Students showcase preschool video and "living wax museum" at South Plainfield Board meeting

Students from South Plainfield schools presented a preschool video and a fourth‑grade "living wax museum" at the South Plainfield Board of Education meeting on March 25, drawing praise from administrators and board members.

Mr. Peach, representing the South Plainfield preschool program, introduced a video and an original song, "We Are the Tiny Tigers," and said the staff and students were "incredibly proud" of their work and thanked parents and guardians for their support. Board members in the room reacted warmly to the recording.

The meeting also featured a Franklin Elementary presentation of a living wax museum by fourth‑grade gifted‑and‑talented students. Mrs. D. Marcelo introduced the project and said the unit culminated in monologues students prepared about people they considered "achievers." Students named to present included Dominic Cruz, Sabrina Gonzalez, Jazelle Ger, Christopher Miller and Bryce Veto.

Students performed first‑person monologues portraying public figures. In one example, Dominic Cruz spoke in character as Cristiano Ronaldo: "I am Cristiano Ronaldo and I am a famous soccer player from Portugal," summarizing the figure's background and achievements as part of the classroom assignment. Board members later commended the students for their research, noting younger students visited the exhibits and asked questions during the live demonstration.

The board also heard a student representative segment. The agenda introduced Sophia Vitalab as the student representative; the person who delivered the report identified themself as David Slay and gave an overview of athletics, performing arts and senior class activities, including winter guard competition placements, recent state qualifiers in wrestling, and upcoming events such as prom (June 4 at the Marvold in Somerset) and the spring drama production opening March 27. The report included test dates, honor society inductions, and a college‑planning night for K–8 parents.

Administrators reminded families that preschool lottery registration is open through April 20 at 4 p.m.; residents must be living in South Plainfield at the time of registration, and age cutoffs were repeated: children must be three years old by Oct. 1 to enter the three‑year‑old program and four years old by Oct. 1 to enter the four‑year‑old program. The lottery drawing was scheduled for May 18 and the district warned families to expect a waiting list.

The remainder of the meeting included routine consent votes, board member congratulations to students and retirees, and brief seasonal greetings from members. The student presentations and the preschool video occupied the opening half of the meeting and were described by trustees as highlights of the evening.

The board adjourned the public portion of the meeting toward an executive session on personnel and residency matters before returning to take additional actions.