Normandy Park School

Monday, February 5th an F Day.

I hope that everyone had a wonderful weekend!

This week, our new nurse, Francesca Ecker, will begin (additional information below). Fortunately, we were able to have her start date moved up from the initially communicated March start date. We are excited for our students and families to formally meet our new nurse as she acclimates to our school and community!

On Monday, our Souper Bowl Food Drive begins. During the week, bins will be placed in the school for items to be donated. Students can place the food in a bin that has the logo of the team they hope will win. We tally the amount of food on each team and announce the winner. The real winner is our community who greatly benefits from Normandy Park’s generosity!

As always, please do not hesitate to reach out via phone or e-mail with any questions.

Sincerely,

Chris Miller (christopher.miller@msdk12.net)

Our new nurse, Francesca Ecker will now begin this week! The best way to contact Nurse Ecker is via phone (973) 889-7960 ext. 6152 or e-mail at francesca.ecker@msdk12.net.

Nurse Ecker has experience in the hospital and school setting. She most recently worked as a school nurse at Red Oaks. Nurse Ecker is also a proud alumni of Morristown High School! We are extremely excited that she is joining the NPS community!

Valentine's Day is fast approaching (2/14/22).

As in past years, students can bring in Valentine's card but no candy treats (per MSD guidelines). Cards must be every child in the classroom.

If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out!

Last week, teachers and students had a great time sporting their 80s attire to celebrate a great 90+ days of school so far!

Thanks to support from the HSA and the MEF, we are proud to present a cultural arts residency program from the Mayo Performing Arts Center, in which our students will learn about and perform musical theater!

Over the past 3 weeks, students have begun practice and met their instructors. Students enthusiastically engaged in acting exercises. In addition, they were introduced to a song that all classes will perform.

Throughout residency sessions, instructors will focus on will focus on:

• Musical theater background and analysis – Students will be given material from Broadway musicals. They will learn about the composer/lyricist, artistic team, cast, and the performance history of the musical. They will also get a broad overview of general musical theater history.
• Basic acting skills – Through the use of improvisation and theatre games, the students will be introduced to basic acting technique, stage presence and character development.
• Movement – Through the use of basic theater dance combinations and warm-up routines, the students will gain basic movement vocabulary and a better control of body movement.
• Vocal technique – Students will work on breath control, diction, and placement while performing class song selections and warm-up exercises.
• Song performance and analysis – Students will learn to interpret and express the lyrics of a song.

Residency will conclude the first week of March with a grade/unit level performance for parents. Invitation to come shortly with specific times for child(ren).

Dates:

Grade Units 2/3: FINAL PERFORMANCE Tuesday March 5th

Grade Units K/1: FINAL PERFORMANCE Wednesday March 6th

Grade Units 4/5: FINAL PERFORMANCE Thursday March 7th

Save the Date! This event is hosted by two NPS mothers, who also happen to be extremely talented mental health professionals.

HSA clubs continue this week. Please check the schedule below for precise pick-up locations.

With the exception of make-up testing, iReady testing is complete.

To view data reports online, please use the information provided below. To log-in to your student's i-Ready Dashboard you have to be on their device or login to their msdk12 account through Clever.

Printed reports will be sent home by February 16th.

Click here to visit our Home and School Association website!

Create a profile on our NPS HSA Membership Toolkit to enable your participation in the school directory (grade/teacher), sign up to receive the Home and School Association's weekly newsletter, submit club forms, volunteer and more!

The HSA's Membership Toolkit is the key to staying informed! If you have not done so already, we encourage you to create a profile which will enable participation in the school directory and the ability to sign up to receive our weekly newsletter, submit club forms, volunteer and more!

Show your NPS pride! Purchase NPS school gear directly from Redbubble. A small percentage of profits will be returned to NPS with your purchase!

Due to scheduling conflicts, the February Disco has been canceled, but we have planned a Karaoke Night in April!

Follow the NPS HSA on Social Media:

Instagram: @nps_wizards

Facebook: Normandy Park School HSA

Our SouperBowl Foodraiser is starting tomorrow February 5th and will run through Friday, February 9th . Don’t forget to send in your canned and dry goods to help support our community. We have the bins marked with the final two teams (49ers and Chiefs) by the front office ready to accept your donations.

As we celebrate Black History month, I wanted to highlight one of the early women of color in social work: Thrya Edwards (1897-1953). Ms. Edwards started her career as a Social Worker in Chicago, working with at-risk populations and with women and children. She organized the first child care program in Rome to assist Jewish survivors of the Holocaust. She was a lecturer, women’s rights advocate, labor organizer and journalist

This week Feb 5-9 marks National School Counseling Week. School Counselors across the country are providing a multitude of services including individual and group counseling, crisis management, conflict mediation and restorative practices. We give class lessons that support social and emotional learning and school wide community building. We give support to parents/families and connect them with community resources. We are members of the Intervention and Referral Service Team, are the lead investigators for any Harassment, Intimidation and Bullying concerns and chair our School Culture and Climate teams. As one of several bilingual counselors in this district we provide translation services and support to our Spanish-speaking community. This role of caring and compassion has been one that I am proud to have been a part of.

