Volume 25, Issue 3 • April 2014
In this Issue
Primary News ....................................................2
Intermediate News ............................................3
From the Nurse ..................................................5
Counseling News ...............................................5
Music Notes .......................................................6
Technology News ..............................................7
PRSEF..................................................................7
From the Art Studio ...........................................8
Library News.......................................................9
Published by the Falk School PTO
From the Director
Dear Falk School Families,
I hope everyone had an enjoyable Spring Break
and a relaxing time away from school. I also wish
each a joyous time with family as we move into the
Passover and Easter holiday seasons.
By now, all of you are aware that the new Director
is Dr. Jeff Suzik. Jeff will be coming to Falk from a
Head of School position in the Twin Cities. His first
visit to the school will be April 11-15. On Friday and
Tuesday mornings, he will be in the building. We
will be in the lobby at arrival time both days. This
will give parents and students a chance to greet
him and introduce themselves. As you meet, please
take the opportunity to let him know what you like
about Falk.
On Friday afternoon, he will be meeting with Dean
Lesgold at Posvar Hall. Monday is a non-student
day and Jeff will be meeting individually and in
small groups with Falk faculty and staff members. On Saturday evening, the PTO Executive
Committee will be meeting with Dr. Suzik over
dinner to discuss the various aspects of parent
involvement with the school.
Jeff will return again in May. He will be participating
in the last School Board Meeting of the year on May
22. At that time, the Board will approve the budget
and calendar for the upcoming year. Jeff has been
kept apprised of the discussions to date in these
two areas; however, it is appropriate that he and the
Board jointly make these approvals.
On Friday, May 23, we will host a reception that will
be open to all families. It will begin at 5:00 PM and
go until 7:00 PM. This will give everyone a chance
to interact with the new Director. It will be held in the
cafeteria and is being hosted by Sodexo. We are
hopeful that all of you will be able to welcome Jeff
into the Falk community.
I am proud of what we have accomplished together.
I am confident that Jeff Suzik is the perfect person
to lead the school to even greater heights. I wish
you, and he, the greatest success.
We want our
children...
...to have a
deepening
relationship
with something
that arises
out of their
own personal
interests.
Welcome
Dr. Suzik!
Wendell
Primary News
Is it Spring yet? The Primary students and teachers are looking forward to
warm weather so that we can get outside!
Kindergarten is always having a great time! We really enjoyed visiting the
Pittsburgh International Exhibit at the Carnegie Museum in connection with
our Art studies with Dr. Armstrong. In addition to that, we were able to go to
the Children’s Museum to visit the Make-Shop and build our own creations
using motors. We have continued this exploration during our Technology
classes with Mr. Mangan. Room 25 has started practicing for their class play,
which will take place in May. The students are very excited to have their time
on stage as they have truly enjoyed seeing the older students perform.
In first grade, Room 20 kept the winter blues away by staying busy, busy,
busy! We collaborated with Ms. Capezzuti and Dr. Conover to create
Venetian-style Carnivale masks and to dance a pavane for our annual Mardi
Gras celebration. We also worked with Dr. Conover to prepare for and perform
Macbeth. Our performance was quite a success! During the Winter Olympics,
Room 20 was “Olympics-streaming central” as we watched live coverage of
women’s and men’s ice hockey, women’s figure skating, and other events
as well. We played outside in the snow whenever we could, too! Now that
winter is over, we are definitely excited for spring! Hooray! Room 21 continues
to explore all kinds of interesting topics. Our philosophy focus has shifted to
ethics. Students are debating different moral problems through the lens of
many influential thinkers. The recent science unit we completed on animals
presented a unique opportunity to collaborate with the library. Interest in
Greek mythology took off in our classroom and we
will be using some of the stories we have learned to
create a play. Ms. Fox has been a great addition to our
classroom, and the students enjoy her lessons.
The second grade classrooms just completed a
science unit where students explored the concepts
of weight and mass with marbles and ramps. The
students made predictions and then collected data
on the outcomes. This data was then used at the end
of the unit to help students make decisions about the
approach, materials and strategies to use to solve a
specific problem. During this unit, the students had
an opportunity to take what they were learning during
Science and use that information to create animations
of marble rolls during Technology. Additionally, both
second grade classrooms have begun a multi-culture
unit and will culminate this unit with a research project.
