St. Mary of Mt. Carmel Catholic School                       

Newsletter                              

Volume:  XIX

No.: 20

January 25, 2012

Third Quarter Begins!

Yesterday began the third quarter and second half of our school year.  Thank you students, staff, and parents for a wonderful first half of the school year.

CATHOLIC SCHOOLS’ WEEK

Catholic Schools’ Week will begin with a school mass at 10:30 A.M. this Sunday, January 29, 2012.  All families are invited and encouraged to attend.  Students can either dress up for church or wear their St. Mary’s ROCKS t-shirts with appropriate bottoms.  Catholic Schools’ Week is also a time when we remember all of the wonderful people in our school and those who support our school.  A complete schedule of events is on the back of this newsletter.  (Reminder – dress up days should be fun but appropriate for a Catholic school.)

A signup sheet to help with the breakfast was sent home last week.  We are still in need of families to help.  We also encourage our Confirmation students to help – especially those who attended St. Mary’s School.

GREAT NEWS!

Our school (4^th, 5^th, and 6^th graders) has been chosen as one of 7 schools in Minnesota to participate in the Minnesota Science Museum “Science Matters Camp-In.”  The students will spend Thursday and Friday, March 22 and 23, 2012, at the Science Museum, enjoying workshops, tours, an Omnitheater film, a LIVE theater presentation, pizza, snacks, breakfast, and, of course, a sleepover, all paid by Flint Hills Resources!!  We just received the great news yesterday, so more information will be sent home when we receive the details!

  In addition, the Minnesota Science Museum “Science Matters Outreach Tour” will be here next Wednesday at 1:00 P.M. to present an interactive, large group Dinosaur assembly to the k-2 classes and at 2:00 P.M. a Solids, Liquids, and Gases presentation to our 3-6 classes.

CUF (Catholic United Financial) Raffle

The students are certainly excited about selling the raffle tickets, and I am getting a little worried that I might be going on a field trip AND have pink and purple hair!  The SMART board – a $6,500.00 package – would be worth it!  The last day to turn in tickets is Monday, February 27, 2012.  If you are not going to sell your tickets, please turn them in, as all tickets – sold and unsold – must be returned to CUF.

Upcoming Events

Sunday, January 29, 2012 – CSW Mass and Brunch – Parish Appreciation - Dress Up or St. Mary’s ROCKS T-shirt Day.

Monday, January 30, 2012 – Staff Appreciation – Pajama Day.

Tuesday, January 31, 2012 – Student Appreciation – Beach Day.

Wednesday, February 1, 2012 – Volunteer Appreciation – Dress Up Day.

Thursday, February 2, 2012 – Business Appreciation - Rock and Roll Day.

Friday, February 3, 2012 – Parent/Family Appreciation – St. Mary’s ROCKS T-shirt Day.

AUCTION/DINNER FUNDRAISING MEETING TONIGHT, WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 25, 2012, AT 6:00 P.M. IN THE SCHOOL LIBRARY.

St. Mary of Mt. Carmel Catholic School                       

Newsletter                              

Volume:  XIX

No.: 19

January 18, 2012

END OF SECOND QUARTER

This Friday marks the end of the second quarter – the first half of the school year.  School will be dismissed at 1:00 P.M.  There will be no school next Monday due to an LPGE Inservice Day.  Students are reminded to make sure they have all make up work completed and  have met their AR goal.

CATHOLIC SCHOOLS’ WEEK

Catholic Schools’ Week will begin with a school mass at 10:30 A.M. on Sunday, January 29, 2012.  All families are invited and encouraged to attend.  If you can help with the set up, cooking, and/or clean up, all help is appreciated.  A sign up form accompanies this newsletter.

CUF (Catholic United Financial) Raffle

The students are certainly excited about selling the raffle tickets, and I am getting a little worried that I might be going on a field trip AND have pink and purple hair!  The SMART board – a $6,000.00 package – would be worth it! 

“What St. Mary’s Means to Me” Essay Request

As you know, at the beginning of the school year, a very generous family donated $50,000.00 to our school.  The only request this family made was the following:  “I would ask that the students at St Mary's write a little essay as to what St Mary's means to them. Can be a sentence or a paragraph. It would be nice if these could be hung in the school, church entrance or even around town. We visit the Catholic school our grandkids go to and they do that there. Some are one line and others are longer.”

