Eddie Lezcano & Lindsay Smith
Transcription
Eddie Lezcano & Lindsay Smith
Washington Street School PTA 760 Washington Street Franklin Square, New York 11010 Nassau Region, New York State Congress of Parents and Teachers, Inc. – Branch of the National (516) 481-4100 Volume 67, Issue 3 Spring 2015 Eddie Lezcano & Lindsay Smith Spring is in the air and I am certain that we are all glad to be putting the cold weather behind us, at least for the time being. Olaf had the right idea! With that said we would like to thank Patricia Gatto, Raffaela Flaherty and Grace Candela for once again putting together a great week of book buying for the kids and an awesome family fun night with an “Under the Sea” theme which included Live fish. The kids loved it….some parents, eh, not so much, but the line was out the door. This year’s Reflections Awards Ceremony was standing room only and we are all very proud of our award recipients. Thank you to Lisa and Tom Carmody for putting together this great event that left us all beaming with pride. A big thank you also goes out to Lisa Viti for the great success of our annual Blood Drive. The importance of refilling the blood banks cannot be stressed enough. Bowling was once again a fun-filled night masterfully coordinated by Carmela Schneider and Lori Ann Wakely. Thank you so much for giving us a great night of fun with friends. Fifth grade sports night was yet another widely enjoyed night of friendly competition. Thank you to Lisa Viti for putting this event together and making it fun for all. Lastly, a special thanks for our nominating committee, Andrea Poltorzycki, Bridget Stavola, Patricia Gatto, Karen Bruno and Kevin Mahoney for organizing our slate for the 2015/2016 school year. And election will be held at our April PTA meeting to vote on the slate of officers nominated: 1st VP: Kristen Gaboury 2nd VP: Bridget Stavola 3rd VP: Stephen Toto 5th VP: Zohra Asrar Recording Secretary: Carmela Schneider Treasurer: Open If you'd like to run for any of these positions, please submit your letter of intent to the nominating committee by April 18th. You can place it in an envelope in the PTA Inbox addressed to Nomination Committee. An election will be held to include any new nominations from the floor at that time. Please keep an eye out for these upcoming events: Career Day, Plant Sale and Field Day, and be sure to attend our next meeting on Monday, April 20th at 7:00pm in the multipurpose room. Enjoy your Spring and thank you for all your support! Eddie Lezcano & Lindsay Smith 1 PTA Executive Board 2014-2015 Co-Presidents Eddie Lezcano Lindsay Smith 1st Vice President Carmela Schneider Dates to Remember Spring Recess: School Closed nd th Thursday, April 2 – Friday, April 10 PTA General Meeting th Monday, April 20 at 7:00pm SEPTA Meeting th Monday, April 27 at 7:30pm th nd 2 Vice President (Grade Reps) Patty Wichern rd 3 Vice President (Membership) Jean Camuti 4th Vice President (Fundraising) Laura Andriola 5th Vice President (Historian) Joanie Acierno Interschool 6 Grade Meet & Greet st Friday, May 1 , 7-9pm at WSS Mother’s Day Plant Sale th Friday, May 8 Budget Vote th Tuesday, May 19 8-9am Spring Concert th Tuesday, May 19 at 7:00pm Superintendent’s Conference Day: School closed for students nd Friday, May 22 Recording Secretary Eileen Govaert Memorial Day: School Closed th Monday, May 25 Corresponding Secretary LoriAnn Wakely Career Day/PTA Installation th Friday May 28 Treasurer Kristen Gaboury Council Delegates Lisa Carmody Mary Ann Pelzer Michelle Schneider PTA vs. Staff Volleyball Game nd Tuesday, June 2 PTA General Meeting th Tuesday, June 9 at 9:15am Field Day th th Tuesday, June 16 (raindate, Weds June 17 ) th Honorary Vice Presidents Ms. Valerie Mazzone Mr. John Stella Teacher Representative Reinette Krajci Editor, PTA Pointer Ashley Garcia [email protected] WSS 6 Grade Graduation Half Day for students in all grades rd Tuesday, June 23 Report Cards Distributed Half day for students in all grades th Wednesday, June 24 This newsletter is paid for with PTA funds. It is printed twice per year and published twice a year on our school website: wss.franklinsquare.k12.us 2 A Word From Our Principal Ms. Valerie Mazzone To the WSS Community, Standardized tests are a fact of life for America’s schoolchildren. New York State Tests in ELA and Math for students in grades 3-6 and Science for students in grade 4 are scheduled for April. Please check the school calendar for specific testing dates. Here is some important information that will help them and you survive and succeed during testing time. Encourage, don’t pressure. Encourage your children to do their best, but avoid putting on the pressure. Too much pressure can cause test anxiety and lead to worse, not