Volume 5 Issue 5
February News 2015
R.E.A.C.S
Greeting Parents,
Welcome to the month of February. During this time of the year, we
are heavily focused on conducting mid-year assessments and looking closely at student progress compared to early fall results. We
then use this information to plan specific instructional strategies to
increase student performances and to address any other concerns
that we may have for your children. Parents, please feel free to contact your child’s teacher and ask about the progress made since September. Our philosophy is to be proactive instead of reactive, which
usually yields greater results.
Just a few reminders:
Wednesday, February 11, 2015, is our annual Black History Month performance, which
will take place at the Main Building. We are asking parents to bring their children to
the school at 5:20 p.m. The program will start promptly at 6:00 p.m.
Winter Recess packets will be sent home on Thursday, February 12, 2015. Please
make sure that your child completes and returns the packet on Monday, February 23,
2015, as these assignments help us to determine if students are retaining the information taught in our classrooms.
In closing, please have a healthy and exciting winter break.
Respectfully,
Lena Richardson
Lena Richardson
Principal
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R.E.A.C.S
February 2015
Sun
1
Mon
2
Tue
Wed
Thu
Fri
Sat
3
4
5
6
7
10
11
12
13
14
100th day
of school
Valentine’s
Day
Ground
Hogs Day
8
9
Black
History
Presentation @
6 p.m.
15
16
17
18
Half Day
Dismissal
at Noon
19
20
21
***SCHOOL IS CLOSED FOR WINTER RECESS***
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
Trip to JPAC
‘The African
Drum”
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Volume 5 Issue 5
Kindergarten
Literacy- We learned that good readers use fix-up strategies to help them while reading. Fix up strategies
include sounding out the word then, blending each sound together and using picture clues. We also learned
that good readers create images in their minds to help them understand and picture what they’ve read based
on what they already know.
Math - During the month of January the students continued to focus on addition. They reviewed various
strategies to add as putting together and adding to. The students explored addition through various situations
that require joining together objects or groups of their classmates. Modeling was reinforced to assure the
children had a complete understanding of what addition is. The students also focused on subtraction using
word problems. They understand subtraction is taking away and less than. In order for them to fully understand the concept of addition and subtraction we allowed the students to create groups and model what
subtraction looks like. The students also reviewed greater than less than an equal when adding and
subtracting.
Writing- .Author Study - Mo Willems. Students learned about Mo Willems writing style by reading his
books. Students based their writing on the author’s style. Mo Willems writes in a form of a question, he uses exclamation marks as well as question marks throughout his writing. Also he often uses different color
speech bubbles for each character.
Social Studies– We have now started our study of Black History. In January we introduced Martin Luther
King, Michael Jordan and Rosa Park to the students. Both classes made a portrait of Dr. Martin Luther King
Jr. along with a speech bubble and wrote his dream along with their dream. New vocabulary words were also
introduced to the students such has violence, nonviolence, segregation and equality.
First Grade
Literacy- The first graders are learning to use strategies to help them when they do not understand a word or phrase
as they are reading. Some of these "fix up" strategies are rereading, looking at pictures, and reading on. Please practice
these strategies at home with your child and continue to read with your child daily. The more your child reads, the better reader they will become.
Writing- In writing students are continuing their author study on Mo Willems. Students are getting ready to publish a
narrative writing piece that will have a problem and solution. Students are working very hard and they are putting on
their creative writing hats in order for them to create their own narrative story. Look out for our publishing party during the last week of February.
Math- For the month of January students began to learn about place value and representing numbers as tens and ones.
Through this understanding they were able to grasp the concepts of greater than, less than and equal to when given a set
of numbers. Students also learned to count on from any number by tens. Using the technique they were able to show
their skills with adding tens and subtracting tens from any given number. Beginning in the month of February students
revisited some of the previously learned addition skills to add two-digit numbers to one-digit and two-digit numbers.
Social Studies- For the month of January students learned about Martin Luther King Jr and our country then and now.
Students watched a movie Our Friend Martin, which put into perspective the importance of civil rights for African
Americans. Students completed a January project where they were given the task of coming up with their own dream
for how they want to change the world and why. Going into February the students will learn about African American
leaders and their importance in our country. Each day students will also learn a new interesting Black History fact.
Science- In Science students learned about what animals live in land habitats and what animals live in water habitats.
Students had to create their own habitat and write facts to describe it as well. Throughout this unit students also
learned the importance of why plants and animals need each other in their habitats. Next up Our Earth.
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Page 4
R.E.A.C.S
Second Grade
Literacy—Students have been learning to apply grade level phonics and word analysis skills in decoding
words. While determining the meaning of words and phrases in a text relevant to a grade 2 topic or subject
area. Also they are able to identify the main topic of a multi-paragraph text as well as the focus of specific
paragraphs within the text.
