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Tappan Hill News 2007-2008
Local Author
Visits Tappan Hill
 On
Thursday, June 5th,
each Tappan Hill kindergarten class was treated to a presentation by
children’s author Colleen Carroll. Ms. Carroll is also a former teacher and
educational consultant whose clients include MTV, Bravo, the Smithsonian
Institution’s National Museum of American History, Black Entertainment
Television, CNBC, and the Edison Schools. Ms. Carroll, a parent of students
in our district, is the author of the How Artists See series published by
Abbeville Kids, a Division of Abbeville Publishing Group.
Ms. Carroll, a dynamic and
captivating speaker, presented images from the annals of art history. She
introduced prehistoric cave murals and explained how art can communicate
through time; artists of the past can tell their tale to future generations
with images that will exist through the passage of time. In addition, Ms.
Carroll inspired the children to see with the eyes of an artist—to find the
extraordinary in the ordinary. She asked them to look, think, and
hypothesize about the art works that she presented. She also implored them
to refrain from judgment in assessing artistic creativity.
One class was
introduced to the art historical image of a dragon. Part bird, part mammal,
and part reptile, the dragon was clearly a fanciful creature. In response
to Ms. Carroll’s presentation, each student rendered a personal dragon of
crayon and pencil on paper—each dragon drawing was a composite of many
animals. These illustrations were accompanied by original writing that
described the kindergarteners’ dragons. (Posted 6/22/08)
Tappan Hill Celebrated
Spain
 It
was a festive occasion on May 30th.
The Kindergarten students participated
in a cultural learning experience about
Spain-- its artists, music and history.
Mrs. Sanchez-Zhu, E.S.L. teacher,
presented a power point presentation
about her culture. She showed the
students various artifacts that were
made in her country. The children were
especially excited about the pictures
that showed a “human tower” in the
festival La Merce in Barcelona. This
involves teams of people wearing
traditional costumes trying to build the
tallest human tower. Also, Mrs.
Sanchez-Zhu showed the students a
picture of her family dressed for
Carnaval in Overa, Spain. They were
wearing large paper mache heads and
oversized clothing. In Spain, we call
these costumes “gigantes”. In other
words, giants.
Mrs.Sanchez-Zhu was also dressed up in a
typical Flamenco dress. She even taught
the students how to Rumba. Everyone
clapped during the dance and had a great
time!
During the slide show presentation, Mrs.
Sanchez-Zhu showed paintings that were
painted by Spanish artists. Goya,
Velaszquez, Picasso, and Miro were among
the artists. Mrs. Sanchez-Zhu even
showed some of her paintings that she
has in Spain.
The students at Tappan Hill enjoyed
learning about Spain and culture.
Viva Espana!
(Posted 6/11/08)
Celebrating Poetry at
Tappan Hill
On May 29, the Kindergarten students
participated in a poetry celebration.
The hallways were beautifully decorated
and the classrooms were charming and
inviting, welcoming the poets in the
school. Throughout the month of May,
students listened to, responded to,
created and wrote poems. They wrote
list poems, free verse poems, and
cinquain poems. Each class also created
a class poem together. These young
poets gathered with one another from
different classes and shared their
unique poetry. The poetry celebration
was a huge success!!! (Posted
6/8/08)
Tappan Hill Visits Tarrytown Lighthouse
 On
a bright, blustery mid-May morning
students from Tappan Hill took turns
receiving a guided tour from Mr. Miller
at the Tarrytown Lighthouse. The
lighthouse is a white, conical cast-iron
tower on cast-iron caisson that sits
just beyond the old GM parking lot.
After crossing the grated bridge
overlooking the Tappan Zee Bridge, Mr.
Miller introduced us to the interior of
the lighthouse to share historical
insights. Students were interested to
learn that this lighthouse was a home to
families twice in history. In Mrs.
Magliano’s class, Mr. Miller stated that
the light house is cone shaped and asked
if they thought the rooms would appear
smaller or bigger as we climbed
upstairs. The students used their math
knowledge of cones to answer “smaller.”
