It has been a rainy and gray winter so far, and we are lucky to have so many exciting and joyful events taking place across all of our schools in January. You will see these happenings throughout the pages of this month’s edition of the Spotlight on New Milford Schools. Please enjoy the stories about and photos of our students in action in every grade level! The late fall and winter seasons also bring our annual school district budget development presentations and meetings. Our school administrators and central office department directors work hard each year to present requests that meet the needs of our students and our schools while maintaining a stance of fiscal responsibility. Each of the presentations for the 2024-25 school and department budgets can be found at this link. On Thursday, January 25, the Board of Education adopted a budget following all of the school and department presentations. The Board of Education adopted budget presents a 3.87% increase over the 2023-24 district budget. We look forward to explaining to families what is contained in the Board of Education adopted budget over the upcoming weeks. The Board of Education adopted budget is then presented to the Town Council and Board of Finance for their consideration on February 29. The final step in the budget process is the Town-Wide Referendum in May. As always, please reach out with any questions you might have about the budget or budget process as we move on through the months. Please enjoy the rest of this month’s Spotlight! Thank you for your continued support of our students and our schools.
- February 1st - Early Dismissal - PD
- February 2nd - Town Wide PTO Spirit Day: Sports Fan Day
- February 8th - Schaghticoke Middle School Incoming 6th Grade Night (snow date: 2/15)
- February 16th and 19th - SCHOOLS CLOSED | President's Day Weekend
- March 6th and 7th - Parent Conferences (early dismissal on 3/6)
- March 14th - Early Dismissal - PD
- March 29th - SCHOOLS CLOSED - Good Friday
- June 15th at 10am - NMHS Graduation
Mission Statement
Email: suptoffice@newmilfordps.org
Website: https://www.newmilfordps.org/
25 Sunny Valley Road, Suite A
New Milford, CT 06776
Phone: 860-355-8406
Middle Level Student Leadership Conference
During the month of January, student leaders from SMS participated in the Middle Level Student Leadership Conference, sponsored by the Connecticut Association of Schools. Held at Naugatuck Valley Community College, this conference allowed SMS students the opportunity to collaborate with students from other schools in the area. Additionally, students participated in presentations and workshops designed to help them build on some foundational leadership skills. These skills include communication, problem solving, critical thinking, and decision making.
All of the students that attended the conference are part of the club Student Leaders for a Change. The purpose of this club is allow students the opportunity to have a voice as we work collaborative to make positive changes to the climate and culture at Schaghticoke. Additionally, involvement with this group provides students opportunities to develop and refine their leadership skills. The club, which is in it’s second year at SMS, is run by Mr. Boucher, Assistant Principal. So far this year, Student Leaders for a Change have partnered with the SMS School Climate Committee to plan and run our Color Wars event in December. They have also been working hard to plan for a successful Open House event for our rising 6th graders. Finally, the group is working to plan additional events and activities for the fall.
New Milford Public Librarian Visits SMS
SMS welcomed Mr. Ryan Rebstock, Young Adult Services Librarian at the New Milford Public Library, to talk to our 6th graders. During their ELA Reading classes, students visited the SMS Library to meet with Mr. Rebstock. During this meeting students learned the wonderful things the New Milford Public Library has to offer, including various clubs, as well as how to access resources such as books and movies. Finally, students had the opportunity to sign up for a library card, if they did not already have one. Any student that would still like to sign up for a library card can stop by the library at SMS to complete a form.
Fire Marshall Contest
This past fall, our 4th and 5th grade students in Mr. Milo’s art class, learned about fire prevention and completed fire prevention posters. Our winners were announced on January 19th. We were pleased to have our Fire Marshall, Kevin Reynolds; Assistant Fire Marshal, Ed Pagan, and other fire personnel join us to present prizes to the winners!
Our winners were: in 4th Grade, 1st place to Madyson Colville in Mrs. Matthews’ class, and 2nd place to Lucas Laughlin in Mrs. Gee’s class. In 5th Grade, 1st place to Leola Emmons in Mrs. Zona’s class, and 2nd place to Mark Caverly in Mrs. Lucuk’s class. A big congratulations to our winners! We will display all the entries from our 4th and 5th graders over the coming weeks as there were many terrific entries.
Halfway Through the School Year; How Can it Be?
It's January and we are halfway through the school year! We can't believe how fast time is flying by. Winter tends to stretch, but fortunately we have lots going on to keep us busy!
A few winter storms and lots of rain spearheaded the first half of January. The students enjoyed their first real snowfall on January 6th and 7th. They had fun playing in the snow at recess until a warm rain came to wash away most of the snow, only to be followed shortly thereafter by a temperature drop and another icy storm! In other words, winter is definitely here.
Mrs. Pilla and Mrs. Breidster's classes kicked off the Poetry Writing unit with Winter Haikus. They are displayed on bulletin boards for the month of January.
Our new Library Media Specialist, Kristin Macchiaverna, enjoys teaching her classes in her colorful and well organized library!
Mrs. Gallagher has fun playing "Go Fish" with a student.
Extravaganza!
Our word of the month is EXTRAVAGANZA which is defined as "an elaborate and spectacular entertainment or production." The children are having fun using this word in their writing prompts and identifying when this word is appropriate and fitting to use as a noun descriptor. "Word Wizards" (aka two students from Mrs. Williams class) help explain the word of the month to everyone at NES on Wednesdays during morning announcements.
On January 19th, the second graders celebrated Halfway Hawaiian Day! They enjoyed a "trip" to Hawaii on a virtual airplane led by former flight attendant Carol Schrodel who is a beloved Paraprofessional here at Northville.
The First Grade Concert is slated for Wednesday, January 31st.
We are anxiously awaiting Punxsutawney Phil's prediction on Groundhog Day, February 2, regarding what to expect for weather the rest of this winter! Did you know 2024 marks the 138th Groundhog Day?
One Word
Hill and Plain staff kicked off the New Year as they were treated to a “toast” of a variety of breads and muffins along with assorted seltzers. Everyone was asked to reflect on 2023 and their current values and goals and then choose ”One Word” as the word that represents what they want out of the coming year.
As a school community we revisited behavioral expectations and retaught and reminded the students of our school’s CORE VALUES that we recite every morning. These are values that the adults work together to establish, and what the staff and students live by each day. We continue to call families monthly of students who are recognized for a “GOOD NEWS CALL”. In addition, we celebrate our CORE VALUE Citizens, who are students chosen by their teachers and awarded by having lunch with the principals on stage during lunch waves.
This month we administered the 2nd round of the iReady diagnostic assessment to see where our students are growing. As we begin the 2nd half of the school year, we are continuing to focus on our school’s phonemic development and supporting math practices.
2nd grade celebrated being ½ way through the school year with Half-way Hawaiian Day.
In November NES collaborated with LHTC on a service project putting together 22 Marine Care packages. Northville Elementary School held a drive to gather supplies (food items, hygiene supplies, books/magazines, etc.) to fill 22 boxes for 11 Marines deployed to the Ukraine. Additional items were donated from several LHTC families. LHTC students sorted and packaged the supplies, and mailed the boxes.
The packages arrived the week before Christmas. The following is part of the thank you email we received from the Chief Warrant Officer who helped us distribute the packages upon arrival. "I wanted to extend my sincerest thanks to you and your team for coordinating the wonderful care packages the Marines received. The gratitude expressed by the Marines was truly heartwarming. The thoughtful gesture brought much joy to the Marines who were both surprised and delighted upon receiving the care packages."
