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MONROE TOWNSHIP SCHOOL DISTRICT
The Falcon Flyer Email Newsletter
JUNE 2017
Your Monthly News & Updates
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A Message From The Superintendent's Office...
Dear Falcon Community,
Happy Father's Day to all of our fathers in the community. Fathers, as our mothers, are our first teachers and provide us with advice and guidance throughout our lives. On behalf of the Monroe Township Board of Education and the entire Monroe Educational Community, we wish all of our fathers a happy and healthy Father's Day.
At the June 14, 2017 Board Meeting, we will be honoring our retirees. Many of our retirees have served the Monroe Township students and community for many years and, on behalf of the Monroe Township Board of Education and our entire Monroe Township Educational Community, we applaud them for enriching the lives of their students over the years and we wish them a happy and healthy retirement. We will also be honoring our student athletes who achieved county or state recognition. These students not only maintain excellent grades, but they have used their athletic abilities, teamwork and determination in achieving county and/or state titles.
Proposed New Schools
The district architect will be reviewing the initial plans for a new elementary school, a new middle school and an addition to our high school to accommodate our growing student population and to add relief to our overcrowded schools at the June Board meeting. Although the schematics are only preliminary, the schematics will provide a glimpse into what we hope to be an exciting new phase in the history of the Monroe Township School District. Please join us. The details are below:
Board of Education Meeting
June 14, 2017
7:00 pm
Monroe Township High School
Please be sure to review the district and school calendars for the month of June to take note of half days and other special events. The 2016-17 school year has been an exciting time for both students and staff. Our students continue to excel and impress us and our devoted staff continue to improve the delivery of education and the learning environment.
In this edition, you will find important information regarding school, district and community events. You can also find valuable information on our MTSD
Facebook page
, @MTSD Falcons
Twitter feed
,
MTSD website
and MTSD app.
Respectfully yours,
Michael Kozak
Dr. Michael Kozak
Superintendent
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Stay up to date on events and happenings in Monroe Township!
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Download the MTSD District Mobile App!
Stay up to date with Monroe Township School District Events and Information!
Use the links below to download this
FREE mobile app to your mobile device.
The App Store:
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STAY CONNECTED with the Monroe Township School District:
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IMPORTANT DATES:
| June 1 |
NJBCT (NJ Biology Competency Test) |
| June 14-18 |
MTHS FINAL EXAMS - 4 Hour Half Day Sessions MTHS ONLY |
| June 16-21 |
4 Hour Half Day Sessions - ALL SCHOOLS |
| June 20-21 |
MTHS FINAL EXAMS MAKE-UPS - 4 Hour Half Day Sessions MTHS ONLY |
| June 21 |
MTHS Graduation - Sun National Bank Center, Trenton, NJ @ 3pm |
Click here to view the 2016-2017 district calendar
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INFORMATION ABOUT
2017-2018 KINDERGARTEN REGISTRATION
Click here to view the flyer
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Mill Lake School Happenings!
The last few months at Mill Lake have been action-packed and full of school community events. The Mill Lake School staff has come together to provide the students with meaningful experiences that will last a life time. Mill Lake held its annual Autism Awareness Assembly and PALs Dinner where our entire school community came together to celebrate inclusiveness!
Students in our 2
nd
and 3
rd
grades were treated to career day, parents from the Mill Lake School Community ranging from scientists to lawyers to market analysts came to speak with our students to show them the different opportunities and careers that might interest them.
As an entire school community we hosted our annual "Evening of Reading" where students heard staff read different stories and celebrated different pieces of literature to share a love of reading. And of course, who doesn't love Field Day! Our physical education teachers, Mrs. Lombard and Mrs. DeFelice in conjunction with the PTO and parent volunteers organized an incredible event that combined friendly competition and teamwork which resulted in Field Day activities that were loved by all.
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Composting Project
in Mrs. Hills's Class
at Applegarth School
The students in Mrs. Hills's room are really learning a lot about composting. Inside the classroom, students are busy composting with worms. They feed the "Red Wigglers" vegetable waste such as banana peels and salad greens and watch as the worms eat the peels and what is extracted from the worms becomes the nutrient enriched compost. Outside the classroom, the students are learning how to make outdoor compost. They bring in sticks, leaves, vegetable waste and grass clippings and all this goes into our "Earth Machine" compost bins located in our garden area. The students also watch as the compost slowly "cooks" in the bins and forms enriched composted soil. With both the outdoor bins and worm composting, the students really learn how composting is a way of recycling organic waste into nutrient rich natural compost. It goes without being said that composting is a lot of FUN!
