PLD March Newsletter

Dear PLD Families,

It was such a pleasure to have many of you join us for our SEL Day on Friday. A huge thank you to our amazing staff for their thoughtful lessons, our families for joining in the fun, and our students for their enthusiasm! Here are three thoughtful questions you can ask at home to support social and emotional learning:

1. What was the best part of your day, and how did it make you feel? – Encourages self-awareness and emotional expression.
2. Was there a moment today when you helped someone or someone helped you? – Reinforces kindness, empathy, and social skills.
3. What’s one challenge you faced today, and how did you handle it? – Builds resilience and problem-solving skills.

March 3-7th we will be celebrating Read Across America Week. This fun and educational week will be filled with exciting activities and opportunities for our students to immerse themselves in the wonderful world of reading. You can extend the conversation at home by asking your child:

1. What did you read about today?

2. Why did you select this book?

3. If the main character in that story lived next door, would you be friends?

4. Did you learn any new words or facts so far?

5. What do you think will happen next?

6. What was your favorite part or character of the book? Why?

I am looking forward to a fantastic week ahead and am excited to see our students embrace the joy of reading. See our spirit week flyer below.

Please remember that on March 31st there is no school due to Eid-al Fitr. We send positive thoughts for a meaningful Ramadan to all who are fasting.

With Drew Pride,

Jazmyn Allen

Principal

Attendance Corner

Students should have fewer than 13 absences by the end of March. More than 13 absences means that your child has missed over 10% of the school year, which may require a parent meeting and/or an attendance plan. Let’s work together to ensure consistent attendance!

March 1st - 12th - Gertrude Hawk Fundraiser

March 3rd - 7th - Read Across America Week

• March 3rd - Wear a shirt, sports jersey or anything representing a favorite US Destination
• March 4th - Dress as a Character from the Past or Future
• March 5th - Dress like an Explorer or your favorite animal
• March 6th - Wear something that reflects you
• March 7th - Wear your favorite pajamas
  

March 3rd - 14th - ShamGram Collection - order a ShamGram for your "lucky" friends

March 6th - Parent/Teacher Conferences

March 14th - Monochromatic Day-wear all the same color head to toe

March 21st - PTO Spring Fling

March 24th - Philly Pretzel Day - order a pretzel for a snack

March 28th - Positivitee Day - wear a tee with a positive message on it

March 28th - School Store

March 31st - SCHOOL CLOSED - Eid-al-Fltr

April 1st - 4th - PTO Book Fair

Please remind your children that there are lots of items in the lost & found. They can check the rack during their lunch period and claim what might belong to them!

Please be advised that school starts at 8:45 am and dismissal is at 3:30. While we understand illnesses and circumstances occurring beyond your control. We encourage students to be on time. Missing precious instruction time is a loss that cannot be recovered.

Early dismissal from PLD is at 1:25

Delayed Opening arrival time for PLD is 10:15 am

The complete schedule can be found here: https://www.ewrsd.org/apps/pages/index.jsp?uREC_ID=1561786&type=d&pREC_ID=1688531

Please note that if you plan on picking up your child earlier than regular dismissal time it is always helpful to let us know. You can do this anyone of the following ways: enter it into Genesis, email your child's teacher or call the front office and let them know that you will be picking your child up early.

In case of a 90 minute delay please use the following schedule:

Kidcare will open at 8:30 a.m. the morning of a delayed opening. Parents should have their children leave for school or the bus stop 90 minutes later than usual.

Friendly reminder: To keep the front of the building clear for carpool students, if you are picking up a student as a walker, please meet your child at the BREEZEWAY. Walkers are not dismissed at the front of the building as this area is kept open for carpool students. Regarding the carpool area, I do ask that we all work together as a community. Staff will only engage with the traffic on campus but I ask that you be courteous and mindful when entering the carpool lane. Please do not block the entry of the driveway due to the buses. Buses are unable to enter the driveway safely if it is blocked. Your support with this matter is appreciated.

Please remind your students to bring their charged chromebooks as well as a water bottle daily! It is extremely important that they remember to bring them everyday.

Cooler weather may be setting in, however, we will still be having recess outdoors. Recess is a crucial part of the day, so by all means we will continue to provide this outdoor experience daily. Please be reminded to have your child properly dress for cooler weather. Coats, jackets, and hats may be needed. Checking the weather prior to the start of school would help in making sure proper attire is on daily.

Every week a student is chosen to be the Artist of the Week. Their art is then posted in the display case to be viewed for a week. Each of the chosen artists will be photographed and displayed in the newsletter.

