Upcoming Events
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May 10
Parent Academy - STEM
May 18
BOE Meeting
May 24
Memorial Day break
May 27-31
Borough Memorial Day Ceremony & Breakfast
May 30
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Franklin Lakes Public Schools
School News and Views April, 2016
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Dear Community Members,
As April ends and May begins, you will notice that the activities at each of our schools include many demonstrations of learning by our students. Art shows, concerts, and special event days give our students and their teachers opportunities to offer parents a glimpse into things that they have been preparing for all year long. Our children have grown as writers, readers, artists, musicians, and athletes, as leaders and as caring citizens. I am confident that you will see just what I mean as you attend these events. Our children have grown so much this year, and we are very proud of them and what they continue to accomplish.
We are also extremely pleased to be able to share that four of our outstanding teachers were honored as Bergen County Teacher Recognition recipients. The process includes nominations by colleagues and parents, and an anonymous review of each nomination by a panel of administrators, PTA representatives, and past recipients. The panel discusses the reasons cited in each of the letters sent in support of the candidate and together, choses each school's Teacher of the Year. Only after candidates are chosen does the panel find out the identity of those they have chosen. Please join the District in congratulating Ms. Marissa Lindenthaler (Colonial Road School), Ms. Darlene Marte (Franklin Avenue Middle School), Ms. Tara Rogic (High Mountain Road School), and Ms. Meagan Yorio (Woodside Avenue School) for being named the 2016 Bergen County Teachers of the Year for the Franklin Lakes Public Schools. Recipients will be recognized at the first May Board of Education meeting, and are invited to attend the Bergen County Educators recognition luncheon at the end of May.
I hope you enjoy this edition of School News & Views.
Sincerely,
Lydia Furnari,
Ed.D.
Superintendent of Schools
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How We Connect
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District News
Curriculum & Instruction: Parent Academy
April's offerings included successful seminars on Olweus Bullying Prevention at both the elementary and middle school levels and Family Literacy Session 2: Creative Schools -Fostering Student Creativity.
May will bring our final Parent Academy for this school year, STEM for Parents. This seminar is scheduled for Wednesday, May 18th from 7:00 to 8:30pm. Please join District teachers and administrators for a glimpse into the many ways students engage with Science, Technology, Engineering, & Math [better known as STEM] learning throughout Franklin Lakes Public Schools. Through participation in this hands-on session, parents will develop understanding of the dispositions and mindsets STEM learning supports, and ways in which they can extend student learning simply at home. This session is designed to launch parents to the next level of understanding about STEM!
This evening is open to all Franklin Lakes residents, but is limited to 75 seats. To register, please click here.
Technology: Information at your fingertips!
Remember that parents/guardians have access to student information via Genesis Parent Access, Franklin Lakes' parent portal. Grading/progress reports, Contact information, and Forms are all accessible.
Your child's report card for each marking period is available using the Grading tab. For middle school students, parents/guardians can also see grades for tests and assignments, as the teachers post them, via the Gradebook tab. If a child is in the CSI, G&T, or the ELL program, parents/guardians can access progress reports each marking period through the Documents tab.
Genesis Parent Access allows parents/guardians to update contact information with the Contacts tab. It is important to keep contact information up to date so that the school can reach parents/guardians in the case of an emergency. Additionally, phone number and email Information stored in the Contact area is also by the District for our reverse 911 calling system and email blasts.
Important permission forms can also be found under the Forms tab. Many of these forms need to be updated at the start of each school year.
If you forget your password to log in to Genesis Parent Access, just click the "Forgot My Password" link right on the home page. If you have questions, feel free to email for assistance at genesis@franklinlakes.k12.nj.us.
Business & Operations: Clean Water!
