Dear North Smyrna Elementary Families,

January was a fresh start to the New Year, and we are excited for where we have been and the direction we are headed!

Please take time to check out the fun we had in January and what we have to look forward to this month. As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please contact our office!

Sincerely,

Dr. Amber Augustus, Principal

Mrs. Haley Griffin, Associate Principal

Dr. Tiyana Mullen, Associate Principal

Monday, February 3

• K-3 Trimester 2 Progress Reports sent home
• It's School Counselor Appreciation Week!

Thursday, February 6

• Lasermania Assembly!

Friday, February 7

• NSE Spirit Day - Jersey Day - Wear your favorite jersey to school!

Monday, February 10

• Professional Learning Day for Staff - No School for Students

Tuesday, February 11

• NSE Kindness Project - Birthday Kit Donations Begin

Wednesday, February 12

• PTO Meeting, 5pm

Friday, February 14

• NSE Celebrates Friendship!

Monday, February 17

• No School for Students - President's Day

Wednesday, February 19

• SSD Board Meeting at SMS, 6pm

Thursday, February 20

• 3rd Grade Spanish Immersion AVANT Testing

Friday, February 21

• 3rd Grade Spanish Immersion AVANT Testing

Wednesday, February 26

• NSE STEM Night, 6-7:30pm

Friday, February 28

• Rock Your RARE - Wear black and white

The schools in the Smyrna School District are very interested in getting feedback from our families about their experiences. In particular, we want to hear about the connection that students and their families have with North Smyrna Elementary School. This anonymous survey is designed to provide us an honest review of our strengths and areas for improvement. Results will be shared anonymously with our school leadership team exactly as written, but participants should not expect to receive a personal response from the school. Use the QR code or link below to access the survey.

Parents of children entering kindergarten in Fall of 2025: Are you interested in having your child be part of the Spanish Immersion program at North Smyrna Elementary School? If so, please click on the button below for the Spanish Immersion Commitment Form to complete the information required to confirm your commitment to the program and to secure your child's place in the Spanish Immersion Lottery which takes place in March and June of 2025.

Please note: Failure to submit this document will exclude your child from being placed in the Spanish Immersion Lottery even in the event school choice paperwork was submitted and approved.

To learn more: Why Spanish Immersion? Check out this link for more information: https://www.smyrna.k12.de.us/Page/946

If you have any additional questions, please contact the NSE Main Office at 302-653-8589 or nsesregistration@smyrna.k12.de.us.

K-3 Interim Progress Reports for 2nd Trimester went home on Monday, February 3rd. These reports contain information on your child's reading, math, science, and social studies performance. The reading report contains information on what your child is working on at their current level. If you have any questions regarding these reports or would like additional information, please contact your child's teacher.

Throughout the month of February, NSE will be celebrating Black History Month. Lessons and activities will take place over the coming weeks to celebrate black history and culture. We look forward to sharing what our students have learned in the March newsletter.

We wish to congratulate Mrs. Amy Brogen for her selection as NSE's Behavioral Health Professional Award Winner! This is a Delaware Department of Education recognition program designed to recognize the contributions of behavioral health professionals (such as counselors, social workers, health care professionals, school psychologists, school nurses) to improving an individual's mental health in public education. Mrs. Brogen now represents NSE at the district competition for Smyrna School District Behavioral Health Professional.

We are excited to celebrate our amazing NSE School Counselors, Mrs. Brogen and Ms. Montalvo. Our school counselors work with our entire school population: students, staff, and families alike. They teach social-emotional learning lessons to all students, work with families as they support their children through difficult situations, provide professional development and support to staff members working with students in the classroom, and meet with students individually and in small groups as they work through situations they face. They put their heart and expertise into all encounters, and we could not be more appreciative to have such caring professionals in this role.

On January 28th, NSE families joined our staff for a night of racing against the clock (and each other!) as they competed in The Amazing Race! Our reading and math night brought many activities and fun to our families. Thank you to NSE's reading and math specialists, Mrs. Apgar and Mrs. Schultz, for organizing such an incredible event, to our NSE staff members for volunteering their time, and to our NSE families for attending this event with their child(ren)! It is this amazing school/home partnership that made this evening a success!

NSE Staff Volunteers: Crystal Mullen, Amy Tracey, Heather Straub, Lori Craighton, Melissa Pertschi, Jill French, Camryn Kodack, Gloria Alvarado, Makenzie Mullen, Kim Mickulus, Jenna Van Horn, Ashley Daniels, Tessa Tierson, Kate Montalvo, Chontel Stephens, Jean Martinez, Erin Huynh, Ron Emerson, Isabelle McLane, Jaime Korup, Kelly Wilson, and Andrea Beebe

Kindergarten and 1st grade students were excited to welcome Jungle John to NSE on January 28th as we learned more about different animals. Students have completed animal research units in their reading classes this year so this assembly was a fun and interactive way to deepen their learning.

A few reminders as we are deeply entrenched in the time of year where illnesses pass amongst students and staff easily:

• If your child experiences vomiting and/or diarrhea, keep him or her home for 24 hours after the last occurrence.
• If your child is running a fever, keep him or her home 24 hours after the fever has subsided without the use of medicine.
• Continue to monitor your child for illness and contact the Nurse's Office with any questions or concerns.

These measures will go along way to helping us prevent the spread of illnesses this time of year.

We will be focusing on Kindness for the month of February during SEL.

Check out the resource below for how to help your child with math:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/11bl0K9axn0sNuO0WvuhJM8JOoNvBNNqFd_5o0rRcyOg/edit?usp=sharing

• NSE was able to celebrate our K-3 students who read and logged 30 steps during the winter break! These students were rewarded with Popcorn & a Movie! A big shout-out to our PTO for helping us to provide a snack to reward these super readers!

• Winter Reading Challenge Participants January 2025

• Throughout December and January, some of our third graders were able to participate in "Fun Fact Friday". They have been studying weather and climate for reading and were able to share exciting facts on the announcements about their different weather topics! Our students did an excellent job embracing the roles of meteorologists!

Check out the NSE PTO Facebook Page

We are continuing to update the PTO Facebook page with learning activities and information for families. Please check it out at North Smyrna Elementary School PTO.

We hope you will consider joining as we work together to provide the best educational experiences to our students throughout the year!

NSE Families Remind App: Text @nsefam to 81010 to receive school reminders.

NSE Facebook Page: Follow us on Facebook at North Smyrna Elementary School PTO

NSE YouTube Page: Check out our YouTube page at:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCoEsLnqVcfz-l0Fa8YhxqOw

Dr. Amber Augustus, Principal

Mrs. Haley Griffin, Associate Principal

Dr. Tiyana Mullen, Associate Principal

Website: https://nes.smyrna.k12.de.us/

Location: 365 N. Main Street, Smyrna, DE, USA
Phone: 302-653-8589
Email: nsesregistration@smyrna.k12.de.us

Facebook: facebook.com/NorthSmyrnaElementarySchoolPTO