Contact Information
2013-14 Falk PTO Officers:
Director
Wendell McConnaha
412-624-8022
Secretary
Jina Kaufman
412-422-5920
President
Kym Jordan Simmons
412-513-9833
Treasurer
Michael Steich
412-521-1281
Vice President
Martica Hall
412-309-2940
www.falkschool.pitt.edu
2
Whacky
Monday!
Intermediate News
FIFTH GRADE
Book Report
During reading class fifth graders were getting
ready to do a Book Report. We did this by reading
a book within the range of 130-190 pages. We read
the book we chose, and we wrote in our reading
notebook about what we should have in it. For the
next two weeks we were making all the parts that
we needed for the book report!
- by Ana, Grade 5
fence on the lower half. What do you see? A
space craft made of wood, clay pots and cattail
fluff? Close. Actually it’s the room 119 and 121
bug hotel!
Cedar Point
Fundraising
Thanks!
Thank you to all
families who have
hired kids from the
class of 2014! It is
greatly appreciated.
We look forward to
the trip at the end of
May!
The bug hotel is a way to help wandering bugs
reproduce without going into people’s homes.
The bug hotel is not finished yet, but when it is it
will be awesome!
- by Josephine, Grade 4
It’s Book Report Time!
Explorers
In 5th grade classrooms our social studies unit
was the Explorers. First we looked at the Vikings,
then at Marco Polo, and last we each got our own
explorer to study. The explorers were from Spain,
Portugal, France and England. Then we wrote a
report or made a poster. We also have a study
guide and we are getting ready to take a test soon.
Wish us luck!
- by Olivia, Grade 5
Other News from
5th Grade:
The Fifth Grade
Puppet/Music
Performance was
a great success!
Congratulations to
our students on a
job well done! The
music was wonderful, the puppetry
was outstanding,
and we have never
seen puppets with
more personality!
The 5th graders are finishing making their Rube
Goldberg machines. We had a lot of fun with the
Simple Machine Unit, and enjoyed making the
contraptions, but it was a challenge! We learned
how to build and how to deal with the frustration of
something not working, and we got so much better
at problem solving! It was a lot of hard work and
we are very proud of our machines!
Congratulations to 5th grader Natalie Floreancig
from room 122. Natalie was selected as one of
the 75 runners-up in the Storyworks Magazine
(Scholastic) “Create a Character” Contest. Her
entry was handpicked from over 4,000 entries.
That is a major accomplishment! Hip hip hooray
for Natalie!
FOURTH GRADE
What Room 119 is doing in SHERP
Go on to the playground and look through the
In Language Arts we are working on our first
book reports! In our book reports we have to
write 7 things: Connection, Vocabulary, Critic’s
View, Letter to the Author and Blurbs. The
report also has to have a Cover and a Table of
Contents. Now I will quickly walk you through
them. First there is the connection. We have to
write 3 paragraphs about something in the book
that we connect to. Then there is the cover.
That’s simple, because you just have to write the
name of the book and draw a picture. Next the
blurbs, they are simply saying good things about
the book. Next is the critic’s view and the letter
to the author. In the critics view we write about
what we liked or disliked about the book, and we
make recommendations. The letter to the author
is just basically a letter that says we liked the
book, and we write questions for them. The table
of contents is simply the chapters and what page
they are on. Thank you for reading!
- by Emma, Grade 4
n
Look what we did on
March 21!
On March 21 a special
al
guest came in. She
taught us about
Amphibians and
Reptiles. Her name
was Ms. Cloves
and she works for
Fern Hollow Nature
Center. She brought
in some frogs,
salamanders and snakes.
kes We even got
to touch some of the snakes!
- by Hannah, Grade 4
In Science
In Science, we are doing Robotics. We are thinking about our final projects and are about to give
our presentations, with our robots. Our robot’s
name is Tobor!
- by Ganesh, Grade 4
3
Volume 25, Issue 3
Intermediate News, continued
THIRD GRADE
In Language Arts
In Social Studies
In Language Arts we are doing something called
Reading and Writing Workshop. It’s when you pick
a book to read and you get writing assignments.
