Lafayette School
September 2019
Principal Message ~ Cheryl Russo
Greetings Lafayette Families,
Welcome to Lafayette School. We are so excited to begin the new school year with your children. This time of year always brings about mixed emotions for parents, students, and educators. We are eager to welcome in a new school year but we are still thoroughly enjoying the relaxation that comes with family vacations and summertime schedules. I hope that many of you have been able to enjoy the perks of summer with your children and you are getting ready to welcome in a new school year. This newsletter will give everyone an overview of upcoming dates, programs, and PTO volunteer opportunities. Please take the time to read all of its contents as I believe it will answer all of your questions about starting the year and help to introduce our beginning of the year programs.
On the first day of school, all 4th and 5th grade students will report to the back of the building and line up next to their teacher’s line-up sign. The teachers will join their class before the bell rings. LAF does not hold a "Clap In" on the first day of school. In the event of rain, students should report to their classrooms on the first day of school beginning at 8:25 a.m.
Please mark your calendars for these September events:
- Back to School Night - September 12th @ 7:00 p.m.
- First PTO Meeting - September 19th @ 9:15 a.m.
- PTO Movie Night - September 20th (The registration flyer will be in the first-day folder.)
You will learn more about LAF's curriculum and programs at our Back to School Night on September 12th and at our first PTO meeting on September 19th. If you are new to LAF, please use the resources below to help familiarize yourself with the school.
Please use the following links if you are in need of a Free/Reduced Lunch Application (English) (Spanish) as well as information about Student Accident Coverage. There are also paper forms available in the LAF Office. Please contact Sally Moreno at the Board Office if you should have any questions at smoreno@chatham-nj.org.
My lines of communication are always open to LAF families, I can be reached at 973-457-2507 or via email at crusso@chatham-nj.org. I look forwarding to working with your children this year. Enjoy the rest of your summer.
Best,
Cheryl Russo
School Hours
School starts at 8:45 a.m.
- Students will be marked tardy beginning at 8:45 a.m.
- Supervision on the playground and indoor line-up begins at 8:25 am. On rainy days, beyond the first day, the students will line up in the gym and cafeteria.
Class Placements
The class placement information will be available tomorrow, August 16th through the Genesis Parent Portal around 10:00 a.m. The teacher name listed is your child's homeroom teacher, please click here to learn the name of your child's switch teacher. All special education and basic skills teacher information will be forthcoming. If you are having difficulty managing the parent portal tomorrow, please contact Sally Moreno at 973-457-2560 or smoreno@chatham-nj.org.
Scavenger Hunts - 4th Grade and New Students Only
Come for a self-guided scavenger hunt around Lafayette before school begins.
- August 20th - 1:00 - 2:00 p.m.
- August 26th - 9:30 - 10:30 a.m.
A Message from Lauren Golio – PTO President
Welcome Lafayette Families!
The PTO is proud to support Lafayette’s school motto, “It is not about being the best;
it is about being your best,” with programs including our Mini-Marathon, Field Day,
Read-a-thon, Book Fair, Pizza Day, After School Enrichment and more.
The funds we raise cover important program and event costs associated with Field
Trips, Author’s Day, School Gifts, Movie Night, Assemblies, etc. The PTO recently
sponsored several major improvements to the playground, including a NINJA Warrior
course and new shade awning. Additionally, we have provided innovative
classroom furniture in our ELA Classrooms, wind turbines in our Design & Technology Room, books for our Media Center, and a new AV system for assemblies,
health class and more. The majority of this is funded by our General Fund.
The LAF General Fund Committee is chaired by Jamie Callahan, Jane McManus and
Kristine Slattery. Please read their message in this newsletter with information on how
to donate. You can pay your PTO dues online and donate to our General Fund
at https://squareup.com/store/lafpto.
