God is good! Our last few days of school were so uplifting. Hearing the happy shouts of students running around on Field Day and gathering in person for Mass on Wednesday filled my heart with great joy. I cannot thank each and every member of our school family enough for your patience, support and deep faith. We came through an incredibly challenging year stronger because we placed our trust in God and relied on one another.
We bid goodbye to our 8th graders who will always be in our hearts. At Mass Monsignor introduced the new leaders of St. Rose School emphasizing the significant impact they have on the younger students as role models. He went on to acknowledge each new class and it was evident how excited the students are to rise to the new challenges as they matriculate. We are delighted to have such high retention and are very excited to welcome the students who will be joining our school family for the 2021-2022 school year. As always, our partnership with parents is of paramount importance. Thank you for entrusting your precious children to us.
This will be the last newsletter of the current school year; it will resume mid August. In the meantime we will reach out via email if their is important information to share. Keep an eye on the school website, www.stroseschool.com, for any updates and please take note of the Summer Assignment and Upcoming Dates section of this newsletter. Summer office hours are 8:00 a.m.- 1:00 p.m. Mondays-Fridays except for the weeks of July 4th and August 2nd. Please direct any questions to Mrs. Sweeting, secretary@srles.com.
In case you haven't yet seen it, Superintendent Dr. Cheeseman's forecast for the new school year can be viewed here.
You will be receiving 4th quarter report cards, Iowa and Cogat test scores and Honor Roll information via email in the next week. Please read an explanation for scoring here. Congratulations to our dedicated students who remained focused and kept a positive attitude throughout the year.
Happy Father's Day to all of our devoted school Dads! May God bless you all in this most important vocation. Summer is here and family fun is your assignment. I will keep you all in my prayers. May God bless you with health and happiness. I hope it is a refreshing time and we look forward to seeing everyone back in our halls late August.
God Bless,
Mr. Bardhyl Gjoka
IMPORTANT DATES
August 25th -- New Family Welcome Picnic 12 noon in the Preschool/Primary School playground.
August 26th -- Kindergarten Orientation
August 30th -- 1st day of school grades K-4, early dismissal at 11:30 a.m.
August 31st -- 1st day of school grades 5-8, early dismissal at 11:30 a.m.
September 1st -- Grades K-8, early dismissal at 11:30 a.m.
September 6th -- no school, Labor Day. Stay tuned for details about the Newtown Parade
Our Brick Walk is filling up -- don't delay, get yours today!Bricks make great gifts for Confirmation, First Holy Communion, Graduation, Weddings, Birthdays, In Memory of a Loved One and so many other occasions. Buy a brick to connect to the past and pave the way for many bright futures. Order online,
polarengraving.com/stroseoflimaschool
bloomsbricks@srles.com.
Questions? Email bloomsbricks@srles.com
PRESCHOOL CORNER
Find out why St. Rose Preschool could be the right fit for your child! Tours areavailable virtually and in person summer weekdays.
We ended the year on such a high note with our special night at Castle Hill Farm last Friday! Thank you to the hundreds who joined us to make memories and end this crazy year on a high note. Many thanks to the Dias family for helping us run the event!
At the bonfire, we were pleased to present Mr. G with the approved funds to support the payback of the portables loan and to fund the kitchen equipment. These important financial contributions to our school were only possible thanks to your support.
We will share more updates in August on our plans for the start of school. For now, please add these dates to your calendar:
Sept 4: Build the Labor Day Parade float
Sept 9: HSA Meeting/Back to School Night
Sept 10: Bingo
Wishing you all a very relaxing and fun summer. See you in August!
Your HSA Board
Kate O'Connor - President
Isabel Almeida - Vice President
Dave Budzynski - Treasurer
Carrie Sirois - Secretary
ATHLETICS NEWS
Hello SRS Families,
We have had quite a year, and we are pleased that we have been able to provide continuous after school activities for our students safely and enjoyably.
We would greatly appreciate it if ALL families would take a moment to complete the attached survey. There are questions for those who did attend our after school programs as well as for those who did not attend. Your feedback will be extremely useful as we prepare programming for the upcoming school year.
We are happy to say that Team Dig is offering summer camps. Please see the flyer below for details.
It was fun in the sun for students, faculty and volunteer parents on Field Day; the following day souls soared as our school and parish family gathered for Mass in the church for the first time in person all year. God is Good!
STUDENT LIFE
by Mrs. B
Dear God,
We end this year with immense gratitude;
for all the gifts and blessings you have sent our way.
For the teaching and learning that we shared,
the challenges we faced and overcame,
the burdens that have been lifted and
hurts that have been healed as we went through the year.
For the faith and light of hope that kept us going
and lifted our hearts, even on the darkest of days.
May we take cherished memories of the year with us,
and not forget the lessons we learned along the way;
especially that, with You, all things are possible!
Amen
Dear St. Rose Families,
It is time for prayers of thanksgiving and celebration as we end the school year that will most certainly be recounted in the history books of future generations!! We can be proud of what we have accomplished as a community and individually, each supporting and doing the little things that made a big difference in the lives and experiences of our children for 2020-2021!
I am sending love and gratitude to the light and hope of our days, our children! Their perseverance, diligence, faith, and hope, and of course those smiling eyes above the mask, kept us going, even on the most difficult of days! We could write books about how they filled our days and taught us valuable lessons, while they themselves were busy learning. We send them off to have a summer filled with joy, adventures, giggles, and lots of time just to be kids!!