I assured the family we would do so, and they replied, “Give all the glory to God. He makes all of it possible.  I'm so glad you are doing the essays as to ‘Why I like to attend St Mary of Mt Carmel School.’ Maybe you could also put some of these in your bulletin or online for people to read. Maybe it will get some of the other alumni to donate or at least think back on their years at St Mary's. Perfect time for writing during Catholic Schools week.”

I also invite parents to write a short piece about what St. Mary’s means to their family.  We did this about six years ago, and it was wonderful to see so many wonderful comments about our beautiful school.  I would like to publish the comments on our website and let everyone see the benefits of sending their children to a Catholic school.

If you would like to be a part of this project, you can email you comments to me at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or send them in with your child(ren).  If you do not want your name to be published with your essay, please note that on your paper.                                                                          

Upcoming Events

Friday, January 20, 2012 - Early Out at 1:00 P.M. and End of Second Quarter.

Monday, January 23, 2012 – NO SCHOOL – Teacher workshop.

Sunday, January 29, 2012 – CSW Mass and Brunch – St. Mary’s ROCKS T-shirt Day.

Monday, January 30, 2012 – Staff Appreciation – Pajama Day.

Tuesday, January 31, 2012 – Student Appreciation – Beach Day.

Wednesday, February 1, 2012 – Volunteer Appreciation – Dress Up Day.

AUCTION/DINNER FUNDRAISING MEETING ON WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 25, 2012, AT 6:00 P.M.

LAST DAY TO TURN IN TICKETS IS MONDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 2012.  IF YOU ARE NOT GOING TO SELL YOUR TICKETS, PLEASE TURN THEM IN, AS ALL TICKETS – SOLD AND UNSOLD – MUST BE RETURNED TO CUF.

PreK

See weekly notes.

Kindergarten

See weekly notes.

First Grade

Jesus said, "Come, follow me and I will make you fishers of men." All the disciples in the first grade sure did a marvelous job of catching people with the Good News of Jesus! Thanks for helping your children with their reading. You are appreciated! Religion: God's Word is a Promise! Reading: Cluster r words, contractions, categorizing, action part of a sentence and writing "My Trip!" Math: Patterning, number stories, frame and arrows/finding patterns in numbers (adding or subtracting), Math Magician! Social: Martin Luther King, Jr. – I Have a Dream! Science/Art: Snowflakes and Life Size Snowman! Happy Snowy Day!!

Second Grade

This week in 2nd grade, we will be continuing to talk about our conscience and free will to prepare for the Sacrament of Reconciliation.  We will also be discussing what it means to be fishers of men.  In reading, we are reading one of my favorite stories, Big Bushy Mustache. We will be learning about the ow and ow vowel sounds, and words that mean one and more than one.  In math, we are finishing up the unit on 2D and 3D shapes.  The last lesson is on symmetry, and we will finish the week by taking the unit test.  In science, the 1st and 2nd graders will be making a book and learning about how fossils are formed. Mrs. Berscheit will be my substitute on Thursday, I'll be at a workshop. Have a great week! - One more thought, as most of you know, we will no longer be having show and tell due to some missing items.  Please feel free to call me with any questions or information on this matter.  

Third Grade

During religion class this week, we are looking closer to the parts of the mass and what they mean. We are learning more about Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and what  he believed in.  We will be testing on our geometry unit later this week.  We continue to work on our tourist sites for social studies.  We will finish any other testing this week because the quarter ends on the 20th.  Conferences are set for February.   Have a wonderful day!

Fourth Grade

This week, we continue to practice multiplying bigger numbers.  We will also complete our story, “Twenty and Ten.”  We are half way through the month, so students should be half way to their AR goal.  Students are working on their inventor projects for science, as well as a social project.  This week marks the end of the second quarter.

Fifth Grade

Great job selling the raffle tickets!! The fifth graders are very excited about this fundraiser. This week we continue to work on adding and subtracting fractions.  We will end the unit on Thursday with a test; please watch for the review. Great work on our last unit in social.  The fifth graders will begin their science unit, “Earth and Its Neighbors.”  This lesson will focus on our solar system. The end of the quarter is soon approaching, so check with your child about assignments and AR goals. Have a great long week-end.

Sixth Grade

We enjoyed listening to Rachel and Emily on the radio yesterday. Good job, radio personalities! This last week of second quarter finds us returning to punctuation study. We will be reviewing the uses of the apostrophe, hyphen and dash. Students only have a couple more days until Friday to meet their AR goals, if they haven't done so already. At this time of the year, I would like to remind students about the importance of trying your best and taking pride in your work.

