true blue tribune- summer 2014

8/12/2019 True Blue Tribune- Summer 2014

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/true-blue-tribune-summer-2014 1/8

By Cassie Laifer

We will have a newsuperintendent when we returnto school next year. Her nameis Dr. Diana Bowers. Dr.Bowers was kind enough togive us the following e-mailinterview so we could get toknow her efore !eptemer.

Cassie Laifer" How do you

alleviate stress#Dr. Diana Bowers" When $ amat work% $ spend time withstudents. $ can tell you thatspending time in classroomsalways makes me smile. $ loveto see the work that ourstudents are involved in andtheir growth throughout theyear. &utside of school% $exercise% cook% and spend time

with my family.

C.L." Who are your rolemodels#D.B." $ would have to say my

mother is at the top of the list. 'dditionally% $ was alwaysenthralled y (arie Curie andher work as a scientist so manyyears ago. Her work helped uslearn a lot aout some of themore important scientific topicsthat we deal with today. $ wouldalso include two colleagues that$ have worked with in mycareer% Dr. )homas Higgins andDr. (ar*orie Castro. Bothhelped me learn aout childrenand learning% and made mepassionate aout what $ do.

C.L." What type of workenvironment do you prefer#

D.B." $ en*oy working in ahappy place where people feelthat making mistakes is part ofthe learning process. $ alsoelieve that you are never donein your +uest for excellence andthe collective wisdom of thegroup is necessary to get as

M e e t O u r n e w s u p e r i n t e n d e n t

I N S I D E

T H I S

I S S U E :

Haldane ,arden

D$ Column /

0rost 1alley 2% 3

!pecial )eacher

$nterviews

4

!ummer 5u66les 7

H A L D A N E

M I D D L E S C H O O LSummer 2014 Volume 3, Issue 3

True Blue Tribune

close to excellence as possile.

C.L." What is a time that youhad to go aove and eyond toget a *o done#

D.B." $ hope that this is a dailyoccurrence. (y elief is that $8

we need to model the type of work ethic that we hope to seein all memers of the HaldaneLearning Community. $f we ask

students to give it their all% wehave to do the same. 's aninstructional leader% $ elievethis egins with me.

C.L." What was a ma*orostacle that you were ale toovercome in the past year#

D.B." 't this time in educationhistory% we have to think wayoutside-of-the-ox in order tokeep the learning environmentas productive as we can%despite all of the financialostacles that we have to

contend with. !tudents haveonly one chance at each gradelevel. We have to make surethat their experience is as good%if not etter% than the studentsthat came efore. We need tocome up with solutions toprolems that we are faced

with. )his year% as well as inprior years% this was animportant task that tookprecedence.

C.L." What is your greateststrength#

D.B." $ love to cook andgarden% and $ think $ am prettygood at oth. $ also try to e a9good listener.9

C.L." What is the mostimportant thing you thinkHaldane students should knowaout you#

D.B." When $ make decisions itis always with students in mind.

We are here for you.(oreover% my door is alwaysopen. $f there is a suggestion ora concern that you want toshare with me% please let meknow. $ will try to do whateveris in the est interest of thestudents% your school% and thedistrict. $f what is eingsuggested can:t occur% $:llexplain why and we:ll look foranother solution.

C.L." Do you have any pets# $fso% what kinds#

D.B." (y most recent pet was a0rench ulldog name &tto% thatunfortunately is no longer withus. He lived for ten happy yearsand was always a little itnaughty.

C.L." What are you going tomiss most aout working at the

Hamilton !chool District#

D.B." )he Hamilton !choolDistrict is a great district withterrific kids. $ will miss thepeople that $ have worked withover the past eight years. )heyhave enriched my life andtaught me many life lessons.

Goodbye nd Good Lu!"

Mrs# $idl nd Mrs# %GOlins"i&

'ou will be G(EATL' )issed&



By Bridget ,olderg

Bridget ,olderg" When did the gardenstart#

;ory <iesterer" $n ==> ground wasroken to clear the weedy area anduild raised eds% construct a fence% etc.(any people from the communityhelped volunteer their laor to get thegarden started.

B.,." Who were the first people tothink of8start the ,arden#

;.<." $n ==7 a group of parents andstudents got together and egandreaming.... they approached Hudson

Highlands Land )rust and Haldane!chool 0oundation for start-up grantsand also got planning help from DaveLlewellyn% ,lynwood:s 0armer.

B.,." When did you start working onthe garden and why#

;.<." When my son started;indergarten in fall of =?? myneighor told me aout the garden andasked me to get involved. !he knowshow much $ love plants and thought $could help out so $ decided to

volunteer for the 5)' gardencommittee and have een ever since.

