October 6th
vol. 5
Parent Wellness Toolkit
Today, October 6th is World Mental Health Day. We encourage families to have discussions about the importance of maintaining positive mental health and having open lines of communication when tough situations arise.
CDC on Children’s Mental Health
Upcoming events:
Oct 17 at 7 pm: “Not My Kid” by Stephen and Kevin Hill of Sobriety Speaks in the Summit High School Auditorium
Oct 21: Red Ribbon Drug Prevention 5K and Walk. Aimed at educating youth on the dangers of drugs and encouraging them to live a drug-free lifestyle at Nomahegan Park, Cranford, NJ.
Halloween Costume Drive
Advisory - Week of Respect
This week we celebrated Week of Respect with spirit days, announcements and an Advisory lesson. Each grade level focused on a different aspect of respect. In sixth grade, the students had a lesson on Empathy vs Sympathy. Students discussed the difference between the two, practiced ways to show empathetic and sympathetic responses to their peers and reflected on which was harder for them to demonstrate. Students completed an activity using a shoe template to highlight that we don’t always know/see everything about a person and therefore don’t always know the shoes they are walking in. In seventh grade, students focused on building respect within their classroom community. Students participated in an ice breaker to make connections with their advisory group peers and advisor. Additionally, they worked on creating team themes that would guide them throughout their seventh grade year. In doing so students discussed the difference between a fixed mindset and a growth mindset. To complete this lesson our students reviewed the 7th grade Survival Kit created by last year's homeroom students. This guide had some helpful tips and advice to have a successful school year both inside and outside the classroom. Our eighth graders reflected on the school rules and how it relates to the Week of Respect. Students discussed how to respect people's different backgrounds and opinions. Respect is something that is earned not bought or borrowed. Students participated in a TSI lesson as well as an activity to share happiness and kindness to others. Please be sure to ask your child about their Week of Respect Advisory lesson.
Stephen Hill Presentation
We are pleased to announce that on Monday, October 16th, 2023, 7:00pm - 8:30pm, Summit Public Schools in partnership with the Summit Educational Foundation is hosting a special program for parents featuring Stephen Hill, a renowned national speaker on substance use prevention and mental health.
Stephen has a truly inspiring comeback story that everyone must hear. He is the founder of Speak Sobriety, a young person in recovery, bestselling author, recovery coach, and a defense attorney. His story was the main feature in Surviving the Hill, a recently released documentary on the drug epidemic focusing on prevention and recovery.
He has presented in front of thousands of people for over 500 schools and coalitions across the country. Through knowledge gained from his own personal and professional experience, Stephen shows parents how to build resilient kids to make healthy choices and overcome adversity.
You will also hear from Stephen’s father, Kevin Hill. Kevin will speak from a parent’s perspective on living with a child suffering from substance use disorder and now the parent of a young man in recovery.
Stephen will be speaking with our 8th grade students during the school day on Tuesday, October 17th. Parents are highly encouraged to attend the evening program as this is an amazing opportunity for parents to have a meaningful conversation with their children about the messages and lessons from Stephen’s story.
This event will be held at Summit High School, 125 Kent Pl Blvd, Summit, NJ 07901.
Doors open at 6:30pm. We look forward to seeing you there!
8th Grade Community Service Opportunities- Supporting Civic Engagement In Summit
Tiny Forest Service Project Rescheduled
Date change due to weather - only Oct. 7 now. Summit's Environmental Commission will be preparing the Tiny Forest for winter between 8:30-11 am on Saturday, Oct. 7. All are welcome. Please bring gloves (we will have extras available). 8th graders can earn Community Service hours. Email summit.nj.ec@gmail.com with questions. Park at the Community Center (100 Morris Ave) and walk down past the baseball field to reach the Tiny Forest.
Jefferson School PTO
The Jefferson School PTO is hosting the annual Fall Festival on Saturday, October 14th, from 11 a.m. - 3 p.m. This is a fun, community-wide event with pony rides, a petting zoo, bounce houses, raffles, various carnival games, and more! Please consider volunteering for this fun event!
*Please bring any paperwork that needs to be signed with you to the event. We will sign it that day.
*Please remember to check the daily announcements and our website for more community service opportunities.
Student Identification Badges (Student IDs)
Our school district is placing a strong focus on school safety and security. As such, we are intensifying our focus on students wearing their student IDs at all times throughout the school day. Students who are not wearing their IDs could incur disciplinary consequences, after a certain number of infractions (3 or more per month). We would appreciate the support of our parent community in emphasizing that message at home.
Student Lateness to School
Our school district holds student attendance and timeliness to school as an utmost priority to ensure student academic success. Students with four (or more tardies) per month will be assigned a Central Detention. Students will be given additional detentions for subsequent tardy points (8, 12, 16). These totals will be run once per month at the end of the month. Central Detentions are held from 2:55-3:35 PM Tuesday through Thursday. Further, extended detentions (until 5 PM) will be assigned for students with chronic tardiness. Additionally, students may be excluded from school activities for chronic lateness. We know the traffic in this area is a challenge and we are appreciative of parent support in helping students to arrive on time to school each day!
Executive functioning
6th-Grade Parents:
We are excited to announce that the "Let's Get Organized" topic for our first round of Executive Functioning classes was a hit! We have another series of classes scheduled called "Active Listening". Please be advised that there is a class limit and students can only be signed up for once class in each series.They are first come, first serve, and you must sign up in advance.
Please fill out this form in order for your child(ren) to attend the class. The first topic "Let's Get Organized." will have two more classes available on October 12th and October 18th from 3-4pm after school. The second topic "Active Listening" will be held from 3-4 p.m. after school on the following dates:
Wednesday, Oct. 25th
Thursday, Oct. 26th
Wednesday, Nov. 1st
Thursday, Nov. 2nd
We will have more course offerings on a variety of Executive Functioning topics throughout the duration of the year. These courses will be available later in the year for students in grades 7 & 8.
*All who submit a request will receive a follow up email the week before their scheduled class regarding registration status.