Torey J. Sabatini
School
April 2011
Important Dates
April
25,26 Parent/Teacher Conferences – 12:45
dismissal
27
School Budget Election - 2PM to 9PM
29
KAM/KPM Ed Enrichment “Smarty
Plants”
May
2
6
9-13
16
19
23-27
24
27
30
5th Gr. Conflict Resolution – 2 pm
DEAR - 8 am
NJ ASK – Grades 3, 4, 5
PTO - 7:30 pm
5th Graders to MJS Orientation AM
Terra Nova’s – 2nd Grade
Spring Concert - 7:30 pm
Early Dismissal - 12:45
Memorial Day – Schools closed
June
2
8
9
10
14,15
17
Curriculum Night - 7 pm
Science Fair
BBQ Day (Pomptonian)
Jamboree 4-8 pm
Field Days
Last Day – Clap Out – 12:45 dismissal
Students’ Vote
This year, the Madison Schools will take part in
a student vote once again. This has been a very
exciting exercise for our students in the past
and encourages them to understand, at an early
age, the importance of taking part in the voting
process.
In past years, our students have voted on the
name of our newly constructed wing (the Jaguar
Wing), the newly renovated all-purpose room
(the Jaguar Jungle) and the school motto (“I’m
Proud to Say I go to Torey J”). This year, our
students will vote on the theme for the TJS
Field Days in June. These are very exciting
events for our students and they will have the
chance to brainstorm on ideas that will then be
voted on to choose the theme for the day.
Teachers have reviewed the process with their
classes. Ballots will be waiting for students at
their parents’ polling places. Students will then
vote while their parents do the same. The results will be tallied the next day and results will
be announced.
Please try to bring your child with you when you
vote on Wednesday. They will be voting too!
Parent/Teacher Conferences
Teacher of the Year
Parent/teacher conferences are scheduled for
April 25th (Monday) and 26th (Tuesday).
Torey J. Sabatini School is very proud to
announce our teacher of the year , Mrs.
Carolyn Rommeihs, for the 2010-2011 school
year.
This is an ideal opportunity for you to meet
with your child’s teacher and gain a better understanding of how they are progressing academically and oftentimes socially.
Mrs. Rommeihs graduated from Kean University in Union, NJ and taught middle
school in Elizabeth, NJ for 7 years. After
working as a teaching assistant at KRS, she
has been a special education teacher in the
Madison Schools for the past 12 years, initially in the self-contained LLD class and for
the past five years with collaborative teaching teams in the “inclusion model” at TJS.
A questionnaire has been e-mailed to you for
you to complete in anticipation of the conference. This will help you think through questions and help the teachers to better frame
the conference.
We look forward to the dialogue between parents and teachers that conferences encourage.
Arbor Day
Mrs. Rommeihs lives in Madison with her
husband Bob and son Matthew. She had the
wonderful opportunity to stay home with
Mathew until he was in first grade and feels
strongly that her experiences as a parent
informed and enriched her work as a
teacher.
Each year the Madison elementary schools
celebrate Arbor Day with the Shade Tree
Commission and community leaders on the
steps of the Dodge Building. This year’s
celebration will take place on Saturday,
May 7th at 9:00 AM.
Mrs. Rommeihs is a teacher who, in addition
to her extensive training in academic areas,
is blessed with an empathetic, kind approach
to every student and adult in her orbit. She
is the consummate professional and the
ideal colleague. We at Torey J. are very
proud to have her as our teacher of the
year!
This year, Torey J. students will be singing
to celebrate Arbor Day under the direction of our choral director, Ms. Jaclyn
Altieri. King’s Road students will provide
prelude music and Central Avenue students
will read poetry. This will be in addition to
contributions from the borough leadership
and honored guests.
Please come over and celebrate with us.
Madison is famous for our trees and our
efforts to maintain a green, well-canopied
environment. Join our students in the fun!
Dear Parents:
Within the next month or so, our staff will be making class assignments plans for the
2011-2012 school year. Students will be assigned to heterogeneous classroom groups by
their current teachers, who are in the best position to make the assignment, and reviewed
by the principal and other relevant staff.
As parent/teacher conferences approach, it is important to remind everyone that conferences are not to be used to discuss the specific class your child will be placed in next
year. The conference should be used to review your child’s progress and to relay any
relevant information that will be helpful in the future.
Please trust our decision on your child’s placement. Occasionally, we receive requests
for students to be placed with specific teachers or for certain students to be placed
together. Please know that we cannot honor such requests.
