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ACS ATHENS ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

THE MUSE

Volume 1, Issue 3 June 2012

Message from the Principal


June is always a time to reflect, reminisce, and celebrate. We had a wonderful year filled with many special moments. This last trimester you had the opportunity to have your child showcase their learning during Student-Led Conferences. Educators face the challenge of reporting on students progress several times throughout the year on a written document. Most of the learning that takes place cannot be recorded solely on paper. The teacher relies on his or her observations that are recorded and that have been collected throughout the year. For these reasons, Student-Led Conferences are a unique and important opportunity for parents and children alike. Student-Led Conferences allow parents to celebrate their childs growth. It is a hands-on approach which allows them to see a wealth of learning that takes place in the school. The possibilities for celebrating learning are endless. The goal of giving those little stars a chance to shine during StudentLed Conferences was crystal-clear. Through participation in a vast array of classroom academic activities and noteworthy projects, it is obvious that our students have gained awareness and knowledge. I am certain that you, the parents, have also observed the changes and growth of our student body that we have noticed. It is often said that one years achievements is a milestone for our young learners. At this point I would like to express my gratitude to you all, for the continuing support and encouragement that you gave us throughout the year. Our school is unique because of this important partnership which strengthens our programs and helps our students develop positive attitudes towards school and learning. Some of you will be leaving the ACS Athens community to move to new places. We wish you all success and happiness in your venture and hope that the memories you take with you are pleasant ones. As you will note on your Calendar of Events, school year 2012-2013 will commence on September 6 for grades 2-12. The first day of school for our First graders is based on the first letter of their surnames. Students whose last name begins with the letters A-M will begin school on September 6, while those whose surnames begin with the letters N-Z will start on September 7. Our Early Childhood Program will begin on September 12. Please note that the last day of school is June 14th. Dismissal will take place at 3:30 p.m. School supply letters have been sent out and have also been posted on the school website under School www.acs.gr Supplies in the Elementary school section. Also Math packets have been distributed for grades 1-3. Students in grades 4-5 will find their math packets on your childs Blackboard account. Please remember to read over the summer. Thank you for your dedication, your cooperation and your support. Undoubtedly we make

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a great team. Enjoy the lingering, sunny, relaxing months that lay ahead with your family and friends. We will meet again in September full of energy and enthusiasm for yet another rewarding academic year. Ms. Cathy Makropoulos, Acting Elementary Principal

Junior Kindergarten News


June has almost arrived and that means that the end of the school year is near. Our classes have grown so much in so many ways this year, but we still have much to learn and do during the month of June! A big thank you to all the parents who helped chaperone our field trip to Attica Zoological Park. You helped make it a safe and pleasant experience for all the children. In the days ahead we will continue to investigate Insects and Spiders, learning about these wonderful creatures and their habitats. We will also be celebrating the summer by having our End-ofthe-Year party. JK students have been involved in various projects throughout the year, such as their writing journals, self-portrait books, as well as fine motor skill journals. Please read and discuss any work your child brings home to share with you, and help to encourage continued exploration and learning curiosity during the summer months. We are very proud of all of you and everything you have accomplished this year! Have a wonderful summer. Ms. Korinna, Ms. Vasilike, and Ms. Alex

Kindergarten News
As the last month of school is approaching, Kindergartners are preparing themselves even more diligently for First Grade. The work they have accomplished at each of their learning centers is a reflection of how much they have grown over the course of the school year! Each child is a reader and writer at his or her own developmental level. At the reading center, they have been using various strategies to read the texts in our leveled readers and letter books. At the writing center, they have been sounding out words to write sentences in their journals. At the math center, they have been completing activities that are the basis of addition and subtraction. At the art center, they continue to develop their fine-motor skills and experiment with a multitude of art media. Finally, our StudentLed conferences gave the children a chance to celebrate their growth with their families! Ms. Anna and Ms. Ashley

