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First Open House a Success!

On Saturday, December 1, Elysian held the first Open House of this enrollment season. In spite of the fact that our publicity was not yet in full swing, it was a full house with standing room only. It was so heartening to see how popular our school has become and how many people are aware of our events!

Lynne was here early in the morning with her volunteers Nancy Martell (Clementine and Lulu's mom) and Norma Schwanze (Christian and Nicholas' mom). Tom and John Kluepfel were our greeters. Mike, Pam, and Angela, who volunteered to speak with the prospective parents, wowed everyone. They spoke passionately and eloquently about life and education here at Elysian.

We're not finished, yet! There are two more OPEN HOUSES. Please spread the word. The next one is on Saturday, January 12, from 10 AM to 11 AM. The final open house is on Tuesday, January 15 from 6:30 to 7:30 PM.

Lynne is always looking for volunteers. Please call her to offer your help. We need a greeter at the door, an elevator key doorperson, and two people to help set up the materials and coffee service. It's fun; you get a really good feeling welcoming possible newcomers. Once again, a big thanks to those who volunteering made this event such a success.

Last reminder: Applications for siblings need to get to Lynne ASAP, if you haven’t already done so!

What to do on SNOWY days or SERIOUSLY INCLEMENT weather

Elysian will follow the pattern of the Hoboken public schools. If the Hoboken public schools are closed, we are closed.

Listen to the radio and television stations. IF they announce that Hoboken schools are closed, Elysian is closed.

On the morning of a school closing (after 6:30 AM), Carol will send an email home to all parents.

To those who must leave their home before 6:30 AM, please call the above phone number.

Spanish News

¡Hola Elysian Community! ¡La nieve ha llegado! (The snow has arrived!). Los estudiantes (the students) continue to study and practice español and identify the intricacies of the language. This year we are eager to continue the World Language program at Elysian. The emphasis is on aural comprehension and the development of oral skills within the context of an interdisciplinary curriculum. Students will also be introduced to the cultures of Latino peoples. Below is a brief overview by grade detailing some of the activities and projects los estudiantes have completed and what they will work on later this year.

Kindergarten: Most Spanish classes in Kindergarten focus around a read aloud with a basic theme. The students have therefore read several books so far this year. We began with Señor Felipe’s Alphabet Adventure and practiced pronouncing words for each letra del alfabeto! To practice their números we read Cheerios ¡A contar! (Let’s Count). When studying los colores we read Copito de Nieve (Snowball) about a baby gorilla trying to find amigos. K-1 watched a Dora video and drew pictures of Baby jaguar stuck in a tree. The Kindergarteners really enjoy “choice day” when they are encouraged to use their numbers, colors, basic expressions etc. en español during several different activities around the classroom. The students also learned the expression “Mi casa es su casa” and created a picture of el otoño (the fall). Next Kindergarteners will learn about el invierno (the winter) and create their very own placemat!

Grades 1-2: First and second graders also read several books. They began with Say Hola to Spanish Again which reintroduced the students to basic vocabulary while also rhyming the words. To practice their números we read Cheerios ¡A contar! (Let’s Count) and the students used cheerios to create a number poster. First and second graders say Buenos días every day as they shake hands in the meeting area. Second graders made door hangers to identify the three expressions Buenos días, Buenas tardes and Buenas noches. This year Jessica and I have decided to plan several lessons incorporating Art and Spanish in order to enhance student comprehension. Students in grades K-2 created primary color posters using do-a-dots, paint, yarn, construction paper and crayons in rojo, azul y amarillo (yellow, blue and yellow). Before Thanksgiving the students made cards for someone in their familia and we also played Loteria, a bingo game from México. Next students will learn about el invierno (the winter).

Grade 3: The third graders played an introductory name game (like Hot-Potato) and learned the question, A E I O U “¿Cómo te llamas, tú?” They have learned a color song and have used colors in class games. To practice vocabulario de la clase (classroom vocabulary) the students played matching games using flash cards and also completed a handout in which they had to identify sentences describing objects by color. Third graders studied their números form 1-15 when we read Cheerios ¡A contar! (Let’s Count) and the students used cheerios to create a number poster. They also played ¡Lo tengo! (Bingo) using numbers 1-25. Next students will learn vocabulario del calendario (calendar vocabulary) and practice giving the day and date!

Grade 4: Students in fourth grade began the year studying Spanish-speaking countries. The students created replica banderas (flags) and painted water color pictures in Art class of the pájaro nacionales (national birds). The students were eager to share their work in classroom presentations as well as at the Community Meeting! Their work can be found in OLG! Fourth graders have enjoyed studying their números 1-50 through math flash cards, bingo and el calendario. They are now able to use numbers to answer basic questions about the classroom (using the question word ¿Cuántos? … How many?). The fourth graders are currently learning vocabulary for el tiempo (the weather).