- by Anya, Grade 3
In Social Studies we are learning about chocolate
and where it comes from. My group is writing about
how they cut down most of the forest so they can
get more chocolate beans.
- by Julia, Grade 3
In Social Studies our unit is Fair Trade. My group is
a geography group. We are studying the Dominican
Republic, Belize, Bolivia, Peru, Nicaragua, Costa
Rica, Haiti and Ecuador. There are many groups,
but that’s mine. When every group is done, we will
make a “museum”. What I mean is every group
will put their papers on a poster and everybody will
share.
- by Thomas, Grade 3
In Science
We are learning about the Solar System in science.
I really like learning about the planets and the Solar
System, it’s really fun!
- by Emma, Grade 3
In Science we are learning about the solar system.
We learned that the sun is explosive and we
learned that four Moons can fit into the Earth!
- by Deniz, Grade 3
In Art
In Art we just finished our Animal Bedrooms.
You are wondering what an animal bedroom is?
Well…You pick an animal and make a bed that
looks like that animal, then you paint the walls
and floor like the habitat that your animal lives in.
Then you make furniture for it, but the furniture has
to either look like nature or have something from
nature on it.
Next we made dolls called pupay malay. They
have clay hands, legs and a head, but it has a
cloth body. If you want an example for a bedroom
here is one; someone made a Triton Tree Frog for
her bed and she made a whole history for it! Even
though she didn’t have a lot of furniture, she had a
whole history! I thought that was super cool! I also
thought this unit was super cool!
- by Jay, Grade 3
Fifth Grade
Puppet/Music
Performance!
4
From the Nurse
It is with very mixed emotions that I write this article for FalkTalk.
This school year has been my 20th year as the school nurse at Falk School. In June, my husband,
Joe, and I will be relocating to Florida.
Joe’s company has an office in Orlando, and Joe intends to work a few more years before retiring.
Since Falk School does not have a branch in Florida, my only immediate plans are to set up a household, meet my new neighbors, and make some friends. I have already learned of many volunteer
opportunities and I look forward to time for crafts and reading. Or maybe I’ll find a great laboratory
school looking for a school nurse!
I don’t know what this new time of my life will bring, but I do know that I will miss my students, coworkers, and so many things about Falk School. Thank you for entrusting your children to my care.
They have been my greatest teachers! I will always treasure these years of being a part of the Falk
School community, getting to know and work with you and your children. Thank you for touching my
life and for 20 years of smiles!
Susan Sholtis RN
School Nurse
Counseling News
will inevitably follow them throughout life in various
incarnations. Therefore, we aim to develop the
means by which they might both recognize and
seek out aspects of confidence, support, and independence in each of these associative areas. It is
our goal that with a continually developing sense
of self, students will be able to make more personally informed and motivated decisions. We hope
to compliment this process with an informational
evening regarding area high schools in early May,
and we seek to continue this process of personal
readiness throughout the eighth grade year.
The focus for an eighth grade student at Falk is
two-fold regarding his or her eventual transition into
high school. In one sense, it is a consideration of
new beginnings, but it is also the conclusion of a
formative chapter of life. It is with emphasis on the
latter, that we have begun to work with the seventh
grade students on developing a personal plan for
their eighth grade year. This plan focuses on the
students’ existing strengths and pertinent goals that
they have for their last year at Falk. The students
presently consider their ideal destination and work
on how that identity may be realized personally,
socially, and academically. These three categories
-Falk Counseling Dept.
Recommended Literary Counseling Resources
High School
Transition
Middle School
Girls
Middle School
Boys
-Where Should I Sit at Lunch?: The Ultimate 24/7 Guide
to Surviving the High School Years
by Harriet Mosatche
-High School, The Real Deal: From GPA's to Graduation
by Juliana Farrell
-The Body Project
-Raising Cain
by Joan Jacobs Brumberg
by Dan Kindlon
-One by Kathryn Otoshi
Primary/Inter
mediate
-I Just Don't Like the Sound of No!
by Julia Cook
-Too Perfect
All Ages
by Trudy Ludwig
-Real Kids Come in All Sizes
by Kathy Kater
5
Volume 25, Issue 3
Music Notes
The M
Music and Performing Arts Department
has thoroughly
enjoyed many collaborative
t
performances
throughout the semester.
perfo
Dr. C
Conover and Ms. Sassani would like
to tthank the wonderful Falk Community
for their never ending support during the
following
successful events.
fo
February
16 Middle School Chorus
F
– “Pink the Pete”
The Middle School Chorus enjoyed
singing the National Anthem for the
annual “Pink the Pete” fundraiser sponannua
Basketball team. We were so
sored by the Pitt Women’s
Wo
center court and representing our school
proud of our singers standing cen
for this important event.
