The Vineland High School Jobs for America's Graduates (JAG) students attended the annual NJ JAG Leadership Development Conference at Rider University. Students participated in workshops for leadership skills with other JAG NJ programs from around the state.
Last week, Room 8 at Mennies Elementary School worked on social skills by working in groups to build gingerbread houses! Fourth grade has been doing 12 days of Christmas/Holidays as we get ready for winter break.
On Monday, December 16, the Sabater Safety Patrol visited Spring Oaks assisted living facility. During the visit, the students colored holiday table covers, made 3D tree decor, and sang holiday songs with the residents. A merry time was had by all!
On December 9, students at Johnstone Middle School had an incredible opportunity to participate in the Sticks for Students assembly program, brought to us by the Wings Lacrosse Team! Special thank you to Mr. Koering and the physical education department for making this possible.
The Wings are passionate about growing the game of lacrosse in our community, and their engaging program introduced our students to this exciting sport in a fun and interactive way.
Highlights from the Day:
🌟 A Jeopardy-style game show that got students moving with activities like stretching and relay competitions.
🌟 Informative lessons on health and the basics of lacrosse.
🌟 Special guests, including Wingston the Mascot, current Wings players-Sam Leclair (forward), Deacon Knott (goaltender) and Mitch Jones (forward) and our very own Johnstone School mascot Jax the Jaguar made an appearance and met Wingston the Mascot!
Student Perks:
🎟 25 complimentary tickets to a Wings home game, with the option to purchase additional tickets at a discount were raffled off to students who were interested in attending.
🏃♂️ Students received information on registering for the Wings' youth programs to continue their lacrosse journey.
We are so grateful to the Wings for their commitment to growing the game of lacrosse and for inspiring our students to stay active and learn something new. Thank you for an unforgettable day!
On Friday, December 13, Vineland Music, Theater, and Dance students visited local nursing homes to perform a holiday showcase for residents. Students performed at Veterans Memorial Home, Autumn Lake Healthcare, and Spring Oak at Vineland. The students always look forward to spreading holiday cheer in our community! From the Vineland Performing Arts department to you, we want to wish you all a happy holiday season and a wonderful new year!
Mrs. Gloway’s third-grade students at Sabater have been learning about forces and motion. On Friday, December 13, they became bridge designers. They were tasked to make a truss or an arch bridge using only paper. No tape, no glue. They could fold or cut the paper to increase the strength. Several groups were able to make a structure that could hold 40 pennies. Fun and learning was the name of day!
Johnstone 6th graders in Mrs. Weber's music class conducted science of sound experiments. They learned about how sound waves move, and that sound is made of vibrations. The students worked as a team to play a song using musical jars and used their new music science knowledge to discover how to play.
A huge Winslow shoutout to our PTO and staff volunteers for their time and efforts in putting together our Milk and Cookies with Santa event! Students and their families were able to go on a magical journey creating reindeer food, decorating cookies, making snowball shooters, creating holiday characters through sticker art, writing letters to Santa, enjoying cookies and hot cocoa, and a special visit with Santa himself. To share our love of reading at Winslow, each student went home with a book of their choice! We would like to wish all of our students and families a very happy holiday season!
Our Gifted & Talented Program is off to a fantastic start! Here are some highlights from G&T East, courtesy of teacher Jeff Martine: https://bit.ly/3P0UsEd
It was super cold outside, so the students in room 5 at DiBiase Preschool decided it was a perfect day for hot cocoa! During small groups, they discussed what ingredients they would need to make hot cocoa and what steps they would take to make it. After making their cocoa, they made a chart to see who liked it plain, with marshmallows, whipped cream, or didn't like it at all. ☕
Ms. Bussott's 8th Grade Art periods at Johnstone Middle School have been working on Christmas Trees inspired by the artist Yayoi Kusama. Filling the inside of their Christmas Trees with different patterns, students either created their own brand new patterns or pulled inspired designs from the artist they learned about. Students cut out their trees and placed them anywhere in the school hallways to help spread holiday cheer!
The Pilla Patrol continues to be a fabulous support in the halls of Sgt. Dominick Pilla Middle School. All of our Pilla Patrolers and our newly elected officers received their badges.
The newly elected officers are:
Captain- Akanksha Dahiya
Lieutenant- Milana Goff
Sergeant- Ian Martinez Rosa
Congratulations to all!
The Pilla Safety Patrol recently partnered with People, Not Profit to host a school-wide Holiday Toy Drive. They collected toys for a week and a half and collected over 50+ toys for children of all ages. We are honored to have been a part of this event and "pay it forward" to our community.
Thank you for your contributions!
