"The Messenger"


               March 6, 2020
      Vol. VII, No. 29
St. Michael's Academy
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St. Michael's Academy 
 :

It was a fairly quiet week at St. Michael's Academy as our students were busy taking the Iowa tests. The testing will continue through next week. Thank you for helping to prepare your child to do their best.

Just a reminder that there will be no school next Friday as we will have our second round of parent/teacher conferences. It is sometimes helpful to prepare your thoughts for your child's teacher ahead of time. This helps the conference to be more productive and the schedule to run smoothly. 

And finally there has been a lot in the news about the Coronavirus and its spread around the world.  Please see the letter from S uperintendent of Catholic Schools, Dr. Daniel Baillargeon, farther down in this newsletter. In the unlikely event that diocesan schools should need to take further action, please be assured that the diocese has a plan in place for such an occasion.

Enjoy a nice weekend.
 
Peace and God's blessings,
 
Ms. Ann E. Dougal
Principal

  Important Dates
 
Please Make A Note Of These Important Dates

Banking every Wednesday
Violin every Thursday - Grade 2

March 9, 2020 through March 12, 2020
Iowa Testing Continues
Grades 3-7

Thursday, March 12, 2020 at 9:30 a.m.
Grade 8 Grandparent Breakfast

Thursday, March 12, 2020 at 9:30 6 p.m.
Spelling Bee Competition - GO SMA!
St. Mary's Academy - Longmeadow

Friday, March 13, 2020 
Parent/Teacher Conferences
NO SCHOOL



Please remember to attend Church as a family!

Diocesan Office 


From The Superintendent's Office

March 6, 2020

Dear Catholic School Families:

May God's peace be with you. It is not a surprise that we are writing to you regarding the news about COVID-19, also known as "Coronavirus." According to the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ("CDC"), most people in the United States will have little immediate risk of exposure to this virus, and it is not currently spreading widely in the United States. 

In the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, there have been three confirmed cases, even though there may be other cases that have not been reported. We will continue to monitor the responses and resources provided by the CDC, World Health Organization, and Massachusetts Department of Health. As we receive information, we will communicate with all of you in a way that is factual and compassionate.

If you have travel plans, you should monitor the CDC travel advisories to stay informed about the travel itineraries that present a higher risk of contracting COVID-19 in returning travelers. If you will be traveling to high-risk areas, please contact your principal. Good communication will benefit all students, faculty, staff, and our communities.

There are recommended actions from health-care advisors and the CDC that all of us can take to help prevent the spread of viruses such as colds, flu, and in this case COVID-19:
  • Keep your student home when he or she is ill and contact a health care provider if you or your student have symptoms, especially fever, cough, shortness of breath, difficulty breathing, vomiting, diarrhea, or any contagious illness such as chicken pox, strep throat, or the flu.
  • Teach your child to cover his or her mouth and nose when coughing and sneezing.
  • Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. If soap and water are not available, use an alcohol-based hand rub.
  • Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth - germs spread this way.
  • Clean and disinfect surfaces and objects frequently touched. We will be increasing the cleaning of door knobs/panels, handrails, and similar surfaces in the school and encourage you to do the same at home, especially if someone in your home has been sick.
  • Avoid sharing drinking glasses, utensils, dishes, towels, or other items.
  • Avoid close contact with people who are sick whenever possible.
  • Practice healthy habits and encourage your children to do the same - get plenty of sleep, drink plenty of fluids, be physically active, and eat healthy.
 
To learn more, visit:
 
We also have been in contact with schools to provide resources and support in the case the virus spreads in the community.

At the end of the day, our trust is in the Lord. Please join our office in praying for those suffering in mind, body, and spirit. Pray as well for those who are suffering from sickness as well as those whose burdens of anxiety and stress are very heavy. Thank you in advance for your help as we work together to ensure student and staff safety in all of our Catholic schools. We pray that Jesus guides the hands of those working in health-care and supports as well as those working to find cures to these diseases.
 
In Christ through Mary,

Daniel R. Baillargeon
Superintendent of Schools
Diocese of Springfield, MA

 
Perfect Attendance

 
Good Attendance Pays Off ! 

