Dear Staff, Students, Families and Friends of the South Orange-Maplewood School District,

In support of the school district’s mission to prepare every student for success and higher learning in the 21st century, we issued a report on Equity and Excellence to the Board of Education containing recommendations to increase student access to rigorous coursework, uphold superlative levels of achievement, and provide additional academic supports where needed.

At the June 14th meeting Board of Education meeting, I will recommend that the Board approve the following proposals contained in the report for the 2010-2011 school year:

1. Level-UP the seventh grade by eliminating level three in English, Social Studies, and Science. The recommendation seeks no changes in the approach to mathematics, no changes in the eighth grade, and maintains a level two in all subjects in seventh grade. The curriculum, standards, and expectations of the Level-UP courses will be set at the current level four.

2. Increase time by 25% over the course of the year in sixth grade for instruction in the core content classes of English, Mathematics, Science, and Social Studies through the creation of a “rotating-core” period that replaces the Read/Write Seminar and Spanish. Rather than one semester in sixth grade and one semester in seventh grade, Spanish will be a full year course in the seventh grade.

3. Expand an enhanced elementary enrichment pilot to three schools. The enhanced enrichment allows for an enrichment specialist and classroom teacher to team teach one period weekly to the entire class, with in-class flexible grouping to ensure that students are challenged, and with curricular connections to Art, Music, and Physical Education.

4. Change Policy 2314: Academic Placement to better reflect the mission of the school district to prepare every child for success in college.
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Please note that all library books were due on June 2nd. Every child that owes library books was sent home with a note detailing what books were owed and how much the books cost. My main goal is to have the books and not the money. The library is now closed for inventory and it is very important for me to determine what books I need to purchase for next year especially with a much smaller budget.

Please contact me if you have any questions.

Jennifer Latimer
973-378-7686 x 5004

It’s that time of year!
A Lesson in Puberty
It is a milestone in the health of young people to experience puberty and can sometimes be a difficult and uncomfortable topic to discuss with our children

The Supervisor of Health, Physical Education and Nursing Services is pleased to host an evening on Puberty for parents/guardians of fifth grade students. The “Always Changing” video will be viewed and program resources will be made available to parents in order to facilitate further discussions with their children.

THURSDAY, JUNE 10, 2010
7pm-8:30pm
Board Office Meeting Room
525 Academy Street
Maplewood, New Jersey

Please RSVP to Ms. Judy LoBianco at 973-762-5600 ext. 1093 or email at jlobianc@somsd.k12.nj

Please join us for our final PTA gathering of the school year, Our Annual Outdoor Picnic!

When: Thursday, June 10th
Where: Clinton School Front Lawn
Time: People Start Picnicking at 5:30

We’ll have great music and there will also be food, snacks, and beverages available for purchase

We’ll also welcome our 2010-2011 PTA Executive Board.

This is not a rain or shine event so in the case of bad weather, we will send an email and post on website.

The PTA will be selling ice cream for $1 (sandwiches, pops, etc.) after school this Friday, June 4th in the front of school. Students who are in the ASP program will be allowed to go out and purchase ice cream. Students who ride a district bus and would like to purchase ice cream will be brought out a couple of minutes before the bell rings so they can get to the bus in time. Unfortunately, students who go to the Y after school will not be able to get ice cream before going to the bus.

From the district website:

Middle School Principals will present information on the Equity and Excellence Task Force recommendations in their respective schools on June 2, 2010 at 7:00 p.m. Mr. Kirk Smith invites parents to his presentation in South Orange Middle School’s Sterling Hall while Mr. Jeffrey Truppo invites parents to hear his presentation in the Maplewood Middle School auditorium. Mr. Truppo also will present the recommendations again on June 4 at 10:00 a.m. in the MMS auditorium.