St. Mary of Mt. Carmel Catholic School                       

Newsletter                              

Volume:  XIX

No.: 18

January 11, 2012

Congratulations!!

Congratulations to Rachel Middendorf and Emily Leroux!  Every year, Jodi’s Hope Foundation sponsors an essay contest in which students write about the job they aspire to attain.  This year, 40 students entered the contest, and two of our students took first and second place.  Rachel Middendorf took first place with her essay about becoming a dairy farmer, and Emily Leroux took second place with her essay about becoming a veterinarian. Way to go, girls!

CATHOLIC SCHOOLS’ WEEK

Catholic Schools’ Week will begin with a school mass on Sunday, January 29, 2012.  An agenda accompanies this newsletter.  All families are invited and encouraged to attend.  We also encourage parents to attend our parent/volunteer appreciation mass and brunch on Wednesday of that week.  Please note the date change for the water park.  We will be going to the water park on Tuesday, January 31, 2012, as this date allows us to have the water park for only St. Mary of Mt. Carmel students.  Students will be allowed to bring their lunches into the park area instead of eating on the bus.

CUF (Catholic United Financial) Raffle

Last year, our school was given the opportunity to sell CUF Raffle tickets, and this fundraiser far surpassed our expectations.  We made $14,875 and were the fourth-highest selling school out of 46 participating schools!  This fundraiser took the place of our BIG TICKET, and because it was such a success, we applied to participate again this year.  We were chosen to participate and are excited to begin.  In addition to the wonderful prizes you can win and prizes for the top-selling students and classes, the three top-selling schools (per student enrollment) will receive a SMART board package (SMART board, projector, and stand)!  SMART boards are wonderful teaching tools, but we currently only have one because of their high cost.  I am going to challenge our students to be one of the three top-selling schools (per student enrollment) – maybe even the top-selling school!  We will begin selling this Friday, January 13, 2012, and all of the information and tickets for this event will be sent home with the students on Friday.

27^th Annual Auction and Dinner                                                                      

                                                                                                                        Café

Our 27^th Annual Auction Dinner (St. Mary’s ROCKS Café) will be held on Friday, April 27, 2012.

Our next fundraising meeting will be tonight at 6:30 P.M.

Upcoming Events

Wednesday, January 11, 2012 – Fundraising meeting at 6:30 P.M. in the school library.

Wednesday, January 11, 2012 – No children’s mass.

Friday, January 13, 2012 – Children’s mass at 8:30 A.M.

Friday, January 13, 2012 – Early Out at 1:00 P.M.

Friday, January 20, 2012 - Early Out at 1:00 P.M. and End of Second Quarter.

Monday, January 23, 2012 – NO SCHOOL – Teacher workshop.

Sunday, January 29, 2012 – CSW Mass and Brunch.

PreK

See weekly notes.

Kindergarten

See weekly notes.

First Grade

Happy New Year! We have started this year with an amazing beginning! The kids are eager to learn and are enjoying being able to read like a Rock Star and being Math Magicians! Our Scripture reading goes with our theme: Jesus Rocks! Jesus changed Simon's name to Peter, which means rock. We are rocks for Jesus! Reading: short i words, possessives, -s,-ed, -ing endings, making predictions. Math: patterns, odds & evens, basic facts +, number stories. Social: Martin Luther King, Jr. Science: It's Freezing, Polar Bears! I truly appreciated and loved all the wonderful Christmas gifts, they were so thoughtful! You all are so generous! All the gifts I need are your kids! Have a super weekend!

Second Grade

Welcome to 2012, everyone!  I'm very excited for this new year as a lot of great things will be happening in 2nd grade!  In religion we are studying the Baptism of the Lord.  We will be acting out the Gospel and preparing the mass this Friday.  I hope you can join us.  Since Reconciliation is now only a few months away, we are talking about our conscience and free will.  The students are starting to learn the Act of Contrition.  A copy of this prayer is in their assignment notebook, so please help them practice.  In math, we have started a new unit : 2D and 3D Shapes.  In reading, we are learning about long a words, special nouns, and reading a story about a trip to a firehouse.  This week, the first and second graders will begin a new science unit on dinosaurs.  Have a wonderful week! 