better, scores. Understand that standardized tests are just one way schools measure a child’s ability. Give them “brain food.” Give your children a healthy breakfast the morning of a big test-and remember that good nutrition fuels brains year-round. Food high in fat or sugar doesn’t provide the nutrients children need to do their best. Put them to bed. Sleepy children have a tough time succeeding academically. It’s particularly important for your children to get a good night’s sleep the night before a big test. For most elementary school children, 10 hours of sleep every night is best. Help them prepare. Make sure your children have the supplies they need for the test. These could range from sharpened #2 pencils with erasers to calculators and dictionaries. Help your children understand these very important tips: Pay attention. Stress that they will need to listen to the testing instructions very closely and follow the written directions exactly. Don’t rush to finish. Make sure they use any extra time to check their answers and complete any questions they left blank. Keep track of the “bubbles.” Remind them that it’s very important to make sure they’re at the right place on their answer sheet. It’s easy for children to lose track, especially if they’ve skipped a question. Suggest that they double-check every five or 10 questions, making sure that the bubble they’re filling it matches the number of the question they’re answering. Skipping is OK. Remind them that they don’t have to answer the questions in order. If they’re unsure about a question, tell them it’s OK to come back to it later. Find the best answer. It’s tempting for children to choose the first answer that looks right. Make sure they understand that several of the answers may seem right, but that they need to choose the one best answer. Aim high. Encourage them to do their best and help them believe that they will do well. I am confident that all of us in this learning community have taken the appropriate steps so that students will perform to best of their ability. Sincerely, Ms. Mazzone 3 From the Nurse’s Office . Cold or allergy: Which is it? I seem to get a cold every spring and fall. I'm wondering if these "colds" are really seasonal allergies. How can I tell? Answer from James M. Steckelberg, M.D. If you tend to get "colds" that develop suddenly and occur at the same time every year, it's possible that you actually have seasonal allergies. Although colds and seasonal allergies may share some of the same symptoms, they are very different diseases. Common colds are caused by viruses, while seasonal allergies are immune system responses triggered by exposure to an allergen. Treatment of a common cold may include rest, pain relievers and over-the-counter cold remedies, such as decongestants. Treatment of seasonal allergies may include over-the-counter or prescription antihistamines, nasal steroid sprays and decongestants, and avoidance of exposure to allergens where possible. Symptom check: Is it a cold or allergy? Symptom Cold Allergy Cough Usually Sometimes General aches and pains Sometimes Never Fatigue Sometimes Sometimes Itchy eyes Rarely Usually Sneezing Usually Usually Sore throat Usually Sometimes Runny nose Usually Usually Stuffy nose Usually Usually Fever Rarely Never Washington Street School Nurses Jeanne Reifler Maria Cooleen BLOOD DRIVE th th On February 26 , our 5 grade students participated in the Long Island Blood Services “Little Doctor Program.” After a presentation from the Long Island Blood Services about the importance of blood donation and how it saves lives, each student was given the task of asking ten people to donate blood. During school they worked on “save the date” flyers, posters and thank you notes. On the day of the event our “Little Doctors” helped greet donors, escort them to waiting areas, hand out refreshments and write special thank you notes. Thank you to all of our donors, “Little Doctors,” 5th grade teachers and volunteers who helped make this drive a success collecting a total of 53 pints of blood! Lisa Viti, 5th Grade Representative 4 SPTA pecBowling ial EEvent vents The WSS PTA Bowling Night was held on Saturday, March 21st. The event was attended by approximately 50 people! Everyone had a great time mingling, munching and of course bowling! We want to thank Doc O’Grady on Nassau Blvd. for donating all the chicken wings to us. Fun prizes were given out for the most gutter balls, most strikes, highest score, lowest score and best couple bowling. If you haven’t been to our annual bowling night you ought to come next year. It’s a fun evening! If you have come in the past thank you for attending and may this be a tradition for years to come. Carmela Schneider & LoriAnn Wakely 5th Grade Sports Night Field Day Our annual 5th grade sports night was held on March 12th in the WSS Gym. Field day will soon be here with lots of fun and games for k-6th graders. 