Fifty Nifty United States (VIDEO)

Do you know the names of all 50 states in America?  Under the direction of Mr. Means, PS4 Music Teacher, many students in 2nd grade now know all 50 states because of a song called Fifty Nifty United States!  Two students from Ms. Hodge's class performed the song for the entire school during morning announcements with Ms. White, our principal!  They were also asked to perform for parents during a Pre-K workshop! 

Congratulations to Amanda A. and Eva H. from class 202!  Click here to read the lyrics of the song and take a look at the video below to see their performance!  Special thanks to Mr. Means for his expertise in recording and editing!


Fifty Nifty United States from PS4M on Vimeo.

Charlotte's Web - One Fantastic Culminating Activity (VIDEO)

The second floor of PS4 has been transformed into the setting of a famous book! Students in grade 2 have been reading Charlotte's Web by E.B. White. This is the famous story of a little pig named Wilbur who was born very small. Mr. Arable decides to let his daughter Fern keep Wilbur as a pet. Wilbur meets a bunch of new friends including Charlotte, a beautiful large grey spider. It's up to Charlotte to save Wilbur's life before he will end up on the dinner table at Christmastime!


Congratulations to 2nd grade students and their teachers for their great work on all of the the dioramas that showcased their ReadyGen text; Charlotte's Web. The projects are displayed in the hallway. Ms. Rivers, Assistant Principal for 2nd grade, recognized the hard work and creative abilities that are evident in all of the projects. "I want to thank Ms. Thompson (Literacy Coach) for her special creativity in assembling the project displays in the hallway", she said. "Along with each of our amazing teachers, she made the students feel so proud of their work and the display was a big hit on Parent Teachers Night!".


See the video below to see a clip from the 2006 movie based on the book! Click here to virtually explore Charlotte Web's home and take a look at photos of some of the projects done by our students!

 
Charlotte's Web (2006) from escenas_peliculas2 on Vimeo.

Make a digital collage

Jazz At PS4

Recently, first and second grade students were treated to Parlor Entertainment, a jazz band led by Marjorie Eliot.  She is a piano player who has been hosted a Jazz Salon in her Harlem living room for more than 20 years!  "I remember being here when this school first opened", says Ms. Eliot (pictured below with Ms. Hodge).  "I am so glad to be back so many years later.

 

Through a program called Jazz in the Schools, more than 40,000 public school children have been introduced live jazz and blues.  The one-hour concert provided an educational performance from living jazz legends who were able to share their individual histories and experiences with the boys and girls of PS4!  The program, funded by the Jazz Foundation of America, preserves the legacy of jazz and blues by introducing this music to thousands of public school children, many of whom have ever been exposed to it.  At the same time, it is actually preserving hundreds of the very pioneers who created it.   For more information about the Jazz Foundation, click here!

Special thanks to Marjorie Eliot and her band members for entertaining and educating our students and teachers.  We would also like to thanks Marianne Pillsbury, Jazz in the Schools Program Manager, for keeping jazz at PS4M/The Duke Ellington School.

Farmer Beth Visits PS4

Have you ever met a farmer?  Students in Ms. Capozzoli and Ms. Hodge's class have.  Earlier this month, farmer Beth Linskey, from Beth's Farm Kitchen visited class 201 and class 223 to discuss how she makes applesauce.  "It's important that children eat real food", says Farmer Beth.  "I've been farming for more than 30 years and it seems like kids only know processed foods".  Beth, explained where her apples come from, how she makes her applesauce and how she gets it out to her customers.

The Meet Your Farmer program connects regional farmers and Greenmarket staff with New York City students, grades 2-12.  Designed to compliment the Greenmarket School Tours.  Meet Your Farmer classroom visits enable students to engage with the people who grow, raise and produce food in a focused educational setting.   During these visits, farmers discuss what a typical day in their life is like throughout the seasons, talk about the products they grow or raise on their farms and explain the role Greenmarket plays in supporting their efforts to provide their products to New York City residents.

Special thanks to Farmer Beth Linskey for sharing her talents with our students and for teaching them how our food gets from the farm to our kitchen table.  For more information on GrowNYC, who sponsored the program, click here. 

Farmer Beth with class 201.

Another Great Jennifer Muller/The Works Performance

The Jennifer Muller Dance Company made their annual visit to PS4 and brought their show entitled Faces of Wonder.  This group of dancers, named The Works, brings dance to more than 5,000 students in New York City public schools and supports 50 emerging choreographers. 

