May 8, 2020 - News & Notes
Dear St. Michael Catholic School Families:
Happy Mother's Day Weekend! As we honor you, and during the month of May, Mary, we invite all families to come to the school "Mary Garden" for a prayer any time during the month of May. The garden is located outside between the multipurpose room and gymnasium, just walk down the outdoor sidewalk by the playground. Families may say a prayer, bring flowers, and celebrate Mary along with all mothers. We will be sharing a special, Mary Crowning on social media with all of you next week. Thank you for all you do as a mother, and thank you for honoring Mary. (If you arrive to the garden and another family is there, kindly wait until they leave.)

END OF SCHOOL YEAR TIMELINE: Our staff and SAC have adapted our end-of-year with the following timeline. We will miss not hugging our students goodbye and hope to plan a late summer gathering when we can be together, again. Until then, here are the plans for ending our year:
  • May 21: Last day for student assignments
  • May 25: Memorial Day - NO SCHOOL
  • May 26-28: Prek-Grade 5 closing conferences (If you would like an end of year conference, your teacher will be reaching out to schedule this with you.) Middle School will be scheduling all-class online gatherings.
  • May 27-3 p.m.: Final date and time to accept assignments or redo a test/assignment.
  • May 29: Preschool pick up parade (pick up yearbooks, clothing or any items left at school or return any library books) Details to come.
  • June 1-3: Final K-8 school drop off and pick up- Come to school to pick up yearbooks, certificates, clothing left at school and return library books and technology devices. Please come on the day assigned by your last name. You will be able to go into the building, clean out lockers and pick up items on your child's desk/locker:
  • June 1: A-G (10-4 p.m.)
  • June 2: H-P (10-4 p.m.)
  • June 3: Q-Z (10-4 p.m.)
**If you cannot make your time noted above, please come on an alternate day and time. If you need to come earlier or later, please email me at: reeder@saintmpl.org

GRADUATION-June 3: We have two plans in place that include social distancing and special events. As we draw closer to our date, details will be shared!

SUMMER CARE : Our summer preschool and Adventure's Plus (AP) staff continue to finalize details for an adapted summer program following MDE and CDC guidelines. Here are the dates and times the program will run. Register if you have not already. Please note, registration is limited.
  • June 8-June 26: Session 1
  • Off June 29-July 10
  • July 16-August 21: Session 2
  • Times: 8-3:30 (Drop off between 8-8:30 a.m.)
Specific information about drop off and pick up will be shared by our AP and preschool director as we have to adapt all procedures to meet safety guidelines. We will not be able to be as flexible with drop off and pick up times due to regulations. We look forward to seeing you this summer!

United in Christ : Continue to join our school in daily prayer during BNN announcements, weekly live streaming St. Michael Church Masses, and with the Diocese in various offerings. Here is the link the parish Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/StMichaelCatholicChurchPL/

KUDOS: To Lucia Draine, one of our 8th grade students, for creating joyful BNN announcements this week!

Blessings,  Mindy Reeder Principal   reeder@saintmpl.org  
St. Michael Catholic School student, Caleb, enjoys the weekly "dress days" while online learning, comfortable coming to class in his pajamas!

 POSITIVITY PROJECT
Week 34: Other People Matter


  • Calendar
  • St. Michael Preschool to Grade 5 Summer Care Sign up 
  • Picture Challenges

Parent Link:  Growth Mindset

IMPORTANT PHONE NUMBERS:
Absent: 952-447-2230
School fax: 952-447-2132
Federal tax ID: 41-086790

 School Calendar:  



SUMMER TUTORING :
Kelley DeGross- degross@saintmpl.org
Deanna Vochoska- vochoska@saintmpl.org


#inthistogether
#everykideveryday
#stmplproud
#stmplexcellence



CSCOE BASH
Did you miss the CSCOE Bash? They still seek additional donations to support area Catholic Schools. Please look:


School Week Ahead : May 10-15

  • Sunday, May 10 - Happy Mother's Day from all St. Michael's teachers and staff!
  • Thursday, May 14: Silly glasses day! Join classes with "sun glasses or silly glasses, or tie ribbons to your glasses!" Of course, we love photos from our students.
  • Friday, May 15: Homework is due at 3 p.m.