5th grade students and their parent/partner enjoyed an evening of friendly competition of relay activities. The evening was a lot of fun and a wonderful opportunity for students and parents to be together. A volunteer form will be send out shortly. If you are a PTA member and would like to help, please fill out and return the form asap. On behalf of all the participants, a huge thank you to Mr. Boyle and Mr. Brady for officiating and coordinating such a fantastic event. Thank you to all the 5th grade parents who donated their time, drinks and snacks. Your efforts made this night a memorable one for our children. A special thank you to the WSS PTA for providing each 5th grade student with a Class of 2016 Sports Night drawstring bag. Feel free to contact Bridget Stavola with any questions at 516-662-3698 [email protected] Lisa Viti 5th Grade Representative 5 Special Events Plant Sale Spring has sprung and we are gearing up for the annual WSS plant sale! Friday, May 8 in the Multi-purpose room All students will shop with their class at their scheduled time. Plants can be purchased for 2.00 each. We will have many varieties to choose from including vegetables. The PTA will provide plants for the Pre-schoolers. Your PTA is once again happy to provide the children with a reusable WSS tote bag to carry home their plants. We recommend that you please send in a plastic bag and a small shoebox/tissue box to put into the tote bag to help transport your child's plants and get them home safely. The multipurpose room will be open to parents, grandparents and neighbors to shop after school from 3-4pm. We will have a huge selection of hanging baskets, flats, flowers and vegetables. All Preorders are to be picked up at this time. Payment can be cash or check made out to the WSS PTA. Order forms have been sent home and are due back by April 24. Thank you for your cooperation. Put on your green thumbs and we'll see you at the plant sale! Kristine Recine 489-8249 [email protected] Tina Bruchhauser 359-2889 [email protected] Co-chairs Book Fair Our Under the Sea Book Fair held March 24th26th was a huge success! THANK YOU to all who helped set up, clean up, or just give us an hour, we would not have been able to do it without you. We also hope you enjoyed diving into some books, as a family, during our Family Fun Night! Thank You, Raffaela, Patricia & Grace Career Day Career Day will be held on Friday, May 29th. All 5th and 6th Graders at WSS will have an opportunity to attend and participate in various workshops to learn about many different careers. If you are interested in volunteering to support this magnificent event feel free to contact Sue Barberesi at [email protected] or Anabell Rizzo at [email protected] 6 Special Events Box Tops for Education Our winter contest was a amazing! Great Job Everyone! This month our school received a check for $740.10. Mrs. Mihalatos's 4th grade class won an ice cream sundae party for submitting the most box tops, over 70 sheets. Congratulations! Our SPRING CONTEST submissions are due by May 22. The class that submits the most box tops will win a party. CLIP BOX TOPS from 100's of products. ATTACH BOX TOPS in groups of 10 to a collection sheet or in groups of 50 in a Ziploc bags. Remember to include your child's name, grade, and teacher. Please remember to check expiration dates and glue or tape the Box Tops to each sheet. We cannot accept stapled box tops. For additional information log onto www.boxtops4education.com Happy Clipping! Thank you in advance for all of your support. Please feel free to contact one of us if you have any questions. Nominating Committee On March 9th and March 16th the Nominating Committee consisting of Karen Bruno, Patricia Gatto, Kevin Mahoney(absent on March 16th), Andrea Poltorzycki and Bridget Stavola met to come up with a slate of PTA Officers for the 2015-2016 school year. We believe that the people we have nominated will continue to do the wonderful work that out current PTA Executive Committee has been doing. The following people have been nominated: 1st Vice President: Kristen Gaboury 2nd Vice-President: Bridget Stavola 3rd Vice-President: Stephen Toto Fifth Vice-President: Zohra Asrar Treasurer: VACANT Recording Secretary: Carmela Schnedier At our April 20th PTA meeting, additional nominations may be made from the floor provided the written consent of the nominee has been secured and the chair of the nominating committee (Andrea Poltorzycki) has received notice at least two business days prior to the election meeting of the candidate’s