1st Grade News


Proud to be First Graders! This has been a productive and rewarding year for all of us in First Grade. We as teachers have enjoyed our contribution to your ch ilds sch ool e xpe rie n ce s . The childrens eagerness and willingness to learn is a reflection of the growth that First Graders have made not only academically but socially as well. We have applauded the diversity of personalities and interests in this group. Our reward as teachers has been to see the tremendous growth that your children have made in the past year. Their willingness to read, write, add, subtract, discover, investigate, participate, paint, sing, create, contemplate and to resolve have all been but a few of the experiences shared by all of us in First Grade. We feel that the childrens caring, responsibility and self-esteem have blossomed and this could not have happened without your support and guidance as parents. We as teachers could not have reached our goal of building self esteem in each child and nurturing in them a true love of learning without your support in so many ways. Next year will be another big step for your children. You can do much this summer to make next year a productive and successful learning experience too. Be positive about your childs placement. Encourage your child to accept responsibility for his learning. Help your child to make decisions and accept the results of those decisions. Give your child the gift of organization and strategies to develop it. Share times that are creative, spend time reading together, encourage inquiry celebrate independence. and

We are very proud of the progress your children have made. We will enjoy watching them reach for challenges in the future. We believe that this is what school and life are about. We hope that your childs First Grade experiences have added the necessary tools for coping with future challenges. Our best to all of you and enjoy the summer. To those returning to our school community, see you in the Fall. For those moving to other schools, Best wishes to you and dont forget to drop us a line. Most sincerely, Ms. Birbil, Ms. Lamprou and Ms. Ficke

2nd Grade News


Second graders have continued exploring their community through our Health Unit by discovering the Five Food Groups. They have learned how to create a balanced meal and understand that eating a variety of food is necessary to keep their bodies healthy. One tasty discovery our second graders experienced was a day of cooking with raw chocolate. Students collected organic ingredients and blended natural flavors of cacao with vanilla bean into a rich and tasty chocolate treat. After that, they travelled to Chrysalidis Park to witness the process of threshing and milling in order to make bread. The entire second grade took part in kneading dough and baking bread for themselves. This health unit has opened the doors for students to search through an array of non-fiction books during their reading time. Students have been encouraged to read all about food, where foods grow and much more. Due to their vast readings, students have been able to reflect on their findings and use the Writing Process to report on each food group in their food journals. The use of adjectives, word choice, conventions, complete sentences etc. have continued to be encouraged throughout lessons. these writing

Included in this trimesters reading unit is the study of poetry. One author students have studied is Shel Siverstein. They have come to love his work due to his amusing and comical short poems. They have even come up with unique poems of their own playing with rhymes. Soon they will be adding more literary elements that are found in poetry as we continue to study this genre. Students will be able to further create poems as they are in the process of discovering the different types of poems such

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as cinquain, rhyming, name, shape etc. Poetry has given students the opportunity to learn new vocabulary through familiar themes. In math, second graders have been exposed to a world of shapes and sizes through their Geometry lessons. Their experiences revolve around creating equal shape-parts and even connecting different shapes to make new ones. In addition to this, students have had the opportunity to see how groups of numbers, or shapes, can be added together to make new groups! Now students are dabbling with the concept of multiplication, allowing them to understand the basic idea of pairing objects or numbers into groups. Ms. Johnson, Ms. Moros and Ms. Spiliot

3rd Grade News


Calling all talented third graders! Our focus lately has shifted to our expression of Self unit in which we spent much time perfecting individual talents to be shared at the talent show. In math we converted fractions to decimals and learned the difference between area and perimeter. In writing, we also worked on researching and writing expository papers relating to our space unit. Dont forget all that we have learned over the summer. Continue reading - read every day! Also, keep those math skills sharp by practicing multiplication and working on your summer math packet. We thank you for all of your hard work this year. Have a safe and fun summer break. Rest up and prepare for 4th grade! Ms. Ernst and Mr.. Perroni

4th Grade News


The last part of the trimester found the 4th graders learning by doing!! In the Science Unit of Electricity and Magnetism students have been learning about making complete circuits. We have also written letters to students teaching them how to make magnets. In the Modern Olympics Unit, students have been researching, making PowerPoints, reading, writing, and taking part in Olympic sports like Track and Field at our field trip to the Panathenaikos Stadium and swimming where Ms. Salouros and the 4th grade teamed up to have some exciting Olympic swimming events! Student Led conferences were a great success! Students were able to demonstrate their 4th grade knowledge and tried to knock their parents socks off!!! We continue to reinforce basic skills of math, writing and reading as we move towards the summer. Mr. Perry and Ms. Soteres loved teaching all of your children and getting to know you this year. We wish you a relaxing, adventurous and memorable summer vacation. We recommend you read a least three books at your current reading level or above over the summer. Especially to our friends who are still learning English, you must continue to practice over the summer for best results in 5th grade. Also, we suggest some websites to reinforce all the skills that this year. were taught Language Arts: James Pattersons Read Kiddo Read http://readkiddoread.com This site is the brainchild of author, James Patterson. His