Since the visit, students have written
both poems and stories about their visit
and they have drawn pictures of this
important landmark only a stone’s throw
away.
(Posted
6/2/08)
Celebrating Young Authors
at Tappan Hill
 On
April 17, Tappan Hill held their first
school-wide writing celebration.
Students from different classes shared
their “Small Moments” stories with each
other. Classrooms were beautifully
decorated and classical music played in
the background, while the young authors
read to each other. Special guests
included Ms. Milliam, Principal, Mrs.
Schoenberg, Reading Teacher, Ms.
Almogabar, ESL Teacher and Dr. Smith,
Superintendent of Schools. Anyone
walking around the school would have
seen proud authors reading as well as
active listeners. The publishing party
ended with delicious snacks for everyone
to enjoy. (Posted
4/28/08)
I Like Ants! They Make My Mama...
Dance...
On
Friday March 14, John Farrell, singer, author and songwriter
 entertained
the students at Tappan Hill School. The children were completely captivated
by his interactive approach that allowed the children to become an important
element to the show using song, storytelling, and sign language. John
Farrell was also impressed by the number of his songs that the children
already knew how to sing. Throughout the year teachers play his CD’s and
sing along with his music in the classrooms. We love his songs! Each song
helps children explore important
issues such as respect for oneself, community, and the earth in a fun and
delightful style. Some of our favorite songs are:
Library Song,
Habitat,
I Like Ants
and
Love Grows.
John introduced us to his new book,
Dear Child. It
was an outstanding concert!
If you
are interested in purchasing his CD’s for your child, the order forms are
available in the main office at Tappan Hill School.
(Posted 3/30/08)
Tappan Hill’s Abstract
Collages Are Visual Melodies!
 Tappan
Hill’s kindergarten artists have been considering the relationship between
art and music. Studying the work of Russian-born abstract master Wassily
Kandinsky, the students created watercolor responses to various classical
music selections. Exploring the techniques and work of collage artist
Romare Bearden, the children created multi-colored painted papers in
response to jazz music. In a culminating project, celebrating African
American History Month, the children created watercolor paintings based on
an American jazz composition. In order to highlight and develop these
images, the students cut out inventive free-form shapes from their decorated
papers. These shapes were strategically placed and fastened to the abstract
paintings in order to create a sense of balance and movement—indicative of a
musical experience. While creating these sophisticated abstract works, the
children learned specific watercolor techniques to develop brightly colored
paintings. These pieces were carefully executed and painstakingly crafted.
The children learned how to wait for things to dry and they were dazzled by
the results!
(Posted 3/25/08)
Happy New Year!
The students at Tappan Hill School
celebrated the Chine se New Year
in many different ways this year. On
February 12, Mrs. Sanchez-Zhu spoke to
the school during an assembly about some
Chinese traditions. She also included
some of the traditions of Korean and the Philipino
 cultures. Ms. Corea, Mrs.
Garibaldi and Mrs. Praino’s classes
created props, including the Dragon’s
Head and marched in a Dragon Parade. The
entire school created
rattles and tamborines to make noise and
ward off “bad luck” as the parade
marched by. This year we celebrate the
year of the Rat. Children learned how to
say Happy New Year in Mandarin and
Cantonese. Follow up activities
included Mrs. Garibaldi’s class cooking
dumplings and Ms. Corea’s and Mrs.
Praino’s classes experimenting with
chopsticks for the celebration. Other
classes read books and learned how to
write, using “Chinese” characters.
(Posted 3/3/08)
How Book Will Travel
The students at Tappan Hill School are excited about books!
Starting this month, the students will begin to take books home each night.
The books selected are based on the independent reading levels of the
students.
