Clinton Township Newsletter

1 5 d e c e m b e r 2 0 2 0 the natural disaster, discussing how they rapidly change the earth's surface, and what people can do to prepare for them. Grade 5: During the past month our fifth grade scientists observed how seeds grow. They observed pinto beans in both sunlight and in the dark, growing in cotton balls and growing in dirt, as well as pinto beans covered in plastic wrap and growing in the open air. They wrote hypotheses based on the different environments and observed them over a few weeks. Students learned seeds do not need sunlight or soil in order to begin to grow, but that seeds grown in the darkness would be white in color as they did not produce chlorophyll. Grade 5 - School Counselor: During the months of October and November, Mrs. Giordano has continued to spend time with students during their mask breaks either in person or virtually with the goal of getting to know the students better and to provide assistance with ways of managing uncomfortable thoughts or feelings. Mrs. Giordano has also scheduled meetings with the 5th graders who are new to RVS and those students in 5th grade who are in our Cohort C as a way to provide opportunities for social interaction. ClintonTownship Middle School The Student Ambassadors from Clinton Township Middle School focused their October service project on designing masks to support those in our community who are fighting Breast Cancer. Our group goal was to reach 30 masks, but we ended up donating over 50 masks to the Hunterdon Regional Cancer Center for these warriors who are fighting cancer every day. They are a small acknowledgment of our admiration, support, and appreciation for everything that these brave members of our community are facing everyday. Keeping Safe at CTMS: Last February seems like forever ago, but some of our sixth graders were very concerned about the fires in Australia. They made a video public service announcement and held a Valentine sale: selling stuffed koalas and kangaroos. Together with the Student Council, they raised $500 to donate to the Australian Koala Foundation. We have been contacted by the organization, and they would like to feature an article about our students! KIDS CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE! 7th grade students have enjoyed the opportunity to participate in supervised labs at home. These labs coincide with concepts being discussed and explored this year. Our first lab was a chromatography lab, where we isolated the pigments in fall leaves. It was amazing to see all the different color pigments in each type of leaf! Students will be learning about cells in our next unit, and we wanted to offer the opportunity to do this lab before all the leaves were gone. CTMS Parents: mark your calendars with these important dates! • Week of January 4, 2021: Course recommendations and scheduling paperwork will be mailed home. • Wednesday, January 6, 2021: The scheduling process will be presented at CTMS (in person and virtually). The high school curriculum guide will be available on the NHHS website under "Featured Links." (www.nhvweb.net/nhhs) • Thursday, January 7, 2021: CTMS 8th grade student transition presentation by NHHS. NHHS faculty will present program and scheduling information, and students will be given a (possible) virtual tour of the building. • Thursday, January 7, 2021, 6:30 pm: NHHS Parent Orientation for 8th grade parents. The presentation will include an overview of high school life, overview of the scheduling process, and any changes/updates. • Week of January 11, 2021: Students will discuss and hand in their schedule request sheets with copies sent home to be reviewed. All corrections are due to CTMS Guidance by Friday, January 22, 2021. • Monday, February 1 - Friday, February 12, 2021: NHHS counselors will be available for optional appointments with students and parents to review uploaded course requests. You MUST call the High School Guidance Department at: 908.713.4130 to schedule an appointment. Patrick McGaheran School Each month at Patrick McGaheran School, students learn about our words and themes of the month and how to apply them in words and actions. For the month of December, our word is "generosity" and our theme is "I AM a friend." Students read stories and discuss ways to be generous and to help others, and demonstrate how they are a true friend to others. Our youngest students are so eager to learn and to demonstrate these characteristics, and we are so proud to support them in doing so. Last month brought Election Day, and the students at PMG had a chance to participate by voting for an upcoming Spirit Day! Students from our PMG Friendship Council shared some great ideas that were added to the ballot for a school vote. The winning choice as selected by our PMG students is: Share Your Favorite Stuffed Animal! Round Valley School School-Wide Enrichment: This fall, students at Round Valley School had a lesson in democracy! Students listened to the picture book Grace for President and learned about the election process. In the weeks approaching the Presidential election, students learned they would participate in a school election to select a read aloud novel for the whole school. The candidates were Pie by Sarah Weeks, Poppy by Avi and The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate. In order to make an informed decision, students learned about the candidate novels. Finally, on November 2, the 3rd, 4th and 5th graders voted electronically. The winner of Round Valley's election for whole school novel was The One and Only Ivan. Teachers and staff then took turns recording themselves reading sections of the novel for students to watch for the month of November. Grade 3 Update: The 3rd Grade team would like to thank families for joining us during Parent Teacher Conferences. We had many uplifting and productive conversations about student learning given our unusual circumstances. We appreciate families taking the time to meet with us! As the second marking period begins, third graders are starting a Science unit on Weather and Climate. They will learn about various cloud formations and the weather that each typically brings. Students will also study extreme weather and delve into how climate affects the way people live around the globe. In Math, students are collecting and interpreting data using tally charts, frequency tables, bar graphs, picture graphs, and line plots. It sure was fun exploring and showing the data we collected regarding our Halloween candy! Our Mathematicians are using the data to create multi-step word problems to solve, using the real world information that they have chosen to collect. Students are also participating in a Mystery unit in Language Arts! They are learning how to be super sleuths while reading for clues, spotting red herrings, and making predictions about "who done it!" Grades 3 and 4 - School Counselors: During the months of October and November, the school counselors met with all of our third and fourth graders. Mrs. Frey visited each classroom to teach a lesson on kindness and respect, using the story, Each Kindness. Mr. Ruttenberg has been meeting with the all-virtual students twice a month for a fun socialization meeting. Both counselors meet with students each week, and all students are welcome to come and talk about anything on their minds! Please reach out to us if you have any concerns. Grade 4 Update: In Social Studies, the fourth graders have been researching the events that led to the Revolutionary War. We also are studying the important battles of the Revolution. Students created timelines to demonstrate their understanding of the chronological events within the American Revolution and the role New Jersey played within those events. In Science, fourth grade students have been learning all about different types of natural disasters such as tsunamis, volcanoes, earthquakes, and landslides. Students have been learning how they are caused and what effect they have on the earth's surface. To culminate this unit, students are picking their favorite natural disaster and creating a slideshow explaining I N O U R S C H O O L S :

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