Happy Thanksgiving

Thank you to everyone who came to participate in our Second Annual Thanksgiving Luncheon. It is always wonderful to be able to share in such a great event with our families! On behalf of the Academy of St. Priscilla at Divine Savior we would like to wish a very happy and blessed Thanksgiving to you and your family.

Advent "Mass" port

Sunday, November 28 begins the Advent Season. Each student has received or will receive an Advent "Mass" port. We would like each family to attend Mass at Divine Savior and bring their "Mass" port with them to get a sticker in their booklet at the end of the Mass. Ms. Marcin, the music director, has the stickers and will give the children their stickers for their booklets. Please have the students wear their spirit wear t-shirt to Mass. Come to the 9:30 Mass on November 28, and you will see Mrs. Hodge sing!!

Heart of the School - Vote for Mrs. Tanya

Each year the Archdiocese of Chicago selects 16 teachers as the Heart of the School Award Winners. I have selected Mrs. Tanya as our nominee from The Academy because of all of her wonderful accomplishments as our Pre-Kindergarten teacher. Mrs. Tanya has been nominated for the Early Childhood category. Select this focus area when you place your vote! Please show your support for Mrs. Tanya and vote for her to be one of the 16 Award Winners. Click on the link to show your support and vote for Mrs. Tanya.

Heart of the School Award Nomination Form

Votes will be accepted through December 17th.

Can you believe we are in November?

Where has this time gone? I cannot believe Halloween is behind us. As these days pass us by so quickly, we must take some time out tomorrow, November 2, All Soul's Day, to remember our loved ones who have gone before us. Enjoy some quiet time together as a family and say the following prayer:
"May the angels lead them into Heaven. May the saints come to welcome them. And may they praise God forever in His Kingdom."

Since we are in November, please be sure to save the date for our annual Thanksgiving Luncheon. Our Luncheon is a pot-luck meal that will be celebrated on Tuesday, November 23 at 12:00PM. Dismissal for the students will follow the luncheon. We will begin with a Thanksgiving Prayer Service.
The following day is Parent/Teacher/Student Conferences from 9:00AM-2:00PM. The teachers will select times to meet with each parent. If you are unable to meet with your child's teacher at the given time slot, you will need to make arrangements with your child's teacher for a different time.

Before we know it...it will be December!

Music classes coming to The Academy!

Today is All Saint's Day and we all went to the 9:00AM Mass. The children were invited up after the Mass for a special blessing from Father. It was a great opportunity for us to be in church with the parish community and celebrate this feast day.
After Mass Mary Lou Marcin, the music director for the parish, wanted to sing with the children, and she taught them "This Little Light of Mine." The children are wonderful singers. Mary Lou had so much fun, as she used to teach in Catholic grammar school, that she is willing to sing with the children once a week. We need to work out the scheduling, but it will be a great opportunity for our children to learn to sing, and love music!

Photostream

Check our some photos of The Academy from our field trip to Apple Hollar, Grandparent's Day, Safety Town at Harlem and Irving Plaza, Bike Safety and Lt. Dan. Scroll to the bottom of my blog to view the pictures!

Fire Prevention Week

Last week, October 3 through the 9 was Fire Prevention Week. We have our first fire drill of the school year with Lt. Dan Johnson of the Norwood Park Fire Department. He also stayed after our fire drill to talk with all of us about Fire Safety. We had a special helper in Mrs. Tanya's room show us how to do "stop, drop, and roll." We are lucky to have a great relationship with our local fire department. On October 25, a fire truck and ambulance will be coming to us for the students to walk through and see all of the equipment.

Safety Town

Wednesday, September 29 the Galaxy Kids had the opportunity to attend Safety Town at the Harlem-Iriving Plaza. The students learned what to do in case a fire starts at home. We climbed out of the window after the room filled with "smoke," and we learned when to stop, drop, and roll. The students also learned what to say and do if they think a stranger is trying to trick them:
First the scream "No!", then run away, and tell an adult.

Dispatcher Kelly helped us learn how to dial 911, and when to dial 911. Parents we need you to practice your address with your children! Should there ever be an emergency, the students need to know their address. We will be working on this with them at school too!

We also learned that guns are not toys, and what to do if we find a gun in the area:

1. Stop!
2. Don't Touch
3. Leave the area
4. Tell an adult

Finally we practiced walking in the crosswalk. We learned when it's safe to walk across the street (green light), and never to cross the street on a yellow or red light. At a stop sign, we learned to look both ways, listen for cars, and then cross. We must always stay within the cross walk!

Parents, please review these safety tips with your children. Next week begins Fire Safety Week. Lt. Dan will be here to talk to us again about Fire Safety.

Spoons Behavior System

We have a new behavior system in our classroom! Each student has five spoons with his or her name on them in a little holder. Should a student not be following directions or following our classroom rules, they will be asked to pull a spoon. Each student will have opportunities to earn the spoons back throughout the day, but after all five spoons are gone, the parents will be contacted. If a student has lost spoons and has not earned them back by the end of the day, they will bring a paper home indicating the number of spoons they had left and the reason why they lost the spoons.
Students who have kept all five spoons all day for the week will have an opportunity to do something special, of their choice, in the classroom at the end of the week.

