T.I.S. Digital Backpack

December 19, 2014

FROM THE PRINCIPAL’S OFFICE: Report Card Info

In an effort to improve our outreach to parents we have been working to update and improve the Power School on-line grading reports. These new reports should provide more information to you about your child as a learner. As part of this process, however, we have experienced some technical difficulties. We hope to have the portal opened by December 23rd for your perusal. You will receive another communication once the portal is open. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Jim Dineen or Ginger White at Tolland Intermediate School.

UPCOMING EVENTS

December 23 - FULL day of school December 24-January 5 – Winter Break JANUARY 14 Half Day of School 15 Geography Bee 19 Martin Luther King Day – no school 20 Coffee With The Principals 22 Grade 4 and Grade 5 Band Concert AT THE MIDDLE SCHOOL 28 Half Day of School 30 Sports Team Day

Unified Arts Update for December 2014 Art ~ Health ~ Library ~ Music ~ Physical

Education ~ Technology Mrs. Bezzina - Art

Fire Prevention Poster Contest Update

Recently I spoke with the Tolland fire marshal who has selected the contest winners from TIS. The top two students will have their artwork judged in early January to see if either poster will advance to the next level. I will release the

names of the TIS contest winners in January when I know if they are moving on to the next level of competition. Stay tuned!

Third graders: Third graders read the book The Keeping Quilt with their classroom teachers. We

discussed many of the vocabulary words from this story such as quilt, border, and scraps when we made paper

quilts in art. Students studied collage artists such as Eric Carle, Henri Matisse, and Romare Bearden to see how professional artists work with paper. The students’

quilt squares are almost finished and some will be displayed as a group to make a large paper quilt soon. Fourth grade: Self-portraits are almost finished; students are now working on

drawing various types of clothing and hairstyles. They learned that objects in the mirror are backwards and some children even wrote words on their shirts

backwards in their drawings! Many will also have time to complete a background to create depth in the space as Leonardo da Vinci did when he painted the Mona Lisa.

Fifth graders: Fifth graders hare finished their weavings and are continuing to study color schemes. We will be playing some games to review this information

before the December break. Students should know the difference between primary, secondary, warm, cool, analogous, complementary, monochromatic and neutral colors by the end of the month.

Mrs. Logsden – Health/Physical Education

Third grade: Third grade health classes have begun learning about the human skeleton and some of the bones that create our skeleton. After work in the classroom, students will participate in an

activity in the gym called Skeleton Relay. This activity incorporates health curriculum, movement, teamwork and literacy skills. Next will be the nutrition unit.

Fourth grade: Fourth grade health students are currently in a nutrition

unit. We have participated in an activity called Turkeys in the Field. In addition to nutrition, fitness and literacy, this activity required a lot of direction following and team work. The fourth grade health classes did a great job

accomplishing the tasks this year for the activity! Next, we will look at the six essential nutrients and energy.

Fifth grade health: Fifth grade health has come to an end and all fifth graders

will have physical education two times a rotation for trimesters two and three. We will begin term two with winter themed games such as Snowball Attack and the Grinch that Stole Winter Break. These games focus on

sportsmanship, teamwork and fitness. Then, we will begin the badminton unit.

Mrs. Hill - Library If you have questions about your child’s library day, volunteering in the library, current Nutmeg Book Award nominees*, or one of the Library Book Challenges, please visit the

Tolland Intermediate School website at: http://www.tis.tolland.k12.ct.us/

Once there, Click Contacts, Unified Arts, then click on Mrs. Hill.

Third grade has begun a Biography Unit. Last week they learned what

components make up a biography and this week they are reading about a very famous writer ~ Theodor Geisel. You may know him as Dr. Seuss!

Third graders will read a mini-biography and take notes on the life of Dr. Seuss. Next week, they will practice what they know by writing an autobiography about themselves. As a treat before winter break, students

will view a Dr. Seuss animated classic, “How the Grinch Stole Christmas!” Fourth grade students have begun a review of the six different types of

fiction genres: Realistic, Fantasy, Mystery, Historical, Science Fiction and Traditional Literature. The students are seeing genre PowerPoint presentations, using Socrative on the computer as a review tool, and physically taking books

in hand to decipher what genre they are. Fifth grade students have expanded their written book reviews into “poster-

size” reviews. Combining writing and word processing skills in the library, fifth graders are producing 8.5 by 11 size reviews; which include a picture of the book cover and color font designs of their choice. Mr. Dineen is hoping to use

some of these poster-size book reviews around school to promote this year’s school-wide goal of reading improvement.

Mrs. Baker - Music/Chorus

Grade 3 general music: The third graders have been learning about Beethoven through singing songs, reading

stories and playing games. We have learned about Fur Elise and Beethoven’s Ninth symphony “Ode to Joy”. We are also

learning about performance manners and stage manners while singing songs for our school assemblies.

Grade 4 general music: The fourth graders are working very hard on playing new notes on their recorders. The students are singing and

playing Native American music while practicing their new notes. All the children are reviewing stage manners and performance manners in preparation

for the upcoming assemblies.

