News from the Teachers!

GUIDANCE NEWS
by Ms. Pierre and Mr. Reyes

SCIENCE NEWS
by Ms. Warnke

Hi from the Science Lab Room...welcome to the menagerie!
Come Spring, we are to be involved in stocking our courtyard garden pond with koi fish and goldfish. However, they will first be introduced into our Science Lab aquarium so that students can observe them clearly. The pond is nestled to the left of the greenhouse. We welcome all gardeners. Many of our animals will be presented during the first week of June at our Science Fair! We are looking forward to lots of family participation. The children are excited about developing experiments and collaborative research, which they will present on storyboards for the community. We also have 2 peruvian guinea pigs (Yum Yum and Scribble) roaming around in their playpen. They are soon to be joined by a male rabbit who has sired 18 little bunnies (which are up for adoption).

The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), in collaboration with private corporations, is sponsoring this enrichment program in our school. The children meet once a week, on Wednesdays.

The students who participate in the program are those enrolled in the bilingual program and/or those receiving ESL services. This year the focus of the program is on celebrations and the important role that food plays. Thus, the theme is "LA COCINA LULAC".

The teachers have met and have planned out the sessions to include neighborhood walks that focus on the different restaurants within our community. The children identify and chart their observations. In class the students have an opportunity to discuss and write about their discoveries. In addition, the students also engage in cooking activities where they incorporate their reading, writing and math skills. The book used in the read aloud is Melting Pots, Family Stories and Recipes by Judith Eichler and illustrated by Scott Gubala. The children are also encouraged to bring family recipes to share.

Highlights of the PS 145 Music Program:
This year, our children are learning to:
-sing in a group or alone; maintain tone quality; develop pitch, sense of rhythm and tempo
-demonstrate appropriate listening skills; vocal and instrumental posture
-clap, snap and move to the music
-use music Kodaly Hand Signs to reinforce ear training
-participate in the Music and the Brain program
-sing a wide variety of song repertoire; play instruments; listen to music
-move, read music and rhythmic patterns
-talk about what they listen to or sing
-develop a music vocabulary
-play the recorder

It's great teaching our PS 145 children!

We're learning all about the art of printmaking.  In following the New York City Blueprint for the Arts, we'll explore the many ways we can make prints on paper.  We started by learning about artist Mary Cassatt, the great impressionist painter (Mary Cassatt is best known for her paintings of mothers and children).  From this lesson the children learned how to make a mono print.  In the following weeks they learned various printmaking techniques, culminating in creating their own block print from start to finish.  Although I keep their work here at school in a class portfolio, I always try my best to have them take home a sample or two!  Please know that you are always welcome to come to the art room, in class 213, to look at the art that your child has created (please just give me a little advance notice so I can have the work ready for you to peruse)! 

Dear PS 145 Students, Staff and Parents,
Here are a few things happening in our library...
The vision we have for our library is one which will create a community of learning and literacy that will lead to high academic achievement, independent reading and learning and collaboration throughout our school.

In our open access library, we have circulation periods where children, staff and parents are able to come and borrow books. It's a place where our younger children become familiar with and love the world of books; where our older children can research and work independently; where teachers can get additional materials to supplement curriculum; and where our parents can get valuable information on how to help their children become successful learners.

We work closely with our technology teacher, Mr. Luongo in creating a curriculum that fosters the skills of literacy, technology and inquiry. We have a library where the classroom teacher, the technology teacher and I work together to teach across the curriculum.

Sincerely,
Ms. Lorenzi-Morales

HEALTH NEWS
by Mrs. Colombo-Santise

TECHNOLOGY NEWS
by Mr. Luongo

Early 2008

We are getting closer to bringing students, teachers and families technologically closer! This year, it's about multimedia publishing, projects with schools across the nation, and parent workshops. We're learning to create educational web sites, use digital video and photography, create public service announcements, and more!
Here are some hints of what we learn about:
How could the city mouse and the country mouse use technology? Why is it important to know about online safety? How do monsters fit into our technology curriculum? What is a wiki? What's a blog? What's a podcast? What is RSS? What is programming?
What purposes does technology serve?
See you in the lab!