Woodland Park School District News

Welcome to the Woodland Park School District e-Newsletter, which is sent out weekly when school is in session. It serves as a glimpse of some of the wonderful things going on in our schools, as well as a point of reference for upcoming events.

Your Partner in Education,

Michele R. Pillari, Ed.D., Superintendent of Schools

The new Mustang Ambassadors program launched last week with the 25 Memorial Middle School program participants visiting the fifth grade classes at Beatrice Gilmore School to talk about the program. The ambassadors will serve as mentors for the fifth grade students and they will meet numerous times throughout the year to take part in team-building sessions, play games, and hold reflective sessions. The goal is to assist the fifth graders make an easy transition to middle school. At the launch, after getting a program introduction from Memorial Deal of Students Mr. Douglas, each ambassador was assigned up to five fifth graders that they will work with during the year.

At the Wayne Hills Mall Burlington store's recent grand reopening event, a check for $5,000 was presented to Charles Olbon School as part of the chain's community giving program. For the past seven years, Burlington has been a corporate parent with AdoptAClassroom.org and has collected more than $12 million from its generous customers with support from its associates. The funds will be distributed to the classroom teachers to spend on resources and materials for their classrooms. In 2022, Burlington had donated $5,000 to Beatrice Gilmore School.

Students in Mrs. Reisman and Ms. Mohamed's fourth grade class at Beatrice Gilmore School discussed what happens during Election Day. The students had a mock election and got a sense of how it works!

The students in Mrs. Murray and Mrs. Coffey's PreK-4 class at School 1 had fun learning about Election Day and the election process. The two candidates the students voted for were Pete the Cat or Pigeon, two of their favorite book characters. First, the students named the characteristics of each. They then created campaign posters for their favorite candidate. Later, they voted by placing their ballots in the ballot box. The ballots were counted and Pete the Cat won the election!

Ms. Petrullo and Mrs. Miqui's PreK-4 class at Charles Olbon School celebrated Election Day by reading My First Election Day! The learned about the importance of voting and new vocabulary words like ballot, vote and choice. The students then got a chance to visit the voting booth and cast their votes on their favorite color. The results are in and the winning color was pink! Each student got a special election day sticker celebrating their vote.

In Ms. Omran's sixth grade class at Memorial Middle School, students got a hands-on experience with democracy and learned all about voting on Election Day. They practiced making their voices heard as they cast their own votes on some food topics such as French fries or onion rings, After that, they transformed their results into colorful bar graphs, discovering how math and decision-making go hand-in-hand. It was a memorable lesson in civic engagement!

At Beatrice Gilmore School, Ms. Byrnes' third grade class did science labs last week exploring force and motion. These labs focused on exploring how force affects an object's movement and the relationship between mass and acceleration. They were responsible for timing the differences in acceleration and utilizing objects with different masses to observe how that impacts motion. They had to create a plan to measure how fast the wind-up toy and golf ball were moving and they had to use all of the materials provided to them. They had to include how fast the objects were traveling and show their plan to me before they began. After repeating their plan several times, they had to record their observations and if they noticed any patterns.

In Mrs. Facciollio’s fifth grade math classes at Beatrice Gilmore School, students have been learning about volume. The students brought in boxes, covered them with grid paper, and determined the volume of the box. Then, the students decorated their box with their favorite seasonal scene.

Congratulations to the Beatrice Gilmore School Buddy of the Month winners!

3rd grade - Mohammad Srahin

4th grade - London Medina-Cuenca

5th grade - Gavin Rogacki

Students in Ms. Wittig & Ms. Balduzzi’s PreK-4 class at School 1 took turns learning how to do a somersault and roll like a ball after reading their question of the day: “Can you make your body look like a ball?”

Students at Beatrice Gilmore School recently received a visit from firefighters Brian Roehrich and Dylan Spies from West Paterson Volunteer Fire Co. 3, who talked to them about fire safety and showed them all the different equipment on the truck.

The Alfred Baumann Library, 44 Rifle Camp Rd., will host the following programs. Visit the Library's website here or Facebook page here. Its phone is 973-345-8120. Email is library@abwplibrary.org.

