Normandy Park School

I hope that everyone had a great weekend!

I want to take the opportunity to thank everyone for their ongoing support and partnership this school year. Together, we will continue to work towards supporting all students academically and social emotionally.

MSD will continue to share important information on the Coronavirus Update Center and on our MSD Forward pages. Please know that I am here to help and support in any way that I can. Feel free to reach out to me directly at christopher.miller@msdk12.net.

This part of the newsletter will have a question or a topic for you to discuss with your child(ren). This can be done on the way to school, on the way to sports practice, before dinner, at bedtime, etc.

Each week there will be a “something to think about” question and a “something to talk about” question. The “something to think about question” is for you as a parent to reflect on for yourself. The “something to talk about” question is for you to discuss with your child. These exercises are meant to stimulate a conversation on race, equity and inclusion in America.

Week Twenty Three

Parent Reflection: February is Black History Month. Black History Month was created to highlight the history and the accomplishments of black Americans. Today, we continue to celebrate Black History Month, but also emphasize studying the accomplishments of Black Americans year round. When you were in school, what were some ways that your school or teachers celebrated Black History Month?

Child Question/Activity: Highlight the accomplishments of black Americans. Visit the following websites for kid-friendly information to help foster discussions:

• PBS Kids: Why We Celebrate Black History Month in February- Video for Kids
• Black History Month (nationalgeographic.com)
• African American Heroes (nationalgeographic.com)
• Black Scientists and Inventors | Black History Month (nationalgeographic.com)

The MSD is proud to present a Winter Wonderland for grades K-5! Winter Wonderland provides optional enrichment activities in STEM and the arts for elementary students to engage in at their own pace outside of the school day. More information is available here: http://bit.ly/msdwinterwonderland

The deadline has been extended! We are half of the way to our $7,500 goal. Donate today to ensure we can continue to provide cultural arts programming and teacher appreciation! Our top raising student gets to hit Mr Miller in the face with a pie, so be sure to share our fundraiser at biy.ly/heartnps with friends and family!

New deadline is now Friday, February 26th!

The Normandy Park HSA provides cultural arts programming, teacher appreciation, and other enrichment to the benefit of our community.

In the 2020-2021 school year we have funded:

• Assembly with Composer & Producer Brent Daniels
• Zentangle Artist Residency with Mimi Topping
• Upcoming Assembly with Ugandan Musician & Educator Kinobe
• Upcoming Number Drummer Assembly
• Fall Pumpkin Patch
• Birthday Books for All Students
• Easy View Masks for Teachers
• Back to School Teacher Appreciation

The Normandy Park HSA has continued providing our traditional enrichment programs and supporting our teachers in spite of the global pandemic. Your support right now is critical. We need to raise at least $7,500 to continue offering the experience our children deserve for the remainder of this year and into the future. Your tax deductible donation matters this year more than ever!

CLICK HERE TO DONATE TODAY!

If we meet our $7,500 goal, our top donor gets to hit Mr Miller in the face with a pie for the whole school to see on video!

Message from Ms. Cohen:

will continue to host the optional daily lunch groups for all virtual students from 12-12:30. It’s a way to check in, play some games and have some social time with friends from other classes. Lunch groups are as follows:

Tuesdays: Kindergarten

Wednesdays: 1st grade

Thursdays: 2nd grade

During the month of March I will be continuing the lessons of Accepting Me, Accepting You, Accepting All with the focus on Inclusion. Students will learn about many different types of disabilities (people who are differently abled) including physical, intellectual, and learning disabilities. At the end of each lesson there will be a project showing how they have included or will include others. More information will be provided in next week’s Counselor Corner.

As always if I can be of any help to you or your child(ren) please don’t hesitate to reach out to me.

Sincerely,

Cheryl Cohen

cheryl.cohen@msdk12.net

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As we celebrate Black History Month test your knowledge about some very important Black people whose names might not be familiar to you but whose products or studies might:

1. Who was Garret Morgan? He was the inventor of the three light traffic light in 1923 by Garret Morgan. He is also credited with creating the “Yield” sign (for which he received a patent).

