Smith News

June 1st, 2022

Achieving Excellence One Student at a Time

A Message From Our Principal

Dear 8th Grade Students and Families:

We are currently in the process of making final preparations for the promotion ceremony of Smith School’s Class of 2022. We wanted to share the details with all families so that arrangements can be made.

Date: Thursday, June 23, 2022
Time: 6:30 pm
Location:
- Outdoor: Field behind Smith School
- Indoor (if inclement weather on June 23rd): If there is inclement weather on June 23rd, the promotion ceremony will be moved inside to the Smith School Gymnasium.

Student Dress Code (student must adhere to Smith’s dress code): This ceremony marks a very important milestone in our students' educational journey. Therefore we respectfully ask that our graduates dress the part. Please have your student wear something that would be appropriate to wear out for a nice dinner or any place nice with your family. Examples are a dress (no strapless), nice pants/slacks, a dress shirt/blouse, or a polo shirt. Jackets/ties can be worn but they are optional.
Tickets:
- Outdoor: Each student will receive four (4) WHITE tickets which will guarantee four seats at the outdoor ceremony. Any other family member that wishes to attend the outdoor ceremony may do so from outside the seating area.
- Indoor (due to inclement weather): Each student will receive two (2) BLUE tickets which will guarantee two seats at the indoor ceremony. Only guests with BLUE tickets will be permitted in the gymnasium (by fire code). Entrance into the indoor ceremony will be strictly enforced.
- Note: Because we are distributing the maximum number of seats to each family, there are no extra tickets available. The tickets will be distributed to students on Tuesday, June 21st.
Live Streaming: In order for all family members to watch, we will live stream the outdoor (and indoor for weather on June 23rd) ceremony on Smith School’s YouTube channel. More information will follow.

We will send additional information and reminders as the date gets closer. We are so excited to honor the class of 2022!

Mrs. Christine Davis

Supervisor of K-8 Education and Student Welfare

Last September, we optimistically hoped that this would be a more typical school year. In many ways, it was, as we returned to a regular schedule, went on field trips, participated in clubs and school plays and concerts, and ate lunch together. However, it has been a journey to make our way back to our regular routine. We are so grateful to our students, families, and staff for their efforts to get back to the business of teaching and learning, and growing. It was challenging, but as the year went on, we developed new routines and mindsets that helped to re-establish structure, growth, and accomplishment each day. As I look back on the year, I can see that we have all learned and grown tremendously.

As we enter the last few weeks of school, it is important to recognize that we have all worked hard to do our best as we made our way through this school year. The finish line for this year is finally in sight. As we cheer our students on and encourage them to stay the course to the end, we empower them and help to build their confidence, competence, and resiliency.

I look forward to celebrating our accomplishments together as this year comes to a close, and I wish you all a happy, healthy summer.

8th Grade June Highlight

Boston Trip, 2022

Members of the 8th grade class traveled to Boston, Massachusetts for their End-of-Year trip! Students and teacher chaperones ventured to Boston for 2 nights & 3 days and had the opportunity to walk the Freedom Trail, pay their respects at the Holocaust Memorial, and visit & enjoy dinner at Quincy Market.

The second action-packed day included an exclusive tour of Fenway Park, traveling the city streets (and river) in a Duck Boat Tour, spending time in Martin's Park, taking on a role in the Revolution on the Boston Harbor Tea Party Museum, and enjoying a performance of the Blue Man Group! The trip concluded with an afternoon at Great Wolf Lodge where students enjoyed the water park, arcade area, and a pizza party.

Many memories were made on this trip, a huge thanks to Ms. Donohue and Mr. Herre for organizing the perfect send-off for this 8th grade.

Alternate Trip, 2022

Students who chose to attend this year's Alternate Trip had the opportunity to visit a wide variety of local attractions!

Accompanied by Senora Stokes & Mr. Petrella, students went bowling, played games at Dave & Busters, shopped around in & enjoyed the Palisades Mall, played Blacklight Mini Golf against their teachers & classmates, enjoyed a day trip to DiPiero's Farm in Montvale, and (perhaps most importantly) bonded with one another in their final weeks as Smith Students.