Math– Students are finishing Chapter 5: 2 Digit Subtraction. By the second week of February, we will begin
Chapter 6 in the Go Math Book. Students will learn about how to add 3-digit numbers with and without regrouping.
Writing- Students are in the process of writing narratives in which they can recount a well-elaborated event
or short sequence of events, and include details to describe actions, thoughts, and feelings, use temporal
words to signal event order, and provide a sense of closure. While reading and learning about the author
“Tomie DePaola”, students will write and produce their “own” books.
Science- In science the children are exploring and learning how habitats change. They are also learning how
plants and animals adapt to these changes. Children will also learn how scientists use fossils to learn about
animals and plants from the past.
Social Studies– In social studies the children are discovering that the United States has many types of landforms. Among the landforms are mountains, hills, valleys, and peninsulas. They will also learn about bodies
of water including, lakes, rivers, and oceans.
Third Grade
Mathematics- The 3rd grade classes have learned division facts and strategies. We can divide using division facts for 0
through 10 using strategies including modeling, an array, a related multiplication fact, equal groups, repeated subtraction, a multiplication table, act it out, a number line, and factors.
Science-. The 3rd grade classes have explored various types of ecosystems such as deserts, forests, oceans, and wetlands. We learned about its living things and how animals adapt to them. We are now exploring changes in ecosystems.
This includes how living things change in their environments and how changes affect living things.
Literacy- At R.E.A.C.S., third graders are always immersed in many different aspects of literacy. For example, in
preparation for their upcoming Black History Performance, “Harriet Tubman: An American Hero” our incredible eightyear-olds have embodied the spirit of Harriet Tubman and reenacted scenes from her remarkable life – this is literacy in
its finest form. During the month in class, students continued to develop their oral language skills by asking and answering questions about text they have read, and by strengthening reading comprehension skills through modeled reading.
Writing-For January, students researched and wrote pieces on Dr. Martin Luther King. Also, in anticipation of Black
History Month, students researched other historical figures like, Harriet Tubman, Ronald McNair, and Paul Williams, a
notable black architect. Students also wrote P.S.A.’s and poetry in the style of quatrains.
Social Studies Students are continuing to study the vast nation of Canada by examining their relationship with
Great Britain. They also will be studying Canada’s trade relationships with the rest of the world.
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Fourth Grade
Literacy - Students have been learning how to use cloze reading as a strategy while reading. Students are
learning to use this reading strategy to summarize reading passages. Students have also been learning to
identify themes in their reading.
Math - Students have been learning how to divide numbers and identify their remainders. Students are continuing to learn more about factors and multiples. Also students are continuing to learn how to memorize
multiplication and division facts.
Science - Students are learning about animal life cycles and life spans. They are also learning to analyze the
environments where animals live.
Social Studies – Students have been learning to identify historical figures in American History. They are
also continuing to learn about the geographical features in New York State.
Writing – Students have been learning how to create a persuasive essay. They are learning how to create a
five paragraph essay that includes an introduction, body, and conclusion.
Fifth Grade
Literacy- We completed our unit in which the students learned about the United States government. The students learned about the roles of the three branches of our government. In our next two units the students will
learn about ocean life, and about the bottom of the sea.
Math- The students have been expanding their knowledge and skills when working with fractions. We completed a unit in which the students learned different strategies for adding and subtracting fractions. In our next
unit the students will be learning about multiplying fractions.
Science- The fifth grade finished a unit on ecosystems, and the relationship various animals have within their
habitats, and niches. Both classes completed a project to dig deeper into specific lessons to further understanding of the various roles within an ecosystem.
Social Studies- In connection to our literacy theme, the classes engaged in lessons to expand their understanding of the roles and functions of the United States government. Students investigated the importance of
checks and balance of our governments.
Writing- The students completed their researched and writing of the animal in which they selected. The classes dug deeper into how to write an introduction and how to use transition words. Currently, the classes are
researching and writing an author study. Class 5-01 is exploring the life of C.S. Lewis, the author of The
Chronicles of Narnia, while class 5-02 is examining the biography of R.L. Stein, the author of the Goosebumps series.
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PHYSICAL EDUCATION MR.CODY
What you can find
REACS’ students doing
in P.E.
K-2
Health Lessons
Cooperative Games
Dance
Jumping, Running and
Dodging
Fitness Exercises
The Importance of Life
Skills in Physical Education
What you can find
REACS’ students doing
in P.E.
*It is important all students
learn the importance of
cooperation and teamwork.
Being able to work with
different people and their
personalities.
Major Bones of the Body
Cooperative Games
Vitamins and Minerals
Dance
*Fairness, Honesty, Respect,
Responsibility, Citizenship,
and being trustworthy can all
be incorporated into different
activities.
Did you know the Human
Body has 206 Bones at
Adult Hood and 270 at
Birth?