Students and teachers from 2nd and 3rd grade classes were invited to the auditorium last Friday to the talent of this dance company.  After the show, students were encouraged to ask the dancers a question.  "They had some really good questions", said Mr. Nycz (3rd grade teacher) who assisted the young audience members to the stage.  Here are a few of the questions that were asked that afternoon:

• Why do you use body language? - Ariannis Z. (class 321)
• How do you feel when you dance? - Kelsey D. (class 201)
• Why did that dancer copy the other dancer? - Abdul A. (class 223)
• When did you start to dance? - Melanie V. (class 320)
• How long have you been performing? - Wilbert D. (class 201)
• How did you all get so good? - Brianna R. (class 320)

Special thanks to the dancers for once providing another exciting show for the students of our school!  For more information about Jennifer Muller/The Works, click here!  To see an article from their last visit to PS4, click here!

Students Visit Our Community Greenmarket

Students in second grade have been visiting our local Fort Washington Greenmarket between 167th and 168th Street!  Each class was given Green Bucks to purchase fruits and vegetabes to take home.  Students got to meet local farmers.  "We had such a good time", said Ms. Hodge at the end of the trip, "I even bought some apples from a local farmer".

Ms. Hodge with her class.

The Greenmarket Youth Education Project connects thousands of New York City schoolchildren in grades K-12 with Greenmarkets and our farmers and chefs each year.  These field trips help children gain an understanding of local agriculture and the importance of eating fresh, seasonal foods--for their bodies, their environment and their communities.

Special thanks to Market Manager Luz and Tour Coordinator Samantha Hill for taking good care of students and teachers from PS4.  Click here for more information about greenmarkets!

Students and teachers visit the Greemarket.

Second grade students tasting fresh squash.

Alma Flor Ada Academy Students Get Awarded

On Friday, April 1st, students in the Alma Flor Ada Academy (second floor) received certificates from their teachers! Students were awarded for their hard work in math, science, social studies, writing, reading and citizenship. This assembly was hosted by Mr. Batiz, Assistant Principal for all lower grades, and Ms. Lorenzo, the school's Bilingual Coordinator. Congratulations to all students who received certificates!

Take a look at the slideshow below to see photographs from this event!

Another Successful Scholastic Book Fair!

From March 15-18, the parents, students and staff of PS4 enjoyed another Scholastic Book Fair. This year's theme: Book Fair Carnival! Students in first and second grade were especially excited about the book fair after seeing a performance of the Chinese Acrobats a week before the fair. "I can only do one of those tricks", said Horacio N. from Ms. Hodge's class. Books with a carnival theme, like Olivia and the School Carnival, were sold at the fair.

This year was especially exciting for PS4, because according to Ms. Lennon (librarian and Book Fair Chairperson), "we exceeded our goal in book sales". "With each book fair", she said, "we are able to purchase books for classroom libraries".

A special thanks goes out to the following Book Fair Student Jr. Crew Members for their help assisting parents and students during the week of the fair: Adja C., Seleny P. and Franklin S. from class 501 and Rafael M. and Alex G. from class 521.

Jennifer Muller/The Works Perform at PS4

"That's a good one", replied dancer Pascal Rekoert, after answering one of many questions from first and second grade students, "I love dancing so much, I will never stop". Many girls and boys, like Franchesca O. and Elijah C. (class 220), also wanted to know how to do some of the dances that were seen on stage. "Lots of practice", said Pascal.

Ms. Schwartz's class (class 220) was very excited about seeing the Jennifer Muller/The Works Dancers! This dance company has been around for more than 35 years and has performed in countries like China! The choreographer for these dancers, Jennifer Muller, likes a variety of music and lots of energy in every performance. The performance at our school was very energetic and the music got every audience member dancing in their seats!

Special thanks to dancer Pascal who led the question & answer portion of the show and to Ms. Schwartz and her students for preparing 'thank you' cards.

Math + Games = Happy Learning!

Boys and Girls of PS4 love games! Whether it's a basketball game, computer game or math game, students enjoy learning while playing. Mr. Ovalle supports the work that classroom teachers do by reinforcing math skills using math games. Mr. Ovalle is PS4's math teacher! When he walks into a classroom, students get excited! They know that he will be teaching them how to play a game that involves addition, subtraction, multiplication, or division. "Okay, let's see who's ready", says Mr. Ovalle as he distributes a game called Sum Swamp to the students of Ms. Hodge's class. "6 + 2 = 8", announces Monise F. of class 223. This is a game where players roll three dice to create a number sentence. The first player to reach the other side of the swam, is the winner!

Mr. Ovalle is not the only cluster teacher who uses games to reinforce the skills students need to be successful. Ms. Baez (science), Ms. Grimes (technology) and Mr. Harris (social studies) also use games to help students learn! To see a list of games used with the Everyday Math curriculum used at PS4, click here. Also, check out these fun online websites:

• Cool Math 4 Kids
• Math Playground
• AAA Math