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Announcements:
Ms. Kelly
Our students soared through the month of April traveling from continent to continent and exploring and researching Natural Wonders of the World! In the articles below you can read about the wonderful experiences our students had this month in their classrooms and through their preparations for our annual International Festival. We are very thankful for our parents and family members who visited our classrooms to share their cultural experiences and travels with our students. Through these visits students learned about the Philippines, Ireland, Iceland, Greece, India, Guyana, Puerto Rico, Hungary and more! We had a wonderful time at our International Festival this year! It was a great night with our students and families. You can read more about this event below in our EVENTS section of the newsletter. We are treasuring the last few weeks of school we have left with your wonderful children! Zoo Field Trip I Friday May 23rd  Join us for our last field trip of this school year as we head to the Akron Zoo. Our students will attend a "behind the scenes" class. In this 45 minute class students learn more about the different species and get to see and even touch the animals up close! We will also enjoy a packed lunch together in the park and explore all of the animals at the Zoo! We are looking forward to spend this time together and are thankful for all of our parents willing to drive and volunteer.
Smarter Heroes 
We just launched our final project of this school year, Good Samaritans Food Drive! Check out the last section of this newsletter to learn more details and to see what our Smarter Heroes are up to this month!
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Ms. Brandy's Corner:
 Curiosity guided our work during the month of April in the elementary classroom. As mentioned in last month's newsletter, our first through third graders selected Natural Wonders of the World for their International Festival research and presentations. Ryan read about the Amazon Rainforest; Nick discovered the beauty of the Grand Canyon; Aleksandar stuck to his Serbian heritage and researched the Djavolja Varos; Allie and Annika plunged into Victoria Falls; Quinn and Zach bundled up to learn about the Aurora Australis, or Southern Lights; Madelyn and Mason revealed the majesty of Mount Everest; and Kassie and Skylar swam through the beautiful Great Barrier Reef.  This was quite an extensive project for our students. After selecting their Natural Wonder, they chose topics for their research reports. I provided them with a list of 12 from which to choose, and they narrowed it down to eight that were of interest. After selecting their Wonder and creating an outline, students then called the local library to request books about their Wonder and the topics they wanted to include in their research report. I was impressed with their etiquette on the phone. Even the librarian complimented your children's manners. Students picked up their library books and began reading. They were so interested to learn about these great places. Everyone asked if we could take a field trip to their Wonder. Wouldn't that be awesome!
The reports were very impressive, full of detail and well written. The next step was to take their new knowledge and write a creative skit to be preformed at the International Festival. Watching their minds race through the possibilities and sharing their ideas was inspiring. Each partnership came up with a different idea and I was so happy with how they turned out. I hope you were able to see the Festival or at least watch the DVD. One of our wonderful parents has been able to get us 12 microscopes, 6 compound and 6 dissecting. Students were given individual lessons on how to operate the two types of microscopes. Continuing to follow the students' curiosity for nature we explored several natural items under the microscopes. We even looked at our own skin as a cut, then each day as it healed. One creative student came up with the idea to examine a booger. It was quite a hit! We were also amazed at the incredible veins on various kinds of leaves. Students also brought in items from home to examine. 
Our classic reading adventures this month have been with the fun-loving, energetic Anne of Green Gables. This story has inspired us to get up and act! As we read, if there is an unfamiliar word, our Dictionary Helpers look up the definition and our Actors act out the word as it is used in the story for clarification. These activities have become a joy for us all to watch. A personal favorite, I have enjoyed reading this book with your children. Several of them have finished the book well before the entire class. We will be continuing to read this story into the month of May. 
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Enrichment Programs:
Music Class
by Faith Weihe
 The students had a lot of fun and learned many things in music class during the month of April. Every music class we sing hello either in our high and low voice, or in our soft and loud voices to Ms. Lisa's puppet friends. During the rest of class Ms. Lisa teaches the students about topics such as different notes (whole, half, quarter, and eighth). The students are shown pictures of the notes and have to determine which notes are which and how the notes look different. To practice half notes, the students got to use rhythm sticks and tap them to the beat of "When the Saints Go Marching In" and marched around the room. Some of the other instruments the students were exposed to are castanets, tambourines, egg shakers and bells.