Water supplies at each school were tested for lead content by Garden State Laboratories in early April. The District is pleased  to announce that the results were excellent!. Over 50% of the samples showed no lead at all and the remainder were significantly under the State and Federal guidelines of .015 mg/l. The specific results are shown below. Water Lead Testing Results| CRS | undetected, undetected, .009, undetected, undetected | | HMR | undetected, undetected, undetected, .001, .004 | | WAS | .001, .002, .002, .002, .007 | | FAMS | undetected, undetected, .001, undetected, undetected |
Special Services: Earth Day On April 20th, the students in Mrs. Colligan's class learned about Earth Day. Throughout the week, they talked about what materials can be recycled and where the reusable items go to be  recycled. The class read character situation cards and had to determine if the main character was being helpful or harmful to the Earth. On Earth Day, the students labeled blue recycling bins: plastic, paper, aluminum, and glass. They brought in items from home and sorted them into the correct bins. They completed writing pieces that focused on why they loved the Earth and what they can do to help save it. Everyone wrote about recycling!
Special Services: Therapeutic Tips For PARCC and Life in General
The following thoughts and visuals were prepared by HMR Guidance Counselor, Ms. DeFazio to help her students prepare for PARCC and for life in general.
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FAMS News
Our third installment highlights Mrs. Emmel and her 7th grade Math classroom. Mrs. Emmel graduated from Boston University in 2004, received her graduate degree in Educational Technology at New Jersey City University in 2009 and has been teaching at FAMS since 2006. Since joining the Franklin Lakes community, Mrs. Emmel has been an effective and innovative teacher who is always willing to try new ideas and lessons to grab her students' attention. She uses her extraordinary charisma and excitable personality to engage the students as she makes the journey through 7th grade Mathematics fun and entertaining. Mrs. Emmel has incorporated "flipped classroom" concepts into her daily lessons, which allows her to work closely with the students to ask questions while they problem solve and work to master the material. Additionally, this blended environment allows Mrs. Emmel to incorporate exciting activities into her classroom like the one in this new installment celebrating March 14, π Day!!
On April 19th, the Honors Algebra 7 students became engineers for a day. Mr. Mark Love, a civil  engineer, offered the students a hands-on workshop that explored the links between algebra and engineering as they developed algorithms to program traffic light patterns. Students worked collaboratively as they used critical thinking skills and mathematics to determine the optimal timing of a 4-phase traffic light pattern that allowed traffic flow to move safely and efficiently through an intersection. Throughout the workshop, Mr. Love emphasized the idea that mistakes are a critical part of the problem solving process and that it is better to start with a wrong answer than with no answer. Students walked away with a new found appreciation of what civil engineering entails and increased confidence in their problem solving abilities. Special thanks to FLEF for funding this event.
The FAMS Rock club performed their 10th annual concert on March 30. Musicians from 6th, 7th, and 8th grade strapped on their electric guitars, played everybody's favorite rock songs, and left the crowd with a night to truly remember. The three grade levels bands worked for three months leading up to the show to perfect their material and show off their skills. Also performing was a group of FAMS Rock veterans who are now in high school and college. Their impressive performance demonstrated to the young musicians just how much a musician can grow through hard work and practice. Congratulations to everybody who performed in the concert for a job well done!
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CRS News
CRS: Teacher of the Year
We would like to extend very special congratulations to Ms. Marissa Lindenthaler, who was selected by the Bergen County Teacher/Education Services Professionals Recognition Program or "Teacher of the Year" for Colonial Road School. As a First Grade teacher at Colonial Road School, Ms. Lindenthaler instills a tremendous sense of pride and purpose in her young students each and every day. We celebrate Ms. Lindenthaler's honor and thank her for all of her passion and dedication.
During the month of April, our CAPS program teachers, Ms. Hadley, Ms. McGlynn and Mrs. Tannucilli and our behaviorist,  Mrs. Kallini created wonderful experiences to celebrate Autism Awareness Month. Our students in Kindergarten through Grade 5 were treated to a variety of activities and resources that helped them have a better understanding of what it is like to walk a day in the shoes of a child with autism. Our students truly appreciated having this experience and we thank our CAPS staff for taking the time to plan such a memorable experience.
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HMR News
HMR: Book Buddies and Beyond!
