Suggested Reading List for Summer!

Mazel Day School
Suggested SUMMER BOOK LIST
Ages 5-7

Reading is fun! Reading is fun! Reading is fun for everyone!
The more you read, by the better you read ~ So read, by read, by read!

 A Tree is Nice, by Janice May Udry
 Angelina Ballerina, by Katherine Holabird
 Are You My Mother?, by P. D. Eastman
 Biggest, Strongest, Fastest, by Steve Jenkins
 Biscuit (series), by Alyssa Satain Capucilli
 Can You See What I See? (series), by Walter Wick
 Caps for Sale, by Esphyr Slobodkina
 Clifford (series)
 Corduroy, by Don Freeman
 Curious George (series), by H. A. Reis
 Diary of a Worm, by Doreen Cronin
 Fancy Nancy (series), by Jane O’Conner & Robin Preiss Glasser
 Flotsam, by David Weisner
 Frog and Toad (series), by Arnold Lobel
 Harry (series), by Gene Zion
 Help Me Be Good (series), by Joy Berry
 Henry & Mudge (series), by Cynthia Rylant & Sucie Stevenson
 Hop on Pop, by Dr. Suess
 I Can Read With My Eyes Shut, by Dr. Suess
 If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, by Laura Joffe Numeroff & Felicia Bond
 Knuffle Bunny, by Mo Willems
 Let’s Read and Find out About Science (series)
 Library Lion, by Michelle Knudsen
 Little Bear (series), by Else Holmelund Minarik
 Madeline (series), by Ludwig Bemelmaris
 Mike Mulligan and his Steam Shovel, by Virginia Lee Burton
 Morris Goes to School, by B. Wiseman
 My First Little House Books Series, by Laura Ingalls Wilder
 Read with Dick and Jane (series)
 Sammy the Seal, by Syd Hoff
 Swimmy, by Leo Lionni
 The Berenstain Bears (series), by Jan Berenstain
 The Giving Tree, by Shel Silverstein
 The Magic School Bus (series), by Joanna Cole
 The Rainbow Fish, by Marcus P. Herbert
 The Tiny Seed, by Eric Carle

PARENTS: PLEASE READ!

PARENTS: PLEASE READ!
Dear Parents,
As our recital draws near I would like to make you aware of the following:
 The Celebration will begin in our classroom at 11:00. Please be prompt as we would like to begin presenting Awards at that time.

 As each child receives his/her reward, I ask that their parents step up with them as well. Please PREPARE a few short points of reflection on how (specifically) your child has grown this year. It can be academics, social skills, character traits, etc. In addition, please prepare a short wish for your child’s future growth!

 Your child is expected to come wearing their school UNIFORM. Please help your child choose their BEST uniform clothes, as well as socks, shoes, hair accessories, kippas, etc. the night before. We want each child to truly shine at this event!


 The program will be over AROUND 1:00, after which they will be dismissed for the day.

 PLEASE make sure your child PRACTICES his/her lines and is COMFORTABLE with them!


Thank you in advance for your cooperation!
Morah N.D. and Morah Mushka

Never too late... Here are some pictures of out trip to the Model Matza Bakery before Pesach... :)

Geometry: Shapes and their Attributes

We explored shapes and their attributes in Math this week, in addition to explorations on number fact generators (+5 will make 4=9, 5=10, 10=15, etc), and shape patterns. We played a challenging game where we lined up shapes that had to be sequenced with the following rule: the next shape may only have ONE different attribute (size, shape, color, thickness).

Show and Tell: Talent Time!

We had our final Show and Tell this week which gave all of the children a chance to share something that they do really well with us! The children really did a superb job writing about and preparing the talent they showed us! We found out that we are good at: Playing Chinese Checkers(Boruch), Dancing(Emily), Making Lemonade (Gabriella), Drawing Bananas (Joseph), Making Puppets (Joshua), Drawing Animals (Leah), Making Sandwiches (Margret), Gymnastics (Masha), Dribbling a Basketball (Moshe Eli), and Drawing an Outdoor Scene (Shifra). What talented individuals we have in our class; each one is special in their own way!

