Torey J. Sabatini
School
January 2011
January
11
12
13
17
18
19
20
21
18-21
27
27
28
28
Grade 4 Ed Enrich “Vikings in Vinland”
2-Hr. Delayed Opening – 10:40 am
Drama Club 3:15-4:30
MLK/Prof Dev. – Schools Closed
Board of Ed Mtg. - 7:30 pm
KAM/KPM Ed Enrich – “Surviving Winter
World”
Drama Club 3:15-4:30
Cultural Arts’ Assembly—Alborada Spanish
Dance
Kindergarten Registration
Drama Club 3:15-4:30
TJS Family Wellness Night 7:00—8:30
2nd Marking Period Ends
Grade 2 Ed Enrich “Mad Science”
February
1
3
4
10
15
16
17
18
24
26
21,22
Cultural Arts’ Assembly—Taikoza Japa
nese Drums
Drama Club 3:15-4:30
2nd Marking Period Report Cards Issued
Drama Club 3:15-4:30
TJS author visit - Doug Florian
TJS Walk to School
Drama Club 3:15-4:30
Single Session – 12:45 dismissal
Drama Club 3:15-4:30
Adult Social – 7-11pm-Grace Church
Winter Recess
Responsive Classroom
TJS has been practicing Responsive Classroom
for the past five years. It is a program that is
not entirely adopted overnight, but is adopted
bit by bit, in layers.
Our first steps were to have people trained, to
create a nucleus of professionals in the school
who could advocate effectively for the program.
Over the years, nine of our staff have attended
week-long trainings in the summer. Several have
gone for advanced training.
The initial component that was adopted by TJS
was the morning meeting. Surely, you have all
heard this phrase from your children. The
morning meeting is 15-20 minutes at the start
of the day when students engage in four practices:
• Greetings—These can be done in a variety of
ways
• Shares– To give students an opportunity to
reveal things that are meaningful to
them...and for their classmates to ask meaningful questions
• Activity—To provide the group with shared
fun and teamwork
• News and Announcements—forecasting the
day and providing academic practice in the
process.
(over)
Character Education
What is the purpose of this daily practice?
There are several. First and foremost, it is to
establish a feeling of true community in the
classroom. Students who actually greet each
other and play cooperatively with them, and
share their experiences, listening attentively as
others share, will coexist with more success
than a class that does not engage in these practices.
There are other purposes...to teach active listening, constructive discourse with peers, mutual fun, language practice...and the realization
that the students share more in common than
they may believe.
At TJS, in addition to the Responsive Classroom,
which we have been using for the past five years,
we have a new addition to our “be nice to each
other reminders”.
When you are at the school you will notice posters
that contain three questions:
•
•
•
Is it kind?
Is it truthful?
Is it necessary?
These are three questions we are encouraging our
students to ask themselves prior to speaking or
acting toward someone else. In fact, the questions
are useful in adult actions and speech as well.
Studies have shown that classrooms who engage
in these practices are more time efficient in the
long run, achieve higher scores on standardized
tests and enjoy their educational experience
more thoroughly. However, it is not a panacea
for every malady and there will still be occasional hiccups with or without morning meeting.
The idea for this came from some TJS parents
who became aware of the questions being used at a
neighboring school. We looked into it and have
used it extensively for the past few months.
Teachers have repeated it to students and it is
periodically spoken over morning announcements .
On the whole, it is one of a number of ways we
at TJS are doing our best to nurture our school
community. Check it out in more depth at
www.responsiveclassroom.org
Idling
Madison Public School District Mission Statement
The Madison School District will inspire
and challenge all students to be life-long
learners, empowered with the knowledge,
skills, and character to shape their futures, realize their dreams, and contribute positively to the world.
Idling automobiles is a time honored tradition,
particularly in cold weather. However, we
haven’t always known the environmental impact
of car idling. Not only is it terrible for the air
that our children are breathing, it is of no
benefit to our automobiles.
At Torey J. we have signs posted to discourage idling. It is not a mere suggestion. There
are laws to prohibit idling. When you are
dropping your children off at school, please
move on as soon as possible and if you do find
it necessary to stop for a period of time,
please turn your engine off.
Thank you!
NJ Bar Foundation Anti-Bullying Programs
Code Anna
Several times each year, TJS runs what we
call “Code Anna Drills”. A Code Anna drill
The Madison Elementary Schools are all taking
is intended to practice reacting to a potenpart in the anti-bullying program developed by the
tial case of anaphylaxis, where a child or
NJ Bar Foundation. The program consists of a
adult have had a potentially life threatening
series of lessons centered on the dynamic that
allergic reaction or sudden system shutcreates or supports bullies. It also clarifies what
down.
is bullying and what it is not.
The curriculum is used in grades 1 through 5. All
of our students will take part in it.
Mrs. Crescas, our school nurse, orchestrates our Code Anna drills. Each person
involved has a distinct responsibility for
managing the crisis, from the classroom
teacher to the principal to the secretary to
the school nurse.
By offering definitions of what constitutes bullying and giving choices for the people involved to
make, whether bystanders or direct recipients of
the bullying, we hope to give our students tools to
This drill is planning for an occasion that
prevent this problem.
will hopefully never occur, but we want to
be thoroughly prepared.
This winter, a group of our staff and Mr. Post will
be trained further at the NJ Bar Foundation.
TJS Musical
Together with the Responsive Classroom, and the
constant vigilance of the staff, we hope this
measure is another way to guide our students toward correct, humane choices.