In addition to investing within Lafayette, we are so proud of our students’ charitable
efforts outside the school….for example by reading over 700,000 minutes in the Read-
a-Thon last year, students raised enough funds for the PTO to donate $6,000 to
BlinkNow, a local organization to empower Nepal's children by providing quality
education AND $2000 in books to help fill the reading library of the Ecole Toussaint
Louverture Elementary School in East Orange, New Jersey. They also made flood
buckets for those affected in the Carolinas last fall and have greatly supported the
initiatives around litterless lunches.
Our success is dependent on help from our parents. There are many different ways to
help listed within this newsletter and on our signup.com page and we encourage you to
stay connected:
- PTO Website: www.chathampto.com to access PTO information, volunteer opportunities, meeting dates, PTO dues, and General Fund.
- Facebook: “Like” us on Facebook.
- PTO Meetings: Our first PTO meeting, 9/19 at 9:15 AM in the cafeteria. Each meeting features a speaker or discussion about key areas of the curriculum and the school. LAF Principal, Cheryl Russo, will present at our first meeting.
Please feel free to email me at lafptopresident@gmail.com with any other questions.
Thank you in advance for your help. We appreciate it. Our teachers appreciate it. And,
most of all, our children appreciate it. Enjoy the remainder of your summer and we look
forward to kicking off the new school year.
Warm Regards,
Lauren Golio
PTO President 2019-2020
Lafayette PTO General Fund
We hope you enjoyed your summer and thank you in advance for considering donating to our Lafayette General Fund.
The General Fund provides much of the equipment and many of the programs that the school budget doesn't cover. Assemblies, Author’s Day, One Book One School and field trips are just a few of the annual program expenses covered by the PTO General Fund. Over the past year, General Fund donations allowed us to purchase a NINJA course for the playground, wind turbines for the design & technology Room, a new AV system for assemblies and health classes, classroom furniture, books and more.
A one-time General Fund donation from families replaces the need for many of the smaller PTO fundraisers. Last year our General Fund had nearly 65% participation and raised over $48,000. Please help us continue to fund more programs and experiences for our children by generously donating. We also encourage you to share your ideas for how to use the funds directly with the PTO at lafgeneralfund@gmail.com. You can donate now! We will be collecting donations to the General Fund at Back to School Night, or you can donate now by mailing the form below to LAF school, or online at: https://squareup.com/store/lafpto.
Thank you in advance for your generous support!
Please make donation check payable to “LAF PTO” and mail to: The Lafayette School, 221 Lafayette Ave. Chatham, N.J. 07928.
Student Name: _______________________________________________
Teacher: ____________________________________________________
Parent/Guardian Name: ________________________________________
Address: ____________________________________________________
Email: ______________________________________________________
Donation Amount (check as appropriate):
____$50 ____$100 ____$200 ____$300 ____$500 ____$750 ______Other
_______Matching gift amount
The PTO of the Chathams is a 501 (c)3 non-profit organization, so all donations are tax deductible and can be matched by your employer. Tax ID #20-8695766.
Navigating Drop Off & Pick Up
- In the morning, your child can get out of the car once you pass the Buildings and Grounds driveway. Please do not wait for your child to get closer to the door or to enter the building before pulling away. There are supervisors to assist all of the students. When you wait, it delays and disrupts the flow of traffic.
- All students will use the door on the far right of the building to access the back of LAF School. This door will not open until 8:25 a.m. and is supervised at all times.
- At the end of the day, our students use multiple exits to leave the building. All students getting picked up will assemble in front of the high school auditorium. Supervisors will assist parents and students during pick-up from the car line. Do not get out of your car and use caution when pulling away.
- There is a bike rack in the front and back of the building. All bikes should be locked up for the day.
School Supplies
If you ordered a school supply kit this past spring it will be available to your child on the first day of school. We are unable to order more kits at this time. Please use the links below to view school supply lists if you are still in need of supplies.
Attendance via Parent Portal
Please use the Parent Portal to record your child's absences. Any students' absence that is not recorded by you in the Parent Portal will be marked unverified. If your child is unverified, an automated call will be placed to confirm your child's whereabouts.
