Highview Happenings
January 10, 2025
From the Principal's Desk...
Dear Highview Families,
Happy Friday! I hope you have been staying warm despite the frigid temperatures outside! We are hoping for Mother Nature to provide us with some warmth so our Highview Knights can finally resume outdoor recess!
Many thanks to all families who attended the RULER Family Night last night. It was a wonderful event, and the energy was absolutely electric. From grooving to Music on the Mood Meter to relaxing in the Zen Den, I can confidently say that all students and families enjoyed themselves. Over the coming weeks, I will feature photographs from the event, so stay tuned!
Our third-grade students will perform in their annual Choral Concert on Friday, January 24 at 10:00 a.m. Ms. Cokeley has been in contact with families sharing information about songs that students can practice at home. On the day of the concert, doors will open at 9:45 a.m. for our parents/guardians and guests. The concert will take place in our Auditorium. It is always such a wonderful performance, and I know that it will be heartwarming to see! If there is inclement weather that day, the concert will take place on Monday, January 27. I will communicate to families if this change is necessary.
I hope you and your loved ones have a wonderful weekend. We look forward to welcoming our Highview Knights back to school on Monday, January 13, 2025.
Sincerely,
Matthew Lutz
Principal
Charter Shout-Outs for the Week
On a rotating basis, classroom teachers nominate two students from their classes to receive a Charter Shout-Out. The class charter is a RULER tool used in all classrooms to help students develop expectations for success as learners and members of the community. The Charter Shout-Out gives teachers the opportunity to highlight students who are living up to their classroom charters.
This week, students from the following classes received shout-outs and were recognized over morning announcements: Ms. MacRobbie (3MR) and Mrs. Miller (4CM). Congratulations to Kylie (3MR), Paul-Ethan (3MR), Sofia (4CM), and Ayden (4CM). See their proud picture below!
Principal's Pride
Being the Principal of Highview Elementary School brings me a tremendous amount of joy and pride. I am beyond lucky to be able to work with such incredible students, staff, and families.
This week, I'd like to give a shout-out to Mrs. Tarique and the students in Class 3-4 GT. They took time to reflect upon what they were most proud of in 2024 and set some goals for 2025. Their creations were all tied to the Ball Drop on NYE. Way to go, Class 3-4 GT. I hope all of your dreams come true in 2025 and that you meet the goals you set for yourself!
Eat-and-Play Challenge
At the beginning of the year, our School Counselor, Ms. Lipson, and School Social Worker, Mrs. Weiss re-launched a monthly Eat-and-Play Challenge for our students. The goal is for classes to work together to follow the Eat-and-Play rules during the lunch/recess periods. They have the opportunity to add a sticker in a square on an incentive chart. The classes with the most stickers at the end of the month get to shop on our FABULOUS prize cart! There will be at least one winner each month in both grade levels.
For the month of December, Mrs. Amann and Mrs. DeGennaro's classes won the third-grade challenge. Mrs. Banks and Ms. O'Riordan's classes won the fourth-grade challenge. Congratulations classes 3KA, 3PD, 4MB, and 4MO! We look forward to seeing which classes will win for the month of January!
🔶🔶🔶🔶 REPEATED REMINDERS🔶🔶🔶🔶
Affirmations
Take a look at our daily Morning Affirmations that we recite together as a school community. The purpose of this practice is to encourage our students to use positive self-talk to get themselves excited and ready to conquer the day. We want our students to feel empowered and productive at Highview. You are more than welcome to use these at home as well.
Arrival and Dismissal Procedures
During arrival and dismissal, the safety of our students is our top priority. Please review this document, which outlines our arrival and dismissal procedures for the 2024-2025 school year. We must all work together to ensure the safety of both students and staff during these important blocks of time. We thank you in advance for your cooperation and partnership in following these procedures each day.
Bus Information
As always, the safety of our students and staff is our top priority. When riding the bus, students are expected to follow three bus rules:
- Be a good listener.
- Use a quiet voice.
- Stay in your seat at all times.
Please note that beginning in 2024-2025, no student in Grades K-4 will be released from the bus without an adult present at the bus stop. This is to ensure the safety of all students.
We appreciate your partnership in reiterating these expectations for a safe bus ride. Please note that unsafe behavior on the bus will result in a loss of bus riding privileges at the discretion of Principal Lutz, Assistant Principal Mehu, or their designee(s).
