October 1, 2020 - News & Notes
From The Desk Of Principal Kerr
Happy Marathon Week St. Michael Families!

This school year I am feeling particularly thankful for each school day we are privileged to complete. This week we marked the completion of 10% of our school year! I guess that is a happy consequence of the strange times we live in - remembering to be thankful for each day!

Tomorrow is our Marathon Day of Service followed by a drive-through celebration (please remember to RSVP and decorate your car with school spirit!). I am looking forward to seeing our Blues in action serving our school and parish communities as well as our surrounding neighborhood. They will earn their drive-through dessert with good old-fashioned hard work.

Our pledge money has been coming in strong, and there is still time to get it turned in and counted toward prizes. We celebrated our week two milestones on Tuesday. Any student who had turned in at least $100 had a chance to spin the prize wheel. I happened to be in one of the kindergarten rooms when the kids realized the prize wheel was coming down the hall. It was quite the hit, and caused quite a commotion! Thank you Mrs. Zalusky, the kids had a ball!

Our top six classes earned an ice cream party this week:
Ms. Kaczmarek’s fifth grade finished in 1st place
Mrs. Bollig’s kindergarten in 2nd
Mr. Olson’s second grade in 3rd place
Mrs. DeGross’s third grade in 4th place
Mrs. Disher’s sixth grade in 5th place
AND Mr. Amundson’s fourth grade in 6th place

On Wednesday our kindergarten through third graders had their first Mass in Church, while the fourth through eighth graders watched via livestream in their classrooms. Father Tom’s homily was about how we can follow Jesus, and he got some great answers from the students. Jesus demonstrated again and again how we are to love God through our love and care for all people. The Marathon service projects are a great way to practice that love and care.

This was a big week for feast days, with our own St. Michael the Archangel celebrated on Tuesday along with Gabriel and Raphael of course, St. Jerome on Wednesday, Therese of Lisieux today, and the Guardian Angels tomorrow (nice timing for our Marathon day!).

This week our students are finishing up their NWEA MAP assessments, and the faculty is looking forward to seeing how the scores will compare to last fall. We expect they will seem a bit “off” after the abrupt end to in-person learning last year. These assessments give us a snapshot that is used along with classroom assessments and observations by our knowledgeable educators to determine where the kids are, and where they need to go next. Our children are in great hands!
The teachers and I have been discussing how to do parent conferences this year. They strongly feel it is better to meet in person, so we will be sending up a sign up genius with time slots available on the evenings of Tuesday, October 20 and Thursday, October 22 between 3:00 and 7:00. We will practice our mitigation procedures, but also understand if parents feel safer with a virtual conference. Please contact your child’s teacher via email if you prefer a virtual conference this fall. We will use the sign-up for in person conferences only.

See you tomorrow at the drive-through family fun night; God bless your families, and go Blues!

Mrs. Kerr
JOIN US FOR THE PTO MEETING TONIGHT!
PTO Meeting - Oct 1, 6:30-7:30pm

Join us on Thursday, Oct 1, for our next PTO Meeting, as we discuss the new school year along with a special focus on new families. Guest speakers include Mrs. Peterson, Mrs. Power and Principal, Mrs. Kerr. 
All parents/guardians are encouraged to attend virtually or in person in the multi-purpose room.  

To attend virtually, go to this link - https://meet.google.com/dew-toya-joy or download the Google Meet App.

Wednesday Early Release Day

Wednesday Early Dismissal Care & Homework Time - November 2020

Please let us know if your child(ren) will need Wednesday Early Dismissal Care (12:15 - 2:15) in November by completing this form as soon as possible, and no later than Thursday, October 15, 2020. We are offering this for families who do not have other options available for Wednesday afternoons. If you are able to have your child come home at 12:15, please do so, as the teachers are finding the Wednesday afternoon planning especially necessary this year.

If you are picking up your child before 2:15, we ask that you call the office so that one of our staff members can bring your child safely to their car line pickup zone.

In order to ensure proper staffing and the safety of all students we request no late enrollment.

Please complete one form per student.

Please note there is no school on November 26.

In order to ensure proper staffing and the safety of all students we request no late enrollment.

Marathon Service Project Pictures Wanted!
We love to see our students in action! Email us a picture of your child working on a service project, and we will display it in the multi-purpose room!

6th through 8th grade - Yearbook Committee


All 6th-8th graders are welcome to join the yearbook committee at St. Mike's!

The first meeting will be held on Thursday, October 22nd after school 2:30 - 3:30pm in room 231A (across from the art room)

Please join us to find out more details and hear about the future meeting schedule.
4th through 8th grade - Band
Band started this Tuesday at St. Mike's! We are so excited to be playing music in person together again. We are taking precautions to ensure that we are playing together safely.

It is not too late to join band! Registration is here: https://www.88notesmusic.com/sign-up-for-band.html

Please refer any questions to band director Laura Thompson at concertbands.88notes@gmail.com.
Lunch Orders
Please take care when ordering school lunches to submit only one order per child. Order Forms will be emailed Thursday mornings at 10:00, and are due at 10:00 Monday mornings. A reminder email is sent out on Sunday mornings.
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We Need Your Help!
LUNCH AND RECESS VOLUNTEERS NEEDED:
We still have many empty spots to fill; your help is needed!

  • Lunchroom and kitchen every day from 10:30am - 12:45pm. If you are available midday, please sign up using the Sign-Up Genius button below.
  • Recess from 11:10am - 1:10. Please use the Sign-up Genius button below.

All volunteers must be up to date on Virtus training. See section below for more information. Please visit virtusonline.org to log in or to create and account and complete the required steps to be a volunteer.
VOLUNTEERS NEEDED TO SANITIZE CHURCH

We are looking for volunteers to sanitize the church after school Masses on Wednesdays. If you are able to help please click on the link below to sign-up.
We're Hiring!
Lunchroom Helper
Lunchroom helper wanted for scanning barcodes for student lunches and washing tables in between lunch groups . Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, 10:30 am - 12:45 pm. Wednesdays 10:30 am - 12:00. 10 ½ Hours Per Week.

For more information or to apply please contact Sue Kerr at (952)447-2124 or kerr@saintmpl.org
Preschool Substitutes Needed
Faithful Beginnings Preschool at St. Michael Catholic Church is looking for qualified subs for the upcoming 2020-2021 school year.

Substitutes are required to have the following in order to sub in preschool:
 -Essential 3 through the Archdiocese
  -DHS background study and fingerprints
  -Pediatric first aid/CPR
  -Child development training
  -Orientation/policies/procedures/allergies
  -Abusive Head Trauma
  -Cultural training
  -Disability training

Full job description available by contacting our Preschool Director Ashely Lind. To apply, please send your resume to ashleylind@saintmpl.org