news@6 spring2015

NEWS MAGAZINE OF THE LILLIE DEVEREAUX BLAKE SCHOOL PUBLIC SCHOOL SIX WWW.PS6NYC.ORG

SPRING2015

LIVIA YOUNG, 2-227

SPRING2015

is the only news magazine for PS 6. It is published jointly by the PTA and

School quarterly during the school year.45 East 81st Street, New York, NY 10028

LAUREN FONTANA PRINCIPAL JANE GALASSO ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL AMY SANTUCCI ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL

EDITORIAL STAFF JAYA NAHMIYAS PTA SECOND VP MAUREEN ATINSKY AND PTA CO-PRESIDENTS CATHERINE DUNNING

Parents and Kids: Would you like to contribute

to News@6? Jaya Nahmiyas, the PTA’s Second VP, is your contact for all submissions, from articles, artwork, photos, kids’ or

parents’ quotes, to brain-teasers, puzzles or even silly jokes. Please also feel free to tell us what you like or dislike about

News@6 as well. Email us at [email protected].

Would you like to advertise in News@6?News@6 is distributed to over 600 PS 6 families and other

members of the PS 6 community, reaching over 2,000 readers. If you would like to advertise in News@6, please

email us at [email protected].

© 2015 PS 6 PTA

Cover artwork by Livia Young, 2-227

Fifth graders explored identity at the Guggenheim CASA Program

First graders created their own “insects” based on what they

learned about insects in Science

www.ps6nyc.org NEWS@6 | 1

PTA Message

CELEBRATING OUR COMMUNITY

Although “Starry Night” marked the seventh consecu-tive auction we attended as PS 6 parents, we never cease to be

amazed at the way the PS 6 Community comes together every year to create such a magical event. Looking around the room, we saw a sea of familiar faces—fellow parents, teachers, administrators, members of the custodial staff—all engaged in a convivial scene. Year in, year out, dozens of volunteers come together to raise money to support the programs that have become so important in the lives of our children. But looking around the room, it became clear that these events are about more than just raising money to enhance our kids’ education.

The Auction is a chance to reconnect with friends from former years, granting adequate time to catch up on our lives (not just the drive-by Fairway variety we are used to). With the formality of the school setting stripped away and the festivity of the event taking our mind off academics, we enjoy the opportunity to speak with our children’s teachers as fellow adults, learning about what they do in their free time and their plans for summer.

Every year, the auction items are incred-ible—a week on a working cattle ranch, a coveted reservation at Rao’s, a vacation at a vineyard in Spain. The children’s artwork was spectacular, and once again the art com-mittee managed to create beautiful pieces that showcased each child’s creativity. (And

the winners can tell everyone, “Oh, I picked that up at auction at Sotheby’s.”) The decora-tions were festive and luminous, transporting us into a Starry Night. The delicious food and drink, generously donated by PS 6 fami-lies, were masterpieces themselves.

While we all look forward to the festivi-ties of the Annual Auction, it is also a crucial fundraising event, accounting for more than 25% of the yearly PTA Budget. Thanks to the dynamic auction committee, parent volunteers who donate their time and talent to making the night a huge success, and the marvelous generosity of PS 6 family and friends, we are happy to report that we have once again hit that magic number!

Each year’s Auction is unique and special in its own way, yet each one manages to capture the essence of the PS 6 Community. With six more Auctions in our future, we look forward to many more magical nights!

By MAUREEN ATINSKY and CATHERINE DUNNING, PTA EXECUTIVE BOARD CO-PRESIDENTS

JUST AS PS 6 IS A COMMUNITY AND SECOND HOME FOR OUR KIDS, IT IS A SECOND HOME FOR US. HOW MANY OF US HAVE FORGED FRIENDSHIPS OVER THE YEARS WITH FELLOW PARENTS THAT ARE JUST AS MEANINGFUL AS THOSE THAT OUR CHILDREN MAKE?