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Poets Honored in Dr. Morse's Grade 4 Class
at Applegarth School
Poetry can be a tricky subject to teach! However, the students in Dr. Jeannine Morse's class stole the show when three of her students won first, second, and third place in the Monroe Public Library poetry contest. Due to the fact that poetry appears in the curriculum, Dr. Morse invited all of the children in her class to enter this year's contest. The theme this year was "Cities".
The general consensus was that the students felt they were unable to write poetry. To counteract these feelings, they read a story called "Love that Dog" by Sharon Creech. The book is a collection of poems that tell the story of a young boy who thinks he can't write a poem. He is hesitant to even try writing one, and decides he doesn't like poetry.
After reading the book, students began to wonder if they could write poetry. Dr. Morse taught several types of poems which included Limerick, Haiku, Tanka, Concrete, and Narrative as well as several others. With some brainstorming, students wrote poems about busy cities, abandoned cities and even cities in faraway lands. The results were as follows:
2nd Place - Nick Awad
1st Place - Vish Banala
Congratulations to the winners and their families!
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Brookside School News
Three of Brookside School's students were published in the City Kidz World Literacy Magazine: Spring/Summer 2017 issue.
They were:
Arik Ahsan - Grade 3
Benisha Pattanaik - Grade 4
Gurjap Kohli - Grade 5
Find copies of their stories @ the link below:
The Monroe Township Human Relations Commission likes to honor one student from each grade level that displays the six pillars of character: Caring, Responsibility, Respect, Fairness, Citizenship, and Trustworthiness. Brookside's students that were selected are:
Alyssa Stump - Grade 3
Danica Zelvin - Grade 4
Madison Adamcik - Grade 5
Brookside School, each month selects students of the month that best displays the pillars of character.
The students of the months for the 2016-17 school year are:
October - Character Trait of Responsibility
3rd grade - Navya Somula
4th grade - Abhishek Terala
5th grade - Rebecca Padron
November - Character Trait of Respect
3
rd
grade - Samantha Fersht
4
th
grade - Yana Zhmutskaya
5th grade - Madison Adamcik
December - Character Trait of Caring
3rd grade - Chase Gochenour
4th grade - Brandon Macaluso
5th grade - Angelina Rufin
January - Character Trait of Trustworthiness
3rd grade - Alyssa Stump
4th grade - Preston Masigla
5th grade - Shreyas Prabhu
February - Character Trait of Fairness
3rd grade - Justin Goetz
4th grade - Sophia Emilio
5th grade - Tanish Raha
March - Character Trait of Cooperation
4
th
grade - Kartikeya Yadavalli
5
th
grade - Carly Fellin
April - Character Trait of Honesty
3rd grade - Cameron Miller
4th grade - Justin Volkmann
5th grade - Rochelle Olavides
May - Character Trait of Citizenship
3
rd
grade - Jake Evanchik
4
th
grade - Anthony Salesi
5th grade - Lindsay Fennell
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MTHS Holocaust Peace Bench Dedication Ceremony
On Thursday, June 1 students from Ms. Melissa Schwartz's Holocaust and Genocide course dedicated a Holocaust Peace Bench to be placed in the new MTHS Peace Garden.
The project, sponsored by and in collaboration with the Henry Rickliss Memorial Holocaust Committee featured students' honoring several community Holocaust survivors . The program hosted by Ms. Schwartz and her students incorporated poems, reflections and a formal ceremony to present and dedicate our new, beautiful student-constructed bench with survivors. Guests were also treated to viewing a historical iMovie made by students. This special celebration concluded with refreshments for all!
Kudos to Ms. Schwartz and her students for sharing the message and meaning of PEACE!
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Brookside's Fourth Grade EGGStraordinary Egg Drop
Was All It Was CRACKED Up To Be!
It was raining eggs from the roof of Brookside School as the 4th grade attempted its 2nd annual Egg Drop Challenge!