February 28 Macbeth
February came to a close with Room 20’s wonderful production of Macbeth.
Shakespeare himself would have been proud of these first graders’ presentation of his work! Congratulations to Ms. Wright & Dr. Conover and all of their
students for a very touching and well-done performance.
March 2nd Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra Extravaganza
We truly appreciate our continued collaboration with the Pittsburgh Symphony
Orchestra and parent Monique Mead’s Mini Maestros and Assembly Programs
brought to Falk. Although this year’s snowstorm prevented many from attending
the performance of the renowned violinist Joshua Bell, those who were able
to make it were thrilled! A special thanks goes out to the Falk PTO for their
support on this event.
March 4th Sixth Grade Play
A new Falk tradition began on March 4th when the 6th grade students
presented “Into the Heart Woods”, an original series of skits cleverly woven
together, combining fairy tale and Disney characters with the attributes of
our Heartwood curriculum. Every student was involved in writing their own
scene, creating their own sets, props and costumes, and acting in their own
scene. The students performed three school assemblies and one evening
performance. Thanks to Mr. Doyle, Dr. Conover, Ms. Baker, Ms Capezzuti, Mr.
Mangan and the Middle School and Humanities teams for their help with this
production. This was truly a TEAM effort. Great job everyone!!
March 19th Fifth Grade Puppet & Music Performance
Ms. Capezzuti and Ms. Sassani certainly enjoyed collaborating in their 3rd
annual 5th Grade Puppet/Music Performance. This year Ms. Ridge’s and Ms.
Dillaman’s classes enjoyed bringing the two folk tales “The Bremen Town
Musicians” and “How Music Came to the World” using handmade marionettes.
Way to go 5th Grade!
Upcoming Events
April 9 Middle School Spring Concert featuring the MS Jazz Band,
MS Chorus, & MS Concert Band
May 12 – 15 Middle School Musical – “The Little Mermaid”
May 22 Intermediate Spring Concert featuring the Intermediate Band
and Intermediate Chorus
May 29 Third Grade Performance – “From Earth to Sky”
6
Technology News
Kindergarten
After an amazing field trip to the Make-Shop at the Children’s Museum, the
kindergarteners have been building their own Shop-Bots! The students have
had to apply what they have previously learned about electricity and circuitry
to use materials such as batteries, wires and motors to build these wonderful
bots!
Later this spring the students will have an opportunity to share what they
have built with the school! Stay tuned for more information regarding this
presentation.
PRSEF
The Pittsburgh Regional Science and
Engineering Fair (PRSEF) celebrated its 75th
year of open competition of research projects
in the fields of science, mathematics and
engineering on March 28 (competition day)
and March 29 (awards ceremony) at Heinz
Field. This competition was open to students
in grades 6-12 from 23 counties in Western
Pennsylvania, three counties in West Virginia
and Garrett County in Maryland.
We are proud to honor the following middle
school students on their exemplary work in
the 2014 Pittsburgh Regional Science and
Engineering Fair held on March 28th at Heinz
Field. We had eleven (11) students that placed
in categories listed below. Falk Laboratory
School also received a trophy cup for the
most wins in the Junior Division. Many of our
students also received Sponsor Awards (monetary awards, gift cards, certificates). A huge
round of applause for all who participated.
Falk’s Science Fair was held in January and
32 of our students advanced to the next level.
6th grade
1st place – Life Science – Leo Dombrovski
6th Grade
In 6th grade Technology, we have begun a unit on rocketry and flight. The
goal of this unit is to bring the “maker culture” to the 6th grade curriculum by
thinking about how design affects the flight pattern of a rocket. Each week
the students have come to class faced with a new design challenge. During
week one, the students were asked to use recycled materials to create three
air-powered rockets. After creating the rockets the students made observations
about the flight pattern and how this was affected by the design of the rocket.