2 | NEWS@6 www.ps6nyc.org

Principal’s Message

SKILLS AND HABITS OF LEARNING

By the time your children come to PS 6 they have had 5 years of valuable teaching—you are your children’s first teach-

ers—whether it was snuggling together over books when they were babies, drawing pic-tures together when they were toddlers, sing-ing the alphabet as they moved on to pre-school, or helping them learn how to share toys with friends, you have and continue to be strong participants in how your children learn. When they enter kindergarten we view our role as continuing the foundation for learning you have established in their young lives. I’d like to take this opportunity to share with you the Academic and Personal Behaviors that are part of the New York State Common Core Standards. These skills develop life-long habits of learning—that continue to be necessary years after school-ing has ended.• Persistence – we want our children to demonstrate a commitment to school and work hard in the face of challenges. In school we talk to our students about the importance of effort and the value of seeking help from each other to achieve goals. We foster the kind of learning environment that allows students to take risks—knowing that in order to learn something new, there can be setbacks and struggle, but persistence will help you achieve goals.• Engagement – we believe in the im-portance of student involvement in school

activities throughout the day. Students who are engaged form relationships with teachers and peers—a connection to people and place. This connection helps you work hard to achieve your goals.• Work Habits and Organizational Skills – we want our students to develop the ability to manage their time and their materials effectively. Children as young as 5 learn the importance of time management—arriving to school on time, unpacking their

By LAUREN FONTANA, PRINCIPAL

Students combined textured materials in a collagraph and printed their collagraphs

using a variety of inks and paper


lunches and school supplies, putting them in the proper places—are all ways we begin de-veloping these very important life-long habits. Of course, the expectations grow as children get older—we continue to hold our students accountable for these skills until they leave us the last day of school in fifth grade!• Communication and Collabora-tion – there isn’t anything we do at PS 6 that doesn’t in some way involve the ability to communicate and collaborate. We know these skills are needed throughout life, and even our youngest children need to have multiple opportunities to learn to work with many different kinds of people. In the classrooms, in the school yard, during special programs like Ballroom Dancing, and others, children are learning how to develop friend-ships and how to communicate with their peers and adults in our building.

• Self-Regulation – we know in life inside and outside of school, things don’t always “go our way.” As adults we have developed the ability to cope with chal-lenging situations and solve problems as needed. We have learned how to control our emotions—even during difficult situations and we have developed the confidence to work through challenges. Even our young-est students can begin to regulate their behavior—learning strategies to deal with situations that challenge them.

Each of these standards are necessary to be a successful person—in school, at home, as an adult in the work force, as a member of the greater society. We at PS 6 are commit-ted to developing these behaviors—behaviors that go way beyond creating successful stu-dents. We know that you will partner with us in instilling these values in your children.

Second graders explored printmaking with legos to create skyscrapers


In the Classroom

IN THE CLASSROOMThe third grade has been studying Japan in social studies. Each class went to the Urasenke Chanoyu Center for an authentic Japanese tea ceremony. The students also celebrated “Japan Day”—they were asked to dress in “uniforms” just like Japanese students and to take off their street shoes and wear slippers in class.


Beyond the Classroom

Pulse, beat, oxygen. Love, friendship, brotherhood. These were some of the words echo-ing from class to class at PS 6

during the month of February. The specialist teachers put together a collaborative inter-disciplinary program to celebrate Healthy Heart Month. From Physical Education to Art, from Music to Science and Media/Li-brary, the teachers offered lessons on how to take care of one’s heart physically and emo-tionally. Using different resources, the kids discussed healthy eating, the importance of exercising and the effect emotions have on the heart’s health.

ART: In Art Ms. Diamond discussed ways to take care of the heart and the kids’ answers showed the benefits of an inter-

disciplinary program, since most of them could answer with confidence: eat fruits and vegetables, drink water, exercise, do not each too much sugar or salt. “It is good to collaborate because you don’t start a theme from scratch. Also, it is good to have a common subject that puts together such

different disciplines as art and PE,” said Ms. Diamond.

Students used the image of the heart as a symbol for love in drawings and weav-ing. Third graders drew the contents of a healthy bento box tying into the Japan curriculum they are currently studying. Other grades made posters with healthy and unhealthy foods, and delicate clay models of fruits, vegetables, candy and

HEALTHY HEART MONTHBy NATHALIA JABUR, MOM OF TOMAS, K-102

THE PRESENTATIONS BY PARENT VOLUNTEERS PROVIDED THE CHILDREN MUCH MORE THAN I COULD HAVE IMAGINED. –Ms. Godshall

cupcakes. Ms. Diamond also organized an activity for third and fourth graders to make pots and bracelets to be sold at Purple Pencil. The children raised $35 which will be donated to the American Heart Association!

