Welcome to our Falcon Forum – Monthly Newsletter! We are excited to share updates, highlights, and important events happening here at Arthur Stanlick Elementary School. From inspiring classroom projects to upcoming activities, there’s so much to celebrate together! Thank you for your continued support and involvement in our school community. Let’s make this school year one to remember!

We had an eventful month of March! The month began with celebrating Read Across America Week. The entire Arthur Stanlick staff did an outstanding job of instilling a passion for reading—from creating SEL-themed bookmarks to welcoming guest readers from JTHS and participating in the Reading Train. A special thank you to Mrs. Keyser and Mr. Venturino for organizing and planning this exciting week. Additionally, we want to recognize and thank our JCPTA for supplying flashlights to every student to participate in the school-wide Reading Train. Speaking of our wonderful PTA, they hosted a number of glow parties for the classes that raised the most money for the Wiz Fit Challenge. Each class had a dance party with the Falcon and glow sticks!

On Friday, March 14, our 4th & 5th Grade Student Council representatives participated in Kean University's Student Leadership Summit. They heard from inspiring speakers and engaged in activities designed to equip them in their pursuit of making a difference in their community and the world around them. Much of what the keynote speaker shared today aligned with our very own Kids Can Change the World campaign! Additionally, our 5th graders participated in the Big Bad Wolf - Mock Trials this month. Please see the links below to discover how enriching this learning experience truly is.

We have officially kicked off our March Madness - Battle of the Books reading competition! Our staff filmed themselves reading 16 different books from various decades, and the students are voting for their favorite. The winner will be announced right before Spring Break.

I want to highlight a few important events coming up in the first half of April:

• Friday, April 4th – 1st Grade Spring Concert at 9:30 AM.

• Tuesday, April 8th – 2nd Grade Spring Concert at 9:30 AM.

• Thursday, April 10th – The NJCGTP is hosting a chess tournament in our all-purpose room at 4PM.

• Spring Break is scheduled for April 14th - 22nd.

We are looking forward to many exciting events for our school community in April. I hope you have a great day, and thank you for all of your support!

Dr. Papa

Read Across America Week is an annual event celebrated in early March to promote literacy and a love of reading among children. During this week, schools, libraries, and communities across the U.S. host activities like read-aloud sessions, book fairs, author visits, and themed dress-up days. Thank you to Mrs. Keyser and Mr. Venturino for organizing many of our activities throughout the week. During the week, we celebrated SEL Day, and students created bookmarks with positive statements and affirmations. We were honored to host 17 athletes from JTHS as guest readers in all of our classrooms. The week concluded with a Reading Train. Thanks to our JCPTA, students were provided with flashlights and brought their favorite books into the hallway. The entire school paused to read silently for fifteen minutes.

Every month we will highlight one grade level, one specialist, and one special education classroom to showcase the great things happening here at Arthur Stanlick inside of our classrooms.

In Social Studies, first graders have been studying “Heroes of History.” We learned about notable American figures by reading biographies and studying timelines of their lives. We then wrapped up the unit with our Timeline Projects, celebrating important events in our own lives!

March has been a fun-filled month in first and second grade as we head into spring! We are getting excited for the warm weather and have been talking a lot about signs of spring, such as animals we will start seeing, the weather, and nature.

In first grade, we have been discussing what an opinion is and how everyone can have different opinions—which is totally okay! We’ve been starting our mornings with some silly Would You Rather questions to spark discussions and encourage students to share their thoughts and opinions. With spring on our minds, we read a fun book called Duck! Rabbit! by Amy Krouse Rosenthal. After reading, each student shared their opinion on what they thought the picture in the book showed—a duck or a rabbit. It was nice to see them all share their ideas and start writing about what they believe. We’re looking forward to more fun with opinion writing in the weeks ahead. Keep up the great work!

In second grade, we are continuing our talk about animals! Students are currently wrapping up their animal research reports, which they have been extremely interested in. They have put in a lot of hard work researching their animal’s characteristics, habitat, diet, and fun facts and are enjoying the final stages of creating their amazing posters. They cannot wait to present the interesting facts they discovered about their animals! It has been so wonderful seeing their curiosity and creativity shine as they showcase what they have learned. I am so proud of them!

