Each month, and sometimes weekly, our students write essays that are published in The Northwest Current, our school community's local newspaper. Please read the essays below to hear what they have to say about the goings on at Hearst. The topics are many -- student government, fieldtrips, class activities, and more. Enjoy! |
posted Apr 21, 2011 6:40 AM by Hearst Recycle Team
“Hearst Elementary School is going to have a community garden. Every class will be
planting their own seeds. The garden is on the hill. We are planting flowers and vegetables. We put seeds on the dirt. Then we put some water. The Groundbreaking is Friday, April 8th at 2:00. Hearst
will grow veggies to eat. I feel happy about the garden.”
-- Brandon, 2nd grader
“I would like to plant some delicious food in our garden. We should have potatoes,
flowers, tomatoes, corn, apples, and pineapple.”
-- Bryce, 1st grader
“I want trees, lots of leaves, flowers, and lettuce in our garden.”
-- Lyric, 1st grader
“I'd help water the plants, and help plant seeds. I don't know how to plant yet, I just know
how to water. I want fruit in the garden, like peaches, grapes, mangos, plums, and also broccoli, green beans, spinach, lettuce, tomatoes, and flowers, like roses. I think it's a good idea for Hearst to have a garden because we'll make Hearst a better place and make the outdoors smell good.”
-- Zachariah, 3rd grader |
posted Feb 25, 2011 11:43 AM by Hearst Recycle Team
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"As we closed out the month of February the Hearst Kindergarten students presented an African American Inventions Museum that featured inventions by African Americans that have helped to shape the success of our great country. Nicole who played Lydia D. Newman, inventor of the hair brush, said "her invention is important because if you didn't have a hair brush your hair would be crazy". Graham who played Paul E. Williams, inventor of a variation of the helicopter, said "his invention is important because people that are in trouble could not get to the hospital and Barak Obama could not get around either". Amora who played Katherine Johnson, inventor of a tool that helps us to map and track in space, said "her invention is important because we would not know where to go in space or where the moon was". Leo who played George Washington Carver said "he made lots of things out of peanuts and if we didn't have peanut butter we could not have some yummy peanut butter sandwiches". Lillian who played Maxine Snowden, inventor of the rain hat, said " her invention was important because ladies with bouffant hair would have to get it wet when they did not want to and they would not like that." Satchel who played Garrett Morgan, inventor of the Traffic Light said "his invention is important because cars would just crash into each other and lots of people would be hurt". Khalab who also played Garrett Morgan, inventor of the gas mask said "it was important because it helps people like firefighters from breathing in gas, smoke, or other poisons". Sidney who played Madeline Turner, inventor of the Fruit Press, said " it was important because it made juice out of fruit and if we didn't have that we would not be healthy. We had a total of 40 kindergarten presenters that performed for family and schoolmates. When asked why this was important to learn Thomas said "it is important to learn about these inventors because it is good to know what Black people did to help the world make good stuff." |
posted Feb 24, 2011 8:18 AM by Hearst Recycle Team
"Our class has been reading books and learning about a little girl named Ruby Bridges. She integrated an all white school in the south at the age of six years old. Using the book, The Story of Ruby Bridges, by , we have discussed and shared how we might feel to be in a place where we are not wanted.
“I think it would be sad. People should be nice to her”, said Brooke.
“I would feel lonely”, said William.
“I would be scared”, said Sidney.
“I think it would not be fun if there is no one to play with at school”, said Darius.
“I would not want to go back”, said Kendall.
“I would be upset. I think it was mean for people to yell at her because she wanted to go to school”, said Anaya.
We have had great discussions about being fair and giving people equal rights. The class agreed that all people should be treated the same and that everyone should be able to go to any school they want to."
-Kindergarten |
posted Jan 12, 2011 11:24 AM by Hearst Recycle Team
"This year, Hearst Elementary School has started a student counsel. It is made of 24 members from pre-kindergarden through fifth grade. All the students in the school voted for a president, vice president, historian, treasurer from the fourth and fifth grades. There are also two representatives from each class. The student counsel is responsible for creating fun activities and getting things accomplished on behalf of the students.