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goal is to help parents and educators connect children with books that will turn them into lifelong readers. The site is colorful, easy to navigate, the titles are hand-picked by qualified professional, and there are links to websites for these people as well. Grammar Gorillas - http:// www.funbrain.com/grammar/ Spelling - Online Spelling Program www.spellingcity.com Online Spelling Program offers over 38,000 spelling words and eight spelling games, k-12 spelling lists are offered. One can select lists by age, sounds, Dolch lists, and topics, and more. You can customize your own word lists and create games and puzzles. Math: World of Math Online: http://math.com World of Math Online by Leap of Faith Financial Services, Inc: dedicated to providing a variety of ways for students, parents, teachers to learn math. Included are assessments, on-demand modular courses, 24/7 live online tutoring, lesson plans, links to worksheets, drill & practice opportunities, expert answers to math questions, and more. Education Place http://eduplace.com/kids/ mhm Education Place by Houghton Mifflin: a good site to practice ITBS test-taking skills for math. Other nice offerings are strategies and immediate feedback. Plus, its fun! Fun Brain http://www.funbrain.com/ numbers.html Animals/Wildlife National Geographic for Kids O nl ine , * De fe nde r s of WildlifeKidsPlanet www.kidsplanet.org Defenders of Wildlife, Washington DC: This is an award winning site and one of the great sites for kids! Features: description of endangered species and also lists species by continent, thorough fact sheet on each animal, some animals have photographs and a video clip, great games, stories, excellent teachers resource with lesson plans along with activities and more games. There is a place on each page to adopt an animal. There is a separate info section on the World Wide Wolf efforts with information and curriculum for teachers to create a unit. This is an excellent site. Enjoy! Ms. Soteres and Mr. Perry

5th Grade News


ACS 5th Grade Cleans UP! After Easter vacation, our 5th graders once again helped to save the planet by cleaning our adopted beach at Aghios Nicholas in Anavissos! This is the 5th year in succession that we have cleaned the beach here, and we are really beginning to see a difference! The students from the local public elementary school in Anavissos came over to thank us! Congratulations 5th grade! Back in the classroom, students from both classes have been enjoying trying out hands-on science experiments as part of our Mixtures and Solutions chemistry unit. In this unit the focus has been on learning to write scientific information explicitly. Our final social studies unit was on colonial history in Early America. 5th graders worked as diligent note takers and researchers, learning and writing information about this time period. All students have read the Lightening Thief. During our analysis of literature, students have learned vocabulary, written comprehension answers, and book responses, about topics studied. Additionally, students have been sharpening their understanding of grammar rules and writing mechanics.

5th Grade News


Fifth graders are getting closer to becoming 6th graders each day. On the 30th they visited the middle school and met their future teachers, counselor, and principal. Our students are very excited about this new, important step of growth in their lives. We will celebrate our 5th grade students Stepping Up ceremony on June 13th. Parents will plan a delicious luncheon for 5th grade students and their families followed by an awards ceremony to honor our students. Ms. Coklas and Ms. Kynigou

News from the Art Room


A lot of exciting learning and creating has taken place in the art room this year. I am very proud of our students hard work and creative energy put forth. We were able to display a number of projects in the K-12 Visual Arts Show that took place in the ACS Theater Lobby May 2-18. Congratulations to all the young artists who had their work displayed! Another big congratulations to the following classes who won Art Class of the Month: February winner-1st grade Ms. Ficke, March winner-2nd grade Ms. Johnson, and April was a tie-2nd grade Ms. Spiliot and 4th grade Mr. Perry! Summer is a great time to get inspired and make art! I know I will be. Please encourage your children to draw, paint and create! The following are fun art websites that you and your children can enjoy at home over the hot summer months. Find coloring pages, craft ideas and games at ww.crayola.com Draw and play games inspired by Keith Haring at www.haringkids.com Easy origami at en.origami-club.com Paint a masterpiece at http:// artpad.art.com/artpad/painter/ Make Picasso faces at www.picassohead.com Play games and get art making ideas at kids.tate.org.uk And my favorite http:buildyourwildself.com/ Thank you for supporting the arts! Have a great summer and keep creating! Ms. Jones