ECO CENTER: In the Eco Center, sixteen parent volunteers including doc-tors, nutritionists, wellness therapists, a dancer and a yoga instructor spoke to the children about a healthy heart. The children learned about CPR, the real sounds a heart makes (using a small ultrasound machine) and the circulation of blood (with the help of a portable Doppler). The volunteers explained how breathing affects the heart, explained the circulation of oxygen, and talked about heart disease and the importance of eating well and exercising. The chil-dren were very curious when volunteers taught them how to find their pulse and they were in awe when they saw a model and a video of a real heart.

MUSIC: Ms. Winograd talked to students about the importance of an emotionally healthy heart. She emphasized the loving relationship there is between teachers and students, and friends in the class. Ms. Wino-grad also discussed the idea of brotherhood and love for humanity, talking about Martin Luther King Jr. and the civil rights move-ment to fourth graders.

MEDIA/LIBRARY: “A healthy heart is a loving heart.” This quote inspired Ms. Bader’s activities with the children as she discussed the relationship between the emotional heart and health and how your heart feels when you do something good for someone. The children used an online program to create poems that were printed in heart-shaped papers and hung on the Library doors. They also read books, such as “Zombie in Love” and “Slugs in Love.” Ms.

Bader talked to the fifth graders about Eric Dutt to transmit the message that being part of a community can change people’s lives. “It is good to show kids that there are many stories of love to share. I have been in a good mood all week,” she beamed.

PHYSICAL EDUCATION: Every Febru-ary, Mr. Bernal plans activities related to the heart to teach the impact that food habits have on the body, explain the causes of heart disease and emphasize the importance of ex-ercising for a healthy heart. “Throughout the years, as students start being assessed, they start to understand that what they eat affects their stamina and ability to exercise in class,” he said. The activities also offered children representations of how the heart works. For example, fifth graders played a game where they had to throw small balls on a big beach ball that represented the heart. As they moved faster and threw more balls, the heart—theirs and the beach ball—pumped faster.




Did you know that the entire month of April is now called Earth

Month, expanded from April 22 as Earth Day? We should probably expand it to every day of the year, given the urgency. Throughout Earth Month, we will concentrate on songs about the environment and caring for the earth: Ev’ry Little Piece of Paper, This Pretty Planet, Step Lightly on the Earth, The Trees Are our Friends and others.

We will also be using discarded materials to create found-sound instruments. If you look on the Internet, you will find that there are several Latin American and South Ameri-can communities where people are actually

creating orchestras from materi-als that, unfortunately, are piled up in dumps in their communi-ties. For example, people are taking empty barrels, welding fingerboards to them and making cellos. They are making banjos from flat tortilla tins with wood attached and constructing flutes from pipes with metal bottle cap pads to cover the tone holes. In music class, the students will be doing some instrument circles

using a variety of found-sound instruments. Improvising and experimenting with

sound is called jamming. This is exactly what the early settlers did when they came to the United States. After a hard day working the land, families looked forward to relaxing and making their own form of recreation.

EARTH MONTH IN THE MUSIC ROOMBy GLORIA WINOGRAD, MUSIC TEACHER

Fourth graders created monochromatic vines

Fourth graders

explored tints and

shades



Graduating from elementary school is such a big milestone for the students. We are fortunate

at PS 6 to be able to provide such a beautiful keepsake for this great event to honor the wonderful memories made and shared by the students.

Parent volunteers work with fifth grade students to design, assemble and publish the yearbook. Students can work on different areas such as theme and cover design, interviews, photography and more. Putting the yearbook together is a lot of fun and you would be amazed at the creativ-ity and talent that’s exhibited—the PS 6 yearbook has even won awards from amongst many elementary schools across the country!

Working on the yearbook is a great way to be involved at the school and meet other won-derful PS 6 parents who are able to volunteer their time for this project. I was fortunate to have worked on the yearbook three years ago when my daughter graduated, and I feel lucky to be able to do it again for my son.

