Musical Ventures For PS4 Scholars

Ms. Kaye and Ms. Mallonga, from Musical Ventures For Kids, play music with 2nd grade students.

Music was in full bloom with a visit from Musical Ventures! Instructors Kaye and Ange Mallonga taught the children the basics of music by introducing concepts such as rhythm, pitch, and dynamics. The students participated in a hands-on exploration of musical instruments such as claves, a violin, a flute, a guitar, and even a trumpet!  Scholars in first and second grade classes learned about rhythm, beat, and tune as they sang and played along with various instruments. To see students participating in a Musical Ventures class, click here!

Special thanks to Ms. Mallonga, a former student-teacher at PS4, for providing this fun-filled musical adventure to our scholars! To learn more about this program, click here.

Instructors Kaye (on piano) and Ange (on violin) expose 2nd grade students to stringed instruments.

Photo of the week: February 2-6, 2015

Inspired by a book, Ms. Baez-Torres takes her students to visit Ms. White's office.

Have you ever been to the principal's office?  Students in Ms. Baez-Torres 1st grade class wanted to know what it looked like after reading A Fine, Fine School by Sharon Creech!  The photo of the week was taken in Ms. White's office!

The book is about a principal, Mr. Keene who called all the students and teachers together and said, "This is a fine, fine school! From now on, let's have school on Saturdays too."  School all weekend. School on the holidays. School in the SUMMER! What was next ...SCHOOL AT NIGHT? So it was up to Tillie to show her well-intentioned principal, Mr. Keene, that even though his fine, fine school is a wonderful place, it's not fine, fine to be there all the time.  Tillie visits Mr. Keene's office to talk to him.  Students in class 121 had never been to a principal's office before.  So, Ms. Baez-Torres took them on a trip to visit Ms. White's office where she gladly gave them the tour.

To read more about Sharon Creech, the author of A Fine, Fine School, click here! 

Writing Celebrations at PS4M

How does PS4 acknowledge the achievements of our young writers?  With a celebration, of course!  Take a look at the slide show below to see the photos from 1st and 3rd grade writing celebrations!

A slideshow by Smilebox

Awards for 1st Graders

Singing famous nursery rhymes, like The Eensy Weensy Spider, is a lot of fun when you're singing with one hundred students from 1st grade!  ELA/Literacy Coach, Ms. Thomspon, began this special assembly by speaking to students about the importance of learning sight words.  "It's important that you learn sight words and rhyming words", she said.  "This is how you learn to read".

After singing three nursery rhymes that students were familiar with, Ms. Martin gave teachers the opportunity to reward students that have achieved success in the areas of reading, math, and overall behavior.  Students with perfect attendance were also rewarded!  Congratulations to all of the students that earned certificates!

Ms. Luciano and Ms. Martin with students from class 101.

Ms. Sanchez and Ms. Martin with students from class 120.

Ms. Reyes, Ms. Delpesh, Ms. Martin and Paraprofessional Ms. Aguilar with students from class 102.

Ms. Rivera, Ms. Martin and Paraprofessionals with students from class K483.

Ms. Pinales and Ms. Martin with students from class 122.

PS4 Students Visit the Library

Special thanks to Washington Heights Public Library Branch Manager, Vianela Rivas for celebrating Hispanic Heritage with our kindergarten and first grade students!  Everyone listened to stories written by Hispanic authors.  Students that had library cards were able to chose books that they wanted to borrow.  "I had such a good time reading to the students", said Vianela.  "I even sang some songs".

The neighborhood library is very special to our school.  Earlier this year, the PS4 Honor Society and a 5th grade class were invited to join the library  for their grand reopening and centennial celebration!  The renovated branch featured new materials and dedicated spaces for adults, teens, and children, a multipurpose community room, nearly 50 brand-new desktop computers, and more than a dozen laptop computers with Wi-Fi capability!  Click here to see photos and a news report from the event!

Take a look at these photos from a recent visit to the Washington Heights Public Library!

Another greeting card by Smilebox

Meet the Teacher - Ms. Delpesh

Ms. Delpesh, in her new classroom.

Ms. Delpesh is PS4's newest teacher!  After seven years working as paraprofessional, Ms. Delpesh is now teaching with Ms. Reyes in a first grade class.

She grew up in Brooklyn and her family is from Trinidad.  She attended Medgar Evers University and Touro College.  "The biggest difference I find between being a paraprofessional and a classroom teacher is the more planning that I have to do now", she says.  Ms. Delpesh is excited to work on her goals for her class this year.  "I want to build their awareness and literacy capability."

While Ms. Delpesh has no children at home, she does love each of her students.  "I have 25 children in the classroom", she says.  Welcome to PS4, Ms. Delpesh!  We look forward to seeing your and your students reach your goals!

Give Kids A Smile Day at PS4

Columbia University College of Dental Medicine celebrated the 10th Annual Give Kids A Smile Day on February 3rd, 2012.  "This is a great program", said first grade teacher Ms. Pinales.  "It's important for young children to learn about how sugar effects their teeth.  They need to learn how to prevent cavities".

The American Dental Association sponsored national event promotes oral health awareness and treatment to children in undeserved areas of the country.  Dental students, Columbia faculty and staff volunteered their time, effort and expertise in making the event at PS4 a complete success as they provided our kindergarten, first and second grade students with oral health instruction, dental exams and screening.

Special thanks to Rahel Beigel from Healthy Schools-Healthy Families for bringing this program to PS4.  For more information about the Give Kids a Smile program, click here.  See the slideshow below for some highlights from the event.

This picture slideshow personalized with Smilebox

If You Really Love Polar Bears...

Did you know that there are more than 7 billion people on Earth?  Wasteful habits that each person may have affects the polar bears habitat.

At a recent stage performance, sponsored by Making Books Sing, first graders were able to meet a puppet named Patchy.  He is a little boy who is obsessed with polar bears!  His daily routine is filled with activities that celebrate his favorte ice bear.  But, at what cost?  While traveling on a magical journey into the past, present and future, Patchy learns firsthand how much of an impact he has on the planet.  He finally learns to unplug appliances when not using them, take short showers to save water and recycle.  By changing his wasteful habits, Patchy realizes how he could save an animal's life.

Actors from Making Books Sing perform at PS4

Patchy learns how his habits affect Polar Bears

1st graders perform with actors on stage

Students were able to watch this interactive story told through music, puppetry and physical comedy!  When asked what he thought about the show, six-year old Javier S. (class 123) said, "It was funny!  I like when the bear said grrrrrr".

To learn more about the Greenhouse Effect and how we affect animal habitats, click here!

Korean Dancers Perform at PS4

Recently, students in 1st and 2nd grade attended a performance in the auditorium by dancers from the Korean Cultural Service of NY!  More than thirty students were given the chance to dance and play instruments on stage.  Every student in the audience even learned how to count to four in Korean; hana, dul, ses, nes!

 "My students really enjoyed the performance", said first grade teacher, Ms. Pasha, "the costumes were so colorful".  A traditional Korean dress is called a hanbok.  It is made in vibrant colors and has simple lines without pockets.  It is worn as semi-formal or formal wear during traditional festivals and celebrations.

Cultural instructor teaches students how to count in Korean.

Special thanks to Andrew, from the Korean Cultural Service of NY and Makalina from Lotus Music & Dance for bringing the beautiful culture of Korea to PS4.

PS4 students play traditional Korean instruments.