2. Why is Frederick McKinley Jones important? We have him to thank for refrigerated trucks that bring our cold food across the country. He came up with a cooling system in the 1930’s and Co-Founded a trucking company that helped with critical supplies during WWII.

3. What did Alexander Miles create? In 1887, he came up with a way to open and close elevator doors automatically. Can you imagine opening and closing them by hand?

4. What groundbreaking experiment did Maime Clark do in the 1940’s? She used four dolls, identical except for color, to test children's racial perceptions. Their subjects, children between the ages of three to seven, were asked to identify both the race of the dolls and which color doll they prefer.

I came across this wonderfully positive message that can be shared with your child or children from Harriet Tubman, who was an abolitionist, escaping slavery and helping more than 70 enslaved people escape slavery through the underground railroad: “Every great dream begins with a dreamer. Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars to change the world.

Thanks to the MEF and the Festival of Books, we have new library books to increase diversity in our library collection. We will be receiving 57 new books!

During the weeks of January 25th and February 1st, NPS hosted artist, Mimi Topping, to conduct a virtual cultural arts residency program for all classes.

Mimi Topping is a certified art teacher for the past 23 years. She has been certified to teach Zentangle since 2012. Zentangle is a form of art by drawing structured patterns called tangles. The tangles are created with a combination of dots, lines, simple curves, S-curves and obs. The simple shapes are called “Elemental Strokes” and are drawn on small pieces of paper called tiles which can then be assembled into mosaics.

*Virtual students please drop your tiles off at Normandy Park School by 2/22/2021.

*When NPS is open for in-person instruction:

My child has to quarantine. Can they stream into class?

For students attending in person classes, access to virtual instruction is for absences over an extended period of time due to quarantining or an extenuating circumstance. In this case, access to virtual instruction will consist of a combination of streaming, completion of Google Classroom activities, and teacher check-in(s).

My child is sick. Can they stream into the class?

No, if your child is home sick for a few days they will be considered to have an excused absence due to illness. Students are encouraged to rest.

*Please note, access to virtual instruction for in-person students needs to be approved by the principal and/or nurse. Please reach out to me with any additional questions at christopher.miller@msdk12.net

Please note revised requirements following travel outside our immediate region (that is, to anywhere other than NY, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, or Delaware):

• For students: Contact the school nurse and quarantine for 14 days; no test is required.

Thank you for your cooperation and diligence in reporting symptoms, exposure, and travel to our school nurses. Your transparency and honesty help our entire community stay safe. If you are contacted by local health department officials, please respond to their inquiry so that they can properly conduct contact tracing.

Grab & Go meals will be available for all students, who wish to receive them. The Federal Department of Agriculture has extended waivers that will allow MSD to serve ALL students meals for FREE through June 2021.

REMINDER: Students who are not attending school in person can pick up free breakfast and lunch at Morristown High School (at the rear circle by the flagpole off of Atno Avenue) on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. There will be two service times, from 8:00 am to 9:00 am and again from 11:30 am to 12:30 pm.

More information about School Breakfast & Lunch is available on the MSD Forward homepage under "Back to School Resources for Families."

Please see the menu below for meals offered each day:

Given that Morris County is currently in the “orange” (high risk) category according to NJ Department of Health metrics, to ensure everyone’s safety, school pictures district-wide will be postponed until later in the year if conditions allow. I apologize for the inconvenience.

If you have already purchased pictures through Lifetouch, your order will be applied to the rescheduled pictures later in the year. In the event that pictures cannot be taken this school year, Lifetouch will fully refund your orders.

• If there are changes in your child's dismissal plans (e.g. you are going to pick them up that day, instead of taking the bus), please use the attached form or call the main office.
• For written communication between you and your child's teacher, please utilize Class Dojo and/or e-mail, rather than hand-written letters (when possible).

• March 29th to April 2nd (Spring Break)