1
James Monroe Elementary School
~ Winter 2013 Edition ~
Table of Contents
Main Article
1
Clubs
2- 4
Articles
5-7
Poems
8
Recipes
9-10
Book & Movie Reviews
11-12
Important Topics
13-14
Puzzles
15-17
Breaking News
18
Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
On January 15, 1986, while Ronald Reagan was President, our country celebrated Martin Luther
King, Jr. Day as a National Holiday for the first time. This year, we celebrated Martin Luther King, Jr. on
January 21st. We celebrate him each year because we want to honor all of the good things that he has
done for our nation.
Martin Luther King, Jr. was a very heroic and brave man. His dream was that all people would be
treated equally. In a famous speech he said that he dreamed of a nation where people would be judged
by their character, and not by the color of their skin. During the times that he lived in, there was
segregation. This means that white people had to do things separately from black people. For example,
the way that people sat on a bus was different from the way that we sit on a bus today. He worked hard
to have that come to an end so that all people in our nation would be treated equally.
James Monroe would not be the school that it is today if Martin Luther King, Jr. did not speak up
for equal rights. I am glad to honor him each year.
By Samantha Matson
2
Spanish Club
by Konstantina Mattas
According to the CIA World Fact Book, Spanish is
spoken by almost 13% of the population of the United States.
Of the entire population in the United States, about 15%
considers itself Hispanic. These large numbers make Spanish
language and culture a very important part of American life.
To celebrate and expose students to Spanish language and
culture, our school has both Spanish language classes and a
Spanish Club.
In Spanish Club, students perform a lot of cultural activities and fun games that get them in touch
with Spanish language and culture. It is surprising how many activities are incorporated into the lunch
period during which the club meets. The Spanish Club is an extension of Spanish class and has more
cultural content. Senora Bauza really enjoys being the adviser of the Spanish Club and also teaches the
Spanish classes.
This picture is of Mrs.Pattie (left),
Dadrick (middle), and Matthew
(right) all enjoying their iPads.
iPad Club
I went to iPad club on December 06, 2012. There are 15
children in iPad club. The children were making QR’s. You might
wonder what QR stands for. It stands for Quick Response.
One little girl named Halle Lechelt was on the computer. I
asked her what she was doing. She responded, “I am writing a
QR code about myself.” The code looked like a little box with
labyrinth-like signs in it, but there are actually words in them.
(Labyrinth means maze.) Then the other kids had to figure the
QR out. It was a fun activity to experience.
I think the iPad club is an interesting, exciting and fun
activity. You can always learn about the latest technology and
features available on the iPad; not to mention the good laughs
you can have with the instructor, Mrs. Pattie. ☺
By Lexi Stewart
Nicholas Heisler (left) is taking a picture of Laksha
Arora (right) for their quick response codes that
holdsnformation.
3
Lego Club
On Thursday afternoons, the Lego Club meets after school. Mrs.
Said and Mrs. Lombardo run the club. In Lego Club, the second graders
get to build things out of Legos. There are about 19 second graders in
each of the three sessions.
The kids love playing at Lego club.
“We love to see their creativity so we let them free build” says
Mrs. Said. The teachers sometimes give them a holiday or season
themed project to work on. “I like building candy canes” says Mysha, a
girl from Lego Club. When they build they use big and small Legos.
When Lego club is over, they break apart their creations.
If you are going to be in second grade next year, you might want
to think about being in Lego club.
By: Jennifer Palladino
Art Club
By: Gianna Sarni
I took a trip to Mrs. DeCoite’s Art Club to
see what the students and Mrs. DeCoite think
about the club. I talked to Shrenik Patel to get a
first look at the new art projects they are working
on this session. Shrenik exclaimed, “I’m having
fun, but there are times when some of the
projects are a little bit tricky.” However, Shrenik
said that Mrs. DeCoite is very good at explaining
the directions and is very helpful when he has a
hard time completing a project.
Fanny Zheng, another member of the club,
had great things to say about her experiences. “I
look forward to the new projects we work on
every week with Mrs. DeCoite and getting the
chance to have fun with my friends.”
“Art club is the Best!” says Gianna.