Every student will have a special “bag” to keep the precious
books clean and safe! On each “bag” there will be a list of activities that
parents can complete at home with the child and inside the “bag” is a list
of reading strategies. Reading is a complex skill and having the
opportunity to practice this skill with leveled books is essential. The
Book-in-a Bag program is just one more way that the students at Tappan
Hill School are developing their literacy skills! (Posted 1/31/08)
Food for Thought
The annual NYSUT Food Drive is in full swing at Tappan Hill School. The
entire Tappan Hill community of staff, students, friends and families is
involved in this year’s drive. The collection of food to delight every
taste bud is appearing daily to the collection site. The students are
excited about the amount and variety of food that has already been collected
and is continuing to arrive. (Posted 1/28/08)
The Nutcracker Ballet
The
Kindergarten students at Tappan Hill School attended a performance of the
Nutcracker Ballet at the Tarrytown Music
 Hall
in early December. The children were very familiar with the story and the
music before the trip. Each classroom teacher discussed the characters in
the story and played the music by Tchaikovsky during rest time. They also
learned about many different types of “nutcrackers.” Some students brought
their own nutcrackers from home to share with classmates. The children were
able to actually see ballet dancing on the Smartboard. The children were
able to learn the five basic positions. Teachers were able to also show the
children other ballets on other internet sites. The actual performance by
the Ballet Atlantic Company was beautiful. The costumes and the scenery
were so colorful. A favorite part of the story was the falling of the snow
on the Snow Queen and her attendants. It was magical. The Christmas tree
that grew as tall as the parlor at the stroke of midnight was magical as
well. If your family has not seen this holiday tradition, make sure to see
it next year.
Students will continue to learn about ballet during our Enrichment For All
program and also through our dance residency, which will take place in early
Spring. (Posted 1/24/08)
Dear Parents,
I am pleased to inform you that we have begun our “Enrichment
for All” Program. We developed the program with the African proverb in
mind: “It takes a whole village to raise a child.”
At Tappan Hill, the whole staff (village) will be
participating in a program to further enrich the learning of every child in
our care. We will be exposing the children to numerous and varied
experiences that address the multiple intelligences and expand on the
enriching activities that already occur at Tappan Hill.
For our enrichment program, we chose to focus on the
countries, languages, and cultures of Europe. Throughout the year at Tappan
Hill, as part of our Social Studies curriculum, children are provided with
culturally enriching experiences relating to Latin America, the Carribean,
Africa, and Asia. Realizing the importance of the European influence on
American culture, we chose to highlight that continent in our school-wide
enrichment program. The countries we have chosen to “tour” are: France and
Italy.
Through various activities, children will have experiences in
using their Visual/Spatial, Verbal/Linguistic, Logical/Mathematic,
Bodily/Kinesthetic, Musical/Rhythmic, Interpersonal, and Intrapersonal
intelligences.
Some of the activities that the children will experience are:
Stregga Nona and Pasta making , Italian Folk Dances (including the
Tarantella) , Soccer, Opera and Mosaics in Italy; Sign Language, Ballet,
“Carnival of the Animals,” Monet and Madeline in France. Please
dress your child in loose clothing suitable for dance and athletics on
Thursdays.
Your child will bring home “souvenirs” to share with you from
their various experiences. The program will last for nine more weeks and
will generally occur on Thursday mornings from 8:45– 9:30 a.m. If you would
like more information, you can call either me or your child’s teacher. Make
every effort to have your child get to school on time (8:00 am) so they
don’t miss one minute of this enriching journey.
Excitedly,
Ms. M. Milliam
Principal
Once Upon a Time …
The Kindergarten children at Tappan Hill
School took a trip to
Lyndhurst Castle recently to enjoy the
Holiday Fairytale Exhibit. Before the
trip, the students were taught the
various features of fairytales as a
literature genre. Teachers read some
familiar and not so familiar fairytales
to the children. Children noticed that
many of them begin ‘Once upon a Time’
and end ‘Happily ever after.’ It was
also noted that most fairytales have a
“mean” or “bad” person in the story.