Congratulations to our perfect attendance dress-down winners! In order to qualify for the weekly drawing, a student must have no absences, tardiness or early dismissals the previous week of school. We select one from PreK - 2nd grade, one from 3rd - 5th grade and one from 6th - 8th grade.  Here are our recent winners:

          Carly-Rynn - Gr. 1B                      Maria - Gr. 4A

         Breannah - Gr. 6B          
 
 Lenten Season 
 
Join Us For Part III Of Our Catholic Faith Series




 Registration
 
Registration!

Please remember to send in your registration materials as soon as you are able. Materials were sent home with your child last week and are due back on or before MARCH 27th.

Registrations received after that date will be subject to a higher registration fee. 




From the Classroom of  Mr. Van Dyke - Physical Education 

Transfer of Knowledge
 
This year in PE, we have been wasting no time getting into the swing of things. We started right off where we left off last year and continued skill building. 

We are working on a topic that many of the students here are unfamiliar with - the transfer of knowledge. I just started introducing the topic last year. In short, everything we do in PE, all the games we play, can be split up into four categories of different types. The games inside all the categories are different, but they can all be played using the same skills and concepts. 

For example, one category is Net/Wall games. Games that fall under that category are: Volleyball, Nitro ball, Tennis, Badminton, Wall ball, etc. These games are all different, but many of the core concepts and skills, transfer from one another. We use this to our advantage in PE because we only see our classes once a week. So, to keep peak interest, we change the games up often to give students a wider range of games, while still working on core concepts and skills. Using this method, the students are able to learn and build their skills in all of the games at the same time.



Living Our Mission

Thank You Fr. Savage!

We send out a huge thank you to Fr. Warren Savage for coming to celebrate Mass with us. Fr. Savage spent time with the students talking about the words of Jesus, "Do unto others as you would have others do unto you."  His meaningful words centered around the importance of mercy, love and compassion and how to incorporate them into your everyday life.

And we thank our 8th grade students for hosting the Mass!





Stations of the Cross
 
Grade 6 Leads Stations

We thank your 6th grade students for leading us in the Stations of the Cross today.



Iowa Testing

 Iowa Testing - Continues

Students in grades 3 through 7 will continue to participate in Iowa testing for another week. In case you missed these tips last week, we are running them again:

- Make sure your children have eaten well on test days. Studies suggest that good nutrition is related to improved attention and concentration. 
 
- Help your children by encouraging a good night's rest before exams. Children who are tired will have difficulty focusing on their work. 

- Make the morning of test days pleasant. Stress will impair your children's ability to perform their best. 

- Remind your children to dress comfortably, perhaps in layers, so that they are able to adjust to the temperature in the room. 

- Ensure that your children make it to school on-time so that they do not miss any instructions and are allowed ample time to settle in and relax before the test begins.

- Don't be too anxious about your children's test scores. Although it is important to let them know that the tests should be taken seriously, it is also important not to increase test-taking anxiety. 

- Don't underestimate your influence on your children. Taking an interest in what they are doing at school and helping them prepare for tests will certainly have a positive impact on them! 


Birthday Wishes

 Happy Birthday Dr. Suess!

Some of the PreK students celebrated Dr. Suess's birthday this week!




 News From Grade 3
    
Fun With Oobleck!

And speaking of Dr. Seuss, the 3rd grade students got together and experimented with oobleck!  It is similar to slime but becomes more liquid depending on what it is doing.  It's named for a Dr. Seuss story about a king who asks his magicians to make something new to fall from the sky. They make oobleck which only ends up sticking to everything and everyone!  

We thought we'd share some pictures from the making of and the playing with oobleck!




 Art Display
   
Getting Ready For Some Art Creativity!

Next week is the week!  Why you ask? Because all next week, St. Michael's Academy will have an Art Show displaying the creativity of all of the St. Michael's Academy students! It will be displayed throughout the building.

Feel free to browse the artwork when you attend your parent/ teacher conference on Friday, March 13th!


Girls on the Run


Attention Girls in Grades 3-5!

