Family Newsletter - 5-5-25

• I just want to take this opportunity to send a HUGE THANK YOU to everyone for a job well done in the administration of the NYS ELA exam, especially considering this was our first try at Computer Based Testing for ALL students. Tomorrow and Wednesday, May 6^th and 7th, we will be administering the NYS Math exam. All students were given their room assignments today. Please make certain your child gets to school on time tomorrow to begin the exam promptly.
• Friday, we celebrated Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage month with a school spirit Hawaiian shirt day. It is also Jewish American Heritage month, a time to celebrate the many contributions of Jewish Americans to American culture, history and society. It’s a chance for us to support the Jewish members of our school community and to address antisemitism. On May 21st, we will be recognizing all of the cultures of our school community, as that day is National Cultural Diversity Day. This will be a special School Spirit Day to celebrate and recognize the beauty and diversity of our school – cultural differences do not separate us from each other here at Cav – instead – it brings us collectively together, enhances and strengthens our core values and helps us to shine! 😊 More info to follow about the day.
• It's Teacher Appreciation Week! Let us focus on the impact our Cavallaro teachers and all staff members make on the life of each and every child they come in contact with here at I.S. 281, whether it be in the classroom, in small group sessions, through counseling, in IEP Meetings, addressing attendance issues, at bathrooms or the hallway, addressing disciplinary issues, tending to their social and emotional needs, in the nurse’s office, while they are getting their lunch, helping them navigate life as a new citizens of America, attending to the many issues they bring to the main office, keeping their school environment safe, during after school events or ensuring their building is kept in tip-top shape. They ALL play a major part in the development of our children, exposing them to opportunities and challenges outside the traditional instructional framework, challenging them to reach beyond their scope of possibilities to become environmentally minded, collaborative thinkers, team players, and confident leaders. Their development truly is in our hands, at such a critical stage of childhood maturation.  Thank you to our Teachers! We are so proud of all that they do for children and celebrate the role they play in their lives. “If you look behind every exceptional person, there is an exceptional teacher.” – Stephen Hawking 
• One of our 8th grade teams made the Virtual Enterprise VE-JV Business Pitch Competition National Championships! Join me in congratulating Emmalina, Namra and Shakhrizoda, who developed a product called Pristine Filtration, which offers advanced water filtration with electrochemical activation. It removes 99.9% of contaminants and retains essential minerals. Their mission statement is “To pasteurize the world's water with quality and passion”.  The finals will take place on May 13th – Good luck team!
• See the attached flyer to join in for an 8‑week Open Streets series at 9100 Bay Parkway in Brooklyn! In collaboration with NYC DOT and StreetLab, Pineapple Ride is transforming the space into a vibrant community hub focused on bike safety and exploration. Enjoy free bike repairs and safety classes, live music, local art, coffee pop‑ups, exclusive merch, giveaways, family-friendly fun, and special programming—all free to attend. Mark your calendars, invite your friends, and come celebrate safe, joyful riding in one of Brooklyn’s most scenic neighborhoods. https://pineappleride.org/pineapple-plaza-2025
• The Specialized High Schools Admission Test (SHSAT) will transition to a digital-based assessment beginning fall 2025. The SHSAT family-facing webpage has been updated to include translated copies of the FAQ. Additional information about the exam, including multiple online full-length practice tests, is now available in the SHSAT portal.
• Just a reminder that end of year Virtual Parent Conferences will be held on May 8th from 4:30 – 7:30pm. Please make sure to schedule parent conferences via Jupiter or Google classroom.

Academic Vocabulary Word of the Week: 

5/5/2025 – Record, Formulate

Spanish: Registrar, formular

Chinese: 記錄、制定

Russian: Запишите, сформулируйте

Urdu: ڈیزائن، بحث

Social Emotional Focus Week 32:

6th Grade – Confidence: Assess students’ prior knowledge of confidence; introduce students to the concept of confidence

7th Grade – Forgiveness: Assess students’ prior knowledge of forgiveness; introduce students to the concept of forgiveness

8th Grade – Patience: Introduce students to the concept of patience; understand what patience is and isn’t