I even got the chance to talk with Mrs. DeCoite about her thoughts on art and her club. She
has only been teaching art for four years at James Monroe, but this is her eleventh year teaching.
“I was inspired to become an art teacher at very young age because I have always loved to create
things.” In my opinion, Mrs. DeCoite is the best art teacher ever!
Computer Club
4
By Oluwadamilola Omoniyi
For this edition, I got the chance to see what the
Computer Club is all about. Mr. Fernandez and Mrs.
Reif are in charge of the club and really get the
students interested in using the computer for many
things. “My favorite thing to do in Computer Club is to
experiment and push the boundaries on what we think
we can do with the computer,” Mr. Fernandez
exclaimed about the club. He also thinks that the
benefit that Computer Club has for all the kids at James
Monroe Elementary is that it helps them use their
imagination.
I think Computer Club is a great club for all
students to join. It allows students the chance to use a
piece of technology that they may not be comfortable
using. It also teaches kids how to explore the internet
and use it for school related projects.
Mr. Fernandez says the students are very
advanced.
Community Service Club
By Madison Fuentes
This year, the Community Service Club is doing some
spectacular things, some of which stretch out way beyond the walls
of James Monroe. Mrs. DeCoite, Mrs. Brown, and Miss Maher are
coordinating these great efforts along with the members of this club.
One of the highlights of the Community Service Clubs
fundraising was to help out a school in need in the town of
Highlands, NJ. The purchase of wristbands to support the Highlands
went towards getting supplies and rebuilding the heart of the
school.
Community Service Club also sponsored a silly hair day,
which was a huge success. All of the money raised will go to future
projects.
5
Holiday Boutique
This year on December 4th through December 6th,
we had our annual Holiday Boutique. It was held in the
multi-purpose room. The boutique is a great event
because students can shop for all their friends and family
and get really good deals. Students could buy gifts for
their parents, grandparents, siblings, special friends, pets,
and event their teachers too! The school has parent
volunteers, so mothers and fathers can help out. All of the
money that the students spend goes to the P.T.O. for
fundraising. The best part about the Holiday Boutique is
that you can shop for friends and family, without them
knowing.
By Parker Blaney
Jonathan Sprout
By Harshini Ganapathi & Julianna Taverney
This year’s Jonathan Sprout Assembly was amazing.
The
Heroes
included
Susan
B.
Anthony,
Johnny
Appleseed, Orville & Wilbur Wright, Neil Armstrong, and
Sjourner Truth. A highlight of the assembly was when some
students got to go up “on stage” to do some cool dance
moves with Jonathan Sprout. In the last song, we all were
able to sing along. It was fun because everyone got to
dance.
What we felt about this year’s Jonathan Sprout
assembly was that, it was better than ever. What made this
year’s assembly the best was that we got to celebrate Mrs.
Zapoticzny’s 60th birthday. She was definitely caught off
guard and was truly touched by our huge surprise.
Jonathan
Sprout
sporting
his
American pride, while singing about
the American Heroes.
6
Camp Bernie
By CJ Banyacski
The door creaked open as I stepped into the Turrel lodge. The boys split up and some
rushed to the left and others to the right. I went to the left and found a bunk. Christian was on
top and I was on the bottom. Across, Tyee and Dylan were bunking. We had five minutes before
the first activity. This was just the beginning of our Camp Bernie experience.
The leaves crunched as we walked to the climbing tower. There, in front of us, stood a
massive 40ft tower. Rob, one of the counselors, was working the slanted tower and Mike was
working the strait one. I started to creep over to the straight tower. I was one of the last people to
climb. Within two minutes, I was past the half-way point, which was marked with a handprint. I
looked down, which was the biggest mistake I ever made. “Hey, Mike! I want to come down!” I
yelled. “No, I think you can do it,” he replied. I pulled my leg up and was finally at the top.
“Finally,” I whispered to myself. Now the hard part was getting myself to the bell. I stretched and
rang the bell.
Overall, I thought Camp Bernie was exciting. We got to do interesting and cool activities.