Grade 5: Fifth graders also began the year studying Spanish-speaking countries. They researched Spanish-speaking countries (Capital city, location, population and currency. The students created posters for their respective country. Fifth graders have enjoyed studying los números (numbers). They are excellent at adding, subtracting and will soon be multiplying and dividing all en español using numbers 0 – 50! They have played several math games (flash cards, bingo etc.) and have done written work as well. We are currently studying el calendario (the calendar) and el tiempo (the weather).

Grades 6, 7 and 8: Sixth graders and Middle-school students celebrated Hispanic Heritage month through mini reports on celebrities from Spanish-speaking countries. The students wrote 8 descriptive sentences in Spanish about their celebrity. This project incorporated the usage of singular and plural nouns, the gender of nouns and verb usage in the present tense. Students can hold brief conversations asking and answering basic questions (such as “How old are you?” and “Where are you from?”). Students learned vocabulario de la familia (family vocabulary) and created a brief report about a family member. Currently the students are studying la escuela y la clase (the school and the classroom). Six graders and MS students also participated in a review game similar to Jeopardy and it was great to see them take risks and challenge their knowledge!

Thank you for your continued support and encouragement of the Spanish program. It has been a pleasure to be part of the Elysian community for over two years. With every year I have observed an increased confidence in the students to exercise and improve their skills in Spanish! Last month I presented the program at a PTSO meeting and was overwhelmed by the participation and response to the “mini” lesson. The parents brought the same enthusiasm that their children bring to class every week! It is this enjoyment and respect for learning that lays the groundwork for success. ¡MUCHAS GRACIAS!

Don’t forget to check out the Spanish projects/artwork in the hallways of OLG and RUE!

From the Music Room

I’d like to continue filling you in on what’s happening in the Music Room. Today I’ll speak about the Third, Fourth and Fifth Grades.

Third Grade: Building upon the skills that have been developing in K-2nd grade, the Third Graders are ready for bigger challenges. During the Third grade there is more emphasis on reading and writing rhythm notation. The concept of meter is introduced. The children do a lot of physicalizing of rhythm patterns and meter using quarter notes, eighth notes, sixteenth notes, half notes, whole notes and corresponding rests through the Dalcroze games. We continue to use poems such as Florian’s “Chameleon”, “Little Shy Shegs” and “The Teek” to study both rhythm pattern and meter. The students also spend more time on rhythm pattern reading work using flash cards. We are beginning an intensive study of solfege (scales and tonality—melody and harmony) by singing important melodic groupings of notes that form the basis of the “words” of the musical language. We also begin the study of pitch notation on the one line staff. The students continue to sing ballads that they know Such as “The Turkey Song”. They are learning an upper grade round called “Autumn Canon”, as well as continuing to sing “more professionally” the rounds that they already know. We now divide a class in half so that without my help they can sing 2 part rounds, and when I join them we are then singing 3 part rounds. The children are absolutely thrilled with this!! The Third graders are learning a short Spanish langue song called “Caballito Blanco” and finding it both interesting and challenging to sing in a foreign language. The children have spent a lot of time playing the Orff instruments both in full group and half group music. The children are learning to play the rounds “Laugh, Ha Ha” and the “Ghost of Tom” on the Orff. They, in half group music time, are playing in the major and minor scales and creating short melodic improvisations using rules that will help them understand how tonality works and how composers compose. They are also beginning to explore how intervals and chords are constructed delight in listening to the sounds of chords!! Students are now working hard to learn and properly use the musician’s special vocabulary of musical terms. Their vocabulary consists of terms like beat, rhythm pattern, meter or time signature, pitch pattern or melody, dynamics, crescendo, diminuendo, forte, piano, tempo and the specific names of the instruments that they play: the bass, alto and soprano Orff Instruments, Metallophone, Xylophone, Glockenspiel, claves, finger drums, etc.

Fourth Grade: The 4^th graders continue to work on their rhythm skills, but now the emphasis is turning toward the study of solfege - scales, melody and harmony.

