Skip to main content

Welcome back!

Happy New Year! I hope all of our families enjoyed a restful, but joyful holiday season.

I am so happy to be back at HCA. The fifth grade and I have spent the past few days getting to know each other. On Thursday, the students shared what they are most looking forward to in 2019! They also stated their goals as readers and writers in the new year. We will keep these up for the next few weeks to refer back to as we continue to "dust off" and polish our language arts skills.


In Social Studies, we discussed the importance of being aware of current events on a local, national and global level. Fifth grade watched today's student video for CNN 10 and reviewed the 5W's ("& an 'H!") that make up a strong news story. They will spend the next week choosing an appropriate, newsworthy article -- on a topic of their choice -- to write and present a summary and reflection on for their first Current Events report.

I'm proud of both the fifth and sixth graders for diving right back into their writing! They were challenged on the first day back with a personal narrative that came with a twist - they had to write about their favorite Christmas present using sensory details that would eventually lead the reader to guessing their beloved gift.

While it was a short week, it was a productive one. As we say in Room 206, "Bring on 2019!"

Popular posts from this blog

The Week in Review: Feb. 3-7

What a week we had in middle school! From health education to outstanding performances by our students, it was full of excitement. First, the entire class would like to give a big THANK YOU  to our hardworking parents and family members who were able to join us for Grandparent's Day and Parent Visitation. It meant so much to them to have you visit them at school and take part in their daily routines. We know that your time is valuable, and it is so appreciated that you chose to spend it with us these past two mornings! On Wednesday, fourth through sixth graders visited Lankenau Medical Center for health education classes. Fourth and fifth graders learned about the importance of "Safety First," where they reviewed the best choices to make to lead a safe life. They went over everything from how to correctly wear a bicycle helmet to administering the Heimlich maneuver on others in crisis. As always, it was a lively lesson full of demonstrations and hands-on learning. ...

Black History Month and Mardi Gras Celebrations!

Fifth graders celebrated Fat Tuesday for Mardi Gras with a King Cake in Religion class! On Monday, the entire school took part in a Black History Month celebration. Here, Ms. Brown leads the middle school in a round of "Finish the Lyric," where they completed song lyrics by Whitney Houston, the Jackson 5, Bob Marley, Beyonce, and more!  At another station, they were given iconic images in black history to recreate through illustration. The best work from each division will be chosen to be posted around the school! At their last station, middle schoolers answered trivia questions about famous figures in Black History. This weekend is the annual auction! We hope you can join us this Saturday evening, February 29  for "A Night in Philly" at the Springfield Country Club. The re-enrollment deadline is next Friday, March 6 ! Please remember to send your registration in by next week.

A Special Visitor

The fifth graders enjoyed a visit today from Lt. Lanni, who brought with him a surprise guest speaker, Brent Celek. The former Eagles tight end shared stories of his experiences in school, and the challenges he overcame as a student and athlete to get where he is today. His advice for our students? Respect others, work hard, and dream big. A big THANK YOU to Lt. Lanni for this exciting surprise! Mr. Celek's visit coincided perfectly with a STEAM lesson today, called "Passion to Purpose," where the class had to work together to identify a way to apply their passions in a way that would inspire real change. Their ideas are displayed in the slides below; they hope to expand on this project as they continue their work in the lab. There is no school tomorrow or Monday, Feb. 17. Tuesday will be a Day 1, which means that fifth graders will need to wear their gym uniforms to school. Thank you, and Happy Valentine's Day!