The activities were different than school because you were able to get up and be active and
experience the great outdoors. Also, we got to hang out with our friends and make new friends. It
will be an experience I’ll never forget.
Library Opening
By Nitya Nagarajan & Aracely A.
Calling all bookworms for the re-opening of
our school library. Over 100 books of all different
topics are ready to be read, like science, history,
humor, and many more. Children from grades
kindergarten through five were eagerly waiting to
get their hands on some books. So pick out a good
fit book, stick your head inside, and enjoy. Happy
reading!!
7
Camp Bernie
By Amanda Bastian
Camp Bernie is a great trip for students. Camp Bernie is tons of fun. Students get to participate in
six activities. The activities include survival training, sensory development, climbing tower, stream
ecology, confidence course, and the low ropes.
In climbing tower, students accomplish things they thought they could never accomplish. Can you
climb the 40ft tower? For survival training, students learn to build a fort. Will your team come out on top?
In sensory development, students are blind folded and they have to follow the rope through an obstacle
course. Will you be the one to peek?
Stream ecology is when students try to catch things in a stream. Students use nets and buckets to
catch the different types of living things that live in certain waters. Confidence course is when students
must work as a team to complete different activities. Will your team cr-cr-crack under pressure or rise to
the top? Low ropes is when students walk on ropes, but have to work together to guide each other
through the course. Will you fall or will your spotters catch you?
I know I couldn’t wait to go to Camp Bernie. Trust me; it’ll be the best experience of your life.
Make sure to listen, pay attention, and dress for any type of weather.
Winter Concert
By Julia V
The Winter Concert was held in our gym on Thursday,
December 13th for James Monroe students. Parents, grandparents,
siblings, and other friends and family were able to watch the
performance at Herbert Hoover Middle School on Tuesday,
December 18th. I think that all enjoyed! I hope that all first, second,
and third graders are inspired to join our chorus, orchestra, band, or
all three in the upcoming years!
During the winter concert, the audience gets the chance to
listen to different instruments and voices. The band, the orchestra,
and the chorus perform songs that they have practiced for the first
half of the year. This year, the audience heard many different
instruments, such as violins, violas, flutes, saxophones, and much
more. There were four songs that were performed by the chorus.
There was a song for Diwali, Hanukah, Christmas, and Ramadan. A
lot of work goes into practicing for the big concert.
8
Winter Days
Snow
By Elizabeth De
Jesus
It is cold outside,
It is snowy outside,
The day is short.
Outside is crisp,
No trees are alive,
The plants are dead,
It’s not the time for ice
cream,
But it’s good to eat
soup.
It’s better to drink
things that are not cold,
Always put on gloves
and a hat.
A winter jacket with fur
inside,
Always remember to
play with snow.
Diwali
By Lucy Knox
By Sukriti Singh
The snow glistened on a
cold winter’s day,
Diwali is a Holiday
when kids only play,
fun, fun and only fun
is what we do that day.
Diwali is the festival of light
we light up diyas* at night,
we pray to God which is not
pretty odd.
This is all about Diwali
Tell your friends about this
day.
Instead of being lazy
Go on make diyas from clay!
(*Diya means lamp.)
Hanukah
Christmas Poem
By Tanya Sharma
By: Cindy Vouffo
Merry Christmas, Christmas
Cheer,
Light the menorah
The most wonderful time of
the year.
Snow is falling, light the
tree,
Merry Christmas to you and
me!
It’s time to be thankful
Gather around the table
and we‘ll eat some latkes
Hanukkah lasts for 8 days
and nights
Today we shall celebrate
Spin the dreidel round and
round
Hanukkah
By Astha Lakhankar
Dreidels are spinning round and round, happy children are dancing all around.
Gifts are given one by one, joyful songs are happily sung.
Latkes will be served galore, when we’re finished we’ll eat more.
We don’t want it to end, spending time with family and friends.
We hope this will never be done, Hanukkah is so much fun!
It twinkled like a star in
a glorious way.
Bears and mammals
slept away,
Hibernation is the day.
Animals cuddled up real
tight,
All through the cold,
long winters night.
Christmas Day
Christmas Day is almost
here,
Filled with joy we will
cheer.
