NUT SWAMP ELEMENTARY! MARCH 2015

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It is March! Many people think of the beginning of Spring. Many others think of “March Madness”. The March Madness tournament for men’s college

basketball started on March 17 this year. The first tournament was played in 1939. That tournament involved 8 teams to figure out who was the best college basketball team in the United States. The first team to win the National Championship was The University of Oregon. They defeated The Ohio State University 46-33 on March 27, 1939.   Oregon was named the best college basketball team in the United States.For the first 12 years of the men’s tournament, only eight teams were invited to participate.  That number of teams got larger until a 65-team tournament was introduced in 2001.  This year, the tournament will have 68 teams all trying to become National Champion.  Teams are out after 1 loss. The tournament has seven rounds and is played in different cities around the country.  This year the Final Four will be played in Indianapolis, Indiana.Who do you think will win the title this year?

TIGER TIMESLET THE MADNESS BEGIN!Caroline M., grade 3

Hi My name is Kara A. I take Irish step lessons at Daly Irish Dance in Middletown. It is very cool. It is for boys and girls and I think it is fun because you can compete in a competition called feis. I get to learn the jig and kick our heels. I wear a black leotard and red skirt when we have a show and the boys wear a suit. I march in the Rumson and Highlands parade every year. There are two types of shoes that we wear. The soft shoe is like the ballet slipper, the other type of is the hard shoe. It is black, has a buckle on it and you tie them too. It is like a tap shoe without the metal piece. Irish step dancing goes back a long time. It is when people would come together to socialize and dance. Today we know Irish step dancing from the performances of Riverdance and Lord of the Dance. I like it and I hope you do, too.

IRISH STEP DANCINGKara A., grade 1

Kids have been endlessly talking about, getting excited about, and most of all, playing a relatively new game called "Five Nights at Freddy's."   This game is sweeping the nation with its anticipation and total suspense.  I myself play, love, and talk about this incredibly cool game.  This game has two sequels already, and in my opinion, the first may still be the best.  You can find this game anywhere on popular sites such as, Youtube, Facebook, and Instagram.  All you have to do is type the word “five”, and there it is. If you haven't played this game, and you are 9 years old, and have your parents’ permis s ion , I de f in i te l y recommend it.  Even though this game is a bit scary at the beginning, it is very fun. 

KIDS OPINION:FIVE NIGHTS AT FREDDY’S Colin H., grade 5

NUT SWAMP CARES: GIRL SCOUT BRONZE AWARDErin S., grade 5Girl Scout Troop 151 , under the direction of Mrs. Elizabeth Dunphy, is currently working on earning the Girl Scout Bronze award. This award is the hightest honor a Girl Scout Junior can achieve. In order to earn this award, the troop must work as a team and pick a project they feel will benefit their community. The troop considered many ideas and voted to help the MSPCA with their Backyard Buddy Program. This program, is dedicated to helping cats that cannot be tamed and adopted {aka feral cats} by spaying/neutering the cats, and by having volunteers provide food, water and shelter for these cats. This allows the cats to exist in their outdoor environment. Mrs. Dunphy explains, " It saves the lives of the feral cat. It's a very humane way of dealing with feral cats."Currently, the troop is working on ideas that would best promote their project. They will be busy in the upcoming months promoting their project, and making their community a better place for all. Good Luck Troop 151!

NUT SWAMP ELEMENTARY! MARCH 2015

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The Jersey Shoreby Ava V.    Do you love the ocean? How about beautiful sunsets? From Cape May to Sandy Hook, there are over 127 amazing miles of oceanfront! So why don’t you head down to the jubilant Jersey Shore? There are so many things to do. From great restaurants to watersports and sunsets, the fun will never end!While you are there, I recommend going to the beaches at dusk because you cou ld take some great photographs and  have dinner at one of many amazing restaurants. Italian, Mexican, Thai, Japanese and of course seafood restaurants too! Speaking of fish...the shore is also a great place to go fishing. You can rent a party boat or just fish off the jetties on the beach. After you are done you can finish the night with a sweet treat like saltwater taffy, ice cream or an ice. So, if you love sunsets and the ocean, then come down to the jubilant Jersey Shore!