Directions:
- Log into the Parent Portal
- Select the Attendance Tab
- Select Notify the Attendance Office Tab
- Use the drop-down selection to mark your child absent
- Enter date
- Choose student name
- State reason for the absence
- Click green submit button to post attendance
A Note from Chartwells
All students in the School District of the Chathams have individual lunch accounts in place for them. A standard elementary school lunch is $3.50 per day and a la carte purchased items are extra. In order to set up an account, you can send in a check payable to the “School District of the Chathams” or you can put money on the account electronically by going to www.PayForIt.net.
- The recommended operating account balance is $50.00.
- When the account falls below $20.00 you will be notified with a low balance letter by email.
- You can also sign up for auto-replenishment on PayForIt.
If your child has a zero balance in the account he/she may still use the account to purchase a basic lunch (no snack items) and you will receive an email for the balance due. If you choose not to let your child use the account you can notify me and I can block the account so the student cannot use it for lunches or snacks. If you have any questions, please feel free to call me at 973-457-2555 or email me: rmcbreen@chatham-nj.org. Applications for the Free and Reduced Lunch Program can be found by clicking on the following link: https://www.chatham-nj.org/Page/16310
Thank you for your time and cooperation.
Sincerely,
Bob McBreen; Food Service Supervisor
Litterless Lunches/Boomerang Lunches
Lafayette School will continue to implement Boomerang and Litterless Lunches this school year. By practicing less waste in our choice of lunch materials, we will reduce how much we put into landfills. Students will be expected to bring home everything that they come to school with on a daily basis (Boomerang Lunch). This allows them to take a closer look at the disposable lunch materials that are coming home. Our students will be able to compost their fruit scraps and either recycle or rinse out their yogurt containers to prevent messy spills.
Ideas for packing a litterless lunch:
Do include:
- Sandwiches, salads and other meals in reusable containers
- Whole fruits and vegetables without packaging
- Drinks in reusable containers, like a thermos (or in recyclable ones, like a can, or tetra pak)
- Snacks purchased in bulk and brought in reusable containers
- Cloth napkins, reusable spoons, and forks
Don’t include:
- Individually wrapped snacks
- Plastic baggies that are not reusable
- Single use cans of juice boxes
- Disposable forks and spoons
- Straws
- Plastic wrap or foil that cannot be reused
Instead of individual portions think about:
- Buying large containers of yogurt & applesauce.
- Buying large bags/boxes of snack crackers & cookies.
Food For Thought:
The average student lunch generates 66 lbs of waste per school year. That can add up to 20,000 lbs of waste per school!!!
ECOlunchbox - Waste Free Lunch Fundraiser
Here’s a fundraiser you can feel good about participating in and asking your friends and family to join in as well. ECOlunchbox is a start-up green company which loves to help raise money for schools. The company will donate 15% of all sales back to LAF school as a way to help us with our waste-free lunches.
- It’s as EASY as 1, 2, 3!!
- #1 Go to ECOlunchboxes.com
- #2 Put your favorite plastic-free, waste-free lunch ware in your shopping cart
- #3 Use coupon code LafayetteChatham with every purchase and apply it when you checkout, until 9/16/19.
Applied Music Program
The Lafayette Applied Music Program includes instruction in BAND, CHORUS, and ORCHESTRA. The Applied Music period is a special time of the day, two or three times a week between 2:37 p.m. - 3:15 p.m. Your child may choose to join chorus and/or one instrumental group. Lafayette also provides an INSTRUMENTAL LESSON PROGRAM. Students playing an instrument will attend a small group lesson once a week. All of the Lafayette students will be provided an overview of the Applied Music Program during the first week of school. They will also have an opportunity to either program at this time. If you have already rented an instrument, it will be delivered by the music store before school begins. Please do not hesitate to contact any of the music staff whenever you have concerns or questions during the year.