To prepare for the EGGciting event, fourth grade groups had to design and build a contraption that would protect their egg on its journey from the Brookside roof to the unforgiving pavement below. Students were given a "budget", and a list of available materials with different prices. They planned, constructed, and tested their contraptions with plastic 'practice eggs', making revisions based on the results of each test run.
On the big day, the weather proved perfect, and the 4th grade arrived en masse to cheer each other on. Mrs. Nagle and Mrs. Pavese
scrambled
up to the roof to launch 36 creative contraptions. After the first round, 19 of these protective devices were successfully able to deliver an unbroken egg to the pavement behind Brookside! The event was a great success, and even if some contraptions didn't work EGGSactly as hoped, everyone learned a lot and had fun!
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Another Successful
Empty Bowls Event
Empty bowls is a grassroots project to help bring awareness of hunger not only in the United States, but around the world.
This is our 5th year of this community service project. This project for the fifth graders was undertaken as a culminating project as they leave to go to middle school. They were given the task to get statistics and famous quotes about hunger. They are made to understand and become aware about anti-hunger programs such as the Empty Bowls Project at Brookside School, which delivers 100% of money raised and food collected to families, children, and seniors through five local food pantries.
Empty Bowls Recipients
FRIENDS OF THE SENIOR CENTER, Monroe Township, NJ 08831 JAMESBURG PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH, Jamesburg, NJ 08831 RISE FOOD PANTRY, Hightstown, NJ 08520 FEEDING FRENZ, Asbury Park, NJ FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH OF HAMILTON SQUARE GINNY'S PANTRY, Hamilton Square, NJ 08610
This event is possible because of the generosity of the BBBS PTA who have sponsored us every year so we could purchase the supplies. The Gardens of Monroe sponsored the t-shirts for the Empty Bowls ambassadors. A big thank you to the NAHS students and Mr. Virelles for facilitated approximately 145, 5th graders to glaze the bowls and fire them in the kiln, and the middle school students who made bowls and donated them for the auction.
In addition, I would like to thank Mr. Pepe, Mrs. Amendola and all the Brookside staff who have supported this project and helped in so many different ways.
Most of all, we want to thank the parents, family members and friends who came out to support the culminating event on May 19.
This year's event was a colossal success. We had over 200 people attend. We have thus far raised $2,959 and collected 386 non-perishable food items.
This truly is a collective process of everyone involved.
Thank you so much for your continued support!!
You must be the change you wish to see in the world. The difference between what we do and what we are capable of doing would suffice to solve most of the world's problems.
Mahatma Gandhi
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RUTGERS CENTER FOR EFFECTIVE SCHOOL PRACTICES
Our Classroom Summer Enrichment Program
There is a unique and exciting academic opportunity at Rutgers this summer for students entering 5
th
through 12
th
grades
(Our Classroom). They are offering week-long full-day intensive classes that will provide students with content expertise through practical and relevant application. Students will gain transferable skills - the 'how to' behind specific 21
st
century skills - such as communication (oral and written), group work/collaboration, critical thinking, organization, and beyond. Classes being offered (both by RU faculty and master teachers) include, among others, public speaking and different types of presentations as well as one based on design thinking which will allows students to focus on their areas of interest while being guided through the process. Classes will take place at the heart of the College Avenue Campus in New Brunswick in Murray Hall and the program will take advantage of the vast resources RU has to offer (material as well as faculty and other experts). Our Classroom is more than just a summer program. Students will have an opportunity to make new friends while enjoying the college experience at Rutgers! Registration is now open but class size is limited. Attached is a copy of the flyer with a discount code specialized for Monroe School District that will save parents $100.00 per class! Please feel free to reach out to us with any questions, 732-564-9100, x11 or visit our website at
https://cesp.rutgers.edu/our-classroom-students
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Monroe Educator Insider
Volume 4 - Edition #2
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Mrs. Voza's Students Learn About being "Mindful"
Applegarth School
Namaste. During Wellness Week at Applegarth School, fifth grade students in Mrs. Voza's class practiced being mindful. Mrs. Saini, a classroom pare
nt, is a Mindfulness Instructor who taught the students how to be aware of theirbreathing and slow down their heartrate. A simple ten minute demonstration calmed the entire class down. Students focused on clearing their minds and being aware of how they were sitting in that moment. Discussion arose as to when being mindful can benefit the children, such as focusing on a class activity, calming down before a test, and being aware of one's emotions so problems can be well handled. Students were challenged to practice mindfulness for one minute each day for one week and report back to Mrs. Voza. She believes that it will help students' brains be more balanced or restored and anchor students to be in the present moment. This will enhance student learning.
