O Come, O Come...

 Today is the first Sunday in Advent.  It is a time of preparation for the coming of Christ.  In our role as catechists, we should also be helping our students to prepare.  I love all the activities we do during this joyful season, but let us always keep the message of the angels at the forefront... O come let us adore, Him!

Here are some things that everyone should be doing in preparation for Friday's retreat:

• Create a new bulletin board in the hallway with the theme of Advent / Christmas
• Prepare a Jesse Tree in your classroom for the retreat
• Look deep into your closets and find your advent wreath that I know is in there (do not actually light the candles).  The morning show should also have a wreath on the desk.  If you picked up a Magnificat at church today, there is a blessing of the Advent Wreath in it.
• Prepare any materials you need for the retreat (Be sure you have read through it and have prepared activities for the second half of the morning.  I will get the Jesse Tree ornaments and scripture verses and Advent Angel materials to you.)

Should students ask, Friday is a regular uniform day.  Also, if you are part-time and normally come in late on Friday, please plan to come in by 8 a.m. so that you can help with the retreat.  Assignments are on the retreat at the end.  I have shared the document with everyone.  

Please remember that there are only three weeks of school before Christmas break, but these will be VERY busy weeks with lots happening.  Be sure you are reading all your emails, checking the calendar, etc. to keep up.  Thank you all for everything you do.  

While the cat's away...

 Actually 2 cats.  Gina and I will be in Monday morning, but we leave for Orlando after lunch to attend the FCC Administrator's Conference.  We have been participating in different chats on the conference app since last weekend, and I'm excited to learn more about what other schools are doing in terms of schedules, technology, and STREAM.  We will return on Thursday. Please do not send routine discipline issues to the office on Monday afternoon as no one will be there to help.  If it is extreme, I suggest having the office call the parent to pick up the child. Barbara will be there Tuesday and Wednesday and she is the go-to person should anything arise.  I am also a text away if you need me.  

I hope everyone had fun on Friday.  PTCO did a great job of getting volunteers and providing fun activities for the students.  At last count, we earned just over $17,000!  The winning class will be announced after everything has been tallied up.  

It's a pretty quiet week.  Teachers, instructions for the faculty meeting were emailed on Friday.  The Advent Retreat script and activities were emailed to teachers last night.  Be sure to look for both as well as the schedule for Adoration and Reconciliation.  

Friday is jean day with a Fall shirt.  Please review the jean day rules with your students.  Thank you and have a great week!  Thanksgiving break is almost here!!

Honoring Veterans

This week we celebrate Veteran's Day.  Please be sure everyone is tuned into the Morning Show as there will be a special prayer service honoring veterans on Thursday.  

Now that we are allowing parents back in the building to volunteer and field trips are starting, it's important to remember the volunteer rules.  If you send out a sign-up genius for volunteers, be sure to put in the email that a background check and safe environment course are required.  The same is required for field trips.  If a parent is driving for a field trip, they also need to take the defensive driver course, provide a copy of their license, and have $100K/$300K insurance coverage.  All of this was sent to parents in an email as a reminder last week.  If a parent comes to the office to volunteer and they do not meet these requirements, Karen will not allow them to enter.  If you are unsure if they meet the requirements, you can send a list of names to Karen and she will check.

Friday is Making Waves.  It should be a fun day for everyone.  The schedule was sent to everyone a few weeks ago by Nicki.  Please be outside on time for your session.  We will follow the half-day schedule.  If you have an Encore class during the time when you are scheduled to be outside, that teacher (George, Gina, or Claudia) will be there with your class so you still have a prep period.  I will send a separate schedule.  

Have a great week everyone!

Oh When the Saints...

 

Happy Halloween!  Trunk or Treat was a great success Friday night, even with a bit of rain.  Thank you Shaun for having the student council there to help with games.  I'm am looking forward to another great day tomorrow when all the "saints" arrive at our doors.  I will head over to Angel's Wing at 8 am to pick up the readers, altar servers, and choir, and I suggest everyone else leave the classrooms at 8:10 to get to church early to claim your seats.  Please refer to the seating chart I shared last week.  Students will not be able to spread out this week as usual.  Please have the student sit two to a kneeler.  Use the kneelers as your guide.  Each kneeler has 3 legs.  Have each student sit in the center of 2 legs and we should be fine.  Do not leave an empty pew between classes and move up if there is room after the class(es) in front of you are in place.  I will be there to assist.  Once the priest comes out, PK 4, K, and 1st can move to the back of the church to line up.  PK 3 should arrive between 8:20-8:25 and wait in the back of the church. After Mass, PK has asked to parade through the classrooms.  We will not have a morning show tomorrow, but we will have one on Wednesday.  

I have been very impressed with the Class Saints Posters that are already hanging.  As you finish them, please hang them across from 5th and 3rd grade on the cork strip.  They should all be up by Friday.  Have the class choose the student who most exhibits the characteristics of your saint next week (week of 11/8) and we can give the Marvelous Mustang Saint award before Thanksgiving.  If possible, choose someone who did not receive Marvelous Mustang this year.  Please use the Marvelous Mustang spreadsheet (I have added a column).  Put the name and one quality of the saint (be brief).  Example: St. Anthony helps us find lost things. Mary helps others to stay organized so they can always find their homework.  Only homeroom teachers should be doing this.