Santa comes from the
North Pole,
To fill happiness in our
soul.
Family is what really
matters,
No one's heart should be
shattered.
Everyone gathers on
Christmas Eve,
Fun we’ll have, and then
we'll leave!
--Keerthana Talla
9
Apple Peanut Butter Smoothie
Recipe by Myca Mills
Ingredients:
*Adult supervision
• 1 apple cut into medium cubes
needed!
• ½ cup milk
• 3 crushed ice cubes
• ½ banana (frozen)
• 1 tbsp peanut butter (chunky)
• Vanilla yogurt (1/2) single serving
Directions:
1. Toss the cubed apple into the blender along with milk, crushed ice, banana, yogurt, and peanut butter.
2. Blend until the mixture becomes smooth, but because the peanut butter is so thick, you may need to stir it as
you blend.
3. Pour into a cup and enjoy!
I like this recipe because it tastes just as good as an ice cream cone to me and since I don’t like biting whole apples, I
thought, “why not chop it up and add my favorite toppings?”
Cottage Berry Crunch
Recipe by Nichole Shapiro
Ingredients
1/2 cup of Breakstone's low fat cottage cheese with Calcium and Vitamin D
2 tablespoons Back to nature Classic Granola
1/2 cup sliced bananas
1/2 cup assorted mixed fresh berries, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, halved
strawberries
Directions
*Adult supervision
needed!
1. Spoon cottage cheese into small bowl
2. Top with remaining ingredients
3. **Special extra - garnish with fresh currants
4. Now you are ready to enjoy the Cottage Berry Crunch!!!
Ants on a log
10
By Kara Ianni
What you need:
Celery
Peanut butter
Raisins
Butter Knife
How to make it:
1. Cut the celery about 5 inches long
2. Spread the peanut butter onto the
hollow part of the celery.
3. Place the raisins on top of the peanut
butter.
4. Enjoy! ☺
*Adult supervision
needed!
Mint Chip Freeze
By Alexis Elias
Ingredients:
2 packages cream filled chocolate Sandwich
cookies, crushed
½ cup butter melted
*Adult supervision
1 can evaporated milk
needed!
1 cup sugar
½ cup butter cubed
2 pieces unsweetened baking choc.
1 gallon mint choc. Ice cream softened
1 container frozen whipped topping thawed
Directions:
1. In a large bowl, combine the cookie crumbs
and butter. Press into two 13x9x2 pans.
Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
2. In a small saucepan, combine milk, sugar,
butter, and chocolate. Cook and stir over
medium, high heat until thickened and
bubbly (about 12 min.) remove from heat
3. Spread ice cream over each crust. Spoon
cooled chocolate sauce over top, evenly
spread to cover.
4. Freeze until firm. Spread with whipped
topping.
Banana Caterpillars
By Gabby Martini
Ingredients:
2 Medium Bananas
¼ Cup Peanut Butter
¼ Cup Flaked Coconut
4 Raisins
Think Pretzel Sticks
*Adult supervision
needed!
Directions:
1. Peel and slice each banana into 10 slices.
Make caterpillar by spreading peanut butter
and pressing pieces together.
2. Sprinkle half of coconut over each caterpillar
and press lightly with fingertips to coat.
3. Attach raisins to one end with a little peanut
butter for eyes.
4. Break pretzel sticks into small pieces and
press between banana slices for legs and
antennas.
11
Adventures of Tintin and the Secret of the Unicorn
Directed by Steven Spielberg
By Srishti Gupta
The movie Adventures of Tintin and the Secret of the Unicorn
revolves around a boy named Tintin, who buys a model of a ship named
Unicorn. Tintin takes the model home, but it breaks due to a fight between
Snowy and a neighbor’s cat. Later on, Tintin figures out that the model is
stolen. He accuses Sakharine of the crime, but soon realizes that Sakharine
is not the thief, when he sees that Sakharine has the unbroken model of the
Unicorn.
