“Though February is short, it is filled with lots of love and sweet surprises.”

― Charmaine J. Forde

Did you know that World Hijab Day is an annual event founded by Nazma Khan in 2013, taking place on February 1st each year in 140 countries worldwide? 

At CFB, PS #16 we read a book about a little girl who wonders why other girls and women around her home wear the Malafa.  The book is called "Deep in the Sahara."  A Malafa is another way to say “hijab." We learned that a hijab and a Malafa are a garment that women wear to cover their hair and around their body.

Homerooms 308 and 101 met to have a combined science lesson on plants while repotting their class plants. The fourth grades gifted the second graders one of the new plants and the second graders gifted the fourth graders a cutting from one of their plants. It was a fun lesson which was enjoyed by both classes!

Moms of 101 played Cupid and helped Gauchie's 2nd graders create 

Valentine's mailboxes for each student!!

Valentine's Day Dance

1st graders (105) had fun dancing and coloring at different activity stations. Thank you to Mrs. Jackson and the CPA for treating the students with scrumptious donuts!

Congratulations to the minor team from Shehnaaz Dance Academy who clinched third place at the Dance pe Chance competition this past weekend. Dance Pe Chance is a prestigious dance competition conducted by the Federation of Indian Associations (FIA) in the tri state area. This remarkable achievement is a reflection of the immense talent, dedication, and effort put forth by the young performers. From the team of 22 dancers, 17 are past and present PS16 students! Huge congratulations to fifth graders: Nivaan Patel, Aisling Kerr, Urvi Mamtora, Viraj Upadhya, Arya Pawar, Mahi Anand, Lucas Lee, Meera Cote and Aayan Ghosh. Second graders: Zoya Shah, Virika Mamtora, Arin Padia and Neal Khavanekar. PS16 Alum(Class of 2023): Aaliya Shah, Zuleikha Dash, Stuti Biswas and Sara Khavanekar.

100th Day of School

~2400 hours and 144,000 minutes of learning~

Random Act of Kindness Week - spread kindness like confetti

A random act of kindness is a simple act that brightens someone’s day. It can be something significant, like donating items to a charity, or something smaller, like holding a door open for someone. It can be planned or happen on the spur of the moment. To engage students in spreading kindness, we have organized our first ever Kindness Bingo Challenge!!!

The winners of our RAK Bingo,  whose kindness radiated from their classrooms:  

Mrs. Nicholas’ Kindergarteners from Room 209 in the K-1 cluster

Ms. Erichsen's second graders in Room 202 from the 2-3 cluster

Mrs. Talalai's fourth graders from Room 306 in the 4-5 cluster

Their thoughtfulness and kindness have earned them a well-deserved class pizza party on March 8th! Congratulations to all our winners!

Students from Mrs. Kane's second grade class created black history month projects where they either painted along to jazz music or created an African style quilt.  

Our MLK Oratory contest finalists, 5th grader, Aisling, and 4th grader, Kira showcased snippets from their speeches...

Our 4th and 5th grade students performed for the Black History Month assembly. Each class performed a selection that highlighted a different genre of music from the worldwide African diaspora. Fourth grade Room 306 performed "Shake the Papaya Down," a Calypso song from Jamaica, sung in three-part harmony. Room 307 performed Billy Taylor's "I Wish I Knew How It Feels to be Free," an oft-sung anthem during the Civil Rights Era of the 1960s; Freguy Boulhoud accompanied his class on the piano. Room 308 sang two traditional African-American Spirituals, "Wade in the Water" and "Joshua Fit the Battle of Jericho."

Fifth grade Room 302 sang "Ballad of the Underground Railroad" in two- and three-part harmony, chronicling Harriet Tubman's travels in her effort to free slaves. Room 303 sang "Sambalele," a samba in two-part harmony, and talked about how the genre arose among slaves in Bahia state in Brazil. Finally, Room 304 sang "Singabahambayo" in three-part harmony. This was a freedom song from South Africa, and was often sung at gatherings protesting the Apartheid regime in South Africa. 

Sean Ichiro Manes, Ph.D.

PS #28 delighted our students with a surprise visit to present their Black History Showcase, which truly inspired us all. As we close out the month focusing on friendship and love, we extend our heartfelt gratitude to PS #28 for sharing their talents with us.

Paxton's mom also came to help ring in the New Year!

Grade 3 also took part in the New Year's fun...

Happy Year of the Dragon! 1st grader, Nolan's mom shared this awesome collaborative project!  Fellow Bradford Bears:  Lane, Eva, Ria, Vivian, Svetlana, Aria, Victor, Maeve, Nolan, and Storm worked hard on the dragon mural in their building!  

5th graders also had a Lunar New Year celebration!   Emily, Jenson (302), Lucas (303), Yiyi and Kevin (304) presented to each class about how Chinese people and Korean people celebrate the special occasion. 

Jersey City’s 29th Annual MLK Oratory Contest

Dozens of students from across Jersey City competed in the city’s 29th annual Martin Luther King Jr. Oratory Contest in honor of Black History Month.  4th grader, Kira Honmane took home the 3rd place prize!  5th grader, Aisling was featured on NJ.com!  Congratulations!!!

Leap Year 2024!!!  Nearly every four years, the Gregorian calendar — which is used in the majority of countries around the world — gets an extra day: February 29.  

Birthdays on February 29, although rare, are celebrated around the world.  Here at PS 16 we have two students, Luna and Maya, who can celebrate their actual birthdate only once every four years. Sound crazy? It’s not—it just means they were born on a leap day.   Individuals born on leap day are often called “leaplings” or “leapers.” Despite its rarity, leap day birthdays are recognized globally. Many leaplings choose to celebrate on February 28 or March 1 in non-leap years.

until next month, Bradford Bears...