Magnificent Minkby Danny D.Imagine,walking down the side of Upper Saddle River in Bergen County, New Jersey, when suddenly you see a brownish mammal pop out of the water. Then, it looks at a fish, and eats it. I’m talking about the American Mink, one of New Jersey’s most common mammals living in the Upper Saddle River.Usually, American Mink are pretty tiny animals. Well, if you thought that, you were right. American Mink are no longer than 14 to 20 inches long. Not a lot of length size. Well, if you thought that was small, listen to this. An American Mink’s tail is only 5 to 9 inches long. Wow, now that’s really small. Well here this if you think THATS small. American Mink weigh only up to 2 to 4 pounds. Wow, and I thought that the Mink’s tail is only 5 to 9 inches was small, because weighing only 2 to 4 pounds is really small.American Mink LOVE to live by the water. They are extraordinar y swimmers and like to take shelter under logs by places that have lakes. American Mink love to swim in e i ther watercourses , l akes , or swamps. American Mink also catch most of their prey in water. If you ever see an American Mink in New Jer sey, i t wou ld probab l y be swimming happily in the Upper Saddle River in Bergen County. Maybe next time you go to Upper Saddle River, you’ll see a Mink pop out of the water.

Pine Barrens Tree Frogby Skyler G..Imagine not having this adorable frog anymore, how sad is that? The Pine Barrens tree frog was listed as an  endangered species in New Jersey. It is endangered due to various reasons such as pollution, wetlands draining and filling, and habitat loss. Did you know that the pine barrens tree frog is only 1-3 inches long? This frog is one of “New Jersey’s most beautiful amphibians.” It has a purple stripe with a white border from its head to its back legs.  Also, the frogs underside of its legs are a bright yellow orange. As you can tell, the frog is very colorful. Despite its name, the pine barrens tree frog can be found in places other than the pine barrens. The frog makes an unusual “quonk” sound.Did you know that the pine barrens tree frogs scientific name is Hyla andersonii? What I like about the frog is that it is so small it can hide just about anywhere larger  animals can't fit.  The benefit of being able to hide is they can hide if they are being chased by a predator. I wonder how small the tadpole is if the frog is only 1-3 inches long? The tadpole is 15 millimeters long when they are newly hatched.   This beautiful frog needs to be saved from the endangered species list and the whole state should try to help. I hope we can al l save this frog someday. “Quonk!”

C L A S S C O L U M NMRS. JOHNSON’S NJ SCOOP ESSAYS

NUT SWAMP ELEMENTARY! MARCH 2015

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The Hadrosaurusby Adrien M.The Hadrosaur us l i ved in Haddonfield, New Jersey. It lived about 85,000,000 years ago. The Hadrosaurus is a very important dinosaur but we never found the skull. It was the first near-complete d inosaur ske le ton e ver to be discovered in North America. To date, no one has discovered this dinosaur 's skul l . In 1838, John Estaugh Hopkins was digging in Marlpit , New Jersey where he uncovered large bones. He recovered an almost complete set of limbs. Despite the fact he found the bones in Marlpit, they are on display at his home in Haddonfield, NJ.In 1858 these bones sparked the interest of a visitor, William Parker Foulke. The skeleton was dug out from Marlpit in 1858 by Foulke. The exca vat ion s i te known a s the Hadrosaurus Foulkii Leidy Site is now a National Historic Landmark. Foulke contacted paleontologist Joseph Leidy, and together the  f ami l y Hadrosaur idae ha s Hadrosaurus as its type genus.The skeleton lacks a skull and is too incomplete to compare to other hadrosaurids for classif ication purposes, leading most scientists to consider it a nomen dubium, or dubious name. When the skeleton was first assembled, it was displayed with a plaster skull sculpted by Hawkins. Many other artists have recreated Hadrosaurus with skulls from other, related species such as Gryposaurus and Brachylophosaurus. A statue of Hadrosaur us , s cu lpted by Haddonf ie ld re s ident John

Giannotti, now stands in the center o f the town of Haddonf ie ld , commemorating its discovery there.

The Fantastic FalconBy Christian C.There is one bird that can fly 220 miles per hour, curl its wings in, and become a speeding bullet! Yes, the one and on l y PEREGRINE FALCON! The peregrine falcon lives in the mountain regions of New Jersey. Also, you may think they don’t live in the city, but they do! They quite enjoy their life in the big city, living on top of skyscrapers and wrestling rats of the alleyway for food.&But, one time they were almost put into extinction from DDT. This makes them unable to reproduce.  At one point in history, there were only two parents that produced babies! Luckily, the efforts to save them have been successful.They now live on every continent except Antarctica. Their average life-span in the wild is 17 years.The male’s length i s 1 5 inches and they we igh approximately 18 ounces.The female is 20 inches and weighs about 30 ounces. Peregrine falcons favorite food is small birds because they are easy to catch. After they catch their food, they sometimes pass it to their mates in mid air!It was awesome researching this amazing and majestic raptor!

