FDR Tadpole Times

It is hard to believe that we have already completed our first month of school! September flew by, and it has been wonderful watching how much our Tadpoles have grown in just a few short weeks.

Think back to those first days when everything was new. Now, our children are no longer simply learning where things are or wondering what happens next. They are beginning to take ownership of their routines, develop friendships, make choices independently, and navigate their classrooms with growing confidence. FDR is becoming more than just the place they go to school. It is becoming their school!

As we begin October, our focus naturally expands from helping children feel comfortable in their classrooms to helping them understand what it means to be part of a caring community.

Next week's Week of Respect gives us a wonderful opportunity to reinforce something our teachers work on every day: being kind, including others, using our words, helping friends, and learning how to solve problems together.

For preschoolers, these important lessons happen through everyday experiences, such as inviting a friend to play, taking turns, helping someone who is sad, or working through a disagreement. Our special spirit days next week will help bring these ideas to life!

October also promises plenty of excitement, including visits from the Edison Fire Department, School Bus Safety Week, Trick-or-Treat Night, our PTSO Pumpkin Patch, and the Halloween Parade!

📌 Two Important Reminders: October lunch orders are due Monday, October 5, and Trick-or-Treat registrations are due Wednesday, October 14!

Thank you to our families for helping make September such a positive start. Here's to another month of learning, growing, making friends, and leaping into new adventures together!

Have a great weekend,

Dr. Tony

Principal

Franklin D. Roosevelt Preschool

Fridays are GREEN at FDR! We encourage our students and staff to wear green each Friday as a fun way to show our FDR pride and build our school community together.

The first week of October is traditionally celebrated as the Week of Respect. The purpose of the celebration is to develop our students' understanding of the importance of a safe school environment that prevents harassment, intimidation, and bullying. At FDR, we take an age-appropriate approach to help our youngest learners understand what respect looks and feels like in their everyday lives.

For preschoolers, respect begins with the experiences they encounter every day: being kind, including others, helping a friend, using caring words, recognizing feelings, taking turns, and learning how to solve problems together. Throughout the week, our special theme days will give us fun opportunities to reinforce these important ideas.

A smile is one of the simplest ways we can make someone feel welcome. On Monday, we'll encourage our Tadpoles to think about the little things they can do to brighten someone else's day, such as smiling, saying hello, giving a compliment, or inviting someone to play.

Children may cheer for different teams, like different things, and have different interests, but everyone deserves to feel included. We'll use Sports Day to reinforce that our FDR community is one big team where everyone belongs, everyone contributes, and we look out for one another.

Preschoolers don't need super strength or a cape to be a hero. Helping a friend, standing up for someone, sharing, using kind words, and asking an adult for help when someone is having a problem are all ways our Tadpoles can be everyday heroes.

Positive Vibes Day will focus on how we make others feel. We'll encourage our Tadpoles to use kind words, give compliments, encourage their friends, and look for ways to make their classroom a happy and welcoming place for everyone. Students and staff are encouraged to wear a favorite shirt featuring a positive message or image.

Children are invited to bring a favorite teddy bear or stuffed animal to school. We'll use our special friends to talk about caring, empathy, feelings, and what we can do when someone needs a friend.

Week of Respect gives us an opportunity to shine a special spotlight on these important lessons, but kindness, respect, inclusion, and caring for others are part of what we work to build at FDR every day.

Together, we are helping our Tadpoles learn that everyone belongs at FDR, everyone deserves to feel safe and cared for, and each of us can help make our school a kinder place.

Next week is Week of Respect, making this a great time to talk with your Tadpole about kindness, friendship, and caring for others.

Instead of asking, “How was school?” try asking:

“How were you kind to someone at school today?”

You can keep the conversation going with questions like “Did someone do something kind for you?”, “Who did you help today?”, or “What can you do if a friend is feeling sad?”

These simple conversations help children reflect on their experiences and recognize the many ways they can show kindness. By talking about these moments at home, you're helping reinforce the lessons our Tadpoles practice at school each day.

This week, we're shining our FDR Spotlight on someone who plays an important role in supporting our youngest learners, Ms. Dawn Netzel, our Early Childhood Coordinator and Supervisor for Pupil-Special Services!

With a background as a school psychologist and preschool case manager, Ms. Netzel brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to our preschool programs.

Her work reaches across both General Education and Special Education. From helping families access preschool opportunities through our lottery program to supporting teachers and developing programs that meet the diverse needs of our students, Ms. Netzel helps ensure that every child has opportunities to learn and grow.

Although families may not see her in their child's classroom every day, much of the work she does behind the scenes helps make the experiences we provide at FDR possible.

Thank you, Ms. Netzel, for your dedication to our Tadpoles, our teachers, and our FDR community!

Trick-or-treating is a new experience for many of our Tadpoles! To help our students learn the ins and outs of trick-or-treating in a fun and familiar environment, we will be holding our FDR Trick-or-Treat Night on Thursday, October 22, beginning at 5:00 PM. This is an outdoor event.

Children will have the opportunity to practice going from door to door, saying “Trick or Treat,” collecting treats, and enjoying this special tradition with their FDR friends and families.

At least one parent or guardian must attend with each child.

🎃 Event Fee

Students: $10.00

Additional Siblings: $5.00 each

Please send the appropriate fee to school in a sealed envelope labeled “Trick-or-Treat” along with your child's name. Please enclose the exact payment amount. No coins, please.

👻 Preregistration Is Required

All children must be preregistered to participate. This allows us to know how many children will be attending and to prepare enough treats for everyone.