Our Trip to NY Hall Of Science!

The pictures speak for themselves;) We had an amazing time at the NY Hall of Science which is not only educational but WOW fun! We started off with the Science Playground (which incorporates scientific principles such as weight and balance,water and air, etc), then continued on to the exhibit "Search for Life Beyond Earth". We observed that wherever there is life, there is water (all people, animals, plants, contain water), and that if there is water on other planets, perhaps there is life there as well... We had a great time interacting with the numerous activities. We concluded our trip in the lower level where we observed living organisms large and small that live in water. We got to see a lot in our short visit - but it is definitely worth revisiting again and again...so much to see and experience!
Enjoy the pics!

For more info about the Museum
http://www.nysci.org/home

Visit: Hatzola Volunteer Medical-Emergency Service Headquarters

In the spirit of "Health and Fitness Month", we visited the headquarters of the Hotzola volunteer service. We had many excellent questions and got some great answers! We learned that the volunteers are on-call to help 24 hours a day just for the Mitzva! They do not get paid, but they stop everything they are doing - even if it's Shabbos - to run and save a life!

We learned some key safety tips:
Wear a helmet when riding your bike/scooter!
Don't lean out of a window, even if there is a screen!
Never run after a ball into the street!
Check both ways before crossing the street!
Don't talk while you eat so that you don't choke!
If a stranger tries to take you yell "FIRE" to catch other people's attention; keep screaming, and try to get into a store where there are other people who will see and act.
and many more tips...

We were shown a video which was about an emergency situation where Hatzola volunteers came to the rescue; it gave us an understanding of how the dispatchers operate and work with great speed. Volunteers rush to the scene, while back-up help and an ambulance is on the way to assist.


We were lucky enough to get on one of the real ambulances they have! (All the children said that was "COOL!") We got to walk through and see all the equipment that is used to help the patient. When we left, we all got Hatzola stickers to take home and display, with a number to call in case of an emergency.

Siddur Celebration!

We were thrilled that the Siddurim we had been waiting for were finally here! For some of us the Siddur was new, and for some of us we had already received a Siddur last year. However, we celebrated this milestone together as a class. You could feel the excitement in our classroom as our audience (the Kindergarten and Second Grade Classes) piled in to watch our performance. We sang about the Bais Hamikdosh, and how every Mitzva we do brings Moshiach closer, as well as a song about the importance of davening (praying) to Hashem. We pray in a time of need - but all the time, too - to thank Hashem for what we have, and ask for what we need...

Part of the lyrics that we sang:

When you're davening you're talking to Hashem
When you're davening you're talking to Hashem, Hashem
It's a really special thing, when you're talking to a king
When you're davening you're talking to Hashem

Quietly but carefully, we say each word so cheerfully
Because we know He's listening to every word you say...



We Read the book "The Living Letters", a beautiful book that describes how a grandfather reads to his children about the Siddur - the home of the prayers - and how the letters go up to Hashem and do a dance. If the child doesn't try as hard as they could then the letters don't have the strength to make the long trip. But if they try hard later it picks up the old prayers as well as the new ones.



We then received our Siddurim with new, personalized covers for those of us receiving it for the first time. We then celebrated by decorating cupcakes for our friends that came to watch, and then some for ourselves to enjoy. We each got a balloon to take home, too;) The best treat of all were our Siddurim which we have begun to use in school every day! Like a phone, it's a "direct line" to Hashem...and like those buttons on the phone...it makes our Neshama (soul) light up!

Brooklyn Museum: Trip

We went to the Brooklyn Museum in conjunction with the Art Curriculum, and focused on two interesting exhibits: The first was a sculpture made of fiberglass which was inspired by an action-figure toy. The children, in pairs, compared and contrasted the toys they were looking at to the figure that was sculpted. 2. We saw an exhibit which was silkscreen on glass that creates an illusion of the viewer as a part of the scene. We did a quick drawing activity to draw what we saw in the reflection. Enjoy the pics:)

Morning Literacy Activities...Just a peek;)

The children chose activities which reinforce writing, spelling, grammar, and accurate and fluent reading skills.

