Monday New Year's Eve Celebrations

On Monday, students will celebrate the end of one part of the school year, and the beginning of 2025. Feel free to send students in NYE attire: fancy with sparkles, comfy with pajamas, festive with holiday attire, or whatever your preference for NYE! As a reminder, we will be on an early dismissal schedule on Monday.

Winter Dash Thank You

From the HSA: The 2024 NB HSA Winter Dash was a resounding success!

What began as Erin Anello’s idea in 2020 to bring cheer to our community has blossomed into a beloved North Boulevard tradition.

Each year, the event grows bigger and better, and this year was no exception. None of this

would have been possible without the unwavering support of our community and school.

We’d like to extend heartfelt gratitude to the incredible individuals and groups who made this

year’s Winter Dash so remarkable: SEE LINK

Birthday and Holiday Celebrations

Please note the following from the Elementary School Handbook, as we prepare for the holidays and continue to celebrate birthdays:

Birthdays are important celebrations for elementary students. Students are permitted to bring in treats for the class, however, store bought, prepackaged, and allergy friendly snack items are strongly encouraged for the health and safety of all students. Treats MUST be brought to the main office in the morning. Sugar cannot be the first main ingredient. Students with a food allergy may provide their own safe snack from home. We strongly discourage any treats that contain any form of nuts or nut oil. No goody bags or party favors may be brought to school or distributed at any time. Any planned celebrations must first be approved by the classroom teacher.

Important Dates

If you are looking for the date of a future event at NB, please check our website calendar. There are dates for music shows, moving up ceremonies, and HSA meetings, etc for your planning purposes.

Please scroll for additional information about the upcoming events and activities.

Please see the guidelines below for the Science Fair (it was also sent home as a hard copy on 12/13 with students in grades 2-5). Here is the link to the form for permission and proposals. Note that students can work alone or with ONE other partner for their project. Only 1 form needs to be filled out for each project.

For the 2024-2025 school year, NB is on a Corrective Action Plan for our attendance rate, which is required by the state when more than 10% of a school's population was chronically absent in the previous school year. During the 2022-2023 school year, NB's chronic absentee rate was 15%, according to state reports. Last year, we seemed to have slightly reduced the rate to 13% and we hope to make more strides this year. Not only do recurring absences affect a student's progress in school, but NB is also penalized in state rankings due to the higher absentee rate.

We ask for your partnership in bringing students to school each day when they are well, and scheduling vacations around school days. Please note that the state still counts all absences, even those with doctor's notes or a parent phone call. To help keep you aware, at the beginning of each month, we have been notifying parents of students who have been tardy or absent 5, 10, or more days thus far. At 10 or more days absent, we will request a conference where we can help develop personalized strategies to improve your child's attendance. Please reach out if you notice any signs of school avoidance, or if you have questions about whether to keep your child home. As always, thank you for your support!

Please see the link below for more information from Pomptonian, our food service provider.

Please take a look at the following link to see whether you may qualify for free and reduced lunch:

https://www.pequannock.org/services/food-services/free-reduced-lunch

This program discusses youth mental health and the impact of social media, including the benefits vs. risks. Parents and caregivers are offered safety tips, ways to set health limits, and how to support safe practices. This was presented on December 5th, 2024, by the NJ4S and Mental Health Associates for the Pequannock Township District Wellness Committee.

Please visit our webpage for more information: www.nbshsa.org

According to the NJDOH Respiratory Surveillance for the week of 12/14/24....

RSV activity is high

Seasonal Influenza is increasing throughout the state

Percent positivity is elevated for adenovirus and rhinovirus/enterovirus. (common cold)

Handwashing is the best way to prevent illness by using soap, singing the Happy Birthday song or washing for a 2 minutes duration

Staying home when sick and waiting a 24 hour period until fever free without taking any medication to reduce a fever

Rest, plenty of fluids, blocking coughs and sneezes are other behaviors too.

Wishing everyone a healthy happy winter season