–Nancy Block, Mom of Eadin Block, 5-301

YEARBOOK CLUB

YEARBOOK HELPS KIDS WORK TOGETHER TO MAKE A GREAT YEARBOOK FOR THE WHOLE FIFTH GRADE THAT THEY WILL USE TO REMEMBER THEIR GREAT TIMES AT PS 6. –Rachel Maya, 5-303

I WANT THE YEARBOOK TO BE A GREAT MEMORY OF PS 6 AND I WANT TO HAVE IT WHEN I GROW UP TO SHARE THE GREAT TIMES I HAD AT PS 6 WITH MY FAMILY AND FRIENDS. –Valentina Swan, 5-301


Student Snippets

If you could change one thing at PS 6, what would it be and why? Check out these great kid-generated ideas for helping improve our school.

KINDERGARTENChange the color in the classroom from blue to light green. Green is the color of trees and the outdoors, and it’s nice. –RIPLEY CHANG, K-101

Get a statue of a dog and other animals since we can’t have real ones in the classroom. –ARIEL KATZIR-MALKA, K-104

FIRST GRADE

Have a bigger jungle gym in the schoolyard. If it’s bigger, maybe everybody would be able to use it every day. –CHARLIE LITNER, 1-207

Right now there are green squares in the hallways, but how about if you paint the walls and ceiling pink, blue, gold and maybe orange and add some sparkles so everything twinkles when you’re walking in the halls. –AALIYAH WHITE, 1-109

ALL ABOUT THAT SPACE

WHEN IT’S RAINING AND WE HAVE INDOOR LUNCH, I DON’T WANT TO WATCH A MOVIE. I’D RATHER JUST SIT AROUND AND PLAY IN THE AUDITORIUM OR DO OPEN WORK IN THE CLASSROOM. –Dalia Phillips, 1-203

GO TO THE ECO CENTER MORE. WE GO ON TREASURE HUNTS AND DO LOTS OF THINGS THAT I LIKE. –Grant Patterson, K-102


Student Snippets

SECOND GRADEWe don’t have a food-scrap bin in our class-room. At snack time kids throw their food in the wrong recycling bin. If we had a food-scrap bin, we could do more composting. –MATTEO JUAN, 2-205

I want to have choice time every day because even though we’re in second grade, we still need some free time. –OLIVIA MEDINA, 2-221

THIRD GRADE

Have more PE time because exercise is good—and we need it! It helps you focus in class. If we can’t have more PE during the day, then everybody should be able to go out in the schoolyard in the morning and run around. –NIKHIL SHAH AND ALEX RUCKDAESCHEL, 3-228

We should have more time to eat at lunch-time. For example, if you’re getting hot lunch and are at the end of the line you don’t always have enough time to eat. –KAMIL RAMPAT-SINGH, 3-228

On rainy days, we shouldn’t be watching silly, dumb movies like “Monsterstein” over and over. We should have choice time in the classroom or be able to talk or read. –BAILEE CAPE, 3-202

How about more time in class for writing stories? Writing stories is good for thinking! –EPIPHANY DAS, 3-228

HAVE ART THREE OR FOUR TIMES A WEEK AND HAVE A BIGGER ART ROOM SO WE CAN DO EVEN MORE FUN STUFF—PAINTING, DRAWING AND STUFF. –Andy Rodriguez, 2-225

HAVE MORE FRESH FRUIT IN THE SALAD BAR, LIKE MAYBE WATERMELON, APPLES, BANANAS WITH NO BROWN SPOTS AND GRAPES. –Malina Khan, 3-209

FOURTH GRADEHave more free time during the day to relax, play a game, talk with friends and get rid of stress. We used to have choice time when we were younger, but now were told that we don’t need it in fourth grade because we have more and harder work. But we do need it. The work gets to be too much some-times. We should also be able to sit where we want at lunchtime. Some kids sneak to another table to be with their friends, and then we all get in trouble, so why not just let us sit where we want instead of using it as a reward on Friendly Fridays? –ISHYA WASHINGTON AND RYAN MCKENZIE, 4-321

We should have longer lunch recess or be allowed to go to the schoolyard when we fin-ish eating instead of waiting for everyone to finish. –LEWIS GREENBERG, 4-306