Lafayette Music Staff
- Brian Conti (bconti@chatham-nj.org), Band Lesson Teacher
- Laurie DeBiasse (ldebiasse@chatham-nj.org), 4th & 5th Grade Band Director and Band Lesson Teacher
- Liam Keller (lkeller@chatham-nj.org), 4th & 5th Grade Orchestra Director and Lesson Teacher
- Dennis Argul (dargul@chatham-nj.org) - 4th & 5th Grade Instrumental Teacher
- Dean Kravitz (dkravitz@chatham-nj.org) General Music Teacher and 4th & 5th Grade Choral Director
Theater Arts Lottery
Lafayette offers Theater Arts as a class during the regularly scheduled school day. The Theater class will be working in a collaborative setting, performing activities and exercises which are fun, challenging, and rewarding. Students will explore creative drama, mime, movement, and storytelling. We will be holding a lottery to develop the classes for Theater Arts. If you are interested in having your child placed in the lottery, please click on the link below and fill in the form by August 30th. Once the entries have been received, we will pick 75 students from each grade level. These 75 students will be divided into three classes per grade level. Please click here to register for the Theater Arts Lottery. You will need your child's homeroom teacher's name to register.
Art Club Lottery
Mrs. Kraemer’s Art Club will be offered during the following times this school year.
- FALL (September 17- December 13)
- WINTER (January 3 - March 12)
- SPRING (March 17- June 5)
FALL SERIES
- TUESDAYS: Build a Gargoyle - We will build a gargoyle and a part of the wall on which it is perched. We’ll use paper-mache and finish it off with metallic paints creating a bas-relief gargoyle sculpture for participants to take home. September 17, 24; October 1,15, 22, 29; November 12,19; December 10.
- WEDNESDAY: Weave a Wall Hanging - Starting with several pieces of driftwood and a variety of interesting fibers we will weave a decorative wall hanging. September 18, 25; October 2, 16, 23, 30; Nov, 13, 20, 27; December 11.
- THURSDAY: Ceramics - We will work with a number of ceramic hand-building methods including pinch, coil, slab and may even have time for the potter’s wheel ...we will “fire” and glaze our work in the kiln. September 19, 26; October 3, 10, 17, 24; November 14, 21; December 12.
- FRIDAY: Four String Marionette - We will use paper-mache to build the basic forms for our marionette and then combine it with a variety of other materials. Then we’ll string the marionette and learn to operate it. September 20, 27; October 4, 18, 25; November 1, 15, 22; December 13.
WINTER SERIES
- TUESDAYS: Ceramics - We will work with a number of ceramic hand-building methods including pinch, coil, slab and may even have time for the potter’s wheel ...we will “fire” and glaze our work in the kiln. January 7, 14, 21, 28; February 4, 11, 25; March 3, 10.
- WEDNESDAY: Create a Creature - We’ll use crushed newspaper, cardboard, and bubble wrap to build a form for our creatures, cover it with pariskraft and then paint it. January 8, 15, 22, 29; February 5, 12, 26; March 4, 11.
- THURSDAY: Weave a Pillow Using a simple cardboard loom we will weave a pillow. If we have time we will also use some wooden two-harness wooden looms. January 9, 16, 23, 30; February 6, 13, 27; March 5, 12
- FRIDAY: Mural Painting (5th grade only) - We will design and paint on some of our Lafayette walls to continue the mural that was begun four years ago. January 3, 10, 17, 24, 31; Feb, 7, 21, 28; March 6.
- TUESDAY: 3D Painting Surfaces will be built-up with pariskraft to create a 3-D bas-relief painting. March 17, 24, 31; April 14, 21, 28; May 5, 12; June 2.
WEDNESDAY: Ceramics We will work with a number of ceramic hand-building methods including pinch, coil, slab and may even have time for the potter’s wheel ...we will “fire” and glaze our work in the kiln. March 18, 25; April 1, 15, 22, 29; May 6, 13; June 3.
- THURSDAYS: Create a Creature We'll use crushed newspaper, cardboard, and bubble wrap to build a form for our creatures, cover it with pariskraft and then paint it. March 19, 26; April 2, 16, 23, 30; May 7, 14; June 4.
- FRIDAYS: Rod Puppets Build a large rod puppet that will be controlled with a set of long rods and learn to how to control it. March 20, 27; April 3, 17, 24; May 1, 8, 15; June 5.
