HSA Meeting
January 16th 2024, 9:00am
Attendees: 11 in person, 12 online
Updates from Dr. Oates
Teacher Representative – Mrs. Kaplan
- One school, one book (OSOB) has launched with Big Tree by Brian Selznick. Each household has received a copy and will be reading along with the schoolwide schedule. Please remember to email a picture of your family enjoying Big Tree directly to Ms. Calandra at lcalandra@ridgewood.k12.nj.us by January 29th for our special, schoolwide closing assembly. When sending in your photos, please type “OSOB” in the subject line!
- Students in 3rd-5th grade will be learning a program called Pixton. This software allows students to use elements of graphic novels to create their own stories ranging from fantasy to nonfiction. The software can be accessed by students at home through Clever. The aspiration is to have a student club for this next year.
- There are 2 author visits coming up:
- For K-2nd grades John Para will visit. His beautifully illustrated picture books will tie in with the new Spanish curriculum.
- For 3rd-5th grades there will be a virtual visit from Chris Grabenstein, author of the popular Mr. Limoncello and Smartest Kid series.
Promethean Boards – Thanks to the donation of Dad’s Night, the school now has 8 Promethean Boards installed in classrooms. The new boards have crisper, clearer images and are very interactive for teachers and students.
Instagram – Somerville now has an instagram account to keep parents updated. The account is RPS_somerville. The new account comes from the prompting of Christine Corliss, the new Public Information Officer and Special Projects for Ridgewood School District, to differentiate between the HSA (GroupSpot) and the School (Instagram). Some parents raised questions / concerns related to this new initiative and were advised to reach out directly to Ms. Corliss ccorliss@ridgewood.k12.nj.us.
Report Cards – Report cards for 1st-5th grade went live December 19th and Kindergarten report cards will be available February 6th. Parents were reminded to please check them on Skyward.
Professional Learning Community (PLC) – Next week teaching staff will participate in several workshops: Tuesday for social emotional learning, Wednesday author Afrika Afeni Mills will return and Thursday for behavioral management.
Wellness Week – January 8th to 12th. Students celebrated by bringing a rainbow of colorful snacks all week. They also had yoga instruction, funded by the Federated HSA, which the students really enjoyed. Yoga poses even tied in to our OSOB.
Holiday Concerts – Holiday concerts for 1st – 4th grades were Friday, December 15th. Fifth grade will be having their vocal and instrumental holiday concert on the 26th of January.
Social Services Food Drive – The January food drive is canned soup and crackers. Donations will be used to build a “canstruction” so please send your donations in.
Holiday Docent – The DEI Committee and parent volunteers continue to prepare exciting presentations and activities to celebrate holidays from around the world. Make sure to check out some of the art made by students displayed in the 3rd grade breezeway. The next holiday celebration will be Lunar New Year.
LinkIt – 2nd-5th grade has completed their second round of LinkIt testing. Teachers will review the results and adapt curriculum accordingly over the next 2 weeks. The next round of testing will take place in April.
Mrs. Ross Retiring – After an amazing 35 years at Somerville, kindergarten teacher Mrs. Ross will be retiring. She has taught hundreds of students over the years and the school, students and parents will be celebrating her dedication. Please keep an eye on the E-news for details.
Past Events
- Bake Sale – November 21st – Raised just over $1000. Thank you to our chairs Kim Wong, Diane O’Brien and Marcy Della Torre.
- Kindergarten Concert and Social – November 22nd
- Tons of Toys and Tons of Treasures Fundraiser – November 29th & 30th – raised close to $200. Thank you to Catie Kearns for organizing this event.
- Social Services Gift Cards – raised $800.
- Holiday Boutique– December 5-7th – raised $2000. Thank you to Tanya Glassman.
- Winter Concerts for 1st-4th – December 15th
- Art Docent Day – January 10th
Upcoming Events
- Bingo Night – Friday, January 19th, 6pm
- Somerville Skates – Sunday, January 21st, 11am
- Girls on the Run – First come first served open
- Fifth Grade Holiday Concert – Friday, January 26th
- Wizards Game Tickets on Sale – Tuesday, January 30th, 7pm
- Reading Marathon– February
- Fifth Grade Field Trip – Liberty Science Center – February 2nd
- Lip Sync – Friday, February 2nd
- Kindergarten Report Cards Live – February 6th
- HSA Meeting – Friday, February 16th, 9am
- Wizards Game Fundraiser (For Federated HSA) – February 25th – There will be 2 games on a Sunday this year
- Science Fair – Monday, February 26th
HSA Updates:
Hate Has No Home Here Initiative – The Somerville DEI Committee and Somerville HSA together are offering Hate Has No Home Here lawn signs to help spread a message of kindness, love, and peace to all within and beyond our Somerville community! These are important values to our children and community, and to show support for our families in the Jewish and Muslim communities who may be feeling impacted by recent events. These signs are also a wonderful way to celebrate the life of Martin Luther King, Jr. This sign project began with a group of neighbors in Chicago and the “Hate Has No Home Here” phrase was imagined by a third grader and kindergartner at the local elementary school! Please contact somervilledei@gmail.com to see if signs are still available. Suggested donation of $5 to help cover costs (cash/Venmo).
Book Gifting – 75 books so far have been donated. You can donate all year on the HSA website.
Somerville Skates – Due to inclement weather this event was rescheduled to Sunday, January 21st at 11am. So far the HSA has raised over $1000 and tickets are still open for Sunday.
Girls on the Run – The Girls on the Run Lottery Registration opened for girls in 3rd – 5th grades! Practices will be on Mondays and Fridays from 3:00 – 4:30 pm at Somerville, beginning March 4th and culminating in a 5K in Sparta on Saturday, May 18th. Please reach out to this year’s coaches with any questions: Dershna Patel, Christine Lear, Liz Tierney or Jess Dowd.
Proposed Changes to the HSA Bylaws – All changes passed vote
- Add VP of Fundraising position to the Board
- Allow committee chairs to extend beyond a 2-year term limit if (1) nobody else has expressed interest or, (2) a new chair has expresses interest but would benefit from a co-chair for knowledge transfer
- Announce HSA meeting by the first day of school, rather than June
- Delete the section that lists out all standing committees to provide the HSA with flexibility to address changing needs.
- Finance:
- Change the proposed financial book review from three people to one person familiar with finances.
- Clarify that the Pre/VP/Treasurer/Assistant Treasurer all have access to the bank account, along with the debit cards and check writing privileges.
Please keep an eye on the Tuesday E-News to stay up to date on all the latest information and announcements.
Next HSA Meeting will be on Friday, February 16th at 9am in room 208 and on zoom. There will be two guest speakers:
- Sheila Brogan, BoE President, will attend to speak about Super Science Saturday
A representative from West Bergen, a local mental health organization, will join to inform families about this organization and its resources.
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.