B.,." Did Haldane ever have a gardenefore this# $f so% how did it end and

why#

;.<." ou might need to interview staff who:ve een at the school for manyyears to answer this@ 0rom what $ knowthere was not an official garden eforethis one ut there was a ed outside theB? classroom that 5'CA! studentstended. )he eds in front of theelementary entrance were alwaysplanted y ;indergartners. o one canrememer how the old greenhouse wasused - that would e another great storyto research. o one even knows howold it is. $:d love to find some oldyearook pictures of the greenhouse

when it was first used to find out whatstudents grew in it - maye that wouldlead to an answer aout other gardensin Haldane:s history. $ know during

WW$$ the ! government promoted:1ictory ,ardens: e planted in schoolsand communities throughout the ! tomake sure there was enough food to go

around. (aye Haldane had a victorygarden#@

B.,." How many classes arecontriuting8have contriuted to the,arden#

;.<." 's of this year all classes in ;-2now participate in the garden during falland spring :garden month: activities.(r. Wick:s 4th graders haveparticipated a lot this year since thegreenhouse was renovated% and in pastthe AcoDevils have helped out% as wellas after school Aco;ids and gardenenrichment classes. 0rench and !panishclasses have used the garden% (rs.,eller:s students have worked in thegarden since the very first year itstarted% and other enrichment classeslike art and creative writing often usethe garden for inspiration. !tudents inA!8(! mainly use the garden. We

would like H! students to get involvedtoo. Can you elieve there are some H!students who have never even walkedthrough and seen the garden# )here is agreat flat grassy space next to the H!

that looks *ust perfect for a huge vegetale garden - maye in future agroup of H! students will start a gardenon their own@

B.,." What is the most i6arre plant inthe garden#

;.<." Well% that depends on who youask@ Bi6arre is a su*ective word. !omepeople think it:s cra6y to have tropicalplants in the garden like a anana orgiant elephant ears )arosE% others love

the surprise of the heart pea plantecause each seed pod has / tiny seeds with the shape of a heart on each. Lastyear the Dr. !euss ed had a lot ofi6arre plants in it - one was a plant inthe milkweed family with ig spikyalloon-shaped seed pods and the other

was a type of Celosia CockscomE thatlooked like a human rain. )he yardlong eans that covered the willow fortlooked like creepy Halloween fingers tosome people% and the carnivorous

H l d n e G r d e n

pitcher plants are always ama6ing% plusthe giant Dinosaur gourds that look likecaveman clus. )oo many to list% so it ishard to say - ut we:re always looking

for cool plants to grow that will sparkstudent wonder. &ne of the est placesto find i6arre plants is to visit aotanical garden% it:s like visiting a 6oout instead of seeing exotic animals%you:ll see exotic plants@ $f students everhave ideas for cool plants to grow we:dlove to hear from them.

B.,." What is your favorite part aoutthe garden#

;.<." $ love how it is constantlychanging - every season in every year isdifferent. )here is something ama6ingto discover each time you walk through"a walking stick ug% a cool shaped seedpod% a surprise flower that self seededfrom last year% volunteer s+uashgrowing out of the compost pile% aphidscovering a stem% giant spider wes%yellow finches hanging upside down offsunflowers% hummingirds% unexpectedleaf color cominations% a perfectcucumer hiding so it won:t getpicked... the more time you spend in agarden the more it speaks to you% themore it reveals its eauty and

complexity as an ecosystem. ' gardenis a whole small universe teeming withusy life. When you tend a garden% youecome part of that other universeduring those moments.

B.,." 'outE how many plants are inthe garden#

;.<." )his is the toughest +uestionanyone has ever asked me@ o idea.

Well over a hundred - there are theplant varieties we delierately plant

which $ could spend a long timecountingE plus all the native andinvasiveE plants the naturally grow inthe garden:s haitat - there are as many:weeds: as desired plants out there@ $f aclass wanted to guess plant speciesalone y counting how many differentones grow naturally in a few randomlyselected s+uare feet and thenmultiplying that y total s+uare feet inthe garden - $:d love to know@



.

H o w t o ) " e w e s o ) e t e e s * o r

S u ) ) e r : A D o + I t + ' o u r s e l * C o l u ) n

By Laura Cosma

The Knot Top

(aterials"

F a shirt you donGt mind cutting up

F a washale marker

F scissors

F ruler

!tep ?" se the scissors to cut the sleeve

aout ? cm away from the sowing line.

save the sleeves for a later pro*ectE

!tep " With the marker% draw a straight

line to mark the waist line. )hen% draw

two even triangles elow it.

