Cubs' ROAR Parent Newsletter

Welcome to our very first edition of the CUBS' ROAR Parent Newsletter this school year! We are excited to launch this newsletter for our parents/guardians and school community again this year. We will send out this newsletter quarterly to highlight "The Happenings" at School Five! Contained in this newsletter you will find information about our grade levels and the activities that we have engaged in during the months of September, October and November 2023. We encourage you to continue to read and hope that you enjoy this trip into our days at School Five.

We continue to monitor the morning arrival and afternoon dismissal. We realize that on occasions, emergencies happen and we adjust to address those emergencies on an individual basis. However, below you will find a few reminders about these times of day.

Arrival & Dismissal:

• Students may not be dropped off before 8:40am, and they are considered late after 8:50am.
• Students may not be picked up early before 3:25pm, unless it is a verified emergency (medical appointment, etc.).
• We begin our schoolwide dismissal procedures at 3:00pm, so students may not be picked up between 3:00pm and 3:25pm.
• If your students is coming in late due to an appointment, please be sure to provide a doctor's note.
• If your student needs to leave early due to a doctor's appointment, please make sure to notify the teacher in writing on the day of the appointment, if it will be an early pickup. We will not disrupt instruction on a whim. Therefore, communication with the school/teacher well before pickup is important.

Vehicular Traffic:

• Our arrival begins at 8:40am and the school day begins at 8:50am.
• If you are dropping off or picking up during these times of day, PLEASE PLAN ACCORDINGLY. These times are high traffic times of day and we have staff, students and parents moving in the parking lot.
• Be sure follow and adhere to the signs - DO NOT PARK ON THE CURB. Our curb is drop off only at arrival and dismissal times. DO NOT PARK ON OUR GRASS, as these areas are not designated parking.
• We are working closely with our Lindenwold Police Department to ensure that our traffic rules and regulations are being followed.

School attendance is vital for elementary students because it supports their academic, social, and emotional development, lays the foundation for future success, and helps them develop important life skills. Regular attendance ensures that students have the best opportunities for growth and achievement during their elementary school years.

• Academic Achievement: Regular attendance at school is crucial for academic success. Elementary school is a foundational period in a child's education, where they build fundamental skills in subjects like reading, writing, and math. Consistent attendance allows students to receive instruction, participate in classroom activities, and complete assignments, which are essential for their learning and academic progress.

• Skill Development: Elementary school provides opportunities for students to develop social, emotional, and cognitive skills. Regular attendance ensures that students can engage with their peers and teachers, fostering social interactions, emotional growth, and the development of essential life skills such as teamwork and problem-solving.

• Consistency: Consistent school attendance establishes routines and helps students develop good habits. It teaches responsibility and time management, both of which are important life skills.

• Building a Strong Foundation: Elementary education builds the foundation for higher-level learning. Missing school can lead to gaps in a child's knowledge and skills, making it more challenging for them to catch up in the future.
  

We wanted to take another opportunity to express how pleased we were with our English & Spanish sessions of our Open House in September. We have never had an open house so early in the school year, but we strongly believe that having it earlier in the month allows for us to meet our parent community and share the expectations of our students and plan for our collaboration. With that said, it was good to see parents engaging with staff, and learning about our classrooms. THANK YOU ALL for your collaboration with our staff as we look ahead to a successful school year.

Teacher Websites

Teacher websites are a great source of information for parents/guardians and our school community. These websites contain relevant and important information related to your child's classroom. It is recommended that you frequently visit your child's classroom website for new and interesting information and the happenings in the classroom.

Google Classrooms

In addition to your teacher websites, also note that your Google Classrooms have been set up by our teachers as an additional insight to their classrooms. Note that if there are snow days that call for our schools to close, our Superintendent Dr. O'Neil may call for a remote day. If this is the case, our teachers will be teach via their Google Classrooms. It is important that you know how to log on and access this space. Our older students work in their Google Classrooms often, but our younger students may need support in accessing it. Be sure to practice getting on to our child's Google Classroom.

As part of our state mandates, we are required to complete mandated drills on a monthly basis. This consists of fire and emergency drills. Our teachers and students follow specific protocol for the drills assigned and these are scheduled to take place at different times of the day. If you are coming to our school during a time when a drill is taking place, please note that you will be expected to remain outside of the building until the drill is complete. School business will resume upon the completion of the drill.