Third Grade

The exciting game, “Baptism of Jesus” helped us to understand what the prophet John did and what he had preached to the people of his time.  This Friday's mass will also help us to better understand this special Baptism.  “Dogzilla” is this week's reading story.  It is proving to be an EG rated story - meaning Extremely Goofy!  Later this week, we will be illustrating a movie advertisement for our own story.  During social studies, the third and fourth graders are researching tourist sites of the West.  Please be looking for instructions on this to assist your child in his/her search for information on his/her selected tourist site.  Thank you!

Fourth Grade

We have begun a new unit in reading and in math.  We are reading some AMAZING stories about unbelievable things.  We are also learning how
to multiply bigger numbers through the game called Multiplication Wrestling!   This week the students are writing their compound spelling words in sentences.  They are excited about the Inventions Museum!  More information is being sent home. Mrs. Sandberg

Fifth Grade

The next two weeks in the fifth grade room, we will be preparing for the end of the quarter.  We will have a unit test in religion, social, and math; watch for the reviews to be sent home.  We will be checking AR goals, also. Remember the early out this Friday.  Please have your child use this time to get caught up on any late work and needed reading points. The fifth graders are very excited for our approaching Catholic School's Week; we hope you can join us for some of the activities. We hope everyone is having a beautiful start to the new year!

Sixth Grade

We had some exciting news on Monday: Two of our students, Rachel Middendorf and Emily Leroux, took first and second place respectively in the Jodi's Hope Contest. Congratulations, girls! I was very pleased with all the sixth graders' essays and videotaped presentations. All students worked very hard and were well-rehearsed. They know how to do a job well!  In spelling this week, we are working with ea words. Our handwriting verse from Proverbs strikes close to home with the students as it brought up some good questions and discussion of the importance of being "slow-tempered" and having "self-control."  We are finishing up our Hatchet unit with one more look at characterization, cause and effect, and context clues. Our test over the book was yesterday; a test over Hatchet vocabulary is scheduled for Friday.

St. Mary of Mt. Carmel Catholic School                       

Newsletter                              

Volume:  XIX

No.: 17

January 4, 2012

Everyone at St. Mary of Mt. Carmel School wishes you a blessed and prosperous new year. 

Austria 2011

Many of you have asked about my trip – thank you.  We had a wonderful time visiting family in Austria.  Grandma cried when we arrived and cried when we left, as it had been 7 years since she had seen the grandchildren!  (For those of you who do not know, my husband is originally from Salzburg, and his entire family is still there.)  We even went to the Men’s World Cup Ski Race!  It was a very special visit for us, and I thank you for understanding my absence during the last week of school in 2011.

CATHOLIC SCHOOLS’ WEEK

Catholic Schools’ Week will begin with a school mass on Sunday, January 29, 2012.  A complete agenda will be sent home with next week’s newsletter.  We will need parents to help with events during this week, so we will also be sending sign-up sheets home next week.

27^th Annual Auction and Dinner

Hard Rock (Reaching out with Christian Kindness) Café

Our 27^th Annual Auction Dinner (Hard Rock Café) will be held on Friday, April 27, 2012.

 Our next fundraising meeting will be on Wednesday, January 11, 2012, at 6:30 P.M.

  I encourage everyone to attend this meeting or to volunteer to help with this event in some way

Waffle Breakfast

This Sunday our parish youth in grades 9-12 are sponsoring an all-you-can-eat waffle with toppings and sausage breakfast from 9:00 A.M. – 12:00 P.M.  Tickets are $7.50 at the door, or you can purchase advanced tickets for $6.00 at St. Mary’s Parish or the 12-Mile Tavern.

Upcoming Events

Friday, January 6, 2012 – First Friday Mass at 8:15 A.M.

Wednesday, January 11, 2012 – Fundraising meeting at 6:30 P.M. in the school library.

Wednesday, January 11, 2012 – No children’s mass.

Friday, January 13, 2012 – Children’s mass at 8:30 A.M.

Friday, January 13, 2012 – Early Out at 1:00 P.M.

Friday, January 20, 2012 - Early Out at 1:00 P.M. and End of Second Quarter.

Monday, January 23, 2012 – NO SCHOOL – Teacher workshop.

Sunday, January 29, 2012 – CSW Mass and Brunch.

St. Mary of Mt. Carmel Catholic School                       

Newsletter                              

Volume:  XIX

No.: 16

December 21, 2011

MERRY CHRISTMAS

MAY GOD BLESS ALL OF YOU ON THIS VERY BLESSED CHRISTMAS.

