St. Louis Catholic School Newsletter | |
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November 3, 2022
Dear St. Louis Families,
November began with a visit to Mass for All Saints Day and our own 2nd grade saints parading around the bell tower for our school. I am always impressed with the saints chosen and the creativity in how the students choose to make them come alive. It was so nice to see many school families at Mass and enjoying the parade afterwards. Fr. O’Hare asked our 2nd grade saints how they felt, and their responses were so genuine and heartwarming—some felt holy; some felt closer to God; others felt happy and good; and one was glad to be Catholic. The students did a great job sharing their insight, and Fr. O’Hare summed it up beautifully for our school, reminding us that to be saintly is something we can all do every day, we just need to pray and to love. We have added that challenge in to our daily prayer and announcements.
November means not only a new month, but also a new patriotic song and a new virtue for our days together. As a school we are focusing on the virtue of humility throughout this month, and as part of our exploration, we shared about the life of St. Martin de Porres today. St. Martin lived a holy, obedient life with the Dominicans in Peru where he founded an orphanage and a hospital tending to the poor and sick---he loved all people, and he was admired for his example of humility and holiness. Today is his feast day, and we pray for his intercession so that we may all love and pray as St. Martin did.
Next week, we will be holding parent-teacher conferences both in-person and through Zoom to make it a little more accessible to family schedules. Please remember to sign up for a time with each of your children’s teachers. Fall assessment scores will be shared with you as well as general academic progress. We will also be celebrating our Veterans, first responders, and service men and women at 8:45am Mass on November 9th. Please join us and wear your uniform—a reception will follow in McClunn after Mass.
Since November is also a month of gratitude, know that we are grateful and humbled by the amazing support of our parent community. We pray for all of your intentions and ask that you keep the staff in your prayers too.
God bless,
Anne Dyke
Principal
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Bishop's Day Off
Bishop Burbidge has granted diocesan schools a holiday. In a letter to school principals he writes, “Even as we move away from some of the greatest challenges of the pandemic period, I am aware that all in Catholic education continue to face lingering effects. I hope that this benefit will provide some additional relief to your faculty, students and families.”
St. Louis will take our Bishop’s Day off on November 28th. Please enjoy this extra day!
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Veterans Day Mass & Reception - November 9th
Veteran’s Day is approaching, and we are preparing for our annual Veteran’s Day Mass. We hope you will consider joining us for this very special liturgy recognizing the importance of our veterans, both living and deceased. The Mass will be celebrated Wednesday, November 9, 2022 at 8:45 AM.
It is an honor to have student family service members, retired and active duty, participate in the Mass as readers, gift bearers, and uniformed processional flag bearers (from all branches). If you would like to participate, please fill out this form and return via kidmail to Mrs. Ledbetter, 1-11, or send an email to jledbetter@stlouisschool.org by Monday, November 7, 2022. If you do not wish to participate in the Mass, we would still like you to attend (in uniform, if active) so the students may recognize your selfless dedication to our country. You will be surprised how much this means to our students so we thank you in advance for your assistance.
The NJHS and Student Council of St. Louis would like to honor you with a short reception in the gym immediately following the Mass. There will be light refreshments served as a way to say “Thank You” from the students, faculty and staff of St. Louis Catholic School. Your children may join you at this reception.
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Thanksgiving Lunch - November 18
***Order by November 15***
Mrs. Dyke, Mrs. Calogero and staff will be donning aprons to serve a student favorite "Thanksgiving Lunch" on Friday, November 18th. All students and staff are invited to place an order for this lunch.
Lunch will include Chick-fil-A chicken nuggets, mac n' cheese, fruit, vegetable and dessert for $7.50.
Place your order HERE no later than November 15th. This is an optional lunch for students. Please note, Fairfax Food Service will not be available that day. Students who do not purchase this lunch will need to bring a lunch from home.
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Trimester 2 Milk Orders Due November 15
Milk orders are due by November 15 for families who opted to purchase milk on a Trimester basis or who are placing a new order. Milk is $60/trimester. Please place your order HERE.
If you ordered for the full school year, please do not complete this form.
