Holiday Happenings

It’s been a busy time here at East Hill these past couple of weeks, just like it is everywhere at this time of the year! Earlier this month three of our teachers took their students to see a Syracuse University Women’s basketball game at the Dome. A great time was had by all. At the end of the game Brittany Sykes, one of SU’s top players, came up and visited with our students, signing autographs for many of them. They were thrilled!

On December 13th our 4^th and 5^th graders held their winter concert. The band, orchestra, and chorus all did a wonderful job. The concert assembly was enjoyed by the students during the day. On Monday night Erin McConnell, our band teacher, took her fifth grade band students to play with the Marcellus Elementary Band at Destiny. They sounded wonderful. This week we had caroling in the cafeteria by our band and orchestra. Holiday parties were held yesterday afternoon. Thank you to all of the parents for putting together such well-organized parties for our students.

Kohl’s Autism and Related Disorders Program presented KidSpeak – A puppet workshop to our kindergarteners and first graders yesterday. They do a nice job explaining autism in grade-appropriate terms. They will be back in January to present the same puppet show to our second graders.

Yesterday was dress-up day at East Hill. Below are just a few of the students donning their finest.

Last week’s words of the day were legend (M,1), voyage (T, 2), aqueduct (W, 1 and 3), alliteration (Th, 4), and visualization (F, 5). This week’s words were succulent (K, M), enormous (1, T), endurance (2, W), civilization (3, Th), and melancholy (4, F).  Our Student Council members are making posters for the words on Google Draw that are displayed in the hall.

I hope you enjoy the holidays and the winter break with your families. School will resume on Tuesday, January 3, 2017

  - Lisa

Tis the Season

The Season for Caring and Compassion

Yesterday afternoon our third graders taught the school about what it means to be compassionate and caring. They created posters and explained different ways we can show caring and compassion at home, at school, and in the community.

When our third graders were done with their presentation, fifth grade students from Troop #293 spoke to the school about recycling in the cafeteria, which will begin today. They talked about the 3 Rs, why it is important to recycle, and what and how to recycle in our new cafeteria. Recycling is one way we show caring toward our environment.

The Holiday Jitters

I recently read the following in a column that I passed along to my staff from Responsive Classroom titled, “Keep Learning Going During Holiday and Vacation Times.”

In the weeks leading up to winter vacation, what you’re seeing may well be a case of the holiday season jitters. From November through January, children often become more fidgety, giggly, testy, and tired. There are many reasons: they may be distracted by the excitement of home activities, or they may be reacting to increased stress at home. At school, schedules are often disrupted at this time of year by assemblies, plays, and special events, and such changes in routine can throw children’s behavior off. Plus, at many schools, recess is curtailed once winter weather arrives.

What can you do to help your students stay on track and learn at their best during this season? We’ve found that an extra measure of calmness, consistency, and structure can work wonders.

Suggested strategies from the column that might apply to home as well as school include: sticking to routines, noticing and reinforcing success, keeping expectations high but appropriate, reading aloud to your children and keeping the learning going. I would also add keeping up the communication, as I recently read in a blog from Lori Keevil, principal of Stonehedge Elementary:

The season brings out the best in many, but we recognize the struggle many children (as well as adults) feel at this time of year. During this stressful and busy month, let’s all make the time to have conversations with our children about what’s really important.

Community Giving
Thanks again to everyone who was able to take a tag off of the PTA’s annual giving tree. With your generosity, and the support of Todd’s Fund, we will be able to make the holidays a much more enjoyable time for seven of our local East Hill families.

Words of the Day

Next week’s words of the day are legend (M, 1^st), convenient (T, 2^nd), aqueduct (W, 3^rd), alliteration (Th, 4^th), and visualization (F, 5^th).

Enjoy the rest of the week!

- Lisa

Compassion and Caring

Compassion and Caring are the December character education traits of the month. I feel so fortunate to be a part of such a compassionate and caring community here at East Hill. Due to the generosity of our community, and with the help of our 5th Grade Student Council and our PTA, we were able to provide Thanksgiving meals for many of our local families. We have also filled two barrels for the Salvation Army Food Drive that members from the 174th Fighter Wing will be picking up next week.