Thank you to everyone who attended our Christmas Concert.  It is always so wonderful to see our families, friends, and parishioners and remember together the real meaning of Christmas.

CATHOLIC SCHOOLS’ WEEK

Catholic Schools’ Week will begin with a school mass on Sunday, January 29, 2012.  More information will be sent home during the first week of January.

27^th Annual Auction Dinner

Hard Rock (Reaching out with Christian Kindness) Café

Our 27^th Annual Auction Dinner (Hard Rock Café) will be held on Friday, April 27, 2012.  We had a fundraising meeting on Wednesday, December 7, 2011, and it must have been a busy day for everyone because only one person was at the meeting.  I don’t mind chairing the event, but we could really use more help.  It is a fun event, and the planning and preparing really brings people together.  We could especially use people to send out donation requests, ask for donations, and pick up donations.  Also, I am not a decorator – ask my husband – so we could use people with great ideas to plan and decorate the VFW. 

Our goal is to raise $27,000.00, and this is not possible without everyone helping in some way.  Every dollar we raise helps keep down the cost of tuition and allows the children to receive an incredible Catholic education!

Our next fundraising meeting will be on Wednesday, January 11, 2012, at 6:30 P.M.

Upcoming Events

Thursday, December 22, 2011 – Last day of school before Christmas vacation.

Friday, December 23, 2011 – Monday, January 2, 2012 – Christmas vacation.

Tuesday, January 3, 2012 – School resumes.

Wednesday, January 11, 2012 – Fundraising meeting at 6:30 P.M. in the school library.

For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; And the government will rest on His shoulders; And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.

Isaiah 9:6

PreK

 MERRY CHRISTMAS

Kindergarten

GOD BLESS YOU THIS CHRISTMAS SEASON.

First Grade

 HAPPY NEW YEAR

Second Grade

BEST WISHES!

Third Grade

 MERRY CHRISTMAS

Fourth Grade

 JESUS IS THE REASON

Fifth Grade

 ...AND UNTO US A CHILD IS BORN.

Sixth Grade

 MERRY CHRISTMAS

St. Mary of Mt. Carmel Catholic School                       

Newsletter                              

Volume:  XIX

No.: 15

December 14, 2011

Sing With Us The Christmas Story

Tomorrow

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

1:30 P.M. and 6:30 P.M.

Featuring eight traditional Christmas carols!

Refreshments will be served in the church hall following both programs.

Children will not have phy-ed or outdoor recess on the day of the Christmas program.  Students MUST have a note from parents if they will be going home with anyone other than parents – even grandparents – after the concert.  Students who are not in costumes should arrive at church at 6:15 P.M. the night of the program.  Students who need to dress in costume should arrive at 5:45 P.M.

The children’s mass will be on Thursday, December 15, 2011, instead of Wednesday, December 14, 2011.

Midterms accompany this newsletter.  If you have any questions, please contact your child’s teacher.

Reminder:  There is an early out this Friday, December 16, 2011, at 1:00 P.M.

Third Week of Advent Prayer

O Wonderous and Gentle Lord, thank you for the beauties of this week.  How grateful our school family is to you for the precious mysteries of Advent and Christmas.  Help us to prepare our hearts and minds for the holiness and awe of Christmas.

FOR SALE

HOODIE HATS ARE FOR SALE IN THE SCHOOL OFFICE FOR $10.00.

A Nordic ski machine was donated to our summer rummage sale.  If anyone would like this machine, please contact the school office.  You can pick it up at any time, as it is just taking up space in the church hall.  (As much as I’d like to say that the staff has been using this on a regular basis, I can’t tell a lie.) 

Upcoming Events

Wednesday, December 14, 2011 – Christmas program at 1:30 P.M. and 6:30 P.M.

Wednesday, December 14, 2011 – No children’s mass. 

Thursday, December 15, 2011 – Children’s mass at 8:30 A.M.

Friday, December 16, 2011 – Early out at 1:00 P.M.

Thursday, December 22, 2011 – Last day of school before Christmas vacation.

Friday, December 23, 2011 – Monday, January 2, 2012 – Christmas vacation.

Tuesday, January 3, 2012 – School resumes.

SCRIP CARDS!

DON’T FORGET, SCRIP CARDS MAKE WONDERFUL CHRISTMAS GIFTS – ORDER EARLY – OR JUST SEE WHAT WE HAVE ON HAND!