Clinton Township Newsletter

1 4 O c t O b e r 2 0 1 8 www.ClintonTwpNewsletter.com C L I N T O N T O W N S H I P S C H O O L N E W S www.ctsdnj.org I N O U R S C H O O L S : Round Valley School The Fall is a very exciting time at Round Valley School! We've welcomed back our students and are beginning the school year. This is a time to set up classroom routines, develop expectations and begin learning. The Grade 3 through Grade 5 configuration provides a true elementary model for our learners. In this environment they will use the foundation of learning from Grades K-2 as they "Soar to New Heights" at RVS. There will be many opportunities for students to learn and grow academically, socially and emotionally. Our teachers are dedicated, nurturing and passionate about teaching. Our students, who are kind, inquisitive and eager to learn, will engage in a strong academic program enhanced by the arts and a variety of enrichment opportunities. Our families are truly supportive and great partners in education. We are extremely proud and grateful for the opportunity to serve as the building leaders of RVS! – Mary Postma and Thomas Connolly My name is Amanda Murphy and I am a fourth grade general education teacher at Round Valley School. I graduated from The College of New Jersey with a B.S. in Elementary Education and a B.A. in Psychology. Wanting to develop a deeper understanding of best practices in literacy, I decided to pursue a Master's degree as a Reading Specialist at Teachers College, Columbia University. My practicum experiences involved providing intensive literacy intervention to struggling students in reading, writing and spelling. I am looking forward to using everything I have learned to meet the needs of all students in a whole-classroom setting. Although I pursued a graduate degree in literacy, I am very excited to be teaching multiple subjects in fourth grade. As a student, math was always one of my favorite classes. Throughout graduate school, I also spent time in the classroom as a substitute teacher at elementary schools in Morristown, NJ and Randolph, NJ. This past spring, I served as a leave replacement general educator in a fourth and fifth grade co-teaching classroom in Morristown, my hometown. I am very excited to be teaching fourth grade this year at Round Valley, as it is one of my favorite grades! I am also looking forward to exploring Clinton this fall. I enjoy local history, so I am especially interested in visiting the Red Mill Museum Village. Outside of school, I enjoy swing dancing, vacationing in Long Beach Island and spending time with my family. My name is Robyn O'Hern. I just graduated this past May from Montclair State University, with my Master's of Art in Teaching and Teacher of Students with Disabilities Certification. In 2017, I graduated from Montclair State University with my Bachelor's in Family and Child Studies. I am a Literacy Support Teacher at Round Valley, teaching Mrs. Zockoff's classes for a maternity leave. I have been substituting for two years in various school districts. Along with substituting I have worked in a before and aftercare program, which helped to solidify my desire to become an educator. When I am not in school, I enjoy watching ice hockey, particularly the Pittsburgh Penguins! Visiting zoos is one of my favorite things to do along with crafting with my Cricut. I live in Parsippany. I have three siblings- an older brother, younger brother and a younger sister. My name is Meghan Erb. I am a fourth grade inclusion teacher at Round Valley School. The past two years I taught in the Randolph School District as a special education teacher. I graduated Summa Cum laude from William Paterson University in 2015 with a Bachelor's Degree in elementary education with the TSD endorsement as well as a Bachelor's Degree in psychology. Every summer I work at the Limitless Summer Camp in Denville, NJ. This camp is devoted to helping children with learning difficulties learn social skills and how to positively interact with their peers. Working at this summer camp is what inspired me to become a special education teacher. I want to thank all the families at Round Valley School who made the start of my first year in the Clinton School District so pleasant and enjoyable. I am excited to continue teaching this year and getting to know more of the Clinton School District community. Spruce Run School The PreK Team at Spruce Run School welcomes our youngest minds to the 2018-2019 school year! Discovery is our theme and p r e s c h o o l s t u d e n t s k i c k off the year exploring their environment with open arms. The classrooms at SRS are filled with melodic music, miles of movement and masterpieces designed by our amazing preschool artists. The educators here at SRS bring about learning through play, cooperation, communication and youthful curiosity. On August 30, the faculty welcomed preschoolers and their families to Visitation Day as a way to get acclimated to the classroom and community here at Spruce. Three and four year olds toured the building and navigated the halls with excitement and energy. Families previewed the routines with staff and watched their children make discoveries throughout the classroom. At Spruce Run School, the experienced and energetic staff are all thrilled to start the year with a sense of wonder and challenge. Together, we look forward to learning alongside our preschool friends and discovering all that our community has to offer. Patrick McGaheran School What a special opening of the school year, as PMG welcomed three grade levels this year, Kindergarten, First and Second! We are off to a great start. This year we begin with a new theme,"Building a PAWsitive foundation for the future" as we plan many exciting opportunities for learning together at PMG this year. We are pleased to welcome our new staff to our PMG Team: Ms. Kristel Gallagher is very excited to be joining us at Patrick McGaheran as a first grade teacher. She recently graduated from Rider University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Elementary Education and Psychology. Ms. Gallagher is certified in elementary education, early childhood education and special education. Ms. Gallagher is coming from Spruce Run School where she did her student teaching in a first grade classroom. In addition to being a teacher, she is also an assistant cheerleading coach at Hackettstown High school. Ms. Gallagher is very excited to begin her journey here and become part of the Patrick McGaheran School family! Mrs. Lori Jentsch is thrilled to be joining the staff at Patrick McGaheran as the AM nurse. She graduated from The University of Scranton with a Bachelors of Science in Nursing then went on to receive her Masters in Nursing from the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey. She also received her School Nurse Certificate from Caldwell University. She has spent her nursing career caring for women and children in a variety of settings including labor and delivery, neonatal intensive care and infertility. For the past two years, she has been working as a school nurse in Bloomfield, New Jersey. She recently moved to Clinton Township with her husband and two sons and can't wait to be part of the school community. Mrs. Krista Michalski is happy to join the Patrick McGaheran Team as an afternoon secretary. She has previously worked in schools as an aide with children with special needs . She is currently attending Ashworth college for her BA in paralegal studies. Mrs. Michalski is excited about her new role at PMG as a secretary and is looking forward to a great school year!

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