WELCOMING NEW STUDENTS TO RDMS:
Each September, Ambassadors are paired up with students who have just moved into River Edge or Oradell from another city, state, or country, and then we welcome them into our River Dell family with a get-to-know-you breakfast. The Ambassadors and new students form a bond over an ice-breaker activity, and the Ambassadors check in with the new students throughout the school year. It's a great way for our new students to feel more at home and be connect with their peers in a relaxed, informal setting. See below for a picture from our past breakfasts.
Ambassador/New Students
AMBASSADORS SPREAD INSPIRATIONAL MESSAGES DURING PANDEMIC:
In the Spring of 2020, in order to lift spirits and bring joy to our community, Ambassadors painted messages of positivity and inspiration onto cheerful rocks and placed them in unexpected locations throughout River Edge and Oradell. During these unpresented times, it was a true act of kindness to see our 8th graders bring a smile and happiness to their neighbors!
Inspirational Rocks
VISITING ORADELL PUBLIC SCHOOL AND CHERRY HILL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL:
In February 2018 (OPS) and February 2016 (Cherry Hill), Ambassadors made about 80 new friends when they met Kindergarteners at Oradell Public School and Cherry Hill's New Bridge Center! Ambassadors read a story about friendship and discussed with the kindergarteners the qualities that make a good friend. The Kindergarteners came up with great descriptive words about their friends and even used vocabulary from their word lists, like being generous! After the story was read and the brainstorming was complete, Kindergarteners and Ambassadors met in small groups to create Friendship Flowers. The Ambassadors really showed their artistic side as they prepared colorful flower cards for each Kindergartener. Together, Ambassadors and Kindergarteners chose six words that describe what being a friend means to them and then wrote a word on each petal of the flowers. Through the activity, the Ambassadors and Kindergarteners talked and got to learn about each other. Many laughs were had and memories were made! See below for pictures from both trips.
Friendship Flowers with Kindergarteners at OPS
Friendship Flowers with Kindergarteners at Cherry Hill
KINDNESS ROCK GARDEN:
In November 2017, the Ambassadors wanted to spread some kindness throughout the River Dell community, and so they created a picturesque, unique Kindness Rock garden! This display is located next to the three 9/11 memorial trees at the Woodland Ave school entrance. Ambassadors thought of individualized inspiring phrases, and then had a lot of fun designing and painting each rock. The Ambassadors are very proud of this project, and hope that you will be continually encouraged by their enlightening messages!! Click below to view a picture of the garden.
Kindness Rock Garden
BERGEN COUNTY HOUSING, HEALTH, AND HUMAN SERVICES CENTER (HOMELESS SHELTER) SERVICE PROJECT: EDUCATING RDMS STUDENTS AND VISITING THE FACILITY:
In December 2016, Ambassadors participated in a multi-faceted service project, which started out with learning about homelessness in Bergen County from Mrs. Julia Orlando (River Dell parent and Director of the Shelter). Then, Ambassadors visited 7th and 8th graders in their homerooms and presented a PowerPoint about homelessness and what students can do to make a difference. Following this education component, the Ambassadors then went on a field trip to visit the Shelter (bringing lots of cold weather donations with them such as socks, scarves, gloves, etc.) and got to experience homelessness first-hand by touring the facility and actually meeting with a few of the guests to hear about their life stories. It was eye opening and touching experience for the students! See below for a picture from our trip.
Bergen County Homeless Shelter