Family Learning

November Smart Families Newsletter

The November Newsletter from Smart Families is now available and can be viewed here.

Learning Commons Literacy Corner

Please click here for our weekly Learning Commons Literacy Corner updates including the quote of the week, vocabulary word of the week, and the high frequency words of the week.

2023 Christmas Card Design Contest

It’s time to design this year’s Christmas card for St. Cecilia Catholic School and EVERY student is eligible to submit an entry. Please click here for the required Design Template.

Important design guideline information:

1. Must be a religious theme.
2. Must include the words: St. Cecilia Catholic School (please do not abbreviate the school’s name as SCCS).
3. Design layout can be horizontal or vertical.
4. Design must be submitted on the required design template.
5. Design must be uploaded to this online form. 

The Entry Deadline is Monday, November 6, 2023. Please scan, save as a .pdf, and submit your student’s design entry using this online form to upload the design.

Field Day Reminders

Field Day is Friday, November 10th from 8AM to 1:30PM

• Field Day Schedule and Map
• Field Day FAQ Document
• Students should arrive at school during their regular time through carpool.
• The day ends at 1:30PM, and there is No Bridges.
• Please note that each student in grades PK3, PK4, & Kindergarten requires a parent /adult guardian from lunch at 11:00AM until the end of the day - approximately 1:30PM.
• Students should not bring their backpacks, school materials, or lunch to school on Field Day.
• Every student will be given a Field Day water bottle. There is no need to send any water bottles or drinks to school with the students on Field Day.
• Lunch is provided for students, which is individually boxed chicken tender baskets. If your child has an allergy, please send them an appropriate lunch.

Prize Room Wish List 

• The Prize Room is a St. Cecilia Field Day tradition that kids love and look forward to each year! A space in the school is transformed into a toy store, and it is the first “attraction” that opens before the actual Field Day. It features many exciting prizes such as candy, stuffed animals, games, toys, gadgets, Legos, and more!
• If you would like to help support Field Day and the Prize Room, you can buy items from an Amazon Wishlist, which will be shipped directly to the school. Please click here for the wish list.
• Prize Room tickets are still available to purchase online – the deadline to purchase Prize Room tickets is 8:00 PM Monday, November 6th. 

Field Day T-Shirt Waiting List and T-Shirt and Prize Room Ticket Distribution

• If you were unable to pay the flat fee and get your child’s t-shirt order in by the deadline, we have an online form for a waiting list. We ordered a limited number of extra t-shirts, and they are available on a first come, first serve basis, depending on the sizes needed and available inventory. Please click here for the waiting list form. 
• All of the Field Day T-Shirts, and Prize Room tickets will be distributed early next week. 
• As a reminder - all of the t-shirts and Prize Room tickets will be sent to the oldest / only student in each family. They will be banded together for each family. If next week your younger children do not come home with a t-shirt, and/or tickets - the oldest child you have in the school will have all of the t-shirts and tickets.

Field Day Volunteers Needed

• There are plenty of opportunities to volunteer to help with Field Day! We need assistance with pre-Field Day setup, Prize Room setup, and plenty of help on Field Day as well. There is one Sign Up Genius with all the volunteer opportunities (please see the individual tabs across the top of the Sign Up Genius page).

Canstruction

Student Council and Campus Ministry are excited to announce this year's canned food drive! We hope to collect as many cans as possible to help those in need around the Holidays and to add some cheer to our school for a week through a new project called Canstruction. Please help us gather canned goods by bringing in your donated items to your homeroom running until Friday, November 10th.  

Eucharistic Procession – Wednesday, November 8th 

The Eucharist Revival is a call to deepen our understanding and appreciation of the Holy Eucharist, recognizing it as the source and summit of our Christian life. St. Cecilia Catholic School is participating in a few key aspects of this Eucharistic Revival. You are invited to join us on Wednesday, November 8th for the following:

• 8:15 a.m. Mass as we celebrate and participate in the Liturgy as called for by the revival. 
• Eucharistic Procession - Following Mass, we will process from the Church to the auditorium, following Jesus in the Monstrance for Eucharistic Exposition and Adoration.
• Adoration - While the Sign Up Genius is full for the required number of people to be at Adoration, all parents are welcome to attend Adoration at any time during that day.
• Click here for more information on the Eucharist Revival. 

Upcoming Auction Sign Up Parties

Sign Up Parties are parties planned/hosted and funded by parents. Spots are sold for parties to help support Auction. Parties may be for students of certain grades, all students, Moms, Dads, Couples, or Families. There are also some school sponsored parties available for students known as Fun with Faculty. Sign-Up Parties will be released throughout the year. Spaces can be limited so act fast and don’t miss out!

Available Sign-Up Parties:

Sip and Shop at Monogram Shop and Swoon

Thursday, November 9th, 6:30PM

$35 Per Person

Texas Longhorn Football Watch Party

Saturday, November 11th

$50 Per Person or $90 Per Couple, 30 Couple Spots

3rd Grade Bingo Bonanza!

