Mine Hill BOE Spring Report
April 2018
Mine Hill Board of Education Members
From The Superintendent
A quote from Mark Twain states, "In the Spring, I have counted 136 different kinds of weather inside of 24 hours." I would say that about sums up the Spring of 2018 as well! We exhausted all of our emergency days and then some. As a reminder, we reinstated Friday, May 25th as a half-day, and added Monday, June 25th to the end of the school year. Please check the school Google calendar on our website for all school event updates. http://www.minehillcas.org/
Every three years the NJ Department of Education reviews its public schools via the Quality Single Accountability Continuum (QSAC) process. This was Mine Hill's year to be monitored, and I am pleased to announce that we passed the QSAC review and were designated as "High Performing." I want to thank our teachers, support staff, and administrative team for their efforts towards this goal.
Regarding 7th and 8th grade, we still have not heard from the Commissioner of Education. Until a decision is made, we are operating under the current send-receive agreement. Considering the logistics of being a Choice District and having to arrange transportation while factoring in tuition for our send-receive relationship with Dover, it is well past the time that we would be able to effectively plan for and coordinate a 7th and 8th-grade program for next year. Therefore, we have asked that the Commissioner consider postponing the transition for one year. We have also informed Dover to plan to accept our middle school students next year. The Board of Education is hoping to receive a decision soon, and be able to give a firm answer to our learning community regarding the status of the 2018-19 school year.
Our school library (The EMC) will be getting a facelift; new carpeting, modern furniture, lighting, paint, and technology will be installed and ready for the 2018-19 school year grand opening. In the meantime, all library activities and classes will be held in our transition room. We look forward to the refreshed space. Thank you to our Business Administrator, Mrs. Rodriguez, for coordinating the work, and to our Librarian, Mrs. Charlton, for boxing up the entire collection for storage!
I wish everyone the best as we move into the last quarter of the school year. As always, if you have any questions, comments, great ideas, or accolades, contact me anytime!
Best Regards,
Mr. Nittel
CAS's EMC gets ready for a facelift
QSAC Letter
Staff Activity Day - Rock Climbing
Lunch with the Superintendent
From the Mine Hill Teacher's Association (MHTA)
Recently, the Mine Hill Teacher’s Association at Canfield Avenue School in Mine Hill held a PRIDE Night simultaneously running two events. We ran our very popular Dr. Seuss Reading Night, which we have held for many years, and STEM Night. STEM Night was introduced for the first time last year, and while the families who came enjoyed the event, we wanted to increase our participation this year. We decided to combine the STEM Night with our Reading Night and it was a great move as numbers for STEM more than doubled from last year. In running the activities the same evening, it allowed entire families to take part in an event at the school.
Reading Night is held for our students and families in PreK-3rd grade while the STEM Night is for 4th-6th grades. Teachers, aides, and even our Principal volunteered to read to the students before they made a bookmark craft and wrapped up the night with a cupcake and Happy Birthday song to Dr. Seuss. At the other end of the building, the 4th-6th grade students and parents worked together to complete a project based on designing a Rube Goldberg machine to accomplish their given challenge. We had over 90 students at the Reading Night and over 40 at the STEM Night, in addition to some siblings and the many parents who attended, giving us over 250 people who came to school that night.
This would not have been possible without the effort of the two committees working together for our first ever combined event and the many members who came out that night to help. We had over 70% of our members help out in some way which was one of the reasons the event was a huge success. We are thankful that we received the PRIDE grant which funded the snacks, supplies for the crafts, and the challenge materials. It is great to be part of an Association that not only works hard to teach our students but is willing to give up the time to help with special events like our PRIDE Nights!
Cindy Pyrzynski
MHTA President
Circus Club Performance
The Circus Club, led by Mrs. Pyrzynski, was made up of 4th-6th grade students who were interested in learning some new skills like scarf juggling, plate spinning, stilt walking and more! Each week during club, the students practiced new activities and then focused on the ones that interested them the most. The club then wrapped up with a performance for the K/1st grade classes. The younger students enjoyed all the events and were able to have a fun time scarf juggling at the end.
Mixed Grade Levels Working together!
The 1st and 6th grades collaborated on a writing activity in ELA classes. The 6th graders visited the 1st graders and assisted them with conducting research for their "All About" animal writing. The 6th graders helped with the web searches and note taking. After working with their teachers to write books about their animals, the 1st graders brought their published books to read to their 6th-grade buddy.
It was a great opportunity for the older students to share their knowledge of good researching and note-taking with younger students. The 6th graders were very impressed by the writing done by their buddy. The books included a table of contents, great info on the animal and even an "About the Author" page!
Persistence!
Buehler Challenger & Science Center
Return to the Moon was the challenge facing the 6th graders when they visited the Buehler Challenger & Science Center for their field trip. The students prepared for the mission during lessons in science with Mr. Martyniuk. They then completed job applications for the "specialist" position they wanted describing their qualifications and skills as they related to the position.
Mission teams were first presented with a design challenge similar to that facing engineers when they were designing the Mars Rover. Eight of our CAS teams successfully completed the design challenge. The students then participated in a simulated space mission - getting a chance to be in the capsule and in Mission Control.
This wonderful hands-on field trip was partially funded by the PTA. The teachers and students want to thank the PTA for supporting them in this fabulous learning activity.
Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty Trip
On March 20th, the fifth-grade students braved the cold temperatures at Ellis Island and The Statue of Liberty to experience an important part of American history. Students took part in an immigration simulation, where park rangers from the National Park Service "processed" them as if they were real immigrants during the time period that Ellis Island was open as an immigration station.
To prepare for the field trip, students researched different immigrant populations and created a historically accurate persona, which they took on during the simulation at Ellis Island. Students were required to answer a variety of questions which immigrants of their time period would have had to in order to become an American. The park rangers were impressed by how much the students knew, and how they handled themselves during the battery of tests. Afterward, they had the opportunity to walk down the "Stairs of Separation" which were the same stairs that carried over 12 million immigrants to their new home.
CAS Expanded Club Offerings
Mine Hill Township Board of Education
Email: lnittel@minehillcas.org
Website: www.Minehillcas.org
Phone: 973-366-0590
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MineHillCAS
Twitter: @MineHillCAS