Fluffy Brown Bears

Bears live way up in the mountains of Alaska. Bears like to go deep into the forest. What bears do in there seems to be a secret. If we know what they are doing, then we will be able to help them. Lately many people are going have been going into they're home.

Bears come in all sizes and colors. Brown bears are also known as grizzly bears in different places. Pandas are black and white, polar bears are white and live in the snow. Bears are loaners which means that they don't like company even other kinds of bears. Loverd Byerd is a bear detective and watches them in a pan handle in Alaska.

When detectives want to film what animals are doing, ten they have to put a camera on them. They put it on to find out what the mysterious behaviour. Bears like to eat anything in sight. When they are tired, bears dig up dirt and fall asleep. The big secret is that they are with their family.

Where I'm From

I am from computers, from Kleenex and Bounty.I am from the busy, Marina-style home (it smells like cats)I am from the blackberry bushes and the apricot tree.
I am from celebrating New Year’s together and brown eyes, from Igor and Lora and Michael. I am from the electricity savers and the clean freaks.From, “Have a good day,” and “Clean that up.
I am from receiving money on one day during Hanukkah.I’m from Odessa, Ukraine and honey-covered blintz, sometimes filled with cheese.From the grandma who cooked stuffed peppers filled with meat and carrots, the colorful soups she made every chance she got, and the parents who are from clear blue tide waves and sparkly sand.
I am from a dusty drawer who holds with its thick wooden fingers priceless tea sets made of purple and white glass, passed on through generations of my family.
Angela V. 2011

George Ella Lyon was the first person to create a "Where I'm From" poem. Students have been also been making "Where I'm From" poems. All of the current upper graders here in Hillwood have made our own "Where I'm From" poems and posted them on the Hillwood Herald.

The upper graders will be making videos on our "Where I'm From" poems. We will bring in pictures with us or other items from our poems in the picture and make the video with them.

Max the New Puppy

Welcome back to the Hillwood Herald! The Grantz have gotten a new puppy! His name is Max and he is a 9 week old black Labrador retriever. They had gotten him when he was 7 weeks old. He can also be known as Maxamillian. He is a calm, floppy-eared pup who loves to play. Some of his favorite toys include whiffle balls, a bone with small treats at both end, another bone he enjoys chewing, a lobster that makes a bubbly sound when you squeeze it, and a Frisbee that squeaks if you press it in the middle he plays tug-of-war with.

By: Angela and Claire

Obama Tells the State of the Union

On January 25th, Obama held a speech, the State of the Union, which started with the topic of jobs. Obama said, "But this shouldn't discourage us. It should challenge us." We have the best colleges and universities in America, worldwide.

Obama asked three main questions: "What do you think of the idea?" What idea, you might ask? The idea Obama is hinting at is the rights of one's rights in America. I, Angela, think that the idea is correct: All people have rights of their own and choices of their own. I, Camryn, agree with Angela. I think everyone should go by their own opinion. Everyone should have equal rights.

The next question Obama asks, is, "What do you want to change about the world?" Camryn thinks that we should be focused on being more green. I'm about to move to Arkansas, where hardly no one recycles. I think that that should change because Earth is our home, and we're killing it. I, Angela, agree with Camryn's thoughts that we should go green. In one-hundred years from now, do you think our planet will be filled with plants and trees if we keep treating it like this? If we want it to stay with plants and animals, we should stop using fuels that harm the earth.

The last question Obama asks is, "What do you want to be when you grow up?" When I, Camryn, grows up, I want to be a paleontologist. I want to be a paleontologist because I am I am interested in the study of plant and animal fossils. I, Angela, want to be an animal cop because some animals are treated horribly by people and I don't see why they deserve it. I want to help animals who are in need and were treated with cruelty.

Can you answer these questions yourself? You can go see the excerpts at the White House Website.

Article by Camryn and Angela

Is There a Secret to Test Taking?

According to new research, testing is not just a list of questions testing what you know. Testing helps people learn, and it may be a lot better than some other learning techniques.

According to The New York Times, "The research, published online Thursday in the journal Science, found that students who read a passage, then took a test asking them to recall what they had read, retained about 50 percent more of the information a week later than students who used two other methods.

One of the methods is recognized by legions of students who study before exams. The other method is prized by many teachers because it forces students to connect on facts.

Researchers gathered 200 college students in two experiment to read paragraphs about science. For the first experiment, the 200 students were divided into 4 groups. One group didn't do anything but read the text for five minutes. Another group of 50 studied the passage in four five minute sessions.