8th grade Profile Project, 2022

During the week of June 13th, 8th grade students will take part in Smith School's Profile Project.

A Profile Project is an authentic, multifaceted capstone experience that allows for the exploration of a passion, personal interest, or curiosity. It is designed to give students a chance to further develop and demonstrate the competencies of the Profile of a Ramsey Graduate.

This year students are tasked with creating a presentation on the topic of Wellness. Project types include maker, action campaign, and showpiece, and ideas are presented to a panel of community-based judges.

Staff Spotlight- Brittany Perrotti

Hello Smith School community! My name is Brittany Perrotti, I am an 8th grade science teacher. In 8th grade science students have learned a mixture of Physics, Waves, and Chemistry this year.

I was a teacher at Smith School for five years before moving to the LBI area, where I taught high school Biology and Marine Science for two years. While I enjoyed my time by the beach, I am excited to be back at Smith!

In my free time I enjoy traveling and reading a good book. I love the warm weather and am excited for a summer spent back at the beach with my family and friends.

This has been a great school year back at Smith. It has been my pleasure to see such growth in my students, as well as the return of so many Smith School traditions like the 8th grade class trip, Profile Project, and Charity Challenge. I am looking forward to our last month together before the class of 2022 graduates and moves up to high school; I wish everyone a happy, healthy, and safe summer!

STEM Success at Smith: The Edison Project

Out of over 100 submissions, Smith School has been named one of 3 Middle School finalists for the Edison Project for 2022!

The Thomas Edison Pitch Contest was created in 2010 as a competition to showcase and encourage invention, innovation and entrepreneurship among students before they get to college. Every year, grades 4-12 are invited to compete in this contest honoring innovation & Thomas Edison; they submit their great ideas to win prizes and gain the hands-on experience exclusive to the contest.

Students participating in the Edison Project have the chance to learn about STEM, history, & entrepreneurship, receive a FREE Maker-Kit full of inventing supplies from Picoturbine & a Stipend for your teacher/mentor, pitch their invention to a panel of judges who are real-life scientists & entrepreneurs, and work on a team with friends to win the Grand Prize -a 3D Printer for the school!

Mr. Truppi found this contest in December and saw the potential to connect attributes for the Profile of a Ramsey Graduate. Groups from Gizmos and Gadgets were chosen to compete just to see what it would be like. Team "Mouthbreathers" includes Massimo Randazzo, Jack Schreiber, Vincent Kozlick, and Reilly Fehmel. Their task was to come up with an invention/innovation that would make the world a brighter place. They were given a Maker kit from Edison, and advisors Mr. Truppi and Mr. Poage were given Amazon stipends to help them purchase what they needed. The students worked in collaboration on their idea/pitch, one student in particular (Vince Kozlick) worked particularly hard at learning Arduino and getting the robot to work, which is impressive on both counts.

Last month, the team received word that they were one of 3 Middle Schools to qualify as finalists for 2022. The team now has the opportunity to advance to the Final Pitch Round to compete against other schools across the country, and potentially win a 3-D Printer for our School!

Congratulations to all, what a huge accomplishment! You make your school district and community proud!

Click the Link Below to View Smith School's "The Mouthbreathers" Video Pitch for The Edison Project

Relay For Life, 2022

The 2022 Relay for Life event will take place on SATURDAY, June 4th at Ramsey High School!

Relay For Life is the world's largest volunteer-based fundraising event. For more then 36 years, communities across the world have come together to honor and remember loved ones and take action for lifesaving change. We strive to make this event as safe as possible and will follow local COVID related guidelines.

At Relay For Life you'll find community members taking turns walking around a track lined with luminaria bags. You'll have the opportunity to cheer for local survivors (or participate as a survivor) in our first lap of the day. Caregivers of cancer patients (currently or previously diagnosed) will then be invited to join the Survivors. Local entertainers will keep you energized. As it gets dark, we will light the luminaria bags surrounding the track in a memorable luminaria ceremony. There will be opportunities to fundraise & fight back!