Students at Stanlick are doing amazing things in their music classes for Music in Our Schools Month! The United Through Music theme is such a great way to bring everyone together through the joy of learning and performing. We’re excited to share the variety of instruments and songs the students are working on:

• 1st and 2nd Graders are preparing for their concerts, with 1st graders exploring songs from around the world and 2nd graders focusing on spring tunes.

• 3rd Grade students are learning the recorder, and they’re excited to show off their skills at their upcoming concert.

• 4th and 5th Graders are diving into ukulele playing, learning chords, strumming patterns, and tuning.

• Band and Chorus students are preparing for their spring concerts, too. In band, 4th graders are working on multi-part music, and 5th graders are tackling more challenging songs. The 4th and 5th grade chorus students are taking a trip around the globe, learning songs from a variety of places—including some in different languages.

It’s exciting to see how much progress our students have made, and we’re looking forward to our upcoming performances! Please save these dates:

• 1st Grade Concert – Friday, April 4th, at 9:30 AM

• Moana Jr. (JTMS Musical, directed by Mrs. Kirschner and featuring many Stanlick alums) – Friday, April 4th, at 7 PM, and Saturday, April 5th, at 2 PM at JTHS

• 2nd Grade Concert – Tuesday, April 8th, at 9:30 AM

• 3rd Grade Concert – Wednesday, April 30th, at 9:30 AM

• 5th Grade ST/WR Band and Chorus Combined Concert – Wednesday, April 9th, at 7 PM at JTHS

• 5th Grade Band and Chorus Concert – Wednesday, May 28th, at 6 PM

• 4th Grade Band and Chorus Concert – Monday, June 9th, at 6 PM

After 25 years, Friday, March 21st marked the final chapter of the Big Bad Wolf Trials here at Arthur Stanlick. Mrs. Platz's consistent commitment to creating authentic learning experiences for our students is absolutely inspiring. I want to thank Mrs. Platz for her dedication and passion in providing this wonderful experience of mock trials to our school community for the past 25 years. Additionally, our 5th-grade students did an outstanding job in each and every role they played in the trials. Thank you, Mrs. Platz, for all of your hard work and commitment to bringing the best mock trials to Arthur Stanlick for 25 years!

Mrs. Curry is teaching our 1st and 2nd graders about gardening every Wednesday after school. They built the garden beds and have prepared the soil for the plants, which they will plant next week. The students are having a wonderful experience and learning a great deal from this after-school club.

Before we know it, the flowers will be in full bloom, and the pollen will be flying! For most, it is a welcomed time to get outside and play, but for others, springtime is dreaded because of bothersome allergies.

Here are some helpful tips if your child is suffering from allergies:

• If there is a known history of seasonal allergies, start any prescribed medications right at the start of allergy season. Talk to your child’s healthcare provider before starting any new medications.

• Keep windows closed in the house to reduce the amount of allergens indoors.

• Have your child change clothes after playing outside.

• Wash hands and face after playing outside—this can be done in the bathroom after recess.

• Shower at night to wash off allergens before bed.

• Do not hang dry clothes and linens outside.

It can be difficult to determine the difference between allergies and a cold. You might find this symptom checklist helpful.

As always, please do not hesitate to reach out with any questions or concerns!

Cassie Carbone

ccarbone@jefftwp.org

973-663-0520 ext 5115

FIRST GRADE

VALERIIE A.

SARINA P.

SAVANNAH H.

PAIGE W.

SECOND GRADE

ADRIA S.

EMILY O.

JACK A.

COLE B.

THIRD GRADE

HANNAH E.

SHIANNE C.

LUCAS J.

EMILIA W.

FOURTH GRADE

JOHN D.

BRYLIN G.

LIAM I.

MASON N.

FIFTH GRADE

OLIVIA M.

SANTIAGO B.

AVA V.

KENDRA T.

PLEASE JOIN THE JCPTA. https://jcptainfo.memberhub.com/store

The JCPTA does an amazing job of enriching the Arthur Stanlick School community. We appreciate their hard work and efforts to support our staff & students. If you have not done so already, please consider joining the JCPTA.

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