Ben Franklin Newsletter

Dear Ben Franklin Families,

Temperatures have certainly dropped! With this in mind, we have a few important reminders. Please make sure your child comes to school dressed warmly, as they will still be going outside for recess as much as possible. Please also take a moment to visit the Genesis Parent Portal to verify and update your family’s contact information. This will ensure you are promptly notified in case of any school closings, delayed openings, or early dismissals due to inclement weather.

On the day your child has Art class this upcoming week, students are asked to please bring a reusable bag to help transport the artwork they have created. This is requested, but not required, however, it will help ensure that their creations make it home safely.

The end of the 1st trimester is this week, and report cards will be posted on Friday, December 13th. Here is a letter explaining the report card scales and scoring in more detail. We are proud of all the hard work our students have put in during this trimester and look forward to sharing their growth with you.

Lastly, we would like to thank everyone who attended the 3rd Grade Music Concert, "I Promise," this past week. It was a wonderful event where students spread a positive message, and it was nice to see so many family members and loved ones supporting our 3rd grade students. Thank you for being a part of this special evening!

Sincerely,

Geoff Hewitt

Principal

3rd graders did a wonderful job performing their concert this past week under the direction of our BF Music Teacher, Mrs. LaFlamme. The entire grade level performed for the whole school during the day and then for families and friends in the evening. Both performances were engaging and well done while sending a positive message to all about being kind, making a difference, and being a change agent. The performance incorporated music, movement, and instruments!

Our Lost and Found area outside the entrance to our All Purpose Room still has quite a few items in it. The pictures below were taken this week... feel free to click on an image and zoom in to see if you recognize any items and, if so, please be sure to claim your item prior to Winter Break. Any items remaining after students are dismissed for the break will be donated.

To help avoid items from ending up in Lost and Found in the future, please be sure to label items with your child's name. Any items labeled will be more easily and more quickly returned. Thank you!

The Ben Franklin Cheer Club advised by Ms. Skorupa had special visitors this past week! The LHS Varsity Cheer Squad coached by Mrs. Brackett came to Ben Franklin and helped out the club. They taught the BF Team some Cardinal cheers, jumps, and a dance too! Check out the pictures below:

Lawrence Township Public Schools (LTPS) is excited to announce the Referendum Art Contest! We’re inviting students from Pre-K to grade 12 to submit original artwork that embodies the significance of the upcoming referendum. Selected art will be showcased in brochures, social media, and on the district's website to help inform the community. All participants will be invited to a board of education meeting to share their art and receive a certificate!

Art should be created on 8.5 x 11-inch paper using traditional mediums like pens, markers, paints, or crayons—no digital submissions allowed. Drop off your completed artwork at any school’s main office by December 13th at 4:00 pm. Join us in highlighting the importance of this vote through your creativity! See flyer for details and entry form. Entry forms can also be picked up at any school's main office.

The Preschool Lottery opens on February 3rd and closes on April 11th. Children must be three or four years old by October 1, 2025 to be eligible for preschool.

Follow the QR code (in the picture below) or visit our Preschool Website for updates.

TODAY - AmeriKick Kids’ Night Out: Saturday, December 7th, 5:30 pm – 8:15 pm

Need a night out? AmeriKick’s Sensei Vince and the PTO have you covered! Drop the kids off at AmeriKick for an evening of martial arts including pizza, drinks and refreshments! Please see the flyer for more details and use the QR code within the flyer to register!

Holiday Shop - A great opportunity for students to complete their holiday shopping at BF. Taking place during the evening on Thursday, December 12th and during the day at school no Friday, December 13th.

Winter Clubs - The link to sign up for Winter Clubs went out this past week! There are still some open slots, feel free to click here to see what is available and to sign up. Some important reminders:

• We must have a parent/guardian volunteer for each club. The volunteer arrives at the school by 3:10 pm on the club days and assists with assembling the students for that club and supervising them until the club teacher has completed their dismissal duties and comes to collect the students. Please use this link to sign up to volunteer as club helper. The volunteer’s child will be guaranteed a spot in ANY club AND we will refund $10 of their enrollment fee upon conclusion of the club. The volunteer needs to be there each week to get the $10 refund (or get a replacement volunteer to fill in if they cannot make it one week). We are unable to have a club without a volunteer.
• Enrollment is on a first-come, first-served basis and the deadline to enroll is December 16th. Some clubs are restricted by grade-level due to the nature of the club and preschoolers are NOT eligible for any club.
• Please review the club descriptions, grade-level restrictions, dates, pickup times & locations carefully, as they vary. The cost is also noted (most clubs are $58 per child, but some are more to cover materials required for the club). A reminder email will be sent the week prior to the club starting.
• Students MUST be picked up on time from the club each week. Club teachers are unable to stay at school beyond their club's dismissal time. Please be aware that multiple late pickups may result in the student being removed from the club and excluded from enrolling in future clubs.
• Once a club is filled up, you can add your child to the waitlist and you will be contacted if they are moved up to the club from the waitlist by an Administrator (in the case of un-enrollment of someone in the club). **IMPORTANT!!!! ** - If the club you want fills up, SIGN UP FOR THE WAITLIST for that club!!! We pull from the waitlist to fill the clubs to the maximum capacity (no more than 22 students per club)

• Payments and Refunds:

• Payment must be made before enrollment is considered "complete". If payment is not made by the enrollment date (Dec. 16), your child(ren) will be removed from the club.
• Changes/deletions completed before the enrollment period closes will be refunded, less the Signup Genius fees.
• There are NO REFUNDS once the club begins. This includes sessions (including rescheduled ones) that a child is unable to attend for any reason.
• If the club is cancelled due to low enrollment by the teacher or PTO, a full refund will be issued (including Signup Genius fees).
• A guardian's phone number must be provided at enrollment, for the club leader to use in case of any issues. Additionally, please include any Medical Issues or Allergies during enrollment. These will be passed (only) to the club leader for their awareness, since there is no nurse at the school after-hours.
• If you have questions or concerns about payment, please email BFPTORocks@gmail.com.

PTO Meeting: Monday, December 16th at 7:00 pm on Google Meet (Link to join - https://meet.google.com/rqr-xgdf-evd)

Clothing Drive - This year's clothing drive will run through January 13th. Click on the link to see the flyer for more information.

BF PTO Website: www.bfpto.org

Email: bfptorocks@gmail.com

LTEF's Lawrence Has Talent is scheduled for April 4th with open auditions on February 6th & 8th.

The show is open to those who live, work, receive talent training, attend or have attended school at anytime in Lawrence Township.

Register by February 1st at ltefnj.org or by scanning the QR code on the flyer. See flyer for more information.

The JV and Varsity cheerleading teams at LHS are hosting another community clinic this winter! We had so much fun in the fall with a great turnout that we wanted to do it again! Kindergarten through 8th grade students who participate in the clinic will join either the JV or Varsity team on the court during the first half of the basketball game, as well as perform in the half time routine.

Please see the flyer that is linked below! There is a scannable QR code on the flyer that will allow you to register your child/children through a Google form. Payment for the clinic is not necessary until you come to the clinic.

Winter Cheerleading Clinic Flyer

We have opened the feature in Genesis that allows you (as the parent/guardian) to mark your child absent. This allows you to use the app or the website to simply go into the system and mark an absence for the day or for a day in the future that you know your child(ren) will be absent. Here are the directions for utilizing this system.

Please know that the Ben Franklin Attendance email and phone line do remain active, however, we encourage you to take advantage of this "Notify Attendance Office" feature for a more direct and immediate response. Should you need any assistance or have questions about your parent portal account (link to parent portal), do not hesitate to contact our front office staff at (609)671-5540.

In an effort to continually improve safety and security within our district of all members, the district has set up a Tip Line. Please check out this brief (1 minute) video to learn more about the purpose of the Tip Line and how to access it: Tip Line Video

Link to LTPS District Calendar (2024-2025)

December:

7 - AmeriKick Kids' Night Out, 5:30 pm - 8:15 pm TONIGHT!!

8 - SONJ Jingle All the Way 3K

11 - BOE meeting, LHS at 7:00 pm

12 - PTO Holiday Shop, 6:00-7:30 pm in BF Gym

13 - PTO Holiday Shop (during the school day)

13 - 1st Trimester Report Cards Posted in Genesis

14 - Gingerbread House Making at LHS - Class of 2026 Fundraiser

16 - PTO Meeting, 7:00 pm (Google Meet Link - https://meet.google.com/rqr-xgdf-evd)

20 -

• BF Spirit Assembly (during school day) - ALL students and staff members encouraged to wear spirit wear and/or wear blue and white!
• Early Dismissal Day (K-3 students dismiss at 1:20 & PreK students dismiss 1:30-1:40), Winter Recess Begins

21-31 - School Closed - Winter Recess

January 2025:

1 - School Closed - New Year Day

2 - Students return!