Tintin is later kidnapped by Sakharine and imprisoned on another
ship. On board, Tintin meets the captain of the ship, Haddock, and later on
comes to know that Haddock was actually the captain of the sunken
Unicorn. Haddock reveals to Tintin that when his ship, full of treasures, was
attacked by pirates, he chose to sink his ship, rather than surrender the
wealth to the pirates. It is revealed that there are 3 models of Unicorn and
the mast of the ship contains the clue to the hidden treasure and also the
Unicorn.
Watch this movie if you have enjoyed reading Tintin comics and would like to find out if Tintin finds the clue
to the hidden treasure. This movie is filled with thrilling adventures and is an action packed animated film. It was
nominated for the best original score at the 84th Academy awards.
Old Yeller
Story by: Fred Gipson
By Deanna McLaren & Chitral L.
Old Yeller is about a 14 year-old boy named Travis who is the man of the
house. When Travis goes to get meat from the dog run, he sees a meat stealing
rascal; Old Yeller! Old Yeller is a strong and brave dog. He ends up staying with
the Coats family: Travis, Little Arlis, and Mama. Little Arlis is Travis’ younger
brother, who adores Old Yeller. Travis isn’t so happy about the big Yeller dog,
but soon Travis starts to connect with him. Old Yeller does everything Travis
tells him to do.
While out hunting, Old Yeller gets bitten by a wolf that has hydrophobia
(rabies). Old Yeller gets the sickness and begins to growl and foam from the
mouth. Will Old Yeller go after the Coats family or will he fight the sickness?
Read this book to find out what happens to poor Old Yeller and the Coats family.
We think this movie is a great film to watch. It’s a great story
about a boy and his newly found pet dog. The characters are easy to connect
with, especially if you have a pet of your own. This is a great film to watch with
family and even your pets too!
12
Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Third Wheel
Book by Jeff Kinney
In Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Third Wheel, Greg
Heffley is not willing to be the odd man out. There is a
Valentine’s Day dance at school and Greg is searching
for the perfect date. He and his friends set out on
mission to find a date for the dance. But will they? And
if they do, who will be left as the third wheel? Read this
book to find out if Greg and his friends find the perfect
dates to the dance.
I think this book is a perfect read for all kids. It is
filled with laughter on every page and the author uses a
common problem that all kids can one day connect with.
I strongly suggest that everyone read this book.
By Jeffery Amponash
Wiley and Grandpa’s Creature Features Bigfoot
Backpacking Bonanza
BOOK WRITTEN BY: KIRK SCROGGS
Wiley and Jubal are best friends. They were both trying
to be a Spud scout, but never passed the qualifications to
become one. Wiley and Jubal took this very seriously. Soon
Wiley’s grandparents realized they were unhappy, and knew
they had to do something about it, so they took them to a wild
place. After a wild adventure they wind up fighting BIGFOOT!!!
Will they win this battle? Read the book to find out.
I think this is a cool and action packed book, with wild
creatures. I suggest that everyone reads it. You just can’t stop
once you begin reading. If you like this story, please take a look
at other books written by Kirk Scroggs.
By: Harshil Ganapathi
13
~ School Events ~
By Kamryne Riggans
February 2013
12-14
Event
Book Fair
PTO Love Notes
1:30 Dismissal
15
PTO Gertrude Hawk
Sale Begins
19
Grade 2 Penguin
Assembly
1:30 Dismissal
20
Silly Day
22
PTO Dine Out Night
March 2013
Event
1
5
Read Across America
PTO Gertrude Hawk
Ends
Grade 5 Pancake
Breakfast
Silly Day
Family fun night
Gertrude Hawk PickUp
Spring Recess
7
13
15
18
25-29
Time
Location
9:30 am
Multi-Purpose Room
Time
Location
9:15 am
14
Event
Time
Location
April 2013
2
PTO Art Fundraiser
8-10
Book Fair
12
School Play
17
Silly Day
22
PTO Dine Out Night
24
26
School Store
Grade 1 Family
Luncheon
Multi-Purpose
TBA
EHS
11:30 am
Multi-Purpose
Book Fair
The Book Fair will be open from Tuesday, February 12th
through Thursday, February 14th. It will also be open for
parents to browse or buy at Parent-Teacher Conferences on
Tuesday, February 12th. Each class has been assigned a
specific time to go down and visit. You will find an array of
books that will satisfy any reader’s genre of choice. There
will be a section for each grade level to choose from. Don’t
worry if you forgot to purchase on your class’s scheduled
book fair time; there will be a makeup for all students on the
last day.
