The Monroe Messenger

Hello James Monroe Families,

We’ve had a perfect start to the school year, filled with excitement, learning, and community!

Our dedicated teachers are working hard to create engaging classrooms, and students have loved our special visits from Mrs. Tufaro and Mr. Hristofis reading mystery stories in every class. Together with our families, we look forward to a year of growth and partnership.

As a reminder, please help us keep everyone safe by parking along the curb in the neighborhood and not blocking driveways or crosswalks—only staff may use the staff lot , there are no drop offs or Ubers in the lot. School starts at 8:55 am.

We are looking forward to fabulous fall weather and seeing you at our spectacular school events. All club flyers have been distributed to grades 2 - 5. Please take some time to read more about our school activities and PTO.

Thank you for making the beginning of the year such a success!

Kind regards,

Mrs. Cyndi Tufaro, principal

Mr. Argiris Hristofis, assistant principal

Thank you for registering to shop through Schoolstore.com. This site hosts hundreds of merchants which give a percentage of sales back to our school. So far, our school has earned over $1,400 to put towards our supporting our students and classrooms have earned $6,800 in rewards! We are grateful for your support! It is easy to register and a great time to shop during the upcoming holidays. See merchants affiliated with the program.

Ms. Maurath organized a fun and engaging assembly by Lead U equipping students with skills to navigate challenges and become impactful community members through music, dancing, interactive games, and a high-energy presentation. Thank you to our PTO for sponsoring this important and fun assembly.

Make sure you click the Orange Bar above or click HERE for great resources from Ms. Maurath that includes the POWER POSES our students learned during the assembly.

James Monroe unites to show respect. Please join us each day and dress up for our theme days! Use the questions on the chart below to start a family discussion focused on each day's lesson.

Picture day is October 21st & 22nd. Students will take individual photos and class pictures. Click the link below for information about picture packages.

Breakfast orders for the year are delivered each morning by our safety patrols. Please check that your child is eating their breakfast. If not, let the office know so we can update the order and avoid waste. Families will be contacted if children consistently refuse breakfast.

Lunch is eaten in the cafeteria every day. Students may bring lunch from home or purchase a $3.50 meal (vegetarian or meat options). We recommend setting up a My School Bucks account to review menus, monitor purchases, and keep lines moving quickly. Please review daily choices with your child so they are ready with their order.

We hope to see you at our PTO Harvest Eve on October 17th from 5 pm - 8 pm. This special event is a tremendous source of revenue for our PTO which aims to finance many events at our school including upcoming field trips. Please join us with your family and enjoy the old-fashioned carnival style atmosphere on what will hopefully be a beautiful fall evening. Look for more flyers to be sent home soon!

We are grateful for your assistance and volunteers are still needed. Email monroeowlspto@gmail.com if you want to help. We also need donations including water, juice boxes, candy and baked goods. If you can't be here, consider sending in something for the snack table. See the link below for more information.

Return the flyer or email MonroeOwlsPTO@gmail.com with your order information for shirts.

A limited supply will be available to purchase at Harvest Eve.

Create a book character themed pumpkin and enter our annual contest!

Our Halloween Parade will take place on Friday, October 31st at 9:30 a.m weather permitting. Please send your child to school dressed in their Halloween costume.

Please remember that all costumes must be safe, non-violent and not cover the face. If your child will not be participating, please send a note to your child's teacher, and your child will not participate in the parade.

The parade route starts out the front doors and proceeds twice around the building and down Sharp Road then back. You can view the parade along all four sides of the building. Children will be walking on the sidewalk, please stay on the perimeter.

Gather your comfy blanket and join us for a feature presentation presented by our PTO. Popcorn and snacks will be on sale! The bookfair will be open for shopping.

Is there a special teacher or Educator Support Professional (ESP) in your child's life? Please consider nominating a staff member at James Monroe for Teacher or ESP of the year. All nominations are due by Oct. 31st. Click Here for the nomination form.