I want to send my heartfelt thank you to our families for entrusting us this year with guiding your children on this journey! Your dedication, your unwavering support and your willingness to be there for whatever was needed or taking that extra precaution to keep everyone safe and healthy didn’t go unnoticed and it was felt and appreciated by so many! We realized, even more, just how blessed we are at St. Rose by you being here with us!!
To Monsignor, Mr. G, our faculty, and staff, mission accomplished with faith, hope, creativity, determination and many extra hours at the wheel!! Tremendous gratitude goes out to each of you for nurturing the academic growth and spiritual well being of our children! Your love for the children and sense of community, during what I am sure has been the most challenging and exhausting school year you have ever experienced, shone through all the struggles and obstacles sent our way! I know how tired you are at this moment in time after leading and teaching a full year in a pandemic; it has been quite the trip, but our community has been so blessed to see it through and you are admired and appreciated for your part in that!
The Last Hurrah!
It was touch and go for a few days, we collected and shopped for outdoor items and indoor items, had two plans and maps and were ready for anything; determined that Field Day would not be canceled this year!! God is Good ALL the Time!! He smiled on us Tuesday so that our annual Field Day could be enjoyed, as a last hurrah for our children, outside on the field! I don’t know what each might say was the best part of the morning; but, hearing the shouts, cheers, and
laughter of the children and seeing them having so much fun outside together, that made it all worth it and sent us forward with the happiest of memories of the year!
The crowning moment of the last days was of course, Wednesday, as we returned to church to pray together in person! While we prayed and celebrated mass, virtually, each Friday through the year; an indescribable peace and joy, like no other, came over you when you sat in the church and looked around and could see our children felt they were home again! It was the arms of our Lord giving them a big hug and reminding them that he will be going with them wherever they go this summer and he can’t wait to welcome them back to the church again and again!
Ending One Year and Planning for the Next
We will be offering skill practice workshops for incoming Kindergarten through grade 2 with Mrs. Heyder, July 12-15. Incoming grades 3-5 can sign up for a skills workshop with Mrs. Winington, July 12-15 and July 19-22. A registration form was sent to students going into grades K-5. We need a minimum of 6 to run each session. The maximum for each is 12, so please be sure to return your registration as soon as possible. (Click here for registration form). We have also included the form in the important links in this newsletter. For incoming grades 6-8, if you are looking for a tutor for the summer, please let me know, we have a few teachers available for summer tutoring. If you would like a few fun and beneficial practice books to have handy this summer, here is a list of great books at affordable prices!
Barnes and Noble offers a series by Flash Kids Editors, in association with Harcourt Family Learning(Harcourt is one of the publishers that we have used over the years for many of our textbooks in grades K-5). They offer all-in-one workbooks, which have a variety of curriculum areas at a specific grade level; you can purchase workbooks that have targeted practice for a specific skill (separate books for each: math, reading, spelling, language arts, and writing). They even have one for cursive writing practice. These books are available for $6.95 each. They also have a series of mini workbooks, with even more specific practice, for example time and money in math. This mini series also includes Math Drills and Sight Words. These books are available for $3.95 each. Flash Kids offers good old fashion flashcards, which can be good for practice away from the screen and books. These are available for $3.95-$5.95 each. You might consider two sets for creating learning games at home.
They have Test Prep workbooks for most grade levels. These are available for $5.95-$9.95 each.
Finally, they have their own brand of summer bridge books for transitioning from one grade to another. These are available for $9.95.
I find that the offerings at Barnes and Noble are more extensive and provide more options, especially if you have a specific skill in mind that you would like your child to practice over the summer.
The only thing I would not purchase at Barnes and Noble, is, if you are interested in the original Summer Bridge Books by Summer Bridge Activities Publishers; they are more expensive here, over $13.00 each; I recommend Amazon at $8.48 per book. My preference though is the Barnes and Noble books and flashcards; many teachers have used these for extra help in classrooms over the years; I have used them in my own classroom and for extra tutoring support. The flashcards are nicely laminated and durable. I have found the workbooks to offer more practice than the traditional bridge books.
If you are looking for a program for the summer, Kumon is a great choice! We have a number of our students, from all grade levels, that have been students at Kumon. Mary Kate Gordon, one of our second grade parents, operates the Newtown Center and she also owns and operates a center in Danbury.
Summer work and supply lists are now available on the website. These are sorted by the grade your child will be attending for the 2021-2022 school year. For our future school leaders, Class of 2022, we are considering a High School Prep Test Course to begin the first weeks of the new school year.
This has been one unique experience for our community this year; but, we made it through and have created many memories despite the challenges! If you would like to have a keepsake of those memories, please order your St. Rose Yearbook today! Follow the link below to place an order for your copy!
It is time for rest, relaxation, and joining together with family and friends; a much different summer than last year!! May your days be filled with love, laughter, blessings and God’s grace!! May we all return in August with lasting memories of the summer, being restored and ready to begin a new chapter of our St. Rose story!
First Graders have their ducks in a row as they head off to Second Grade! 7th graders getting ready to lead the way in the 2021-2022 school year.
COMMUNITY HAPPENINGS
The Newtown Chamber of Commerce is holding the Great Newtown Shopping Spree Raffle! It's a new twist on shopping local. Tickets are $20 each for the chance of three prizes: 1st- $3,000, 2nd - $1,500 and 3rd - $500. Winnings can be applied to organizations, businesses, nonprofits and restaurants/stores in Newtown. Three lucky winners, one lucky prize! To purchase tickets Text NewtownRaffle to 406-302-5086. For more information contact helenbrickfield@newtown-ct.gov. Good luck!
