Hanukkah

Last Thursday Debbie Gruber came in to talk to the class about Hanukkah. The students were actively engaged during Debbie's explanation of why she celebrates this holiday. Students learned about the menorah and the 8 days of Hanukkah. She also played a Jewish game with them: Dreidel! Instead of gold coins, they played for m&ms. This week we will be making a Jewish dish during personal cooking: Latkes.
We are lucky to have Debbie on our team of teachers so that we can give the students a better perspective on different cultures and religions.

Mrs. Deeney's Last Day!

Wow this month has gone by fast! I have not even posted anything since before Halloween. Yikes! Tuesday is Mrs. Deeney's last day before she goes on maternity leave. We threw a surprise baby shower for her last Thursday. The students made cards and cupcakes and also helped make a blanket for her and her new baby. We wish her the best and hope to see her back soon. Our new Speech Therapist Amy has been in for the past week and will be with us for the next 12 weeks.

Tuesday will also be our Thanksgiving feast! We made pumpkin chocolate chip bars for it. Everyone is excited. Have a great Thanksgiving and see you soon.

Creating a Cloud

In Science class we have transitioned from talking about phases of matter to discussing the water cycle. The first class to do an experiment with the water cycle was today and they couldn't have enjoyed it more! We created our own clouds in a 2 liter bottle.

Each student will have a copy of the experiment walkthrough, and the important thing to know is that they need a teacher or parent around to do this experiment.

We put some water into a bottle, raised it's humidity by squeezing the bottle repeatedly, then dropped a just used match with its smoke into the bottle, then added pressure to make the water vapor condense. Science Rules!

Open House and Library

Last night was our annual Open House here at School of the Holy Childhood. Parents and relatives were given the opportunity to come and meet the staff and see the school. This year the specials of the school were highlighted: woodworking, food service, physical education, swimming class, ceramics, art classes, computer class, and music. When the students and parents came into my room we discussed how we are focusing on doing experiments this year and actually did one! We mixed baking soda and vinegar to create a chemical reaction and blow up a balloon.

Yesterday was also the grand opening of our new library. The work that has been put into this room shows, and we are grateful for all of the hours volunteers and staff spent to make this happen.

Have a great weekend!

Bingo and Cooking

This week we had the Bingo Ladies come in and play Bingo for Books with the students. Each student that won got to pick a book to take home with them. Everyone had a great time.

This week for personal cooking class we made apple smiles from the apples we picked last Friday at Grandview Farm. Each student cored and sliced an apple, put it in a Ziploc bag, added a little water, lemon juice, cinnamon and sugar, then shook it all together in the bag. They really enjoyed it.

Mr. P then decided to make a treat for everyone to enjoy. With the help of the students he concocted a delicious microwavable apple crisp from the 20 oz. cooking apples we picked.

Have a great week!

Apple Picking!

We just finished our apple picking and had an amazing time! We went to Grandview Farm in Macedon, New York and got an in depth tour of the orchard from the owner David. He taught us all about the different types of apples, how they grow apples, and different ways to use the apples. He had us taste test some of the apples right off of the trees! After our extensive tour, he made us some donuts and gave us some farm-made apple cider.

We had a change of plans as far as lunch was concerned: we went to Wegman's instead of Arby's. the students enjoyed the opportunity to get food at somewhere different than a fast food restaurant.

Fall is Here!

Hi everyone!

Fall is officially here and there are some great changes in the air: we have been making amazing progress with our Literacy program, the Buffalo Bills are 3-0, and our library will be ready on October 20th in time for the Open House!

The SWIP program will officially begin going to work sites next week. If you have any questions, please feel free to email me!

We will also be going on a CBI next Friday to Grandview Farm in Macedon, NY. We will be apple picking, watching apple cider be made, as well as taste testing different apples. The students will also be given disposable cameras to take their own pictures while we are there. Hopefully we get some good ones!

End of Summer School

The end is here! This summer went by fast, but it was a lot of fun. We had our Carnival day on Friday. Stations included: a story teller, the Book Fair, tye-dying t-shirts, arts and crafts, along with games. We had our talent show on Monday where we reenacted the battle on the pirate ship from Peter Pan. This summer was fun, but the work starts in September!

Strong Museum

Yesterday was our trip to the Strong Museum of Play! the students enjoyed the evolution of dance exhibit where they got to try out their different dance moves. They also enjoyed the history of video games where we were able to play several classic arcade games. After the museum we went to McDonald's for lunch. We even stopped for dessert at Bruester's Ice Cream Shop!

Generosity Store

The Generosity Store had its grand opening on Wednesday! The store sells woodworking products made by the adult staff at School of the Holy Childhood as well as pies from the bakery. The store will also be one of our community work sites starting in the fall. A few of the students from our class were invited to attend the ribbon cutting and some were asked to volunteer.

The store is located at the corner of Park Avenue and Goodman Street in the city of Rochester. They will have a booth at the Park Avenue Arts Festival this weekend so please stop by the booth and/or the store to see what it is all about!

Here are some pictures taken at the ceremony.

We Won Again!

On Friday July 29th, 2011 School of the Holy Childhood had its annual summer scavenger hunt "The Great Race." I am proud to let everyone know that this year Mr. Pincelli's class came in first place! Mr. Singer's class came in second, and Mrs. Boyle's class came in third. With this victory, Mr. Pincelli's class has now won two consecutive 1st place trophies: the candy sale being the first.

The odds seemed to be stacked against us, but the students worked together and were able to all make it to every station and participate in the group effort. Here is a picture of our two trophies in our room. The one on the left is from the candy sale and the one on the right is from the scavenger hunt.

Box of Happy Thoughts

Hi everyone! It has been a while, but I wanted to fill you in on what has been happening in our class. For this past Fun Friday we had a yoga class and a zumba class! The students got to relax with some yoga first thing in the morning and then dance their feet off with some zumba!

In Peter Pan all you need to fly is some fairy dust and happy thoughts. In the afternoon we discussed our own personal happy thoughts. We created our own Boxes of Happy Thoughts. On the outside is all of the things that make us happy in our lives. The inside will have our ultimate happy thought that would lift us into the air if we were in Neverland. Many of the students picked family and friends as what would help them defy gravity. I will post a picture of our boxes soon!

A Shel Silverstein Poem

 Here is a poem by Shel Silverstein I found in his collected book of poems Where the Sidewalk Ends. We will be reading it today in class and I hope it encourages an interest in poetry.

Captain Hook

Captain Hook must remember

Not to scratch his toes.

Captain Hook must watch out

And never pick his nose.

Captain Hook must be gentle

When he shakes your hand.

Captain Hook must be careful

Openin' sardine cans

And playing tag and pouring tea

And turnin' pages of his book.

Lots of folks I'm glad I ain't--

But mostly Captain Hook!

Shel Silverstein

Monroe County Fair

On Friday we went to the Monroe County Fair with Patrick Singer's class, Cicely Neri's class, and Beth Looby's class. The students enjoyed many rides such as the ferris wheel, swings, and the "orbiter." Three of our students played a ping pong toss game and all of them won twice! They won a goldfish for each time they landed a ping pong ball on top of a glass bottle.

Our first full week went great! We have just reached the point in Peter Pan where the Darling children leave the nursery. We have discussed the characterization of Peter, Wendy, and Captain Hook. We have also discussed how this is a fantasy because people cannot fly, a dog cannot be a nanny, and stars cannot speak. Everyone is enjoying the novel so far, especially because of the amazing pictures in our books!