!tep /" 0ollow the lines you made to cut

out the shirt% ut e careful not to cut out

the triangles@

0inal step" Cut out the triangles in the

ack% knot up the front% and work it@

Back Cut Top

Fshirt

Fscissors

!tep ?" 0old the shirt in half

!tep " (ake a cut aout an inch away

from the neckline and keep making cuts

slightly igger than the one efore.

'nd youGre all done@@@

Braided Bracelet

Ft-shirt sleeve from eforeE

Fscissors

Fneedle

Fstring

!tep ?" Cut the sleeve into / different

pieces

!tep " Cut each stripGs end% then knot

them together make sure theyGre all e+ual

lengths@@@E

!tep " Braid them together.

0inal !tep" !ew the ends together and

wear it with whatever you want@



What was your favoriteactivity and why?

(y favorite activity was thehike ecause $ love exploringthe wilderness.I -(ichael

Jip lining ecause of theadrenaline rush you get whenyou drop.I -1K

(y favorite activity was thehike. )his is ecause it was agreat way to connect withnature and fully appreciate yoursurroundings.I 'melia

)he night hike ecause we gotto walk around and see theriver at night.I -icole

Jipline% ecause itGsawesome@I -Kulian

(y favorite activity wouldeither e the night hike orcanoeing. )he night hike was alot of fun ecause we playedgames and went to the lake and

watched frogs. But $ likedcanoeing ecause we startedhitting each other with theoats and got soaked.I -'igail

$ loved the 6ip lining ecause$ am afraid of heights and $could face my fears.I -$ssy

Jip lining was the estecause you were so high upand going so fast.I -'idan

)he rock climing% ecause itchallenged me.I -,eorge

)he four hour hike ecause it was fun% and we ended up witha really nice view.I Bella

(y favorite activity wasoating ecause it was fun andre+uired team work.I -'ndrew

What was one of yourfavorite meals?

!ausage and eggs.I -Brett

$ loved the pancakes.I 'manda

)he tacos and urritos.I-Brandon

)he last lunch which waspi66a.I Claire

If you could, would you goagain? Why or why not?

$ would love to go again withmy grade.I -Dylan

$ go for summer camp thereevery year% and encourageothers to go as well.I -(ax

$ would go again ecause it was fun to e outdoors with noelectronics and have all yourfriends around.I -Ka6myn

es% $ think it was a goodexperience to get out of yourcomfort 6one.I -Courtney

'solutely% it was the mostfun $ have had with my class ina long time and $ already miss

it.I Daniel$ would go again ecause itGs agood way to get outside.I !am

es ecause the activities were really fun and $ want totake pictures of the waterfall.I-ick

, r o s t - l l e y ( e * l e ! t i o n s

What was the scariestactivity? Why?

High ropes ecause the rope was woly.I -'llison

Climing% ecause $ hateheights.I 'nthony

Climing wall% ecausesometimes you slip or the ropeisnGt tight and you feel likeyouGll fall.I 'idan

High ropes ecause the logmoved.I -(aken6ie

)he giant swing ecause atfirst it felt like you werefalling.I -Kared

)he giant swing was scary utexhilarating at the same timeand totally worth it@ )he worstmistake you could possilymake is not going.I &livia

)he giant swing ecause $donGt like roller coasters and itfelt like one.I Amily

What is something youdisliked about the trip ifanything!?

$ didnGt like that we had toleave so soon.I -,ai

$ really only wish that wecould have sat with anyone we

wanted to at lunch.I -'ey

We had to come ack to

school on )hursday and0riday.I icole

$ had to clean up% which $disliked.I !elena

$ didnGt like the night hike.I-(acken6ie



By Curtis Huer

"rs# Contini

C.H." How long have you een working at Haldane#

D.C." !ince ?>7.

C.H." Have you taught any gradesor su*ects efore this#

D.C." $ spent two years in a tahelementary school efore comingto ew ork where $ taughtand% strings M guitar. $ did oneyear of grades 2-7 and in sixew Kersey Catholic schools. $also worked for one year at <ye(iddle8High !chool teachingand% including marching and.

C.H." What is your favorite unit toteach and why#

D.C." $ don:t have a favoriteecause the est thing aout my

*o is the variety--from 2ththrough ?th grades% fromBeginning Band through High!chool% from 9Hot Cross Buns9to Ka66 Band. $t:s *ust lots of fun@

C.H." What is your favoritememory of teaching and why#

D.C." $ *ust love 9my9 kids whichnot only include the ones $:m nowteaching ut the ones $:ve worked

with these past /=N years whichincludes many Haldane parentsand teachers. )he music is

wonderful% oviously% ut thepersonalities and the interaction

with the students is my favoritepart.

"r# $chepisi


K.!." )his is my /rd year.


K.!." $ have taught 3th and 4thgrade !panish and freshman8sophomore 0rench.


