St. Mark School E-Newsletter - February 4, 2022

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.

February 4, 2022

Dear St. Mark Families

The theme for this school year is Teamwork. And as we come to an end of our Catholic Schools Week celebrations, I want to take this opportunity to let our faculty and staff know how grateful I am that they are a part of my team and together we make the best team for our students. Their commitment to the education of our students is deeply appreciated.

I am grateful for their hard work, day in and day out to educate our students. St. Mark School is thriving because of their hard work, dedication, and sacrifices. As Pope Francis once said, “Let us thank all those who teach in Catholic schools. Educating is an act of love; it is like giving life.”

This year Mrs. Janet Rodriguez is celebrating 20 years of service to St. Mark School. Her passion for education and her endless dedication to her students is evident every day. Each student has been blessed to have been in her classroom. Please join me in congratulating Mrs. Rodriguez for 20 wonderful years.

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

Yours in Christ,

Mrs. Warner

Please do not reply to this email. If you have questions, comments or concerns please email me directly.

Thank You

Catholic Schools Week is a time to be grateful for our community. Parents without your support we would not be able to do what we do. Thank you for allowing us to be a part of your child’s educational journey. The faculty and staff were treated to a beautiful teacher appreciation luncheon on Thursday. Thank you, Mrs. Huda and Mrs. Pagano, for all your hard work in putting the lunch together. Thank you to all our parent volunteers who covered the classrooms.

Professional Development Day

In accordance with the Diocese of Bridgeport Office of the Superintendent for Schools, a Personal Professional Development Day for faculty and staff has been added to the 2021-2022 School Calendar on Monday, March 14th, 2022.

Please be advised that school will be closed for students. There will be no virtual learning on March 14th. This will not add an additional day to the end of the 2021-2022 school year calendar.

2022-2023 School Registration

St. Mark School returning student registration is now open. Please contact the school main office if you need additional registration information.

Please Make Note

Due to the virtual earning school day today, please make note of the following calendar changes:

Monday, February 7th: MP2 Report Cards distributed, Grades K-8
Thursday, February 10th: Color Wars
Friday, February 11th: "First Friday" Mass, 8am, Grades K-8

From the Nurse's Office

COVID Testing

Our COVID Dashboard on our website will continue to be updated weekly. Testing allows us to identify positive cases in a timely manner and limit spread. At home self-tests, rapid antigen, and PCR tests will all be accepted.

Masks

We ask that all parents please speak to your child(ren) about appropriate mask wearing, ensuring both nose and mouth are covered. Be assured that teachers provide mask breaks indoors throughout the day for students when they are socially distanced.

**If you are having trouble finding an appointment or test kit, or have any questions or concerns please contact Nurse Frate fratew@stratk12.org.

Counselor's Corner

During February, students will be learning all about kindness. In addition to this being our theme for Models in Christ, students will participate in Kindness Week from the 14th to the 17th. During the week, students will have activities based on the theme of the day. I invite you to also have conversations at home about the importance of being kind not just to others, but to ourselves.

Monday, February 14th: Kindness Begins with Me

Tuesday, February 15th: Kindness Matters

Wednesday, February 16th: Spread Kindness Wherever You Go

Thursday, February 17th: Random Act of Kindness Day

Dress Code Reminders

Thank you for your attention to ensuring our students are wearing shoes to school that align with the dress code. We understand that it is cold outdoors, however with the exception of Grade 8, sweatshirts are not permitted as part of the school uniform unless it is gym day.

Grades K-8 sweater: If a student chooses to wear a sweater, it must be plain navy blue with or without our school name

Grades K-4: If a student does not wear a sweater, he/she must wear a knit navy vest with our school name. This is a part of our school uniform and not an option.

Grades 5-7: If a student does not have a sweater on, he must wear a zip up navy fleece vest with our school name.

Grade 8: Students may wear their Class of 2022 sweatshirt or their chosen high school sweatshirt. All other sweatshirts are a violation of the dress code.

Repeated violations of the dress code may result in disciplinary action.

Yearbook Cover Contest

St. Mark School is excited to announce the first annual Yearbook Cover Design Contest! Students in K -8 are invited to participate in the fun. The theme for this year’s yearbook is: MOVIES. Grade 8 Students have the honor of picking the winning cover! Any questions, please contact Ms. Zenowich at szenowich@stmarkschool.org.

Submit Art on:

8 1/2 x 11 sheet of paper
Vertical orientation

All Entries Must Include:

Our school name
The school year 2021-2022
Your name and grade should be on back of page
All entries must be school(age) appropriate

Entries Due By: February 17, 2022

Failure to follow the discussed guidelines will result in a disqualified entry.

Tips for a Good Entry:

Use lots of color, including the background.
Don’t leave uncolored white space.
Mix up your medium, use crayons, watercolors, markers, pastels, etc.
Do not add text too close to the edge of the page. Leave 1 inch of space around the edges, (no text) just color. This will avoid print issues when the art is applied to the cover.

100th Day of School

Wednesday February 9^th, 2022 will mark the 100^th Day of School. To celebrate, students, faculty and staff are invited to dress in the theme “I’m 100 years old!"

Please note, this is an optional, free Dress Down Day for those that choose to participate in the theme. If students choose not to participate in the themed dress down, they are expected to be in regular school uniform.

Quarter 2 Report Cards

Due to the Virtual Learning school day, Quarter 2 report cards will be sent home via backpack mail to Kindergarten through Grade 8 parents on Monday, February 7th, 2022.

As reminder, please sign and return your child's report card envelope to school no later than Monday, February 14th, 2022. Please note, only the envelope needs to be returned, the report card is yours to keep.

PlusPortals is the Diocesan Student Information Web Portal System available to all parents grades K-8. PlusPortals provides parents access to student grades, attendance, announcements, and teacher emails.

A feature has been added to parent's PlusPortal dashboard this year: e-locker. Parents of students in Kindergarten through Grade 8 can find a PDF copy of the 21-22 Quarter 2 Report card in the e-locker.

Any family that needs a PlusPortals activation link to be resent, please email Mrs. Mannino at cmannino@stmarkschool.org.

In Our Classrooms

This week, in honor of Catholic Schools Week, St. Mark School celebrated our faith, or students, families, and our teachers and staff!

On Monday, all students enjoyed Silly Hat/Silly Sock day and students in K-8 played a round of indoor mini-golf!

Catholic Schools week is a celebration! This year, for our school wide service project, our students have collected over 400 boxes of brownie mix, cake mix, and jars of frosting to donate to the Sterling House food pantry. Students has fun working together to build a sculpture out of the collected donations. Father Birendra, Father Russ, and Mrs. Nettleton visited to judge the best sculpture!

On Wednesday, students were treated to a Magic Show!

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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