Report Cards

Today your child's Trimester 1 report card is available through the parent portal for all students, preschool through 5th grade. If you'd like more information about standards-based report cards, Dr. Portas and I worked together on a Superintendent Spotlight about the topic here.

Holiday Spirit Week

Thanks to our fifth grade student council for helping us develop a holiday spirit week, leading into the holidays. See below for the spirit days.

Science Fair, Grades 2-5

Please see the information sent home today about the Science Fair and the link for participation is below. We moved the date earlier to January, so that it does not conflict with other spring school events. Read through the parameters carefully, as there are a few updates for this year. The virtual forms for participation are due on 1/8.

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.

Support the Senior Class of 2025 by ordering delicious cookie dough online! Orders ship directly to your home in just one week - help us reach our fundraising goals and enjoy a tasty treat this holiday season!

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

Stomach bugs around the building! Tis the season...we always get a stomach virus around Thanksgiving! Here are some tips from the NJ Department of Health:

https://www.cdc.gov/norovirus/prevention/index.html

https://www.nj.gov/health/cd/edu_training/DSH/norovirus_childcare.pdf

Strep Throat news:

Safe Toy Checklist from Prevent Blindness; this is a nice resource when purchasing toys during this holiday season!

https://preventblindness.org/safe-toy-checklist/

News from the State's Respiratory Surveillance:

* RSV percent positivity continues to increase particularly among children 0-4 years of age.
* Positivity is elevated for adenovirus, parainfluenza, and rhinovirus/enterovirus.

* Not too late to get your flu shot.

***Preschoolers that are 59 months and younger will need to provide documentation of flu vaccine by Dec. 31, 2024 or be excluded from school on Jan. 2, 2025.