Please encourage your class to bring in canned/dry goods for the SVDP drive this week.  While there is no school-wide competition, you could set a goal for the class (number of items) and give a reward on Friday - some extra recess or game, etc.  

Finally, Thursday is the last day of the Trimester.  All summative assessments should have been completed by now.  This week allows time for make-ups or retakes.  If you do give an assessment later in the week, it can always go towards the next trimester.  This is the time to make sure everyone has made up summatives due to an absence, but not the time to be taking missing work from weeks/months ago.  We should only accept assignments up to a week after the due date.  However, all summatives must be completed.  

Have a wonderful week!

The Triduum of Hallowtide

This Sunday we celebrate Halloween which comes from the Catholic tradition of All Hallows Eve.  Pope Sixtus IV in 1484 established November 1 as a holy day of obligation and gave it a vigil (known today as "All Hallows' Eve" or "Hallowe'en")

In England, saints or holy people are called "hallowed", hence the name "All Hallows’ Day".  (Think about the Our Father – Hallowed be thy name.)  The evening, or "e'en" before the feast became popularly known as "All Hallows' Eve" or even shorter, "Hallowe'en".

Many recipes and traditions have come down for this evening, "All Hallows’ Eve" (now known as Halloween).  In England "soul cakes" are another traditional food. People would go begging for a "soul cake" and promise to pray for the donor's departed friends and family in exchange for the treat, an early version of today's "Trick or Treat."

This week is a good time to talk to students in Religion class about The 3 special days - All Hallows Eve, All Saints, and All Souls Day.  Be sure students and parents are aware of what the children should wear to Mass next week on Monday, Nov. 1 (PE shorts and saints t-shirt or saints costume for gr. PK-2nd).  

Please remember that students may wear a Halloween or Fall color t-shirt on Friday with jeans.  Be sure to go over the rules particularly the length of shorts (2 inches above the knee).  Friday is also our Trunk or Treat event.  Please try to attend and support our PTCO and student council who are working hard to make this a fun event.  

Grades 5-8 will go back to the FLC on Monday to eat lunch.  I know the students are very excited to be back there.  Please create a seating chart.  This is important as they are sitting next to each other without masks for an extended time.  You can create the seating chart after they sit down at the table and share it with me later in the day.  Gina and I will be there for lunch tomorrow and can help with that too.  

Teachers, our PLC meeting tomorrow will be for teachers to meet in grade levels and work on filling in the information in the spreadsheet Christa created.  I will be sure to share that with you.  This means it will not be necessary for PK and Encore teachers to attend.  

I believe that's everything.  Have a great week!

Fall Has Arrived

 When I left for church this morning, I had to be sure to grab a sweater.  Cooler mornings have arrived and the temperature will no longer hit 90 degrees.  That's when you know Fall has finally arrived in Tampa Bay.  

This weekend we gained a new deacon to our parish who is also one of our parents.  Congratulations to Deacon Geoff D'Angelo who served at his first Mass here on Sunday.  

I am excited to begin a new ministry for our students with Fr. Izzie.  Nine of our 8th graders have volunteered to be sacristans after school Masses.  I'm hoping that the first group will begin their service this coming Wednesday.  Once the start date is confirmed I will send a schedule.  After rotating through the 8th graders, I will train 7th graders who will then continue next year.  

This coming week is a quiet week and a good time to focus on wrapping up the first trimester.  Please do not leave summatives for the final week as it becomes difficult to give retakes before grades are due.  

Teachers, our faculty meeting this Monday is a PLC but we will all begin together in Heather's room.  We will first continue our discussion of i-Ready tracking from our professional development.  Christa will share a spreadsheet she created that everyone can have access to - ESE, Title I, etc.  Our middle school/encore teacher book study PLC will be moved to Oct. 25.  

Have a fantastic week! 

Hail Mary

October is the month dedicated to praying the Rosary.  We will pray the rosary each day during the month, either as a school or a class.  Homeroom teachers, please be sure you have the rosary beads that were placed in your mailbox and students may take them home at the end of October.  Mrs. Robles will share the PowerPoint with you so you can continue to pray the Rosary on Wednesday morning and during religion this week and next to complete the 5th decade.  

Items to remember for this week:

• The priests will be at a Convocation this week so we will not have Mass.  Instead, you should be teaching religion on Wednesday during the Mass period since we will not have classes on Friday.  For Middle School, this would be a good opportunity to have a House Meeting.  
• There will be no priest classroom visits this week.
• Picture day is Thursday.  This is for make-ups, graduation pictures, and class pictures.  Remind your students to be in regular uniform that day.  Students who have PE may change after pictures.  Karen B. will be sending out a schedule.  Any new employees who were not here for the first picture day will also have their pictures taken.
• Friday is a non-student day.  All teachers K-8, ESE, and Encore teachers are expected to attend the Professional Development day here at school starting promptly at 8 am with an i-Ready webinar in the Media Center.  Please be on time.  
• Remind students to wear their uniform to Mass next weekend and they may have free dress on Tuesday, Oct. 12, if they show their Holy Card.  
• There is no school on Monday, Oct. 11.

I will not be writing a blog next weekend as I will be out of state and I hope you all enjoy the long weekend!