One activity that the students thoroughly enjoyed was singing "The Wheels on the Bus." The students sang the traditional verses, such as the wipers on the bus, the driver on the bus, and the people on the bus. After this, the group was given the opportunity to make up their own verses. We had everything on the bus from Santa, cows, and frogs to elephants and chickens! This was such a great month for music that the students can't wait to see what Ms. Lisa has in store for them in May!
Science Class
by Ashley Ely
Our first experiment this month really slimy; but fun. The Edible Slime experiment was a real hit with the students. First, they measured 2 cups of room temp water into a microwave safe bowl. Add two teaspoons of fiber power and add 2-4 drops of food coloring to your bowl and stir. Place bowl into a microwave, cook on high 2-4 min or until brought to a boil. Then, take the bowl out of the microwave and let it sit to cool. We then asked the children for their hypothesis. Lucy said, "it will turn to a solid'' and Ian said, "It will explode".
We found after heating the liquid it turned into a slime. When it completely cools ENJOY; the mixture is safe to eat. Why did this happen? The fiber powder contains an active ingredient called Psyllium hydrophilic Mucilloid. When powder and water are heated, they will form a consistency that is ooey-gooey and well.... slimy. The best part though, is that it's completely edible!
"Metal in our Cereal" was our next experiment. First you will need a bowl of cereal such as Corn Flakes. Then crush up your cereal into smaller pieces, almost into a powder. Then, slowly mix hot water into cereal so that all the cereal is covered and stir till cereal is almost dissolved. After that, take the mixture and pour into a freezer bag slowly and seal bag. Lay the bag on a flat surface. Then, take a strong magnet and slide it across the bag.
We then asked the children what there hypothesis will be? Anelise said, " it will melt," and Annelise said," I think it will disappear."
Our conclusion was that the magnet pulled actual chunks of iron to the surface of the cereal. Meaning every time we eat cereal containing iron you are actually eating and swallowing small chucks of iron; a type of metal.
Art Class
by Michele Hayden
The month of April was a lot of fun in Art class. We learned some new ways to create works of Art. Starting with Post Impressionist painter, Georges Seurat, students learned about pointillism. We looked at "Sunday Afternoon on the Island of la Grande Jatte" and students guessed how he created this work of Art. They pointed out many little details telling me it was made by putting together little dots, so we called him "Dot Dot Seurat." Students then selected a picture of their favorite animal and drew them large on their paper. Next, they filled them with dots using a q-tip and paint. Students worked very hard to fill the entire page with dots.  Students began our next lesson by playing a matching game that dealt with warm and cool colors. We also were introduced to the Pop artist Andy Warhol who is known for his print "Marilyn Monroe." Students pointed out how they are all the same but different. Some of the prints were warmer in color and cooler in others. We learned how to draw a picture on a piece of paper, tape a piece of transparency film over top, paint it, and put a second piece of paper overtop to create a print of our original image. These will be trimmed and taped together before being sent home. The students amaze me every week with their talents and knowledge about colors and artists! Gym Class by Brian Martinelli
April is one of my favorite months cause it means baseball season has began...and that's exactly how we started. Two weeks of baseball where we learned the basics of hitting an fielding. I brought in a tee so students could practice the correct way to swing a bat and in week two I started pitching the ball to them. Since a couple of the students play in baseball leagues we practiced how to pitch as well. They all did an excellent job!
We also went to the YMCA for Rock climbing; which I think was our best field trip of the year! I have to admit I am very proud of all the students. Some were very excited, some we're very nervous, but all of them climbed the wall and reached the top! Good job kids!
Latin Class- Elementary
by Tom McCaffrey
In April the Latin class has continued to learn basic vocabulary. The students have now been taught about 60 words. In addition, they have become familiar with the town of Pompeii and its destruction. A special area of study has been the house of Lucius Caecilius Iucundus, a banker who perished in the eruption of A.D. 79. After reading about his life and family and viewing pictures of the destroyed town, the class helped construct and decorate a model of his house. In the process the students learned details about daily life in ancient Pompeii.