In fifth grade we are studying about the Civil War. An artist from the Kennedy Center is helping us bring history to life in our class. We have made plays, timelines, and models to learn more about the Civil War. We enjoy it because history is inteteresting and the people inspire us.
Recently, we also had the opportunity to visit Deal Middle School. It is where we will go to school next year. We learned what it is like to be in sixth grade. The school was beatiful and big. We are excited for next year!"
Carolina Bayon
Jilani Sutton
Shiloh Coleman |
posted Dec 6, 2010 6:35 AM by Hearst Recycle Team
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"Hearst Elementary School is having a toy drive. We are giving the toys to the kids who don't have toys. New toys, coloring books, crayons, and books will be donated. The toys are going to the Central Union Mission in downtown DC. The toy drive ends December 3, 2010. It's important to donate because Christmas is a time for giving. Donating makes me feel happy. I am helping kids who wouldn't get toys."
-- Brandon Brockett, 2nd grader
Here are several student responses to the question: Why is it important to help those less fortunate than ourselves?
"I want to give them something for Christmas so they'll be happy, not sad. I want to help the homeless kids, to give them toys and a home. I don't want to let the kids down. Giving makes me happy."
-- Nazareth, 2nd grader
"It's important to give so they can have a better life. It's good to donate food, books, and activities. I'd like to give to a homeless shelter. Giving makes me feel good."
-- Shannon, 5th grader
"We need to help others because they need food and stuff to survive. We have donations before holidays so they can have gifts too. I'd like to donate to kids who don't have parents and help people who have cancer. Giving to others less fortunate makes you feel better about yourself, and it's kind to help others."
-- Sade, 5th grader |
posted Nov 16, 2010 8:22 AM by Hearst Recycle Team
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updated Feb 24, 2011 8:24 AM
]
Ms. Weng's Class, November 2010:
"Ms. Weng and Mr. Wallace’s Pre-K class recently spent several weeks learning about their neighborhoods and community; some of that time focused on community helpers and how they help us. Making text-to-self connections, Pre-K students were asked how they can help others. Some of their responses included: “I can help a friend clean up blocks”, “I can help my mom with the dishes”, “I can help my friends zip their coat” and “I can help you (Ms. Weng) with snack”. Their enthusiasm to help others was never more apparent than it was this past Tuesday. Armed with an understanding that some people “don’t have enough money to buy food [and] if we don’t help them they’ll starve”, a recipe for turkey and cheese sandwiches and a little help from our awesome parent volunteers, 18 four year olds eagerly set out to make sandwiches for Martha’s Table. Their sandwich goal, depending on who you asked, varied widely from 16 sandwiches to 1 million; yet in all the class made over 200 turkey and cheese sandwiches for those in need (and they didn’t even taste them for quality control)! "
Ms. Anderson's Class:
"This week, we have been studying leaves and why they change colors. We have also been observing and analyzing leaves closely. Students went on a leaf hunt to find various types of leaves and brought them back to class to classify and categorize. They shared their observations about the leaves during a small group activity.
“We sorted our leaves by sizes”, said Hoan.
“We looked at the leaves and sorted the ones that have dots and the ones that don’t”, said Erin.
“We have some red ones, some yellow ones and some green ones”, said Warren.
“Some of my leaves are red and orange. They are two colors”, said Darius.
“Our group sorted the leaves by shape. Some are ovals, some have one point and some have three points”, said Kendall.
“Some of ours look like stars”, said Jala.
“We sorted our leaves by color. We have four groups”, said Max
“We put all the ones with holes here and the other ones there”, said Tristan.