They are being introduced to new forms of scale called modes (special colors of scale, each with its own distinctive character). They are learning to improvise melodies in these modes. As we compare the sounds of each of these special scales and the major and minor scales that the children already know, the children are to describe in words what kinds of emotions and feelings these special scales evoke and to decide which scales we might want to use to show happiness, sadness, magic, disturbance, etc. The students continue to study the pitch or melody patterns that make up the “words” of music and the study of intervals and chords. The fourth graders are singing the rounds and songs that they have sung in the past, working to gain more control of nuance and expressivity (more sensitive use of tempo, dynamics, articulation, accent, etc.) and learn how consciously analyze the melodic patterns and over all form of music that they know. They are also singing the Spanish language song “Caballito Blanco” to which they are adding both the melody and a Tango rhythm accompaniment on the Orff instruments. Students continue to work with reading pitch on the 1 line staff and shortly will begin to work with the 2 and 3 line staffs in preparation for the reading of full staff notation that will come in the 6th grade. The children continue to study and use our music vocabulary and are adding terms like Sharp, Flat, bar line, measure, repeat sign, double bar line. This fall the students pent much time playing the Orff instruments not only to develop their instrumental skills, great fun for them, but also because the layout of the Orff keyboard is a great way to help them understand and actualize all that they are studying of music theory.

Fifth Grade: The students are working to consolidate what they have learned in the 3rd and 4th grades. They are continuing to study and improvise in all the scales and modes that they know both with their voices and on the Orff instruments. They continue to study more complicated rhythm patterns, melodic patterns and form in the songs that they sing and the solfege that they study. Students now can often name melodies that they have heard in songs by popular singers or in T.V. stories or commercials that use the same melodic and rhythm patterns that we are studying. In the Residency with Aram and I, students are singing, creating instrumental accompaniments and preparing for performance at the Martin Luther King Day community meeting songs about Ruby Bridges—“Ruby Red”, and “Bridges”. In regular full group music class, we continue to sing songs that we know with an emphasis on refinement. All the Fifth graders are singing “Caballito Blanco”, The “Turkey Song”, “the Ghost of Tom”, “Autumn Canon”, “Ram Sam Sam”, songs that they are also learning to play on the Orff instruments. You may wonder about the use of the same music across many grades. I work in this way so that the children can build upon and go more deeply into known and loved material, and so that over time the whole school has a body of songs-- that is to say a common musical language--that can be shared by all. The older children transmit what they know and love to the younger children and support what younger students are learning. It also gives the oldest students a desire to set a high standard of quality that they feel will impress and inspire the younger children.

If you have any questions or comments about what is happening in your child’s grade, please don’t hesitate to contact me!

We are having the PTSO meeting this Tuesday, December 4 (rather than the second Tuesday of the month, 12/10) so we can plan KUUMBA. - Pascale Nijoff

ECS PTSO Meeting

Tuesday, December 4th* at 6:30 pm

at the Rue Building

Please join us to learn more about fun upcoming events and to learn how you can get involved. We need your ideas, enthusiasm and participation!

The world’s leading company of Chinese acrobats returns to New York for the first

Performing captivating acts of incomparable strength, agility, and sheer beauty, these consummate performers make the impossible look easy.

(If you’re a parent of a Kindergartener, please do not fill out this form; They will be going with their class in January.)

There will be no school staff chaperones – only parents traveling on their own TOGETHER!

December Calendar

· Meet Emma and Dolores, Acoma Pueblo Potters. There will be a short film about them, conversation with Lynne Shapiro, Q & A, and cookies! They will also have pottery for sale!

· Tryouts for Biddy Basketball, 5:30 – 7:15, Demarest School gym, for students grades 5-6.

· After school Performance, 4:30, Golden Dragon Acrobats, New Victory Theater, New York City.

· Arts to Grow, 2-4. Make-Up Session. Parents of participating children please take note!

January 12^th Chili Cook-Off: We still need 5 more chili- makers! Contact Gene Steinhart at 201 653-4919 or genstein@optonline.net

Please come to the main City Hall council chambers this Thursday at 5:30 PM. The parks committee, including council members, will be having a meeting. We would like to have the kids represented to ask that while everyone loves trees, placing them in the last remaining unobstructed spaces in Church Square Park is not the proper place for them. Hundreds of children are being herded into smaller and smaller spaces. The tiny artificial turf field constantly has multiple groups of kids playing on it. It's only a matter of time before the collisions results in a serious injury. Please spread the word that this is a good opportunity to be heard by our elected officials. - Richard Kurland

Art Room Donations Needed:

Sponges, and Baby Wipes

Shop INNISBROOK WRAPS online ! Elysian’s number is 120231.

These sisters are daughters of the late, great, master potter, Lucy Lewis of Acoma Pueblo, New Mexico. Lucy Lewis’ lightening pot was on a U.S. postage stamp and her work is in the Smithsonian Museum, among others. Lucy and her children make pots without a wheel, using ancient methods.

The ladies will have pottery for sale! They have made smaller, less expensive pottery to sell to our teachers and parents.

Dolores and Emma are my houseguests; they have come to New Jersey because they were invited to participate in an exhibition at Montclair University Art Museum.