Podcast Episode 2 - An Interview with Ms. Bhatia - 5th Grade Teacher at Evergreen

Below you will find our second podcast episode.  This is an interview with Ms. Bhatia our new 5th grade teacher at Evergreen.  This is an opportunity for students and parents to get to know a little bit more about Ms. Bhatia. We hope you enjoy it!

Download the MP3 file

A 5th Grade Perspective

This school year has gotten off to an auspicious start.  Everyone - parents, students, and teachers - have adjusted well to the new drop off loop, parking configuration, new classrooms, and new office spaces.  These many changes have been taken in stride.

To keep this positive momentum going specifically for our students, I asked one of our 5th graders - Rory - if she had any advice she could offer her fellow classmates on what they should focus on at this early juncture in the school year.  Here is her response:

"Something we have in our school is the acronym “P.R.I.D.E.” It means to be positive, respectful, to have integrity, to be dependable, to show effort. We talk about that word everyday in class because it is important. But being everything that word means can be challenging.

The new school year has started! Now that it is the second week of school, we’re all starting to get back to our school mindsets; though many of us still aren’t sure how to start this year off right. None of us have anything to worry about though, because we’ve got the whole year to figure things out! Following the P.R.I.D.E. acronym can be hard, but if you focus on one word at a time then you will have a good beginning. Later on, you’ll want to embrace all of the P.R.I.D.E. words.

I recommend the word “respect” as the starting point, though they are all important. Respecting everyone else helps them to have respect for you too; and the classroom will be much more harmonious. Respect can be as basic as listening to your teacher when he/she is talking, or it can be being friendly and not rude. It keeps us from fighting and arguing. If someone gives a wrong answer in class, don’t laugh and make fun of them. If someone has respect for me, I then feel valued and important.

This new school year is going to be fun for me, and I hope it will be fun for everyone else too!"

What great advice she shared and how eloquent she put it! I am super thankful that she agreed to put it in written form for this blog post; thanks Rory! 

Evergreen students, what are your thoughts on starting with the "R" in PRIDE and really focusing on being respectful?  Will that help you get this year off to a great start?  Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.

Welcome Back to School!...the Podcast - Episode 1

Welcome to the 2015-16 school year!

Below you will find a link to a podcast that you can download.  It contains useful information about all of our procedures and changes that have occurred over the summer.  Please listen and let us know what you think in the comments section below.

A Teacher I Will Never Forget

We are excited to welcome Mrs. Campbell back to school and even more excited to have her as our guest blogger today! 

A Teacher I Will Never Forget

It was my first day of 3rd grade. It was also my first day at my new school. I was beyond nervous because I didn’t know anyone and I knew what it was like to be the new kid. I remember walking down the hall hoping that all the kids would be nice and that I would have a great teacher. Before I even walked into the room I saw my teacher’s bright sweet smile as she greeted each and every student. She must have noticed the scared looked on my face when I reached the door, because  she immediately bent down and said, “Good Morning, you must be our new student Sara! We are so excited to have you as part of our family here at Stone Academy!” From that moment I knew that Mrs. Baugh was going to be an amazing teacher!

Mrs. Baugh took the time to work with us one on one. At first I had trouble learning multiplication facts, but she found a way to make learning easier by sitting down with me and walking me through each step. She made sure that she read with each kid at least once a week. We always enjoyed our reading time with her!

Each morning we would write to her in our writing journals. We could write about what we did over the weekend, if we had a question about something new we were learning, or anything else we had on our mind. I would always tell her about my favorite things to do. I told her about riding four-wheelers, the exciting new book I was reading, and about my clogging and ballet lessons. Mrs. Baugh was always very eager to hear about my dance lessons because she used to dance as a little girl too! She even asked me when my recital was because she wanted to come watch me! When she came, I felt like a million bucks because she came to watch ME dance!

Throughout the school year Mrs. Baugh taught us how to multiply, divide, read and write; more importantly, she made each and every student feel special. I will never forget Mrs. Baugh--ever.

Have you ever had a teacher that made you feel special? I would love for you to share who your favorite teacher has been and what he/she did to make you feel important!