We are so #PillaProud! 💙💛
Petway’s Safety Patrol (led by Mrs. Brady) and Mrs. Meneghetti’s/Mr. Martini’s kindergarten class paired up once again for a festive afternoon of fun! Students displayed the character trait of teamwork by working together to create beautiful masterpieces. They made decorative plates to share with their families for the holidays. The safety patrol did a wonderful job modeling Petway Patriot manners for the kindergarteners, and fun was had by all students. Thank you to Mrs. Brady for organizing another great afternoon!
On Friday, December 6, Durand Elementary School Principal Dan Greco was honored by the Youth Alliance as the Youth Alliance Educator of the Year recipient. This award honors someone in education who excels in leadership and their extraordinary commitment to students, school, and community. This award celebrates a leader who not only supports the academic, personal, and professional development of their students but also empowers their colleagues through mentorship, innovation, and collaboration. Mr. Greco was very appreciative of this honor and, in his acceptance speech, stated, “I love what I do. In order to truly have a work ethic, you have to love what you do, and I do.” His commitment, passion, and love for Durand students and families shines through the halls of the building and never goes unnoticed. Congratulations, Mr. Greco!
Veterans Memorial School Music Teacher Eileen Eller and VMS Band Director Ed Zatzariny invited members from Active Day of Vineland to be guests at VMS Wednesday morning for a private holiday concert put on by the VMS Choir and Band students. Active Day of Vineland provides day services for seniors and adults with developmental and intellectual disabilities. Active Day's belief is that every member can benefit from an engaged, socially stimulating, and care-focused experience. The community members enjoyed their private holiday concert and visit at VMS and were extremely impressed with the VMS students and how welcoming they made them feel.
D'Ippolito students just completed their eighth Great Bedtime Story Pajama Drive, and they collected 206 pairs of pajamas! Only brand new pajamas were collected in all sizes from newborn through adult from 11/11-12/6. The pajama drive is organized in partnership with Pajama Program, a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting and supporting a comforting bedtime routine for children affected by instability in order to help them thrive. For every pair of pajamas that was collected, Scholastic Book Clubs donated a brand-new book. This year, D'Ippolito's donation was given to Williamstown Head Start, located at 245 Glassboro Road in Williamstown. Our students and staff are so proud to make this donation to help kids in need. Students who donated a new pair of pajamas are able to wear their own pjs to school on Friday, December 20th, as a reward for their generous gifts!
This week, sixth-grade students in Mrs. Krawczyk’s accelerated classes at Veterans Memorial showcased their entrepreneurial spirit and teamwork in an exciting group project: designing a food truck business plan. The assignment challenged students to think like budding business owners by crafting a plan that included a menu, advertisement, design concept, target audience analysis, and an engaging "About Us" section.
The project required students to step into the shoes of business professionals. They conducted research to understand food industry trends and studied real-world business models to inspire their plans. Each group worked collaboratively to decide on a unique food truck concept, from creating menus tailored to their target audience to designing visually appealing advertisements and truck aesthetics that reflected their theme.
Collaboration was a cornerstone of the assignment. Students divided responsibilities, ensuring that every team member had a role to play. While one group member focused on designing a vibrant and functional truck layout, another researched marketing strategies to create an eye-catching advertisement. Meanwhile, other members worked on crafting the "About Us" section, using it to share their team’s vision and mission.
"One of the most rewarding parts of this project was watching the students' creativity come to life," said their teacher, Mrs. Krawczyk. "They weren't just making plans on paper—they were learning how to work together, solve problems, and think critically about how businesses succeed."
Students faced challenges along the way; however, these hurdles only strengthened their teamwork and problem-solving skills. Many students discovered the importance of effective communication and the value of diverse perspectives in a group setting.
At the end of the project, groups presented their food truck plans to their peers, members of the staff, and special guests, receiving feedback and sharing the journey of their collaboration. The assignment not only sparked creativity but also provided a hands-on introduction to entrepreneurship, design thinking, and market research.
This project proved to be a delicious blend of learning and fun—one that students won’t soon forget!
The Vineland High School Class of 2026 is having a breakfast fundraiser on Saturday, January 11 from 8-10am at Applebee's, 3849 S. Delsea Drive. Tickets are $10 and include a complete breakfast of pancakes, scrambled eggs, pork sausage, orange juice and coffee. Contact Mrs. Figueroa at cfigueroa@vineland.org for tickets.
Mrs. Evans' 7th grade students at Wallace Middle School investigated the scents of different unknown substances to see if they could identify them by their odors. They gathered information from a reading about how sensory receptors in our noses work and used what they figured out to explain their results from the lab. Great job!
