NUT SWAMP ELEMENTARY! APRIL - MAY 2015

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The Masters is a big golf tournament that happens every April. It is one of the four major tournaments in the PGA: the U.S Open, PGA Championship, and the Open Championship. This is the first major tournament of all the four majors. This and the other three majors are part of a golf grand slam. This is not a baseball grand slam. It means one player has won all the four majors (only five players have done this.) The defending champion Bubba Watson will put the

green jacket on the winner’s back and also give the trophy. If Bubba Watson wins, the winner who won in 2013, Adam Scott, will then do this.  The players most likely to win this year are Bubba Watson, Phil Mickelson, Adam Scott, Rory Mcilroy and Jordan Spieth because they are excellent golfers.This tournament is always held at Augusta National Golf Club. Kids of all ages play in the chip, putt and long drive competition held the day before the tournament. The players are separated by age level. Right before someone gets to the clubhouse they see the United States with a flagpole {see picture on the top of page] in a garden made out of flowers. The most famous hole on the course is hole ten because it has more excitement than any other playoff hole.

TIGER TIMESTHE MASTERS TOURNAMENTEvan S., grade 3

On Saturday, April 18, 2015, the Lincroft Little League Opening Day parade was held. All the teams met and waited in the St Leo’s Church parking lot in Lincroft for the parade to begin. All the baseball and softball players were wearing their uniforms. Every team had a banner that had the team name on it and all the player’s names on it.

At 10:00 the parade started. That is when all the fire trucks and police cars came. Then all the players started to march. The fire trucks led the way and they had their sirens on. All the teams marched down the middle of Newman Springs Road. All the spectators threw candy out at the players. The players ran for the candy and put it in their bags.

The parade ended at the Lincroft Little League f i e lds . Saturday wa s Opening Day so many teams had games after the parade. Basebal l season has started!

OPENING DAY PARADEJack D., grade 1

This is such a big event that the tickets cost over one thousand dollars. 2013 had a big playoff hole when Adam Scott beat Miguel Cabrera on hole ten by one shot. This year on April 12, Jordan Spieth age 21 won the masters at -18 under par which was a Masters scoring record. So the 2014 winner Bubba Watson put the green jacket on Jordan Spieth and Spieth will put the jacket on the 2016 winner or if he wins again Bubba Watson will put it on.

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KIDS OPINION: MINECRAFTThomas P., grade 3One game that a lot of kids like is Minecraft. It’s a popular game that can be played on Xbox, PE, PC, and Play Station. There are 2 versions of Minecraft, Creative and Survival. In Creative, you have an unlimited supply of blocks. In Survival, you have to break blocks, collect ores, and try to get the best weapons and armor possible. Minecraft is created by Mojang. Notch and Jeb are the main creators of Mojang. I don’t know what their real names are. I like Minecraft so much because it allows you to use your imagination and the possibilities are endless! You can build anything you want! If I had to pick a favorite console to play on, I would definitely choose PC because it’s the only version with servers. On a server, there are always other people playing, so you’re not lonely. In my opinion Minecraft is the best game ever!

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

The Pine Barrens Tree FrogOlivia C., grade 4

Have you ever stopped and thought about the Pine Barrens and the creatures that live there? Well, they are pretty amazing! There are over 150 different types of animals in the Pine Barrens including flying squirrels,deer and beavers. The most interesting creature,in my opinion, is the Pine Barrens Tree Frog!  You can find these frogs living in the Pine Barrens of New Jersey.  

The Pine Barrens can a l so be ca l led “Pinelands”. They are in southern New Jersey. It is a forest with streams and rivers that make it a good place for animals and plants to live including the Pine Barrens tree frog.  This frog is very small (about the size of a bee) with big bulging eyes and is bright green.  The interesting thing about the color of this frog is it has a lavender stripe down the side. Its most comfortable place to live is in the thick moss near water sources like streams and rivers. You might hear the “quonk quonk”of this tiny frog before you see it. The frog eats grasshoppers, crickets and beetles.

The Pine Barren Tree Frog can also be found in South Carolina, North Carolina, south central Alabama and along the Florida panhandle. In 1979, this frog was listed as an endangered species but is now considered stable in New Jersey.

I hope you have learned a lot and are interested in seeing one of these frogs some day. I know I am!

SCIENCE: DOLPHINSDevyn A., grade 2Do you think dolphins are cool? Here are some fun facts about dolphins! There are 42 different species in the dolphin family. New Jersey is home to the Bottlenose dolphin. The Bottlenose dolphin is the most common and well known species. The Bottlenose dolphin has a bigger brain than a human brain, and are very intelligent. Dolphins are fun and playful just like us. When you go to the beach do you like to jump, splash and ride the waves with friends? If you answered yes, then you have something in common with a dolphin. Dolphins live off of our coast and may be spotted at our local beach, Sandy Hook. Bottlenose dolphins travel into our local Navesink River in Red Bank too! You may get lucky and spot a Bottlenose dolphin between spring and fall. Dolphins are carnivores, which means they’re meat eating mammals. The Navesink River is full of fish which attract the dolphins. Next time you're in Red Bank take a walk down by the river and see if you can spot a pod of dolphins, and make sure you have your camera ready!