Specialist Links for Preschool-Grade 8:
Art
  • Grades K-5:  If you haven't turned in your Service Marathon t-shirt design, please do so as soon as possible. Students will begin a special work of art that will be displayed for our 8th graders as they graduate from St. Michael School. Please check Seesaw (K-4) and Google Classroom (5) on Monday morning for the details and due date for this assignment.  
  • Grades 6-7:  If you haven't turned in your Service Marathon t-shirt design, please do so as soon as possible. Students will begin a special work of art that will be displayed for our 8th graders as they graduate from St. Michael School. Please check Google Classroom on Monday morning for the details and due date for this assignment.   
  • Grade 8: Students will begin a typography work of art that will be displayed in a special way at St. Michael School. Please check Google Classroom on Monday morning for the details and due date for this assignment.  
MUSIC
  • Grades PreK-5: Students will make their third choice on the Music Choice Board, mastering that ONE lesson this week. After practicing the lesson several times, make a recording, send a picture, or write something sharing what they learned this week into their SeeSaw or Google Classroom by Friday, May 15. Be sure to include what choice was made this week when sharing the video, picture or writing. I LOVE seeing the smiles and laughter in the pictures and videos each week! Keep up the good work.
  • MONDAY MUSIC CHALLENGES (Grades 6-8): Each Monday throughout the quarter, a Monday Music Challenge has been posted for the week. Although optional, students have been encouraged to complete the challenge for extra credit points. These challenges are retroactive so there's still time to get those extra points toward music grades!
  • Grades 6-7: Students continue their study of Music Appreciation by listening to one song performed in 3 different styles/genres. They will then compare and contrast the three styles.
  • Grade 8: Students will complete their study of the History of Rock and Roll by choosing a decade of music between 1980-present that they are most interested in researching. They will have 2 weeks to research and complete this assignment. Each student will choose their presentation format either video, google slides, essay, artist performance, or other. Creativity is encouraged for extra points!
PHYSICAL EDUCATION
  • Prek-2: Next week would have been our Fitness Week for us, so I challenge you to get out and RUN for 4 MINUTES straight!!! You can choose to run for 4 minutes or do another square from the exercise board. Remember just one activity per week is required. More details will be in seesaw. 
  • Grades 3-5: Next week would have been our Fitness Week for us, so I challenge you to get out and RUN for 8 MINUTES straight!!! Remember in the 8 minutes, I challenge you to try to get a MILE in those 8 minutes! You can choose to run the 8 minute run or do another square from the exercise board. Remember just one activity per week is required. More details will be in seesaw/google classroom (for 5th grade). 
  • MIDDLE SCHOOL: Quarter 4 would have brought units like jump roping, golf, wiffle ball and flag football. This week I challenge you to try to get outside and work on some of these skills. See google classroom for more details on how this will be done! 

ONLINE LINKS:

K-6th Grade Quarter 3 Awards
Weekly Pictures with our Students and Staff!
PARENT TEACHER ORGANIZATION-We Need You!
As part of our restructure of the PTO, we are in need of leadership and team members for our Faculty Appreciation Team. We also need team members for our Parent Enrichment and Event Team. Planning for the 2020-2021 school year will begin this summer. Please contact Maggie Stack at  mmstack4@gmail.com  or 952-452-3485 with any questions.
SCHOOL ADVISORY COUNCIL SEEKS MEMBERS
The St. Michael Catholic School School Advisory Council provides guidance and leadership for the vision of the school, supporting leadership, teachers and staff as we continue to plan for excellence. All applications are due May 8, 2020. You can complete the online google form, or download and email your application to our School Advisory Council Chair, Molli O'Halloran.

CONGRATULATIONS TO ZACK SEVCIK!
Zack Sevcik was chosen to be on Team USA!

He will be part of next winter’s junior
national luge development team! Way to go, Zack!

MENTAL HEALTH & SPIRITUAL SUPPORT
Mental Health Support: Please be aware that at this time our children are also feeling the anxiety of all that is happening around them. While school is closed, a routine is a healthy way of structuring your days. Included scheduled time for school work, outdoor play, free-choice reading, unstructured play and rest time. Address children's questions directly and honestly. Continuing with regular bed and meal times is also helpful. Limit exposure to media and screen time as well. Our School Counselor : Dr. Keri Brenden

Additional resources that you may find helpful:

Additionally, as a parent at this time, you need support. Here are parent support resources:

Act of Spiritual Communion
My Jesus,
I believe that You
are present in the Most Holy Sacrament.
I love You above all things,
and I desire to receive You into my soul.
Since I cannot at this moment
receive You sacramentally,
come at least spiritually into my heart.
I embrace You as if You were already there
and unite myself wholly to You.
Never permit me to be separated from You.
Amen.
©2012 EWTN. Used with permission.

Join the parish in prayer, spiritual communion and virtual Mass
through Facebook or the parish YouTube channel.

TOGETHER FAMILY RETREAT NOW AVAILABLE:
This simple retreat for families is to be done at home, with activity choices that cater to older or younger children. The suggested date is Saturday, May 9, but can be done anytime. Written and compiled by Andrew and Coreen Wagenbach from St. Paul, the retreat is dedicated to the renewal of family life during this time of quarantine and uncertainty. The Retreat Guide along with promotional materials can be found at: archspm.org/familyretreat .
REGISTER FOR SUMMER CARE-PreK to Grade 5
Dear St. Michael's Parents and Students,

I am saddened to inform you that St. Michael’s Basketball Camp 2020 has been canceled. I will sincerely miss all of the fun and excitement of seeing all our students at camp, and especially watching our 8 th  grade Camp Counselors in action. I wish everyone a great, healthy, and safe summer while enjoying time with family!

Sincerely, Mr. Olson
SUMMER CARE : We know we are all experiencing uncertain times and it's hard to know what the future will hold, but we wanted to share that St. Michael Catholic School plans to offer our summer programming for both preschool and Summer Adventure's Plus (SAP). Staff are researching best practices outlined by the Archdiocese and the State of Minnesota to ensure everyone's safety while still providing this care including, but not limited to, cleaning standards, check in process, illness procedures, class sizes and structures.

We look forward to offering a rich summer program and are praying that with the proper guidelines in place, we will be here to serve your family with your summer care needs.

SCHOOL AGE: CLICK HERE for more information

Click on the Preschool Summer Care graphic
for preschool summer information.