Wellness Week Begins!

Last week Ms. O’Keefe conducted a school-wide assembly for us. She taught us about patience and acceptance, our March character education traits, during the first part of the assembly. During the second part of the assembly she kicked off our second Wellness Week which begins today. We were impressed with students’ knowledge of the various food groups. Your child should be bringing home a packet today with more information about Wellness Week. 

One of our Girl Scout Troops also spoke to the school about their loose change drive that they are conducting for the Humane Society as part of a badge they are trying to earn.

We have a lot of great events coming up this month. Mark your calendars for the following events: 

March 18^th               East Hill 4^th Annual Science Fair and 

                           1^st Family Math Night (6:30 – 8:00)

March 22^nd          West Genesee Culture Fair, WGHS (12:00 – 3:00)

March 26^th           3^rd Grade Concert, East Hill, 7:00 p.m.

March 28^th           BINGO, CMS, 6:30 (doors open at 6:00)

I hope you are able to join us next Tuesday at our combined Science Fair and Math Night. Science Fair projects will be on display from 6:30 to 7:30 and you will be able to go to the following rooms to participate in math games and activities with your child: Kindergarten: Mrs. Butkowski and Mrs. Devereaux; 1st Grade: Mrs. Reina and Mrs. Deegan; 2nd Grade: Mrs. Thome and Mrs. Greer; 3rd Grade: Mrs. Greco and Mrs. Tynan; 4th Grade: Mrs. McPeak and Mrs. Barry; and 5th Grade: Mrs. McDonald and Miss Button. Mrs. Ciarla, Mrs. Reilly, and Mrs. Bush will also be helping out with the activities. It should be a great night!

The math words for the week are mixed number (M), improper fraction (T), perimeter (W), quadrilateral (Th), and square (F). 

Enjoy the rest of the week. Let's hope the forecasters are wrong, again!

- Lisa

Happy March!

Last week several classrooms celebrated the 100^th day of school. The students completed all sorts of math activities with the number 100, including counting to 100 by 1s, 5s, and 10s, singing songs, drawing pictures of what they would look like when they were 100, bringing in a collection of 100 items, reading a variety of books celebrating the 100^th day, and much, much more. In the picture below you can see students in Mrs. Augello’s kindergarten class donning their 100th day glasses and hats. The hats have 10 strips of paper on them and on each strip of paper there are 10 stickers, for a total of 100 stickers in all.

Also last week the 1^st grade class put on a great assembly. They taught the school about February’s character trait of honesty and trust. Many students told stories about what happened when they weren’t honest. They concluded the assembly with a flash mob dance that included the entire first grade class and several teachers. I don’t know how they pulled off the practices without my knowing – it was quite a surprise.

The math words of the week are pictograph (M), bar graph (T), line plot (W), prime number (Th), and composite number (F).

The March PTA meeting will be held tonight in the library at 6:30. Other dates to keep in mind for this month include our upcoming 4^th Annual Science Fair and 1^st Family Math Night, which will be held at East Hill from 6:30 – 8:00 on Tuesday, March 18th. Also, please note that Friday, March 21^st will be a half day for students. Dismissal will be at 11:30.

Finally, please remember that school does not begin until 9:00. Please do not drop your children off before 9:00 as they are unable to enter the building until school opens. As you are aware, it has been exceptionally cold this winter so we don’t want the students outside any longer than they need to be. Thank you for your cooperation!

- Lisa

Welcome Back!

I hope everyone was able to enjoy some time off with their family over the winter break. Hopefully the kids got a chance to spend some time outside.

Prior to the break Scotty Fura, a 5th grader from Stonehedge Elementary, visited our second graders. He explained to them how, with only one arm, he has been able to do most things we do, just in his own way. He read Scotty's Way to us, which was written by his mother, Jennifer Fura. Scotty raced 4 students to see who could do 10 one-armed push-ups the fastest. His message to the 2nd graders was to never give up; you can do anything if you persevere.

Scotty reading Scotty's Way

Challenging students to one-armed push-ups

We now have almost 50 projects that are slated to be entered into East Hill’s 4^th Annual Science Fair. There is still time if your child/children are interested! Just have them stop in the office for a packet of information.

The January/February edition of the Junior Wildcat Times has been published. Click here to read it.

The math words of the week are regroup (M), variable (T), least common multiple (W), least common denominator (Th), and graph (F).

Have a good week!

-          Lisa

Winter Break is Coming!

Hopefully we will get an actual break from winter soon, but in the meantime winter break for school means that the students will have next week off. They will return to school on Monday, February 24^th.

