RUNNING DOWN A HILL

Running down a hill, rolling a pencil down a ramp.
Running down a steep hill, rolling a pencil down a steep ramp.

How does angle affect speed? What about height and length? Recently, members of the Early Kindergarten experimented firsthand with these dynamics. I happened on them as they crouched in the hallway outside of their room hard at work with Megan predicting distances, then experimenting to verify and compare the outcomes. They had built several ramps with blocks and were armed with markers, crayons and pencils, which they placed at the top of each ramp and rolled down one after the other. When an implement came to a complete stop, a student marked that place with a scrap of paper. Many of these peppered the floor when I arrived. With Megan’s guidance, students made the following observations:

"If the ramp was longer, the pencils went faster. When the ramp was taller, the pencils rolled farther."
"With a shorter ramp, the pencils rolled short. When we used a taller ramp, the pencils rolled a looooong way. When we used a long ramp, it went just like the tall ramp."
"When a ramp is longer, the pencil went faster. If the ramp was taller, the pencil went faster, too."

As it turned out, this exploration also related to the EK’s study of transportation in the city. Teachers had invited a wheelchair user to visit the room (the mother of MS teacher Margaret Andrews) and talk about the ways she navigates the city. She introduced the importance of ramps and children extended the concept with drawings and dictation:

"People use ramps to get from one place to another. When they have wheelchairs, it’s easier to get around because wheels need flat places."
"People use ramps if they have a wheelchair so they can get in and out of their cars."
"People use ramps for rolling snowballs down them! They can also use them for pushing carts up to a store."
"People use ramps to get bowling balls and people use ramps to walk down."

And you should see their illustrations!


FACULTY HIRING UPDATE:

• EK: Charles Hassell will work with Diane as her Associate Teacher. Charles was formerly a Kindergarten Associate here with Brooke Nuell, worked as the Lower / Middle School Associate teacher and has long been a part of our summer camp program. Welcome back, Charles!
• SECOND GRADE: Jackie Hart is our new Second Grade Co-Teacher and will share the classroom with Colleen in the spring. Jackie has four years of head teaching experience, three of these in Second Grade. She comes to us highly recommended from The School at Columbia.
• SECOND GRADE: Rebecca Schwartz, currently First Grade Associate Teacher with Gina Goldmann, will co-teach with Tasha Hernandez. Rebecca has taught both First and Fourth Grades and already knows many of next year’s Second Graders!
• THIRD GRADE: Alison Cupp has spent two years as a Second and Third Grade Associate Teacher at The Town School. Prior to her classroom experience, Alison was involved in museum education and in the field of marketing.
• THIRD GRADE: Elaine Schreger has had five years of classroom experience. Most recently, she was the Fourth Grade Head Teacher at Collegiate School. Elaine had a career as a lawyer before entering education.
• MUSIC: Ledell Mulvaney comes to us with many years’ experience as music teacher extraordinaire. Ledell received the Distinguished Teacher Award in the Greenwich Public School system and has considerable expertise as music teacher, band leader, chorus director and creator of original musical productions.
• We are also fortunate this year to welcome back a number of returning Associate Teachers. They are: Caroline Johnston (Fours). Molly Clarke (Kindergarten), Stacey Miehe (Kindergarten), Bonnie Maloney (First Grade), Debbie Lennon (First Grade), Lisa Chung (Third Grade) and Dave Cataletto (Lower/Middle School Associate).
  

We are delighted to welcome this extremely talented group of teachers!

PICNIC REMINDER:
Most often spring picnics take place on our roof, though not always, and are wonderful, warm celebrations of the school year. Below are a few guidelines, generated over the years to help make these events run smoothly.

• Picnics are parent-run events. Reps will ask for your help in bringing dinner foods and setting up the tables. Our maintenance staff will bring tables up to the roof for each picnic.
• We welcome siblings, younger and older, but no outside guests, please.
• Students (and siblings) should adhere to classroom rules - using the space respectfully according to your teachers’ guidelines.
• Parents are kindly asked to keep an eye on their own children.
• Please remember that the roof playground will be in use bright and early the following morning. Your help in cleaning up is much appreciated.
  

Elaine

This Week's Attachments:

Early Kindergarten

Gina and Rebecca's First Grade

Second Grade

Fourth Grade Math

Language Survey

LREI Spring Arts Project

Book Fair

Community Service Calendar

Spanish Resources


This Week's Announcements:

What to Expect in First Grade:
Dear Kindergarten Parents,
We look forward to discussing our plans for next year's First Grade with you and hope you can join us in the cafeteria at 8:45AM on Friday, May 11th.
Elaine

What to Expect in Fifth Grade:
Dear Fourth Grade Parents,
We look forward to discussing our plans for next year's Fifth Grade and the transition into Middle School with you and hope you can join us in the cafeteria at 8:45AM on Tuesday, May 29th.
Elaine and Mark

Shop News:
Trees, vehicles, and animals with moving parts are all in the lobby display case! First Graders learned how to use coping saws and they cut out intricate tree shapes. Second Graders investigated wood joinery and made vehicles. Third Graders made animals with moving parts using the coping and crosscut saws and many kinds of wood joinery. Make your day--look in the lobby display case!