“Some leaves are crunchy because they don’t get any water”, said William." |
posted Nov 9, 2010 5:35 PM by Hearst Recycle Team
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"We recently walked to the Newark Street Garden and met our neighborhood friend Peggie Lewis for a tour. We had been studying the growth cycle of a pumpkin and went on a scavenger hunt to find all of the stages within the garden. Here is what our students thought about their experience. "It was pretty good. I liked getting the lambs ear because it was so soft" Satchel; "I liked the walk because it was so pretty and I saw the orange part of the pumpkin" Gillian; " I saw an orange pumpkin, the big green leaves, the vines, and the flowers and the pumpkin seeds were in the pumpkin" Dakota; "I like taking pictures there because it was fun and the lambs ear was a real leaf and it was soft" Thomas; "There was a pumpkin, a vine, a green pumpkin and a bell" Adrian; " I liked when we touched the lambs ear. It was so soft" Lillian; "I saw these twisty green things around a log in the garden and I also saw real orange pumpkins that were carved already" Saranda; "I liked the soft leaf and the orange pumpkin. I want to go again" Dina; "I saw some green plants and a little orange pumpkin" Shoza; "We saw vines and some pumpkins" Amora; "I liked checking off all the things on our list. I found everything. The first thing I found was the dirt" Madison; "When I went to the garden I liked the little bunny ears because they were so soft" Leahno; " I liked ringing the bell because it was making a loud sound and I like that" Nicole; "I liked that we got to bring those soft leaves home. Those tickle my skin a lot. I also saw squashes. It was so much fun to walk there" Adam " I saw many flowers there" Alexa "This is cool. Is my name going to be in the paper for the garden thing? I liked the pumpkins and that soft leaf and walking there. It was fun". Jermaine
Thanks to our friend Peggie Lewis and all who plant at the Newark street garden for giving our kindergarten students a memorable experience."
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posted Nov 3, 2010 10:41 AM by Hearst Recycle Team
"This week we began our poetry unit. We learned that there are many different forms of poetry. We learned to write couplets and quatrains. Couplets are two lines and they often rhyme and have the same number of syllables in both lines. Quatrains are four lines. Sometimes a poem is made up of just one quatrain, but there are also poems that have many quatrains! We discovered that the easiest quatrains to write have an "AABB" pattern. It's like smashing two couplets together! Here are a few poems we wrote to celebrate Chilean miners that were rescued.
Trapped Miners in Chile
Got out the other day
Rescued in a capsule
They're happy in Chile!
By Wynn Morris
But God is around the mine
He is keeping them all fine
By Caleb Bailey
Darkness by Lily Davis
Miners trapped down in a mine
They haven't seen the sunshine"
-- Miss Walker's Second Grade Class -- |
posted Nov 3, 2010 10:39 AM by Hearst Recycle Team
"For the past four weeks we’ve been getting ready for middle school. We are learning new routines and skills to get ready for sixth grade. The work has been getting harder than it has been over the past few years. We have higher expectations and the teachers expects us to help set an example for the younger students. We are learning new strategies and skills to help us understand new concepts. We have lots of goals and we are working very hard to achieve them.
We all have goals. Some have academic goals like getting better at math or reading, while others have goals of personal growth. We have a new positive behavior system in our class where we earn free time, like science experiments. The reward is called our victory lap. It has been a good year so far and we are looking forward to a great rest of the year in fifth grade."
-- Mrs. Gassert's 5th Graders -- |
posted Nov 3, 2010 10:37 AM by Hearst Recycle Team
"It’s a new school year, and our school has really grown! We now have a fifth grade, which makes us a full elementary school. Our school is like a campus, with our old brick building and three temporary buildings. Besides a new fifth grade, we now have a second third grade class. Our new playground is completely finished, and we can play on it all year long. Of course, more classes and classrooms means more students and lots of new friendships being made, in the classroom and on the playground.
We still have many of our “veteran” teachers, but we also have some new ones. Our new fifth grade teacher is Ms.Gassert. In third grade, it’s Ms. Holman. Ms. Anderson is a new kindergarten teacher. We have more instructional aides, a full-time counselor, and a full-time special education coordinator. There’s new staff to help Ms. Walker and Principal Kerlina in the office; and even a new lunch team for better meals every day. Though we’re bigger and better, we still have our small-school feel. WE LOVE HEARST, AND WE’RE LOOKING FORWARD TO A GREAT YEAR!"
-- Written collectively by the students in Mr. Rope’s Third Grade Class -- |
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