As we continue with this unit the students will experiment with adding simple
circuits into their rocket design.
2nd place – Life Science – Haley Nichols
3rd place – Life Science – Sina Shaikh
3rd place – Life Science – Laura Brodkey
3rd place – Life Science – Diederik Schlingemann
3rd place – Physical Science – Simone Rothstein
3rd place – Consumer Science – Cameron Mackey
3rd place – Consumer Science – Daevan Mangalmurti
7th grade
1st place – Physics – Nadine Oury
Honorable Mention – Physics – Gabe Batista
Honorable Mention – Physics – Isaac Staresinic
Sponsor Awards
Aniya Akhtar – Collegiate Award in Excellence
Simone Rothstein – Collegiate Award in Excellence
Daevan Mangalmurti – PPG Monetary Award
Cameron Mackey – PPG Monetary Award
Haley Nichols – International Systems of Unit Award
Nadine Oury – American Statistical Association
7
Volume 25, Issue 3
From the Art Studio
In celebration of Dr. Seuss’s birthday, both kindergarten classes came dressed in their whacki-est
outfits and hairstyles for “Whacky Monday.” This
was the perfect time to draw portraits of each
other in their whacky attire—to which they added
watercolor and whacky collage materials. Currently,
following their science unit on shadows, the kindergarten has been engaged in light and shadow
explorations during their weekly ‘project times.’
Room 27 is making shadow puppets and jumping
jacks and Room 25 is exploring light and shadow in
their dramatic play. We will soon return to building
a “Mud Kitchen” in the outdoor terrace area. Please
drop off any old and unwanted pots and pans that
would be great for making mudpies or delicious
rose petal soup. We could use the following: old
frying pans (not heavy ones), saucepans, spatulas,
baking sheets, pie and cake pans, large mixing
spoons, colanders, measuring cups and spoons,
mixing bowls, cupcake tins, etc. Also, if you would
like to help build or design our outdoor kitchen
area, please let Dr. Armstrong know. Check out
‘mud kitchens’ on Pinterest.
In addition to
learning about
Issa’s community
work in Cameroon,
Currently, second graders are designing treehouses for their clay squirrel families—a Falk
tradition that has existed since 1996! And both first
grade classes have finished modeling their clay
dinosaur families. They are extremely proud that
they met “the great balance challenge” and on their
own discovered multiple approaches to creating
stable 3-D dinosaurs—no easy feat. On Pajama
Day, the first graders in Room 21 constructed in
clay a bedtime self-portrait, complete with PJs and
stuffed toys. Soon these adorable sculptures will be
on display in the front hallway, so check them out.
Recently the
first graders
in Room 20
brought home
their clay
“sledding in
the snow” selfportraits. The
inspiration for
these was, of
course, a very,
very, very long,
cold winter.
the third grade
enjoyed experimenting with arm, hand
and face painting
inspired by this
remarkable artist.
Third graders
at Falk School
welcomed
artist and activist Issa Nyaphaga, who presented
a body painting workshop and talked about his
village in Africa. Issa is originally from Cameroon
and has been a political cartoonist, internationally
renowned artist, art therapist for child soldiers, and
global community organizer. His speeches have
included a remarkable talk as a refugee for the
French Parliament. In addition to learning about
8
Issa’s community work in Cameroon, the third grade
enjoyed experimenting with arm, hand and face
painting inspired by this remarkable artist. Third
graders will soon be taking home their wild animal
bedrooms, so be on the lookout for these marvelous
masterpieces.
Fourth graders couldn’t be happier designing their
fairy homes with natural materials—another Falk tradition. A special thank you to everyone who dropped
off natural materials for us to use. Ms Sukenik (room
119) and Dr. Armstrong will soon collaborate on a
project which will invite the fourth grade students
to design a “loose parts” play space—right next to
the established digging area on the playground.
The architect Simon Nicholson, who originated the
theory of loose parts play, posited that this type of
play involved materials that could be moved around,
disassembled and reassembled, offering infinite
opportunities for creative engagement and brain
stimulation. We hope the space will be inviting and
available to the youngest children in our school as
well. The loose parts that the children gather will
primarily be natural materials.
