Clinton Township Newsletter

1 2 A u g u s t 2 0 1 6 www.ClintonTwpNewsletter.com Paick McGah Scho Summer at Patrick McGaheran School! We are very busy working to prepare for a wonderful new school year! Schedules, class lists and learning activities are being developed. The School-Wide Theme for 2016-2017 continues to be "PMG-Where Friendships Grow!" We will be sharing special lessons and activities throughout the year to help our students learn more about developing friendships. This year our mascot, Buddy the Bulldog, will help us learn more about friendship and good character. The theme will continue with enhanced signage inside the building, assembly programs and student recognition. We are continuing to enhance our facilities. This summer, the carpet in several rooms was replaced with tile. Landscaping was updated and the classroom configuration was improved. Families should expect an email in mid-August with important information for the upcoming school year. We look forward to meeting our new students and seeing our students from this past year, now as third graders! 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 check out our new website: www.ctsdnj.org I N O U R S C H O O L S : Su R Scho How has your summer been going so far? We have been very busy at Spruce Run School and we are very excited to have beautiful new tiling in many classrooms and fresh paint on the walls. We hope you are reading a lot of great books! Please remember to record summer reading on the SRS Summer Reading log! Additional copies may be found on our website at: http://goo.gl/ dsDLKM. Our school theme for the upcoming year is "We are Explorers!" and we look forward to sharing more about this with you! Please be sure to look for the letter from Mrs. Goad at the end of August to find out who your child's new Preschool, Kindergarten or First Grade teacher will be! Please also stay tuned for more information in the August mailing regarding the August School Visitation Day to see your child's new classroom and meet the teacher prior to the first day of school. Enjoy the rest of the summer and don't forget the sunscreen! Clinton Township School District Mission Statement: The Clinton Township School District, in partnership with the community, achieves excellence for each child by ensuring a meaningful and challenging educational experience in a supportive environment, developing life-long learners who are responsible and productive citizens. T h e C l i n T o n T o W n s h i p f o u n d AT i o n f o R e d u C A T i o n A l e x C e l l e n C e Please consider partnering with the Clinton Township Foundation for Educational Excellence by commemorating your child's educational journey with the purchase of a seat! Personalize your inscription in the In Honor of section to make it extra special! To do so, please visit the Foundation's website: www.ctsd.k12.nj.us/foundation-for-educational-excellence and select DONATE NOW. Thank you in advance! It is hard to believe we are halfway through the summer. People often ask what it is we do all summer, thinking it is probably a slow time without the students or staff present. In actuality, it is one of the busiest times of the year. We utilize the two summer months to prepare for the entire school year. I want to take the opportunity to share with you a sampling of summer activities. Curriculum Writing: Teachers and curriculum administrators work together to create and/or update curriculum units in various content areas. Curriculum is kept up-to-date with the state-approved standards. Once the curriculum documents are finalized they are shared with the teaching staff and implementation will begin. Facilities Management: In the summer months, facilities management is two- fold. Custodial and maintenance staff work within our buildings to complete heavy cleaning and maintenance to prepare for the opening of school. Throughout the summer, a number of facilities projects can take place that are not possible when the students and staff are present. This summer is no exception. A number of indoor and outdoor projects are underway within and around our buildings including, but not limited to, repointing of masonry, painting of classrooms and updates to flooring. Professional Development: During the summer, administrators plan for professional development opportunities which will take place throughout the school year. A number of different activities and opportunities are available throughout the year. Some of the events we are currently planning for include new teacher training, school opening activities and state-required professional development. Throughout the school year, staff members participate in professional development specific to content areas and their student population. Program Preparation: While planning to help make the staff successful during the school year, we plan for the students' success as well. Aside from the professional development offerings for staff, administrators are preparing for student success by planning for the implementation of curricular programs and materials as well as technology related to our programs. Building principals are creating class lists and finalizing schedules for students. This will assist students, parents, staff and administrators with the opening of school in September. Technology: Technology is tied to program, instruction and professional development, as noted above, but there is another side to technology that is unseen. As we work to provide technology to our students and staff, we must maintain and build upon the infrastructure. Throughout the summer, our technology staff prepares for new initiatives and technology advances by working to enhance the infrastructure including work with our servers and bandwidth. Aside from their work within the district, our technology and curriculum administrators have extended their work beyond our students and staff. This summer, our Supervisor of Technology and our Supervisor of Instruction, Data & Assessment were instrumental in planning the county Educational Technology Day for administrators this month. We are excited that they have the opportunity to share their expertise with other administrators throughout the county. I hope that you and your family enjoy the fleeting days of summer. I look forward to meeting you at the various school opening events scheduled in the upcoming weeks. Thank you, Gina M. Villani, Ed.D Superintendent of Schools A L e t t e r f r o m Gina M. Villani, Ed.D, Superintendent of Schools Dear Clinton Township Community Members:

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