Mrs. Spinelli stopped by the Kindergarten classes at Rossi Elementary School to take us on a trip to Germany for the holidays! We learned about the traditions, such as the Christmas pickle and the candles placed on the Christmas trees. We each received a candy cane as a treat. Fun was had by all.
Students in Mr. Martine's 2nd-3rd grade class at Rossi Elementary School starred in their very own production of "The Gingerbread Man's Adventure," a mini-play adapted from the classic gingerbread man story.
Students had been working on elements of drama following their Into Reading lesson on the play "The Puddle Puzzle." Students learned about dialogue, stage directions, casts, and scene changes and applied what they learned to their very own holiday play!
The audience was filled with supporters from around the school. Ms. Menone, 2nd grade teacher, was perhaps the most enthusiastic audience member and rated the play "a solid 10/10, 100%."
The cast performed on stage under the lights with microphones. Starring as the gingerbread man was third grader Jason Merced, who received a standing ovation for his performance. The cast also included: Noah Rivera (Narrator), Zion Alvarez (Narrator), Kristine Buono (Old Lady), Jay'lannies DeAza (Horse), Kendall Barber Velazquez (Cow), and Alexander LeClerc (Clever Fox), as well as an ensemble cast of farm animals.
Students learned some incredible lessons while practicing for and performing their play. Mr. Martine's class can't wait for their next big production!
Barse hosted its first "Book Swap" for staff. Staff who chose to participate brought in a new or used book, which was then wrapped, and words or a quick synopsis was written on top of the wrapping. Think: "Blind date with a book." Participants played a dice game to choose and swap their books. There were tasty treats, bookish discussions, several books swapped, and fun times had by all!
Santa made a surprise visit to Mr. Martine's 2nd and 3rd graders at Rossi Elementary. Students had written opinion essays, arguing whether certain book characters belonged on the nice or naughty list. The classroom was buzzing as each student presented their case to Santa, who listened attentively.
Santa praised their efforts, emphasizing the importance of kindness and redemption. In the end, he revealed that all characters discussed would be on the nice list, stressing the power of second chances. The room erupted in cheers.
The day left a lasting memory of a holiday visit that combined literature, critical thinking, and the spirit of Christmas. Students went home smiling, proud of their persuasive skills, and with a reminder that everyone deserves a shot at being on the nice list.
Ms. Caterina's Second Grade and Miss Bernard's Kindergarten classes at Dr. William Mennies Elementary School met up last week for their monthly "Buddy Time"! Miss Bernard's Kindergarten class is currently learning about "Holidays Around the World," and one of the countries they learned about was England! England started the stocking Christmas tradition, so the classes came together to decorate stockings with their buddies and make edible Christmas trees using ice cream cones, icing, and sprinkles!
275 Mennies Elementary School students earned Magnet Club Status for the 1st
marking period. They were surprised by a cookie and juice treat in the cafeteria on Friday, December 15. Students had fun listening to music and eating together to celebrate their accomplishments. To achieve this status, students had to have no
discipline referrals, excellent attendance, earn A’s, B’s, or C’s on their report card, and earn G’s or E’s in the categories of Work Habits and Conduct. The Mennies Magnet Club Committee is made up of several teachers, the school counselor, social worker, and administration. The Committee hinted that there are more surprises to come!
Mrs. Stangle’s second grade class at Mennies Elementary School had their monthly "Buddy Time" with Miss Carbo’s Kindergarten class! The students partnered up to learn about Mennies December Character Corner Trait of Caring! The students played a game where they identified ways to show how they CARE and drew pictures. We are so proud that our buddies are ALWAYS caring towards each other!
At Durand Elementary School, kindergarten students and special members of their families enjoyed an afternoon of gumdrops, icing, and gingerbread to celebrate the season! Students used empty milk cartons as bases for their gingerbread houses, glued them together with icing, and decorated them with their favorite sweet treats. The sweetest treat of all, however, were the memories made!
On Monday, Rossi Elementary School safety patrol spread some holiday cheer to the kindergarten students in Ms. Reboyras' and Ms. DeRosa's classroom. The safeties didn't rush down a chimney or ride Santa's sleigh, but they did earn their spot on the nice list by decorating gingerbread houses with Rossi's youngest owls. Students worked together as teams to craft a design, construct their creation, and troubleshoot problems that came up with their designs.
Ms. Reboyras and Ms. DeRosa moved from group to group, offering guidance and encouragement, fostering a collaborative and festive atmosphere. The safety patrol members, who usually ensured order in the hallways, now played the role of holiday elves, assisting the little ones with tying ribbons, attaching candy canes, and perfecting the snowy icing landscapes.
Their gingerbread houses complete, the activity ended with smiles, laughter, and a shared sense of holiday spirit that would undoubtedly linger in the memories of both the safety patrol and the youngest members of the Rossi Elementary School community.
During the month of December, Rossi Elementary School Safety Patrol, under the supervision of Mr. Jeff Martine, held their annual toy drive in collaboration with the Dream Foundation. The Dream Foundation, a charitable organization devoted to bringing joy to families in need during the holiday season, partnered with the safety patrol to make a positive impact on the community.
All month long, students and staff enthusiastically contributed brand new toys for children facing challenging circumstances. The collective effort resulted in three enormous bins filled with joy, ensuring that children in need will experience the excitement of unwrapping gifts on Christmas morning.