intention to run. Thanks to all of you who submitted nomination forms for consideration, and thank you for allowing us to serve on the Nominating Committee this year. Andrea Poltorzycki Pamela Ginex Kristen Acierno [email protected] [email protected] 7 News Around the Grades Kindergarten Happy Spring! The long and cold winter is finally behind us. Kindergarten is looking forward to the return of warm weather. As you look outside and see all of the new growth you can be assured that it is also happening in school. We have published our second writing piece and are looking forward to beginning our next one. We have met all of the Superkids and are enjoying learning about their club. Please continue to read and practice math facts with your children! First Grade As we head into the warmer months, first graders continue to bloom like flowers with their endless quest for knowledge! In our reading series, we are exploring the ideas of daily treasures. We will read and learn about celebrations, family and cultural traditions, and treasures that can be found in artwork, the land, our homes, and our neighborhoods. We’ve begun to use long vowel spelling patterns in our writing. Daily reading at home and school helps to build our comprehension skills. The Superkids are getting big and getting ready for second grade! Just like we are! We have been very busy learning about the adventures the Superkids have when they go camping, have slumber parties, play baseball and visit amusement parks. They have taught us about being a good friend, telling the truth and being helpful. Our sight vocabulary and spelling skills continue to grow. We have learned many new sounds that are TRICKERS. They don’t sound the way we think they should but they don’t trick us.. We are SUPER readers! In math we are mastering the concepts of time and measurement. We can tell time to the hour and ½ hour on analog and digital clocks. We are learning to measure in non standard units. These are skills we will use throughout our lives. We are in the process of creating our “All About Books”. We are selecting topics, developing Second Grade In second grade we have just completed writing our non-fiction books. As part of our Writing Fundamentals Program, second graders have learned about the writing process and demonstrated their passion for a variety of topics. Sunflowers, volcanoes, sports, crayons and storms are some of the topics that intrigued them. We are proud of the results. We are still reading the adventures of the Superkids in our decodable readers. Our literature discussions and lasting lessons are so engaging. Also, our Super Magazine has explored very interesting themes for second graders. Our last theme was "Color Crazy." We read articles that had to do with colors. Did you know that crushed bugs are an ingredient in some foods and even lipsticks? Crushed beetles are used to make a red or pink colored ingredient called carmine. We also learned about pink dolphins, green thumbs and blue jeans. Our Dino Dig was a huge success. The students enjoyed learning about dinosaurs from real paleontologists, digging for fossils, and receiving a fossil to take home. Thank you so much P.T.A. In Science we are learning about matter. In the computer lab we will be doing experiments about solids, liquids and gases. One of our experiments is called "Dancing Particles." We can't wait to find out what that will be about. In Math second graders are learning about money and the very practical skills of identifying and counting coins. Ask your children to show you what they know. This winter has given us so much to write about. Children have used their snow experiences to write some wonderful poems and stories. You can see these displayed on our hallways. That is, until they are replaced by our Spring activities as we begin to experience that much needed Spring weather. 8 News Around the Grades Third Grade Spring is near and third grade has been working like a busy beehive! The students are finishing up their nonfiction writing pieces and are getting ready to celebrate their work. They are proud of the books they’ve created and reflective of how much they’ve learned throughout this unit. In math, the students are beginning to learn about fractions. We have finished our unit on the U.S. government and are now starting to learn about plants. The students are excited to see what they’re learning about come to life, as we get ready for our trip to Clark Botanic Gardens later this month. Third grade attended a presentation this month called “Earth Balloon.” It was wonderful for them to visit the seven continents and meet the animals that live there, without having to leave the comforts of our school. They are excited about what they will be