K.!." $ like teaching the fale unitin !panish ecause students createtheir own uni+ue fales.

C.H." What is your favoritememory and why#

K.!." (y favorite memory is when we had the ! 'lany

representative visit last year andhow the students didphenomenally well with thelesson. We recovered our H!certification that year@

"r# Caldiero


).C." ?2 years.


).C." $ have taught grades ;-?%as well as college undergraduateclasses.


).C." $ en*oy teaching aout

fitness% health and wellness.


).C." $ would say my favoritememory from teaching is therelationships $ uild with thestudents.

"rs# %offman


).C." $ have een teaching atHaldane for 2 years.


).C." o% ut $ worked as a

childrenGs lirarian in a puliclirary.


).C." )his year% $ really en*oyedcreating wesites with my 4th grade students. $ en*oyed seeingthem take pride in their workthroughout the year% and sharingthat with their family and friends.


).C." (y favorite thing aouteing a lirarian is when $ seestudents get really excited aoutgreat ooks@

M S S p e ! i l T e ! . e r I n t e r / i e w s



M S S p e ! i l T e ! . e r I n t e r / i e w s

"rs# $torey


).C." $ have een at Haldane for

7 years. $ work with students ingrades 4 through >.


).C." 2 $ worked in a privateschool in Buffalo% when $ firstegan eing a counselor. )here $

was also the Director of 'dmissions.


).C." (y favorite unit to teach inthe seventh grade guidance classdeals with stress and strategies tomanage stress. $ especially en*oypracticing the meditationtechni+ues with students.

C.H." What is your favorite

memory and why#

).C." $ have many favoritememories within my work- usuallyseveral a day% at least. )heyinvolve watching students helpone another% seeing someone use

a strategy to etter him8herself%and all the humor that comesfrom eing around such livelypeople.

"r# $ciba

C.H." How long have you een working at Haldane#D.!." )his is my ?st year teaching

at Haldane.

C.H." Have you taught any gradesor su*ects efore this#D.!." $ have een fortunate tohave taught Oth and 7th grademath% science% social studies andscience. $ also taught >th gradeearth science. $ts een great tohave had the opportunity to teachmany different su*ects ecause $

love to learn.


D.!." $ thoroughly en*oyedteaching aout the 'merican Civil

War. $ have always eeninterested in the Civil War fromthe time $ was a kid% and $ haveread extensively aout it over theyears. When $ was in the army% $

was fortunate to e ale to walkevery Civil War attlefield in

1irginia% West 1irginia% ;entucky%(aryland% and of course,ettysurg in 5ennsylvania. $ hadso much fun teaching that unit for?O years.

C.H." What is your favoritememory from teaching##

D.!." By far% my est memory ofteaching was when two of myformer social studies students saidthat they were inspired to ecomesocial studies teachers themselvesafter having een in my class.

S u ) ) e r $ L n s

(y favorite en*oyment ofsummer will e sleep.I - Liam

$ plan to hang out with friendsand go to sports camps.I -Luke

)his summer $Gm going to go toCalifornia% go to asketall camp%read Alsewhere /% go to!plashdown% and see my est

friend from 0lorida.I -(elissa

$Gm going to the each with mycousins and my ffs. 'lso $Gll getpresent ecause itGs my irthday@I-&livia

&ver the summer $ willP $ haveno idea@I -)heo

$ am going to go swimming.I-anonymous

$ plan to map the woods in myackyard.I -<andall

$Gll spend most of my time at thelake near my house.I -Hudson

$Gm going to (aine% LakeCompounce% (assachusetts% andHershey 5ark. $Gm also going tohang with my friends at my pool.I-(eghan

)his summer $ plan to go to 'ri6ona% 0lorida% )exas%!plashdown% and hang out withfriends a lot@I -5arker

)his summer $Gm going toBoston and Cape Cod% myrotherGs aseall tournaments%swimming% and hanging out withmy friends.I -'shley

$ am going to at least four campsthis year and maye one sleepaway camp in 1ermont.I -!ofia

$Gm going to sleepaway camp in(aine.I -'nneke

$ am going camping on an islandin Lake Champlain where there isa lot of huge fish to catch.I -'lek



)heo Bates

Laura Cosma

Bridget ,olderg

Curtis HuerCassie Laifer

(rs. Hoffman

0En1oy your su))er2

see you ne3t yer&4

HALDANE MIDDLE SCHOOL5S

T(UE BLUE T(IBUNE STA,,

1 . L a s t D a n c e 2 . F o r C r y i n g O u t L o u d 3 . I n g r o u n d P o o l 4 . N o T V f o r a e e ! " . # i g $ F r e % u e n c y & . ' i t ( ) s

true blue tribune- summer 2014

Documents