Staff considers many factors as balanced groups are prepared, including the range of
academic abilities, social mixture, gender balance, individual learning styles, student personality and interaction, students benefiting from being together or separated, overall
student behavior, and class size. The objective of this process is to produce a heterogeneous group of students engineered to become a community of learners, which promotes
students who function to the fullest extent of their abilities. We assure you that the
placement of each child is carefully considered.
We will do our best to place your child(ren) in a class where the above issues are acknowledged and the learning environment matches their learning needs. Our staff is committed to your children and dedicates themselves to giving your child the best possible learning experience.
Thank you for your cooperation.
Sincerely,
Michael Post
Principal
Earth Day
Earth “Week” at TJS was a very meaningful experience. The TJS staff and students, together with PTO parents and the Green Team,
collaborated on a series of worthwhile activities.
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On Tuesday, we had another walk to school
day in honor of Earth Day. About half of
the students walked to school that day along
with many parents. This was a great turn
out!
The Green Team visited each classroom to
give a brief presentation on composting.
TJS has started to compost on a very limited basis during lunch.
Green Team members gave presentations
over the school public address system every
hour on the hour during Earth Day. These
presentations reviewed what we are already
doing at TJS and what some easy things everyone can do to help.
The school turned out their classroom lights
(wherever plausible) for the last hour of the
school day.
Thank you to everyone who made this occasion
possible!
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.
Welcome Dr. Rossi!!
Our new superintendent, Dr. Michael Rossi,
will be starting in Madison on July 1st. I
know we are all grateful to have Dr. Rossi
joining our school district. We at Torey J.
offer him our heartiest congratulations and
a warm welcome.
May Day
Each year the entire Madison community jumps
into action on the first Saturday of May to
beautify this lovely town. Our school benefits
dramatically from this volunteerism. Mulch is
spread, weeds are pulled and flowers are
planted.
Please consider lending a hand at the school.
We’d love your assistance. There will be a cadre
of adults and students working together and
your contribution will be much appreciated.
Tools such as wheelbarrows, shovels, rakes and
pitchforks are also needed.
See you anytime between 9 and 12:00.
NJ ASK
Monday, May 9th begins the NJ ASK testing for
students in grades 3, 4 and 5 in the Madison
Schools. Testing will take place every morning
of the week for grade 4 and through Thursday
for grades 3 and 5.
We prepare the students for this testing in a
variety of ways for many months, but your help
is crucial. Please reinforce the importance of
the tests and the need for students to try their
very best. Please also do your best to send your
child to school well rested and having eaten a
breakfast. Thank you!
Madison School Board Election
Science Fair
On Wednesday, April 27th, the residents
of Madison will be voting for the 20112012 school budget. They will also be voting for three positions on the Madison
Board of Education. Polls will be open
from 3:00 to 9:00 PM.
For the first time in memory, TJS is going to
have a science fair! Led by a devoted group of
parent volunteers, students will be developing
projects independently and will present them on
June 8th.
How people vote is a very personal decision
that everyone needs to arrive at privately.
The act of voting, however, is a critical
civic responsibility. Your vote can decide
the course of the election. As you probably know, each year a school budget election is decided by only a few votes. The
Madison School Budget Election last April
was decided by less than twenty votes.
Everyone’s vote truly makes a huge difference!
So, on April 27th, please do your very best
to vote. An enormous amount will be riding
on the coming election’s outcome and your
contribution to the process is vital.
Thank you!
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!
Registration materials have been made available
and students should have submitted them by
today. Students from grades one through five
are welcomed to contribute.
This is a very exciting activity. Though this is a
very busy time of the year, the projects can be
done whenever the students have free time.
Timelines have been distributed and check ins
will occur.
Thanks to the parents helping with this project.
It will be great!
TJS Bikers
Mr. Gerenstein and Mr. Post would like the help
of a few parents interested in biking to start a
TJS Bike to School Club.
At this point, the idea is at the formative stage.
We need help turning it into something real.
Many of the students have already had a bike
safety program at school and Mr. Gerenstein is
making it a part of his curriculum.
Wouldn’t it be great if we had students riding
with the support of others to school during
pleasant weather?
If interested, please e-mail Mrs. Empson at
empsonj@madisonpublicschools.org
We will appreciate any ideas or help you can provide.
Thank you PTO!