Saturday, Nov. 16, 11 a.m. - Lego Mania for all ages. Join in for a fun morning of creativity. We supply the Legos, you supply the imagination! Register here.

Monday, Nov. 18, 10:30 a.m. - Bouncing Babies for ages 0 to 18 months. Enjoy songs, rhymes, stories, and free play. Register here.

Monday, Nov. 18, 11 a.m. - Yoga & Meditation. Let your problems go for a while and relax. Register here.

Monday, Nov. 18, 3:30 to 5 p.m. - Homework Helpers. There is only one 1.5-hour time slot per day. You may register for multiple days. If you miss two sessions in a row, without notice, you will be removed and your spot will be given to a student on the waitlist. Register here.

Monday, Nov. 18, 6:30 p.m. - Dancersize. Join certified instructor, Karen, as she leads the class doing low-impact dancing. It's a great way to get your exercise in while having fun. Don't forget to bring your water to stay hydrated. Register here.

Tuesday, Nov. 19, 3:30 to 5 p.m. - Homework Helpers. There is only one 1.5-hour time slot per day. You may register for multiple days. If you miss two sessions in a row, without notice, you will be removed and your spot will be given to another student. Register here.

Tuesday, Nov. 19, 6:30 p.m. - Spice of the Month Club will meet to discuss this month's spice. Register here.

Tuesday, Nov. 19, 6:30 p.m. - Craft Club for grades 4-9. Meet monthly to make cool, creative, crafts! This month, we are painting a spooky Snoopy creation. Register here.

Wednesday, Nov. 20, 4 p.m. - Snails & Tales story time for ages 3 and up. Join in for a new theme each week, with stories, songs, rhymes, and a craft. Register here.

Wednesday, Nov. 20, 6:30 p.m. - Unwind With Pat. Join Pat to unwind with the craft of your choice. Register here.

Thursday, Nov. 21, 11 a.m. - Unwind With Pat. Join Pat to unwind with the craft of your choice. Register here.

Thursday, Nov. 21, 12 p.m. - Sit & Fit. Have fun exercising from the comfort of your chair. Join this lively exercise group and have some fun! Register here.

Thursday, Nov. 21, 3:30 to 5 p.m. - Homework Helpers. There is only one 1.5-hour time slot per day. You may register for multiple days. If you miss two sessions in a row, without notice, you will be removed and your spot will be given to another student. Register here.

Thursday, Nov. 21, 4 p.m. - Fall picture bingo for grades K-4. Register here.

Thursday, Nov. 21, 6 p.m. - Create a beautiful holiday craft, for adults. Register here.

Friday, Nov. 22, 10:30 a.m. - Little Movers story time for ages 18 to 36 months. Register here.

Friday, Nov. 22, 1 p.m . - Caring for Your Mental Health During the Holidays. Feeling blue around the holidays? You are not alone. Join the Mental Health Center of Passaic as they share tips on coping with holiday stress. Register here.

Saturday, Nov. 23, 11 a.m. - STEAM Teams for grades 3-6. Explore the principles of color mixing, plant biology, and symmetry by creating colorful turkeys using leaves and conducting a color-leaching experiment. Register here.

Monday, Nov. 25, 4 p.m. - Learn To Draw Your Favorite Squishmallows. This month, learn to draw Ulana the turkey. Register here.

Tuesday, Nov. 26, 1 p.m. - Crafternoon for adults. Enjoy creating a beautiful craft to take home. All supplies are included. Register here.

Tuesday, Nov. 26, 6:30 p.m. - Family Chopped: Thanksgiving Edition. The family is invited to compete in this no-cooking cooking challenge. Register here.

Thursday, Nov. 28 - The Library is closed

Friday, Nov. 29 - The Library is closed

Saturday, Nov. 30 - The Library is closed

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Email: mpillari@wpschools.org
Website: www.wpschools.org
Location: 853 McBride Avenue, Woodland Park, NJ 07424, USA
Phone: 973-317-7711