First Visits

As April turns to May, splashes of color seem to be everywhere.  Trees, shrubs, and flowers are all in bloom; spring is most definitely here.

This time of year is one of anticipation and excitement.  All of the fun activities the warm weather affords us come rushing back to our minds.  Baseball, softball, swimming, fishing, and intense games of tag with our friends are remembered fondly. After the long, dreary winter we are ready to get outside and enjoy the world again. The freedom that summer represents will be here soon.

The warm weather also makes me reminisce about family trips.  My family would always go on some type of trip - to visit relatives, see a new place, or take a vacation.  I'm not sure about your family trips, but as a kid I loved going and relished the sense of adventure they brought into my life.

Some time around 5th grade, we took a trip to visit my aunt in Arizona.  My aunt had recently moved out there and this was our first visit to see her.  If you have never been to Arizona is looks quite different from New Jersey.  Where New Jersey is crowded with people, houses, and trees, Arizona is immensely open with majestic mountains dotted with cacti.

On this trip, my family only stayed for a short time but I was able to spend almost a month in The Grand Canyon State. It was wonderful.  The state is so beautiful and there are so many interesting places to visit - Old Tuscon, Monument Valley, Sedona, Petrified Forest, and of course the Grand Canyon. It was all so new and so much fun.  I even remember learning how to play the game of Spades on this trip.

As I look back now as an adult, I think a lot of my fond memories of this trip stem from the fact this was first visit to Arizona.  Something about experiencing new vistas, people, and culture leave an edible imprint.

In the comment section below, I would like to hear about places you visited for the first time.  Perhaps, like me, you visited a family member in another state?  Maybe your family took a road trip somewhere that was particularly memorable for you? Perhaps you went on a vacation some place that you really enjoyed? Tell me all about it.  Where did you go?  What do you remember about the place?  Why did you enjoy it?  What is one thing you can share that would entice other people to visit?

I can't wait to read all of your comments!

The Four 4s

Today, I am pleased to present you with a guest post from our Academic Coach for Mathematics - Mrs. Realley:

The Four 4s

As the Math Coach, I love challenging myself with cool problems to solve.  One of my favorites is The Four 4s.  This problem asks “Can you find each number 0 through 10 using only four 4s and any operation?”  For example, I can find 0 by doing 4-4+4-4.  How many of the numbers can you find?

If you enjoyed this challenge, you can find more like it at

http://nrich.maths.org/primary-lower  (for K-2 students)

or http://nrich.maths.org/primary-upper (for 3-5 students). 

In the comments, let me know how many of the numbers 0-10 you were able to find.  Or tell me about an interesting math problem or game that challenged you. 

Mrs. Realley

Do you have P.R.I.D.E?

Posters with a green and white rectangle adorn numerous walls in Evergreen Avenue Elementary School.  Inside classrooms, affixed to hallway walls, hung in the cafeteria, and inserted within student agenda books, these posters represent the core of what we believe at Evergreen.  These beliefs span social, emotional, and academic tenets. These are posters of P.R.I.D.E.

P.R.I.D.E stands for being positive, being respectful, having integrity, being dependable, and showing effort.

Specific definitions and examples are included after each character trait along with our school motto, keep love present.

Students are recognized by staff members for showing the characteristics of P.R.I.D.E and their names are placed on our Good Deed Tree and a positive note is sent to their parents.  Some students are even selected by their teachers to become a P.R.I.D.E Leader.  These leaders receive a coveted bracelet:

...and get to participate in super fun celebrations each month.  A group of staff members affectionately known as the POPS (People of PRIDE) have documented these parties through video:

 https://vimeo.com/user33416701/videos

Our school is even formulating a P.R.I.D.E Council which will be comprised of 4th and 5th grade P.R.I.D.E Leaders whose job will be to advise myself, as principal, on school affairs.  While only P.R.I.D.E Leaders are eligible to serve on the P.R.I.D.E Council, all 4th and 5th grade students will have the opportunity to vote for their representative. Look for more details about this in the coming days.

Evergreen students - I would like to hear from you in the comment section below about how having P.R.I.D.E has affected you in a positive way this year.  Could you give me one example of someone you've seen demonstrating P.R.I.D.E?  What were they doing?  Tell me all about it!