Congratulations to our grade 6-8 volleyball teams for their valiant efforts in the CYO playoffs. Our 8th grade boys made it the farthest - they went all the way to the finals before falling!  
          It's now Track and Field season, and the Charger Track team invites you to come cheer them to victory. The grade 4-8 St. Louise Track Team runs, jumps, and throws at the following meets this spring:

• May 6^th and May 13^th track meets will be at Renton Stadium, which offers great stands with rain cover. Time TBA.
• May 14^th is the 8^th grade Pentathlon. It's at West Seattle Stadium at 12:30pm.
• May 20^th and June 3^rd will both be at Highline Stadium in Burien. Highline has great stands with rain cover and plenty of parking. Time TBA.

Thanks to coaches Paul Krawczyk, Tony Calacat, Amy Wilken, and Lauren Samson!

St. Louise Students "Expected" to Be Active Christians

          Student Learning Expectations - SLEs - are expectations that our students should know, understand, value, and be able to do by the time they graduate from St. Louise School. Each month, one or two different SLEs are focused on school-wide. Mr. Fitzpatrick announces to all the students the "SLE(s) of the Month" on a Monday intercom announcement at the beginning of each month. The students and their teachers then discuss the meaning of the SLE and come up with examples of how this expectation could be practiced, observed, and realized. They then work all month on improving their knowledge and understanding of this learning expectation, and some grade levels are even able to achieve it later that month or later in the year. Other grade levels will need more years of practice before they can confidently confirm they can satisfy this objective. At the end of the month, each class informs Mr. Fitz what their class did that demonstrated the SLE(s) was accomplished, or is being initially worked on and hopefully will be achieved in the future.

          Throughout the month of April, schoolwide we have focused on this Student Learning Expectations:  SLE #1.1 - " A St. Louise student is an active Christian who seeks to develop a personal relationship with God as demonstrated by living out Gospel values and participating in liturgies, sacraments, and daily prayer." A few of these classrooms' reports to Mr. Fitz are highlighted below.

          Mrs. Talevich's and Mrs. Cervantes' 5th graders demonstrate that they constantly seek to develop a personal relationship with God as they weekly have a meditation time in religion class. Furthermore, they participate in Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament throughout the year, going over to the parish chapel at the parish center and spending silent time with the Lord.

          Pre-K had a special washing-of-the-feet activity in April which really helped the preschoolers connect to the events of Holy Week and Jesus' call for us to take care of one another, as he takes care of us.  It was explained to the preschoolers that in Jerusalem during Jesus' time, it was dry and dusty, and people wore sandals and walked through dusty streets.  Naturally, their feet got dirty.  Since none of our Pre-K kids walked to school in sandals along dusty streets that day, they got their feet "dirty" by having them painted brown with washable paint.  Then Mrs. Salmon washed their feet for them as she told the story of the very first Holy Thursday and Jesus' words to the first Apostles: "And now that I have washed your feet, you can also wash one another's feet" (John 13:14).  By participating in this activity on Wednesday of Holy Week, when the preschool class joined the school for the Holy Thursday liturgy, the kids already had background experience with the Gospel story and its meaning.

          The 3rd graders demonstrated an understanding of SLE #1.1 in a variety of ways. First, they spent the entire Lenten season completing their "Daily Lent" workbooks, which allowed them time to reflect on various Bible verses and answer thought provoking questions every day in religion class. Together with their kindergarten buddies, Mrs. Berlin's and Miss Etter's students also created a special Lenten cross that had various small squares with activities on it. Examples of the activities written on the squares included, "Write a letter to your grandparents today" or "Eat no sweets today." The kids then shaded in each square daily as they completed it, and proudly returned the finished products back to class on Holy Thursday. Both 3rd grade classes also read the wonderful Christ-connected novel, The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe, and spent a lot of time discussing and completing activities that related to the Christian symbolism found in the book. During Holy Week, the third graders' homework was to create a reverent rendition of and original prayer relating to a specific Station of the Cross. These can be seen outside the 3A and 3B classrooms in the hallway.