learning next! Fifth Grade Our fifth graders are eagerly embracing the idea that Spring is just around the corner. They are "SPRING" ing into action with many new and fun activities. Our Blood Drive was a success. We are pleased to announce that a total of 63 units were donated. That calculates to a grand total of 189 LIVES SAVED!!! Way to go, WSS! Some of the highlights going on around fifth grade are the Author's Tea Celebrations, Rube Goldberg creations, Reada-thon, and eSparking just to name a few. Let's not forget...Fifth Grade Sports Night on March 12th, 7:00pm! Come out and have some fun! As the New York State tests approach, please continue to study and review your math notes and read every night. Fourth Grade The fourth grade has had an exciting winter! During an in school field trip we journeyed into Native American culture and were immersed in all aspects of life including; food, clothing, shelter, play and work. The students appreciated and celebrated the rich culture of the Native American people. The fourth grade also had a special resident artist teach us how to make bowls similar to those made by Native Americans! A Day in Clay was quite a success. We will also travel back in time as we visit the Old Bethpage Village Restoration in May. In present times, our school community has felt the reality of those who are less fortunate. Through the Souper Bowl, we came together to support our neighbors in need. The generosity of our staff and school family was unparalleled as we watched the boxes in the main hallway grow with items for distribution to families in our own community and beyond. The science lab has provided our students with many hands on experiments that have made our science unit on matter come to life! The fourth graders have enjoyed using balance scales to measure the mass of objects as well as measure the volume of liquids with graduated cylinders. The students were even able to use their knowledge of mass and volume to determine which suspect “committed a crime” in science lab! During this season of giving, the fourth-grade participated in a Trivia Challenge to benefit United Cerebral Palsy of Nassau County. Representatives along with former students who are now current employees of UCPN presented the students with an informational and inspirational program. After the presentation, the children took a trivia test consisting of 100 questions ranging a variety of topics. The children had an opportunity to work in teams to answer these questions. They received donations from family and friends according to the amount of questions they answered correctly with their team. The children enjoyed the opportunity to participate in this fun activity while helping others. The highestscoring team competed in the countywide Trivia Challenge championships in February. All the children across the grade level are winners! They helped to raise money to benefit UCPN and learned a valuable lesson about giving. Thanks to all the parents for your support! We are about to begin our third writing unit with an author study of Cynthia Rylant. Please help inspire us to write about our own memories using the following tips: Tell a lot of family stories to your child during our study. Remind him or her of special times together. Help your child search for websites to learn more about this special author. Go to the library to find other books by this author that are a good fit for your child to read. This can count towards the AR goal! Help your child collect memorabilia such as photos and postcards, or take some new photos that your child may want to write about in his or her notebook. Ask your child about the writing we are doing in school. Encourage him or her to write at home when he or she has downtime. We look forward to sharing with you when we finish! Thanks for always being our inspiration! 9 News Around the Grades Sixth Grade “Veni, Vidi, Vici,” a famous Roman quote meaning “I came, I saw, I conquered,” describes our sixth graders hard at work “conquering” the curriculum. They are continuing their studies of the Ancient World, moving on to Ancient Rome. The sixth graders have also been sharpening their Math and ELA skills as they get ready for the State Tests! Remember to keep practicing those math facts! With graduation quickly approaching the sixth graders have been getting ready for that special day by getting measured for cap and gowns and receiving their CLASS OF 2015 t-shirts! While the students begin to prepare for graduation, they are also looking forward to their new journey by visiting Carey High School, to ensure a smooth transition to 7 th grade. Our sixth graders are ready to begin this new adventure, but still have a few months left here to enjoy at WSS! 10