Sarah Fettig, a participant in the 2nd Annual Science Fair

The 4th Annual East Hill Science Fair will be held on Tuesday, March 18^th at 6:30. Please encourage your child to participate. It is so much fun for the students and such a great learning experience. It is non-competitive and open to all students in grades K-5. Students are encouraged to either work alone, with a sibling, with friends, or with whomever they’d like. They receive a Certificate of Participation, a ribbon, and written feedback from several students in the building. The initial packet said that applications were due on February 13^th, but we will take them until the end of February. Please talk to your child about this great opportunity. 

Valentine’s parties will be held this Friday at 2:15. As always, only those parents who have been contacted by the room parents should attend (without younger children), and healthy snacks are always encouraged.

The math words of the week are meter (M), compose (T), decompose (W), number line (Th), and open number line (F).

3rd Grade Students Finding Area

Enjoy the rest of the week and winter break as well!

-          Lisa

Enrichment Day a Hit!

The PTA’s annual enrichment day was a hit once again this year. The success of the program can be attributed to all of the people who volunteered their time sharing a craft, or a hobby, and coordinating the program. Thank you to Mrs. Irving, Ms. Plantz, Mrs. Grooms, and countless others for all of your efforts. As you can see by the pictures, the students had a great time!

Sir Isaac Newton and Car Building

Fun Loom and Para Cord Bracelets 

No Sew Blankets

Let's Paint!

Ready, Set, Grow!

Art of Chemistry

Art, Try It You Might Like It!

Small Project Woodworking

Circuit Training and Hula Hooping

Karate

Kids in the Kitchen

Making Fun and Healthy Snacks

Tie Dye

Last week our 5^th grade students and teachers taught the school about the January character trait of perseverance. They did this through a combination of playing games, sharing quotes, signing, and telling stories. Thank you to the fifth grade team!

Congratulations to Abigail Ray, a student in Miss Button's 5th grade class, who did a wonderful job representing our school and our district in this year's Post-Standard/WCNY Spelling Bee. Abigail first made it into the top 12 at the district spelling bee, then was one of the top 35 spellers in the written spelling bee. This weekend she participated in the Post-Standard/WCNY Spelling Bee and made it to the 5th round. Way to go Abby! We are proud of you!

Abigail Ray and Miss Button

Our math words for the week are: inch (M), foot (T), yard(W), centimeter(Th), and meter(F).

The February PTA meeting will be held tonight in the East Hill Library at 6:30. The deadline for ordering a yearbook has been extended to this Friday, February 7th. Please remember that February break takes place the week of February 17^th. Have a great week!

- Lisa

Brrr!

Well, January is certainly flying by quickly. Perhaps that had something to do with the lack of days we had school? This frigid weather just doesn’t seem to want to go away. Unfortunately the snow days aren’t even as much fun for the kids as they typically are because they have had to stay inside. Hopefully it will all be over soon.

As you are aware, Enrichment Day is coming up this Saturday, February 1^st, from 9:00 – 11:30. Your child should have brought home a packet with them last Thursday. Classes fill up quickly and are filled on a first-come, first-served basis so make sure you get your form in if you haven’t done so already.

Students were also given the opportunity this week to take home a Science Fair packet. If your child didn’t bring one home, and they would like to participate in this year’s Science Fair, please make sure they ask their teacher for a packet. Again, the Science Fair is non-competitive, a lot of fun, and will be held in conjunction with our next math night on Tuesday, March 18^th.

Congratulations to the following winners of the December coloring contest from East Hill’s 5^th Grade Newspaper, The Junior Wildcat Times: Lauren Puchta (1^st Place, 5^th Grade), Clare DeVore (2^nd Place, 2^nd Grade), and Matthew Craybas (3^rd Place, 3^rd Grade.) The contest is judged by all of our fifth graders in addition to all of our faculty and staff. The winners receive gift certificates for our school store.

As a reminder, this Friday there is no school as our staff has a professional development day. We will be taking part in a required training as well as spending part of our day analyzing all of the recent data we have collected to help better inform our instruction.

The math words of the week are skip count (M), break apart (T), compensation (W), and number bond (Th). Last week’s words (I didn’t send out my blog last week), were column, area, and area model.

Bundle up!

-          -  Lisa

A Five Day Week Possibly?

Well, here’s hoping for a full week of school! It will be the only five day week in January as we have next Monday off in celebration of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, and the students have Friday, January 31^st off for a teacher workshop day.

This year’s Dialogue with the Superintendent will be held this Wednesday in the High School LGI from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m.  Everyone is welcome to attend.

Save the Date! It is not too early to begin planning for this year’s Science Fair, which will be held on Tuesday, March 18^th from 6:30 to 7:30. We will be holding our second Math Night in conjunction with the Science Fair. Our Science Fair is non-competitive and is open to all students in grades K-5. Students are encouraged to work with a sibling, a neighbor, a friend, a parent, etc. More information about the Science Fair as well as Math Night will be sent out soon.

The math words of the week are equivalent fraction (M), benchmark fraction (T), tenth (W), hundredth (Th), and row (F) Have a great week!

- Lisa