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Ms. Kate's Corner:
Bonjour! Spring is finally here! I love seeing the warm sunshine and the colorful flowers in bloom! The month of April was spent getting ready for the International Festival and learning about all of the different continents and countries. The children also enjoyed our guest speakers from different backgrounds and cultures. The first week I introduced the seven continents to the children by showing them our continents puzzle. We discussed the four main countries in North America, which are The United States of America, Mexico, Canada, and  Greenland. The children also learned about our flag, which consists of 13 horizontal stripes, which are red, white, and blue and represent the first colonies and states in the union. The Flag also has 50 stars, which represent the 50 states in the Union. The children also learned about Christopher Columbus, the climate, and cultures of North America. We also discussed South America; their famous Andes Mountains, the Amazon, and the rainforest. The children really liked learning about the four layers of the Rainforest, which are the forest floor, the understory, the canopy, and the emergent layer.  The second week I introduced Africa. Africa is the second largest continent next to Asia. The children learned about North Africa, South Africa, West and East Africa, and also about Central Africa. We had fun discussing their homes and how their houses are made of dried mud, stones, and sticks and how people in Central America live in villages and tend to only cook over an open fire since they do not have electricity. They also learned that the largest cities in Africa are Cairo, Egypt, Lagos, Nigeria, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Throughout the week the children learned about savannas, deserts, and rainforests that make up Africa. We also talked about how thousands of different kinds of plants grow in the rainforest, and how some of those plants provide food and medicine for people. As our time on Africa came to a close we went over the animals, people, language, music, and housing of Africa.  The third week we focused on Asia. We discussed how Asia is the largest continent in the world. We mainly focused on China,  Japan, and India. The first few days we learned about China. The children were able to see pictures of the largest Buddha, which is carved in the side of a cliff in China. It took workers about 100 years to carve! They also saw pictures of children at school, the beautiful mountains, their parades that they have when they celebrate the New Year. The children enjoyed learning about the Huang River, which is the third longest river in the world. It is also called the Yellow River because the yellow soil turns the river waters yellow. They also learned about their traditional clothing, families, and how most Chinese people live on farms and work in fields called Paddies. We also reviewed how they do not have an alphabet, but instead a symbol called a character. And lastly, we went over traditions, schooling, and how reading short stories or folktales are very popular. The second country we talked about was Japan. We discussed the weather and seasons, cultures and traditions, school and family. Students also enjoyed gaining knowledge about country and city life in Japan. The children also learned about their food and how they have fun.  During the third week we explored the country of India. India is a country with seventeen official languages, races, and religions. The children loved learning that India has 45,000 plant species, some of which are not found anywhere else in the world, and that India is divided into 25 states, each with its own governor, members of parliament, and lawmakers. The children also enjoyed learning about their transpiration, their traditional dressings, family life, and education. We spent the last week of April  practicing our lines and songs and making special crafts for our International Festival. Amongst all of the busyness the children learned about France, Spain, and the Netherlands. The children had so much fun learning to say "good day," "hi," "thank you," "thank you very much," and "goodbye" in French. Children were able to learn about their foods, different cultures and traditions, holidays, work that they do, farming, and things to do when you visit each country. While we were exploring Spain, the children learned the history behind the Running of the Bulls and Flamenco dancing and were able to watch a short video on these. Although the month was very busy I really enjoyed teaching the children about the different countries. I loved showing them all countries are different in many ways but also the same. I hope you have learned a little something and see you next time! Au Revoir! |
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Mr. John's Corner:
The Continent Song, Che Che Kule, It's a Small World. Those songs are still ringing in my ears and I still find myself whistling these tunes. As you know these were the songs sung at the International Festival. Throughout the month we learned about all the continents and some of the individual countries within the continents. The students had fun learning about the climates, foods, clothes, and differences of how children attend school.
 I wanted to thank all of those who came in and talked about different countries. This adds so much to International Festival month. All the presentations are fun, informative, and the children learn a lot and teachers enjoy it.
It never ceases to amaze me how much our students can learn in a short amount of time. They did a fabulous job with their lines and performing th e songs. Not to mention how colorful the stage was with their costumes. I cannot give enough thanks to the people who prepared the food! I ended up in a food coma that night! 