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On February 27th, Girl Scout Troop 744 and Troop 465 presented to the 4th Grade classes the importance of beach grass and dunes to earn their Bronze Award. It was explained that we need dunes to protect homes that are close to the beach. Dunes will block most of the water from flooding houses, and the winds from ripping off roofs. When beach grass is planted into the dunes the roots grab a hold of the ground, they help stop erosion in the area.

Stevie Thorsen, Education Director from the American Littoral Society, came to help the two troops and our classmates plant culms that will grow into beach grass. Working with partners, the beach grass culms were placed into plastic cups with two handfuls of sand and dirt. A hole was

poked in the middle of the cup, then the beach grass culm was placed in the hole. The Girl Scouts took turns watering the g ra s s e ver y day in the i r classrooms until they were ready to be planted.

On March 28th from 10:00 - 12:00, the beach grass was planted on the dunes at Sandy Hook. I was happy to help plant the beach grass and help the environment! Many families will be able to enjoy the beach because of our efforts.

BOOK NOOK: The Innings and Outs of BaseballRyan L., grade 2

Has your baseball season started? Mine has. Have you ever wanted to hit a home run or pitch some tricky pitches? If so, ‘The Innings and Outs of Baseball’, by Jordan D. Brown, is for you! This book uses physics to exp la in the sc ience o f baseball.

Chapter 1, ‘It’s a Hit!’, talks about how players hit home runs by hitting the ball in the ‘sweet spot’, which is 6 inches from the end of the bat. Chapter 2, ‘Tricky Pitches’, tells how to throw a fastball, a knuckleball and a curveball. In Chapter 3, ‘Baseball Experiments’, we learn how scientists have done tests in labs and built robots to discover how pro baseball players hit the ball so far. Chapter 4, ‘The Stadium Experience’, tells you how they make the dark and light green patterns on the field. They are actually optical illusions! Also, the author describes why the noise at the s tadium can get overwhelming and how our noses are able to smell the stadium food.

This book will teach you new things and help you play baseball better. If you love baseball and science like I do, I urge you to read this book. You’ll really enjoy it!

NUT SWAMP CARES:Dunes and Beach GrassMarissa S., grade 4

FEATURED ARTISTJuliana F., grade 3

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Have you ever wondered about Mrs. Antonucci, 3rd grade teacher at Nut Swamp School? I have. So I asked her a few questions about her life.

Where were you born?Teaneck, New Jersey

How many siblings do you have?I have 3 sisters and 1 brother

What did you like to do with your siblings in your free time?We like to go to the beach and celebrate holidays together.

What college did you go to?Catholic University in Washington D.C

When did you become a teacher?1993

What is your favorite sport and why?Baseball, all of my children play it.

I also asked Mrs. Antonucci about some of her favorite things.

• Favorite hobbies~ Going to the beach and gardening

• Favorite food~ Chicken Cesar salad and sea food

• Favorite color~ Blue• Favorite candy ~ Skittles and jelly beans• Favorite T.V show~ Vikings and Anything

on HG TV• Favorite movie ~ Elf and Remember the

Titians • Favorite book~ The Giving Tree

This was a very interesting interview. I thought it was very cool to learn about what my teacher is like outside of school and I hope you did too!

TEACHER FEATURE:MRS. ANTONUCCIMolly D., grade 3

TIGER TIMES IS NOW PUBLISHED MONTHLY!

Check Nut Swamp’s website if you want to become a staff writer.

SPORTS: A NEVER ENDING GAMEJuliana S., grade 5

The longes t game in Yankee baseball history was played by the New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox a t Yankees S tad ium in Bronx, NY. This mind-blowing 6 hrs. 49 min. (of f i c i a l t ime ) game started at 7:00 pm on

April 10, 2015 and ended at 2:13 am the next day. The game lasted an astonishing 19 innings. This is the second longest game played by the Red Sox, who won with a score of 6-5.

Here are some cool facts about the game: Mark Teixeira turned 35 during the game, 628 pitches were thrown, a 16 minute power outage occurred during the 16th inning,  four hours between runs for the Red Sox, and longest game for the Yankees in history.

If I was a player in this game, I would have been both tired and excited. However, being a Yankees fan, I was sad about the ending of the game. On the other hand, it was fun to watch and learn about this historic event. Even with this loss, I hope the Yankees win the World Series this year.

This game reminded me of the saying “It’s one, two, three strikes, you’re out at the old ball game…”