Nishuane News

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Nishuane School News
March 22, 2024


Spring has officially arrived at Nishuane! This week we embodied our word of the week determination as we continued to learn and work together as one big Nishuane community! To start our spring off on a positive note, our Kindergarten and second graders met as a grade level for a Nish Family Meeting. During our meetings, we reflected upon our growth and set new goals to pursue during the final trimester of the school year! We also played a fun game as one big grade level and celebrated our bucket filler leaders who have earned a special “Caught Being Good Coin!” Our Pre-Kindergarten and first grade Nish Family meetings will be facilitated this upcoming week.

This week we also continued our celebration of Women’s History Month. We continued to spotlight women who have put their indelible “stamp” on history from A-Z. We learned about Naomi Osaka, Queen Latifah, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and “Selena” Perez. Ask your child to share interesting facts that they learned about these incredible women! We also learned about race car driver Julia Landauer. Julia Landauer recorded a special video for our school to “virtually meet” her. She even answered some questions from Nishuane students in a video that she prepared just for us!

Additionally, we collected many wonderful completed Women’s History Month enrichment projects. Through this project, students shared a woman or female identifying role model that they feel is making or has made her “stamp” on history. These wonderful projects are currently displayed on our Women’s “HERstory” Month bulletin board for all to see! As a reminder, you are also invited to visit our extensive list of books located within our Women’s History Month Digital Library 2024. Make sure to write any of the titles you read or listen to on your Pennies for Pages reading log.

We are very happy to announce that our school will donate 500 items to Montclair Mutual Aid as part of our “Be a Changemaker” Collection! Your generous donations helped us to be changemakers as we support our neighbors to have equal access to personal care items.

As a reminder, the district will be closed Friday, March 29th in observance of Good Friday.

Important Nishuane School Arrival & Dismissal Safety Reminders!
Please see below for important arrival and dismissal safety reminders. It is imperative that our community works together to adhere to these safety measures to ensure the safety of everyone. Thank you in advance for your careful attention to these important safety measures.
● Please remain mindful to maintain the flow of traffic, particularly when traveling down Cedar Avenue and/or when making a left onto High Street after dropping off your child(ren) on the car line.
● Please remain mindful of pedestrians and the crosswalk at all times.
● It is strongly recommended not to park on both sides of Cedar Avenue. You are strongly encouraged not to park across from the car line on Cedar Avenue. Parking on the opposite side poses a safety hazard and disrupts the flow of the car line.
● Families are encouraged to use the carline during drop off as a safe option.
● Always stop when you see a bus stop sign.
● If crossing Cedar Avenue, please always use the crosswalk. As a reminder, the crosswalk must be used to ensure that you are legally crossing the street. Not using the crosswalk poses a major safety hazard.
● K turns cannot be made on Cedar Avenue when the car line is underway.
● Only allow your chil(dren) to exit your vehicle on the right passenger side of your vehicle directly onto the sidewalk in front of Nishuane.
● Do not block driveways.
● Carefully monitor your vehicle speed at all times.
● Cones are set up each morning along the curb of Cedar Avenue across from Nishuane. These cones help to prevent parking/stopping in critical areas and maintain the flow of traffic.

*The Montclair Police Department enforces all traffic laws pertaining to buses and traffic. The Montclair Police Department will support with monitoring the car line, as well as to ensure that everyone is legally parking and crossing Cedar Avenue.

Pennies for Pages
“Pennies for Pages,” Nishuane School’s literacy outreach project in which students will read and raise funds for the Montclair Public Library, is underway! Pennies for Pages began on Monday, March 4th and will end on Friday, May 17th. Please click here for the family letter that was sent to families. Nishuane will host a Family Literacy Night on Wednesday, April 3rd at 6 pm. This year’s theme is “Cook Up Some Fun.” Please click here for additional information and to sign-up for this fun filled evening!

April Author Visits
On April 1st Nishuane will have a virtual visit with Kirkus-Prize winning author Valerie Bolling, author of Together We Swim, I See Color, Let’s Dance, Bing Bop Bam, Time to Jam, the Rainbow Days early reader series, and more! Signed books will be available for order. A big thank you to Alliah Agostini Livingstone and Laura Schrager for organizing this wonderful literacy experience for our students!