The opening ceremony for Ramsey's Relay For Life begins at 7:00 PM! To see the full schedule of events and find out how to support a local team, click HERE!

A Message from the Smith Library

We are inching towards the end of the school year, and that means it's time to turn in any and all overdue books & library materials!

Friday, June 10th will be the final day for checking out or renewing books from the Smith School Library. This is to ensure we get all of our books back & out away before summer.

Please have students return their materials by Friday, June 17th.

Anything not returned by the final day of school (Thursday, June 23rd) will result in a hold on your child's RealTime account and will prevent you from receiving their final report card.

If your student has lost or damaged any library items, please have them come see Ms. Kelly in the library to pay the fine- cash or check only. Checks should be made out to the Ramsey Board of Education.

If you have any questions, please email Ms. Kelly as soon as possible!

Charity Challenge, 2022

Smith School's annual Charity Challenge event made its' grand return after a 2 year absence! Throughout the school year, students across grade levels competed to raise money for their team's designated charity. The charities represented were Relay for Life by the Blue Team, Experience Camps by the White Team, and St. Jude's Childrens Research Hospital for the Gold Team. At the end of May, students participated in a field-day like event with a multitude of physical & mental challenges all in the name of raising money! Students raised money in order for three teachers to be placed in a "Dunk Tank" and for a donation had the opportunity to dunk Ms. Kelly, Mr. Martone, Mr. Wilson, and volunteers from their homerooms! Charity Challenge ended in a Staff VS. Students Kickball game on the back field of Smith, and ultimately the staff was declared the winner.

All in all, Smith School raised $8,000 for charity!

The efforts of each team resulted in the following donations to each of their charities:

Blue Team Raised $3,045 total for "Relay For Life"

White Team Raised $1,964 total for "Experience Camps"

Gold Team Raised $2,050 total for "St. Jude's"

WAY TO GO, RAMS! What a fantastic day for 3 wonderful causes!

A Happy Ram is a Healthy Ram: Chef O's June Recipe!

Bon Appetit! Check out our Culinary Arts teacher, Ms. Stephanie Ormaeche (best known as Chef O), and her Healthy recipe for the month of June! Join in with our district commitment to Wellness with this month's dish, Salmon Tacos with Pineapple-Chile Salsa!

Click HERE for the Recipe and Special Tips from Chef O herself!

6th Grade "Book Worms":

Dia Nair, Dylan Lagomarsino, Ellie Thumm, Isabella Chimbay, Lin Miao, and Summer Goodfellow

Battle of the Books Competition, 2022

On June 7th and June 8th, our 6th & 7th grade Battle of the Books teams will compete in the Bergen County Competition at Cavallinni Middle School! Battle of the Books is a Trivia Competition for students based on a predetermined list of 15 books.

Student teams read the books over a period of months, discuss them, quiz each other on the contents, and then compete in a trivia tournament against other local schools. For months, our teams have honed their trivia skills and it all comes down to the big competitions this month! Best of luck, Rams!

7th Grade "Novel Idea":

Abigail Rostkowski, Eliana English, Emma Kinch, Elizabeth Mavrides, and Madelyn Malatino

The Sun is Shining Over Smith School!

With May being the month of Mental Health Awareness, Smith held a "Stigma Free Friday" with activities committed to Mental Wellness! Students of the 6th, 7th, and 8th grade attended a Mindfulness Presentation which focused on breathing & meditation practices, they were invited to participate in a 100 day Wellness challenge with daily activities devoted to the care & keeping of their emotional health, and 7th grade students had the opportunity to collaborate & unwind with some games! (Above, Below, Right, Bottom Left)

Smith track is back! Students meet on a regular basis to increase their stamina and prepare for track competitions at local schools. Way to represent, Rams! (Top Left, Left, Above)