For the past five years, Torey J. has had a
group of dedicated parents produce a musical
with our fourth and fifth graders. This has
truly been a labor of love. The original cadre
of producers, AnnMarie Collins, Kate Smith
Save the Date!!
and Liz Rosica, were the mainstays. Over the
years, that group was supplemented by other
The 2011 TJS Family Wellness Night is scheduled dedicated parents.
for January 27th at 7 PM. Please join us for this
This year, the future of the musical appeared
wonderful event.
uncertain when it was literally rescued by a
This will be the third year that Mrs. Crescas, our group of Torey parents, with the return of
school nurse, and Mr. Gerenstein, our PE teacher, AnnMarie Collins for one last year at the helm.
have joined forces to create an evening filled with
fun and information. Last year’s event was held in This is a true gift to TJS. The children are
early spring. We moved it up this year so it does involved in a project that requires true teamwork and cooperation to produce. It is our
not compete with little league and all of the activities that are held as the weather gets warmer. version of an Amish barn raising, with everyone contributing in their own way for a common cause.
We will be sending out more details as the time
approaches. We hope to see you there!
Author Visit
Honeywell Instant Alert
Due to the energies of our media specialist, Mrs.
Taylor, and the largesse of our PTO and the Madison literacy endowment, Torey J. will have a full
day visit from Doug Florian, a renowned children’s
book author and illustrator.
As the weather begins to change, this is a good
time to take a few moments and consider whether
you have the most appropriate contact information
registered with our instant alert system, Honeywell. In order to be accurately apprized in case of
emergency closings and other crucial announcements, you need to make sure the contact information Honeywell has on you is accurate and appropriate.
Mr. Florian will have separate presentations to
grades kindergarten and first, second/third and
four/five.
A few of Mr. Florian’s books are:
Beast Feast
Mammalabila
Lizards, Frogs, and Polliwogs
Winter Eyes
Insectlopedia
Omnibeasts
Madison Educational Foundation.
To check your information, log onto our district
website and go into our new Honeywell Instant
Alert system—http://
www.madisonpublicschools.org/madisonps/cwp/
view.asp?A=3&Q=320596. From there, you can follow the directions for updating your contact information.
Please note that updating this system does not update our school’s information. If you do have any
changes in address, phone number, emergency contacts, etc., please be sure to let Mrs. Empson, our
school secretary know. We need to keep our information as up to date as possible.
The elementary schools in Madison are fortunate
to have a new ally. The Madison Education Foundation, which has previously been a huge support
to MHS and MJS, have recently become the eduTJS Adult Social
cational foundation for every level of education
for the Madison Public Schools. We are already
indebted to this wonderful organization for sup- On Saturday, February 27th, the TJS Adult
porting a round of grants submitted this past fall. Social is going to happen, with TJS parents
and staff joining together for an evening of
On Saturday, November 20th, the MEF held a re- fun, socializing and offering support to TJS.
ception in the main room at Giralda Farms. It was This event is a major fundraiser, but more
an extraordinary evening, with hundreds of parthan that, it is a great opportunity to come
ents and friends of the Madison Schools. The
together in a show of mutual support for our
night was a true testament to the level of support wonderful school.
and enthusiasm the community is capable of exhibiting for our schools, and it is truly appreciThe adult social has experienced a number of
ated.
incarnations and each one has brought its own
Thank you to everyone involved with the MEF,
whether as a leader or as a supporter. The
schools appreciate your help!
special charm. Please make every effort to
come out with us and have a joyous time at
Grace Church, or, as it will be for one night
only, “The Dive”.
E-Alerts
How to register for the Madison Public Schools Website, and sign up to
receive E-alerts.
1. Go to our website:
www.madisonpublicschools.org
2. Click on the Register button at the top
right of the page.
3. Enter your birth date and click Submit.
(You must be older than 18 to do this.)
4. Please fill out the form that displays.
Note that there are required fields: First
Name, Last Name, Email Address, Sign-In
Name, Password and Confirming Password.
Tip: We recommend that you at least add
your zip code, as this will enable you to take
advantage of the distance calculation feature on this website.
5. Make sure that the box that says “Please
send me email about Events and Activities”
is selected, and click Submit.
6. You will now see a message that your registration has been accepted.
7. Please sign into the website now using the
Sign-In Name and password that you just
assigned yourself. This can be done by either clicking on the Sign In button at the
top right of the site, or by clicking on the
hyperlink below the Acceptance Message.
8. Once signed in, you will need to click on
the Access My Info button that appears at
the top right of the page.
options for each school.
9. You will now see your profile displayed
and available to edit if necessary. Please
scroll down until you see My E-Alerts &
Subscriptions.
10. Click on Edit Subscriptions.
11. At this point, you will be able to select
any sections on our website to
which you would like to subscribe. This
subscription will enable you to
receive email messages from the editors
of these sections, if they decide to
announce a significant update on their
pages.
IMPORTANT NOTE: Please check the
box next to the DISTRICT Homepage
AND next
to EACH SCHOOL Homepage that applies
to you or your child/children (e.g. TJS,
CAS, KRS, MJS, MHS). Click the drop
down box to access the subscription
12. Please select any additional pages that
may apply to you or your child/children,
for example: teacher page(s), athletic
page(s), etc.
13. Scroll to the very bottom and click on
Subscribe. You will now be set to receive
important alerts from our website.
NJ ASK
Please be aware, when making plans, that
the testing week for the NJ ASK in
grades 3, 4 and 5 is the week of May 9th
through May 13th.
It is crucial that students, if healthy, are
present during the testing weeks. Your
help in ensuring their presence is much
appreciated. Thank you!