Lastly, please note that when a fire or emergency drill takes place you will receive a global call informing you of such as a requirement of the mandate. Note that in most case, you will be informed that the drill occurred without incident.

At School Five, every classroom teachers selects a Student of the Month based on set criteria for the given month. The selected students' pictures with their teachers are posted on our Student of the Month display board by our main entrance to the school. Each month two students are also selected as our Board of Education Students of the Month. Below are the Students of the Month for September, October and November of this school year.

September 2023

Rania Lahmim (Grade 4)

Jeremy Valle Gonzalez (Grade 3)

October 2023

Kylie Rivas (Grade 2)

Edward Castaneda (Grade 1)

November 2023

Noah Howell (Kindergarten)

Unique Gooden (Grade 3)

September got off to a great start with our Lindenwold School Five Cubs! Students that completed their Summer Reading and submitted it to our Reading Teachers were able to participate in Summer Reading Celebration consisting of a Magic Show with Mr. Jake Strong on Monday, September 25th. Thank you to all of our students who worked to complete their reading packets over the summer.

We were excited to roll out the Lion's Loop early this year. As part of our Health & Wellness activities, we have our students walking laps on their designated days on the Lion's Loop during recess. As students walk, they earn a necklaces and walking charms based on the number of laps completed. We are encouraging all of our students to participate as part of our Health & Wellness activities. In order to support this activity, be sure to send your child to school in sneakers on a daily basis.

During this month, School Five teachers and students worked on learning about their designated country, including important facts about the demographics, culture, geography and people. As our culminating activity, our students prepared presentations to share with our grade levels and we hosted a Parade of Countries that took place around our bus loop in November. Students in their country's colors walked/danced the parade route with their flags and accessories to music. It was great to see all of the impressive work our students learned and were able to present.

This week our students learned about some important pillars of respect, which we discuss and practice at School Five on a daily basis. All students were able to dress down for this cause with a daily theme.

Monday - Wear Blue Today #WorldBullyingPreventionDay

Tuesday - Put A Cap on Bullying! Wear Your Favorite Hat!

Wednesday - Respect Each Other's Differences! Mismatch Day!

Thursday - Team Up Against Bullying! Wear Your Favorite Sports Attire!

Friday - We Respect Our Friends & Respect Our School! Wear Your Blue & Yellow!

School Five's very own alumna and published illustrator, Shiane Salabie, visited and spoke to our students about her journey towards becoming a published illustrator!

This week is a very important week at School Five as well because through our daily themes, students learn the importance of being drug and alcohol free. Students also had an opportunity to dress down during this week, while learning about the daily themes.

Monday - Say No To Drugs & Alcohol - Wear Red!

Tuesday - Show You Are Drug Free - Wear Black!

Wednesday - Life's A Work Of Art! Color It Drug Free - Wear Many Colors!

Thursday - You Are PAW-tastic Drug Free - Wear Animal Print!

Friday - Say Boo T Drugs - Wear Orange, Black, Purple!

Our National Elementary Honor Society (NEHS) students fundraised for Breast Cancer Awareness by hosting a Pink Out! day as their first service project of the school year. Students and staff dress in pink for a donation! Our students raised $188.93 for this worthy cause.

Our third and fourth grade students and their families enjoyed an evening of learning and fun in October. We opened our doors for an learning and fun-filled night. Our students and their families learned literacy and math games to support learning at home. Our students rotated through stations while working with their families. As they rotated they also received clues in order to Escape the Room, which was the theme of our night. Many students and their families successfully completed this task.

On October 31st, our school hosted a dress down day celebrating our favorite characters! Our students and staff had brilliant ideas for this dress down theme. Check out the creativity below. The day was a day of learning and fun.

Our first Scholastic Book Fair of the year has held in November! Our students had the opportunity to purchase books of their interest on their designated day. Our Book Fair is always an exciting time for our students and staff. We will host other book fairs during the school year, so stay tuned! We appreciate your support as a portion of the money raised due to student and staff purchased comes back to our school!