      Do you want to:
  • Build confidence and self-esteem
  • Manage stressful emotions
  • Make healthy choices
  • Make connections with other girls
  • Increase physical activity while having fun
  • Run a 5k at the end of the season
  • Practices begin on March 9th!
There are currently 3 slots left - this is your last chance to enroll! Practices begin on Monday!


Bottle and Can Drive
 
  Can And Bottle Drive!
Next Weekend - March 14th!

St. Michael's Academy will be holding another can and bottle drive next weekend so please bring us your cans and bottles!  You will have the opportunity to bring them in during Parent/Teacher conferences on Friday, March 13th or during the drive on  Saturday,  March 14th   between 9 a.m. and noon.
  
Help us earn money for St. Michael's Academy!



 Breakfast and Lunch Menus  

Breakfast and Lunch Menus




  Amazon Smile



How many people shop Amazon? Exactly! 

Here is an easy effortless way to donate to St. Michael's Academy every time you shop online through Amazon. We are encouraging all families to sign up for AmazonSmile because Amazon donates 0.5% of the price of all eligible smile.amazon purchases to eligible charities. Since SMA has already registered with AmazonSmile, we now have our own unique link which you can click on when making a purchase online. This will automatically ask if you want to support St. Michael's Academy so that you can skip the charity selection process.

Our unique AmazonSmile link is https://smile.amazon.com/ch/27-0291815

Please feel free to share this link with other family and friends!

 Parish News


St. Patricks's in Monson and 
St. Christopher's in Brimfield

 
PLEASE JOIN US!

St. Patrick's Church in Monson and St. Christopher's Church in Brimfield invited you to attend its  Lenten Parish Mission, "INTO THE DEPTHS OF GODS COMPASSION."  T he three part series will be held on  March 30, 31, and April 1, 2020 at the following locations:

Monday, March 30: "Deepening in Compassion"
(St. Patrick's)
Tuesday, March 31: "Deepening in Mercy"
(St. Christopher's)
Wednesday, April 1: "Deepening in Mission" 
(St. Patrick's)


The series will be presented  by
Virginia (Ginny) Blass, D MIN

St. Patrick's Parish - 22 Green St., Monson, MA
St. Christopher's Parish -16 Sturbridge Rd. (Rt. 20), 
Brimfield, MA

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St. Catherine of Siena

Corned Beef Dinner Fundraiser! 

St. Catherine of Siena invites you to join them for a corned beef dinner on March 14th in the Parish Center, 1023 Parker St., Springfield from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. 

Dinner includes corned beef, cabbage, carrots, potatoes, dessert and beverage for $7.50 per person. Tickets are available after all Masses and at the Parish Office. Take out is available. 
All proceeds to benefit the Parish.



Also at St. Catherine's


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Holy Cross 

Deacon John Miller and Holy Cross Church invite you to attend a "Catholicism" series on Wednesday evenings during Lent beginning on March 4th. The series will be hosted by Bishop Robert Barron and take place from 7-8 p.m. in the Holy Cross rectory parlor.  

This is a wonderful Lenten formation opportunity!


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Holy Name 

Holy Name Parish in Springfield invites everyone to their Annual Lenten Mission on Saturday, March 7th in the Social Center right after the 4:30 p.m. Mass. Fr. Warren Savage will be presenting, and his topic will be "The Transfiguration". The cost is $10.00 and includes a light supper.  

Tickets will be on sale the weekend of February 22 & 23, and again February 29 & March 1. They are also available at the rectory office Monday-Friday 8:30a.m.-4p.m. Deadline for tickets is Monday, March 2nd. Call 733-5823 with any questions.





Food For Thought
 
"Our true worth does not consist in what human beings think of us. What we really are consists in what God knows us to be."
                                      - St. John Berchmans

Prayer Corner
 

St. Michael the Arch angel, pray for us! 
 
We pray for all St. Michael's Academy students, families, faculty, and staff, and their special intentions:

And we pray for all of our recently departed:

Elizabeth Miller
Chester R. Ardolino
Mildred Billings
Teresa DeCesare
Frank Contuzzi

Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them. May the souls of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen. 



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St. Michael's Academy 
153 Eddywood Street - Springfield, MA 01118
www.smaspringfield.org
413.782.5246 office 
413.782.8137 fax