Our PTA's Community Giving Tree still has several tags on it with gift requests if you interested in
helping out one of our East Hill families this holiday season. If you can't stop in to the school for a tag, but want to buy a gift, you can email Mary Kay DeVore at mkdevore@hotmail.com, or call or text her at (315) 569-7963. They are asking that all gifts are wrapped with the tag securely fastened on the outside of the package and dropped off to the school next week. Your help is definitely appreciated. I know we ask a lot, especially at this time of year, so please do not feel obligated to participate.

Our 4th and 5th grade is preparing for their winter concert which will be held on Tuesday, December 13th at 7:00 p.m. at the high school. Don't forget to mark you calendar! Speaking of music, several of Mrs. Mercer's 5th grade viola and cello students were able to be her "teaching assistants" this past week at Syracuse University, where Mrs. Mercer works part-time. Her SU students were grateful for the opportunity that Mrs. Mercer gave them to work with these students. Thank you to the parents who made it possible for the students to participate!

This week's words of the day are cautious (M,5th), cunning (T, 1st), theme (W, 5th), mischief (Th, K), and ancient (F, 1st).

Take Care!

- Lisa

Thankfulness

Thankfulness is our character education trait for the month. Last week our fifth graders taught the school about ways to be thankful. The 5th Grade Student Council explained their "Thankfulness" project. Thank you to everyone who contributed to this project. Because of your generosity, we will be able to provide many local families with a Thanksgiving dinner. Thank you to the PTA for doing some of the shopping!

Liam, Ben, and Emron work together to pack the dinner boxes.

Our Shared Decision Making Committee continues to meet and discuss ways to keep our new cafeteria running smoothly. We are trying to incorporate the character education trait of the month in some fashion. This month we had each student write what they were thankful for when it comes to the cafeteria. Mr. Joe was a big hit!

We are fortunate to have the Merry-Go-Round Theater come to our school several times throughout the year. In the picture below students are learning about the Haudenosaunee. It's so nice to be able to have these presentations in our new cafeteria!

The words of the day for this week were sly (M,K), monstrous (T, 1), wondrous (W, 3), convenient (Th, 4), and longed (F, K). Next week's words are cherished (M, 1), and interconnected (T, 3).

Please remember that Monday and Tuesday are half-days with an 11:30 dismissal. Parent conferences will be held on the afternoons of Monday and Tuesday, even if there are weather delays. If you are not sure of your conference time, please call the office at 487-4648.

If I don't see you before then, have a wonderful Thanksgiving with your family!

- Lisa

Happy Election Day!

We had another very exciting week here at East Hill last week. On Monday we celebrated Halloween with our annual Halloween parade and class parties. We were lucky that the weather held out and we are also lucky to have so many families that are able to come out to watch the parade and help with the class parties.

Our cafeteria is now fully up and running. All of the students were able to enjoy lunch in their new dining space. The school is currently working on a name for the cafeteria. We have several interesting names to choose from as you can imagine!

While Halloween and a new cafeteria are extremely exciting events in and of themselves, the highlight of the week had to be the visit from the sheep that were roaming around for the past few weeks. They were spotted grazing in our fields which of course caught the attention of all of our students, as well as local law enforcement.

The highlight of this week will surely be the District Spelling Bee which will be held tomorrow at Camillus Middle School. Representing East Hill this year are Lilliana Corrigan, Isabella Dickson, Anthony Edgar, Joanna Ray, and Payton Voss. These students were selected based on a written test that was given to all interested fourth and fifth graders. We are proud of them!

Please don't forget that today is a half-day for students. Students being picked up will be dismissed at 11:20 and the buses will be dismissed at 11:30. This month's PTA meeting will be held on Wednesday, November 16th at 6:30. Lastly, please don't forget that tomorrow, 11/9, is the last day to order Spirit Wear! Purchases can only be made online this year. The website is holyshirt.com/collections/EastHill. For questions, contact parent representative Kimmer Gonzalez at kimmerkop@yahool.com. 

This week's words of the day are longed (K,M), cherished (1, T), reflex (3, W), and cautious (5, Th).

Have a great week!

- Lisa

Excitement Abounds at East Hill!

Last Friday was full of excitement here at East Hill. Friday marked the opening of East Hill's brand new cafeteria! We are having a "soft" opening to make sure we have all of our ducks in a row. Our fifth graders were to the first to be able to eat in there, followed closely by our fourth graders. We should have everyone in by the end of the week. Our Shared Decision Making Committee has spent a good deal of time doing research and figuring out all of the logistics. There's a lot more to having a smoothly-running cafeteria than one would think!