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St. Louis Parents and Guardians,
The cold and flu season has started here at St. Louis, and we have been experiencing a noticeable increase in illness. The illnesses have ranged between cold, flu, RSV, and ILI (influenza like illness). The staff has implemented several ways to mitigate the spread of these illnesses by disinfecting tables, chairs, and other spaces in the classroom. We have also made sure that air purifiers in each room are running during the school day and the cleaning company has also been disinfecting after the students have left. To prevent the widespread of illnesses in the school we are recommending that your child stay home from school if he/she is experiencing flu-like symptoms. I feel it is important for children to be in the classroom learning, but their ability to concentrate is greatly diminished when they are sick. To determine whether to send your child, please consider guidelines below.
Consider keeping your child home for an extra day of rest if he or she has the following:
- Congestion
- Mild sore throat (no fever, no known exposure to strep)
- Headache
- Mild stomachache
Children with these symptoms will have to stay home or will be sent home for treatment and observations:
- Fever (100.4 and above) and may not return to school until 24 hours after fever is gone without the use of Tylenol or Motrin.
- Vomiting (even once)
- Diarrhea (even once)
- Chills
- Fatigue, weakness, muscle aches
- Persistent cough (croup or “wet” sounding cough)
- Nasal congestion with frequent blowing of nose
Thank you for all your support! I will continue to educate students on the importance of hand washing, cough, and sneeze etiquette, and trying our best to not touch our faces! I am available if you have any questions or concerns.
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St. Louis School & Preschool will be hosting an open house for prospective families interested in admissions for the 2023-24 school year. Invite your friends and neighbors to join us and find out more about our wonderful school community!
Sunday, November 6
10am-1pm
RSVP: www.stlouisschool.org/visit/
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2023-24 Re-Registration & Admissions Information
We are looking forward to welcoming prospective families to visit St. Louis School & Preschool on November 6th. For our current school families, please see important re-registration and admissions information for the 2023-24 school year HERE. The sibling priority application deadline for both K-8 and Preschool is December 1st.
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Make-up Picture Day - November 8
Students who missed picture day or will be having their picture retaken may do so on Tuesday, November 8th. As a reminder, students should wear their regular uniform for these pictures; no PE uniforms. Please let your child's homeroom teacher know if they will be having their picture taken.
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Mark your calendars for a zoom parenting session on Anxiety. It will be Tuesday November 8th at 7pm with the amazing Rachel Bailey. This is for ALL parents even if you think anxiety doesn’t impact your child. Please read the description below of what Rachel will be covering as well as her bio. The zoom link is below as well.
Supporting Anxious Students: For many students, facing challenging circumstances leads to stress and anxiety. And what we do to try to build their confidence doesn't often seem to help... and sometimes it even upsets them more! In this workshop, you'll learn how to respond effectively to your child in the moment when they are feeling overwhelmed or anxious. You'll also learn how to foster children's resilience so that they don't experience as much anxiety and stress to begin with.
Rachel Bailey is a Parenting Specialist who has been serving families for over a decade. Besides being a mother of two, she also has a Master's Degree in Clinical Psychology, a certification in Positive Discipline, and has provided services as an ADHD Coach, in-home mentor, and therapist. Through her podcast, programs, and services, Rachel teaches parents hands-on tools for raising resilient, confident children... while reducing the stress and guilt in parents' lives.
Topic: Rachel Bailey Parenting Zoom November 8, 2022
Time: Nov 8, 2022 07:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
Join Zoom Meeting:
https://link.edgepilot.com/s/c6492cae/5FKmLwhHYEW9XAyyoosv4A?u=https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87466578266?pwd=TkI1TXBSYjBqNmNMakJTa3F1Q3pJdz09
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Hawk Happenings - November 4 - 11, 2022 | |
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Friday, November 4
Monday, November 7
- Hot Lunch: Chicken Slider*
Tuesday, November 8
- Hot Lunch: Salisbury Steak*
- Ice Cream available
- Make-up Picture Day
- Rachel Bailey Zoom, 7pm
Wednesday, November 9
- Hot Lunch: Chicken Tenders*
- Veteran Day Mass, 8:45am
Thursday, November 10
11:30 Dismissal - No PM EDC
- Parent Teacher Conferences
Friday, November 11 - No School
- Parent Teacher Conferences
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FULL SCHOOL CALENDAR
Did you know you can subscribe to our school calendar for real-time updates, convenient links to SUGs and flyers, and more? Subscribe to auto-populate your iCal, Outlook 2007+ or Google calendar
*Hot lunch must be ordered monthly in advance.
