Hello School Community,
Many grades are finishing up their first units in Reading, Writing, and Math so we have put up all the new H.O.P.s for the second units. There are tons of great resources, be sure to check them out below!
Kindergarten
First grade
Second Grade
Third Grade
Fourth Grade
GettingSmart.com, a community for news, stories, and leadership on innovations in learning and teaching recently mentioned PS11’s H.O.P. in their article, “Ways Teachers Can Get Parents Involved Beyond Homework.” Pretty neat if you ask me, enjoy!
Then check out Newsela.
Every day Newsela publishes topical, high-interest news articles for kids in grades 2-12; think of it as a New York Times for young readers. One of its distinguishing features is that all articles are available at five different levels of text complexity. Newsela sorts the levels using the Lexile Level Measures (you will see them to the right of each article) which are numerical. To learn how Lexile Levels Convert to PS11’s alphabetic levels, check this out.
Newsela also provides writing prompts (which are editable) and quizzes for each article. And as if that weren’t enough, the articles are also available in Spanish.
Our very own Mrs. Griffith learned about a great new app. for all you science lovers out there; it is called iNaturalist.
This site/app is a great place to learn more about nature, but what sets iNaturalist apart, is that it allows you to record your observations, share them with other naturalists, and discuss them with the community!
If you want to learn more, check out their website and this segment from NPR.
Important: This app. allows you to share your location so that others can help you identify species – if you do not want your child’s location to be known, please look into disabling this feature!
PS11 was part of the Quiet Summer Institute, a professional development workshop that was featured in this segment by NPR and based on Susan Cain’s best-seller Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking.
PS11 has signed on to be part of a year long journey with the Quiet Schools Network to create Quiet Schools. These schools are, “characterized by an inclusive culture in which everyone is recognized for their potential to learn and lead in authentic ways.” We believe this work will help our entire school community and look forward to the road ahead. Stay tuned!
Oh and by the way, “The Quiet Revolution” also has resources for “Quiet Parenting,” check them out here.
If you are looking for books that have strong female characters this summer, A Mighty Girl, is the resource for you. This great resource was shared with us by our very own Mrs. Dale, not only is she “mighty” teacher at PS11 but also the mother of 3 “mighty” girls.
A Mighty Girl is the world’s largest collection of books, toys, movies, and music for parents, teachers, and others dedicated to raising smart, confident, and courageous girls and, of course, for girls themselves!
Girls do not have to be relegated to the role of sidekick or damsel in distress; they can be the leaders, the heroes, the champions that save the day, find the cure, and go on the adventure.
A Mighty Girl’s book section features over 2,000 girl-empowering books starring stellar Mighty Girl characters. With over 200 book categories to explore, the best way to discover what this section has to offer is by browsing our detailed book menu — just mouse over the ‘Books’ button on the menu bar above. From there you can choose the categories of interest to you and then use the filters on the left-menu to further refine your search.
Simple creative activities are some of the building blocks of child development. Learning to create and appreciate visual aesthetics may be more important than ever to the development of the next generation of children as they grow up.- Grace Hwang Lynch
In the article, The Importance of Art in Child Development, Grace Hwang Lynch talks about the developmental benefits of art. Luckily Ms. Sam, our beloved art teacher, has collected an assortment of fun and simple ways you can keep your kids engaged in creative activities this summer. Here is is her list of fantastic resources!
You will not even believe the countless free resources the The New York Public Library provides for children and families.
Here are some great ways you can use your public library this summer:
Incredible, right? If your child doesn’t have a library card, apply for one here.
Mr. Roylance and Mrs. Griffith have incredible ideas about how you can stay in touch with your inner scientist this summer. Whether you want to try a Self-Guided Tour of Central Park to immerse yourself in nature or check out this free podcast, their list of resources is sure to get your neurons firing! Click here to see them all!
Did you know Ms. Golub has compiled resources to help you and your children engage with music at home? Learn about noteworthy events, play online games, and find so much more on her informative website.
PS11's H.O.P. 