4th & 5th Graders Enjoy Lunch in the Cafeteria

Equally exciting on Friday, I believe, was the culmination of our two-week PARP (Pick a Reading Partner) Reading Celebration. At the closing ceremony we had several special guests on hand: the Camillus Middle School Band (Directed by Mr. Dimmel, with Mr. Stachnik and Mrs. McConnell playing their instruments), Grace Craig, my daughter, who sang the National Anthem, the Fiction and Nonfiction candidates (played by Mr. Meaney and Mrs. Wolbert, respectfully), and, of course, the Secret Service (Mrs. Catalino, Mrs. Trivison, and Mrs. Klaben) were present to ensure the safety of our candidates.

Mr. Dimmel conducts the CMS Band

Grace Craig sings the National Anthem

The candidates, with Secret Service protection, eagerly await the results

The results of the election, which was held on Thursday, were revealed. Fiction took roughly 68% of the votes, while nonfiction took the remaining 32%. The candidates each gave their speeches where Fiction revealed that nonfiction is really his favorite, and Nonfiction did the same. They vowed to work together as we all need a balance of fiction and nonfiction in our lives to make us well-rounded readers. The day was capped off with the PTA providing "Parp-sicles" for the students in the new cafeteria. Many of us felt it was the best-themed reading celebration to date. Thank you again to the PTA for all of your help, to the many guest readers that came in to read, to the CMS band for playing at the ceremony, and to everyone else involved.

Kindergarteners cast their votes on Thursday

An excited kindergartener after casting his vote

Fiction giving his acceptance speech

Results of daily polls shown in tens frames 

Bulletin board indicating staff preferences

The Halloween parade will be held today out in the front circle at 2:00 as long as the weather permits. We will not have a parade if the weather doesn't allow for it. Please remember that only those parents who have been contacted by the room parents are to come into the building and into the classrooms. Everyone coming into the building needs to sign in at the main office as always.

This week's words of the day are fragile (M), perilous (T), plot (W), miraculously (Th), and immense (F).

Family BINGO night, which was tentatively scheduled for this Friday, has been postponed until the spring. Next Tuesday, 11/8, is a half-day with an 11:30 dismissal (11:20 parent pick-up.) Next Friday, 11/11, there is no school in honor of Veterans Day.

Our PTA, in conjunction with our Student Council, will again be providing Thanksgiving meals for families in need of some additional help at the holidays. Please let me know if we can help your family at this time.

Have a safe and happy Halloween and a great week!

- Lisa

Elect to Read!

Our two-week Pick a Reading Partner (PARP) Reading Celebration was kicked off this morning in style! Our theme this year is "Elect to Read" to coincide with the presidential election. An assembly was held for the school to promote the reading campaign. East Hill's two candidates are Fiction (played by Mr. Meaney) and Nonfiction (played by Mrs. Wolbert).

As you can see in the pictures below, the Secret Service (played by Mrs. Klaben, Mrs. Trivison, and Mrs. Catalino) came in before the candidates to make sure the area was secure. They stayed throughout the debate to ensure the safety of the candidates.

The candidates then entered the gym. They shook hands, kissed babies, and asked people to vote for them.

The debate then began. Questions were asked by moderator Leslie Holt (played by Mrs. Greer). These questions included:

What is fiction?
What is nonfiction?
What is your idea of the perfect library?
Why should we vote for you?

Candidates each took turns respectfully answering the questions. Over the next two weeks students will be encouraged to read each night, color in a bookmark, and report to their teacher in the morning whether they read fiction or nonfiction the previous night. The results of this daily poll will be depicted on a tens frame chart outside the gymnasium. A calendar is also being sent home today with election-related activities to do as a family. Next Thursday students will enter a voting booth to choose their favorite candidate (fiction or nonfiction) and the results will be revealed on Friday, 10/28 at the closing ceremony. Throughout the two weeks we will also have several guest readers reading to the different classrooms, thanks to our PTA. It's going to be awesome!


This Wednesday, 10/19, is Unity Day. Mrs. Rose has been visiting classrooms this past week to teach students about the purpose of this day, which is to show kindness, acceptance, and inclusion of all and stand together against bullying.