Race To Nowhere
The Torey J. Sabatini School’s PTO has been a
vital force in supporting programs and contributing support. This year, thanks to a highly successful fundraising effort with the Adult Social,
the PTO has been able to help the school in
some very dynamic ways.
The MJS PTO is pleased to announce they are
bringing the movie, Race to Nowhere, to Madison on Thursday, May 12. Race to Nowhere is
a call to mobilize families, educators, and policy makers to challenge current assumptions
on how to best prepare the youth of America
to become healthy, bright, contributing and
leading citizens.
The PTO has purchased (they are already here
and installed), five Smartboards and an LCD
projector. This means that every academic
classroom from kindergarten through fifth
grade now has a Smartboard and projector.
Additionally, the PTO is poised to finance the
purchase of new computers and monitors to reoutfit the library computer lab. The computers
in that lab were not aging gracefully and needed
to be replaced soon. Thanks to the PTO, soon
has happened sooner than we had even hoped.
These purchases are in addition to further additions to the playground and a grant program administered through the school for program improvements. Examples of recent purchases
through this program are:
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Orff instruments for our music classes.
Pedometers for PE
Substantial additions to our classroom libraries
Video camera for the entire school
A week-long Responsive Classroom training
for a teacher.
Classroom carpets to replace worn and
frayed carpets.
TJS owes a debt of gratitude to the PTO and all
of their volunteers and helpers. Particular
thanks go to the current PTO co presidents,
Brenda Catallanello and Karin Szotak.
Thank you!
Parents want to do what is best for their children. As educators, we want to teach our students the skills that they need to be successful in this world. We hope to initiate and facilitate discussions throughout our community
about the challenges our children are facing.
Save the date - you won’t want to miss it Thursday, May 12 at 7:30 in the Madison Junior School auditorium.
Tickets are limited and are currently on sale
at rtnmadisonjrschool.eventbrite.com. Tickets are $10 online and remaining tickets will
be $15 at the door.
Please click here for an e-postcard about the
event:
http://www.racetonowhere.com/epostcard/4899
We hope you can join us!
May 27th
May 27th, which had been a day off for
students has been made into a school day
due to school closing days due to inclement weather.
The day will be an early dismissal day.
Dear Parents,
We are pleased to let you know that our schools will once again organize a Madison Public Schools Students Vote program this year to coincide with the school budget election
on Wednesday, April 27, 2011. We received so much positive feedback about last year’s
effort that we have decided to continue this opportunity to instill in our students a sense of
civic responsibility. Our students will have the opportunity to vote on a specific issue of
interest to them at the same time that you cast your vote in the school election.
We are attaching a sample ballot for your child’s school. The students can cast their vote
by completing a ballot sheet and submitting it in the ballot box that will be provided at
each school election polling place. Ballots will be available at the polling places. The
ballots are color coded by school so that we can easily tally each school’s votes. We have
asked student volunteers from the Middle School and High School with PTO volunteers
to supervise the voting process at each polling place.
We believe that your family’s experience of voting together will provide a valuable
hands-on lesson in the way we make decisions in a democratic society. We look forward
to your involvement in teaching our children that their vote can make a difference.
Attached is the information on the polling place for each district for the school budget
election. Look for the information on your polling place on the front of the sample ballot
that you will receive in the mail.
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Thank you for your support of Madison Public Schools Students Vote 2011.
Sincerely,
Michael Post
Principal
Enc: Madison Public Schools Students Vote 2011 Ballot
School Budget Polling Locations
SCHOOL ELECTION POLLING PLACES
Wednesday APRIL 27, 2011
Polling Place
Room
Districts
Madison Public Library
Chase Room
5-7-8-12
Madison Housing Au- Community Room
thority
6-11-14
15 Chateau Thierry
* Please note to park
on the street
North Star Club
Front Entrance
2-4-10
Entrance Lobby
1-3-9-13
95 North Street
New Life Fellowship
Hall
Bring this ballot to your polling place to submit your vote!
Torey J. Sabatini School VOTE 2011
Please vote for a name for our Field Days.
(Please select one)
Hawaiian
Sports Teams
Cavemen
Pirates
Super Heroes
Jungle
Polling Places
Madison Housing Authority 15 Chateau Thierry
Districts 6, 11, 14
Madison Public Library
39 Keep Street (Chase Room)
Districts 5, 7, 8, 12
North Star Club,
95 North Street (Front Entrance)
Districts 2, ,4, 10
New Life Fellowship
203 Green Avenue (Fellowship Hall)
Districts 1, 3, 9, 13