It is therefore with mixed emotions that I inform you of my retirement at the end of this school year. It has been an honor and a privilege having the opportunity to work in this district for the last 26 years. I cannot thank you enough for entrusting me with your children all these years. Rest assured I will continue to provide support to you and your children for the remainder of the year. Please reach out to me if you have any questions or concerns.

Thank you for an amazing journey and remember to stay awesome!

Sincerely,

Cheryl Cohen, MSW, LCSW

School Counselor

Please join the Normandy Park Community once again in supporting the Interfaith Food pantry with our annual SOUPER Bowl food raiser.

The food drive will start tomorrow, Monday February 5th and end on Friday, February 9th. During the week, bins will be placed in the school for items to be donated. Students can place the food in a bin that has the logo of the team they hope will win. We tally the amount of food on each team and announce the winner. The real winner is our community who greatly benefits from Normandy Park’s generosity!

Click here for more information and a list of some of the many items our community needs.

Check out some SEL resources from our MSD counseling intern team!

English SEL newsletter

Spanish SEL newsletter

Click the following links to register for the 2024 Spring Season:

2024 BASEBALL REGISTRATION | 2024 SOFTBALL REGISTRATION

Your player(s) must be registered via the link(s) above by February 5, 2024 in order to play in the 2024 spring season. Once registration is complete, there will be mandatory evaluations for certain divisions/players. More details to follow on which players will need to be evaluated, but if your child is new to Little League, aging up into a new division or hoping to play for Majors for the first time, it's a good idea to save the following dates:

SOFTBALL EVALUATIONS: Borough School / Saturday 2/10 3PM

BASEBALL EVALUATIONS: St. Elizabeth’s College / Sunday 2/11 9AM

Registration closes on February 5, 2024. See below for the little league age charts if you need help figuring out which division your player is eligible for:

LL BASEBALL AGE CHART | LL SOFTBALL AGE CHART

Go MALL!!!

SUPPORT OUR STUDENTS WITH A GIFT TO THE MORRIS EDUCATIONAL FOUNDATION!

The Morris Educational Foundation (MEF) works year-long in collaboration with the Morris School District community to bring resources to all students and all schools. Together, we help everyone Imagine the Possibilities - and make it a reality.

This includes funding for annual Cultural Arts programming, classroom grants as well as literacy programs and resources to name a few. We rely on our donors to make this all possible and during this season of giving, we ask for you to consider a gift at bit.ly/MEFgift to help us continue our impact for the ‘23-24 school year.

Click here to learn more about the MEF's impact. The Morris School District is an amazing place, and the MEF is proud to be its partner for over 30 years. We hope you will join us this school year to Imagine the Possibilities!

Click here for Breakfast and Lunch Menus.

For additional information on MSD Breakfast and Lunch, please click here to visit the district's website.

Students can bring and/or purchase lunch. Free and reduced meals are provided to families who qualify for support.

Students who qualify for Free and Reduced Lunch qualify for free/reduced breakfast as well. Applications are available through PaySchools. Click the link to create your PaySchool account (ENG or ESP) Once you create your account, the Free & Reduced Application will be available complete online. Please note that you do not have to print out the application if you complete it online; it will be electronically sent to the Board Office once completed. You may also complete an application using a computer in the main office of your child's school or request a paper application.

If you do not qualify for Free and Reduced Lunch, please follow these procedures for purchasing school breakfast or lunch:

• Backpack an envelope with your child's name on it, marked "Food Services.
• Include your child's name in the memo line of your check.
• You may prepay for multiple breakfasts or lunches with one check or lump sum of money, which will then be deposited onto your child's food services account.
• Payment may also be made online ( (ENG or ESP); a small fee will be charged with each transaction. This is a secure and convenient way to make payments and keep your account up to date.
• Payment may be made in cash or check (payable to "Morris School District"

MEAL PRICING:

***Meal Prices for School Year 2023-2024***

Elementary Breakfast

$1.50

Elementary Lunch

$3.00

Reduced Price Breakfast

$0.00

Reduced Price Lunch

$0.00

Milk

$0.75

Checks are made payable to "Morris School District".

Please use the digital blue note form for any dismissal changes. The main office will notify the homeroom teachers of the dismissal change. For absences, continue to contact the school nurse.

• If you know that you child will be tardy or absent from school, it is requested that you notify the nurse in advance. This can be done by phone at 973-889-7960 x 6152. Voicemail is operational 24 hours daily.

• You may also contact her office by email at: marybeth.supple@msdk12.net

• Students who arrive tardy (after 8:55am) must report immediately to the Health Office upon arrival to school for a late pass

• February 5th: ACCESS Testing Window Opens (Testing for Multi-language Learners)
• February 19th: School Closed

Click here to view Morris School District (MSD) 2023-2024 School calendar.

· Parent Handbook

· Arrival and Dismissal Procedures

· Free and Reduced Meal Application

· Sunset and Sunrise