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Order December hot lunch HERE.
December orders due Nov. 29
**Use code 15off for $15 off your December lunch order**
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Order Ice Cream tickets HERE.
November dates: 1, 8, 16, 29
December dates: 6, 15, 19
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Hawk-A-Thon
THANK YOU for your support during the Hawk-a-thon. The preschool was the first class to reach their goal and you all went above and beyond. The preschool team and our students are so excited to enjoy the prizes earned as a result of your generosity.
Enrichment
We have just a few spots still available for the Art Enrichment that will take place in November and December. If you would like more details, and you are interested in signing up, please reach out to Mrs. Burke directly regarding registration.
November Newsletter
November Snack Calendar
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Between the inflatable obstacle courses, sno-cones and slime, everyone had a blast at the inaugural Hawk-a-thon Prize Day. Thank you to Brittany McMaster for coordinating all the fun!
Last Friday evening, many K-5th graders enjoyed Trunk or Treat. We loved seeing the wonderful costumes and the creativity of our room parents, teachers and families who decorated their trunks. With more than 300 trick or treaters, there was a lot of candy being enjoyed! Thank you, Amanda Mathes, for coordinating this spooktacular event!
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Trivia Night - Holiday Edition
Saturday, Nov. 19, 2022 6:30-9:30 p.m.
PTO Contacts: Meghan Roberts meghans.roberts@gmail.com
Laura Cheney laura_pyzik@hotmail.com
Trivia Night is back and this time it’s happening holiday-style! Put together a team, sign up as a couple or an individual and we will have some Standard Trivia for you with some Holiday categories too. Whether it’s St. Patrick’s Day, Christmas or even Flag Day, we are going to be celebrating all holidays. Register HERE.
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November Spirit Dinner - The Italian Place
Love Spirit Night dinners, but find it hard to rally your troops to eat out on a Monday night? We've got you covered! Please join the St. Louis PTO and The Italian Place for a Spirit Night Dinner Pick Up! Place your order now until noon on Sunday, November 13th. It will be ready for you to grab on Monday, November 14th at the carpool parking lot between 1:45-2:45 p.m. Please look for the canopy set up in the parking lot.
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Pictures with Santa & Mrs. Claus, Nov. 26
Save the date for a special morning with Santa Claus! Back for another year, Santa Claus will be coming to St. Louis to meet with families! Reservations will be required since space is limited, so watch for the sign-up link in next Thursday’s newsletter. In the meantime, we do need volunteers and donations to make this event special. Please consider signing up to help! A great way to get volunteer hours AND get in the Christmas spirit!
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VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES for K-8 PARENTS
Pictures with Santa & Mrs. Claus - November 26
Volunteers will help decorate before the event, greet families, help at the ornament craft table, assist with pictures, and help clean-up (Virtus preferred). If you can't help in person, we also have some items needed for donations.
Sign up HERE.
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Diocesan Cookbook Submissions
As part of the Golden Jubilee, the Diocese is developing a cookbook: “Gather at the Table: Multicultural Cooking for Liturgical Living”. It will be made up of recipes submitted by diocesan locals. Favorite recipes may be submitted here.
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MVCCT Presents "The Spongebob Musical"
The MVCCT adaptation of the hit Broadway musical is based on the popular kids TV cartoon starring the adventures of the underwater yellow sponge and his friends and frenemies; Patrick, Squidward, Plankton and more. St. Louis students Elena Kokinda and Annabelle Russell are cast members. Performances will be held Nov. 11, 12, 18, 19 at 7pm and Nov. 13 and 20 at 3pm at Bryant High School, Popkins Lane. Tickets can be purchased here.
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