Last Friday we held the official opening of our new playground, complete with a time capsule burial. Among the contents of the time capsule are letters to future students from last year's Student Council, and items that this year's Student Council collected, including a newspaper, yearbook, current magazines, a Nike shoe, local restaurant menus, change, and pictures of a variety of things, including our new playground, current technology, teacher's cars, the school, and the current layout of the school. We had a beautiful day for the ceremony. Dr. Brown was on hand to say a few words to the school. Student Council members really enjoyed helping with the burial, as did Dr. Brown and I. (It was also hat day at East Hill as you will see.)

This week's words of the day are slither (M, 3rd), determination (T, 4th), transport (W, 5th), character (Th, K), and nutrition (F, 1st).

The Halloween Parade will take place in front of the school on 10/31 at 2:00 if the weather allows. If we have poor weather, the parade will be cancelled and parties will take place at 2:15. A letter will be coming home with more details about this day later this week.

Have a great week!

- Lisa

Happy October!

Once again September seemed to go by in a flash. We ended the month on a high note here at East Hill with our PTA's annual jogathon. The weather cooperated for the most part so all of the students were able to run their laps outside.

School Picture Day was yesterday. If your child was absent, they can have their photo taken on the make up day which is November 10, 2016. We will also have group photos and candids taken that day.

Please remember that there is no school on Monday due to Columbus Day. Other dates to remember this month are as follows:

10/17      PARP (Pick a Reading Partner) Two-Week Reading
              Celebration begins
10/18      PTA Meeting, East Hill Library, 6:30
10/19      Book Fair Family Night, 6:00
10/31      Halloween Parade, 2:00 (If there is inclement weather, the
              parade will not take place.)

Next week's words of the day are: symbolize (T, 5th), boasting (W, K), complicated (Th, 1st), and surrender (F, 3rd).

Have a great day!

- Lisa

Jogathon Tomorrow!

Tomorrow is our annual jogathon and we can't wait! We are hoping the weather holds out. This is the PTA's sole fundraiser for the year. The tentative schedule is as follows:

10:00 - 10:20 1st Grade
10:30 - 10:50 2nd Grade
11:00 - 11:15 Kindergarten
11:25 - 11:45 4th Grade
  1:10 -  1:30 3rd Grade
  1:40 -  2:00 5th Grade

If it rains the students will run in the gym rather than on the front circle. Speaking of the front circle, cars will not be allowed to park out there tomorrow. It is possible that the schedule may be altered due to rain. If there is a schedule change, I will send out another post. If you are available, please come out to cheer on the students!

Please remember that today is a half-day. Parent pick-up is at 11:15 and the rest of the students will be dismissed at 11:30.

This Tuesday we had our first CODE assembly of the year. The students look forward to meeting with Officer Brand and Officer Grace to learn about a variety of topics. You should have received a letter home on Tuesday indicating what the focus of each assembly was for each of the different grade levels. Please talk with your child about what they have learned.

This Tuesday we also held our first Student Council meeting of the year. Their first task is to finish filling the time capsule that will be buried in our playground in October. Next week they will start working on posters for the Word of the Day. Mrs. Gipe, our District Math Coach and Administrative Intern, will work with the students using Google Draw.

All of the words of the day are taken from our new Core Knowledge Language Arts (CKLA) program which has a rich vocabulary component. It's exciting to hear kindergarteners talk about their unique fingerprints, first graders talk about personification, and third graders say they are meandering down the hallway!

The following are this week's words of the day. The day of the week and grade level(s) where these words are being introduced is also noted: personification (M, 1st and 3rd); exaggeration (T, 2nd), recoil (W, 4th), rapport (Th, 5th), and obedient (F, 4th.) Next week's words are the day are frightened (M, K), voluntary (T, 1st), astonished (W, 2nd), migration (Th, 3rd), inevitable (F, 4th.)

October dates to remember:
10/5   School Pictures
10/10 No School, Columbus Day
10/12 4th Grade Trip to Chittenango Landing
10/18 PTA Meeting, East Hill Library, 6:30
10/19 Book Fair Family Night, 6:00 - 8:00
10/31 Halloween Parade and Parties, 2:00

Have a great day!

- Lisa