Fifth graders just finished a Visual Art and Music
collaboration that brought a Mexican and a German
folk tale to life, using marionettes and a live musical score. Everyone was impressed with their
keen focus on their beautiful little puppets that
truly brought the stories to life. Bravo Fifth Grade!
Ms. Dillaman’s class is beginning to work on their
robotic city an Art and Technology collaboration that
challenges them to build simple machines that will
bring their sculptures to life. Mrs. Ridge’s class is
beginning a collaboration with first graders in Mrs.
Wright’s class that will involve painting, clay and
creative writing, all inspired by “Bed #1” by American
artist Louise Bourgeois.
Sixth graders are beginning their last project of the
year: Giant Puppetmaking! Each student is designing an imaginary character that will be dancing
around the school before you know it. Look for a
parade this spring. Also, drop by the library to see
the action sculptures completed by the sixth graders.
Parents are welcome to take their child’s sculpture
home any time in the month of May. Simply drop by
the library and take it with you.
Seventh and eighth graders are currently making
teapots in the art studio. This Falk tradition will end
with a tea party in each class sometime in May. The
students’ creative designs include an ice cream
sundae teapot, a mermaid teapot and even a sea
monkey teapot! Look for these to be displayed at the
end of the year.
Finally, the mural we created with visiting artist Laura
Jean McLaughlin is done and ready to be installed.
Our fingers are crossed that Pitt’s carpenters will get
it up as soon as possible so we can plan an “unveiling” before the end of the school year.
Library News
fiction books on a particular topic. In
addition, the computer can provide audio
delivery of the text for emerging readers.
(One happy byproduct is that Bookflix
has now become a popular activity in
afterschool.) Mr. Nardini and Ms. Fox
were very pleased: the students learned
much of the same material, but it had
more meaning for them. To further build
on student-centeredness of the project,
Mr. Nardini and Ms. Fox worked the art
and technology teachers to develop
more authentic and diverse ways for
students to present what they had
learned, such as dioramas and video
presentations.
SPRING READING INITIATIVE:
GET READING @ YOUR LIBRARY
April & May
Special literacy events are planned in April
and May to celebrate “School Library Month.”
These include the Library Book Fair, Book
Badges, Reading Chain, and the All School
Read-In:
• Book Badges: Students, parents, teachers,
interns, staff, and family members are encouraged to fill out a Book Badge for each book
they read or that is read to them. Envelopes
for collecting Book Badges are in the K-5
homerooms as well as other locations around
the school. Additional Badges are available in
the library and in other locations in the school.
Note: unpaged books usually have 32 pages.
• Page Tally: We will keep track of the
cumulative total pages that the Falk School community has
read and display the total each day in the library and outside the
school office.
• Book Badge Display: The Book Badges from above will be
attached and hung about the library. During the Read-In (see
below), the Display will be moved to the gym when the community’s total page count will be announced.
• Read-In: A school wide Silent Sustained Read-In will be held
Wednesday, May 28 (tentative date) at 9:30 am in the school gym.
The total number of books read and the total number of pages
read will be announced at the Read-In. The entire Falk School
Community is invited to join in Sustained Silent Reading for twenty
minutes. Parents are encouraged to attend. Details will follow.
We will appreciate your support of these activities. Information
is available on the Library Web Site at http://www.falkschool.pitt.
edu/library-pages/spring-reading-initiative-april-may. The Reading
Initiative activities begin April 1 and continue through May.
Collaborative
Work
In February, we
worked with Mr.
Nardini and Ms. Fox
to develop an inquirybased research project
on animals. Using
iPads and the microphone feature of the
Notes application, students worked in small groups to generate questions about each
other’s animals. The teachers then helped students select two or
three questions that they would try to answer. We demonstrated
how to use the Table of Contents and the Index to locate information in a particular book. We also introduced Bookflix, a database
on the POWER library geared to K-3, which pairs non-fiction and
Research Begins @ Your
Library
Middle Level research projects are underway. The library
provides support for these projects via print and online resources;
teachers bring their students to the library to have ready access
to these resources. The online databases are also accessible
from home computers. Students will need a username and/
or password. Links to the databases are found on the library
website’s Online Resources page. All the passwords for
these databases are found in the online document “Passport
to Passwords.” This pdf document is password protected; the
password is “falk.”