Shavuos Holiday Wrap-Up

We learned about the Holiday of Shavuos, and the Jewish Children's special connection to the Torah: it is a gift that we will pass to the next generation, and those Jewish Children to the next... Hashem chose us to give us His very precious present. We enjoyed making decorative flowerpots commemorating the flowers and greenery that Hashem grew on "Har Sinai" (Mt. Sinai) before giving the Torah; We made delicious mini-cheese cakes to remind us how the Jewish people ate dairy foods before learning how to prepare Kosher meat; We decorated cupcakes to look like Har Sinai – complete with a whipped cream “cloud” and chocolate “luchos” (Tablets). We truly enjoyed these decorative, edible, and meaningful learning experience.

FRIENDSHIP FRUIT: Health Month at Mazel

A great big Thank You to all those who participated in the "friendship fruit" initiative this past Wednesday! As part of our efforts in encouraging healthy living and eating we shared delicious, wholesome fruits for snack. If you have not yet participated, it's not too late - we would be happy to serve any whole, uncut fruit you send this coming Wednesday for snack.

Also, if you have a health-related profession or talent about which you would like to teach us - please let me know at morahnechamadena@mazeldayschool.com - We would be glad to host you!

A Peek at Some of Our Literacy Center Activities

We begin each morning with English Literacy center activities, some of which include journal writing, spelling lists, word stamping, creating words with movable letters, sentence writing, spelling-memory games, alphabetizing, and more.... Our Hebrew reading groups allow us to learn in interactive ways as well! We manipulate words with flip-charts, magnetic letters, syllable pull-a-parts etc. Enjoy these few pictures which capture a little "slice" of our daily activities...

Show and Tell: SEASONS

Here's a "rewind" of our Show and Tell about the four seasons, which is in conjunction with our unit on the Earth, its seasons, and formations. Each child chose their favorite season and then explained their choice. They then described the item they brought which reminds us of that season! We had a great time guessing and viewing the interesting and varied items that were brought to school. We did a great job presenting and listening, as well as asking good, thoughtful questions. It seems that we like all the seasons in First Grade, but the favorite seemed to be the Summer! Enjoy the pictures.

WE WALKED THE BROOKLYN BRIDGE!

What a wonderful way to learn about staying healthy! We did some serious exercise walking, running, and jogging across the entire Brooklyn Bridge from start to finish. We got a fantastic view of the New York City skyline, the Manhattan Bridge, as well as the Statue of Liberty. When we made it to the other side we couldn't believe it: "we DID IT!" Enjoy the pictures - they are in order form the beginning of the walk to the end.

Literacy Month - Parent Visits

A great big Thank You to the Moms who came to share a great book with us! What a treat, and what a wonderful way to enhance our (extended) literacy month! Enjoy the pics.

AMNH Trip

We had a fascinating trip to AMNH. Our first stop was the Hall of Planet Earth which had information on volcanoes, rock formation, earthquakes, etc. The children were fascinated by the many types of rocks – especially banded rocks of iron and jasper - they got to try a magnet on its surface! The Yeladim were fascinated with the giant globe that had indentations to show the earth surface below the water. The children asked many questions about America (Florida especially) and Israel on the globe. We looked at, touched and compared many rocks – their weights, surfaces, colors, and origins.

We took a quick peek at the Rainforest exhibit (can you spot the gorilla?), and then moved to the Ocean Exhibit. Our final stop was the Butterfly Exhibit where we were prepped about what Butterflies eat and how they do it…they have no mouths – just long, long tongues that suck nectar and juice from flowers and fruits. The guide told us that if we were a butterfly, our tongue would be so long it would reach our bellies – or could be wrapped around our necks as a scarf! We didn’t catch the butterflies – we waited patiently to see if they would rest on us… and sometimes they did! We saw rows of cocoons that are maturing and will soon be butterflies, too!

The trip was fascinating. AMNH is a HUGE museum with lots to look at – we wish we could have stayed longer but we had to hop on the subway…and make it back to school