This week our word of focus was “DREAM.” This special word of the week has framed our conversations and celebration of the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Our learners came together as a school community to serve as changemakers as they collected numerous items for our Blessing Bags & Peace Notes service project over the course of this past week. As of now, we have collected over 1,000 donations! Next week, our learners will partake in Days of Action as they assemble the Blessing Bags & Peace Notes. Please see directly below to learn more regarding the service project, as well as how you may become involved!
This upcoming week we will conclude our Kindness & Justice Challenge with a school-wide Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. assembly. During the assembly, we will find out just how many Kindness & Justice links we have earned as a Nishuane community since the start of the challenge! We also will celebrate this very special week with a Kindness & Justice themed school spirit week! Please see this Kindness & Justice Spirit Week flyer for a list of each day’s special theme.
Blessing Bags & Peace Notes Project & Days of Action
This past week our learners were changemakers by bringing in many donate items towards our Blessing Bags. Our school community will come together next week on Wednesday, January 15th and Thursday, January 16th for two days of action. During the days of actions, learners will assemble Blessing Bags and create Peace Notes in the library. If you are interested in volunteering for our Days of Action, please sign up here. Once assembled, our Blessing Bags and Peace Notes will be brought to Hillside School on Friday, January 17th and Monday, January 20th.
Kindness & Justice Challenge
Our Kindness & Justice Challenge will culminate this upcoming week with the following special events:
○ Kindness & Justice Spirit Week: January 13th-January 17th
▪ Monday, 1/13: “We Dream of Kindness”- Wear your pajamas to school!
▪ Tuesday, 1/14: “Take a Moment and Team Up for Kindness”- Wear your favorite sports shirt/jersey.
▪ Wednesday, 1/15: “Work it Out with Kindness”- Wear workout clothes.
▪ Thursday, 1/16: “Peace, Love & Kindness”- Wear tie dye or rainbow colors.
▪ Friday, 1/17: “Share the Spirit of Kindness”- Wear Nish Spirit Wear or the School Colors (Blue/White).
○ Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Celebration School-wide Assembly: January 17th at 2:50 pm (Nishuane Auditorium)
Lunar New Year of the Snake
Ring in Lunar New Year 2025 with AAPI Montclair at the Montclair Art Museum!
SAVE THE DATE! Join us at the Montclair Art Museum as we ring in the year of the snake with a traditional dragon parade, lion dance, cultural performances, vendor market, crafts, and of course, an array of food trucks serving delicious dishes and drinks to keep you warm and full.
In celebrating the Lunar New Year, (Year of Snake), the Montclair AAPI invites our Mandarin program to be part of the joyful event again. The Program is planned for Saturday, January 25, 2025 for 11:00 am- 3:00 pm, with a rain/snow date on Saturday, February 8. It will be at the Montclair Art Museum. We will perform a Number Kung Fu movements sometime between 2:00 pm to 3:00 pm.
The following sign-up spots are for any Nishuane students who would like to take part in a short performance on stage to celebrate the Lunar New Year with the community. Once you sign up for the spot, you will then receive a participation permission form to be signed and return to Nishauane Mandarin teacher Ms. Lin. Please click here for the event SignUp Genius. If you have any questions, please contact Ms. Lin. Her email is [email protected].
Wellness January
This week we continued our January focus on building healthy habits to support mindfulness, mental and physical health, as well as some of our new year’s resolutions! We invite you to extend this exploration at home by checking out the following resources:
● Emotional Wellness
● The Reflection in Me
● Brain Gym Exercises
● Friday Dance Along
New Jersey Inclusion Project Update
This past week, Nishuane’s NJIP site-based team attended a regional meeting. This meeting afforded the team the opportunity to connect with other districts from across the state that are also engaged with the work of fostering systemic change in the area of inclusion. The team also had the opportunity to connect with Nishuane’s inclusion liaison who is guiding us through this important work, Brittany Seeley. The day’s session focused on the areas of: identifying common limited mental models and beliefs, learning strategies for interrupting limited mental models, as well as applying strategies for shifting limited mental models in schools. The team is excited to share important insights garnered from this session with the Nishuane faculty and staff as we continue this important initiative focused on inclusion.
Revised Vision Statement Follow-up Survey
As previously shared, as part of Nishuane School's first year of participation in the New Jersey Inclusion Project, our site-based team has been tasked with revising our school's vision to reflect our school's focus on equity, access, and inclusion. Based on the results of the initial vision statement survey disseminated in December, the below draft vision statement was identified as the preferred option:
*Draft Nishuane School Vision Statement: Nishuane School is a diverse, inclusive community where every student is valued and supported to become confident, empathetic, and curious learners. Rooted in equity and belonging, we foster academic and artistic exploration, social-emotional learning, and personal growth, empowering students to develop purpose, creativity, and respect, while cultivating the independence to make meaningful contributions to the world around them.
For the second phase of this process, we are seeking additional stakeholder input prior to finalizing our vision statement. We invite stakeholders to participate in this second phase by responding to this follow-up survey. This survey will remain open through Friday, January 17, 2025. Thank you for your ongoing input and collaboration with the revision of Nishuane's vision statement. Your partnership is greatly valued and appreciated!