While PLD, doesn't have an official Librarian yet. We are lucky to have our Asst. Librarian Mrs. Mohamed here to help the students check out books and fix their chromebooks. When Mrs. Mohamed isn't there we are lucky to have Mrs. Alrashidy to assist with checking books in and out and keeping the library in order. Mrs. Plumser is also here to read to the students. The library is "booked" with excitement!

In Physical Education, students have been sharpening their hockey skills working on stickhandling, passing, and shooting. They are being introduced to offensive and defensive strategies that will be applied at the end of the unit. Following floor hockey, we will transition to our volleyball unit which is a school favorite.

Scoliosis Screening letters were sent out in January, if you haven't sent back the slip, please return it as soon as possible. I will be doing the screenings after Spring break. If you do not want to have your child screened, please indicate that on the form.

Any student who is 11 years old will need to have a Tdap and Meningitis vaccine prior to going into 6th grade. I am beginning to send out reminders to those children who are already 11 or will be 11 years old soon. Please send in any documentation of vaccines received so that I can update their medical record.

Please remember to send in any doctor office visits and updated immunizations to me via either your child, email or fax.

Please remember to keep your child home if they are sick.

Dear PLD Families,

Happy New Year! We hope that 2025 is your best year yet!

The 2024-2025 Yearbook is ready to be ordered! We are ONLY doing online ordering this year, so we will give you a quick guide to help you place your order. Yearbooks are $20, credit card / debit card only. Deadline for orders is April 11th, 2025. As we are working directly with a company to produce copies of the yearbook, orders must be in on time. No other orders can be taken after April 11th and access to the site will be closed. It is important to meet the deadline. Books will be delivered to the school and distributed in June. NO EXTRA COPIES will be available for purchase in June.

Please check your child's photo release status on Genesis. Many students are still marked as NO PHOTO/MEDIA RELEASE, which means that their picture cannot be used in our yearbook. Photo release forms have to be marked off on Genesis.

If you have any questions, please contact Mrs. Rupp and Ms. Swinarski at the emails here :

Mrs. Rupp mrupp@ewrsd.k12.nj.us

Ms. Swinarski - sswinarski@ewrsd.k12.nj.us

HOW TO ORDER YOUR YEARBOOK:

• Log into: https://ybpay.lifetouch.com/

• Yearbook ID Code: 14469125 OR you can select search for your school State/Province: NJ City: East Windsor then select Perry L. Drew Elementary. Then click NEXT.

• You will need to enter your student's FIRST AND LAST NAME and select grade. Then click NEXT.

• Select the number of copies you wish to order. Then click NEXT.

• Fill out your billing information. Then click CONTINUE TO PAYMENT

• Enter your credit card details.Then click VERIFY CARD.

• ORDERING IS COMPLETE! Please print a receipt for your records.

Thank you so much.

The PTO is currently seeking volunteers to fill board positions for the 2025-2026 school year. These positions are essential to keeping our PTO active and running smoothly. Without these roles being filled, we would be at risk of having no PTO, which would mean that many of the events and activities that our students look forward to throughout the year could no longer take place. The positions that need to be filled are President, Secretary, and Vice President. If you're interested in contributing to our school community and ensuring these important events continue, please reach out to the PTO at PLDPTO@gmail.com. We greatly appreciate your support and look forward to hearing from those who are able to help.

Ms. Baleva's class had the pleasure of having our 5th grade students present to the 3rd graders today, on various topics. Please enjoy some pictures below!

Today Mrs. Wilson's class had 5th grade students visiting to present their Gifted and Talented projects to our 4th grade class.

February 7th - Superbowl Day

Mrs. Wherley's class making dinosaur fossil prints with clay :)

February 13, 2025 - Our 4th-grade Gifted & Talented students became entrepreneurs and sold bracelets at their BizWorld Sale, showcasing their creativity and business skills! After learning about finance, marketing, and teamwork, they designed and sold their own products to third graders at PLD. From budgeting to customer service, they handled every aspect of their mini-businesses. The sale was a huge success, and students gained hands-on experience in real-world economics while having fun!

February 14th - Valentine's Day

February 18th - 100th Day of School

Students in Mrs. Volyand’s class reviewed question and answer types as they planned and practiced read alouds for EMK students! These leaders, readers, and NOW teachers are ready to kick off Read Across America week!

February 28th - SEL Day

Address: 70 Twin Rivers Drive North, East Windsor, NJ 08520

Contact: Kathleen Donohue, 609-4436-7820 X3000 - kdonohue@ewrsd.k12.nj.us OR

Evelin Surita (Habla Espanol), 609-443-7820 X3005 - esurita@ewrsd.k12.nj.us