ESL News
It is unbelievable how fast the year has gone by and how much knowledge the students have soaked up! Students are using their English to effectively communicate inside and outside of the classroom with teachers and friends! First graders have gained leagues in their reading fluency and comprehension! They have participated in numerous reading activities with other students and myself! Grammar has also been a part of our weekly lessons as they learn how to put sentences together correctly. Grade!! Way to go First extensive writing required in Fifth grade. Our focus has been on developing topic sentences to establish the main idea, including details, and wrapping up their writing with closing statements. Fifth grade will continue to work on improving their writing by making their ideas more clear, writing more descriptively, and editing for grammar. A big congratulations to the Fifth graders on all of their hard work and successes.

The Second graders continue to focus on reading comprehension and building up their vocabularies as we look at more difficult words and find their synonyms and antonyms. Third graders have covered immense demonstrating their learned knowledge in every area! Fourth grade has honed in on improving writing skills to prepare them for the

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I wish you all the best as you move on to Middle School! I am ecstatic with all the progress I have seen this year and I am excited to see all of the learned knowledge applied next year! Dont forget to continue practicing English over the summer! Have your child make goals to read over the summer, whether its reading a novel or a number of smaller books. Keep a journal of all your adventures over the summer, write about a fun day you had, something really cool that you saw, or maybe some friends you met up with! The internet is also a great way to practice English through fun games, or have friends over and watch a movie in English. I am already looking forward to next year and all the gains I hope to see in every student! Enjoy the summer and Ill see you next year! Ms. Schulz

News from P.E.


For the past couple of months, students in grades 1-5 have been learning all about the sport of swimming. They have been learning and practicing all the different strokes continuously, and they have really pushed themselves to go over and beyond their personal capabilities. We have definitely had a lot of fun splashing around! Students in Kindergarten have been learning the rules and regulations of the sport of bowling. They have also learned different parachute games, as well as scooper games which help them improve their hand-eye coordination. We have been having tons of fun as we have been performing these different activities. In closing, this has truly been a productive and fun year in P.E. The students have successfully achieved the standards, benchmarks, and tasks that are necessary to complete at their specific age level, and I am very proud of all of them. I want to thank all of you as well, the parents, guardians, and all of the staff and faculty at the elementary school, for your continued support, cooperation, and love. I wish you all a fun and healthy summer! See you next year! With lots of Love, Ms. Salouros

Optimal Learning News


As the year nears its end, we are pleased by the evident progress our students have made in their ILP goals. Every student has made progress and we are very happy with each childs determination and effort to do so. With Ms. Sinouris initiative, our 5th Grade students have been involved in a new Unit: Poverty: A Global Issue. They are becoming aware of the ramifications of poverty and are responding to difficult questions this issue raises. Also, following a successful 7th Annual ACS Athens Learning Differences Conference, we have dived into the 3rd and final MAP assessment phase of the school year. We are updating the ILPs and have already set tentative objectives for September and the upcoming school year. We look forward to the rejuvenation the summer break brings and the future goals we aim to conquer.. Ms. Kaldeli and Ms. Sinouris

News from the Computer Lab!


Kindergarteners showed off their writing skills while using Tux Paint! They used the program to describe the picture that they had drawn. Kindergarteners also worked on www.starfall.com for phonics practice and beginning reading skills. First graders began using Microsoft Word to type up their poems and to label parts of a plant. They also used www.starfall.com to practice their reading skills. In addition, first graders used Trudys Time and Place to learn about directions and telling time. Grade 2 students dipped into research skills! They used www.choosito.com for safe internet research to find information about sea turtles and places in Greece. They used www.brainpopjr.com to learn about the digestive system and health. In addition, they worked on inserting pictures, centering text, saving and opening their files with Microsoft Word. Grade 3 students have become Power Point masters! They used the program for presentations on rocks and minerals and the solar system. They worked on researching information about China with a web quest and were very enthusiastic about 2 Animate which is a program for creating computer animations. In addition, the students used a guided www.raz-kids.com, reading program and www.arcademics.com for math Grade 4 students presented their research on the United States and Regions and on the Modern Olympics. They used a web quest to support their learning about South America and used an interactive site to work on electricity and circuits. They have also been practicing their keyboarding skills. Grade 5 students used Power Point to display their research for their Geology unit. The students were also enthusiastic about Google Sketchup 8. Google Sketchup is a CAD (computer assisted design) program. This is a wonderful program for three-dimensional modeling. Computer recommendations for the summer: are bellow: The following are web sites and apps, which combine learning with fun. Web sites: www.xtramath.com www.ixlmath.com www.tenmarks.com www.exploratorium.edu IPad/IPhone Apps: Drawing Pad Color Box Doodle Buddy Garage Band Toy Story Read-Along Brain Pop Mad Libs-On the road Project Noah Math Board Story Kit Rocket Math Shake-a-Phrase