One week later all the groups were given a short answer test to recall facts based on what they studied.

Why standard testing helps is still a mystery. But it is an area that is being heavily researched and considered these days.

To find out more, go to the New York Times Website.

A Look at Unlikely Friends

National Geographic has two videos about animals that were thought to fight with each other. A drug dealer had extra money to spend, so he bought  Baloo the black bear, Leo the lion, and Sheerkon tiger. The animals live in the habitat called "The Club House," and love to play, relax, and welcome visitors. These animals were rescued by cops and given to Noah's Ark.

Noah's Ark is a rehabilitation center just south of Atlanta. It's a special habitat that welcomes all species.

A worker at Noah's Ark thought if the cubs weren't rescued, then they would have died because the owner wouldn't be able to handle such mature animals. Now, the animals are loved and love being at Noah's Ark.

Baloo the bear wore a harness as a cub, and the owners didn't adjust the harness, get a new one, or take it off, so vets from Noah's Ark had to do it themselves. The harness was grown into Baloo's shoulders. Now, fortunately, Baloo is having a blast playing with his friends at Noah's Ark.

The one other "Unlikely Friends" episode I watched was with a baby elephant and a sheep. In 2008, in Africa, near Capetown, a wild baby elephant was orphaned. The workers at Shamwari are worried about the small elephant. The elephant is like a child. They have to be loved, and this animal lost its mom, so it is very shy and skittish. It took a while before the cub even took water at Shamwari.

Shamwari to the rescue! They found the elephant a friend, a sheep! The two animals don't get along at first, though. Within a day, the two animals went from chasing each other to playing happily. About three days after the two animals met, the elephant took milk. After feeling comfortable with the cub, they named it Hope.

You can watch the videos of "Unlikely Friends" in the below Herald posts.

Unlikely Friends

Where Have All of the Sauropods Gone?

For the the past 100 years, paleontologists have been trying to solve the puzzle of where all the sauropods have gone. What's a paleontologist? A paleontologist is one who studies animal and plant fossils. What's a sauropod? A sauropod is any herbivorous dinosaur of the suborder Sauropoda, from the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods, having a small head, long neck and tail, and five-toed limbs, and it's the largest recorded land animal.

In North America and Europe, the Jurassic was the heyday of the sauropods dinosaurs. After the beginning of Cretaceous period 145 million years ago, but the number of sauropod dinosaurs dwindled and then they disappeared. It was later that other sauropods from a different location reestablished the existence of these dinosaurs.

As explained in paleography by paleontologist Phillip Upchruch, the amazing "sauropod hiatus" is probably an illusion. Over the past few years, new dinosaur discoveries have begun to complete in the gap of sauropod gaps on both North America and Europe. One reason paleontologists may not have found sauropods in North America and Europe, is because they may be missing on the continents. They may have been missing in North America only between about 90 to 75 million years ago. They are absent in Europe between 83 and 95 million years ago.

There are still uncertain about those dates. Some of the 70 to 80 million year old sauropod remains discovered in North America have actually belonged to a different type of dinosaur, the hadrosaurs.

I have been wanting to be a paleontologist because I am interested in science, and the study of fossils. I was inspired by my fourth grade teacher because she was the one that first introduced me to paleontology.

To find out more go to http://blogs.smithsonianmag.com/dinosaur/, or watch the video I made:

The Hillwood Holiday Party Is This Friday!

Merry Christmas and lots of holiday cheer!

Now that it is almost Christmas day, Hillwood Academic Day School, its students and teachers, are preparing for the big party on Friday, December 10. So, now is the time to get read for the talent show and another free dress day. There will also a gathering for parents upstairs with lots of food that students and their families will be bringing in to share.

We will also be giving presents to one another with the Secret Santa event that we do at Hillwood each year. Students pick a name from a hat and then either make or buy a gift for that individual. Zack, an eighth-grade student, has been appointed the Deputy of Santa at the North Pole, and he will be assisted by the sixth-grade students. Zack will begin gift-giving first thing Friday morning.

Parents are welcome to join the Hillwood festivities from 1:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. The talent show will be from 1:30 to 2:30. Students will be singing songs in Spanish, performing skits, dancing, and playing musical instruments. Even the kindergarten kids and first graders will at the front of the center room performing. The parent gathering upstairs begins at 2:30.

Below is a holiday card for readers of The Hillwood Herald. Have a safe and wonderful holiday, and remember that the school will be closed until Monday, January 3, 2011.

