In this Newsletter
A Note from Ms. Rached
Holi Celebration of Color on Friday, April 5th
School Survey - Due April 5
Upcoming Events 🗓️
🌟 Holi Celebration - Friday, April 5th ✨
👕 Field Day T-Shirt Pre-Order Deadline - Monday, April 8
🏫 Eid al-Fitr - School Closed Wednesday, April 10
🎥 Movie Night - Friday, April 12 - 6:15p yard opens, 7:30p movie starts in PS154 Yard
🗓️ Equity Meeting - Thursday, April 18th, 9am, Zoom
🗓️ SLT Meeting: Thursday, April 18th, 3:30pm, PS154
🎉 Spirit Day: Silly Hair/Hat Day - Friday, April 19
🏫 Spring Recess - Monday, April 22 - Tuesday, April 30
🗓️ PTA General Meeting - Friday, May 3 at 8:30 in MMR
⚾ Family Night at the Brooklyn Cyclones, Friday, May 3rd @7PM!
Field Week Attire - Order Your Gold Shirt by Monday, April 8th
Help Us Grow: Join the Generations Fundraising Campaign at PS 154
📚 Book Market - Call for Graphic Novels & Chapter Books
PS 154 Family Night at the Brooklyn Cyclones - Friday, May 3rd @7PM!
A Note from Ms. Rached
Hi Families,
We're excited to announce the new date for our Annual Holi Celebration of Color, Friday, April 5th, from 2:00 to 2:50 PM. This event is a vibrant and joyful tradition where students learn about the Holi holiday, focus on themes of joy, togetherness, and the beauty of spring, and enjoy throwing powdered color in the playground.
To make the most of this colorful event, we ask that students come to school dressed in clothing that can get messy. Think older clothes or items that you will be okay with getting a splash of color on! We also invite families to join us by volunteering for the celebration—Sign Up Here. It's a beautiful opportunity to participate in this joyous event and create lasting memories with our PS154 community.
*The colored powder that is used is food-safe. It is made from corn starch and food coloring. For detailed information, please see the fact sheet.
State Tests
On April 11 and 12, our students in grades 3 and 4 will be taking the New York State English Language Arts (ELA) test. 3rd and 4th graders will be taking a paper version of the test, which will include both multiple choice and open-response questions based on the New York State ELA standards. The test is untimed - student can use as much time as they need.
The following week, on April 16 and 17, our 5th graders will be taking the computer-based New York State ELA test, which will also be untimed, and includes multiple choice and open-response questions based on the New York State ELA standards.
The state test is one measure of many measures of student performance that we use (including classroom assessments, academic screeners, and reading-level assessments). We use the results of the State Tests in the fall, to identify school, grade, and class-wide patterns and trends in the data and adjust instructional practices, and the city and state use the results for school accountability. While all of the teaching and learning happening across the school throughout the year is standards-aligned and will prepare students to demonstrate grade-level proficiency, over the past few weeks, our upper-grade teachers have been embedding explicit test-preparation in their lessons. Families have the option to opt-out of State Testing. If you are interested in exploring this option, please reach out to Mr. Buckley (mbuckley@ps154.org) and your child’s classroom teacher.
Arrival Reminders
Each day, we have about 350 students entering the schoolyard through the gate between 8:00 and 8:20. Please note the following help us keep everything safe and orderly:
Families - please stay clear of the steps.
Please do not block the sidewalk. If you are bringing a bike, stroller or dog, please stay close to the curb.
If your child needs extra support and attention at drop-off, please use the front entrance starting at 8:20, and/or reach out to Tanica.
Thank you for helping us keep our students safe!
Shape PS 154's Future: Complete the 2023-24 School Survey by April 5, 2024!
Your voice matters! The School Survey is a powerful way for you to share your thoughts about our school and directly influence its direction. Your feedback is crucial—it's used to assess our school's performance in the School Quality Snapshot and guides decisions made by our School Leadership Team.
3 Easy Ways to Complete the Survey:
Hard Copy: Fill out and mail the survey sent home in a green envelope a few weeks ago.
Online: Visit the School Survey site and complete the survey. (Please have your child’s OSIS number ready. If you need it, reach out to Tanica.)
Online via NYCSA: Log in to your NYCSA account and click "Take the 2024 School Survey now!" at the top of the page, then scroll down to "Take Survey."
Important: If you have more than one child enrolled, please fill out a survey for EACH child.
Your input shapes our school's future—don't miss this opportunity to make your voice heard!
ALL CLASSES WITH 100% PARTICIPATION WILL EARN AN ICE-POP PARTY IN THE PLAYGROUND!