Our National Elementary Honor Society (NEHS) students completed their second service project during the month of November. That was the Can Do It Campaign, where students collected canned food products for a local food bank for Thanksgiving. Altogether our students collected over 20 boxes of food that was then delivered on their behalf. We are SO PROUD of their service! WE CAN DO IT!

School Five held its first Golden Lunch Table Award. This is a quarterly award for exceptional behavior in our cafeteria during our lunch periods, that includes Being Kind, Staying In Their Seats and Keeping Their Areas Clean! Students who exhibit exceptional behavior and responsibility in the cafeteria received a golden ticket to eat lunch with friends from other classes. We held our first Golden Lunch Table Award in November and it was a HIT! Students enjoyed having the opportunity to dine with friends from other classes at our beautifully decorated table. KUDOS to all of our students who earned this award.

Our littlest students have really taken to learning all about School Five, our motto, our processes, and have acclimated well. During the month of September, our Kindergarteners learned all about how to navigate the school - learning where the different and important places in our school like the cafeteria (all purpose room), our media center (library), nurse's office, main office, blacktop, playground, etc. They also diligently learned about our Cubs' Pride Motto: Choose Your Day - Be Kind - Be Responsible - Be A Problem-Solver and what it means to be respectful.

BUSY BUSY BUSY!! That’s the best way to describe our Kindergarteners! Our students have

worked diligently to learn, understand and follow school and classroom expectations. They

have done a great job in adjusting to a new school environment. All of our classes and students

have begun learning our letters and sounds through our new UFLI phonics program. In math

we are focusing on number concepts from 0-5 as well as shapes. We are so proud to watch our

students work hard as they learn these new concepts.

Our Lindenwold Fire Department came to visit our school and teach our Kindergarteners about

fire safety. Throughout the assembly, the students listened to information about fire safety,

learned about a firefighter's equipment and even watched a firefighter dress in his gear to show

the students that even though they look and sound different, firefighters are here to help! At the

end, all the students were able to look at one of their fire trucks! We know how to stay safe in

case of a fire.

We have discussed all about pumpkins and have learned about a pumpkin life cycle. Our

pumpkins “grew” in the Kindergarten courtyard and each student got a chance to visit our

pumpkin patch and pick their own pumpkin!

Our First Graders and their teachers were busy at work during the months of September, October and November. In English Language Arts, our students have been learning about short and long vowels, sentences and MANY other things! First Grade also took part in their annual trip to Cedar Run Wildlife Refuge. Speaking of animals, our students learned a lot about the many plants and animals that are native to NJ. It was a fun and educational experience for us all!

Our Second Grade students have had busy months! Students and teachers have spent their days establishing daily routines, as well as teaching expectations for the school year. Way to start off the school year Second Grade! Our students are finding their voices presenting their work to their classes, and working with their buddy classes in other grades. They are looking forward to learning many more great things from each other and anticipate a fantastic year ahead!

Our Third Graders and their teachers have been engaging in LOTS of learning activities. From reading, to math, to writing and science/social studies, it is all coming together for our Third Graders.

Our Third Graders are exemplifying our motto daily! Our students worked on the grade level bulleting board- All of the World Smiles in the Same Language! This board celebrates the diversity of our school and our students during Hispanic Heritage Month.

Our Fourth Grade classes have been working on reading with stamina so far this year. We rotate through different genres of books every Monday to self-select new books to read throughout the week. It’s great to see kids trying new books to read. Everyone is loving reading a book in our hands this year! We have also been working on rounding in math, and did so in groups in order to complete the task given.

Officer Brennan is often a Guest Reader in our classrooms. He is also the security officer for the Phillies, and read a story to some classrooms about the Philly Phanatic. The children asked him questions about being an officer in Lindenwold and at the Philly Stadium.

Our work as a school would not be the same without the support of our school community. We hope that this newsletter provides a glimpse of the activities, but most importantly the learning that takes place at Lindenwold School Five. As always, we welcome your input and support.

- January/February 2024 - American Heart Association - Kids Heart Challenge

- January/February 2024 - Principal's Chat & Chew

- February 2024 - Black History Month & Activities

- February 22, 2024 - Literacy & Math Night (Grades K-2)