Click here to access the Trick-or-Treat Registration Form.

Please complete the registration form and return it to your child's teacher.

This is always a popular FDR event, and we anticipate a great turnout! To help keep the experience fun and manageable for our youngest learners, we will have three Trick-or-Treat sessions:

5:00 PM | 5:30 PM | 6:00 PM

After all registrations have been received, each participating family will be assigned a Trick-or-Treat time.

Dress appropriately for the weather and wear comfortable shoes. Additional siblings participating in the event must be under 11 years old.

We are looking forward to a fun evening and helping our Tadpoles learn how to trick-or-treat together!

President: Sujata Singh

Vice President: Jessica Shaw

Treasurer: Nutan Kendre

Secretary: Urvi Sejpal

The FDR lunch ordering portal for October is now open and will remain open through October 5.

If you would like your child to receive a school lunch during October, you must place an order online in advance.

This includes students who qualify for Free or Reduced Lunch. Approval for Free or Reduced Lunch determines the cost of your child's meal, but it does not automatically order lunch for your child. You must still submit your child's lunch selections using the lunch ordering form below.

Breakfast is FREE for all students in the Edison Township Public Schools, but breakfast must still be ordered.

At FDR, families opt in to breakfast for the school year rather than placing a new breakfast order each month. This process has already been completed for most families.

• If you already opted in to breakfast: There is nothing you need to do. Your child will continue to receive breakfast.

• If you did not opt in: Your child will not receive breakfast.

• If you recently joined the FDR community or have changed your mind: You may request to begin receiving breakfast by emailing food.service@edison.k12.nj.us.

IMPORTANT: School breakfast and lunch must be ordered online in advance. Please use the links below to place your child's order.

All breakfast and lunch items are available online for the month. CLICK HERE for the Breakfast and Lunch Menus

Lunch is available for purchase for $3.75 per lunch. Remember: Lunches MUST be ordered online in advance, even if your child qualifies for Free or Reduced Lunch.

CLICK HERE TO OPEN THE LUNCH ORDER FORM

Get ready for a very exciting week at FDR! Following our Week of Respect activities, we will turn our attention to Fire Safety Week.

As part of the week, members of the Edison Fire Department will visit FDR on Monday, October 12 and Tuesday, October 13. Our Tadpoles will have an opportunity to meet some of our local firefighters, learn about the important work they do, and explore basic fire-safety concepts in a way that is appropriate for our youngest learners.

For preschoolers, meeting firefighters in a familiar and comfortable setting can be especially valuable. Children can learn that firefighters are community helpers who are there to help keep us safe, while becoming more familiar with what firefighters may look and sound like when wearing their protective equipment.

And, of course, we're pretty sure seeing a real fire truck will be a highlight!

We'll share more about Fire Safety Week in next week's Tadpole Times, but for now, you may want to start the conversation at home by asking your Tadpole:

“What does a firefighter do to help people?”

We can't wait to welcome the Edison Fire Department to FDR!

The selection process for the Governor’s Educator of the Year and Educational Services Professional of the Year is underway, and we invite FDR families to participate!

Join the Selection Committee - Interested in helping select this year’s honorees? Parents and community members are invited to serve on our FDR Selection Committee.

Nominate an Outstanding Educator - Do you know an FDR teacher or educational services professional who is dedicated, inspiring, and making a difference for our students? Please consider submitting a nomination for the Governor’s Educator of the Year Program.

Nominations are due Friday, October 23.

Thank you for helping us recognize the exceptional educators and professionals who make a difference for our Tadpoles each day!

Please be reminded that the flu vaccine is required for preschool students. It is very important that families take care of this requirement as soon as possible and submit proof of vaccination to the school so it can be properly recorded.

⚠️ IMPORTANT: Any student who has not met the flu vaccine requirement by November 30, 2026, will be excluded from attending school beginning December 1, 2026, until the requirement has been satisfied.

Please do not wait until the deadline. We strongly encourage families to have their child's flu vaccination completed and documentation submitted well in advance.

Families requesting a religious exemption must also submit their request as soon as possible so it can be forwarded for the required review and approval process. Submitting a request does not mean it has automatically been approved.

Thank you for taking care of this important requirement promptly and for helping us keep our students and school community healthy and safe!

Week of Oct 5 -

• Week of Respect
• Mon, Oct 5 - Smile Day
• Tues, Oct 6 - Wear your favorite sports jersey or team shirt Day
• Wed, Oct 7 - Super Hero Shirt Day
• Thurs, Oct 8 - Positive Vibes Day
• Fri, Oct 9 - Bring Your Teddy Bear to School Day

Week of Oct 12 -

• Fire Safety Week
• Mon, Oct 12 and Tues, Oct 13 - Edison Fire Dept Visits FDR

Thurs, Oct 15 -

• Single Session Day - Staff Professional Development - 12:30 PM Dismissal

Week of Oct 19 -

• School Bus Safety Week
• Mon, Oct 19 and Tues, Oct 20 - FDR Bus Evacuation Drills

Thurs, Oct 22 - (Rain Date Oct 29)

• Trick-or-Treat Night at FDR - 5:00, 5:30, and 6:00 PM assigned time slots

Wed, Oct 28 -

• FDR Pumpkin Patch - PTSO-Sponsored Student Event.

Fri, Oct 30 -

• FDR Halloween Parade - 9:30 AM

Check the school website for an updated calendar of events.

Click here for the school Website.