• The Encyclopedia Britannica: Online school edition
• Grolier Online
• Gale Student Resource Center
• Gale Virtual Reference Library
• Maps101.com
• NoodleTools
• POWER Library (This is accessed
through the Carnegie Library website.
The password is your library card
barcode number.)
Book Clubs
The Carnegie Library hosts an annual Battle of the Books, a
team trivia contest based on books. Teens form teams of no more
than four or five members, read the selected books and prepare
to compete in the Battle. This year, five 6th graders took it upon
themselves to form a group – The Dastardly Armadillos. All on
their own, this group of intrepid boys worked together to divide
responsibilities for reading the ten books and knowing them well
enough to answer trivia questions. They were going up against
teams from around Pittsburgh who had professional coaches
(librarians) and no doubt plenty of milk and cookies.
continued on page 10
9
Volume 25, Issue 3
Library News, continued
Congratulations to Sam Bisno, Ben Grossman,
Daevan Mangalmurti, Sina Shaikh and Makoto
Tomokiyo for their initiative and for inspiring us in
the library to explore how we might more formally
engage in these types of activities.
Benoni Outerbridge, Fact Tracker: Titanic by Will
Osborne and Mary Pope Osborne, Abe Lincoln and
the Muddy Pig by Stephen Krensky, Hop on Pop by
Dr. Seuss, and The Log of Christopher Columbus
by Robert H. Fuson
The Intermediate Book Club read Mr. and Mrs.
Bunny – Detectives Extraordinaire! by Mrs. Bunny,
translated from Rabbit my Polly Hovath. This is
a whimsical tale about two bunnies who have
decided to take up detective work. Their first case:
help young Madeline discover who kidnapped
her parents. Students enjoyed discussing the
kooky antics and misadventures of the different
characters.
David Ross, Shadow of the Red Moon by Walter
Dean Myers, The Birthday Room by Kevin Henkes,
The Story of Doctor Dolittle by Hugh Lofting, The
Bottle Imp by Robert Louis Stevenson, Odin’s
Family: Myths of the Vikings retold by Neil Philip,
and The Fool of the World and the Flying Ship by
Christopher Denise
Birthday/Gift Book Program
Nicholas Rosenbloom, The Surprise Attack of
Jabba the Puppet by Tom Angleberger
The library and the PTO coordinate the program as
a means of expanding the library collection while
commemorating special events and special persons: birthdays, holidays, grandparents, teachers,
preservice teachers, and sometimes even pets! An
appropriate bookplate is placed in each book. All
Falk students, teachers, preservice teachers, and
staff benefit from the continuous updating of the
collection.
At the end of October families received in the mail
a letter inviting them to participate, a donation form,
and a book list. Students and adults can also come
to the library to browse books and complete an
order form. Donations can be made at any time.
Keep in mind the dollar amount for each book is a
suggested donation. This information is also available on the library website at http://www.falkschool.
pitt.edu/library-pages/about/Gift-book-program.
Natasha Girel and Sarah Delano coordinate
this program with Ms. Williams. If you have any
questions about the Gift Book Program, contact Ms.
Williams at 412-624-8516 or lwilliam@pitt.edu.
Library Gifts
The following people donated books since
mid-December:
Jackson Juzang, More Gross Jokes by the editors
of Tangerine Press
Josephine Reiter, Heidi by Johanna Spyri
Lucia Lazarra-Goodrich, 35 paperback books,
December 2013, A Dandelion Wish, From the Mist,
and The Space Between by Kiki Thorpe, Star Wars:
Jedi Academy by Jeff Brown, and The Surprise
Attack of Jabba the Puppet by Tom Angleberger,
January 2014; Princess Label Maker to the Rescue
by Tom Angleberger
10
Elias Vila-Kubiak, The Mark of Athena (audiobook) and The House of Hades (audiobook) by
Rick Riordan in honor of his birthday, March 17,
2014
Natalie Floreancig, Radiance by Alyson Noel,
Hide and Seek by Kate Messner, and Alice’s
Adventures in Wonderland and Through the
Looking Glass by Lewis Carroll in honor of her
birthday, January 23. 2014
Daniel Calero, The Medusa Plot By Gordon
Korman
Teadora and Berach Gildengers, Wild Born by
Brandon Mull in honor of Mr. Outerbridge and Ms.