Kindergarten
In the kindergarten lesson we continued our work with grammar. We studied three articles, a, an, the. We learned that "a" hooks up with consonants, an is very picky. "And" only hooks up with vowels and "the" is not picky at all and hooks up with anything! We know a pronoun replaces a noun. We looked at the adjective which describes nouns and pronouns, the adverb which describes the verb and usually ends in "ly", the conjunction which connects two sentences or thoughts and acts like a bridge and the three words we learned that do this are and, but, or.
Cultural Subjects
My line time and the kindergarten class count to ten in 27 different languages (English, Spanish, Sign Language, German, French, Greek, Italian, Romanian, Russian, Tagalog, Polish, Irish, Welsh, Hebrew, Arabic w/the Lebanese dialect, Japanese, Hungarian, Swedish, Swahili, Korean, Serbo-Croation, Hindi, Flemish/Dutch, Malay, Cebuano, Kiswahili and Hindi.)
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Ms. Kristen's Corner:
The month of April was very busy in our classroom! The children have been working hard and learning so much. With practicing for the International Festival, Dads and Doughnuts, and all the other fun activities we had this month, time just flew by! During the first week, we traveled to Africa. We also discussed how the people in Africa dress. Ms. Kim had the children make beautiful African necklaces from pasta. We also made African tribal masks! We learned about the pyramids of Egypt, the African Savannah and all the animals that live there. Students loved learning to play a children's game from the country of Kenya called Mancala!  During the second week of April, we explored the continent of Europe. The children enjoyed learning about how the Germans invented pretzels, about how the Leaning Tower of Pisa is in Italy, how Ireland is called the Emerald Isle, and Norway is famous for the Bryggen in Bergen. I especially enjoyed sharing pictures of my trip to Bergen, Norway with the children and sharing about the people and the culture there! Students also enjoyed many visitors that came in to share about their experiences or heritage in different countries this month. Thank you to those who came and spent time teaching our students; we loved it!  In the third week of April, we explored Asia! The children enjoyed listening to a CD of my choir singing Russian music, learning how people in India celebrate Diwali (which is similar to New Years), and learning how to say "hello" and "goodbye" in Japanese. (Also, did you know Russia is part of two continents? Europe and Asia!) During the fourth week of April, we traveled to Australia! We learned about all the different animals that are native to Australia. We learned that kangaroos, wombats, and koalas are classified as marsupials, which means the mothers carry their young in pouches.  We then traveled to Antarctica. We learned the continent of Antarctica is not claimed by any one country, but is used by many scientists around the world for research. Since no country governs Antarctica, it does not have a flag or any ruler. We also discussed how many of the animals in Antarctica can stay warm because they have a layer of blubber underneath their skin!  The children very much enjoyed their trip around the globe and learning about the seven continents. For each country they learned about, the children also had the opportunity to color a flag of that country during work time. The children also enjoyed learning how to work on the Africa, Europe, Asia, and Australia map puzzles. The map puzzles have become very popular in our classroom. It is wonderful to see their knowledge of the world around them growing!  Take time with your child over the next few weeks and discuss with them which country was their favorite. Which continent might they want to visit someday? Which food that they tried at the International Festival was their favorite? I consider it an honor and a privilege to work with each of your children. They teach me new things every day! |
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Ms. Courtney's Corner:
We started April off by talking about butterflies and caterpillars. Students had a blast learning about how butterflies go through stages of growth and change called a life cycle. They even got to create a butterfly mobile to represent each stage of the life cycle they learned about. We also designed butterflies using paper, pipe cleaner, and creativity. For science we put one empty glass of water and one full glass of water next to each other with paper towel we twisted together until it formed a rope (the wick). The rope absorbed and transferred the water from the full glass into the empty glass after we placed one end of it into the glass filled with water and the other into the empty glass. The children learned that the process they just watched happen is called capillary action which is when water uses the tiny gaps in the fiber of the paper towels to move along. Later, some of the children asked if this is the same thing that happens in plants and flowers. What a proud moment that was as a teacher!
