Dear families,
This past week, I was honored to represent The Craig School at the annual NJIDA conference. The New Jersey International Dyslexia Association (NJIDA) is a state-level organization focusing on dyslexia. It likely operates to raise awareness, provide support, and advocate for individuals with dyslexia in the state. The NJIDA offers professional development and training for teachers. It also provides guidance for parents and educational advocates about how to best secure resources for students.
Mrs. Kelly Wiederlight and I hosted an informational table about Craig School. We met so many educators and advocates from across the state who not only knew of Craig School but raved about its reputation for serving students with language-based learning differences. We were both so pleased by the reception of leading experts in the field and their enthusiasm for the Craig School. Many lawyers and educational advocates who spoke with us asked specifically about students they had referred to or helped to place at Craig. Most reported that Craig School is their number one recommendation when a family seeks their guidance for an out-of-district placement.
It was refreshing and encouraging to hear rave reviews from outside folks about the inspiring work our teachers at Craig School perform daily. Of course, we knew that, but hearing it from strangers reinforced this message.
Teachers from Craig School also attended the conference to learn about various new assessment and teaching strategies. Representing Craig at the NJIDA were Cara Di Ubaldi, Laura Given, Beth Perry, and Michele Olinto.
Warmly,
Susan Schmitt
Dear Badger Families,
It is hard to believe that we are headed into the last week before our break! Our academic reporting will be ready to go out by December 16th. A behind-the-scenes project that has been going on this year is the adoption of a learning management system. You may have experience with one from a different school. My own children’s schools use Real-Time and Blackboard, two common ones. We adopted Veracross, a system used by many Independent Schools, due to its flexibility and its ability to sync with Google Classroom, the platform our teachers use for their students. The Veracross platform has many capabilities, and we are taking advantage of them more and more as time goes on. So far, we are using it every morning to take attendance. You have been receiving mass emails from their system, and most recently, we have added the report cards to the system.
I must give a huge thank you to John Chismar, Renee Hecht, and Gabriella Beck for doing the heavy lifting on this project. This has been a huge commitment on their part to get everything up and running. I am also very grateful to our teachers for learning a new system for inputting report cards in a very short amount of time. Please watch your email for information from John Chismar, our Director of Technology, on how you will access your child’s report card when they go live next week.
Next Friday, on our half day leading into the break, the Science teachers and PACS host a Gingerbread STEM Winter Wonderland day. Grades 2-5 have their day centered around the theme of Jan Brett’s Gingerbread Friends. This beautifully illustrated story follows a gingerbread man all through the town while he is looking for friends, only to find out that Mattie is busy at home baking him an entire gingerbread village with more friends than he could ask for. The students then have a chance to decorate their own gingerbread house and make a gingerbread friend. Thank you to Mrs. Restieri and Mrs. Rosky for helping us with these activities.
Ms. Arena and Ms. Lancaster will be working all week with their grade 6-8 science classes on their gingerbread STEM activity. The students will work in small groups each week to plan a two-story gingerbread house complete with a theme. The students will have 90 minutes, a box of graham crackers, a jar of icing, and the edible decorations they asked for to complete their build. It's not an easy challenge!
Since all of this building is working so hard, PACS graciously helps us by offering a beautiful wonderland respite in the cafeteria where students enjoy hot chocolate and donuts. Thank you, PACS! We are looking forward to a wonderful, fun-filled day!
Have a great weekend,
Jennifer Guthrie
Director of the Lower & Middle School
December
Friday, December 15th: 12:00 PM Dismissal: Gingerbread STEM Day
Saturday, December 16th: Objectives/Report Cards Available
Monday, December 18th- Tuesday, January 2nd: School CLOSED: Holiday Break
January
Classes Resume for Students - 1/3/23 - Wednesday - All Divisions
Alumni Reception Grade 8 - 1/5/23 - Friday - (6:00pm - 8:00pm) - LSMS
School CLOSED: Martin Luther King Jr. Day - 1/15/23 - Monday - All Divisions
Leadership Council - This past week, the 8th leaders and 7th-grade committee members visited Morris Children and Family Resources. We were able to drop off the 163 gifts and hear a talk about the great work they do. While we had hoped to acquire 100 gifts, we never imagined we would get to 163! How extraordinary that Craig was able to bless so many families with the opportunity to provide gifts to their children. After our visit, we went to Frank's Pizza to enjoy some well-deserved pizza and reflect on the experience.
Our last Leadership endeavor this year is the Buddy program on Monday. We have had extraordinary success with our events thus far. I anticipate nothing less for the spring!
Library - To date, we have had 202 books taken out of the library since September. Many were renewed either because they needed more time or they loved it and wanted more to with the book. In January, we will have a volunteer meeting with interested parents. We welcome and encourage anyone who is interested to join us. Look in January's newsletter for that date.
Lastly, we have 37 books currently overdue. Please take a peek around your home and see if you have an overdue book. It would be wonderful to get them all back before the break.
Literary Magazine
Dear Craig Families,
The Craig Lower, Middle, and High School are excited to begin the process of accepting submissions for our 3rd Annual Literary Magazine. Our last two literary magazines were nothing short of amazing! Please keep an eye out for the permission slip here and in your child’s VIP or Homeroom Google classroom.
As we get started, we need YOU once again to help make our magazine a great success! Both the Lower-Middle school and High school will have an opportunity to showcase superior works of art, including poems, essays, journal entries, short screenplays, photography, sculptures, and drawings. The goal, once again, will be to provide students with a special place to publish their most prized pieces of literature and art. Please encourage your child to participate in this venture. Save any art or special writing pieces that get sent home, and consider submitting them!
The Literary Magazine will be published and distributed in June. All student submissions are due March 30, 2022. However, stops are limited, so we encourage submissions as work is completed. We ask that all handwritten and typed submissions be previously edited by a guardian or teacher. With that being said, it is important that we honor where our students are in their writing, development, & education. We aren’t looking for perfect; we are looking for bravery, creativity, innovation, originality, and, above all to foster the love of artistic expression!
Finally, we will hold an art contest for our cover page. Traditionally, we’ve had a badger but we would love new ideas. Please let me know if you are interested in submitting and have your artwork to me by April 30th.
We look forward to your artistic creation & participation!
Best regards,
Mrs. Brielle Miller
Girls Basketball
For the full schedule, please click the link below
Girls Basketball 2023-2024 Schedule
Boys Basketball Grades 6th to 8th
If you are interested, please click on the link below
Practices 12/11 and 12/13 3:05-4:30
Boys Basketball Schedule 2023-2024
Craig School Annual Giving Campaign is in Full Swing!
Our goal this year is simple yet impactful: 100 % participation from our incredible Craig community. Every gift, regardless of size, contributes to the success of Craig School. You are a crucial ingredient in the recipe that makes Craig thrive!
Ready to be part of something amazing? Click the Donation Button to make your contribution.
Donate Here - Every Gift Matters!
If you have any questions or need assistance, please don't hesitate to reach out to Mary Calvano, Advancement, at mcalvano@craigschool.org or call 973-334-1234 x229.
Thank you for being the key to Craig's success!
Monday, December 11th
Wednesday, December 13th
Pick-up is at 3:55 pm
Please contact Stephen Vaporis, svaporis@craigschool.org, for more information.
PACS is in need of a few volunteers to set up and run the event from 8:30-12:00. Click here for the sign-up genius.
Thank you in advance for your time.
If you have any questions, please reach out to pacs@craigschool.org
For more information on ways of giving or to make a donation online you can clicking here.