Nishuane Visitor Form & Protocols
Please click here to review Nishuane’s visitor protocols. Visitors must complete the visitor form prior to a visit.
○ Please remember that visitors must report only to the location of the building that was indicated on the visitor form. Visitors may not visit other locations in the building. Thank you for your support with this important safety measure!
○ Please do not prop doors open under any circumstance.
○ Please do not hold open the door for anyone behind you when entering or exiting the building.

 
Nishuane Instagram
Nishuane is on Instagram! Follow us @nishschool for a peek into the learning and fun we have in our community. Our account is private for everyone's safety. When requesting to follow us, please send a message with your child's name and we will accept you.

Spirit Wear Fridays
Every Friday at Nishuane is School Spirit Day! On Fridays students may participate by wearing blue and white, as well as Nishuane spirit wear. Spirit wear is available for purchase through our PTA.

Nurse’s Notes
Please see the below reminders from Nurse Anne Ndungu
(Phone: 973-509-4236 or E-mail: [email protected]):
Friendly Reminders from the Health Office:

*****Please click here for a spring update from Nurse Anne Ndungu!*****

Important Dates: Mark Your Calendars! 

Women’s History Month: March 1, 2024-March 31, 2024
“Be a Changemaker” Collection: March 11, 2024-March 22, 2024
● Pennies for Pages: March 4, 2024-May 17, 2024
Nish Family Meetings (For Students):
First Grade: March 25, 2024
Pre-Kindergarten: March 25, 2024
Holi: March 25, 2024
Start of RtI Cycle III: March 27, 2024
Start of CI/Aesthetics Cycle III: March 26, 2024
Dentist Visit Assembly: March 28, 2024 at 2:50 pm (Auditorium)
Second Trimester Report Cards Available on Genesis Parent Access Portal: March 28, 2024 at 4:00 p.m.
Good Friday (District Closed): March 29, 2024
Easter: March 31, 2024

School Action Team for Partnerships (SATp) News & Upcoming Events
https://nishuane.montclair.k12.nj.us/administration/school_action_team  
Arab American Heritage Month: The SATP is looking for volunteers who would like to plan activities for this year's Arab American Heritage Month. Click on the following link for more info and to sign up. https://bit.ly/3LnYR2F Any questions reach out to Dr. Sedita or [email protected]
● Questions? Ideas? You may contact the SATp at the following email address: [email protected]

PTA News & Upcoming Events
www.nishuanepta.org 
PTA Calendar: https://montclairpta.org/nishuane/calendar/

Join the Nishuane PTA Facebook group!
Join the Nishuane PTA WhatsApp group!

PTA Meeting
The next PTA meeting will be on Tuesday, 4/2 at 7:30pm via Zoom:
Meeting ID: 941 0638 3051
Passcode: Nish2020

Fireball Fundraiser (April 20th)

Fireball Sponsorship opportunities. We are seeking sponsorship support from community businesses to help reach the fundraising goal of $50,000! Every dollar raised will be used to benefit our children. There are many enrichment activities enjoyed by our students that require fundraising. Please see the Business Sponsorship form for more information.

Fireball Volunteers
The PTA is also looking for volunteers for Fireball. There are a range of volunteer opportunities - from event planning/logistics to outreach for sponsors and donations, decorations, entertainment, etc. Participating in the Fireball planning is a great way to meet other parents, learn more about the school and help our wonderful community. Please sign up using our Fireball Volunteer SignUp Form and select the committee(s) where you would like to volunteer. Questions can be directed to [email protected]


● Fireball 2024 - Early Bird Tickets are on sale!
Fireball Early Bird tickets are on sale on Friday, March 29th. Please keep an eye out for more details. Please see the FAQ for more information on Fireball.


Mayfair’s coming!
Less than two months until our incredible annual family carnival, Saturday, May 11, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Early bird tickets go on sale shortly but in the meantime, you know what’s coming… As always we depend on parent/caregiver help to make this happen, so please consider signing up for an hourly shift on the day of the event. Lend a little time and spend the rest enjoying the fun! https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20F0A49AFAB2CA0FB6-48432906-nishuane#/

SPRING EXPLORERS registration starts on April 15th and classes start the week of April 29th. Class schedule and descriptions will be available on April 1st.

PTA BOARD: THE PTA NEEDS A FEW GOOD PARENTS!!
We all love the extra enrichment that our kids receive at Nishuane - think Pancake Breakfast, special assemblies, field trips, etc. The PTA is responsible for many of those activities and/or the extra funding required to deliver these sources of joy for our children.