Upcoming Events
Movie Night - Trolls Band Together - April 12th
Join us for a free community event to watch the movie Trolls Band Together on April 12th. The yard opens at 6:15pm for families to spend time together with the movie following at 7:30pm. There will be snacks, drinks and popcorn for sale. If you want pizza, please buy a dinner package in advance. See the events page for more details.
Want to help make it the best movie night ever? Volunteer to help!
🎉 April Spirit Day - Join the Fun: Silly Hair/Silly Hat Day - April 19th
On Friday, April 19th, let's celebrate with Silly Hair/Silly Hat Day! This is a fantastic opportunity for all students to showcase their creativity. Encourage your child to express themselves with uniquely styled hair or by wearing a delightfully silly hat.
Families, please mark your calendars and join us in making April 19th a day filled with quirky hairstyles, whimsical hats, and an abundance of smiles. Let's welcome the new season with a burst of fun and laughter! We can't wait to see the fantastic, funny, and fabulous looks our students come up with. Thank you for joining in the fun!
📣 Field Week Attire: Order Your Gold Shirt by April 8th 📣
Get ready for a week of fun and games during our Field Week, starting May 13th! We're thrilled to see all the excitement building up. On your child's designated field day, they should wear either the classic gold school t-shirt or their gold Class of 2024 shirt. If your child doesn't have one yet, don't worry!
You can pre-order a classic gold raccoon t-shirt now until April 8th at a discounted price of $20.
https://www.ps154.org/shop/raccoon
And hey, if you already have one, why not grab an extra for growth spurts? We've got adult sizes available too. Plus, your purchase directly supports our school. If getting a shirt is a financial challenge, reach out to Tanica, and we'll make sure your child has one for field day. Let's make this Field Week the best one yet!
Weather permitting, students will be diving into exciting field day activities on the following days:
Kindergarten: Monday, May 20th
1st Grade: Wednesday, May 15th
2nd Grade: Monday, May 13th
3rd Grade: Thursday, May 16th
4th Grade: Tuesday, May 14th
5th Grade: Friday, May 17th
Mark your calendars and keep an eye out next month for the sign-up sheet to volunteer.
Help Us Grow: Join the Generations Fundraising Campaign at PS 154
Calling all Tias, Nonnas, Grampies, Opas, Aunties, Zaydes, Chachas, Granddads and Mimis – PS 154 needs your help! In April, the PTA will bring back our Generations fundraising campaign. Our goal is to help expand our “village” (and fundraising pie!) by inviting all those important people who love our kids to support our school. The best part? You don't even have to be the one to ask.
Take two minutes to help us out by sharing email addresses for any extended family members or loved ones you think might be open to giving. They’ll receive a few messages explaining the important contributions our PTA makes to our school, along with gentle invitations to donate. They'll also be invited to a spring ice cream social to celebrate our 154 community (tentatively scheduled for 5/4).
Send any names and emails you would like to include to pta_info@ps154.org this week, and look for more details soon.
Thank you!
📚 Book Market - Call for Graphic Novels & Chapter Books! 📚 📢 📕
We are accepting graphic novel and chapter book donations (for all ages). Please bring your gently used books and drop them into the blue bins labeled “Book Market Donation Bins” on the stage in the MMR.
Do not donate other book types for the time being - other book genres will be donated externally immediately as we do not have capacity to take them.
Feel free to send back any graphic novels or chapter books previously sourced from the Book Market as well (if your child is ready to part with them!).
⚾ PS 154 Family Night at the Brooklyn Cyclones - Friday, May 3rd @7PM! 🎉
Get ready to hit a home run of fun at the Brooklyn Cyclones game on Friday, May 3rd, at 7 PM! 🌟 Join us for an unforgettable evening packed with cheers, laughter, and plenty of school spirit!
🎟️ Tickets are $20 and include a free Brooklyn Cyclones hat🧢! Plus, every purchase supports our school!
🏟️ Join us for a pre-game school spirit parade around the field at 6:15 pm!
And here’s the grand slam:
🎉 If we rally together and snag over 250 tickets, one lucky member of our group will step up to the plate and throw out the ceremonial first pitch! 🥳 Plus, we’ll even get to announce half an inning - talk about a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity! ⚾
So rally your friends, gather your family, and join us for a night of PS 154 spirit at the Brooklyn Cyclones game!
🎉 Get your tickets here: PS 154 Brooklyn Cyclones Tickets.
For questions, contact Sarah Gartenberg at Sarah.Gartenberg@gmail.com. Let's fill the ballpark with PS 154 pride - see you there! LET'S GO CYCLONES! 🎉