Wednesday, November 29th

$45 Per Student, 25 student spots available

Stay tuned for the release of the following Sign-Up Parties that will have registration starting soon:

• PK3-Kindergarten Christmas Party with Santa! 
• 7th and 8th Grade Annual Holly Jolly Trolley
• 1st-5th Grade Daddy Daughter Dance
• 2nd Grade Mother Daughter Tea Party
• Annual Couples Tacky Christmas Sweater Party
• Blingo! 
• Mardi Gras MOMbo
• And more in the works!

Grandparent and Grandfriends Day

The St. Cecilia Catholic School annual Grandparents and Grandfriends Day will occur on Friday, November 17th, from 12:30PM to 2:30PM. Click here to find the full schedule of the events for the day and online registration. 

The invitations are currently being printed and mailed. In the interim, please either send the information and registration link to your child’s Grandparent or Grandfriend now so they can register online, or you can complete the registration for them.  

Please note that if a grandparent cannot attend, a “Grandfriend” (i.e. an aunt, uncle, or family friend) is welcome to attend in their place. We kindly ask that parents and siblings not attend as the Grandfriend. If a Grandparent or Grandfriend needs assistance, we understand that accompaniment may be necessary by parents.

5th – 8th Grade PE Uniform Store is Open

If you need to purchase a PE Uniform for your child(ren), the online store from BSN is open through Thursday, November 16th. As a reminder, the PE Uniforms sold by Mills can no longer allowed.

Faculty Nursery Hiring

Who wants to hold some babies? The St. Cecilia Faculty Nursery is looking to hire one full-time or several part-time caretakers. The Faculty Nursery is a fantastic advantage for recruiting and retaining teachers and serves faculty and staff children under the age of three.

Aside from wanting to spend time with our lovely infants and toddlers, the only requirements are a willingness to serve and be current on your safe environment CMG training and clearance. This position can serve as either a volunteer or paid job. Full time employees are eligible for Archdiocesan benefits.

For inquiries, contact Samantha Thompson and see the full job posting on Applitrak.

Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo Art Competition

It’s time to kick off the Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo Art Competition! If your child would like to participate, please read the information below thoroughly.

Important information to note:

• Participation: Prek- 8th grade
• Rodeo theme: Western Art- art that depicts the heritage, lifestyle, and landscapes of the West.
• 2D surface only:
• Colored drawing (colored pencil, pastels, crayon, chalk, charcoal)
• Mixed Media: mixture of two or more materials (ex: crayon with watercolor)
• Monochromatic: one hue with the addition of white and black
• Paint: watercolor, acrylic, tempera
• Dimensions of paper- Min 8.5x11 Max 15x21 
• NO second surface (collage, gluing, cutting will be disqualified)
• NO slogans, trademarks
• Labeled on the back of art in pencil:
• First/last name, homeroom, title, mediums used (Please be creative when choosing a title)
• Mrs. Poche will matt and tag all qualifying pieces.
• All art is due to Mrs. Poche by November 15, 2023
• Click here for more information.

TSPMEA's Annual Middle School and Children’s Honor Choir Clinic and Concert

The TSPMEA (Texas Private School Music Educators Association) will hold its annual Middle School and Children’s Honor Choir Clinic and Concert on Friday, November 3rd and Saturday, November 4th. Students in grades 5-8 who attend private schools in the southern half of Texas auditioned, with 7th and 8th graders submitting recordings of selected song excerpts. Eight St. Cecilia Catholic School students were chosen to participate this weekend, culminating in a concert on Saturday, November 5th at 4:00 p.m. at Willow Meadows Baptist Church, 4300 West Bellfort, Houston, TX 77035. Admission is free, and the concert will be approximately 45 minutes to an hour. Please come to support our students in what will be a fabulous musical endeavor!

Congratulations and best wishes to Caroline G. and Jaxon M. (Middle School Honor Choir) and Melissa D., Joaquin F., Olivia G., Braden M., Gaby P., and Nadia S. (Children’s Honor Choir – 5th & 6th grades).

St. Cecilia Parish Basketball

Parish Basketball registration for Kindergarten through 5th grade is now open until November 15th.

Instructions for Registering Players:

• Parents should register players using the link provided above.
• Please note: on the “Player Page” of the registration form, include a statement in the “Special Instructions” field "that this is a St. Cecilia Catholic School player who wants to be on a St. Cecilia team."
• On the “Player Page” of the registration form, enter the “Grade” as the grade level of the player’s preferred team. If the player’s school grade is different, then provide the school grade and a (very) brief explanation in the “Special Instructions” field. (Players are not allowed to play down without special permission from the TKB Executive Director.)

Coach Registration:

• All coaches must register for the purposes of authorizing background checks, confirming Code of Ethics agreement, and providing contact information.
• Instruct HCs to register as soon as possible (so a team number can be promptly assigned) and to confirm their affiliation with “Tallowood” when prompted during the registration process.
• Assistant Coaches (enlisted by the HC) should register as soon as their HC provides them with a team number (and not before).
• Detailed instructions and coach registration links: COACHES | Kingdom Basketball.

Please go to our Parish Sports page on the website for more information and to register.