To organize the PTA and lead our volunteer parents next year, we need to find new PTA leaders. Please submit your name and/or another dynamic parent as a candidate to join the Nishuane PTA board for the 2024/25 school year. We are recruiting for a new PTA President, Corresponding Secretary, VP Events and VP Explorers.

Here's the process:
1. Review the descriptions for the open roles in the form below.
2. Submit your interest here.
3. You will be contacted by a Nominating Committee member to discuss your submission.
4. The Nominating Committee will present a slate of candidates to the Board in May.
5. PTA Members will vote on the leadership slate at the June PTA meeting.

Please email the PTA Nominations Committee with any questions [email protected]

SPIRITWEAR ONLINE!
The PTA is happy to announce that you can now purchase Nish SpiritWear online https://nishuanespiritwear.square.site/. Please email questions to Ayana Stewart at [email protected]

Please join the PTA. Visit the Nishuane MemberHub store to activate/reactivate your PTA membership. Our mission is to make every child’s potential a reality by engaging and empowering families and communities to advocate for all children

2023-2024 PTA Meeting Schedule


● Friday, April 2 at 7:30pm
● Thursday, May 2 at 7:30pm
● Friday, June 7 at 9:30am

District-Wide Updates 

Montclair Public Schools
https://www.montclair.k12.nj.us/
Pre-Kindergarten: Information pertaining to the district’s Mini-Mounties Pre-Kindergarten program may be found at this link. This helpful webpage contains helpful resources pertaining to the Pre-K program in the MPS.
Montclair Public Schools Adult Spring English as a Second Language Classes: Please click here for information about the Montclair Public Schools ESL Classes for adults that will be offered this spring.

MFEE
https://mfee.org/
Nominate a Teacher for 2024 Weston Awards!
Do you know a Montclair Public School teacher who excites students to learn? Who helps students feel valued? Who responds to the individual needs and strengths of students? If the answer is YES, nominate them for a 2024 Judy Weston Awards for Inspired Teaching! All nominations are due by Friday, April 5, at midnight.
Sixteen Montclair Public Schools teachers will receive individual cash awards of $2,000. The winners will be celebrated at a public event on June 12, 2024. MPS parents/caregivers and students are invited to nominate any current K-12 MPS teacher for this award. Winners will be selected by a committee of community members:
● One teacher from each elementary school
● One teacher from each middle school
● Two teachers from the high school
● One special education teacher from across the district
● Two “at-large” awards for teachers from any school
● NEW: A Peer Inspiration Award, based on teacher nominations and given to a teacher who has served as inspiration to their peers
Nomination form: https://www.mfee.org/weston-awards
Please note: The nomination form has been translated into several languages:
Español Português Türkçe 中國人 Kreyòl ayisyen
Please send any questions to [email protected]. Read more about the awards in this Montclair Local article, too. Thank you! – The Montclair Fund for Educational Excellence


● SEPAC
https://montclairpta.org/sepac/
SEPAC Liaisons: Lynn Mendelsohn & Marisa Lazatin are the SEPAC Parent Liaisons for Nishuane. Please reach out to them directly by either emailing Lynn at [email protected] using this Google Form for any questions or concerns you have about Special Education at Nishuane.
● Some celebratory dates to put on your calendar include:
Neurodiversity Week - March 18 - 24
World Autism Day - April 2
Autism Acceptance Week - April 2-8
Paraprofessional Day - April 3
Teacher Appreciation Week - May 6 -10
Disability Pride Month - July

Community Events
AAPI Montclair Color Run
AAPI Montclair proudly presents COLOR RUN 2024- an exuberant celebration of the festivals of Holi and Songkran with a 5K and 1-mile Fun Run. EARLY BIRD REGISTRATION IS OPEN!
Information at: https://aapimontclair.org/color-run-1
Register at: https://runsignup.com/.../NJ/Montclair/AAPIMontclairColorRun

Digital Backpack: Please click here to view community and organization events in town.
Housekeeping: Please check the district website for district policies and school procedures (In our Family Handbook on our website).

Our Vision: Nishuane School is a diverse school that develops creative, curious, and confident learners through academic exploration, healthy relationships, and exposure to the arts.



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