Williams
Camille Brenner, The Velveteen Rabbit by
Margery Williams, donated by her grandma and
grandpa in honor of her birthday, February 8, 2014
PYRCA
This is the second year Falk participated in the
Pennsylvania Young Readers’ Choice Awards
(PYRCA), and we are pleased that so many
students worked toward being able to vote. In order
to vote in any category (K-3, 3-6, 6-8) a student
needs to have read or heard at least three titles
from that category. Several teachers chose PYRCA
books to read aloud to the classrooms, and we
used our read aloud time during primary library
classes to make sure all of the primary students
were eligible to vote! Falk students voted on
their favorites during the last week of March. Falk
winners and statewide
winners will be announced
later this spring, and the
awards presented during
the PSLA conference in
early May.
Look for the display in the
library that shows how
many Falk votes each
book received.
Library News, continued
THE HEARTWOOD PROGRAM
The Heartwood Program is a literature-based
ethics curriculum for children. The program uses
illustrated books from representative cultures
around the world to help children understand
seven attributes: courage, loyalty, justice,
respect, hope, honesty, and love. The stories
are primarily folklore, legends and hero tales.
The books are read aloud in class and then
discussed. The different attributes are featured
according to a schedule throughout the school
year. Parents are encouraged to read the books
aloud with their children. Many of the books are
available at the public library and the Falk School
Library. See the Heartwood Institute website http://www.heartwoodethics.org/.
Honesty is the attribute for April.
Main Books:
The Empty Pot by Demi
Osa’s Pride by A. Grifalconi
Our King Has Horns! by R. Pevear
Roses Sing on New Snow by P. Yee
The King’s Fountain by L. Alexander
Gold Coin by A. F. Ada
The Talking Eggs by R. San Souci
Taro and the Tofu by M. Matsun
The Treasure by U. Shulevlitz
The Truthful Harp by L. Alexander
The Winter Wife by A.E. Crompton
Love is the attribute for May.
Main Books:
The Rag Coat by L. Mills
The Seeing Stick by J. Yolen
Honey, I Love by E. Greenfield
Magical Hands by M. Barker
Mufaro’s Beautiful Daughters by J. Steptoe
Annie and the Old One by M. Miles
Supplementary Books:
Blackberries in the Dark by M. Jukes
Grandma Didn’t Wave Back by R. Blue
The Hundred Penny Box by S. B. Mathis
The Keeping Quilt by P. Polacco
The Legend of Scarface by R. San Souci
Supplementary Books:
Love You Forever by R. Munsch
The Dragon’s Robe by D. Lattimore
My Mother is the Most Beautiful Woman in the
World by R. Rehyer
A Pair of Red Clogs by M. Matsuma
A Penny’s Worth of Character by J. Stuart
Sam, Bangs and Moonshine by E. Ness
Striding Slippers by M. Ginsburg
Summer Wheels by E. Bunting
Nana Upstairs and Nana Downstairs by T. DePaola
Now One Foot, Now the Other by T. DePaola
Saying Good-bye to Grandma by R.R. Thomas
The Wednesday Surprise by E. Bunting
11
Volume 25, Issue 3
Falk Laboratory School
University of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh PA 15216
Published by the Falk School PTO
Editors
Anne Brownlee
annebrownlee@gmail.com
Deborah Walker
dlwalker23@yahoo.com
Designer
Patricia Tsagaris
pinkhaus.design@verizon.net
Please send us your contributions
for future editions of FalkTalk.
A Note From The PTO
A Nominating Committee has been formed to identify parents who are interested in participating in the Falk
Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) next year in the capacity of officers and/or committee members. This is a
great way to become involved in the decisions that are made by the Falk PTO. Interested parents should contact
a member of the Nominating Committee:
Aparna Brown - aparnabrown@gmail.com
Tica Hall - ticahall@gmail.com
Kym Simmons - kymsimm@gmail.com
Deborah Walker - dlwalker23@yahoo.com
Greg Wittig - gjwittig@pitt.edu