May 11th was Smith School's first ever Mock Trial Competition! Led by co-advisors Mr. Schrettner & Ms. Kelly, students of the defense & prosecution met consistently from October to May in order to create a case, prepare witnesses, learn the ins & outs of the legal system, collaborate on legal briefs, and hone their argument skills before presenting their trial to an invited audience of family & friends as well as a jury of volunteer teachers. Our invited judge for the day was the RHS mock trial advisor-the Honorable Mr. Willever! Congratulations to all the students on a successful event, and a special thanks to our invited jury, Mr. Willever, and the RPEF for making clubs like this possible! (Above, Below, Left)

Sixth grade Enrichment students in the planning phase of their mini golf hole designs! (Left)

Mr. Baeira's future investors compete against each other thanks to "Next Gen Personal Finance" and their interactive arcade called STAX! They are able to invest in CD’s, Bonds, Stocks, Index Funds and more (Above & Below)

The Smith School Jazz Band, led by Mr. Stephenson, performed their Spring Concert on our beautiful new stage this past month. Bravo! (Above)

Using the structured academic controversy format, 6th grade historians deliberated about the powers of the Federal and State governments. Each side argued a different perspective and then disbanded their opinions to reach a consensus by the end of class. (Top Left)

Students in Mr. Baeira's Business Exploratory learn how shares of stock are purchased and traded in the stock market! (Left)

Homerooms across Smith prepare for Charity Challenge with their Door Decorating Contest! Students collaborated creatively to best represent their team's assigned Charity & the spirit of their homeroom! (Above, Right)

The 2022 Smith Visual Arts Show had its' 2022 Premiere! Art students were able to show off their hard work over the past 4 semesters in a gallery format.

AND, as a special addition this year, Smith Staff artists were also invited to show off their hidden talents with an art display of their own! Congratulations to all of our artists on their dedication and creativity (Left & Right)

Countdown to Summer '22 Starts NOW

6th grade scientists in Ms. Meyers's class did a salinity lab to test out the density of water. Students added salt to freshwater to make it more dense so an egg will be more buoyant and float (Left, Above, Below)

Last month, Smith Band students were selected to perform in the Region 1 Elementary Honor Band students.

What a great day of music making!

(Above, Right)

The Smith 6th, 7th, 8th, and Select Choirs, led by Mr. Ricigliano, performed their Spring Concert!

It was a beautiful night of both classic & contemporary vocal pieces to end another successful year of music education at Smith School. (Left)

Summer Explorations Sessions

for Students Entering Grades 6-8, 2022

Health Information from Our Smith School Nurse

Incoming 6th grade students September 2022:

Please be aware of the required medical documents for enrollment:

Physical Exam- conducted by your physician and dated within 365 days from the first day of school.
Immunization Record- including updated Tdap & Meningitis vaccines

Forms need to be submitted by August 1st via mail, 2 Monroe St or email, lspiegelman@ramsey.k12.nj.us

Visit the Smith School Health Services page for more information: https://www.ramsey.k12.nj.us/Page/1555

If you have specific questions,

Contact Laura Spiegelman

Phone: 201-785-2314

Email: lspiegelman@ramsey.k12.nj.us

Ramsey Public Library Community Feedback Survey

The Ramsey Library is seeking feedback from the community as part of our strategic planning process. We hope to use the information and feedback collected from the community to improve our services and align our goals with community needs and interests.

Please take a moment to fill out this short survey, which will help us plan for the future. All information submitted will be private and only used by library staff as part of this planning process.

Only one response per person please. Note: you do NOT need to sign into Google in order to fill out the survey!

Click HERE for the Ramsey Public Library Community Feedback Survey!

Summer Reading 2022

We feel that choice is essential to finding the right book to pique our students' curiosity during the summer months; therefore, this summer students will choose at least two books, fiction or nonfiction, which they feel would be both engaging and appropriate for a middle school audience. Although the minimum is two, we hope that students will read more.

While reading, we encourage students to continue using the skills and strategies they have learned this year to be active readers. This could include jotting, using post its, and writing about their reading in a reader's notebook.

During the week of September 19th, students will need to be prepared to demonstrate their understanding of their chosen works.

If you have any questions on Summer Reading, please contact our English department supervisor, Carmen Lacherza.