What's a Book Buddy? It is often when an older and younger class pair up together for the school year and spend time reading together. This is how the partnership typically begins. Then the teachers and/or students see an opportunity for additional  mentoring opportunities and it becomes more than just reading together. The younger students begin to see the older students as a model of positive behavior, maturity and academic success. The older students feel a sense of importance in this role and rise to the occasion, doing their best to be a positive role model for these students at all times. Recently, 5S and KP worked together on tying shoes! The 5th graders were eager and happy to share this skill with their Kindergarten buddies.
HMR: Fifth Grade Solar System Fair
HMR's fifth grade celebrated their knowledge of the Solar System with a culminating Science Fair. Students worked diligently to  plan their projects. They had the opportunity to utilize graphic organizers, practice time management, and work toward a set of expectations in the form of a rubric. Their research was extensive and students developed a deep knowledge in their subject area of choice. The student projects were detailed and creative. The most impressive part of the entire Science Fair was that students were able to talk expansively about their topics and answer many questions, all without relying on index cards. The level of knowledge the fifth graders displayed during the Fair impressed parents, students, and staff. |
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WAS News
WAS: Our Students Are Changing the World
We are excited to announce that our students and parents (and teachers too!) will be participating in a school-wide community service project that aims to package 30,000 nutritious meals to feed our hungry neighbors. Student and parent volunteers will  join our assembly line (with our support and guidance) to package nutritionally balanced meals. These meals will be delivered to CUMAC in Paterson, Food Bank of NJ, and other food banks in need.
The hands-on nature of this project will help our students to gain an awareness of what it means to actually "roll up our sleeves" and help others in need. Although fundraising is an important part of this initiative, our primary focus will be on giving students a chance to participate. On Thursday, June 2nd, our cafeteria will be transformed into a food packaging plant where every child will get to participate in packaging meals in some way, shape, or form. More information will be available as we work with our parent volunteers to plan for this exciting event. In the meantime, mark your calendars for June 2nd, an exciting and busy day!
WAS: Stars Among Us
Congratulations to all of the talented actors, actresses and backstage crew members who participated in this year's production of Aladdin. The dedication and commitment that our  children showed at every turn in the creation of this magnificent production was truly phenomenal. The show was a huge success as our gymnasium was transformed and the story of Aladdin was brought to life.
Many thanks to our PTA for working closely with the YMCA to bring this experience to our children. A special thank you to all of the parents who dedicated their time and talent to support after school drama at Woodside. Whether you were behind the scenes at rehearsals, organizing the countless details that go into making this production a success, or listened to your children practice their lines "just one more time", your support made this all possible.
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Franklin Lakes Public Library News
Touch the Music presents "Zin, Zin, Zin, a Violin"
Grades K- 3 Wednesday, May 11 @ 4:00 p.m.
See, touch, hear and play real orchestral instruments as the award-winning picture book by Lloyd Moss comes to life as never before! Registration required. Franklin Lakes residents only.
BINGO
Grades 1 - 4 Tuesdays @ 4:00 p.m. May 24 & 31
Join us for BINGO games, a snack & prizes!
Registration required. Franklin Lakes residents only.
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Franklin Lakes Borough News
Pride In Franklin Lakes is Picking Up
"Pride in Franklin Lakes is Picking Up" turned out to be a beautiful day with over 150 volunteers showing up to participate. Residents of all ages enjoyed the day along with many local groups coming out to support the effort. The Franklin Lakes Volunteer Fire Department was out in ful force stopping by every site to help out. Franklin Avenue Middle School PLC group had over 30 volunteers at the event. The mayor, council and environmental commission were all present collecting recyclables and garbage throughout the day. A few interesting items turned
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Nils Holst carrying out tire rim.
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up during the event; a couple of signposts, a toilet and an old car tire rim. In total, 96 garbage bags were collected and 37 recycling bags were collected. Resident Erin Ross said "It was a great learning experience for my boys; they were surprised at how much garbage were in the fields around where they play." This sentiment was echoed throughout the day. Thank you to all the volunteers as well as the police and DPW for helping to make the safe and enjoyable for all. And now for the news everyone really wants to know...The winners of the ice cream party are: FAMS- 8th grade, CRS - Ms. Raphael, WAS - Ms. Goodell and HMR - Ms. Damico.
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