Happy Holidays!
Brookside Updates
Updates from Mrs. Bowerman
We had a productive but enjoyable December. Thank you to all who attended Parent-Teacher Conferences, Holiday Concerts, and supplied goodies for holiday celebrations. Please see the updates below from each grade level. Our focus this month will be on MATH (among other events!).
Unfortunately we had many students come down with illnesses before the holidays. Please be sure to keep up with good hygiene such as handwashing. Call Nurse Megan at 669-4105 if you are unsure if your child should stay home from school. As always, fever, severe cough, vomiting, and diarrhea are definitely reasons to keep your child home for at least 24 hours! Don't forget to send a note with the reason for their absence when they return.
Also, a reminder that our policy is to have only store-bought treats for holidays, birthdays, etc. The reason for this is to better monitor any allergens as well as food safety.
As the weather turns colder and wetter, please be sure to send your child dressed appropriately for the weather (coat, hat, gloves, boots, etc.). Students will go outside as long as the windchill isn't below 20 degrees. Call Mrs. Barry at 669-4105 if you need assistance with any of these items.
Holiday Food/Gift Drive
The annual Brookside Holiday Drive was a success! Thank you for the food donations. The PTA provided Weis gift cards. We were able to provide food baskets to 17 Brookside families. Additionally, we sponsored 17 families for the holidays, making the season a little brighter and less stressful. Thank you to all who helped with the Holiday Drive including, Brookside Staff, Jennifer Edwards, SEFCU/Broadview, Girl Scout Troop 30135 and Carei Hannigan, Jumbo's, Manny's Diner, Brackney Inn, McIntosh Labs, Evolution Hair, the Christian Community Church of Conklin and the Artemis Chapter of the Guardian Belles.
~Mrs. Barry
Math Games
No matter the grade, students like dice games. The youngest use them to learn basic numbers, by identifying the number of dots. As they get a bit more comfortable, they use them in board games to take a turn. They are a great way for students to use numbers, even if they do not always know how to recognize written numbers. By this time of year, students in first grade and up, could play these games to practice different operations. This is a great way to get away from screens and play with family members. You can access these games for free on MathCoachsCorner.com.
Mrs. Harlow's Class
Mrs. Harlow's class is working on counting money. Students have been practicing by counting mixed sets of coins in order to make purchases in a classroom store.
Pre-K
Pre-K has been very busy counting up to 20 and learning our numbers 0-5!
We have been counting everything and adding one more and one less. We learned fun counting poems about Gingerbread men and Christmas ornaments.
Mrs. Cortes' class and their buddy class, Ms. Chapman, also had a holiday playdate to encourage the kids to work and play with each other.
Encourage your children to keep counting objects at home.
Happy Holidays,
Mrs. Cortes & Mrs. Wolf
Kindergarten
Kindergarten has had a busy few weeks in December! We have been working hard on chaining our letters to make one syllable words. We finished up learning about farms and talking about where our food comes from. We even had Agriculture in the Classroom where we planted lettuce seeds and are watching them grow. We are finished with our Jan Brett study and read many books that she has written. We focused a lot this month on spreading kindness and the difference between wants and needs. In math we worked on comparing numbers and adding one more and taking one away to help us get ready for addition and subtraction. Don’t forget to keep reading over the break. We can’t wait to see everyone next year.
First Grade
First grade has been working hard on understanding number relationships while using math vocabulary to explain their thinking while solving math problems.
Second Grade
We have begun our unit on adding and subtracting double digit numbers. Understanding place value will be reinforced throughout the unit. Organization and neatness will be very important as we continue through the remainder of the year. If your child still has some backward numbers, please have him/her practice at home. Some of the strategies that we are teaching are new to adults, but please trust the process and know that we will be reviewing and supporting your child as needed. We hope you have an enjoyable holiday season!
Third Grade
3rd Grade is all about multiplication right now. Building on what they already know about twos, fives and tens, they are working hard at learning how to skip count by threes, fours, sixes, sevens, eights and nines. Practicing their multiplication facts so that they are fluent provides the foundation for more difficult math problems and we highly encourage them to practice these daily. They are also learning how division is related to multiplication and that they have fact families similar to addition and subtraction.
