Dear Mackay Families,

I cannot believe it is already November!!!! We had a wonderful Halloween here at Mackay, and we are already feeling thankful! It was great to see so many of you last week at our Trunk or Treat and our Halloween parade. Special thanks to our HSA and all of the parents who were involved in the planning and preparation, decorated a car, and came to support the HSA! Our Simple Seed Journal is underway and our students and staff are enjoying their daily reminders of gratitude, respect and kindness! November is a great month for family time and reflecting on how lucky we are to have such an amazing Mackay family.

I hope you will join me for our first Mrs. Chizzik’s Chat and Chew of the year on November 19th at 8:45 A.M. in the library. Before that though there is lots to do! We will be discussing the election process here at school as we all vote for a Mackay design logo. Thank you to all of our talented Mackay artists who have shared a design.

I hope you enjoy both the Teachers’ Convention days off as well as the Thanksgiving holiday with your wonderful families. Happy November everyone!

Heidi Chizzik

Principal

Check out the Spooktacularly Decorated Pumpkins in the video below

made by Mackay's Librarian Ms. Brenzel!!

Tuesday, November 19th @ 8:45 AM

Come ask questions, express concerns, and chat with our school principal! Please enter through the main entrance.

This month is a busy one for our newly elected Student Council! We start off the month with a school wide election for a new Mackay Gear design. Our entire student and staff population will have the chance to visit our Mackay voting booth to vote on a student created design. We opened the option to create a design to our 3rd-5th graders. After a top two is selected, we will have a vote for the one that will become our newest design! A very cool opportunity that we thank every student who chose to submit their work in for their amazing participation!

We will discuss the importance of a democratic election with each class that we visit show them the top two options and then they will vote! Next up we have Veterans Day! We want to thank every Veteran both inside and outside our community for their service. As a way to show our gratitude we will be running a Veterans Day Drive collecting necessities for the Paramus Veterans Memorial Home like liquid soap, body wash, shaving cream, deodorant, and wrapped candy. We encourage everyone to bring in whatever they can from this list. We will have boxes set up outside the classrooms for the collection.

Finally, we have our Annual Turkey Trot where we will be helping keep tally of the laps students do as well as load the donated turkeys onto the truck the day of donation. We look forward to a great busy month!

- The Mackay Student Council

Happy November, Mackay Families!

We started off October with the Week of Respect! Along with our theme days, we launched Walk & Bike on Wednesdays and had an inspiring visit from Katie Wood, the writer of A Simple Seed of Growth, Gratitude, and Giggles. Katie’s teachings, along with working in our daily Simple Seed Journals, is reminding all of the students and staff to pause each day and consider what we are grateful for. We hope that by the end of the 100 days of journal entries, we will all feel a renewed sense of magic within us.

Speaking of magic, the 5th grade Peace Builders, dedicated the week of October 21st to hosting Meet and Greets with students from grades 1-5 who are new to Mackay. Each day was dedicated to a different grade level. The Peace Builders worked on a get-to-know-you activity to welcome and make connections with each student. I am very proud of all who participated in this week-long event! Here’s a picture of our 5th grade Peace Builders! Have a November to Remember!

Mackay students will move into STEM, Literature, and Informational Text units this November. Kindergarten and First graders will learn the characteristics of fiction and nonfiction stories. Second and Third grade students will explore digital citizenship and safe and responsible behavior online. Fourth and Fifth graders will strengthen their digital literacy skills by reviewing source selection and evaluation.

I want to thank all the families who encouraged their children to participate in the Pumpkin Decorating Contest. We had 61 fabulous entries this year, and I am blown away by the creativity the Mackay students exhibited in their creations! Check out some of the entries below!

Best,
Ms. Brenzel

Dear Parents and Guardians,

As we approach November, we wanted to share some exciting updates about our upcoming Physical Education (PE) activities for the month!

Grades K-2: Soccer Unit Our youngest students will begin learning and practicing soccer skills. We’ll focus on basic dribbling, passing, and shooting techniques, while also encouraging teamwork and fun. Please ensure your child has appropriate footwear and clothing for active participation.

Grades 3-5: Gaga Ball and 4 Square Students in grades 3 through 5 will be playing gaga ball and 4 square. These games are a great way for students to develop their agility, hand-eye coordination, and strategic thinking in a fast-paced, engaging environment. Both games are playground favorites and will provide opportunities for friendly competition and teamwork.

Thanksgiving-Themed Games In the spirit of the season, all grades will participate in special Thanksgiving-themed games. These activities will be a fun way for students to stay active while enjoying the holiday excitement.

As always, please feel free to reach out if you have any questions or concerns. We’re looking forward to a fun and active November in PE!

Best regards,
Mr. Marciano & Ms. Young

Hello everyone!

This month in the art room we are all working on our newest art pieces! Through the school year we explore different types of art mediums depending on the projects we create. Learning about new art mediums helps us connect to the ones that become our favorites while also being open to trying something new. In Kindergarten we are using oil pastel and water coloring creating a water color resist painting. In 1st grade we are using oil pastels and colored paper to create a collage. In 2nd grade we are using sharpies, oil pastel, and water color to create optical illusion mixed media work. In 3rd grade we are using markers, sharpie, color pencil, and crayon for our self portraits. In 4th grade we are using acrylic on canvas to tell a visual story, and in 5th grade we are also using acrylic on canvas to create a reflective optical illusion painting.

Until next time!

-Ms. Bracero

All students will learn about El Dia de los Muertos celebrated in Mexico. 5th graders will learn how to state their opinion and describe people. 4th graders will start the unit on Fridays.

A Fall unit will be taught in grades K to 3rd grades with the appropriate differentiation and spiral vocabulary.

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Instagram - @principalmackay