Grade 5 general music: Our fifth grade students have been composing in groups of three to five students using multicultural instruments. This month

they are using the one eighth note-two sixteenth note combined rhythm to compose, number count and perform their own music with their cooperative music group. The reinforcement of performance manners and stage manners

has been reiterated with the fifth grade students in preparation for their concerts and school assemblies.

Grade 5 Chorus: The fifth grade chorus worked very hard in preparation for

their winter concert last week. They did a wonderful job and will soon be learning songs for the Spring concert!

Mrs. Bazzano (formerly Ms. Battersby) - Music/Chorus

Grade 4 Chorus: They had their concert on Thursday and did a great job!!

They will now be starting to learn songs for the Spring concert. The songs that I have chosen will be challenging for the students, but I know they will work hard and be successful on them! They will be learning how to read chorus music, so that they will be prepared to read chorus music when they go into 5th grade chorus with Mrs. Baker.

Grade 4 Band: The beginning band is doing a great job! They were given the concert

line up for their winter concert and were given their features for each instrumental section. They are learning how to play in the time signature 2/4, and are also learning how to play their 7th new note!! I handed out a notice about the winter concert this week, so please ask your children about the notice! The concert will be on Thursday, January 22, 2015 over at Tolland Middle School. I am very excited to introduce these

young musicians to everyone for the first time! Grade 5 Band: They are getting ready for their concert!! A

couple of weeks ago, they chose their features that each instrumental section will play at the concert. The features are a bit challenging because they are learning a few new

fingerings. They are practicing, staying focused, and doing a great job on them! I handed out a notice about the winter

concert this week, so please ask your children about the notice! The concert will be on Thursday, January 22, 2015 over at Tolland Middle School. I am very excited about the concert!!

Mr. Downing – Physical Education

Third grade: Third grade will begin the basketball unit. Students will be

reviewing dribbling, passing and shooting. Fourth grade: Fourth grade will also begin the basketball unit. Throughout the unit, the students will play a variety of games in order to reinforce the

basketball skills of dribbling, passing and shooting. Fifth grade: Fifth grade will begin the badminton unit. Students will be

introduced to basic racket skills. Mrs. Kirk - Technology Integration This December we celebrated National Computer Science Week – December 8th – 12th. All students were given the opportunity to

participate in the Hour of Code by learning some basic coding through the non-profit website Code.org. Students helped Anna and Elsa navigate the Frozen ice, while many programmed their Flappy bird to

fly through obstacles. Students were eager and excited at building the basic blocks of coding while watching the effects of their characters

maneuvering on the screen. This proved to be a great lesson in not only programming, but brought math skills to light alongside the ability to problem solve as we talked about how ‘failure’ in programming is not a bad thing as it

often leads to new learning.

In addition, all grades began to work with the ReadWorks program. ReadWorks brings reading skills and technology skills together. Students must learn to

work in digital media to locate, download, read, annotate, take notes and answers questions. These skills will better prepare them for 21st century learning as well as help prepare them for the rigors of online assessments.

After going through class examples, students will be encourage to choose stories/articles that meet their individual reading needs and interests. Feel free to visit http://www.tisflashtech.com/readworks.html and ask your student

what they have done.

Welcome Reception

for Dr. Walter Willett Superintendent of

Tolland Public Schools

The Tolland Board of Education invites the community to a meet and greet event with Dr. Willett, our new Superintendent of schools.

JOIN US!

Thursday, January 29, 2015 6:00 – 7:30pm

Tolland High School Cafeteria

Coffee, tea and light refreshments will be served.

All are welcome!

Breakfast with

Superintendent Willett! Come enjoy coffee and donuts. Bring your

questions, comments and conversation!!

January 21, February 18, March 18, April 15, May 20

9:00am - 10:00am

Tolland Board of Education

51 Tolland Green

RSVP only if childcare is Requested

jpalumbo@tolland.k12.ct.us

Concert date: Thursday, January 22, 2015

Place: Tolland Middle School in the Auditorium

Students arrive: 6:30 p.m. and report to the band room

Concert begins: 7pm

Concert dress: Ladies: a dress or dress pants/skirt and dress shirt, nice shoes

Gentlemen: dress pants, dress shirt, nice shoes

No sneakers, sweatpants or sweatshirts!!

Please remember to be respectful of middle school equipment, since we are using

their facilities.

There are so many beginner band students, that I am in need of a few chaperones

to help in the band room while I am warming them up

We are looking forward to a fun-filled concert with your wonderful young

musicians!

Please email me at rbattersby@tolland.k12.ct.us if you are interested in helping out

in the band room during the concert and I will get back to you and give you all the

information

Please contact me with any questions or concerns!

Thank you!