15
Sudoku Puzzle
By: Nataliyah Gordon
5
3
8
3
9
4
3
2
1
1
9
9
7
3
9
2
1
9
6
2
8
5
4
3
6
4
6
4
6
4
1
8
1
7
6
6
16
17
Word Search Puzzle
G
P
Q
C
D
T
R
A
D
I
T
I
O
N
S
G
M
Z
S
P
W
M
L
V
P
P
R
E
S
I
D
E
N
T
S
A
G
M
S
T
X
D
J
R
Q
I
W
C
B
Q
O
J
F
G
M
A
R
T
I
N
L
U
T
H
E
R
K
I
N
G
J
R
L
K
M
Z
L
G
Q
I
S
E
E
J
D
I
E
L
W
Y
E
T
D
Q
M
U
Y
I
K
Y
A
B
W
I
N
T
E
R
Y
M
K
G
U
Y
Q
A
G
N
Z
C
O
S
K
H
W
P
cold
December
hats
holidays
hot chocolate
ice
January
marshmallow
R
C
A
N
C
H
L
I
U
G
X
I
U
C
X
E
A
Y
D
P
K
L
J
F
K
A
D
S
K
F
C
G
C
R
P
A
G
I
E
J
W
X
R
G
Q
W
F
M
P
E
B
O
M
G
R
M
L
O
D
Y
I
W
O
L
L
A
M
H
S
R
A
M
W
W
N
R
E
H
Z
N
S
N
O
W
M
E
N
L
H
T
H
S
U
V
C
A
S
L
X
H
U
B
S
R
H
I
A
Z
W
X
A
M
E
T
A
L
O
C
O
H
C
T
O
H
T
L
G
D
X
R
M
L
T
P
F
C
R
S
V
Y
O
S
S
Y
A
P
H
U
B
S
B
D
L
O
C
N
A
J
M
Y
I
P
Martin Luther King Jr
presidents
snow
snowflake
snowmen
sweaters
traditions
winter
K
T
V
Q
E
Q
S
Y
A
D
I
L
O
H
P
D
M
E
K
Q
V
D
R
O
V
R
G
S
R
E
T
A
E
W
S
W
18
Hope for Highlands
By Samantha Matson
Hurricane Sandy was a devastating storm, and some families are still fixing the damage that
this Super-storm caused. This left many families in the Highlands homeless, or with damaged
homes. James Monroe stepped in, and adopted a school in the Highlands that was hit badly. The
school’s name is Highlands Elementary School.
There was a pep rally at James Monroe to get our school excited about helping the Highlands.
Mr. Peccarelli created an amazing song for us to sing. The name of the song is, “Hope for the
Highlands”. The song was all about helping the Highlands! To go along with the song, Mr.
Fernandez and Miss. Bussiere prepared a slide show. There were two videos in the slide show. One
of the videos was a weather woman talking about Super-storm Sandy, and how it hit the Highlands.
The final video was about one specific class.
The second part of the video was about the fundraisers James Monroe was holding to help
the Highlands. A few of the members of the Club were chosen to say a sentence or two about the
different fundraisers that James Monroe planned to do to help the Highlands. We talked about
donating money and gift cards to them. Also, we explained what the awesome glow in the dark
wristbands would look like. After the pep rally, the whole school was excited to help the Highlands!
We created fundraisers at our school to help the families of Highlands Elementary. One of
them was the glow in the dark wristbands. The wristbands say “James Monroe loves the Highlands.”
We raised a lot of money by selling 470 of them.
Another fundraiser that James Monroe did to help the Highlands is to bring in gift cards to
stores or money donations. We raised a lot of money for the Highlands! Combined from both
fundraisers, we raised about $1900! When you think about how many people we will be able to help
with this money, you know that we will make a difference.
We know their lives are changing because of this and James Monroe is proud to do this for
the families of Highland Elementary School!