Families New to Chatham
Welcome to Chatham! Please join us on Thursday, September 5th at 9:00 am for a Welcome Breakfast at Lafayette School. We will be available to chat with you, distribute important school and community information packets and answer any questions you may have. If you have any pressing questions before the breakfast, please feel free to contact:
Annamarie McGannon (annamarie.mcgannon@gmail.com), Tiffany Levato (tifflev@me.com), or Renee Hughes-Suh (reneeshu@hotmail.com).
Volunteer for the PTO
Calling all parents — Book Fair, Mini-Marathon, Field Day, Assemblies and so many more activities are organized by the PTO. We can’t do all that we do without you! Please sign up to help us out during the 2019-2020 school year. http://signup.com/go/PUovK1
CALLING ALL ROOM PARENTS!
Are you interested in being a Room Parent? Sign Up now and you will be included in a list of parents that we will use when choosing room parents. Nothing is guaranteed as class lists have not been distributed yet. Please sign up by August 23rd. Thank you!
LAF MINI MARATHON - OCTOBER 21
LAF Mini Marathon is just around the corner! This is a great opportunity for students entering and returning to Lafayette to get involved and meet new friends. Mini Marathon is a non-competitive, untimed 1.6-mile walk/jog/run. This event is open to all students regardless of athletic ability. The objectives of Mini Marathon are to set goals, follow through with a commitment, develop school spirit, and to have FUN!
NEW.... This year students will have the opportunity to gain a raffle ticket for each practice attended. These tickets can be used to enter to win a basket full of prizes on Race Day, October 21st! There will be multiple baskets filled with gift cards, spirit wear, and fun surprises to win! Students will also be provided with a nut-free healthy snack at the end of practice.
There are five scheduled practices that take place after school. Practice dates are September 16, 23; October 1, 7, 15. Practice is run by the LAF Physical Education teacher, Mr. Shellenhamer, and PTO volunteers. Practice begins immediately after school and ends at 4:00 pm. All participants will receive a tee-shirt and a medal for participating in the race on October 21st. (Rain Date, October 22nd). Please consider volunteering for a practice or Race Day. It’s a great way to get involved. Please click here to volunteer. Thank you for your support! If you have any questions you can contact Tiffany Levato (tifflev@me.com) or Sharon Piskadlo (spiskadlo@yahoo.com).
Library Volunteers
Calling all book lovers!! The LAF Library team has another great year planned for our children. To make that happen they really need our help. Here’s what you can do:
- Volunteer for a regular library shift (2 hour shifts between 9:00am-3:00pm on either odd or even numbered days). Working in the library involves shelving books, checking books in/out and just helping Mrs. Cifrodella and the library staff as needed. It’s a great way to find out what the kids are learning at school, see what they are reading and occasionally get a glimpse of your child too!
- Shift: 9:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m., 1:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. or 1:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m.
- Day(s) of the week
- An odd or even numbered day (ex. every odd # Wednesday)
- Your child’s name
Box Tops for Education™
Welcome back!! Once again, Lafayette will be participating in the Box Tops for Education™ program to earn additional money for our school. Last year, LAF was able to raise almost $700 and we know we can do better. If every student contributed just 20 Box Tops, we could make a huge impact. Just look for pink Box Tops (or bonus certificates) on products, clip them, and send them to school. Our first collection will run until Friday, October 26, 2018. To make the submission process more efficient, we would appreciate your help as follows:
• Check the expiration date on your Boxtops--we cannot submit anything that has an expiration date before 11/1/18.
• Send in any Boxtops you have collected in a sealable (Ziploc-type) bag or envelope OR
• Tape or glue Box Tops on a collection sheet (one box top per space provided on the sheet), available under Forms at the LAF PTO website or at www.BTFE.com.
Box Tops can be submitted to your child's teacher or to the basket in the LAF school office. For more information on the BoxTops for Education program, including a list of participating products, visit www.BTFE.com. If you have any questions, feel free to contact Cathy Egan (cathyegan@yahoo.com). Thanks for your help!