Mrs. Rebekah Bazzano, Grade 4 and Grade 5 Band Director

90 MINUTE DELAY LESSON SCHEDULE WITH MRS. BAZZANO The 9:00-9:30 lesson will be from 10:25-10:45 The 9:30-10:00 lesson will be from 10:45-11:10 The 10:00-10:30 lesson will be from 11:10-11:30 The 11:45-12:15 lesson will be from 11:50-12:20 The 12:20-12:50 lesson will be from 11:30-11:50 (this time will be for small group lessons only, no recess ensembles) The 1:45-2:15 lesson will be from 2:10-2:30 The 2:15-2:45 lesson will be from 2:30-2:50

The 2:45-3:15 lesson will be from 2:50-3:15 2 HOUR DELAY LESSON SCHEDULE WITH MRS. BAZZANO

The 9:00-9:30 lesson will be from 11:00-11:20

The 9:30-10:00 lesson will be from 11:20-11:40

The 10:00-10:30 lesson will be from 11:40-12:00 The 11:45-12:15 lesson will be from 12:00-12:20 (this time for small group lessons only, no recess ensembles) The 12:20-12:50 lesson will be from 12:20-12:40 (this time will be for small group lessons only, no recess ensembles) The 1:45-2:15 lesson will be from 2:10-2:30

The 2:15-2:45 lesson will be from 2:30-2:50

The 2:45-3:15 lesson will be from 2:50-3:15 No morning band, lessons, or chorus rehearsals before school on days with a delay

Once again Tolland Junior Women has partnered with “From the Heart”

to collect new or gently used hats, mittens, scarves and Slippers. “From

The Heart” will work with DCF to distribute these items to area children

in need this winter season.

Each Grade has a marked box that has been placed in the front office at

TIS. Donations will be accepted through the next few weeks until the

winter break. The class that brings in the most items will win a Pajama

day to celebrate their generosity, to be announced upon returning to

school after the holidays.

Thank you in advance, Tolland Community Women

Tolland Little League 2015 Winter Clinics

Tolland Little League will be offering 4 winter clinics that will be run by Tolland High School’s Baseball/Softball Staff in February &

March. Registration is now open for the 2015 Winter Clinics.

Clinic #1: Infield/Outfield Fundamentals:

Baseball: 8-12 year olds

Sundays in February: 2/1, 2/8, 2/15, 2/22

TIME: 6:15-8:00 pm @ Tolland High School

Cost: $85.00

This program is designed to help improve all around defensive

baseball skills from throwing and catching the ball properly, to improving footwork for infield/outfielder’s, and attacking the

baseball. Fielding drills will stress the importance of creeping on every pitch, anticipation/reaction, ground balls/fly balls, double

plays, cutoff drills, communication, and basic game situations. Limited to 40 players ran by Todd Euliano (Coaching Coordinator/Director of Training and Development)

Clinic #2: Softball Clinic: (Hitting/Fielding):

Softball: 8-12 year olds

Wednesdays in February: 2/4, 2/11, 2/18, 2/25

TIME: 6:30pm - 8:00pm @ Tolland High School

Cost: $85.00

Players will learn the correct swing plane, proper grip and stance through tee work and soft toss. Also, players will learn the art of

bunting from both sides of the plate. We will focus on good throwing mechanics from a ready position, fielding position (while

moving) along with cut off and ground ball drills. This clinic will also cover catching with 2 hands with and without gloves,

communicating and base running techniques.

Limited to 40 players ran by Bill Pompa (Head Coach Varsity Softball)

Clinic #3: Offensive Clinic (Hitting/Bunting/Base Running):

Baseball 8-12 year olds

March: 3/2, 3/3, 3/4, 3/5

TIME: 6:30-8:00 pm @ Tolland High School

Cost: $85.00

This program is designed to help improve your child's ability and confidence on the offensive side of the baseball. They will get 4

sessions of pure offensive instruction where they will learn the importance of balance and timing throughout their swing, how to

bunt a ball properly, and aggressive base running skills. In addition, they will learn the importance of pitch counts and pitch

selection. Limited to 50 players ran by Scott Czerwinski (Head Coach Varsity Baseball)

Clinic #4: Pitchers/Catchers:

Baseball 8-12 year olds

March: 3/10, 3/12/ 3/17, 3/19

TIME: 6:30-8:00 pm @ Tolland High School

Cost: $85

This program is designed to help improve players who want to have a focus on pitching/catching. The clinic will be led by Tolland

High School baseball coaching staff and current players who will focus on all areas of importance for each position. Pitchers will

work on arm circle, grips, balance drills, pitching delivery, follow thru and completion of motion. Clinic will cover drills and

techniques to improve consistency and velocity on the mound. Catchers will work on stance set up, proper receiving of

pitches, blocking, fielding their position, proper technique for catching pop-ups, and throwing to bases. Clinic will cover drills

and techniques for young catchers to improve defensively in all aspects of the position. Seven coaches from the high school staff

and numerous players will allow each camp member plenty of instruction and attention over the course of the clinic. Limited to

50 players ran by Scott Czerwinski (Head Coach Varsity Baseball)

*Any questions/concerns please contact Todd Euliano: Cell: (860) 997-6079 Email: CTtollandBaseball@gmail.com

The End