Nishuane Playground Construction Update
Construction on the Nishuane playground began on Friday, January 10th. Machinery and equipment for the project have arrived and the playground area has been fenced off. The contractor shared that the team first plans to demolish and build the lower blue playground (closest to the field). The contractor also shared that they anticipate this phase of the project taking approximately one week. During this first phase of the project, the field, blacktop, and playgrounds will remain closed. Once the lower blue playground is complete, the upper black top and field areas will be accessible to students for outdoor recess. Additionally, we are exploring other outdoor recess options to incorporate into our plan. In total, the contractor anticipates the entire construction project taking approximately four to five weeks. During the duration of the project, we ask that all visitors to Nishuane please be mindful of the closed outdoor areas and to remain away from the construction site. Updates will continue to be provided via the Nish News. We are very excited for the start of this much anticipated project and look forward to having a new playground to use for the second portion of the school year!
📷📷📷📷Picture Retake Day📷📷📷📷
Nishuane’s Picture Retake Day is scheduled for Thursday, January 23, 2025.
🎉😊Nishuane Faculty & Staff Compliment Club🎉😊
It is our absolute honor and pleasure to serve the learners and families of the Nishuane community! Our passionate faculty and staff work tirelessly to foster a nurturing and nourishing learning environment for each of our learners every day.
In appreciation of our faculty and staff, we invite all members of our community to join our “Compliment Club” by recognizing and celebrating the unwavering dedication of Nishuane’s talented faculty and staff. Please utilize this Google form to recognize individual faculty/staff members and/or groups/teams at Nishuane. The compliment will be shared with the spotlighted faculty/staff member(s) and/or group(s)/team(s). This form will be open throughout the course of the 2024-2025 school year and multiple compliments may be shared by a community member. Please feel free to revisit and submit compliments at any time!
Thank you for "filling buckets" by showing your appreciation of Nishuane’s faculty and staff! 😊
Dressing for Colder Temperatures
As the temperature begins to drop, please be sure to send your child to school each day with warm clothing. As a reminder, outdoor recess is held outdoors when the real temperature is 28 degrees Fahrenheit or above (when there is no inclement weather). Jackets and dressing in layers for temperature fluctuations is strongly encouraged.
Reminder Regarding Cell Phones/Watches with Capabilities
As a reminder, electronic devices may be in backpacks but not out or on during the school day. If a student does not follow the expectation to keep the device out of sight, then it will be sent to the office and caregivers will have to sign them out.
Arrival & Dismissal Safety
Please carefully review the important Nishuane School arrival and dismissal information included in the beginning of year communications and available here. These protocols and safety precautions must be carefully followed at all times to ensure a safe arrival and dismissal.
As always, thank you for your partnership in ensuring the safety and wellbeing of our entire school community!
Nishuane Visitor Form & Protocols
● Please click here to review Nishuane’s visitor protocols. Visitors must complete the visitor form prior to a visit.
○ Please remember that visitors must report only to the location of the building that was indicated on the visitor form. Visitors may not visit other locations in the building. Thank you for your support with this important safety measure!
○ Please wear a visitor’s badge for the duration of your visit. The visitor’s badge must be visible at all times.
○ Please do not prop doors open under any circumstance.
○ Please do not hold open the door for anyone behind you when entering or exiting the building.
Nish Spirit Wear Fridays
Every Friday at Nishuane is School Spirit Day! On Fridays students may participate by wearing blue and white, as well as Nishuane spirit wear. Spirit wear is available for purchase through our PTA.
Nishuane Instagram
Nishuane is on Instagram! Follow us @nishschool for a peek into the learning and fun we have in our community. Our account is private for everyone's safety. When requesting to follow us, please send a message with your child's name and we will accept you.
Nurse’s Notes
Please see the below reminders from Nurse Anne Ndungu
(Phone: 973-509-4236~Fax: 973-509-1197 ~ E-mail: [email protected]):
Gentle Reminders from the Health Office:
I hope that everyone is doing well and healthy. The weather has changed, and the days are very chilly, please help your child/children to dress appropriately for the weather and ensure that your child/children have a warm coat as we do go outside for recess.
Also, kindly send an extra pair of clothes for your child to keep in the locker just in case of an accident. I am kindly asking for a donation of slightly used clothes for boys and girls ages 5-8yrs.
Flu Season is Here!
● It is important to keep your child home when sick so that we can keep everyone safe.
Below please find the guidelines on when to keep your child home:
● The student has a temperature of 100 degrees or higher. The child may return to school when fever free for 24 hours without fever-reducing medications (Tylenol, Motrin).
● When antibiotics are prescribed, The student may return to school after taking the antibiotics for a minimum of 24 hours and fever free for at least 24 hours, without fever-reducing medications.
● The student seems tired/lethargic, pale, has little appetite and is generally not him/herself.
● The student is vomiting or has diarrhea. May return to school 24 hours after the symptoms are resolved and able to tolerate a normal diet.
● The student has an undiagnosed rash. A rash may be indicative of many things, frequently of illnesses that are contagious. Therefore, a student should see a physician to be evaluated. A note from the physician should be provided upon return to school.
● The student has severe cold symptoms or the flu, an upper respiratory infection, strep throat, a persistent cough, a runny nose that cannot be managed, or any other symptoms that would interfere with effective school participation. Please contact the school nurse before sending your child back to school.
● Please do not hesitate to seek the advice of your healthcare provider to determine when your child is able to return to school.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me.
I wish you and your families a Great Weekend!!
Nurse Anne
Anne Ndungu, RN
Phone: 973-509-4236 Fax: 973-509-1197
Email: [email protected]