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2017 - 2018
School Year
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Dec.
25
- Jan. 5
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Christma
s
Break
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Jan. 12
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No School - Teacher In-service |
| Jan. 15 |
MLK Holiday |
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Feb. 19
|
Presidents
Day
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| March 10 |
Auction Gala |
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March 29 - April 6
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Easter Break |
| May 28 |
Memorial Day |
| June 15 |
Last Day of School |
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|
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December 13, 2017
Dear St. Francis of Assisi Parents and Guardians,
Advent is a season of preparation, significant because it is a season of looking forward and waiting for something greater, both for the celebration of Christ's birth, and for the time when Christ will come again. At school, preparations are taking place in the classrooms for the birth of our Lord, Jesus. Students in kindergarten through fifth grade are practicing for their Christmas programs and St. Nick made a stealth visit to school, leaving candy canes in shoes left outside of classrooms in hopes that he would drop by with a treat.
Thanks to the talent and generosity of our school community, several events took place over the last week that helped us live Advent and enjoy the true meaning of Christmas.
Our students were able to do some Christmas shopping for their family and friends at Santa's Secret Shop. I watched several students experience joy selecting a gift that will be a surprise for the special people in their lives. Last Thursday, I enjoyed the St. Francis of Assisi School Show Choir's performance at the Diocesan Advent Choral Festival in Dana Point. Later that night, St. Francis families gathered in the Glynn Center for a potluck dinner hosted by the Catholic Identity Committee that included prayer, an encounter with the characters of the Nativity story, and spiritual activities.
On Friday morning, the Campus Ministry group led an Advent prayer service during community prayer. The previous Friday, St. Francis of Assisi hosted a dance for middle school students from local Catholic schools. Under the glow of Christmas lights and the sound of music pumped out by the DJ, the students celebrated the Christmas season by singing and dancing. Many of these activities were made possible by parents who generously gave their time and talent to plan and execute Santa's Secret Shop, the Family Advent Evening, and the junior high dance. My thanks to the students, parents and staff who brought these fun and meaningful activities to life for our students and their families.
I am very happy to share news about a wonderful example of how the St. Francis School community demonstrated the true meaning of Christmas. Last Monday, I sent word to the school community about the need for assistance with the Adopt a Family program at Santa Clara Church. I received notification that all of the remaining families have been adopted and that the St. Francis families played a huge part on making that happen. Thank to all those who will help make Christmas very special for these families in need. We work, play, and pray together AND we support those in need. That is what makes our community very special. This is the spirit of St. Francis.
We hope that these activities and the many time-honored traditions at home will help our families engage more fruitfully in the seasons of Advent and Christmas. May our hearts be open to the surprising ways God will speak to us and appear to us in these days leading up to Christmas.
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| Musical Production, "Aladdin Jr." |
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St. Francis of Assisi Catholic School will be presenting its second musical production, Aladdin Jr., this February. We will be hosting a parent night on Monday, December 18 at 6:30 pm. Auditions will begin Tuesday, December 19. The production will be managed by Stagelight Family Productions and will be held at the Servite Theatre.
We are excited to branch out and offer a new way for our students to be exposed to performing arts. No theater experience is necessary to participate. All students will be given a role. Thank you for your support as we launch our second production.
Registration Forms are available in the office now and downloadable. Scholarships are available so that everyone who wants to participate can be in the production.
Musical Production Schedule
Student Behavior Contract
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 Our annual Auction Gala is the largest fundraising event of the year. This exciting affair is open to all school and parish families. In addition to raising money to support our school, it is a great evening of fun and friends. The 2018 Auction Gala is set for Saturday, March 10, 2018 at the Hilton Hotel in Costa Mesa, CA.
As we prepare for this event, we need your help!
Please consider making a donation to our school's largest fundraising event and take advantage of one final opportunity for a tax write off in 2017. Your gift can make a difference for our students!
Below are samples of the types of items you or your business can donate to ensure a high level of bidding participation:
- Technology - i.e., wireless headphones, Google Home or Amazon Echo, Apple Watch Series 2, drone, Fitbit, bluetooth speakers, GoPro
- Access to timeshares or vacation homes - i.e., Big Bear, Mammoth and Palm Springs or other desirable locations
- Rounds of golf at a country club
- Tickets to sporting events, theater and/or cultural events - i.e., Ducks, Angels, Dodgers, Lakers, South Coast Repertory Theatre and Pantages Theater tickets
- Gift certificates to restaurants or department stores - i.e., The American Girl Store, Nordstrom, Macy's, William-Sonoma, etc
- Passes to Legoland, Disneyland, SeaWorld or Knott's Berry Farm
Please contact Sherry Shandra at sherryshandra@gmail.com for more information! |
| Reminder: Parking Lot Rules |
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With the upcoming class programs and parties, we wanted to remind everyone to please follow the parking lots rules: DO NOT PARK IN THE RED ZONES and DO NOT DOUBLE PARK. The only exceptions are when making a delivery and when directed to park temporarily in the red zone during pick up.
We need your cooperation and support to ensure emergency vehicle access. Our kids, staff, and visitors deserve everyone's cooperation.