The rest of April we focused on the seven continents: Asia, Africa, North America, South America, Antarctica, Europe and Australia. We learned Africa, is where the elephants, giraffes and lions live. South Ameri ca has tropical forests and one of the longest rivers in the world the Amazon River. North America is where we live. Europe and Asia are together on the map, but Australia is an island where the kangaroo and koala bear live. Last but not least Antarctica is way down below frozen and also home to the penguins. Students and teachers spent a lot of time preparing for this year's International Festival, displaying some of the knowledge we learned throughout the month. They did a wonderful job, we are very proud of them!
 I would like to send a Big Thank You to everyone who took the time to come and talk to us about places around the world. The children really enjoyed listening to what you had to share and appreciated all the time and effort you put in to preparing for the visit!
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Dads N Donuts 
Although the weather on the day of Dads N Donuts was dreary outside the atmosphere inside was pure joy! There were smiles and happy giggles as little ones enjoyed donuts and juice with their dads (and some grandpas and uncles). It was heart warming to see all of the happy faces and belly laughs as Dads read the special "All About Dad" papers our students completed for them.
Thank you so much to all of the great Dads who showed up to have a donut with that special little person in your life, great memories were made!
International Festival
 After weeks of practicing songs and lines the big night finally came, and it was incredible! Our students and teachers worked so very hard to put together this year's truly memorable show. It was amazing to watch all of the children not only recite the lines they worked so hard to remember but to see how they infused their own unique personalities into it as well.
Students not only impressed us with their knowledge of their represented country or Natural Wonder they explored, but that they looked fantastic in the costumes they wore to represent their country. Every continent was represented and even the continent of Antarctica was explored! Throughout the month we learned so many new facts about countries and cultures that many of us now dream of one day visiting these unique places and Wonders around the world.
Our elementary pianists from  Tallmadge performed their piano solos wonderfully and our Dancers brought down the house! We are surrounded by truly talented and special students and we feel very grateful to be a part of it.
Thank you so much to all of our wonderful parents who came to visit and share with our students throughout the month and for all of your help during rehearsal and the night of the program, you are truly appreciated!
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We at Absorbent Minds have been very blessed in so many ways. We want to share our blessings and become a blessing to others. In this light, we have created The Smarter Heroes.
Good Samaritans Food Drive
Our final project this school year is Good Samaritan's Food Drive. Similar to "2 cents a Meal," this project is designed to teach our students about world-wide hunger. This is a chance for your family at home to talk about places in our community where little children, just like them, do not have enough food to eat and what we can do together to help!
We are asking that your family begin to collect canned goods for our Food Drive over the next few weeks. They are in need of items like canned tuna, PJ and Jelly, canned fruit; veggies, soups and stews, newly purchased dry goods like rice, spaghetti and macaroni & cheese. Good Samaritans can only accept unopened food as donations and please be careful to check the expiration dates on all donated items. All donations will need to be brought to the school in the cardboard box provided.
We will begin collecting the brown boxes filled with canned and dry food items Friday May 30th-Tuesday morning June 3rd. In the afternoon, on Tuesday, June 3rd, students will help load the Good Samaritans vehicle with all of the canned goods our families donated for this project!
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UPCOMING EVENTS
All Campuses
Akron Zoo Field Trip Friday, May 23rd
Memorial DayNO SCHOOL Monday, May 26th Taekwondo
Belt TestMonday, June 2nd Last Day of SchoolFIELD DAY!Thursday, June 5th Kindergarten
GraduationFriday, June 6th 6:30pm AMMS All Campus
Family Picnic!Sunday, June 15th
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Alumni Update:
Every month we devote a section of our newsletter to our wonderful Alumni. We treasured the time we had with our former students and look forward to any opportunity to hear about how they are now! You can find our Alumni Updates on the right side column of the newsletter.
If you have an Absorbent Minds Alumni Student send us an email telling us about what your child has been doing since graduating from Absorbent Minds. We want to know about all kinds of accomplishments; from school, to extra curricular activities and personal growth displayed in any environment! Please email me at Kelly@thesmarterkids.com and put "Alumni Update" in the subject line. We will do our best to include as many alumni updates as possible. I look forward to hearing from everyone!
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