The second graders are THRILLED to be learning cursive this year. They started off with the clock climbers group – a, c, d, g, and q and have now moved on to the kite strings – i, t, u, p, s, j, o, r, and w. They have been working hard on forming their letters Read More >>
Measurement Class
This December and January, students in a second grade measurement class learned all about standard and non-standard measurements. We started with length and comparing the lengths of links, cubes and rods. We then measured objects with these items. As we explored length more, we discussed the importance of a standard and read a silly book Read More >>
Grasslands
Our youngest students continue their study of biomes. In December we moved our focus from the rain forest to grasslands. We listened to books and learned how grasslands are very different to rain forest. There are very few trees in the grassland and there are two seasons – a wet season and a dry season. We watched videos Read More >>
Daniel Van Sant – Mystery Guest
Daniel Van Sant, is a graduate student at Syracuse University, studying disability law. He came to The New School as our Mystery Guest. For an hour he engaged the older students, discussing and sharing information about the plight of individuals with disabilities and their struggle for equal rights. From Willowbrook to the passage of the Read More >>
Freida Jacques – Mystery Guest
In December, Freida Jacques, an Onondaga Clan mother who lives on the Onondaga Nation visited The New School. Freida Jacques answered the many questions of our students and then shared their Thanksgiving address. After she left, our students reminisced about some of the information they gathered about the Haudenosaunee from her. Moebius: If you are Read More >>
Take Apart
A small group of the oldest students have been participating in Take Apart, a science class connected to the Electromagnetism and Invention classes. Before the “taking apart” happened, the students drew predictions of what parts would be on the inside of their objects, discussed what these parts could be used for and how they worked. Read More >>
Author’s Study: Cynthia Rylant
The younger students, K-4, are doing an author study of Cynthia Rylant. We have read picture books in which she gives humorous and touching insights into her early years, The Relatives Came and When I Was Young In the Mountains. We have discovered that Cynthia Rylant uses humor in a lot of her writing, especially Read More >>
Folktales Retold
Folktales Retold is a class in which the kindergarten and first grade students meet two times a week during Silent Reading time to listen to picture books of folktales. We have read several versions of Little Red Riding Hood. Some were retellings of the traditional story, such as Richard Scarry’s Little Red Riding Hood, Gennady Read More >>
Block Soup and Place Value
A small group of 2nd graders has been working on adding and subtracting 2-digit numbers with regrouping. We started by reviewing what a two-digit number is and how important the “place” is for the digit. How different a 24 and a 42 can be even though they have the same digits! We used our blocks Read More >>
Sentence Stretch
Evan, Glady, Aurelia, Etienne, Rowyn, Simon and Valor are participating in Sentence Stretch, a writing class. They take turn choosing topics to write about, like Halloween, solid shapes and winter. They write at least three sentences each. The students write each word, “stretching” the word out and writing the letters of all the sounds they Read More >>