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| The Innovation Center computer lab is open for students in 3rd - 8th grade to work on ALEKS, Mathletics or Reflex on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 2:50 - 3:30 pm. Students must be picked up promptly at 3:30 pm. or they will be sent to daycare. |
| Parenting in A Digital World |
Please join us
tonight
at 6:30 pm
to learn how to keep our children safe online, protect their online reputations, and avoid the pitfalls that limit a student's options to future college admissions or career pursuits, Speaker: Sergeant Clayton Cranford, author of
Parenting in a Digital World.
Kidsitting is available in the daycare room for K-7th grade students and donations go towards our 8th grade East Coast Trip.
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Flyers and registration materials for our afterschool enrichment programs went out in last week's Thursday Folders. We are excited to offer several interesting classes this session. Further details and downloadable forms can be found on our website:
Student Life>Enrichment
Session Two (8 weeks divided into two 4 week blocks):
November 27 - December 22
January 8 - February 2
NOTE: No School on Friday, 1/12 and Monday, 1/15 (MLK Holiday)
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Logic Club is cancelled for the remainder of December. However, starting in January, Logic Club will be split into two separate after school programs. We will have Logic Club the second and fourth Monday of every month. Then we will also be having Logic Academic Decathlon (A.D.) that will be every Thursday in the Innovation Center.
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Order Your Yearbook Today!
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Online ordering of 2017 - 2018 Yearbooks is open! The cost if ordered today is now
$45.00.
Order now to avoid the final price increase!
The final date to personalize yearbooks is January 31, 2018. The final date to order yearbooks online is May 14, 2018.
Click
here to place your order!
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| Friday, December 15- is Pre-K Christmas Program: Pre-K C starts at 9 am. Pre-K A&B starts at 10 am. |
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Please turn in ALL items to Coach Blake by
Wednesday, December 20:
1. Signed introduction letter
2. Emergency Cards (Only if your son/daughter didn't play a Fall sport.)
3. Athletic Handbook Agreement
4. Sports Fee ($95 for first season players/$85 if son/daughter played a Fall sport.)
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Our 8th grade class is hosting a Christmas wrap this week
to help make your holiday season easier! It will be available every day from 3:00 to 4:00 pm. All proceeds will benefit the 8th Grade East Coast trip this Spring.
Please come and drop off anything that you need to be
gift wrapped
for Christmas. Bring your list of items and within an hour your items will be ready to be put under your tree! You can check off your items and inspect them at
pick them up. Donations are encouraged.
For more information click HERE.
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Below is an order form for DC Dining for Trimester 2 at St. Francis. You may fill out the entire form at once, or print and order on a weekly basis. If you are ordering weekly, please be sure to turn the form and payment in to the office by Monday of the week you are ordering a meal. Next week we are serving Raising Cane's.
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AmazonSmile is a simple and automatic way for you to support our school every time you shop, at no cost to you. When you shop at
smile.amazon.com
, you'll find the exact same low prices, vast selection and convenient shopping experience as Amazon.com, with the added bonus that Amazon will donate 0.5% of the price of eligible purchases to St. Francis of Assisi Catholic School. Simply click here to begin shopping through AmazonSmile.
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| Be a Classroom Treasurer! |
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Plans for the 20th annual auction, Charting the Course, are underway. In the past we have asked each class to create a Class Project that would then be auctioned off to the highest bidder. This year we have chosen to introduce "Classroom Treasures". Each classroom will put together a beautifully themed basket to be auctioned off at our Gala event. We need your help to create these beautiful themed baskets. If you have always wanted to volunteer and the thought of creating a "project" intimidated you, this is the perfect class role for you. We have plenty of classrooms still looking to help steer our "treasured baskets" into the right direction.
Please reach out to your child's teacher or go to your teacher's
signup.com home page to volunteer for this fun role.
Please reach out to Tawna Khamo at Tawna.khamo@gmail.com for additional questions or to join.
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Santa Clara de Asis - Children's Faith Formation
Volunteers Needed! |
| Mater Dei High School- Upcoming Events |
1. Early Qualification
Mater Dei is accepting Early Qualifications for the 2018-2019 school year. The deadline to qualify for acceptance before taking the Entrance Exam is today, Wednesday, December 13. 
For more information, please click:
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| Santa Margarita Catholic High School Upcoming Events |
For more information please click:
2. Christmas Shopping Promotion!
Attention Parents of 8th Grade Students: If you are interested in Santa Margarita Catholic High School and you submit your application prior to
December 14 you will be entered in a drawing to win a $50 gift card to the Santa Margarita campus store. There will be 10 lucky winners, and all applicants will be entered whether you applied back in September or by
December 14. Applying early is a big help to your 8th grade teachers, giving them more time with the letters of recommendation.
All applications to Santa Margarita Catholic High School can be submitted online from their website at
www.smhs.org
and go under the Admissions Tab. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to contact the SMCHS Admissions Department at
949-766-6076
.
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Servite High School - Upcoming Events
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For students interested in experiencing Servite first-hand, a
Shadow Day
can be arranged. This gives them a glimpse of "a day in the life of a Friar." They do this by attending classes, exploring our campus, and spending break and lunch with their host. A brief presentation and campus tour is also offered for interested parents once the Shadow students head to their first class around 9:00 am. You may sign up by completing an inquiry form
HERE
.
2. Application Process
Servite High School is accepting applications for the Fall of 2018. You may find details regarding the Application process by clicking
HERE
.
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