Cedar Drive Middle School 73 Cedar Drive, Colts Neck, NJ 07722

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1 Cedar Drive Middle School 73 Cedar Drive, Colts Neck, NJ Phone: (732) Fax: (732) Merri Milano, Assistant Principal Colin Rigby, Principal Andrea Licari, School Counselor Ext Ext Ext October 10 th, 2016 Dear Parents/Guardians: Blue and Gold Cedar: On September 23 rd, the Cedar Drive community participated in an all-day event that included an assembly, advisory, pep rally, grade level trainings, 6 th Grade Clap-In, and outdoor field day. We kicked off the day with a powerful and inspirational guest speaker, CDMS Language Arts teacher Ms. Carrie Sullivan. The theme of Ms. Sullivan s presentation was The Power of One.Plus she spoke about the impact that our words and actions have on others, and challenged everyone in attendance to make a positive difference here at CDMS. Through meaningful video clips, hands-on activities, and personal stories, Ms. Sullivan delivered and fostered a spirit of community, support, and mutual respect that helped set a great tone for the day. Following the assembly, students and staff had advisories where they discussed the meaning behind the assembly and the significance of The Power of One Plus message. Each student completed a puzzle piece that included a word or phrase that best described their personal contribution to the Cedar Drive community for the upcoming school year. Through this experience, we are confident that students will take an active role in helping to establish a culture of respect, by standing up against negative influences, and by demonstrating resilience when faced with adversity. The 6 th Grade Clap-In and Field Day had everyone rockin and enjoying some fun together. A special thank you and shout out to Ms. Curran, Mrs. Londono, Mrs. Wuethrich, Mrs. Hubbard, and Ms. Sullivan for planning and organizing the afternoon events. We would also like to extend a special thank you to the PTO for bringing over thirty volunteers out to the back fields of Cedar to help facilitate the festivities. Also, a big thank you to the PTO for helping us purchase t-shirts for our students and staff as a result, we had a sea of blue and gold throughout the day. We had a great day and felt the power and potential of how strong we can be when we come together as one community, when we support one another, and when we believe in each other.

2 Extend Your School Day Please continue to look for opportunities for your son/daughter to get involved and stay after school for a sport, intramural, or club. Soccer and XC are off to a great start and our student-athletes are working hard and continue to improve each game/meet. Two of our fall intramurals started last week, Tennis and Make & Take. Spots are still available for floor hockey, kickboxing, ping pong, and Pokemon Club, so take a look at our website under Latest Headlines and consider participating in one of the offerings intramurals are a great way to make friends, spend time with a staff member outside of the classroom, and explore different areas of interest. Art Club and Make-a-Difference Club have started and all are welcome to join either activity. Art Club meets on Thursday from 2:30 3:45 and Make-A-Difference meets on Wednesdays (additional meeting days are scheduled depending on need). Please see important announcement below from Make a Difference Club:

3 Cedar Drive Middle School's Made a Difference Club is asking the families of Colts Neck for assistance. There will be a Halloween Costume Collection Drive running at the Conover Road Elementary School and Cedar Drive Middle School. Any gently used or brand new Halloween costumes, along with appropriate costume accessories, will be graciously accepted within both buildings. Donation boxes will be placed within each school building until Tuesday, October 18th. All donations will go to Jersey Cares, a non-profit organization serving New Jersey families in need. Help make a difference for a child this Halloween. Thank you for your help.

4 Academic After-School Programs: We also have academic support programs through both Peer Tutoring and Homework Improvement Programs. If you are interested in participating in either of these two programs or need more information, please contact the staff member below: Peer Tutoring: Mrs. Capone 6 th Grade HIP: Mrs. Bontempo 7 th Grade HIP: Mrs. Londono 8 th Grade HIP: Ms. Quigley (lquigley@coltsneckschools.org)

5 Back to School Night: On Thursday, September 29 th, Cedar Drive hosted Back to School Night where parents and guardians had the opportunity to experience a day in the life of a CDMS middle school student. Despite the weather, our classrooms and hallways were bustling, so thank you to everyone for coming out to support our schools. Ms. Pavlicek and her Morning Announcement Crew broadcasted live from Studio 29 and shined under pressure. We would like to thank all of our student ambassadors who provided assistance throughout the night. As we move forward, we need to continue to build a strong partnership between home and school and continue to work together to support our students academic and social development.

6 Traveling Guitar Assembly: We would like to thank The Traveling Guitar Foundation for their generous donation of musical equipment that has helped launch our 7 th grade Guitar cycle. Owner and founder, Damon Marks, visited Cedar Drive on September 30 th to play for our students and spark interest in our new program. 8 th graders Megan Smith and Nick Villani had the opportunity to be on stage with Mr. Marks and rock it out to a few classic hits by Journey. Winter Sports: Planning for WINTER SPORTS has begun: o o Winter Sport Physicals due to Mrs. Heyer, school nurse for review by 10/17/2016 for Girl s and Boys Basketball Wrestling and Cheering Sport Physicals due by 10/31/ Both sports will be offered provided a full team compliment signs up /show interest Sign-ups are currently available in the cafeteria. To complete the eligibility process, please visit the Nurse s Office tab on our website under Our School. To access all necessary sports forms, please follow these steps on our website: CDMS Our School Nurse s Office Sport Forms Boys Basketball tryouts 11/1 11/3, Practice 11/4 Girls Basketball tryouts week of 11/14 late buses 4pm for both If a current physical is on file in the CDMS health office from late spring 2016 or fall 2016 student MUST also submit: Signed permission form for winter sport Health History Update (filled out by parent) if physical is more than 90days prior to start of practice or tryouts If no physical is on file or physical has expired (physicals are good for 365 days) please submit the entire sport package.

7 STUDENTS MAY NOT PARTICIPATE / TRY-OUT UNTIL CLEARED BY SCHOOL NURSE and or SCHOOL PHYSICIAN per NJ Dept. of Education law Please contact Mrs. Heyer with any questions ext heyer@coltsneckschools.org Noteworthy Dates Tuesday, October 11 th : Pokemon, Kickboxing, and Ping Pong Intramurals from 2:30 3:50 p.m.; HIP in Grades 6 and 7 from 2:30 3:50 p.m.; Peer Tutoring from 2:30 3:30 p.m.; Girls Soccer Home vs. 3:45 p.m.; Boys Soccer and XC Ocean Wednesday, October 12 th : Yom Kippur Schools Closed Thursday, October 13 th : Make & Take and Tennis Intramural from 2:30 3:50 p.m.; HIP Grades 6 and 8 from 2:30 3:50 p.m.; Peer Tutoring from 2:30 3:30 p.m. Friday, October 14 th : Advisories; Boys Soccer and XC home vs. 3:45 p.m.; Girls Soccer 3:45 p.m.; Advanced Chorus from 2:30 3:30 p.m. Thursday, October 20 th : CDMS Talent 7 p.m. in the Gym Friday, October 21 st : Academic Team MAST Thank you for your on-going support of our students and programs. Have a great week! Sincerely, Colin Rigby