St. Mark School E-Newsletter

St. Mark School

A 2009 National Blue Ribbon

School of Excellence

St. Mark School is a Christ-centered learning environment that teaches Gospel values and fosters academic excellence. Aware of the dignity and uniqueness of all students, we are committed to the spiritual, intellectual, moral, social, and physical development of each child.

March 18, 2022

Dear St. Mark Families,

We may be unfamiliar with fig trees, but we might know about the growth of spring flowers. Perhaps we have looked at a dry, brown flower bulb and wondered how this produces the colorful tulip or daffodil blossom that we expect to bloom in the spring. Perhaps we've even thought about the patience and hope that are required to plant flower bulbs in October. We don't have to be gardeners, however, to know about patience and hopefulness. As parents, we practice these virtues each day with our children. We may become frustrated and even angered by their willfulness and lack of cooperation. Yet we continue to offer our attention and guidance in hope that one day our efforts will bear fruit. This Sunday's Gospel, Luke 13:1-9, suggests that God is like that with us, working with us in patience and in hope that one day we will show evidence that such work is not in vain.

I wish you all continued good health and God's blessings.

Yours in Christ,

Mrs. Warner

Please do not reply to this email. As a reminder, I have an open door policy for all parents and students. If you ever have any questions and/or concerns, please feel free to reach out to me at any time.

Class Yearbook Photos

As a reminder, class and group yearbook photos will be taken on Tuesday, March 22nd. Please be advised that all students, K-8, must be in regular winter uniform. No dress down passes will be accepted on that date. 8th Grade students will be asked to remove their Class of 2022 or High School sweatshirt for photos.

Basketball team photos will also be taken on Tuesday, March 22nd. Players are asked to please bring their team jersey to school on Tuesday.

From the Nurse's Office

As we transition to a new approach to the management of COVID-19, I would like to remind families to be cognizant of the health of your child. Most importantly, please keep your child home if they feel sick or have any COVID symptoms.

Click here for the updated guidance from the State DPH and CSDE regarding the new approach to COVID-19 management in schools and settings outside of school.

We will continue quarantine/isolation guidance for those individuals who test positive or are not feeling well and are exhibiting symptoms of COVID-19. Please see the chart below for this information and click here to read the guidance in its entirety. Please note that if an individual tests positive for COVID-19 they may return on day 6 as noted below. The individual will need to wear a mask for days 6-10 upon return to school.

Important Reminders

The number of K-8 students coming to school without a lunch or water bottle has increased dramatically over the last few weeks. If you have not ordered a hot lunch, please send your child to school with enough to eat for snack and lunch. Additionally, please ensure your child has a water bottle with them. Water fountains are available for bottle filling only and not individual drinking at this time.

We have been informed by some parents that phone calls from St. Mark School have been filtered or blocked as spam by some cell service providers. Please save the St. Mark School phone number (203) 375-4291 in your cell phone contacts to ensure you receive phone calls and voice mail messages.

Parents are asked to please adhere to the 5mph speed limit in the parking lot during drop off. Our fellow parishioners on their way into daily Mass appreciate your attention to the speed limit.

Congratulations

Congratulations to Stacy Aloi, winner of the HSA Lucky Lotto Basket drawing!

Please join me in congratulating 8th Grader, Skylar Hinton, who's "Keep Christ In Christmas" essay has been chosen as a winner by the Knights of Columbus, Fourth Degree, Gen. Philip H. Sheridan Assembly, No. 107.

Service

Last Friday, students in Grades 7 & 8 stayed after school to create Stations of the Cross bracelets for a student service project. Bracelets, along with a Stations of the Cross prayer card and personalized note from each student have been sent to St. Mark parishioners.

2022-2023 School Registration

Thank you to all the families that have registered for next year. If you have not registered, and wish to reserve your child's spot for next year's class, please do so ASAP by submitting the following:

2022/23 Current Family Registration form
2022/23 Tuition Agreement form, and
Registration fee ($150 for first child and additional $50 for each sibling)

We have begun accepting 22-23 registrations from new families and are conducting tours on a daily basis for prospective families. We expect to have wait lists in multiple grades next year.

IOWA and CogAT

Standardized Testing

IOWA and CogAT standardized testing for Grades 1 through 7 will begin the week of March 21st, 2022. Testing for St. Mark School will be an audio-led computer based test.

Testing environment protocols will begin promptly at 8:15am, Monday through Friday. Please ensure your child is at school and on time during the two week testing window.

Parents in grades 1 through 7 are asked to check in with your child to determine if they have properly working headphones or earbuds at school. If not, please send proper equipment in a ziplocked baggie, labeled with your child's name to school this week.

During testing weeks, teaching and learning will continue on in classrooms. Teachers will keep homework, tests, and quizzes to a minimum during this time.

How your child can prepare for test taking:

A student who is well rested and well fed and has a positive attitude about testing is best prepared for testing. You can help your child do his or her best by considering these tips:

Ensure your child has properly working headphones or earbuds at school.
Make sure your child is in school and on time on test days. Reschedule dentist appointments and other out-of-school time on non-testing days.
Make sure your child gets a good night’s sleep and eats a healthy breakfast before each day of testing.
Remind your child that these tests are only one part of the school day. Emphasize that you have confidence in his or her ability to do the best job possible.
Remind your child to listen carefully to the directions and to each question as it is read aloud during testing. Encourage your student to ask the teacher for help if he or she does not understand the directions.

Athletics Update

Our St. Mark Basketball Tournament has come to an end!

Congratulations to our Champions, Girls JV and Boys JV teams!!

A huge thank you to our Athletic Director, Michael Sciallo, our players, coaches, volunteers, parents, families and community for your support in putting on such a fantastic tournament!

Parish News

Corned Beef and Cannolis

St. Mark Parish’s Social Events Committee will be hosting a Corned Beef and Cannolis event celebrating St. Patrick’s Day and St. Joseph’s Day on March 19, 2022, at 6:00-9:30 p.m. in the Parish Center. Entertainment includes Brennan- Lucey Irish step dancers of River Dance Fame, Shooting Star Music, and Italian music and memories with Richard DeLibro.

Seating is limited, $25/adults and $15/children.

RSVP to cbc2022@stmarkstfd.org

Palms and Pancakes

St. Mark Parish Knights of Columbus, St. John Paul II, Council 8 are hosting their traditional Palms and Pancakes Sunday! Please join the Knights for a free breakfast after all the masses on Palm Sunday, April 10th in the Parish Hall. If you wish to make a donation to defer expenses, you may do so at the breakfast.

Knights of Columbus and Red Cross Blood Drive

There are two weeks left to sign up for to Knights of Columbus blood drive to be held on April 2, 2022, from 8:00 a.m. till 1:00 p.m. in the Parish Center. Sign up at www.redcrossblood.org. Twenty-five of the forty-three donation slots are full. We need 18 more sign-ups!

For Parish information, visit: https://www.saintmarkchurchstratford.org/

For important information and updates on COVID-19, visit the

Diocese of Bridgeport Catholic Schools website

Please visit our school website regularly at www.stmarkschool.org. Important school updates including copies of notices, newsletters, HSA links, and school calendars can all be accessed on the website.

Visit our social media pages for updates on our school community.

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