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REMINDER TO PICK UP YOUR
MTHS & MTMS Graduation Lawn Signs!
Signs that have been ordered will be available in Cafeteria A for pick up at
Monroe Township High School on:
June 12th: 2:30pm-4:30pm June 13th: 2:30pm-6:00pm [email protected] or [email protected] with any questions
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N
ew Cub Scouts can join for Spring & Summer Scouting activities starting in April 2017
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Monroe Township School District
Half-Day Integrated Preschool Program
2017-2018 School Year
***REGISTRATION IS NOW OPEN***
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Monroe Township High School
YOUTH & GOVERNMENT DELEGATION
Through the hard work and dedication of our students, the Monroe Township Youth and Government Delegation, lead by advisor Laura Granett, achieved many accolades at this year's conference. Monroe is the largest delegation and we consistently achieve Outstanding or Premier Delegation each year. This year was no different. Please congratulate the students below for their individual achievements.
Outstanding Delegation - Monroe Township
Outstanding Statesman, Kean / Livingston Senate - Pranav Mallampali
Outstanding Statesman, Press - Rishik Narayan
Outstanding Written Legislation - Ansul Rana
Premier Officer- Ariana Yousafzai
Best Judicial Brief - Karina Thanawala, Rithika Reddy, Parineeka Awarsol
Governor's Cabinet, Commissioner of Health - Ariana Yousafzai
Governor's Cabinet, Commissioner of Human Services- Shrina Parikh
Kean / Livingston Senate President - Pranav Mallampali
Successfully Passed Legislation - Shreya Parikh, Akileesh Reddy, Ananth Uchila
Conference on National Affairs, CONA (prestigious nation-wide selection) - Ariana Yousafzai, Shriina Parikh, Rishik Narayana, Pranav Mallampali
CONA Alternates - Nidhi Shah, Dan Hommer
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MTMS PTO
Thank you to all the Parents, School Staff, and Community for your ongoing support for the MTMS PTO fundraisers. The PTO fundraisers help support programs and activities help promote the welfare of the children in school, home and community through the united efforts of all the parents and the entire Middle School staff. Without your support, we would not have been able to bring all those extras to our students!
Below are just some of the events/activites that the MTMS PTO has funded through the school year.
- Rachel's Challenge Program (which included a student and parent assembly for all grades)
- 2 Scholastic Bookfairs enhanced the building and classroom Libraries
- 7th and 8th Grade Dances (free admission for all students)
- 2 Bingos for 6th and 7th grade students (free admission for students participating)
- 8th Grade Volleyball Madness
- End of PARCC Treat (Four Boys Ice Cream) for all students
- Student ID Lanyards for 6th grade students
- MTHS High School Scholarships for 4 former MTMS students
- $300 for busses to Trenton for the District Fair Funding Initiative
- 8th grade Graduation Gowns for each student
- Prizes for MTMS sponsored school activities such as Read-A-Thon and Wellness Week
In addition, the PTO Grant committee approved the following 3 grants for this school year: 1) $200 for the Cooking with Friends Group. The goal of this group is to continue to build connections for our self contained classes with the general education classes by cooking some treats together. 2) $300 for the Connections Balloon Shop to purchase a new helium tank and refill. 3) $425 for banners for the Percussion Ensemble to be used at in and out of school district performances.
As a reminder, please continue to help us fundraise through the summer by continuing to clip box tops and shop through our Amazon link on the website at
www.mtmspto.org
. These are simple ways to help us raise some extra dollars. Also, please like us on Facebook to stay updated on upcoming PTO activities and events.
Good luck to our 8th graders as they move on to High School! We wish them all the best as they continue on their future endeavors!
Have a safe and happy summer!
