LTEF announces Fall Grant Winners

At the December Board of Education Meeting, the Lawrence Township Education Foundation formally announced Fall grant cycle winners. We are very proud of our teachers who were able to secure over $30,000 in grant funding for several new programs that will help to further student education at LIS! We are very appreciative of LTEF and all of the things they have done over the years for our students. Feel free to check out the Lawrence Township Education Foundation's website at http://www.ltefnj.org/.

Congrats to Abby!

I wanted to take a moment to congratulate one of our students. This past Saturday, Abby Cohen took 2nd place in the Greater Princeton Chess Championship Tournament!! She will now be moving on to the National Scholastic Chess Championships which will be held in Orlando, Florida this weekend. We are very proud of Abby's accomplishments thus far and we wish her the best of luck this weekend! Thanks for representing our school as well as you do.

Skyping in the South Pacific

This past Monday, the entire sixth grade participated in a Skype lesson with the JOIDES Resolution, a ship conducting scientific exploration in the South Pacific. JOIDES stands for Joint Oceanographic Institutions for Deep Earth Sampling. The ship's crew is drilling into the ocean floor to uncover evidence learned from studying the fossils and sediment beneath the ocean.

Dr. Arthur Spivak gave us a tour of the ship and facilitated discussion between the other scientists and our students. This was a great opportunity for our students that paired the science and guidance curricula. Students are being introduced to careers in science as part of the guidance curriculum while learning about weather, earthquakes, plate tectonics and other parts of the science curriculum. A special thank you goes to Mrs. Lane and Mr. O'Boyle for organizing the event.

Honoring Our Veterans

On Veterans' Day last Thursday, LIS students and staff had the privilege of speaking with and listening to Mr. Pete Radice, a Lawrence resident who served in the Korean War almost sixty years ago.

Mr. Radice was quite the celebrity at LIS and had a very busy itinerary to follow that morning. He participated in a flag raising ceremony with several students and Mr. Adam before school began. Then he spoke to all of our Lower School students at a Thursday morning meeting in the cafeteria. Here he talked with children about Veterans' Day and why it is important to recognize those who have served their country. After that, Mr. Radice moved over to the "LIS Morning Show" television studio, where he addressed the entire school, speaking about Veterans' Day. He also led LIS students and teachers in the Pledge of Allegiance as it was broadcast on classroom television sets. Mr. Radice was then joined by our madrigal vocal group "Pitch Black" who performed a very moving version of the Star Spangled Banner.

It was quite a display that had the entire building looking at televisions sets and listening to every word that was word spoken and lyric that was sung. We truly enjoyed and appreciated Mr. Radice's visit to our school. We understand the importance of veterans' service and as much as we thank them on Veterans' Day, we need to thank these men and women every day for all of their efforts.

Help Us Keep You Informed

In an effort to communicate as effectively as possible with families of our students, we are asking for some information related to email addresses and cellphone numbers. If you haven't provided these already or would like to update information please click on the link below. We are looking to secure as many email addresses and cellphone numbers (for phone calls and text messages) of parents so information can be sent quickly and efficiently in the event that something needs to be passed along (i.e. winter weather announcements, etc.). These would be used in a similar fashion to how we currently use the autodialer system.
https://secure.schoolworld.com/forms/forms.cfm?myform=15793&DSID=63&myschoolid=118

Parent Conferences

This is just a reminder that parent conferences will be held at LIS on November 18, 22 and 23. If for some reason you have not received the appropriate paperwork to schedule a conference, please reach out to your child's teacher.

American Education Week

American Education Week will take place next week and as part of the celebration, LIS will be holding an open house for parents to visit their child's classroom during the day. The fourth grade open house will take place on Monday, November 15th. Fifth and sixth grade classrooms will be open for parents on Wednesday, November 17th. Please look for information to come home with students in the next day or so that will provide more details.

Hats Off to Our PTO!!

As many of you know, we have a great PTO at LIS. Over the past few weeks they have put on not one, but two fantastic events for our students. On October 22th the Lower School held its annual "Family Fall Fest" where 4th graders and their families came together to eat, play games and spend time with each other. Students guessed the weight of "the great pumpkin" as well as how many candy corns were in the big jar. Our new vice principal, Mr. Adam was on hand and although he was way off on both the weight of the great pumpkin and the correct number of candy corns, he couldn't stop talking about how much fun it was for everyone.

The following Friday, October 29th, Upper School students got together for a night of frightful fun at the LIS "Halloween Bash." Students dressed in costumes, played games, ate lots of food and danced to Halloween music, provided by a DJ, all night long. Those who dared to enter the "Haunted House" risked being scared by any number of frightening characters. I dared, and yes I was quite frightened, thank you.

Almost 500 students attended the Halloween Bash, but it wouldn't have been anywhere near the success it was without the help of our parent volunteers. Over 80 parents volunteered their time and efforts to help with some aspect of the evening's event.

We thank all of our parent volunteers for their help, not just with these two events, but all the events that take place at LIS. We couldn't do it without you.

Character Kickoff- One for the record books!

Last Thursday marked our annual "Character Kickoff" celebration emphasizing unity, collaboration and problem solving between students and staff. With gray morning clouds giving way to a beautiful afternoon of sunshine, LIS students put on one of the greatest displays of character I have seen in my four plus years at our school.