We hope you will join us at our first Scholastic Book Fair! Families will be able to shop together on October 24th during the movie night or children will be able to visit with their classes Oct. 27th - Oct. 29th.

VOLUNTEERS ARE NEEDED TO ASSIST STUDENTS DURING THE SCHOOL DAY AND WITH SET UP AND BREAK DOWN. CONTACT OUR PTO IF YOU CAN SPEND A FEW HOURS HELPING! monroeowlspto@gmail.com

Please join us in-person in the Cafeteria for our next PTO meeting on Oct. 14th at 6:00 p.m.

We will also be holding a vote to select our Executive Board members. Anyone interested in serving as a PTO executive board member should return the nomination form by Oct. 10th.

This month's meeting will be used to prepare for Harvest Eve. We need many hands to help this special day come together.

Click on the orange bar to download the PTO membership form or use the QR code to join the PTO. We are looking for families to support our school community. Your membership fee goes to helping fund school events like our Ice Cream Social and resources for the children. Thank you for your partnership!

Our local firefighters will be visiting grades Kindergarten and first grade with demonstrations of their fire trucks and equipment. We are grateful for their community service and education.

On Friday, September 26th, our Kindergarten classes had a visit from Ms. Allia Nisa (an Edison Public Librarian). She read to us and told us all about the many programs that all the Edison Public libraries have to offer to our community!

This year, our 5th grade classes will be going on a one day adventure to Camp Bernie on Tuesday, October 28th. This day will consist of outdoor experiences, team building and confidence exercises.

8:40 Arrive at school

9:20 – 9:30 Depart for Camp Bernie

10:20-10:45 Arrival/Orientation

10:45-11:45 Activity Block 1

11:45-12:45 Lunch

12:45-2:15 Activity Block 2

2:15-2:30 Transitional Break

2:30-4:00 Activity Block 3

4:00-4:15 Transitional Break

4:15-5:45 Activity Block 4

5:45-6:00 Transitional Break

6:00-7:00 Dinner

7:00-8:00 Depart for School

8:00 Parent pickup

All forms must be turned in by October 13th. Please contact your child's teacher with any questions. Dietary forms have been shared with the nurse and Camp Bernie staff. There are choices of food for all students needs!

If you are a parent of a 5th grade student and would like to learn more information about Camp Bernie, check out the presentation from the Parent Information Meeting.

Our next newsletter will include photos from our adventure!

* Please be sure to submit to me any missing documents for enrollment, as soon as you can. This includes missing physical exams, health histories, and immunization records. I have already notified parents who need to submit these documents, but you will be receiving another reminder notice from me soon if your child needs to hand in paperwork. Please note, this is a state requirement for enrollment, so if I do not receive these documents, your child may be excluded from school until received.

There is an upcoming immunization clinic if you have no insurance, to help meet these requirements. The clinic is on October 8th, from 3:30pm- 6:00pm at the Edison Senior Citizen Center: 2963 Woodbridge Avenue, Edison 08837. This is by appointment only. You must call to make an appointment: 732-248-7285. Please bring a copy of your child's most recent immunization record with you.

* Flu season is quickly approaching. Although the flu shot is not mandatory in elementary school in New Jersey, the CDC recommends everyone ages 6 months and older get vaccinated every flu season, as long as there are no contraindications. As always, check with your child's pediatrician. Encourage good hand hygiene at home, and remember to cover your mouths when coughing or sneezing.

* Attention 5th grade parents:

You will be receiving a letter home with your child that has information about a scoliosis screening that I will be conducting in the upcoming weeks with all the classes. Please return the form only if you decline the screening for your child. If I do not receive the form back by the specified date, your child will be screened for scoliosis as part of the New Jersey health screening requirements for 5th grade. Thank you for your understanding.

NJ FamilyCare will host a free Medicaid/CHIP enrollment event on Saturday, October 11, 2025, from 1:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the New Brunswick Public Library.