Code of Conduct
The Board of Education is committed to providing a safe and orderly school environment where students may receive and district personnel may deliver quality educational experiences without disruption or interference. We ask that you read and review the Code of Conduct for Grades K-4 with your child. Our goal is to ensure students are engaged in learning while making positive contributions to our school community.
Digital Backpack
Each week, documents will be loaded to our Digital Backpack, which is linked to the bottom of the Highview homepage. We encourage you to check the Digital Backpack, which is updated every Friday, to ensure you have updated information on important dates, events, and opportunities being offered to students and families.
Electronic Devices and Valuable Items
Students in grades K-4 should not bring electronic devices, large amounts of money, or valuable items to school. This includes cell phones/smart phones, iPods, iPads/tablets, smart watches, personal computers/laptops, electronic games, expensive jewelry, card collections, and large amounts of money. Even if the student who brings in the item is not at fault, there are no funds to pay for its repair or replacement. The school carries no insurance that is applicable to these matters and there is no money budgeted for this purpose. Principal Lutz, Assistant Principal Mehu, and/or their designee(s) reserve the right to determine whether an item is an electronic device and/or valuable.
Parent Square Notification System
Over the next few months, the district and buildings are moving to a new communication system to send alerts out to parents, guardians and the community. Please check your email for an invitation from Parent Square or register on the website. Follow the video linked below to set notification and language settings in the app or website. The Parent Square app can be downloaded from your app store.
Registration Website:
https://www.parentsquare.com/signin
Video for how to change notification or language settings:
Parent-Teacher Association (PTA)
We are fortunate to have a wonderful Parent-Teacher Association (PTA). We encourage our parents to get involved with the PTA. If you have questions, you can always reach out to our PTA via email at nanuetpta@gmail.com.
Here are the 2024-2025 Board Members for the Elementary PTA:
- Jennifer Falzon, President
- Debbie Harris, Vice President for G.W. Miller School
- Linda Metress, Vice President for Highview School
- Kelly Ann Trombley, Secretary
- Stephanie Gannon, Treasurer
Additionally, please check out the PTA's website for more information on how to join this amazing group! Thank you to our fabulous PTA for all you do to support the students, staff, and families in the Nanuet School District!
Safety and Security Protcols
As you know, the safety of our students and staff is our top priority in the Nanuet Union Free School District. The Safety/Security Protocols for 2024-2025 are outlined in the document below. We thank you in advance for your cooperation with and prompt attention to these protocols.
Snack and Water Bottles
Students do have a snack time daily and at the discretion of the classroom teacher. Your child's teacher will communicate this to you when they share their specific schedules. We encourage you to send a healthy snack to school with your child. If your child's classroom is designated as Nut Aware, you will receive a letter as well as a notification from the classroom teacher. Please do not send any products containing nuts.
Every student can have a water bottle in class. Water bottles must be capped (no straws or glass) and should be a personal size (16 oz. or less). There are opportunities to refill water bottles during the school day. Please be sure your child’s water bottle can fit in their backpack for transport purposes. Please label your child’s water bottle with their name and class code. Students cannot bring open containers, energy drinks, or coffee-related drinks to school.
Strive for 25
Our students at Highview Elementary School participate in a reading incentive known as Strive for 25. The goal is for every student to read 25 books by the end of the school year. Classroom teachers keep track of books read in their individual classrooms for this incentive. This year, we are adding some benchmarks along the way so that students have more opportunities for recognition. Please see the benchmarks below.
- Students who read 10 books will be recognized and given a small prize.
- Students who read 20 books will be recognized and given a small prize.
- Students who read 25+ books will be recognized and will receive a certificate and book.
Dates to Remember
Monday, January 13
Elementary PTA Meeting
7:30 p.m. at G.W. Miller School (Library)
Tuesday, January 14
Board of Education Meeting
7:30 p.m. at Nanuet High School
Monday, January 20
Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
All Nanuet Schools Closed
Friday, January 24
Grade 3 Choral Performance
10:00 a.m. in the HV Auditorium
Doors open at 9:45 a.m.
**Snow date is Monday, January 27
Monday, January 27 - Friday, January 31
Great Kindness Challenge
Monday, January 27 - Friday, January 31
Winter aimswebPLUS Administration (ELA/Math)
Wednesday, January 29
Lunar New Year
All Nanuet Schools Closed
Highview Elementary School
Email: mlutz@nanuetsd.org
Website: highview.nanuetsd.org
Location: 24 Highview Avenue, Nanuet, NY 10954
Phone: (845) 627-3460
Facebook: www.facebook.com/NanuetPublicSchools
Instagram: @nanuetschools