I had the chance to observe and speak to our students that day, and it was an absolute pleasure to see how supportive and caring they were all day long. You could feel the presence of a true sense of family and community that every principal would love to see at his or her school. The best thing is that we have this type of environment at our school every day. It continues to become more and more ingrained in staff and students with each year that passes.

Geno Auriemma is the women's basketball coach at the University of Connecticut, and I remember something he said to a reporter who was complimenting him on his leadership of the program. He said "It's easy to be a great coach when you have great players on your team." I am not saying I am anything or anywhere near a great coach, but I am certainly fortunate to have great players- staff and students- on my team. Hats off to all for a great day!!

"Character Kickoff" Kicks Off In Two Days!!

It is that time of year again. The leaves are starting to turn and there is a crispness in the air that is synonymous with autumn. It is also that time of year when LIS holds its annual "Character Kickoff." This is an award winning program that has been nationally recognized by the Character Education Partnership (CEP). LIS staff and students as well as peer leaders from Lawrence High School will come together on Thursday to promote unity, collaboration and problem solving by participating in a number of unique activities.

Character Kickoff is a cornerstone event which exemplifies our emphasis on developing the whole child here at LIS. The activities children participate in allow them to bond with classmates and give them meaningful skills to work well with others in future situations. So let's kickoff the year with great character!

The Little One Who Follows Me

If you have been with us at Lawrence Intermediate for a while, you probably know how much of an influence John Wooden has had on me as an educator. His teachings are at the core of what we do in terms of character development with our students. Today would have been John's 100th birthday had he not passed away last June at the age of 99. I found the poem below in one of his books a while back. I believe it was written by someone else, yet it speaks well to anyone who works with children-teachers, coaches, parents, reminding all of us of how much influence we really have on young people.

A careful man I ought to be, a little fellow follows me.
I dare not go astray, for fear he'll go the self-same way.

I cannot once escape his eyes, whatever he sees me do, he tries
Like me, he says, he's going to be, the little one who follows me.

He thinks that I am good and fine, believes in every word of mine.
The base in me he must not see, the little one who follows me.

I must remember as I go, through summers' sun and winters' snow.
I 'm building for the years to be, this little one who follows me.

Thanks Coach. Happy Birthday.

Talent 21 Workshop for 6th Grade Parents

On Wednesday, October 27, 2010 and Thursday, October 28, 2010 from 6:00pm-8:00pm, the Lawrence Township Public Schools will be offering the following Talent 21 Parent Workshop:

Your Child in a Connected World
Description: In this session we will discuss the tools your child is using with their teachers to further their learning and help you to understand how they help them reach higher levels of thinking. We will also provide you with simple steps you can begin taking into your home to help build a safer globally connected online experience for your children.
Presenter: Jennifer Beine, November Learning
Location: District Technology Center, 2525 Princeton Pike

Please register at http://www.ltps.org/forms.cfm?myForm=15569. Only 25 spots are available for each night and will be filled on a first come, first served basis. Both nights will cover the same material, so you only need to sign up for one session.

Since space is limited and in order to provide this workshop to as many households as possible, we ask that only one parent attend. Students should not attend.

We will be offering these workshops for parents throughout the year, so if you are unable to attend or if the workshops fill up before you have a chance to sign up, there will be other opportunities.

Internet Safety Program

With Talent 21 emphasizing that our 6th grade students become digitallly responsible learners, Richard Guerry, from IROC2 (Institute for Responsible Online and Cell-Phone Communication) came to speak with our students last week. Both 6th grade houses, the Dream Team and Team Quest, attended their own assembly with Mr. Guerry and they were very well received. Below are a few comments from teachers.

"I thought it was very worthwhile. Afterwards the kids' comments showed that they really took to heart what Mr. Guerry had to say. I think they now realize they really need to THINK before doing anything with technology."

"Rich (Guerry) was a GREAT speaker! From where I was sitting, the kids were totally engaged."

"It was very informative, for students and adults. I learned a few things myself and I thought the way he spoke to the kids was great. His presentation was age-apropriate, which really helped the kids to understand the message."

You can find out more about The Institute for Responsible Online and Cell-Phone Communication at http://www.iroc2.org/.

A Word of Thanks

I wanted to thank all members of the LIS family: staff, students and parents for your kindness, support and generosity during my absence last month. While South Korea was a wonderful experience I will never forget, it is good to be back home in the U.S. and at L.I.S.

And We Have.....Liftoff!!

Welcome everyone to the start of what looks to be another great year at LIS! Our openings seem to get better with each year that passes and it is always great to hear staff and parents say "Last year I said it was our best opening, but this year was even better!" It was great to see familiar faces last week in teachers, students and parents. We missed all of you over the summer break. It was also great to see so many new faces with our fourth grade starting their first day in the Lower school as well as many new students in the Upper school.

I wish everyone a great second week and I look forward to touching base with everyone at some point in the not to distant future.

Talent 21 comes to Lawrence Intermediate

The Lawrence Intermediate School has embarked on an incredible technological journey with our sixth grade students. As a recipient of the federal Talent 21 grant for S1.4 million, we will be outfitting each sixth grade student with their own personal laptop to use at school. This exciting opportunity will allow our school to step further into 21st century learning each day. I am sure there will be many more posts this year related to technology in our classrooms.
Please click on the following link for more district related Talent 21 information.

Talent 21