Fourth Grade
Happy holidays! In fourth grade we are working hard and having fun! We have settled into our routines and the students really enjoy switching classes. It was wonderful to see everyone at parent-teacher conferences and celebrate all of the progress the students have made so far this year.
In math, we are focusing on our fluency facts, especially multiplication and division. Any practice at home would help your child greatly here at school. Throughout November we have been working with long multiplication, and this month we are going to be working with long division. For some extra fun, ask your child to sing the division song at home! “Divide, multiply and subtract, bring it on down and bring it on back!”
Don’t forget to send your child to school with a coat, gloves, boots and a hat, as we go outside as often as we can. Thank you parents for everything that you do! We wouldn’t be so successful without your help!
Fifth Grade
The students in 5th grade have been working hard on their multiplication facts. Every other day in math class they spend the first five minutes of class on MobyMax practicing their facts. Currently, the fifth graders are answering over 96% of their facts correctly! In class, we are wrapping up multiplying and dividing whole numbers and decimals. When school resumes in January, we will begin to work on all things related to fractions.
Library
Greetings from the library! We’ve been a busy bunch!
Our school just finished a Dewey Decimal System unit where we played games and did short quizzes to learn (or review) the Dewey Decimal System! First and second grade also did smaller units on finding detail and using graphic organizers to build on current knowledge. Some grades will move on to beginning research based on this knowledge.
In Pre-K and Kindergarten, we talked about families, snow, and how those things often go together. They even tried to convince me to put down my book and go build a snowman this year!
Coming up, first through fourth grade will use what we learned this fall to create some age appropriate stories and research projects. Pre-K and Kindergarten will begin learning how to find books in a larger library section, and fifth grade will begin learning about Internet safety.
It’s going to be a productive and educational spring! I look forward to working with everyone again after the break.
~ Ms. Mayglothling
Art
- Pre-K students are working on Rainbow Fish projects. They are practicing cutting skills, and a-b patterns.
- Kindergartners are learning about making tints by adding white to a color. They are also learning how to make a simple sculpture from clay.
- First graders are working on Carmen Miranda mile high tutti fruity hat designs, learning how to draw a face, and practicing overlapping cut details.
- Second graders completed gorgeous Art Deco skyscraper designs, and are learning how to make simple stencils.
- Third graders are finishing up golden stamped trees in the style of Gustav Klimt, adding gems and rhinestones as final details.
- Fourth graders are completing their woven textile project, in which they explored texture through different materials and weaving techniques.
- Fifth graders are completing optical illusion designs that feature 3d cubes floating in space. They learned about one point perspective, shading, and stencil making in the project. They are gearing up for their half photo/half shaded self portraits.
All students are actively working on creating personal best work in the art room with every project so there are two outstanding examples of work from each student at our annual Art Show at the high school this Spring, Tuesday, May 21. Please mark your calendars! Thanks for your continued support of the art program!
Sincerely,
Ms. Sumner
Physical Education
In December Pre-K-2nd Grade participated in a volleyball unit. We learned how to perform the forearm pass and overhead pass.
Music Department
Wonderful performances from our Brookside 5th Grade Band, 5th Grade Orchestra and the 4th and 5th Grade Chorus on Dec.14th. All that hard work paid off to present an amazing music concert.
As we begin 2024, these music groups will begin preparing for the next two performances.
Music in Our Schools Concert at Oakdale Commons. (This will take place in March during the day. You will be informed as soon as we know, the dates and times of their performances.)
Brookside Advanced Concert at Brookside Elementary (June 5th at 6:00pm)
Students will need to wear their concert black again for these concerts.
Thank you again for your child’s support in the Brookside Music Ensembles.
Brookside Music Department:
Mrs. Kelly Dyson, Mrs. Eileen Miller and Mr. Rob Johnson
BCMEA (All County) Music Ensembles
Kudos to the following students who recently auditioned for the 5th-6th All-County Band and Orchestras:
Band
Jonah Day
Aliya Riley
Ethan Butenko
Derek Fisher
Max Yannuzzi
Carson Geiser
Bailey Garlock
Orchestra
Raylind Barnes
Ivy Burns
Terry Perry
Results will be announced next month!