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Reminder: MATH Exams begin tomorrow

Dear Parents,

Please be reminded that tomorrow will be the first of three math exams, which will continue on Thursday and Friday. The best preparation is having a proper breakfast, being well-rested, and having all supplies ready. Sending a water bottle with your daughter is recommended.

Please encourage your daughter to stay calm and focus on giving the test her best effort.

Morah N.D.

Summer Homework...

Dear Parents,
Please take the time to look through the summer homework sent home. The packet has very clear instructions, as well as many supplies for Math work, and Science Experiments. All sections are optional but heavily recommended, EXCEPT FOR REQUIRED READING. Please see the packet for the book list and complete information. Thank you!! The booklet also describes the rewards that can be earned for the different sections, as well as a way for the children to break up the tasks so that it is not overwhelming.
If you have any questions please feel free to contact me... Have a great summer!

Last Day Celebrations - Some Pictures!

After organizing and cleaning our classroom, the last day finally came... We had a double party! We celebrated our last Star Party (which we patiently earned), and celebrated the end of a great year...and the beginning of more growing and learning to come! We did some reflective activities, and then had lots of fun... We decorated summer cooler-cups, and enjoyed fresh popcorn and delicious doughnuts...what more could you ask for? We received award-ribbons for Homework Honor Roll, and presented Rachel with a fantastic trophy for reading 25 books in the Book Challenge and completing all 25 Book Reviews. Hurray for 4th-5th Graders' hard work! We each received a class collage as a memento.

We'd be remiss if we didn't mention the 2nd Grade's Cafe that we joined for lunch - thanks to all the Yeladim in 2nd Grade we enjoyed a hearty Israeli lunch. There were handwritten, colorful menus at each table, quick wait-staff, and all the amenities...Enjoy the pictures:-)

Here's what Morah told us before we left:

Dear Students,

Just a note to say

How much I’ve enjoyed teaching you

Each in your own way

We spent all year together

Week by week, day by day

It seems so strange that now we go

Each on our own way

Each of us, the Sages say,

Is likened to a treasure,

Whose value, depth, and beauty

We can never really measure

I’m sure that you, the treasures

Will positively shine and glow

Sparkling with confidence

As you learn and grow

As we head on into summer

And think of fun and games

Remember all the good times here

And hopefully all you’ve gained!

I hope your summer is fantastic

Healthy, and safe, too

And best wishes for next year

Good luck, so long, I’ll miss you!

Social Studies Presentations Part IV

Our final presentations, by Noah and Adam respectively, were FANTASTIC! Noah presented Spain, and Adam presented Australia! Each project was clear, detailed, and well-presented! We heard the words to the Australian anthem - and we had an interesting discussion comparing the anthem to others we've seen. The students also noticed Britain's flag in the corner of the Australian flag, and we discussed why that is the case... Noah treated us to the music of the The Royal March, because, as he told us, Spain's anthem does not have any words! We really enjoyed that! We then made our two final recipes - Australian coconut biscuits, and Spanish Gazpacho soup...yum! Enjoy the pictures! Hurray for all the great 4th-5th grade researchers, you all did a great job!

Social Studies Part III

Daniel K. and Daniel G. - WOW! You each did FABULOUS work on your countries! Daniel K. gave us a detailed report on Azerbaijan, and Daniel G. gave a detailed report on France! We learned many cool facts, and each presenter held our attention and really knew their country well! Incidentally, both Daniels chose to display their Country's name with the color of the national flag;-) With the help of Morah Jessica (our in-house gourmet chef) we made stuffed grape-leaves (Azerbaijan), and French Napoleon pastries...yum. Enjoy the pictures!

Social Studies Presentations, Part II

Hurray for Ukraine and Russia! Joshua and Rachel presented today, and did a fantastic job sharing what they learned about their countries with us! Job well done! We made Madagascar Coconut Cake (from Freida's report), Russian Jelly Blintzes, and Ukrainian Potato Dumplings...yum! Enjoy the pictures!

Recital Recap!

Thank you all for coming! Enjoy these pictures of the awards, the parent-child math and science activities, and some of the performance...

Social Studies Presentations Part I

Freida presented Madagascar, and Esther presented Israel! Great Job! Way to go! We learned so much and found out some cool facts about your countries. A great big thank you to parents for all your help! Look at the yummy felafel balls that we made from scratch! We'll keep you posted on the remaining projects...

TRIP TO NY HALL OF SCIENCE - RECAP!

We had a short but fun trip to NY Hall of Science. We got to visit many fascinating areas including: Microbes that were magnified x140! Lights and Shadows! Trying to see the blood vessels in your eyes! Visual-perception exhibits like the Hall of Mirrors and the slanted house! To wrap it up, we had a fantastic time in the Science Playground which included a giant balance, a water tunnel with many opportunities for experiment, and so much more... Enjoy the pictures!

PLEASE RETURN LIBRARY BOOKS

Dear Parents and Students,
As the year comes to a close, and we pack our supplies away... Please be so kind and return any or all school library books that you may have at home.
In addition, PLEASE RETURN (TO SCHOOL) ANY PUBLIC LIBRARY BOOKS THAT YOU BORROWED FROM MORAH FOR YOUR SOCIAL STUDIES REPORT! PLEASE BRING THEM TO SCHOOL TOMORROW!
Thank you so much!

