Village School:  The Kindergarten students had a wonderful time on their trip to Longstreet Farm.  They had the opportunity to see how people learned to live off the land and enjoyed visiting with the animals.  The 1^st grade students did an amazing job with their musical performance.  All of the students and families had the opportunity to see them shine in “Dinostars”.

The 2^nd grade students enjoyed their field trip to the Liberty Science Center.  There were many hands-on activities to get involved with while learning about science.

Finally, the 3^rd grade students are commended for doing a wonderful job with their NJASK testing.  They stayed focused on what they needed to accomplish with their first ever state assessment.

Indian Hill School:  On April 23^rd, Indian Hill School held its annual Science Fair.  The 6^th grade students in Mr. Joseph’s class presented original carnival style games which reflected their lessons in electronics and circuitry.  Many parents were on hand to support their student’s efforts while enjoying the games

On April 27^th, Indian Hill School hosted a tree planting in honor of Arbor Day.  On hand for the event were Indian Hill Student Council officers, as well as, Jenni Blumenthal of the Shade Tree Committee and the PLG Go Green Committee.  The beautiful addition to the landscape can be found in the front of the school nearest the bus circle.

On May 4^th, the Child Assault Prevention (C.A.P.) program of Monmouth County presented a workshop for students who are new to the district.  The program engaged the students in role-playing scenarios to teach about safety and their rights as children.

NJASK testing went beautifully for 5^th & 6th grades. Students said they felt well prepared for the test and felt they did their best. 4^th graders are testing this week.

W. R. Satz:

Social Studies collection at the Keyport Food pantry, once school is out there won't be any breakfast or lunch programs for many children. They are in great need of peanut butter, jelly and tuna to help them get through the summer and asked if the students at W. R. Satz School could do a collection of these items for them. The Satz students will be participating in the collection of these items through their Social Studies classes.  The collection will be going on through May 18^th.

Anti-Bullying Fundraiser

Satz School participated in their first “Wear Pink Against Bullying” fundraiser.  Students and faculty were being asked to support the Character Ed. Anti-Bullying campaign with the purchase of a pink “Bullies Tear Down, Friends Build Up” t-shirt.  All students were asked to wear this shirt on Tuesday, May 15^th in conjunction with the PSG/Student Council sponsored assembly program “Ryan’s Story,” which was presented by Mr. John Halligan.

Jeans for Troops Fundraiser

Satz is participating in a Jeans for Troops Fundraiser.  Staff members are being asked to donate $5 to wear jeans on Memorial Day in support of our troops.  Students who choose to donate $5 will get the opportunity to use their iPod or walkman device during the day as an incentive.

Student Achievements

One W. R. Satz Student won another National Championship in 2012 National Junior High Championship, K-8 section. The tournament was held in San Diego, CA from 4/27 to 4/29. Here is the final standing (please click on “K-8 Championship” to see his section): http://www.uschess.org/tournaments/2012/jhs/?page=RESULTS

There are 2 National Scholastic events every year. One is held at the end of the year, National Grade School Championship, which allow players to only compete in their own grades. The other one held in the spring time, at the National Elementary/Junior High/High, and it allows players to compete in the mixed section no lower than their current grade.

So far, he has won 4 times in the Grade school event, 2 times in National Elementary, and this is his first time to win in the National Junior High event. Chess Life magazine (the only “official” chess magazine in US) wrote an article in the February issue, which included an interview with him after he won last year’s grade school championship. http://content.yudu.com/A1vdb5/ChessLifeFeb2012/resources/38.htm

His current world ranking is number 41 in his age group of under 14 year old. http://ratings.fide.com/card.phtml?event=2040875. Amazingly, this has not been his best ranking; he was number 6 in the world when he was 10.

A 7^th grade Satz student just published her 1st book. You can find the book on Amazon by clicking on the following link:http://www.amazon.com/Hidden-Beings-ebook/dp/B007YLUXI2/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1335745126&sr=8-2

High School: 

Holmdel High is a “Gold Medal” School!
Congratulations to the students and staff of Holmdel High School, for being named by US News and World Report as a “Gold Medal” school, one of only 500 from among the over 22,000 high schools across the United States! We ranked 4^th in Monmouth County and 24^th in New Jersey. For more on this prestigious recognition, click on the link below:
http://www.usnews.com/education/high-schools/articles/2012/05/08/us-news-ranks-nations-best-high-schools

High School Sports:

The Boys Tennis team won the Shore Conference Championship for the 4th year in a row!! The Hornets beat the #2 seed CBA by the score of 5-0. Congratulations for an outstanding job.

District News:

Students at Village and Indian Hill Schools have been working with the Special Olympics Organization this year and integrating their curriculum into our Adaptive Physical Education periods. It has been a wonderful experience and the students are doing quite well.  We will be expanding the program into the W. R. Satz and HHS Adaptive Physical Education periods; the Special Olympics Organization has selected Holmdel to receive a grant. Our students have been invited to attend an EXPO at TCNJ on June 8th. The students will have the opportunity to compete and practice skills they have worked on all year.  Students from the HHS who are part of the Best Buddies Program will be invited to attend. They will work as coaches with the students.