CEL Parent Newsletter
Thursday, September 9, 2010
www.swregional.org
1. Welcome to Our New School Year! - Our opening of school went very smoothly. I would like to acknowledge the efforts of our summer custodial and maintenance staff in readying the building and grounds for the first day of school. Our teachers spent many days preparing their classrooms for our young students. On the first three days of school, our children were greeted by many smiling faces. In addition to many of our staff members, I would like to thank the several PTO volunteers who assisted us in the mornings to escort our children into their classrooms. PTO volunteers also assisted our children in the cafeteria during lunch for the first couple of days. Thank you to Mrs. Ahrendt, Mrs. Babcock, Mrs. Clink, Mrs. La Bar, Mrs. Flannery, Mrs. Horn, Mrs. Lauver, Mrs. Lazorczyk, , and Mrs. Webster. I realize that as parents and guardians the beginning of the new school year brings many forms for you to sign and information to read. We do appreciate your prompt attention to completing the double- sided emergency cards and returning them with your child. It is very important that we have contact numbers to reach you in case of an emergency with your child.
2. Student Handbook: This has been updated and contains valuable information for you regarding school and district policies. Every child has received one. Please read through it and return the form stating that you have reviewed the specific policies. These forms are due in school on Wednesday, September 15. The last page of the Student Handbook, page 35, is the school calendar for the year. The spring recess has been changed to April 18-25, so there will be a revised insert included with the Student Handbook.
3. Back to School Night- Our annual Back to School Night program is Thursday, September 23. The program begins promptly at 7:00 P.M. A letter with the details will be sent home. The purpose of the evening is to provide you with an opportunity to meet your child’s classroom teachers and the other teachers involved in your child’s education. This program is not appropriate for children to attend. There is a short general session at which you will be able to meet other school personnel who have a role in your child’s education. Teachers will explain the daily classroom routine and the curricula they are teaching. Individual parent-teacher conferences are scheduled for November. On Thursday morning, students are asked to bring in the diorama they created as part of the CEL Summer Reading Motivation Program. All dioramas will be displayed at our Back to School Night Program in our library. We are looking forward to meeting all our families and viewing the children’s creative scenes of a favorite book!
4. Instant Alert Notification System- The Honeywell Instant Alert System is an essential tool enabling all families to stay informed of school closing due to inclement weather and other school events. The instructions for creating your personalized account are on the back of this newsletter. We recommend that you set up your account today so that school information will be communicated to you in the way you would like to receive it.
5. Healthy Lifestyles- Nutrition is part of our education program provided to all our children. As educators, we model healthy decisions during the school day by not drinking soda in front of children and not distributing candy to children during the school day. As a parent, you have many opportunities to discuss healthy nutrition with your child and act as a positive role model. There are two daily school routines in which you can help support healthy and nutritional decisions. The first one is lunch. If you send a lunch to school with your child, talk to your child about healthy choices and the foods they would like to eat. Remind your child that he/she should be eating the lunch you pack together. If your child is buying the school lunch, the nutritional value is indicated on the monthly school lunch menu. Snack are available for your child to purchase after they have eaten lunch. Please discuss with your child the nutritional value of the snacks and the number of snacks that should be purchased in one lunch period. Sending a dollar bill with your child to purchase a snack is an excellent way for your child to apply counting money. Discuss with your child how much change he/she should receive to bring home. Count the change with your child at the end of the day. Counting money and recognizing the different coins is an important math skill we teach and reinforce each year. Lunch time purchases give your child a practical application of these skills.
6. Washing Hands- We all recognize that washing hands is an important tool for staying healthy. Our students wash their hands before eating snack and lunch. Students wash their hands after using the restrooms. Each classroom has its own sink which makes this process a natural part of the school day. We ask that parents not send in Purell or other hand sanitizers. The reason for this is that hand sanitizers have a high degree of alcohol and primary- aged children still put their fingers in their mouths frequently. There have been cases where students have become ill after using hand sanitizers and placed their fingers in their mouths. We appreciate your help in this area.
7. Parent Advisory Meeting: A Special Education Parent Advisory Council Meeting will be held on Friday, September 24th, at 9:00 in the Board of Education Conference Room. This is an opportunity to ask questions about the special education department and be informed of current practices and programs. All interested parents are welcome to attend. Please contact Nanci Valente, Director of Special Services, at (973) 875-3175 x 4509, or nvalente@swregional.org for further information.
8. Absentee Call System: Our district policy requires families to call the specific school to notify us of your child’s absence. This can be done by calling the CEL main number 973-875-8820 or the direct line to the absentee call system at 973-875-1322. The message will ask you to state the reason for your child’s absence. If the absence is due to illness, you will be asked to inform us if your child has a fever greater than 100 degrees, if they have a cough and/or fever, if they are vomiting or have diarrhea. We appreciate your cooperation.
9. Scout Meetings- We are happy to host a number of Scout meetings after school. Any child staying after school for a Scout meeting must bring a note to school in the morning stating that he/she will not be taking the bus home, but will be staying after for a Scout meeting. Without a note, the child will be put on the bus home at the end of the day. Our office staff will not be calling home to obtain verbal permission. All Scout leaders have been informed of this policy.
10. Student Drop Off- Due to safety concerns, please remember to drive into our main parking lot in the morning when you are dropping your child off. An adult needs to walk your child across the yellow cross-walk to the front of the building. Only school buses may be in the bus loop from 8:10-8:55.
11. Student Pick up- Thank you for remembering to send in a note with your child if he/she is going to be picked up from school. We need a note from you each day that child will be picked up. Due to the volume of notes we receive, our office staff cannot keep track of notes with consecutive days listed. Thanks for your cooperation.
12. Dismissal- Parents picking up children may sign out their children beginning at 2:50 and students will be dismissed to parents at 3:05. Thank you for adhering to this time schedule as it enables us to dismiss all of our students safely.
13. Family Run/ Walk- The 6th Annual Woodbourne Park 5K Family Walk/Run will be held Saturday, September 18, 2010. The race begins at 9:00 A.M. with registration beginning at 8:00 A.M.-8:30 A.M. This is a great way for families to exercise and enjoy the outdoors together! More information can be found at the Race Hotline 973-702-0255 or email : woodbournepark5k@embarqmail.com.
14. Breakfast/Lunch Prices- Prices are listed below.
Student Breakfast- $1.35
Student Reduced Breakfast- $0.30
Student Lunch- $2.35
Student Reduced Lunch- $0.40
Milk (kindergarten) $0.35
Milk (cafeteria) $0.50
15. Healthy Tip- Each week, our school nurse, Pam Flynn, will offer you a healthy tip. We can all use ideas that help us maintain a healthy diet and lifestyle.
Fruits & Vegetables
Most of the snacks served to children should be fruits and vegetables, since most children do not eat the recommended 5 to 13 servings of fruits and vegetables each day. Eating fruits and vegetables lowers the risk of heart disease, cancer, and high blood pressure. Fruits and vegetables also contain important nutrients like vitamins A and C and fiber.
Serving fresh fruits and vegetables can seem challenging. However, good planning and the growing number of shelf-stable fruits and vegetable products on the market make it easier. Though some think fruits and vegetables are costly snacks, they are actually less costly than many other less-healthful snacks on a per-serving basis. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the average cost of a serving of fruit or vegetable (all types – fresh, frozen, and canned) is 25 cents per serving. This is a good deal compared with a 69 cent single-serve bag of potato chips or an 80-cent candy bar. Try lots of different fruits and vegetables and prepare them in various ways to find out what your children like best.
Lawrence School 973-875-8820 Wantage School 973-875-4589 Sussex Middle School 973-875-4138