Links: Animoto

By Jennifer and Angela

FROM A GRADUATE: The Start of School

Hey Herald readers! How do you all feel with school coming back in session? Some parents feel like it's torture while others think that it's great!

I started school just last Wednesday — big difference from Hillwood! Hillwood is really small so transferring to Oceana was quite a shock. I haven't been able to make friends yet since most of them came from the same middle schools; but, it is only the second week of school.

My school has a block schedule meaning that everyday has different classes. (See separate post:http://thehillwoodherald.blogspot.com/2010/08/my-block-schedule.html )

There's so many extracurricular activities: theater production, sports, student council, Pacific Asian Club, and lots more. Hehe. I listed the ones that I'm interested in. I'm currently in the tennis club and I'm running for Freshmen Class Secretary! Hope I win! I'm also going to the theater production meeting tomorrow. I'll start posting some videos and pictures the next time I post. I hope that even though I have moved onto high school, I can still be part of the Hillwood family :)

The Hillwood Uniform

Still making your back-to-school purchases? Don't forget the uniform!

Dennis Uniform — both online and at located in San Francisco — sells all the essentials of the Hillwood uniform. You can download a handy check list from the Dennis website.

Although the girls have an option of either a plaid "skort" or a skirt, they may also where navy capri pants. The latter may be — on occasion — found at regular department stores.

Hillwood Yearbook Publishing Ideas

Some ideas for our yearbooks include:

~The Stock Contest for 7th to 8th graders; write down the chosen stock companies

~A staff page with names, ages (optional), position at school, and something personal about them

~Graduating class and attending high schools in fall semester; include names, ages, etc. under picture/photo of student

~Kindergarten graduating class. Include photos of field trips, events, etc. on page.

~Achievements for "Person Who Read Most Books," "Honor Roll," "Best Halloween Costume," "Most Athletic Person," "Top Student in Blog Class," etc.

~List of Top Field Trips

~Favorite Singer/Movie Star

~Muir Woods Overnight

~"Traveling Around the World" page where kids can send in articles about going on vacations

~Ideas of summer activities

~Favorite sports and games

~Funniest moments in each class

~Most memorable moment in each class

~Book reviews

~Favorite lunch at Hillwood

~Favorite pet/animals

~Top books read in class this year

If you have any more ideas, please comment below =).

Credits go to Irene, Brigette, and Anya

Hillwood's Annual May Overnight

Every year at Hillwood in May, Mr. and Mrs. Grantz invites students from grades fourth and up to their cabin in Muir Woods. It is usually seperated in terms of gender so, no worries about cooties. At the overnight, students can just hang out and have fun. There are a many activities ranging from a hike in the national park to playing volletyball right outside the cabin to watching movies. Along with the fun activities, Mrs. Grantz is an awesome cooker!!! At last year's overnight, we had pasta, corn, and chicken for dinner. In the morning, we ate the classic scrambled eggs and potatoes.

Some memorable activities include.... well, practically the whole experience! On the Muir Woods hike, Anya tried to scare me by running to the front and hiding in random bushes. I helped Mrs. Grantz prepare breakfast and make additional treats for the students such as coacoa and cinnamon rolls. During the night, we watched several movies that were brought in by our class. There was The Dark Knight and Spirited Away.

Of course, we slept over at the cabin. Everyone brought sleeping bags and parked a space in the living room; some in front of the t.v., some in the back. All in all, it was very fun. I got to know some people very well on this trip and we got closer. I hope that new students and current fourth graders think so too!

Hillwood's Annual All-Day Christmas Party

Every year during the merry month, Hillwood throws an all-day Christmas party for our students and families. The day starts off as normal. At around 10 AM, the whole school gathers in the middle room downstairs. The appointed Deputy of Santa (Eighth Grader Brigette W.) comes along with her helpers (Irene T., Julian F., and Julien G.) to distribute presents around to everybody (the presents are part of a Secret Santa Draw we do in class. Will get on to that in a minute). The Deputy of Santa will use her special "reindeer ears" to determine if each student has been naughty or nice for the year by asking questions such as, "Did you eat your veggies this year?" or "Have you listened to your mommy a lot?" The child will respond with (of course) yes to every question and he/she will receive a present sent by an anonymous student. The party is followed by a short break and lunch. Afterwards, the students host a Talent Show with various acts from grades Kindergarten to Eighth. Parents are invited as the audience of these special performances.