HAVE MORE SPECIALIST CLASSES AND HAVE THEM MORE OFTEN DURING THE WEEK. LIKE, WHAT HAPPENED TO COMPUTER CLASS? WE DO DIFFERENT THINGS IN THOSE CLASSES. YOU USE YOUR HANDS MORE AND DO DIFFERENT KINDS OF ACTIVITIES THAT A MAJORITY OF KIDS LIKE. –Christian Goehring, 4-306


Have You Met…

Why did you become a teacher? I wanted to give back to our world. What do you like best about teach-ing? I really enjoy working with children. Seeing them learn something for the first time is really great. What do you like to do when you are not teaching? Surfing , golfing and being with my family. What is the best advice you ever received? Work hard and you will be rewarded!

ROY SILVERSTEIN, KINDERGARTEN TEACHER

What is your favorite book? My favorite children’s book is “Where the Wild Things Are.” What is the best present you ever re-ceived? A Sculpture of a robot. What do you hope for in 2015? A peaceful world.

By DANIELLE BLAINE HALPERN, MOM OF COOPER, K-102 AND PENELOPE, 2-230


Community Counts


After completing their ballroom dancing arts enrich-ment residency, the fourth grade decided to hold its first “Dance-

a-Thon.” The Dance-a-Thon was held in January and it was very successful. The kids had fun, while learning that they can make

a difference to help children here in NYC who are less fortunate. The Dance-a-Thon raised approximately $2,500, which will be donated to Dancing Classrooms to allow a fourth grade class in the Bronx to receive the same the ballroom dance instruction that our students had here at PS 6.

4TH GRADE DANCE-A-THON

The Dance-a-Thon is a great thing. You might be afraid that you have to ballroom dance the whole time but really you don’t have to. It is just a fun thing and you can hang out with your friends. You get props like hats, glasses and glow sticks. Also, if you like a girl or a boy you can ask him or her to dance with you. Though the biggest thing you’re doing at the Dance-a-Thon is raising money to help another school that is less fortunate than us so they can ballroom dance. Though you might think all the music is ballroom dancing it really isn’t. It is more like pop music with a little ballroom dancing. Also if you are hungry there is a snack bar that also helps raise money for another school. —Pierce Patterson

The Dance-a-Thon was a super fun thing to do. It was to support another school and give them a ballroom dancing curriculum. Most people thought, “Are we going to ballroom dance at this?” Well, no we didn’t. It was a super fun dance that had upbeat music, good food and amazingly fun dances such as the conga line, macarena, and free dance. It was all out fun! —Amelia Gayle

At the Dance-a-Thon we had a LOT of fun. We played with our friends and we danced a LOT. We loved our time at the Dance-a-Thon! —Isabella Laupper, Sasha Smith-Turano, and Ava-Hunt Birch Balkin

The Dance-a-Thon was a lot of fun and was for a good reason. The reason of the Dance-a-Thon was to raise enough money to give another school the opportunity to have ballroom dancing. Everyone who went had a really fun time and enjoyed every minute of it. I was really upset to leave. —Briggs Albanse


Community Counts

As the Recording Secre-tary, my position is essentially responsible for taking minutes of all PTA general membership

and Executive Board meetings, distributing those minutes and posting general mem-bership meeting minutes on the PS 6 website. I attend every PTA meeting, election, special election, and Board meeting and then take notes.

PTA meet-ings are where parents have the opportunity to make their voices heard and where decisions are made about what programs are budgeted. You would be surprised by how much information you get by attending PTA meetings—and how much you miss when you’re not there. Come join me at the next meeting! You know I’ll be there.

–Joanna Smith Bers, PTA Executive Board,

Recording Secretary

I remember when my daughter started kindergarten at PS 6 in 2008 thinking what an incredible experience PS 6 would be for her. Little did I know that it would be such an incred-ible experience for me as well. After joining the Executive Board in 2009, I spent a lot of time at the school.