Grades 3-5
Incorporating math and literacy into Physical Education classroom
MANDARIN Ms. Zhang
Gr. K-2
Students from kindergarten through 2nd grade can understand standard speech delivered in most authentic
settings. They engaged actively in learning the basic listening, speaking, singing in Chinese. Chanting Chinese poems and counting numbers using TPR ( Total Physical Response) was a lot of fun in various daily
activities. Students experienced the most magical Chinese calligraphy by using a special brush, writing
scroll and some regular water as black ink's effect.
Gr. 3-5
Students followed conversations and understand messages that concern everyday life and the larger society.
Students can initiate and sustain a short conversation with a partner. Students had fun making projects like a
whole fish which can represent a coming year to be very lucky and extremely sufficient with abundance of
prosperity. Multiplication table in Chinese was practiced every week. Many students designed and made
large red Chinese lanterns, some chose to make creative Valentine's cards in both English and Chinese.
Everyone was impressed with the magical effect of the Chinese calligraphy.
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Career & Technology
Ms. Banna
Lovely February to all! I hope everyone is staying safe during this cold weather! On Wednesday, January 14, 2015 we
held our first Career Day event for the 2014-2015 school year. With careful planning and coordinating, along with the
support of the administration, I am pleased to say that the event was a great success! I would like to take this time to
thank the faculty and staff members who provided continuous guidance throughout this event to ensure a smooth transition. A very special thanks to the 17 volunteers/speakers who provided our students with their work experience, concrete knowledge of their profession, and the skills that are needed to succeed in that job. The students had a wonderful
time not only learning about the various jobs but also getting a first-hand experience of the professions through interactive activities and engagements. Speakers came in dressed in uniform with related tools to give students the full experience. This further helped them to see what it’s like to be in that profession. In some classrooms you could see students listening to a day in life of a police officer, to the types of cases a lawyer handles. In some classrooms you could
see students sitting in as Chef Lazarus and Chef Sade baked a delicious spinach pizza using a portable stove to students designing MLK posters in Adobe using a Macbook Pro with Ms.Bruce, a graphic designer. My goal was to present students with jobs from various fields to help them see the different options that the future may hold for them.
Although the speakers brought in to the classrooms their own experiences, they all stressed the importance of education and staying focused to make your dreams into a reality.
Below you will find a list of the different speakers that volunteered to be part of Career Day at R.E.A.C.S:
2 police Officers (Officer Macaluso and Officer Washington)
A family court lawyer and a defense lawyer (Ms.Melissa, Esq and Mr.Renfroe, Esq) .
2 firefighters( Firefighters Bennet and Battle)
2 chefs (Chef Lazarus and Chef Sade).
An Operating Engineer for the Department of Transportation (Mr.Stephenson).
An M.T.A Operator (Mr. Carrington)
A Graphic Designer (Ms.Bruce)
A fitness instructor (Ms. Martin)
A security escort (Ms. Johnson)
A phlebotomist (Ms.Skeete)
A field technician for Verizon (Mr. Perez)
An after school site director for Black Spectrum Theatre (Ms. Devoare).
A Sergeant from the Army (Sergeant Naughton)
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Career Day
8
Assistant Principal
Mr. Dunlap
Discipline-Students are making good choices and throughout the day most are on the color green. Parents continue to
ask what color your child was on for the day.
Green -great choices
Yellow-warning
Red-poor choices
Talent Show
The talent show went well at the Main building for grades 3-5. Many of the students did a great job of performing.
The show took two days, as there was 16 acts that made their way to the stage. The winners :
1st place-Rebbeca Cesar-5th grade Mr. Cyriac class
2nd place- Kimora Brundidge- 5th grade Ms. Ackerman (Kila Nunez & Kalyce Nunez)
3rd place (Tie) Alani Jones, Ava Thomas, Kalea Andrews- 3rd grade Ms. Durant
Kirt Prentice, Aidan Delgado, Messiah Noel, Dwayne Williams-3rd grade Ms. Durant
Stay tuned for the Talent show at the Annex Building! (Coming Soon) Parents the talent show is very informal, it
is just during lunch and recess time.
Instruction
Teachers are busy working with students in all grade levels. We are especially making a big push for testing grades 35. Students are engaged in daily Test Prep, and Saturday school. Teachers are using a number of instructional strategies, and implementing lessons that adhere to various learning styles ( ex. Visual, Kinesthetic and Tactile learners)
Saturday SchoolWe have accomplished 4 weeks of Saturday school and students are actively learning. Many students are engaged in
activities that reinforce skills that are taught during the regular school day. Students are also required to complete assignments at home before attending Saturday school, which will enhance those skills/drills taught for Saturday
morning.
