Week of October 7th
October 7th is an F Day.
I hope that everyone had a wonderful weekend.
This week, students and teachers all across New Jersey celebrate the Week of Respect. The Week of Respect kicks off October, which is also National Bullying Prevention Month. Normandy Park School will be celebrating the Week of Respect with schoolwide activities and themed spirt days (see below for additional information).
Make-up photos and retakes will be on October 10th.
Please know that I am here to help and support in any way that I can. Feel free to reach out to me directly at christopher.miller@msdk12.net.
Sincerely,
Christopher Miller
Principal of Normandy Park School
Hispanic Heritage Month
Observed annually from September 15 to October 15: It is a time to appreciate and celebrate
the history, colorful cultures, diversity, and contributions of the ancestors of American
citizens who came from Mexico, Spain, the Caribbean, and South- and Central America.
September 15 is set as the starting date for the month for several reasons. It is the
independence anniversary for Latin American countries El Salvador, Guatemala, Costa Rica,
Nicaragua, and Honduras. From here onwards, the independence days of Mexico and Chile fall on September 16 and September 18, respectively.
- Hispanic and Latino Americans amount to an estimated 17.8% of the total U.S. population, making up the largest ethnic minority. Around one-fifth of the U.S. population is Hispanic.
- The state with the largest Hispanic and Latino population overall is California with over 14 million.
- There are relevant Hispanic influences in American life: music, food, art, cinema, politics, literature, science & technology. Have you seen movies like “Coco” or Vivo”?
- Some inventions from Latin / Hispanics:
- Color TV: Guillermo Gonzalez Camarena (México)
- The electric brake: Victor Ochoa (México)
- The artificial heart: Dr. Domingo Liotta (Argentina)
- Bandage for administering drugs: Alejandro Zaffaroni (Uruguay)
- The stent: Julio C. Palmaz (Argentina)
What heritage runs in your family?
Share some of your traditions with your classmates!
Notes for parents/teachers:
Observation of Hispanic Heritage Week started in 1968 under President Lyndon B. Johnson and was later extended to a 30-day celebration by President Ronald Reagan, starting on September 15 and ending on October 15. It was enacted via approval of Public Law 100-402 on August 17, 1988.
Halloween & Autumn/Fall Celebrations at NPS
I have received a few questions regarding Halloween costumes. Given that a lot of families are beginning to purchase costumes, I wanted to provide a few guidelines.
On Thursday, October 31st, students may wear their costumes or school spirit colors to school (or bring with them to put over their clothes). To ensure the health and well being of our school community we ask you to adhere to the following costume guidelines:
1. Students choosing to dress up must wear their costumes to school (and/or have costumes they can easily put over their clothes).
2. No weapons, swords or handheld accessories. Students have enough items to carry!
3. Please make sure costumes are school appropriate (e.g. no fake blood, inappropriate language, etc.).
4. No Halloween masks that cover students faces. It is imperative for us to be able to see and identify all students at all times! In addition, it is very important for student's to have full vision while walking around the school. Please save masks for trick-or-treating!
Throughout the day, classrooms will have fun autumn or Halloween activities. Additional information on classroom celebrations and activities will come from your child's homeroom teacher.
In the morning, we will have a school-wide parade! Please note, the parade is only a brief part of the morning, lasting 10 to 15 minutes. If it rains, the parade will be indoors for students only.
If you do not want your child to participate in the parade, please let your homeroom teacher know via ClassDojo or e-mail; we will have alternative activities planned at this time.
Morristown Wildcats NPS Bake Sale
Please sign up here to help with our Bake Sale on Friday, 10/18. A couple more baked good donations are needed and some short sales shifts are still open. Questions? NPSHSAFundraising@gmail.com.
Welcome to the 24-25 school year. Thank you to everyone for being so welcoming and kind. My first days here at Normandy Park have been amazing. Your warm welcome has been felt.
I wanted to introduce myself as your new counselor and tell you a little about myself. I have been in education for 24 years. I started my career as an elementary school teacher working with second and third grade students. I moved on to becoming a library media specialist. I then realized I wanted to help students with emotional issues and I went back to school. I have two Masters. One in Education with a concentration on ESL and my second Masters in Counseling to be an LPC with the ability to be a School Counselor. I am a proud mom of 4 boys. Their ages range from 25, 18, 16 and an adopted son who is three. Yes we went back to diapers after many years. I am bilingual, I am a first generation American Colombian. If anyone needs help with translating anything to anyone at our school. Please feel free to reach out to me. It is my pleasure to help. I am fluent in both Spanish and English.
As the school counselor I can assist your child in a variety of ways, individual and group short term supportive counseling, as well as in class support. Some of the groups that run throughout the year address concerns about friendship (making and keeping friends), self-esteem, anger management, grief (death of a family member or parents separating or divorcing) and executive function ( organization and managing their time). Most groups run between 6-7 weeks and are carefully scheduled so that your child will not miss either important academic instruction or specials. Individual sessions are just that, one to one sessions that are supportive in nature. They are not intended to be intensive therapy sessions however, if your child is in need of more intensive therapy, I will gladly help you locate community resources. In addition, I am excited to announce that for the third year in a row we are excited to have Social Work Interns joining our school. They will be available to provide counseling services as well. We have two wonderful young ladies working with us, Ms. Paige and Ms. Haley.
It was great meeting some of you on Back to school night. I look forward to meeting more of you during the school year.
Wishing everyone a wonderful school year!
Gloria Hunt
(973) 889-7960 Ext 6115
Help Make it a Great Year for All 5,700 Morris School District Students
Welcome to the 2024-25 school year! The Morris Educational Foundation is proud to Support Every Student Every Day. While the Morris School District provides the essential tools for quality classroom learning, the MEF supports the extras that elevate learning. From cutting-edge instructional resources to enriching curricular activities, the MEF is committed to helping students not just succeed but excel.
We invite you, our community, to kick off the 2024-25 school year with a gift to launch our students’ education above and beyond the standard curriculum. $1 a day for 180 days adds up to a year of exceptional learning for one student.
Please help us make it the best year yet for each of the 5,700 students in the Morris School District! Let's Support Every Student Every Day and empower them to achieve their fullest potential.
Donate today by clicking here. Together, we can make a difference!
Dismissal Changes
Please use the digital blue note form for any dismissal changes. The main office will notify the homeroom teachers of the dismissal change. For absences, continue to contact the school nurse.