A heartfelt appreciation goes out to Mrs. Lacretia Carson, Mark & Gina Rudolph of the Dream Foundation, and the entire Rossi Elementary School community for their exceptional generosity and unwavering support for the safety patrol and, most importantly, for the children in need.
Mrs. Myerson's 1st graders and Mr. Bogut's 5th graders at Mennies joined together this month to celebrate Caring and Kindness! At the beginning of the week, the 5th graders brought in books about Kindness and read them with their 1st grade buddy. Before the session ended, buddies made a goal to carry out several kind acts throughout the week. On Friday, the buddies met again to check in and discuss how their week of Kindness went, and then Mrs. Myerson taught everyone how to make paper snowflakes! On each snowflake, buddies wrote ways to be kind to others, which were then displayed in the main lobby of Mennies school! It's COOL to be KIND!
Thanks to a large donation of holiday cards from former art teacher Mrs. Scharnagl, the students in grades two through five at Mennies Elementary School signed holiday cards for 100 veterans at the NJ Veterans Memorial Homes. Each card is signed by an entire class of students with a little note of gratitude to each veteran. Being the official mascot of the veterans home, Cole asked to paw print each card with help from his Mennies friends.
Congratulations to Durand 5th grader Isabella Reyes for having a writing piece selected to be published in Young Writers Spooky Sagas - From The Crypt.
Isabella was nominated by her teacher, Jenielle Biley, who noticed her student's love for story writing at the beginning of the school year. In October, Ms. Bailey came across an email from Young Writers for a Halloween writing contest and knew exactly who to present it to and Isabella eagerly accepted the opportunity to enter the contest! She was forced to write quickly because it was due in two short weeks. In this time, Isabella wrote a 100-word essay to end a Spooky Saga that was created by the Young Writers. Together, Ms. Bailey and Isabella edited and reviewed her work before mailing it in.
Just a few months later, Ms. Bailey was excited to receive word that Isabella was selected as a top candidate and her work would be part of the Young Writers 2024 Spring publication.
Isabella's teachers and classmates are so proud of her for this accomplishment and recognition! We are looking forward to when the published piece becomes available next Spring for everyone to view.
Mr. Martine and Mrs. Stasuk's classes at Rossi Elementary School joined forces for a sweet holiday experiment, exploring the solubility of candy canes in water and oil. Laughter filled the room as students uncovered the magical science behind everyone's favorite treat. To cap off the day, both classes indulged in the joy of the season, devouring candy canes and getting creative with sugar cookie decorations. Before the delicious finale, the young scientists discovered the fascinating process of how candy canes are made.
Come out and support our talented VHS students tomorrow night!
On Saturday, December 16th, members of the Wallace Safety Patrol and NJHS volunteered their time at the Habitat for Humanity/ReStore helping to organize/clean up different areas. The students did a great job and received compliments from Ms. Patricia Perez at ReStore, who said, "Thank you for reaching out to us and having your students come volunteer here at The ReStore. It was such a pleasure to have such well-behaved and enthusiastic children in the store paying it forward."
Jamie Ecret is the advisor for the Wallace Safety Patrol and also oversees the NJHS along with Michele Shapley. Special thank you to Cathleen Morris who chaperoned the students!
Ms. Colan's class at Pilla Middle School has been hard at work writing cards and wrapping gifts for their family members this holiday season!
It was another busy week for the Vineland High School AFJROTC! Alpha Flight is now wearing their ABUs and OCPs, as well as their lightweight blues, for weekly uniform inspection. This is the first time that they are in the three different uniforms that we offer. In other news, Foxtrot Flight, the 8th-period class, received the "Outstanding Flight Award". They received this award for their hard work and dedication to the program. Many cadets earned their Academic Ribbon, Wellness Ribbon, Good Conduct Ribbon, and Dress and Appearance Ribbon. LDRs are up and running, which are our Leadership Development Requirements. Our Color Guard has been switching out our poles and using our new equipment. On Wednesday, December 6th, Color Guard had an all-female lineup which included two backups to help with equipment and to lead the flag salute with another school. Our Drone/UAV team has worked on building our drones and programming them. The Awareness Presentation Team met on December 14th, where they practiced their upcoming 8th-grade visits. More events are planned in the next few weeks.
In Mrs. Jessica Castro's 6th-grade science class at Veterans Memorial Middle School, students are learning how we see objects. Students were able to determine through experimentation that in order to see an object, you need an eye, an object, a light source, and a clear, unblocked path. Using materials from the Makerspace, students then developed models of the eye-object-light-path system and used their models to explain the role that light plays in how people see objects. Students were then able to reflect and determine the strengths and weaknesses of their models on how effective they were in showing the path of light in order to see an object.
Students in Mrs. Giovinazzi, Mr. Lonergan, Mr. Panichelli, Mrs. Smith, Ms. Hirleman, Mrs. Lank and Mrs. Malinski's classes at Vineland High School participated in a Christmas Cohort last week! The various teachers developed activities related to the holiday season and combined classes to complete them. Activities such as guided drawing, snowflake activities and stories, creation of gift tags and puzzle piece decorations were just a few of the activities that the students enjoyed. The week culminated with a viewing of the movie Home Alone, which highlights the character Kevin and the skills needed for daily living while his parents are "away." A discussion of the need for strong daily living skills followed the movie. The students enjoyed the slapstick humor and the opportunities for socialization throughout the week! A special thank you to those teachers who participated in this activity!