SOCIAL STUDIES REPORTS- PLEASE READ

Dear Parents and Students, This week we will work on our Social Studies Country Reports. I’m requesting that each student acquire a tri-paneled (3 sections) display board as soon as possible.  (You can buy one at Staples for $8.49).  The work will be done mostly at home. The projects are due next week, Wednesday. I’m attaching to the Homework Log a sample for mapping out the information you’ve gathered; I've outlined what is expected to be included. The work should either be written VERY neatly, or typed. You may print out pictures to display. If you do not have access to a colored printer, please email me the pictures you’d like printed, and I will print them for you. The posters will be on display next week, and remain displayed for the recital. Also, please prepare a list of ingredients needed to make the recipe you chose (you can check countryreports.org for recipe ideas). We will need to get the ingredients so we can make the dishes in school. (Please see form attached to Homework Log.) I will share whatever books I borrowed from the Public Library and school library in case it is needed; If I did not find books on your particular country, I suggest taking a trip to your local library, and/or looking back at the countryreports.org website for any missing information. In addition, basic facts can be found in your Math Student Reference Book in the World Tour Section. Good Luck! PLEASE CONTACT ME IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR CONCERNS! Wishing you a “Chag Samayach”,

   Morah Nechama Dena

Post Walk-a-thon Pics

 Here are some pictures of our big day out...after the walk. Pictures of the "walk-a-thon" coming soon :-) We had a great time!

Science Fun with Magnetic Fields

You can try this at home! Use very fine steel wool (do not work near food and you may want to wear gloves while snipping) to make small bits over a piece of paper. The bar magnet should be placed underneath. The "invisible" magnetic field can be seen!

Science Update!

As we've been reviewing key science concepts, we've stopped to concentrate on Magnetism. The students were particularly enamored with the experiments you can do with Magnets!

Here are some points we discussed and you can review with your child:

• The closer in distance the object is, the greater the force of attraction
• There are two "poles" - the North seeking, and South seeking poles
• The earth is like a great big magnet, because it contains large amounts of iron
• A magnet has an invisible magnetic field surrounding it
• Two north "poles" will repel each other, as will two south "poles". Only a "north" and "south" will attract
• Not all metals will be attracted to magnets; only metals containing large amounts of iron, for example, steel (not aluminum foil, not nickles or pennies
• Magnets are key components for compasses - the "north seeking" pole will always point north
• Magnetite is a mineral that contains large amounts of iron (the greatest amount of naturally-occurring iron), and was used in compasses to help sailors find their way

We tried a cool experiment that allows you to see the "invisible" field around the magnet. We cut steel wool into fine, powdery pieces, and placed them in a jar with oil. We held a strong bar magnet to the outside of the jar, and -wow!- got to see how the steel particles are attracted in a rounded formation.

Try it at home!

REMINDER: WALK-A-THON TOMORROW

Just a quick reminder that our school walk-a-thon along the boardwalk will be tomorrow. If you have not already done so, please be sure to send in your child's walk-a-thon sponsor sheet and the money pledged. Remember, the money earned goes to our long-awaited play-yard! 

We look forward to an invigorating walk and a chance to see the U.S. marines at Coney Island as part of Fleet Week when we're done. There are air and water demonstrations planned - we'll see how our schedule works out. They'll  have  helicopters at the beach and the students will hopefully get to talk to and interact with the crew, sit on the helicopters, etc. It should be a great way to wrap-up the walk-a-thon!

You can visit this link for more info on fleet week.
http://gonyc.about.com/od/holidays/p/fleetweek.htm

Cubic Measurements

We've been discussing the difference between linear measurements, measurements of area, and measurements of volume. We reviewed the units of measurement for volume: cubic meters, cubic centimeters, cubic feet, etc. We did hands-on work to prove our assumption that there are 1,000 cubic cm in a base-ten large cube. We also used meter sticks and yarn to visualize the volume (space it takes up) of a cubic meter. We were surprised to find out just how large it was, and how many of us could fit inside!

A Health Month Yummy Snack!

A great big thank you to Alice's mom, Morah Irena, for coming to make a colorful fruit salad with us! We learned that to get a balanced, healthy mix of fruits you should look for the colors of the rainbow! We had red apples, oranges, yellow bananas, green apples and blueberries! Thank you very much for the delicious snack!

A Health Month Visitor!

A great big thank you to Noah's dad, a pharmacist, for coming to discuss health as it relates to pharmacy. The students were fascinated and asked great questions. We discussed the difference between prescription and other medication, and the importance of only taking medicine under the guidance of a parent and or doctor. Some of us also wanted to know how pharmacists can read doctor's script...as well as why so many pharmacies (which are supposed to keep you healthy) sell chips in the other half of the store... ;-) We really enjoyed the visit!

Geometric Solids and Frames

We've been studying about Geometric Solids this week, and we each made our own rectangular prism frame. We've been solving and creating our own riddles such as "I am a polyhedron, I have 6 faces, all rectangles, and 8 vertices. What am I? A rectangular prism!"
Try some at home for fun and review!