Many of the fairytales take place in
castles and that many of the main
characters are kings, queens, princes
and princesses. Lyndhurst is
Tarrytown’s very own castle. The exhibit
was so magical. One could look at each
of the over 10 rooms and feel that they
were a part of each story. The children
all had a favorite, which we graphed
when upon returning to school. The
children also drew pictures and wrote
about their favorites. Many of the
classes did a comparative literature
study with the many versions of
Cinderella. If your family was not able
to attend the exhibit, be sure to see it
next year. (Posted 1/8/08)
Run! Run As Fast As You
Can!
The
students in Mrs. Garibaldi and Mrs. Sanchez Zhu, E.S.L.
teacher, collaboratively taught Mrs. Garibaldi’s Kindergarten class a
comparative literature study during the month of December. The students
studied the likes and differences between the many different versions of
The Gingerbread Man. We then read some other variations
on the same theme. We read The Gingerbread Baby, The
Gingerbread Boy, The Gingerbread Cat,
The Musubi Man, and Stop That Pickle.
Stop That Pickle was similar to The Runaway
Rice Cake, which we will be rereading for the Chinese New
Year. There are other “runaway” versions such as The Runaway
Latka and The Runaway Dreydl. These are good books to
read for Hanukkah. The Matzah Man is a good one to read
for Passover.
A lot
of the vocabulary had to be reviewed first when reading a version that took
place in another part of the country. The children looked at the similar
characters, settings and plots. Sequencing was very important. The children
participated in ‘turn and talk’ and contributed to the creation of various
Venn diagrams. The children then graphed their favorite
 stories.
As a class we also went on the internet to discover other existing versions
of the story. To the delight of the girls in the class, we discovered
during our research, that there are several books about a gingerbread girl.
This was an enjoyable, exciting and an enriching experience for the
children!
The
children were delighted by the activity of decorating and eating of the
gingerbread people (limb by limb,of course!). Their most favorite activity
was decorating the Gingerbread Houses with Matthew Burnette’s mom on one
day, and being able to eat a piece of candy from them every day after that.
We are
now going on to an author study of Jan Brett because her book, The
Gingerbread Baby, was a favorite of the children.
(Posted 1/7/08)
Snow People Relay
In Physical education class the students
at Tappan Hill get into the spirit of
the holidays and winter weather by
creating snow people. Their creation is
a team effort. This allows every student
to practice in both fine and gross motor
skills while being creative and having
fun!
Brief description:
Four Students match up in relay lines.
A piece of construction paper
 and a
magic marker
are placed about 15 feet in front of
each line. When the music
starts the first child from each line
runs to the paper and creates the
beginning of the snow person , the head &
face. Then they put the marker down and
run back to tag the next child in
line, who then runs down to create the
second part of the snow person, the body
and arms. This continues until the last
child of each team has a turn. To
display the pride that the children have
in their work, they are also asked to
sign their names. Every picture and
each team wins for their effort! (Posted 12/16/07)
Tappan Hill Goes Green!!
Tappan
Hill School is making a concerted effort to recycle all paper and plastic
goods within the school. Merry Thomas and Alia Yeater, two of the
kindergarten teachers in the building, have volunteered to head the
district-wide clean-up project at the kindergarten level. Plastic bins are
being utilized to collect the recyclables throughout the building. The
entire staff at Tappan Hill is teaching students the importance of going
green. The children will be involved in picking up and proper placement of
recyclables to make it more manageable for the Village to pick up. Parents
and friends of Tappan Hill School please join us in celebrating the
importance of going green!!
(Posted
12/9/2007)
Little
Hawk
Little
Hawk, a member of the Mohawk Nation, came to Tappan Hill to teach ou r
students about some of the cultural traditions of Native Americans. Among
the many things that he taught the children were some dances. He explained
how the Smoke Dance got its name (It was danced only by children … and they
can kick up a lot of dust!) He performed a Challenge Dance in which the
person challenged must pick up a feather with his/her teeth and the ONLY
part of the body touching the floor are the feet! (on the right) That was
very difficult, as a few students found out! He finished the program with
a hoop dance in which he used 18 hoops to dance in and out of. While
dancing he made the hoops into a snake, an eagle and finally Mother Earth!
(Posted
11/28/2007)
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