Rupa Siegel
MTMS PTO President
Chrissy Skurbe
MTMS PTO Vice President
Lisa Pedulla
MTMS PTO Treasurer
Audra DiPierro
MTMS PTO Corresponding Secretary (2016-2017 school year)
Domenica DeSalvo
MTMS PTO Corresponding Secretyar (2017-2018 school year)
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MS. LAURA GRANETT
MTHS Youth & Government Service Award Winner
The Youth and Government Program has been awarding the John F. Sly Service to Youth Award yearly since 1941 to an individual that has made a significant contribution or impact on the program. Previous recipients have included State Senators and Assemblypersons, Program Coordinators, Delegation Advisors, and others whose dedication to the program has both impacted the students and the program as a whole.
This year, the John F. Sly Service to Youth Award was presented to Laura Granett, our Monroe Township HS Delegation Advisor.
Laura has advised Monroe's Youth and Government Delegation for the past 13 years, beginning with her first year as a teacher. Throughout Laura's tenure as the advisor, the Monroe Township Delegation has consistently achieved Outstanding or Premier Delegation and countless students have achieved individual successes each year. Laura's dedication to the program and her students is evident in these achievements.
Congratulations on being recognized with this well-deserved award! Outstanding!
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MTHS ECONOMICS & FINANCE TEAM
The Economics & Finance Team competed at the National Personal Finance Challenge on May 5th at the Federal Reserve of Kanasas City. The National Personal Finance Challenge is an opportunity for state winners to compete against one another by providing financial advice for a fictitious family with respect to budgeting, investing, and management of household finances. Our team of Nishant Nagalia, Sahil Parikh, Ritik Patel and Waheed Zafar earned an impressive 4th place finish nationally.
The Economics & Finance Team is directed by Ms. Terri Weiss and operates within the Department for the Applied Arts and Careers Technology.
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STEM Day at Barclay Brook!
On Friday, March 31
st
Barclay brook hosted its first ever STEM Day. We shared this exciting learning experience with Barclay Brook families and the entire school community. The activities, both hi-tech and lo-tech, were interactive and exciting. In addition, all of the challenges built upon activities that were introduced throughout the year in the Media Center and in the classrooms.
After learning about simple coding and working with the Ozobot robot during Tech Time in the Media Center, first and second grade classes were paired up and worked to become coding specialists for the day. In groups of 5 and 6, the students had to collaborate and code an Ozobot to follow a map of Barclay Brook, visiting several landmarks of the school (cafeteria, main office, gymnasium, etc). The path taken by the bot was at the discretion of the group, with the directive being to "visit as many locations as possible within a 1 minute time-frame". Students had the opportunity to test and refine their coding throughout. Thus, they continually improved upon their Ozobot's efficiency.
Pre-K and Kindergarten classes also joined in on the excitement! After tackling various STEM challenges throughout the year and participating in literature-based STEM activities, our youngest students became engineers! The STEM Day literature-based challenge in which they participated centered around the book,
Munch Muncha Muncha
by Candace Fleming. In this story, a colony of bunnies was eating all of the vegetables in the garden! Students were asked to consider this problem and to then design a structure which would keep the bunnies out of the garden, using every day materials. The scientific process was evident in every classroom, as the students planned, drafted, engineered, tested and refined their designs.
The excitement was palpable and signs of learning were everywhere! With roughly 100 adult visitors in attendance, the day was a rousing success. By the end of STEM day, every student at Barclay Brook School had the opportunity to practice the Engineer Design Process and become 21
st
Century Engineers!
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MONROE RECREATION CENTER
Check out What's Happening!
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MTHS College & Career Counseling Center (CCCC)
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GOT SCHOOL SPIRIT?
Check out
FALCON ZONE
School Store for all of your FALCON merchandise!
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STAY CONNECTED with ATHLETICS
Get the latest information on the
Monroe Township School District Sports Programs
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MTHS ATHLETICS ON "SCHEDULE STAR"
View
"SCHEDULE STAR" to keep current with upcoming athletic events at Monroe Township High School!
Enter Monroe Township HS in the search box for daily, weekly & monthly schedules.
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Student Registration & Documents
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Monroe Township School District | 423 Buckelew Avenue | Monroe Township, NJ 08831
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