Remaining Schedule: ( 8:30 am-10:30 am)
Feb. 7th, Feb 28th, Mar. 7th, Mar. 14th, Mar. 21st, Mar.28th
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Perseverance Award
Respect Award
Cameron Adewale K 102
Taylor McFarlane– 5-02
Andrea Faison– 1-102
Bigaelle Fabien 2-101
Anthony Hanniford 2-101
Celeca Carrington 2-102
Kirt Prentice 3-301
Spencer, John 4-01
Wright-Desselle 4-01
Darnell Jamison Jr - 4-02
Kaden Johnson: 5-01
Generosity
Award
Errol Fenton Jr 4-02
Responsibility Award
Chloe Walters 1-101
Caring Award
Willow Gilliam
K 102
Briannah Pollard 2-102
Nayiyah Curry - 3-302
Citizenship Award
Nicholas Moorer 3-301
Elijah Greenaway
3- 302
Jade Goss 5-01
Acceptance Award
Friendly Award
Raniya Cazabon 1-102
Omari Stewart
1-101
Kalea Andrews
3-301
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Ms. Hover & Ms. Perillo Class K-101
Silken Berwgyn, Elias Bolden, Mariyah Gooden, Ayanna Gooden, Ryan Reid,
Peyton Rhudd, Mishael Ruiz, Jayla Solomon, Suriya Stephenson, Nathan Tchalim,
Jamelah Vieux, Tristan Wallace, Journi Welsh, Zaiden Williams, Elijah Payne
Mrs. Wilson Class K-102
Cameron Adewale, Corey Camobell, Kailyn Duke, Evin Godfrey, Amyr Melendez
Melodie Garcon, Caius Jefferson, Khloe Arthur, Peyton Davis, Daeshell Thompson
Semaj Fabien, Charles Egbo, Nailah Solomaon, Shawn Barrett, Amerah Price
Ms.Daniels Class 1-101
Jordan Adewale, Gabrielle Bariffe, Elias Boatwright, Jayden Chicaiza, Jordyn Daniel,
Kayson Downey, Shaila Figeroux, Leigh-Anna Lambert, Leah McKenzie
Vivica Osuji, Damari Shaw
Ms. Bennett & Ms. Smith 1-102
Dwayne Barnett, Justin Benjamin, Lawrance Cooper, Andrea Faison
Arayan Godfrey, Aiden Laleau, Jeremiah Mullins, Jason Nyarko,
Danae Pauling, Tia-Renae Pommells, Jordan Shaw
Ms. Gayle & Ms. Johnson Class 2-101
Jorelle Brown, Morgan Davis, Bigaelle Fabien, Anthony Hanniford, Taeray James
Joshua Kerr, Kelcie Maxfield, Christian Walker, Aaron Greenwood, Dmitry Simon
Mrs. Best Class & Ms. Lawrance 2-102
Janea Bailey, Billy Beamon, Celeca Carrington, Ryan Hamilton, Dashawn Jamison,
Gabrielle Kerr, Desiray Lyons, Natalia Martin, Kila Nunez, Briannah Pollard,
Madison Sowemimo, Caleb Williams, Tyquan Holmes, Ryanna Reid
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Ms. Durant Class 3-301
Kalea Andrews, Tyrone Cooper, Paige Davis, Shanyla Desamours, Presten Hayes,
Jordan Hosten, Kymani Mason, Nicholas Moorer, Messiah Noel, Elizabeth Oniwe,
Kirt Prentice, Emmanuel Simon, Amani-Kyle Thomas, Ava Thomas, Ayanna Thomas
Ms. Scott Class 3-302
Jonathan Bamfo, Alicea McKenzie, Jeremiah Cooper, Dayshawn Pearson
Nayiyah Curry, Kimal Peterkin, Cameron Duran , Makayla Simpson-Alexander
Eyana Fenton, Jayden Smith, Nigel Holliman Sven Welsh
Savion Lee
Mrs. Anderson Class 4-01
Bond, Shawndell, Doctor, Amari, Fox, Makeda, Hylton, Joshua
Lambert, Lashawne, McCullum, Briana, Nelson, Kyshiem, Nicholson, Adrien
Spencer, John, Stalworth, Terffaril, Watson, Danielle, White, Cassandra
Wright-Desselle, Jada
Ms. Bortell Class 4-02
Nasir Arrington, Leah Bowers, Zara Cummings, Darnell Jamison Jr.
Camiah Jarrett, Errol Fenton Jr., Daniel Nanton, Shamya Rodriguez
Ms. Ackerman Class 5-01
Kimora Brundidge, Troy Hughes, Kaden Johnson, Jazmyne Turley, Jaylin WrightPearce
Mr. Cyriac Class 5-02
Rebecca Cesar, Elijah Gregory, Maya Lewis, Taylor McFarlane, Jayden Mcknight,
Destini Prentice, Aston Sowemimo, Alex Stephenson, Mykalah Threadgill, Jayda
Turley
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