Secret Santa
In each class, a draw for Secret Santa is used. The teacher writes each students' name on a piece of paper and folds it. She puts it in a small container and asks one student to come up one at a time to pick one. Whichever person this student picks, he/she has to present a gift for the child with a limit of $10 on the gift. It's fun overall as you try to guess who is going to give you a present and what it will be. Also, it doesn't leave out anybody who doesn't get a gift. During the Present Time when the Deputy of Santa distributes the gifts, each student will know the sender on the tag.

Talent Show Acts
Ms. Gayle Schmitt, the school's music/singing teacher, conducts a song for each talent show (two annually) with each class. The upper graders will be singing "Jingle Bell Rock", Fourth Grader Faryn D. and Jennifer L. will be dueting the Spanish song "Feliz Navidad", and Brigette W. will be playing a lovely tune on her violin. There is always a variety. Last year, Samantha played the hula hoop and played the harmonica--at the same time! Julien G. is also very musically talented. He was in a band over the summer as a singer and he plays the piano. Zack taught himself how to play the guitar while Anya can perform amazing backflips! Everyone has a chance to show off some kind of talent.

Parents Corner
Parents can look forward to seeing their kids perform in the Talent Show and the Parents' Party. Our wonderful staff of Hillwood will be there. They include: Mr. and Mrs. Grantz, Ms. Kathy Tom, Ms. Sybil Dawson, Mrs. Eileen Woods, Ms. Samantha Caine, Ms. Lydia Cortias, Ms. Gayle Schmitt, Ms. Anna H., and Ms. Martha Yow.

Party Attire
Kids can come in fancy-casual dress. No jeans, t-shirts, and graphic shirts. Otherwise, uniforms as usual.

Picture Source: Google Images

Hillwood's Fall Open House: Nov 12th, 5-7:30 P.M.

Hey everyone! Please mark your calendars for next week's Open House!

Next Thursday, the wonderful directors of Hillwood is hosting an Open House for prospective families. If you are also a prospective parent, here is a small description of Hillwood:

Hillwood Academic Day School has been in the Pacific Heights area of San Francisco for 60 years, starting in the year of 1949. School lessons are held in a Victorian house. True, it has a small amount of students but do you want your child/children to be cared for? Do you want your kid(s) to test averagely and above? Will you want them to have hot meals during lunch? If you answer yes to any of these questions, then Hillwood is right for your child/children. Mr. and Mrs. Grantz, the directors of Hillwood, truly care about the students here. They are friendly and can always make you smile and laugh.

Most Hillwood graduates have fond memories here. From the wonderful basketball challenges to the awesome over-nights at the Grantz family's cabin in Muir Woods. Also, most Hillwood students test well enough to get into the high schools of their choices. They have gone on to some of the best high schools in San Francisco such as Lowell, Saint Ignatius, and Sacred Heart.

For lunch, Mr. and Mrs. Grantz hired Ms. Martha to cook for us. It's all fresh, not frozen like those big schools. Some of the student favorites are hot dogs, pot stickers, and macaroni and cheese. It's all fresh off the stove straight from the pots.

Well, we hope very much for families to come. Once you're child is here, it is like he/she is part of a family... a very big family! Everyone is welcome to the Open House on November 12th, from 5 to 7:30 P.M.

There will be light refreshments served, along with provided child care. Hillwood students should come and in uniforms.

Well, I will see everyone at the Open House next week. It will be a pleasure to meet you!! ^^

*Photo Credit: Julian F.

Final Cut for the ‘I am What I Learn’ Contest

Here is our final version of our video. Below is one of the earlier versions. All entries are due on November 2.

You may want to read Irene's post on the contest or watch the informational video from the White House below. Also, read the requirements (image on this page) and on this White House page.

Here's Hillwood — in Pictures

This is a video of Hillwood. We used an application on "animoto.com." Here are the five main steps of creating a video on this application.

Each week, a Hillwood student will create a photo essay on the site.

1. Go to animoto.com
2. log in as laura_moorhead@mindspring.com Password:hillwood
3. Upload pictures
4. select music
5. POST!

Photo essay by Zack O. and Julian F.

My Feelings About the Students Across America Speech

My feelings about the Students Across America speech on Tuesday September 8, 2009, at Hillwood Academic Day School, where I watched it on TV was inspirational. The Students Across America speech by Barack Obama was great. It really spoke to me. He spoke with such confidence, again the speech was inspiring!

Photo credit: Wall Street Journal

Photo of Samantha Z. by Irene X.