The Monroe Messenger

We got off to a rainy start on the first couple of days, but that didn't stop us from having a successful opening to our school year! The week certainly ended on a high note as we reunited with staff, families and friends at our PTO Ice Cream Social.

We look forward to reading a special book to each class during the month of September! This will give us an opportunity to get to know your child a little better and partner with your child's teacher to build a curious classroom.

Each month, we will share highlights of our events, the monthly calendar, useful community resources and important school updates. Please take the time to read our Monroe Messenger.

We hope to see you at our upcoming Back to School Night on September 15th. This is a chance to learn more about your child's class and what they will be learning this year. Keep reading for more information about September's events and news.

Warmly,

Mrs. Cyndi Tufaro, principal

Mrs. Maggie Callahan, assistant principal

Children are eating lunch in the cafeteria daily. They have the option to bring lunch from home or to purchase lunches for $3.00, vegetarian or with meat, every day. See the tabs below to set up your child's account on My School Bucks. We highly recommend using this service which will allow you to monitor all purchases and account balances. For us, it will assist with expedited lunch lines. Also, please review the daily menu choices with your child so they are prepared with their order.

Back to school night is for adults only! Please leave your children at home.

You may have received a letter informing you that your student qualifies for Title I services at James Monroe. If your child has been identified as receiving Title I support, they will be able to benefit from additional resources, events and support throughout the year. Please attend our Title I parent meeting for more information on September 15th at 6:00 pm in the library.

What is Title I?

Title I is a K-12 program that provides additional academic support and learning opportunities for students at schools with high percentages of socioeconomically disadvantaged children. The program is intended to help ensure that all students meet state academic standards.

James Monroe is a Targeted Title I School.

As a targeted Title I school, we received additional state funding to provide resources to identified populations to assist with achieving growth in the areas related to our school goals.

The funding is used to :

Our fourth and fifth graders will be taking the Start Strong state assessment on September 13th and 14th which includes one unit of ELA and one unit of Math.

Please remember:

• Get a good night's rest
• Eat breakfast
• Get to school on time
• Try your best and stay calm

Our PTO and staff served smiles and free ice cream at our Friends Reunion Ice Cream Social. It was a great turnout on our first Friday of the school year as families, staff and friends reunited for an opportunity to bring our school community together. Our mascot paid a visit to greet the guests and take photos. Children loved seeing their teachers and meeting up with their new friends. We are looking forward to a great year with more treats in store!

Our staff welcomed our newest owls and their families at our Kindergarten Orientation on September 1st. Students visited their classrooms and met new friends, while parents atteneded an informative session presented by administrators, interventionists, nurse and the PTO. Our Kinder Crew left in style with their new James Monroe swag courtesy of the PTO. It is even more thrilling this year as we return to full time Kindergarten. These foundational years at James Monroe will be the building blocks to our students' futures!

Please join us in the cafeteria or virtually at or first PTO meeting on September 20th at 6:00 p.m. A link to join the meeting will be sent out that day.

Click on the blue bar to download the PTO membership form or use the QR code to join the PTO. We are looking for families to support our school community. Your membership fee goes to helping fund school events like our Ice Cream Social and resources for the children. Thank you for your partnership!

This summer, James Monroe added a colorful and inviting sensory path down our Kindergarten and Self-Contained hallway for students in all grades to use. The benefits include increased cognitive function when students have opportunities for phsyical movement. The designs include tightropes walks, hopscotch numbers, wall push ups, leap frog jumps and alphabet hops. We were able to purchase this beneficial path using the funds we raised from the school play. Thank you to Ms. Speckin for helping to get it ready for our students!

Fire Safety Poster Contest

James Monroe Owls,

You are invited to participate in a Fire Safety Poster Contest! There will be a winner in every grade! Be sure to pick up poster paper and an entry form from the library! Posters are due October 19th. Please choose one of the following to include in your poster:

Never Play with Fire

Stop, Drop, and Roll

Check Your Smoke Detectors

Have Two Ways Out

Don’t Hide, Go Outside

Call 911

Make sure your poster has your name and grade in the bottom right corner!

James Monroe 5th grade students will attend a day at Camp Bernie on October 26th. To learn more about the experiece, parents are encouraged to attend the meeting at EHS on Sept. 22nd at 6:00 p.m.

Middlesex County College provides dental services at nominal fees.

Payment for Service

Patients are responsible for paying all fees prior to the beginning of treatment on the day treatment is started. Fees are assessed using the most current dental hygiene clinic fee schedule.

Dental Scaling, Polishing and Dental Radiographs

$20.00 – Adult patients

$10.00 – Children up to age 17 years old

$ 5.00 – Senior citizens (65+), MCC students, faculty, staff and MCC Dental Hygiene graduates

Sealants

$ 5.00 – per tooth/sealant (All patients, students and families)

Welcome to James Monroe's new staff members! We are excited that our team is joined by such passionate and caring educators!

Special Education Supervisor - Kate Gousman

School Psychologist - Dr. Melissa Luis

Intervention - Linda Ciccarella

K SE - TBD

Grade 2 - Jessica Miele

Grade 3 - Ashley Tulko

Grade 3 SE - Richard Squeo

Grade 4 - Gianna Fallone

Grade 4 - Madison DeMaria

Grade 5 - Danielle Buzy

Paraprofessional - Sujata Madan

Paraprofessional - Barkha Kapoor

Paraprofessional - Aruna Vegesana

Changes over the summer....There were some staff members whose roles changed over the summer and will be moving on to new positions at other schools or retired! Please help me to wish all the best to:

Mrs. Stephanie Lin

Mrs. Colleen Banos

Mrs. Kathleen Phil

Senora Lydia Roca

Mrs. Ayesha Rizwan

Mrs. Qudsia Zia