Rainforest Unit

The Galaxy Kids are finishing up their Rainforest Unit! We learned there are four layers in a Rainforest: Emergent, Canopy, Understory, and the Forest Floor. Various animals live within the four layers of the Rainforest including Ocelots, Tree Frogs, Capybaras, Sloths, Leaf Cutter Ants, and more! The students had a great time discovering where the Rainforests are located, and saddened to learn that the Rainforests are disappearing. We talked about ways that we can help save God's creation with small changes we can do around the house. Using a refillable water bottle is one simple way to help!

Back to School Night - September 23

Come and see what we have been doing so far at the Academy! Visit the classrooms, meet our parents and teachers, and see what your child has been learning since our first day of school!

Parent and Teacher Expectations of Each Other

The school year has started off great! In an effort to continue in this successful path, I wanted to share with you some parent and teacher expectations from an article in the August/September issue of Today's Catholic Teacher. We thank you for entrusting your child in our care. As a school community, we are committed to fulfilling our obligations in educating and enriching your child.

The expectations below are some expectations parents should have of their child's teacher:

• The lessons on morality, ethics, religion, and dealing with others begins at home, and should be reinforced in the classroom.
• The teacher will provide quality instruction with the inclusion of Catholic values and Church teaching
• The teacher will maintain order and discipline in the classroom
• The teacher will contact you, the parent, frequently to report on your child's progress
• The teacher will notify you immediately of an emergency involving your child
• The teacher will contact you when there is a problem
• The teacher will use up-to-date teaching methods
• The teacher will try to meet the individual learning needs of your child
• The teacher will be fair (NOTE: Fair does not mean equal.)

The expectations below are some expecations teachers have of their students' parents:

• You will bring your child to church regularly
• You will provide your child with supplies
• You will be present at parent-teacher meetings and at other significant occasions in your child's life at school
• You will account for your child's whereabouts
• You will support school policies, classroom rules, and the teacher's decisions
• You will help with, not do, homework and assignments
• You will provide up-to-date information in case of an emergency involving your child
• You will contact the teacher when there is a problem.

For more information on these expecations and communication strategies, please visit the link to the article from Today's Catholic Teacher: http://www.catholicteacher.com/archive/articles_view.php?article_id=2687

FSA Meeting

Hi Parents! We are still looking for parents to join our Family and School Association! Most of our meetings will be held on Thursday evenings, but our next meeting will be Monday, September 20 because on Thursday, September 23 we have Back to School Night!

We hope you can be a part of our FSA. It is important to have our parents involved in our school to help plan various events, support fundraisers, help with our "Special Lunches," and more!

We hope to see you Monday, September 2o for our first meeting of the 2010-2011 School Year!

Rainforest in Room 100

Our classroom is slowly becoming a rainforest. There is so much to learn about the rainforests, and the students are very excited to research plants, animals and people that live in the rainforest. So far we have learned that there are four layers in the rainforest: emergent, canopy, understory, and the forest floor. Also, that there is limited sunlight on the forest floor, and it rains A LOT!
Each day we spend time learning about various mammals, reptiles, birds, plants, trees, and food that lives or comes from the rainforests.

We know that the rainforests are slowly disappearing, and we are going to try to use only reusable water bottles, save paper, and do what we can to help save the rainforests.

Spirit Wear and Picture Day

Spirit Wear will be sent home on Tuesday!!

You should receive an email from me through Constant Contact regarding School Pictures. Picture Day will be Tuesday, September 14.

The Galaxy Kids

Wow! Can you believe we completed our first "half" week of school? We are off to a great start. Today, we started learning about Rain Forests. Next week we will begin to transform our classroom into a rain forest. I may ask for some help with some items from home, but I will let you know in advance.
Next week our Specials classes start! Don't forget, Wednesdays and Fridays the students should wear their new Spirit Wear shirts for gym class. The students will not change, but remain in these clothes all day!

First Day of School

Our first day of school was wonderful. It was so nice to see so many familiar faces, as well as some new faces. Check out my pictures below of the Galaxy Kids getting acquainted in their new room.

Divine Savior Summerfest

Looking for something to do with your family? Come to the Divine Savior Summerfest! The fest opened last night, but continues through Sunday evening. The Academy also has a table at the fest located by the food tent.

For hours and more details click on the link: http://divinesaviornorridge.org/

First Day of School

Our First Day of School is Wednesday, September 1. It is a half day with dismissal at 11:30.

Back to School!

The 2010-2011 School year is upon us! I can't believe how quickly the summer came and went, and now we are preparing to begin our second school year. I am delighted to share we are nearly full in our classrooms, and basically tripled our enrollment since we opened our doors at Divine Savior last September! The Academy is growing!