Adult Choral Concert:
Glass Menagerie, LREI's resident adult chorus, conducted by former LREI music teacher and current LREI parent Susan Glass, will perform its annual Spring Concert UPTOWN:
Friday May 11th, 8:00PM
Church of St. Paul and St. Andrew
86th Street and West End Avenue
For more information: www.glassmenagerie.org
Please Click Here

Class of 2007:
We are so proud of our seniors. As they move towards graduation, just over a month away, it is time to step back and look at all that these wonderful people have accomplished during their time at LREI. Among these accomplishments is gaining admission to many fine colleges and universities. Follow the links below to see a list of this year’s college acceptances and a list of college acceptances for the 2004-2006 school years. Congratulations, seniors!!!!
Philip Kassen

2007 College Acceptances

2004-2007 List of College Acceptances

From the LREI Librarians:
The library will be converting to a new computer catalog towards the end of June. You may have noticed that the library catalog can no longer be accessed through your computers, or any computer in the school. This is because the software (Winnebago) we currently have is incompatible with the newer Macs. The new system (Follett) is far superior to the product we have now, and will enable parents, faculty, students and staff to view our holdings via the Internet and link directly to websites from subject headings. We are extremely excited about the conversion upgrade because it will provide the entire LREI community with much improved library services that will greatly enhance all aspects of the reading and research process. While we hope to make this transition as painless as possible for everyone involved, it will require some level of cooperation from the whole school community. Because of the upcoming conversion, it is more important than ever that all LREI library books be returned to both libraries by Friday, June 1st. Like past years, we will be closing to circulation on this day, which means that while we will continue to check materials in, we will no longer check any more materials out. Please look through your child's bookshelves at home, through closets and under beds for any stray LREI library books. We will be sending home overdue slips as usual, and please let us know if there are any errors on your child's slip. Thanks for your patience, and please let us know if you have any questions or concerns about this process.

LREI Annual Camping Trip:
The 14th annual LREI camping trip will be held on the weekend of June 1-3. All LREI families and their children -- pre-K through high school -- are invited to participate. As in past years, we expect that a good time will be had by all: hiking, swimming, sports, fishing, camping, cooking, eating, singing around the campfire, etc.The site, as in past years, will be near the Delaware Water Gap (somewhat north of where I-80 crosses the Delaware River). The cost will be $30 per adult, $20 per child. Also, we need volunteers to help with hauling food and supplies and equipment out to the camp site (and back) and providing extra space in their vehicles for those who need a ride out and back.
More details will be forthcoming for those who are interested. We will have a sign-up table for a few mornings at LREI in May, when we get closer to the camping trip weekend. Please see the attached flyer.Please save the date and let us know if you are interested in receiving more information -- and especially if you are interested in volunteering: Send an email to Larry White(Lwhite@stern.nyu.edu).
Organizers:
Neil Capobianco (CapobiancoN@gtlaw.com)
Seth Tapper (sethtapper@yahoo.com)
Dave Trumbull (dave.trouble@gmail.com)
Larry White (Lwhite@stern.nyu.edu)
Please Click Here



In the Upcoming Weeks...

5/11- What to Expect in First Grade, 8:45AM, Cafeteria

5/11- Glass Menagerie, 8:00PM, The Church of St. Paul and St. Andrew

5/14-Gwen and Dave's Fourth Grade Picnic, 6:00PM

5/16- Fourth Grade Assembly, 8:45AM, Auditorium

5/17- Parent Rep Meeting, 8:45AM, Cafeteria

5/17- Michael and Dawn's Second Grade Picnic, 6:00PM

5/21- Dorothy and Stacey's First Grade Picnic, 6:00PM

5/22- Tasha and Romy's Second Grade Picnic, 6:00PM

5/23- Second Grade Assembly, 8:45AM, Auditorium

5/24- LREI Chorus Concert

5/25- Field Day and noon dismissal (11:45EK) for Memorial Day Weekend

5/28- School Closed for Memorial Day

5/29- What to Expect in Fifth Grade, 8:45AM, Cafeteria

5/30- Kindergarten Movement Assembly, 8:45AM, Big Room

5/30- Jamie and Bonnie's First Grade Picnic, 6:00PM

6/4- Luise and Michelle's Kindergarten Picnic, 6:00PM

6/6- Fours and EK Movement Assembly, 8:45AM, Big Room

6/7- Diane and Lisa's Early Kindergarten Picnic, 6:00PM

6/11- Fourth Grade Moving Up Ceremony, 9:00AM, Auditorium

6/11- Suzanne and Caroline's Fourth Grade Picnic, 6:00PM