May Newsletter

During the month of May, our monthly theme is Self-Reflection and Mental Health Awareness. "May, with its blossoming promise, invites us to cultivate our inner gardens. Take time for self-reflection; understand that nurturing your mental well-being is not a luxury, but a fundamental part of your growth and learning journey."

Students have time to care for their hearts and minds. This month, we focused on:

Self-love and self-reflection through activities that are calming such as yoga, pet therapy, giving to others, teacher appreciation day and showing each other kindness.

Building confidence by working on jobs in school and in the community. (Such as, breakfast bags, passing out supplies, working in the Sunshine Café, making T-shirts, jewelry, greeting cards, chocolates, dog biscuits, horticulture, selling bagels, pizza and other daily jobs).

Westlake celebrates what makes students unique by embracing their successes when utilizing the AAC devices, using sign language, listening and all the successes whether they are large or small. This month, a student has a great success story of requiring a smaller, quieter environment while strategies were worked on to decrease the student’s anxiety. The student has adjusted and is back in the classroom with peers and doing wonderful. This is a great success for the individual student and all the staff working to help the student.

It’s ok to take breaks: We have our Zen Den for any student who may need a quiet place for calming and a quiet area that will assist them in refocusing which does help them to go back to class and be ready to work again.

Student Voices are Heard: “How students can take care of their mind”

Short, guided quotes or drawings from students like:

· “I listen to music.”

· “I talk to my teacher.”

· “I play with my dog/cat.”

· “I take deep breaths.”

The big night is almost here! On Prom night, let’s celebrate being ourselves, looking our best, and dancing with friends. Our night will be “Wicked” theme based and have a sensory-friendly dance space for students, a photo booth with fun props and a place where everyone is a star – everyone is celebrated!

Claudine, Bobby and Stacey

May 30: Westlake Prom – “Wicked” Theme

May 31: Clothing Drive at Westlake School (Clothing Drop off 10:00-1:30 pm)

June 6: Westlake Carnival (9:30 am – 1:00 pm)

June 16: Student Dismissal at 1:00 pm

June 17: Student Dismissal at 1:00 pm

June 18: Graduation at 9:30 am in the Westlake gym

June 18: Last day of School – Student Dismissal at 1:00 pm

T.A. is our Student of the Month! She has been making great improvements to her self-regulation skills! We are very proud of the work T.A. has done!

Ms. Barbara is our Staff of the Month! She is so effective in the way she works with the students! She builds a trust with them and helps them succeed!

J.D. is our Sunshine Employee of the Month! J.D. is hardworking and efficient. He is always trying his best and greeting his customers with a smile!

J.B. is filling THANK YOU bags for our job sites! We wanted to show them how much we appreciate the opportunity to learn work skills in a job setting!

Westlake Staff at the Staff Night Out trivia and game night!

Congratulations to the Westlake Wisecrackers! They won the trophy for getting all trivia answers correct!

Teacher/Staff Appreciation Week was celebrated the first week of May. Staff was treated to lunch and snacks all week! Thank you to everyone that helped make the week so special!

Thank you to Ms. Grace who worked with the students on flower pot and books for Teacher Appreciation Week!

Summer is just around the corner, and that often means extra time for your family to have some fun together, and pass the time.

Whether you’re looking for a theatrical performance or a family outing, these sensory-friendly opportunities are a great way to explore and enjoy the best of New Jersey, together.New Jersey offers numerous sensory-friendly activities for individuals on the autism spectrum and those with sensory sensitivities. These activities include modified performances at various theaters, sensory-friendly movie screenings at AMC and Regal, and special events at locations like the New Jersey Hall of Fame and Bierman Autism Centers.

Sensory-Friendly Theatrical Experiences:

• Union County Performing Arts Center (Rahway): Offers sensory-friendly performances with modified lighting and sound.

• BergenPAC (Englewood): Provides sensory-friendly performances.

• Mayo Performing Arts Center (Morristown): Hosts sensory-friendly performances with adjusted sound and light levels, and a relaxed environment where audience members can move freely and talk.

• Paper Mill Playhouse (Millburn): Offers autism-friendly performances. Saturday, June 21st at 1:30 PM

• State Theatre New Jersey (New Brunswick): Provides sensory-friendly performances with modulated lighting and sound, and a judgment-free environment.

• McCarter Theatre Center (Princeton): Offers sensory-friendly performances.

• Two River Theatre (Red Bank): Provides relaxed performances.

• Shea Center for the Performing Arts (New Brunswick): Offers sensory-friendly performances.

Sensory-Friendly Movie Theaters:

• AMC Theatres: Offers sensory-friendly film screenings on the 2nd and 4th Saturdays for family-friendly films and on Wednesday evenings for mature films.

• Regal Theatres: Hosts "My Way Matinee" screenings.

This month's focus was on self-awareness and emotional regulation. Students learned to identify and understand their emotions, recognizing how emotions influence their actions and behaviors. The class discussed and practiced healthy coping strategies for managing difficult emotions, including deep breathing, journaling, drawing, watching comedy, listening to music, and taking walks/exercising. Students worked on identifying the size of problems and learning to react and solve them appropriately and independently. JD shared that "washing dishes" became a therapeutic tool for him.

The students worked hard at the school cafe and Snack Shack. Throughout the school year, students earned money through their work as a reward. Students showed initiative and extra effort to earn bonus opportunities as well. Students learned about the 50/30/20 rule for budgeting, allocating 50% for needs, 30% for wants, and 20% for savings. The students are looking forward to lunch and shopping on the upcoming

school trip.

This week, we learned how to make home-made Cheez-Its after learning about the importance of healthy eating. We only used 4 ingredients. Cheddar cheese, flour, butter, and whole milk. We had fun cutting the dough into squares, cutting the indents, and poking holes in them just like the store bought kind. Some of my friends made different shapes of Cheez-Its, such as a heart, rectangle, and triangle. We had fun because they were easy to make. We learned we could make different flavors of Cheez-Its, too! Also, making Cheez-Its at home is much healthier than the store bought one. You should definitely give these a try!

Website: www.ucesc.org/schools/westlake_school

Location: 1571 Lamberts Mill Rd, Westfield, NJ, USA

Phone: 908-232-4181

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