Students in Mrs. Jehning's First Grade Class are making mathematical connections to real life experiences. Building number sense is all about making math meaningful and interactive. Last week, students were engaged in an activity titled, Math About Me. It was about looking at numbers and realizing that numbers are a part of our lives. First grade also brainstormed all the places we see numbers.
Our next school Mass will be on Friday, 11/7, at 9am in the Church.
Two additional VIRTUS training sessions have now been scheduled locally. One class will be held at SMS in the 7th grade science classroom on Thursday, October 23 at 6pm. To attend the training session at SMS, please RSVP to Mrs. Budnick via email at tbudnick@stmarysimsbury.eduk12.net or 860-658-9412. There will be an additional VIRTUS training session facilitated by Mr. Phil Mikan, father of Andrew and Marisa in grade 2, at St. Therese in Granby, on Sunday, October 19th at 11:30am. If you interested in attending the session at St. Therese, please register on-line. Click here.
It is time for St. Mary’s School Fall Open House. Open House is on Wednesday, November 5th at 6:30 PM in the Parish Center. We need your help promoting this event to your friends, family and neighbors. Please stop by the school office and pick up a yard sign to place in front of your house or business. Please feel free to take 2! Also, our families are our best school ambassadors. If you know a family interested in St. Mary’s School, please invite them personally to attend the Open House. It is a wonderful opportunity to learn more about our amazing school.
Please support the St. Mary’s School Annual Fund for 2014-2015. Did you know the Annual Fund is the best way possible to help make a financial difference in the future of St. Mary’s School. It helps keep tuition affordable. The Annual Fund enhances programs and services offered to students and faculty. Every gift counts, every child benefits with the Annual Fund.
Employee matching gift programs are a great way to support St. Mary’s
School.. Many employers offer their employees the opportunity to make charitable contributions through payroll deduction. These corporations, large and small, either match contributions dollar-for-dollar or a set percentage of your paid gift. St. Mary’s School is also an eligible charity in the United Way Campaign. If your corporation participates in the United Way Campaign, please consider selecting St. Mary’s School to benefit from your donation.
Donations can be made online - Click here. Thank you for your support!
Winter and snow fun are coming soon and its time to sign-up for the Ski and Snowboard Club! This is always a great time for students and parents. Students need to be at least 8 years old on January 7, 2015. The Club has a 5-session program from 3-8pm on Wednesdays at Ski Sundown in New Hartford that starts on January 7, 2015. Roundtrip bus transportation from SMS, lessons and rental equipment are also available. Please see the 2015 forms and FAQ on the school website - Click here. As in past years, the Club will need chaperones and snack helpers. Click here to use the Sign-Up Genius to select a time slot. All registration forms and payment are due November 1st, 2014.
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Also, it's not too late to order more copys of your school portraits.
1. Go to photogifts.lifetouch.com.
2. Choose "Claim your Lifetouch Images" and enter your Portrait ID and Access Code. You'll find this on the insert inside your Lifetouch portrait envelope.
Finally, keep in mind that Lifetouch will return to SMS on Monday, November 17th to take group class photos of students in Prekindergarten, Kindergarten - Grade 7. All students in Kindergarten through grade 7 should be in formal uniform for this photo. Lifetouch will also do retakes on this day and take photos of any student(s) that may have been absent on picture day on September 15th. Click here for more information.
Athletics
The winter basketball ball season is approaching quickly. Here is some information you will need to know for the upcoming season. If you have not yet done so, please return the registration form no later then October 24th. Click here for registration form.
Practice begins the week of the Oct. 27th
Practices for grades 2-6 will be held during the week. Each team will have 2 practices M-F. The boys play Saturday morning and the girls play Sunday Afternoon.
Grades 7-8 (Varsity) Practice will be from 6-8pm on Mondays at Valley Sport Center in Canton and Saturday mornings at Westminster School in Simsbury. Games will be on Thursdays, Fridays or Sundays.
Fee for participation is the following:
JVC - Grades 2-3 $50
JVB, JVA, Varsity - Grades 3-8 $150
There is a maximum $275 cap per family
Any questions feel free to contact Mr. Gangloff at adirector@stmarysimsbury.eduk12.net.
Home & School Association News
The winter basketball ball season is approaching quickly. Here is some information you will need to know for the upcoming season. If you have not yet done so, please return the registration form no later then October 24th. Click here for registration form.
Practice begins the week of the Oct. 27th
Practices for grades 2-6 will be held during the week. Each team will have 2 practices M-F. The boys play Saturday morning and the girls play Sunday Afternoon.