Knowing that the our children benefit from the hard work that we put into the school, whether fundraising or “fun” raising at events, seeing the smiles of the children and having children ask me if “I work at school” has been life changing. I still feel that each year is a different and rewarding experience. I’ve met many people and have made some very good friends. I’ve learned that you do not have to always agree with the viewpoints of those on the Board, but we

WHY I VOLUNTEER

I ENJOY BEING THE RECORDING SECRETARY BECAUSE IT KEEPS ME PLUGGED INTO THE SCHOOL, ITS ADMINISTRATION, OUR PTA PROGRAMS, AND NYC DOE ACTIONS THAT AFFECT US ALL. –Joanna Smith Bers

IT IS ALWAYS REWARDING TO SEE THE CHANGES THAT WE HELPED PUT INTO PLACE. –Alison Spolar

Kinder-gartners used paint and different types of paper to create collages


have a responsibility to be respectful and lis-ten to everyone’s opinion. I am very appre-ciative to have the opportunity to participate in developing policies and being a part of my children’s elementary education.

–Alison Spolar, PTA Executive Board Community Education Council Representative

Over the past few years I have volunteered as a class parent, worked as a copy cat, and given tours for prospective parents—all great ways of being involved at PS 6 and giving back. This year, I am one of the Fourth Grade Reps on the PTA Executive Board. For those of you who may not know, we have two par-ent grade reps for each grade who serve as parents’ voice on the Board and as liaison to the teachers and administration. As a Fourth Grade Rep my job is to support the fourth grade teachers by sending messages and updates from them, helping them plan grade wide events like Ballroom Dancing and the Ashokan trip in May, and assisting with any other aspects of the fourth grade curriculum. My job is also to be a sounding board to the fourth grade families—you can come to me if you have questions, concerns or ideas. I make sure your thoughts are shared with the fourth grade teachers and/or with the Execu-tive Board. The board meets every month, and each grade has the opportunity to share

news, ideas and concerns that are coming up in that grade. I also help the class parents, and make sure they are aware of important things coming up, such as PALP, pub-lishing celebra-tions and field trips so they can coordinate with their classroom teachers and enlist parent volunteers. I am fortunate to have a wonderful “teammate,” Carlie Patter-son, who is the other Fourth Grade Rep.

If you are interested in becoming a grade rep next year, I am happy to talk to you more about the position or answer any questions! The best way to reach me is: [email protected]

–Wendy Marks, PTA Executive Board Fourth Grade Rep

IT’S GREAT TO HAVE A PARTNER – WE ARE ABLE TO SPLIT RESPONSIBILITIES AND BOUNCE IDEAS OFF EACH OTHER. –Wendy Marks

Kindergartners used paint and different types of paper to create collages

First graders explored texture


Did You Know?

Here are some fun facts about school food in NYC—the largest system of public schools in the United States! Stay tuned for our

next issue where we will look at school food here at PS 6!

• The NYC serves about 850,000 meals to 1.1 million students each school day! • Over 700,000 meals are provided at no charge to the students or their parents. • In addition to lunch and breakfast, the NYC DOE also provides Supper Meals and Saturday Meals (for children enrolled in a regularly scheduled afterschool or Saturday educational or enrichment activity program) and Summer Meals.• The Garden to Café Program connects school and community gardens with school lunch meals through seasonal harvest events and educational activities• Since 2004, the City has installed salad bars in more than 1,000 schools—an effective strategy to increase children’s access to and consumption of fruits and vegetables.

FUN FACTS…April is National Pecan Month – Pecans are the only major tree nut that grows natu-rally in North America and can be traced back to the 1500’s when Native Americans cultivated and used wild pecans. Presidents Washington and Jefferson loved pecans and had pecans planted in their gardens in the late 1770’s. The United States produces over 400 million pounds of pecans each year, about 80% of the world’s crop. Can you imagine a pecan skyscraper? It would take

11,624 pecans, stacked end to end, to reach the top of the Empire State Building!

May is National Strawberry Month – Straw-berries are the first fruit to ripen in the spring and the only fruit with the seeds on the outside. Strawberries have a history that goes back over 2,200 years—strawberries grew wild in Italy as long ago as 234 B.C. and were discovered in Virginia by the first Europeans when their ships landed there in 1588. Eight strawberries will provide 140 percent of the recommended daily intake of Vitamin C for kids. If all the strawberries produced in Cali-fornia in one year were laid berry to berry, they would go around the world 15 times.

SCHOOL FOOD IN NEW YORK CITY

news@6 spring2015

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