Popcorn Park Zooby Joe D.Imagine, someone owns some cute little bunnies, then the owner passes away. Or, imagine a very bad person chains their pet up in a dirty, smelly basement. When things like this happen, the pets might go to Popcorn Park Zoo to live there and have a very grand life!Popcorn Park Zoo is a place where animals can go when they are stranded or abused. The Zoo is operated by the Associated Humane Soc ie t ie s , the l a rges t an ima l sheltering system in New Jersey! The Zoo has lions, monkeys, camels, and much more! Every animal there has been rescued. It’s called Popcorn Park Zoo because when you enter, you get a bag of popcorn to feed the greatly adorable animals. You also get a little booklet that tells you the great names of the animals and how the animals got to Popcorn Park Zoo. Each animal has its own very amazing story of how it got there. Some animals are there were saved from death. For example, a dog named Rally was tied to a railroad track and someone saw him and rescued him, and then he went to Popcorn Park Zoo to live a very extraordinary life.I visited the Popcorn Park Zoo twice and to me the animals seemed really happy. Anyone who visits the Zoo in Forked River, NJ will be happy to see the many saved animals and the entrance fee will help the Zoo. I hope you will visit the Zoo one day and like it too!

C L A S S C O L U M NMRS. JOHNSON’S NJ SCOOP ESSAYS

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NUT SWAMP ELEMENTARY! MARCH 2015

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Major league baseball teams are now in spring training. When opening day comes on April 6, many people will be going to see their favorite teams play at the stadium. Other people will watch their favorite team play on television. Baseball fans across America look forward to opening day every year because it starts a new season. The season is very long. It has 162 games beginning in April and ending in October. Baseball fans get excited at the beginning of the year and hope that their favorite team will win the World Series.Different people root for different teams, depending on where they live and who their favorite player is. Sometimes your favorite team might lose, but, it is still fun to watch them. My favorite team is the New York Yankees. Which team is your favorite?

SPORTS: ARE YOU READY FOR OPENING DAY?Alex K., grade 3

The original Ever After High Collection was released in the year 2013. This collection includes dolls, books, journals, chests and more . The ser ie s i s about f a i r y ta le character’s children, who go to a school to learn how to follow their destiny. There are boy dolls and girl dolls available that include Apple White: Daughter of Snow White, Raven Queen: Daughter of the Evil Queen, Daring Charming: Son of King Charming and more. Each doll is available in three different types which include Legacy Day, Spring Unsprung, and Beauty Sleep Festival. There are three books in the series. Book 1 is called The Storybook of Legends. Book 2 is called The Unfairest of Them A#. And, Book 3 is called A Wonderlandiful World. The main characters are the (most popular dolls) Apple White and Raven Queen. They and their friends go on lots of adventures together to accomplish goals. There are many dolls, and items in the Ever After High collection. Be sure to check out this cool collection!

ARTS & LEISURE: EVER AFTER HIGHTara M., grade 3

TEACHER FEATURE: MRS.SHANKLINJulia B., grade 4

Do you like really funny books? Then you should read Miss Daisy is Crazy by Dan Gutman. The main character is A.J. and he hates school. The only thing he likes about school is gym and recess. Miss Daisy is his second grade teacher. Another character is Andrea who loves school and that drives A.J. nuts! Their teacher is so crazy. She doesn’t know how to multiply 4 times 4, spell the word “read” and she doesn’t know how to read!A.J. and his friends, Michael and Ryan, want to turn the school into a video game arcade. They ask their principal, Mr. Klutz, if they can do it. He says yes, if they can get all the kids in the school to read one million pages. Miss Daisy makes a thermometer on the wall to keep track of how many pages they have read. If they make it to one million, Mr. Klutz will also dress up in a gorilla outfit. If you want to find out if they make it to one million, then you should read this book! I think this book is good for teachers and kids in all grades.

BOOK NOOKJack D., grade 1

FEATURED ARTISTLauren B. grade 5

Hi! I am Julia B. and I interviewed my 4th grade teacher Mrs. Shanklin. Here are some questions I asked her.How long have you been teaching?I have been teaching for 9 years, all at Nut Swamp including my student teaching during graduate school.What is your favorite subject to teach? Why?My favorite subject to teach by far is Math. Ever since I was a little girl it was my favorite subject. I love numbers and applying math to real life situations.Why did you want to become a teacher?It has always been a dream of mine. I did work in business before teaching. During that time I realized more and more that my passion was in the classroom. I love working with children and watching the light bulb go off when they learn something new.What college did you go to?I proudly went to Villanova University. I will always be a wildcat! Also my team is currently a #1 seed in the NCAA tournament. Go Nova!What do you like to do in your free time?I love spending time with my husband, son, and family. I really love to go to the gym and be outdoors as much as possible. I also love to cook.