Grades 7-8 (Varsity) Practice will be from 6-8pm on Mondays at Valley Sport Center in Canton and Saturday mornings at Westminster School in Simsbury. Games will be on Thursdays, Fridays or Sundays.
Fee for participation is the following:
JVC - Grades 2-3 $50
JVB, JVA, Varsity - Grades 3-8 $150
There is a maximum $275 cap per family
Any questions feel free to contact Mr. Gangloff at adirector@stmarysimsbury.eduk12.net.
HSA Monthly Meeting
We will be having our monthly HSA meeting this Thursday, October 16th at 6:30 p.m. in the 8th grade classroom. All are welcome!
Do you have a green thumb? Come help make St. Mary's as colorful on the outside as it is inside!
Due to the pending rainy weather expected on Thursday, 10/16, our first meeting has been changed to Thursday, October 23rd from 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. We will be doing a clean up, planting bulbs and sharing our friendship. Contact Jennifer Pavlonnis at jpavlonnis@yahoo.com if you are interested in being involved!
Save the Date for Pumpkin Bingo - Please join us for our annual pumpkin bingo on Friday, October 24th from 6-8:30pm in the Parish Center It's great fun for the whole family. Come in costume and participate in our costume parade. As always, we will be selling pizza by the slice from Little City. Bingo cards will be sold $1 per card. Please keep in mind that this is a family fun event - all children must have adult supervision.
Trunk or Treat!!!!
Grades pre K - 3rd will be attending "Trunk or Treat" on Friday, October 31st from 2:00 - 2:45 pm. Any parent in these grades who wish to participate in this volunteer event, please contact Jennifer Pavlonnis atjpavlonnis@yahoo.com.
Thank you to all who helped make our Scholastic Book Fair a success!
Congratulations to Ruairi Stenson who guessed the exact number of mints in the jar. He won the basket of books! Happy Reading! Congratulations to Gavin Hughes who had the next closest guess. He won the jar of Andes Mints!
If you missed the Book Fair, or want to make additional purchases, please remember that the online fair continues until October 22. Click here to visit the online fair. All online purchases will benefit St. Mary's School.
Students in Mr. Cosham's Kindergarten welcomed their friends from Miss Kane's PreKindergarten this week to share some iPad activities.
Mass Casualty Exercise at Hartford Children's Medical Center - Student Volunteers Needed -
The Hartford Children's Medical Center will be conducting a Mass Casualty Exercise on Tuesday, October 21. As the area's premier location for pediatric care, CT Children's holds a full scale mass casualty exercise every fall to help them refine their skills and improve on their systems. They have invited students from SMS to participate as "victims". Approximately 30 children have participated in past drills and having real kids is tremendously helpful in making the drill more "real". Being a part of this drill gives students an exposure to medical care and environments without the threat of being sick or being "poked at".
The children are gathered before the drill, given a "triage tag" to wear on their wrist, which details the simulated injury and other information, and they are transported through the hospital system as if they were real patients. In the last drill, patients were transported to our PICU and the OR and actually placed in rooms and on cardiac monitors. Everyone remains dressed at all times. There will be snacks and beverages for the kids and they will be reunited with their adults in the same room that is used for check-in.
There are no age restrictions, but the medical center has found that under age 8 it can be a little intimidating because students will be placed on stretchers and treated as patients. A reminder that no invasive actions will be taken. They may be listened to and examined, but nothing inappropriate. All will remain dressed. Sometimes they are taken to the receiving unit (can be ICU, OR or a regular floor) and even placed on cardiac monitors.
Participants should plan to arrive on Tuesday, October 21 at 6pm and check in at the ambulatory entrance (this is where the valet parking is, on Seymour Street across from the public parking garage, next to the emergency entrance). Upon arrival, participants will check in and receive name tags. Parents do not have to stay but are welcome to stay but must also check in. If you are staying, a couple of chaperones would be most welcome.
After check in, participants will go to a conference room where they will be preparedfor the drill.
The drill should be complete at around 8:00 pm, and participants should be picked up at the same location as drop off. The medical center will validate parking for any parents who decide to stay.
Your RSVP is Requested! We would like to provide the medical center with a list of students that plan to attend that includes the age of the child. Additionally, if a parent is planning to stay and would be willing to act as a chaperone, we would like to share this information. If your child is planning to participate, please RSVP to Donna Hatch at dhatch@stmarysimsbury.eduk12.net or 860-658-9412 NLT Firday, 10/17. Please be sure to include the name of your child(ren), his/her/their age(s) and grade(s) and if you plan to stay and are willing to chaperone.
For further information, please feel free to contact:
Jennifer A. Tabak BSN RN CEN CPEN
Trauma Program Manager
Connecticut Children's Medical Center
(860) 545-9810 office
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