements. The third graders have
"practiced" their hand building techniques and will
begin a unit of "Pop Art" design. They will be
sculpting their favorite food out of clay using
coils and slabs.
Sensitive issue…but critically important!
In an effort to maintain our
Custody Papers Book in an up to date fashion, please
inform us of any changes that have occurred since
the beginning of school. We understand that
situations change over time and our goal of
protecting children is always paramount. If you have
any court ordered custody restrictions that are new,
or have expired since September, please give Mrs.
Irmscher a call or send in the new documents.
SPORTS-A-THON
SCHEDULE 2008
Kindergarten / Grade
1 Thursday May 15 (Rain date 5/29)
9:00 – 10:15 -
Termine, Weisslender, Ragonese, Rebuzzini, Bruch,
Damiano
10:30 – 11:45 -
Wind, Evarts, Amato, McCormack, Kersten, Law
1:15 – 2:30 - Dunn,
Corrone, Pluck, Reynolds, Shaw
Grade 2 & 3 Wednesday
May 21 (Rain date 5/28)
9:00 – 10:15 -
Powers, Apgar, Abbatello, Verzier, Roman, Wohlke
10:30 – 11:45 –
Bizeau, Cannata, Minick, Shumway, Conderino
1:15 – 2:30 –
Slocombe, Oskwarek, Schmidt, Flynn, Viemeister
Volunteers are
needed. This event can not be held without your
help!
Please call
Christianne Riccio (664-1633) or Amy Carse
(664-4324)
LOST AND FOUND
Parents please check the lost and found. We also
have numerous eye glasses and keys in the office.
Please put your child’s name in the lunch boxes and
coats.
Dates to Remember
4/14 - 18 Spring Recess NO
SCHOOL
4/24 Staff Development –
Students Dismiss at 12:15
5/2 FOJ Crabgrass Puppet
Theatre – 9, 10 & 1:45
5/5 & 5/6 Cinco De Mayo
Celebrations
5/13 Spring Concert, Morgan,
7:00pm
5/15 Sports-A-Thon, Grade K & 1
Rain date 5/29
5/21 Sports-A-Thon, Grade 2 & 3
Rain date 5/28
5/21 Traditional 3rd
Grade Spelling Bee
5/22 Staff Development –
Students Dismiss at 12:15
6/11 3rd Grade
Transition visit to Pierson
6/13 Grade 2/3 Awards Assembly
– 2pm - Gym
4/14-4/18 Spring Recess No School
4/24 Early Dismissal 12:15
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updated 4/11/08 |