I wish everyone a relaxing, rejuvenating summer!! Ms. Sarantes

News from the Music Room


Music is a way of expressing oneself and applies to all ages! During lessons, students are guided through the learning of the basic ideas of music. They listen, learn, compose and perform music from different parts of the world and of different styles. They are encouraged to use a number of tuned and untuned percussion instruments. Kindergarten students are further developing their understanding of rhythm and movement coordination. Through fun filled activities they also continue to develop their understanding of musical elements such as pitch, tempo, and dynamics. They learn to sing a number of songs with live music accompaniment or with the use of backing tracks. Their wonderful performance at the ACS Spring Concert was a small demonstration of the kind of skills all kindergarten students are developing. Kindergarten students also gave a wonderful performance during the opening ceremony of the early Childhood Conference at ACS with the song the World is a Rainbow. First grade continue to expand their musical vocabulary and understanding of the elements involved in every piece of music. They have worked hard on movement coordination skills, on singing, and on their listening skills. First grade gave a very successful performance during the Spring Concert. They combined acting and singing for their demonstration of the musical Wizard of Oz. Earlier in the trimester they also gave a wonderful performance for the opening ceremony of the Early Childhood Conference at ACS with the song The World is a Rainbow. Second grade have worked hard on expanding their rhythmic, vocal, and listening skills. Throughout the trimester they have been very busy. They once again impressed with their performance of African drumming during the opening ceremony of the Early Childhood Conference at ACS. They also gave a wonderful show with their presentation of the musical Annie during the Spring Concert. Third grade have further expanded on their understanding of music. This past trimester they focused on vocal and listening skills. They developed an understanding of musicals and the skills required in combining drama, music, and movement. Their attention to rhythm, pitch, and synchronization were only some of the developing skills that they demonstrated during their wonderful performance at the ACS Spring Concert. Fourth grade worked hard during this last trimester and developed a large number of musical skills. Amongst other things they progressed significantly on their vocal, listening, rhythmic, dancing, and acting skills. They gave a wonderful performance at the ACS Spring Concert with the musical Billy Elliot. Fifth grade students worked very hard on preparing the songs and choreography for the 5th grade play. They also worked on composition skills, movement coordination, vocal technique, and development of aural skills. Fifth grade students gave a wonderful performance at the ACS Spring Concert with their presentation of the musical Phantom of the Opera. Ms. Apostolou

News from the Greek Classes


"Kalo kalokairi!" We are approaching the end of a wonderful school year for all the Greek classes of the Elementary School. It has been a really fulfilling and productive year for the Greek Language Department! Congratulations to all students who did a fantastic job preparing for the Student-Led Conferences that took place in May. During the Conferences, students enth usia stically showed their work in Greek and had a great time working on different stations in each class! It was a great pleasure working with such enthusiastic students! We are really proud of their academic accomplishments in Greek. We will joyfully remember the special moments of our Greek celebrations! Have fun, swim, eat ice cream....and read many Greek books! Have a great summer! ! Ms. Rovoli, Ms. ovaiou and Ms Karali

News from the Arabic Classes


Learning Arabic is fun! A fun and productive year of learning Arabic almost went by. I would like to congratulate all students of the Arabic classes on carrying out StudentLed Conferences successfully. They all took pride in the hard work they did this year! I wish all of you a great vacation! Please remember to read lots of Arabic books over the summer! You have been wonderful to work with! Ms Accari,

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