Weekly Wrap Up

Good Morning, Maple Place Families,

Can you believe the year is OVER?! Although yesterday was technically the summer solstice and the first official day of summer, our summer officially starts TODAY!

This past week was filled with so many wonderful activities at all grade levels, but it was especially meaningful for our 8th graders as they celebrated their graduation on Tuesday evening and had their annual 8th grade breakfast on Wednesday. We are so proud of all they have accomplished during their time at Maple Place, and we wish them all the best in their future endeavors as they embark on the next chapter of their educational journey!

For those students returning to Maple Place in September, we remind you to see the Summer Reading & Math Assignments offered by the district. Although these assignments are optional, we highly recommend students spend some time completing them during the course of the summer to prevent the research proven "summer slide". All information is contained below and can also be found on the district webpage.

For those students participating in Extended School Year or Summer Learning Academy, those programs will be running at Maple Place beginning Monday, July 8th.

Don't forget to check your child's report cards! Report cards went live through the parent portal yesterday at 4:00pm.

As the 2023-2024 school year comes to a close, I wish you and your families a restful and relaxing summer! If you need me during the summer months, please feel free to contact me at mkeiser@oceanportschools.org Thank you for your continued support of Maple Place School!

See you in September,

Melissa Keiser

Congratulations to our June Champion Chargers:

Grade 5: Silla Mosera

Grade 6: Jhonathan DeOliveira

Grade 7: Avery Barbara

Grade 8: Lelia Smock

The class of 2024 celebrated their 8th Grade Graduation at Monmouth Park Racetrack on Tuesday, June 18th. The graduates were congratulated by BOE President - Mr. Mark Patterson, Oceanport Mayor - Mr. Thomas Tvrdik, and Superintendent - Dr. Karen Barry. Thank you to all of the benefactors who sponsored the 8th grade awards which were presented to the students during the ceremony. A special thanks to the 8th grade team for organizing and preparing for the wonderful evening! Congratulations to our 8th graders and to the parents, families, and friends who were in attendance! It was truly a beautiful night!

On Wednesday, the 8th grade students were celebrated by the Maple Place 5th, 6th, and 7th graders as well as the faculty and staff as they were clapped "IN" to their annual 8th grade breakfast. Because we heard that many of the students were not making it to school for the last day, we came up with a creative solution to the Clap Out! Students and staff lined the halls as the 8th graders took a few laps around before heading into their breakfast.

The 8th grade breakfast was fantastic! Thank you to our group of parent volunteers, led by Mrs. Lauren Landau, who organized, decorated, and served the breakfast, The theme of the breakfast this year was "Summer Vibes", and students loved the food from Kitchen Witch, coffee drinks from Rook, and the fabulous photo booth! Thank you for a wonderful morning for out 8th graders! Fun was had by all!

7th Grade students participated in a STEM challenge as part of their end of the year activities. Students mastered the Pringles Challenge, and they worked in teams to build marshmallow towers. These activities took teamwork, ingenuity, and some creative thinking on the part of our students! Thank you to the 7th grade team for organizing this fun day for the students!

The LinkIT® parent portal has been updated to include your child’s spring assessment data. To login to Oceanport’s LinkIT® Parent Portal, please visit: https://oceanport.linkit.com/Parent

If you have logged into the portal in the past, but forgot your password, select the "Lost Password" button to create a new one. Your username is your email address.

If you have never logged in to the LinkIT parent portal or have any difficulty accessing the site, please reach out to Mrs. Martinez at gmartinez@oceanportschools.org for assistance.

Summer break is a time for kids to kick back, however all of that free time can lead to what is known as the Summer Slide. Research indicates that a loss of academic skills over the summer is common for those students that do not participate in activities to keep their minds learning. The Oceanport School District would like to provide parents with resources to support their children over the summer to help maintain the academic skills they acquired over the school year in both reading and mathematics. These assignments are not required, but are highly recommended for students to maintain their skills. Where can you find all of these resources?? All of the information regarding summer reading and math can be found on the district website, under the “Resources” tab. Here is a direct link for your convenience.

Maple Place School - Summer Reading:

One School, One Book Selection

Game Face, by Shari Green

Students in all grades can participate in this whole-school experience as some of our very own Oceanport teachers have recorded the chapters of the book for your children to listen to and/or read along with.

Additional Books Suggestions can be found HERE.

Summer Math:

We want our students to keep practicing their math skills throughout the summer, too. Math packets have been created for all students to do just that!

Entering 5th Grade

Entering 6th Grade

Entering 7th Grade

Entering 7th Grade from Accelerated 6th Grade

Entering 8th Grade

Entering Geometry

We do not want your child to complete the math packet in one sitting. The goal is to do a little each week so a pacing guide is included in each packet.

Summer Incentive

If your child reads 20 minutes each day for 5 days in a week in July and August. (a total of 100 minutes a week) AND completes their grade-level math packet, they will receive a Kona Ice from the Kona Ice Truck in September!!

The reading log and math packet MUST be returned to school by

Wednesday, 9/11 in order to receive the reward.

Thursday, July 4th - District Closed - Independence Day

Monday, July 8th - First day of ESY & SLA

Wednesday, July 17th - Board of Education Meeting - Wolf Hill School - 6:00pm

As summer approaches, I wanted to make sure to send out information about the new procedure for working papers, as students no longer need to obtain their working papers from the school. Minors under the age of 18 are required to have working papers to be employed in the state of New Jersey, and now these papers can be obtained online. The steps to follow are listed below:

1. CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR JOB OFFER! You only apply for Working Papers after you get an offer of an employment. If you're still looking for a job, check out our resources here.
   
   
2. CREATE AN ACCOUNT. Enter your name and email address at myworkingpapers.nj.gov. We’ll send you a link to confirm your email address. Remember: You only need to do this once, even if you need to submit more than one Working Papers application. (See step #5 for more information.)
   
   
3. COMPLETE THE APPLICATION. You’ll need your employer’s unique 8-digit code and your caregiver’s name and email address to submit your part of the application. Helpful hint: If you don’t have the employer’s code, you can search for the business by keyword. If your employer hasn’t registered with us yet, you can give us their email address and we’ll send them a link to create an account.
   
   
4. TRACK YOUR PROGRESS. You may need to follow up with your caregiver and employer, who need to submit their parts of the application before you can start working. If your application is rejected for any reason, you can’t work until you submit a new application that is approved.
   
   
5. GET TO WORK! Once your application is approved, you can start working at your new job. Don’t forget: If you add or change jobs, use your existing account to submit a new Working Papers application for every new employer. Use the "Apply for Working Papers" link after you log in.

Be sure to follow Maple Place on our social media outlets. We can be found on Twitter at @MaplePlaceMS. You can also check us out on Instagram at @mapleplaceop.

Email: mkeiser@oceanportschools.org
Website: https://www.oceanportschools.org/Domain/8
Location: 2 Maple Place, Oceanport, NJ, USA
Phone: (732) 229-0267
Twitter: @MaplePlaceMS

Instagram: @MaplePlaceOP