In this Sunday's Gospel reading, Jesus tells Nicodemus that the Son of Man will be raised up so that those who believe in him will have eternal life. In John’s reflection, we are presented with an observation about human sinfulness. Jesus is the light that has come into the world, but people preferred the darkness. We wish to keep our sins hidden, even from God. During the season of Lent, we try to fight this tendency by remembering God’s great mercy and the salvation that we have received through Jesus. We do not fear confessing our sins, knowing that God forgives us, and so, during Lent, we seek out opportunities to celebrate the Sacrament of Reconciliation. © Loyola Press Sunday Connection

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

Deadline to apply

Iowa and CogAT standardized testing for Grades 1 through 7 will begin the week of March 15th, 2021. New this year, Iowa and CogAT testing for St. Mark School will be an audio-led computer based test.

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

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:

As we approach our spring vacation, I wanted to remind everyone that as other states begin to change and /or lift their travel restrictions the State of Connecticut has not lifted the travel advisory as of yet.

There has been news that it will be changing on or near March 19th. As we await any changes to the travel advisory, I would like to remind everyone of the current advisory:

Further info can be found here:

I will convey any changes with the State's travel advisory as we get closer to April Break.

Any questions or concerns please let me know.

Wendy Frate R.N. BSN

School Nurse

PreK through Grade 8 families are reminded of St. Mark School's 2020-21 Addendum to the Parent/Student Handbook Related to the Covid-19 Pandemic requires face masks to be worn by adults and students while in the parking lot during arrival and dismissal times.

Please do not remove your face mask, or allow your child to remove theirs, until you have returned to your vehicle.

The face mask policy applies to drop off and pick up of PreK students.

The face mask policy applies pick up from St. Mark School's After School Program.

As a reminder, the Diocesan Distance Learning program was designed to give parents and students the opportunity of full time virtual learning during these uncertain times.

Transitioning to Temporary Distance Learning can be used when students are going to miss an extended period of time due to illness, precautionary quarantine, or for medical reasons.

If a student is out sick for one, two, or three days, missed school work can be made up upon the student's return, consistent with past practices.

Please discuss this policy with your child, especially those in Middle School. Students joining virtual instruction for a portion of their day when they are marked absent poses significant conflicts for Middle School and Specials teachers, who teach individual subject areas.

If there is a change to your child's dismissal, parents are required to send a note into school with your child in the morning or contact Mrs. Mannino at cmannino@stmarkschool.org or (203) 375-4291.

In order to keep all students and families safe during dismissal procedures, adults are asked to gather in (socially distanced) the coned off parking spots in front of school doors to pick up your child.

Please keep in mind, the area is an active parking lot, with cars arriving and leaving. Adults are asked to keep your children close to you, especially our youngest students, and not allow them to run through the parking lot.

Traditionally, St. Mark School upper school students participate in the Bridgeport St. Patrick's Day parade. As you may know, there is no parade scheduled this year due to the ongoing pandemic.

To keep our tradition going in a modified way, students are invited to add St. Patrick's Day themed accessories to their school uniform on Wednesday, March 17th.

Accessories must be school appropriate. Adult themed accessories will not be permitted. Students will be asked to remove accessories during testing times, as they can be distracting to others.

Please send us your alumni news! Send photos with a short description (graduation, college acceptance, promotion, relocation, award/recognition, published book/article, marriage, birth, gathering with fellow alumni, etc.) and we will highlight your story on our Facebook pages. Send your news to AMENteam@stmarkschool.org.

Online applications will be available on www.ceoct.org beginning on

Students in Grades 3 and 4 participate in a reading of the Stations of the Cross every week during Lent.

Kindergarten students learned about Creation in Religion class this week. Students listened to the story, shared what God created on each day, and completed a craft to represent God's gift of Creation.

This week, Grade 8 students took ELA class outside to enjoy the early spring weather and sunshine.

Later in the day, the 8th Graders' Kindergarten buddies enjoyed a phonics lesson outdoors. Students discussed rhyming words, reading a passage with CVC words and sight words, and practiced writing lower-case letters.

It was all about rainbows this week in Grade 3! Students participated in a STEM Math challenge and in ELA class published a short story about what they would do if they found a pot of gold.

Fourth Grade explored equivalent fractions in Math class this week. Students participated in hands-on learning activities during small group instruction and practiced finding equivalent fractions.

St. Mark Little Lions sure were busy this week in Mrs. L's PreK classroom!

We are pleased to share the enriching learning environment created at at St. Mark School. Click here to read more about how we celebrated Black History Month. To read more about our Models in Christ Program, click here.

If you have a prayer intention, please submit your request to St. Mark School's prayer line by clicking here. Your intention will be remembered during our Afternoon Prayers and Announcements.

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.