          Our 4th graders are active Christians who participate in daily prayer. At the beginning of every morning, they read from a daily devotional that contains a Bible verse and an explanation on how the verse is relatable for children.  Mrs. Danforth or Mrs. Scruggs will then ask a question on how the students can relate this verse to their lives.  At the end of the day, when gathering around their class prayer table to pray, the 4th graders who have signed up will read a Bible verses of their choosing to begin their afternoon prayer time.  A quick discussion is given to reinforce the verse.  As their hearts are now ready for prayer, the 4A and 4B students then pray and say spontaneous prayer intentions or read special intentions from their "Book of Prayers." The 4th graders' daily prayer is concluded with reciting a Bible verse that is posted in the room. 

Miss Casey's 2nd graders participated in the Holy Thursday Liturgy last month in front of the entire school, acting out the Last Supper in the role of the 12 Apostles, with Fr. Fabian in the role of Jesus.

         

          Finally, Mrs. Cole wanted to point out that in many St. Louise grade level science classes, students work with their teachers' guidance to understand the intricacies, marvels, and order of God's creation as expressed in the Laws of Physics, Chemistry and Astronomy.

          The expectation that a St. Louise Student will be an active Christian doesn't end in April, but our spotlight on this particular SLE will end for now. Instead, with the new month will be a new focus. Throughout the month of May, schoolwide we will highlight this Student Learning Expectation: SLE #2.2 - " A St. Louise student is a life-long learner who communicates effectively through writing, speaking, and listening."

Scarves Up! Register today for the ANNUAL ST. LOUISE MOTHER/SON EVENT SUNDAY, JUNE 4, 5:30PM We are so excited for our annual Mother/Son event this year! Get ready to cheer on the Sounders to victory as they play the Houston Dynamo on Sunday, June 4. Our event begins at 5:30 p.m. and includes a catered dinner of hamburgers, hot dogs, and all the fixins' in one of the Sounders Lofts!  Come early so you can eat and get your pictures taken before the game!  Game time begins at 7, as we will head to our seats after dinner.     Register online NOW, as seats are limited. The final deadline in Friday, May 19.  We do have a minimum number of tickets to sell, so early registration is much appreciated! Click on the "Give a New Gift" link HERE  to register. Then select "Mother/Son event" and list the names of all your family's attendees for whom you're purchasing tickets (and feel free to add in the comments-section the names of one or two families you would like to sit near). We look forward to seeing you on the pitch! If you have any questions, please email Social Activities co-chairs, Teresa Brosche & Rebecca Ort.

 

Both 6^th grade classes combined their talents to create in Mrs. Walker's art class this abstract piece of art entitled "Stand Your Ground." Together they focused on the use of symbolism in art and chose to trace their shoe prints in repetition, symbolizing their community and working together for a common goal. Each student also wrote a paragraph describing their thoughts on whether one should protest the injustice seen in the world today. A common theme of standing up for your beliefs was written by many, thus inspiring the title of the piece. These paragraphs were then cut apart and transformed into the words shown above -  Stand Your Ground - combining the students' views into one voice. The 6th graders also discussed the emotion and power that can emulate from color, and chose a palette of cool tones to represent peace and calm, strong characteristics agreed upon by the students that are needed when reacting to injustice.

All of this art work followed earlier social studies lessons in Mrs. Patterson's classes related to the Holocaust and prejudices against Jews. This art piece was entered in The Holocaust Center for Humanity's Writing, Art, and Film Contest.  This contest had as its basic prompt a quote from Elie Wiesel: "There may be times when we are powerless to prevent injustice, but there must never be a time when we fail to protest."

 

Good luck in the contest, sixth graders! What great work you've done, and great lessons you've learned!

 

The Washington Branch of the International Dyslexia Association (WABIDA) is excited to host the final lecture in their 2016-2017 lecture series right here at St. Louise School in 10 days!

 

Up to one in five individuals may show symptoms of dyslexia, such as difficulty learning to speak, learning letters and their sounds, organizing written and spoken language, memorizing number facts, spelling, and learning a foreign language. Dr. Jason Yeatman of the University of Washington will present on what science can teach us about reading, brain development, and dyslexia.

 

All St. Louise parents and friends are invited to this presentation in our school library. A suggested donation helps to ensure WABIDA can continue to offer education and resources to the community. Please contact info@wabida.org for more information.