Parents,

This last month has flown by! Please be sure to read these newsletters to stay informed about important updates and changes. We are deep into testing season now, and the next two weeks will be particularly busy. Each grade level has crucial tests to take and review, so it’s essential that students attend school daily to soak up all the excellent instruction.

Our Dad's Club was hard at work this morning! They saved the day when the five picnic tables they were supposed to stain arrived unassembled. Good times! They quickly got to work and assembled the tables in record time. Thank you to Mr. Rudd for your leadership, and to the entire Dad’s Club team! You’ll find pictures below showcasing their hard work. We're creating new learning and lunch stations throughout the school, and every day our campus is looking more like a college setting.

As mentioned in a previous newsletter, we requested the removal of the old bike rack and fencing. That work is now complete! Sod has been laid down, and a much smaller bike rack has been installed, making it easier for students to drop off their bikes as they enter campus.

Additionally, we are excited to welcome back our former fifth graders—now high school seniors—for our annual clap-out on May 29th at 9 AM. Seeing these students return is a powerful reminder of the journey we began together and the successes they have achieved. It’s always a meaningful way to end the year.

Finally, a huge shoutout to our music program, led by Anita Travaglino, Hillsborough’s Music Teacher of the Year. Our rock band and chorus students put on a fantastic performance in front of a packed house, and they did an incredible job. Well done to all involved!

We are thrilled to see how well our students perform on test days, and we want to ensure they have the best possible environment to succeed. To help them focus and be ready, please make sure your child arrives at school early on test days. This will allow them to settle in and prepare mentally for the test.

We have put in a lot of effort to prepare our students, and we want to avoid the need for make-up tests. Your cooperation is greatly appreciated.

Thank you for your support!

• May 6 - 4th grade ELA
• May 7 - 3rd grade Math
• May 8 - 5th grade Math
• May 9 - 4th grade Math

• May 13 - 5th grade Science

Thank you to this awesome group of people that cook for our students every day and make it such a pleasant place for our kids to eat. They are simply a tremendous group of people, that work very hard every day to make sure our students are loved and well fed. I joke with them all the time, but they really make some good food. I would put them up against anyone.

We had a strong attendance week leading up to Friday. Does anyone notice a pattern. Even so we were still at 93 percent for Friday. I will take it. I am looking forward to continuing our great attendance as we get into May. Thank you to all those who consistently get their kids to school well before the bell rings. We all appreciate it.

We are trying to find all our seniors to do one last clapout. We were there at the beginning of their education and we want to congratulate them as they graduate high school. We are having our Clapout Thursday, May 29th at roughly 9 AM. Some of us attend the Gaither graduation each year to get reinvigorated as we see our students that we put so much time and effort into. If you know any of these kids we would love to see them again.

The Dad's Club bailed me out. They put together 5 picnic tables in record time. I thought they were going to be put together and all they had to do was stain them. I was wrong, but they smiled and said that they could get it done. It took them about two hours, and they were done. Thank you to Mr. Rudd (Mrs. Sosa) for organizing the event. A special thanks to Jose Candelaria (Ms. Decker); Thomas Herrick (Brotherton); and Paul Felten (Ms. Decker). I cannot thank you enough. They also drilled holes in the tables so we can put umbrellas in them. We are creating nice outdoor opportunities for the students. More to come next year. You will next see our dads in the car line or on Northdale Friday morning. They will be handing out flowers to all the moms as a small token of appreciation for Mother's Day. Finally, they are hosting Dads and Donuts on Friday, May 16th. We are very excited to have this group of men on our campus. Thank you.

Fifth grade parents I am giving you a couple updates for work's sake, so you only need to take some time off for one day instead of two. We have decided to have a separate awards assembly just for our fifth graders at 8:00 AM sharp in the cafeteria May 29th. About ten minutes after the conclusion of that program we are going to do our annual clap out starting at about 9 AM. More information to come.

I just wanted you to have the information well before for your own personal schedule. The clap out is the same routine in the Shillington parking lot. You can decorate your cars, bring confetti, the whole deal. This should be a lot of fun. Friday will be a normal half day with no fanfare. It will make it for a quiet day on Friday. Again, more information is to come.

Monday, May 5th

• Second Grade- More Health- Hygiene 🪥

Tuesday, May 6th

• Fourth Grade ELA FAST 📝
• Bella Ingrassia-Ramos 🎈
• Simryn Bassi 🎈

• Third Grade Math- FAST 📝
• Elizabeth Madkins 🎈
• Micah Miller 🎈
• Colten Moening 🎈
• Santiago Ortiz-Ramirez

Thursday, May 8th

• Fifth Grade Math FAST 📝
• Ms. Sheila Smith' birthday 🎈
• Cecily Dela Cruz 🎈
• Rivan Bassi 🎈
• Grayson Frushone 🎈

Friday, May 9th

• Fourth Grade Math FAST
• Jackson Fernandez 🎈
• Audrey Lopez 🎈

Saturday, May 10th

• Christopher Araujo-Perez
• Isabella DeFerrari 🎈

Sunday May 11th

• Mother's Day 💡 💡 (Dads Don't Forget)
• Bryan Lafferty 🎈

🎈=birthday

I give you this now so you can plan around these dates. Enjoy your lives, just not during testing time. 😂

We are looking for more business sponsors in the 2025-2026 school year. The more business sponsors we have the ore we can do for our students. You benefit from advertising to 1300 parents, and 100 staff members. It is quite a bargain. Please call Adair at 813-975-7300, and she will get you where you need to be.