Trenton, NJ – Classroom Close-up, NJ on NJN Public Television takes viewers inside the classroom for a first-hand look at the innovative and inspiring programs found in New Jersey's public schools. This month Classroom Close-up, NJ visits Gregory Elementary School in Trenton for a special “Dad and Me” program; follows Salem County eighth graders as they participate in a day of job shadowing; and takes a trip to Soehl Middle School in Linden where students are learning about “Friends Beyond Borders” through the adoption of a school in the Dominican Republican.

An original weekly program, Classroom Close-up, NJ airs on NJN Public Television Mondays at 6:30 pm and is rebroadcast Saturdays at 9:00 am. Classroom Close-up, NJ is a co-production of NJN and the New Jersey Education Association with Wanda Swanson NJEA executive producer, Nila Aronow, NJN executive producer, Rich Renner, NJN series producer. Additional funding for the show is provided by PSE&G and BNY Mortgage, a Bank of New York Company. Classroom Close-up, NJ is web streamed at njn.net and can be seen on cable stations throughout New Jersey, on NJN’s JerseyVision, and on Time Warner Cable on channel 750 in New York.

Classroom Close-up, NJ, Monday, May 7 at 6:30 pm and Saturday, May 12 at 9:00 am

• Read In – Holly Hills Elementary School in Westampton is participating in the national African American Read In. Parents, community leaders, professional story tellers, retired teachers, and celebrities read books by African American artists. This year NJEA VP Barbara Keshishian joined Wali Lundy, running back for Houston Texans, as one of the many celebrity readers.
• PAWS – English teacher Kate Baker and Spanish teacher Leslie Gardner Longo of Southern Regional High School in Manahawkin started a dog therapy program called Southern PAWS (Pets Assisting Willing Students). Therapy dogs are used to provide emotional comfort to people in need. Both teachers are certified as therapy dog handlers through the Bright and Beautiful Therapy Dogs Inc. The two women also started a program called BARK (Books and Reading with K-9s) to encourage reading in children.
• Job Shadowing – Eighth graders in Salem County participate in a job shadowing experience involving over 800 students and nearly 120 local businesses. The students shadow professionals in a wide range of careers from journalism to public service. The show features students from Lower Alloways Creek Elementary, Pennsville Middle School and Woodstown Middle School.
• Dad & Me – Fathers and their children from Trenton gather at Gregory Elementary on a Saturday to learn strategies for a family approach to succeeding in school. Dads learn about MegaSkills, which are strategies that build confidence, motivation, responsibility, team work and problem solving. They also learn about recognizing signs of gang activities. Together, dads and kids learn about educational play.

Classroom Close-up, NJ, Monday, May 14 at 6:30 pm and Saturday, May 19 at 9:00 am

• Show Case Café – Montville Township High School library media center is hopping to the sounds of rock, pop, Beethoven, vocalists, storytellers, and much more. The Showcase Café has transformed the library into a source of musical and cultural exchange.
• American Symphony Orchestra – Working with Emerson High School, the American Symphony Orchestra conducts an innovative instructional program using a humanities approach to symphonic music that not only touches the lives of the students and teachers, but the community as well. Through a series of workshops, teachers are introduced to strategies that facilitate the infusion of the content and context of symphonic music into their curriculum.
• 100th Day – Sharon Russell-Fowler's class from Washington Elementary School in Edison celebrates the 100th day of school with activities involving the number 100.
• Environments for Purposeful Learning – Students from Roosevelt Public School create terrariums include natural elements such as soil, rocks and plants. Students add animals, creating “vivariums’ (terrariums with pets), and replicate natural conditions to keep their pets alive and healthy. This program is funded through the NJEA Frederick L. Hipp Foundation for Excellence in Education.

Classroom Close-up, NJ, Monday, May 21 at 6:30 pm and Saturday, May 26 at 9:00 am

• Writer’s Symposium – Students at Benjamin Franklin Middle School in Ridgewood attend a Writer’s Symposium and hear from an assortment of professionals about the value of sharp writing skills. The workshops feature writers as varied as stand-up poets, musicians, playwrights, screen writers, and realtors, as well as writers for magazines, books and newspapers.
• Living Space – Seventh Graders at Branchburg Central Middle School in Somerset County, are participating in a program called Create Your Own Living Space as part of the Family and Consumer Science curriculum. The interdisciplinary unit enables students to identify goals for teamwork, and provides practical experience in math and budgeting. Students also are given the opportunity to compute areas and design layouts for clients.
• The Biggest Loser – Dr. Jeff Levine, a contestant on the second season of NBC's The Biggest Loser, will participate in a day of fitness at Woods Road Elementary School in Hillsborough Township. Dr. Levine’s children attended the school and he volunteers his time to encourage and educate students about the dangers of overeating and the benefits of an active lifestyle.
• Friends Beyond Borders – Soehl Middle School in Linden has adopted a school in Batey Caraballo, a border community in the Dominican Republic populated by families of Haitian migrant workers. The New Jersey students learn about the problems facing their peers through communicating with volunteer workers in the adopted community. The students attend the School of the Future in Philadelphia, and a youth-led conference on global migration and human rights. This program is funded through the NJEA Frederick L. Hipp Foundation for Excellence in Education.

Classroom Close-up, NJ, Monday, May 28 at 6:30 pm and Saturday, June 2 at 9:00 am

• Seaview Dolphin – Linda Dunn, the school secretary at Seaview Elementary School in Linwood, makes a difference at her school by giving students a chance to write and illustrate their own special book. This year’s book has students traveling around the world with the school mascot, Seaview the Dolphin.
• Global Visions & Voices – Students at New Egypt Primary School combine visual art with music and movement to develop an awareness of the intercultural world around them. The project is the result of a grant named in honor of former NJEA President, Edie Fulton, and involves the creation of curriculum kits about specific countries. Using the kits, students create artwork based on a world culture. They then identify the artwork using visuals and artifacts and learn the basic elements of art and design in the process.
• Gilda’s Club – Laura Butrus, a special needs teacher with the Egg Harbor Township School District, is the director of the EHT Eagle Greenery, a working flower shop. She works with her special needs students to create, sell and market flower arrangements at the high school. The advanced floral students have the opportunity travel to Gilda's Club – a program for cancer patients and their families, named after Gilda Radner – and teach club members how to make floral arrangements.
• What’s Blooming – Second graders at Euclid Elementary School in Hasbrouck Heights pair with kindergartners as planting buddies for the year. Students plant grass seeds and bulbs, and share books that teach them about indoor gardening. This program is funded through the NJEA Frederick L. Hipp Foundation for Excellence in Education.

NJN is available on all New Jersey cable systems and satellite systems,
on Comcast Digital Cable in New Jersey, and on Time Warner Cable channel 750 in NYC.
Classroom Close-Up, NJ is also available via video streaming at njn.net after the original broadcast.
Additionally, the program is repeated on NJN’s JerseyVision on Comcast Digital Cable in New Jersey
(Check http://www.njn.net/digital/schedule.html for detailed listings)
NJN – Uniquely New Jersey
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