St. Thomas the Apostle School

265 King St

Crystal Lake, IL 60014

815.459.0496

 

2008-09 Calendar 

It is our hope to have the 2008-09 calendar go out in next Wednesday’s family envelope.  Please keep your eyes open for that and note that it will be a tentative calendar.  The final calendar goes out in August. 

Last Day of School 

The last day of school for students for this year in grades 1-7 is now Monday, June 9.  In order for us to have bus service, we must dismiss at 9:30.  Students will receive their report cards that day as long as all tuition and fees are up to date.  Please note on your school calendar that the last day of school is June 9 with dismissal at 9:30. We will not be sending home a revised copy. 

Homework Over the Summer?? 

So often at the beginning of a new school year, teachers spend weeks reviewing material that many students have forgotten over the summer.  Well meaning parents intend to work with their children over the summer but the fun and excitement of summer activities seem to take over.  

One option to keep students thinking over the summer is to spend about 15 minutes a day reviewing material in the areas of reading, writing, math, and language arts with a book called Summer Bridge Activities.  The book is set up for children in grades K-8 to complete just 1-2 pages a day over the summer. What a great way for students to retain what they spent the whole school year learning!   

To help you take advantage of this opportunity, we will place the orders for you if you fill out the enclosed form and return it to the school office by next Wednesday, May 7^th.  Our discounted cost is just $13.00. Students who complete the entire book and turn it in to their new teacher in August will receive a special reward for their hard work.  The biggest reward however, will be their amazement when they realize how much they remember from last year’s classes during those first few days of the new school year! 

Summer Project

June 10^th we will immediately begin our big rehab project in the entranceway of the King Street School building. In an effort to improve the safety of our school, we will be reconstructing the entranceway, adding security doors and improving visibility from the office to the school entrance. In addition, we will be refinishing wall tiles, replacing floor tiles, ceiling tiles, and lighting. As a result of this construction, the regular school office will be closed.  We will have limited office hours and will be working out of the teachers’ lounge. If you need to come in to school, please call ahead so we can be sure we don’t miss you.

Staff Changes for 2008-09 

This year we are sorry to say that we do have some teachers who will not be returning to St. Thomas School in the fall. Our art teacher, Mrs. Pam Reis, will be pursuing a full time art position elsewhere and our music teacher, Mrs. Theresa Villec, will be concentrating on her own business endeavors.  In addition, Mrs. Girolamo, one of our second grade teachers, has decided to be a full time mom next year.  We are sad to see these three wonderful teachers moving on to new chapters in their lives but know that they will always be near and dear to our St. Thomas families and staff. 

The open second grade teaching position will be filled by our 6^th grade teacher, Mrs. Pat Voloch, and our 4^th grade teacher, Mrs. Maureen Bingham will be moving up to 6^th grade.  Interviews have already begun to fill the open classroom position as well as the art and music positions.

With the addition of our new preschool, we also have a new staff member joining our team. Our new preschool teacher will be Mrs. Debbie Mink.  We are very blessed and excited to have Mrs. Mink join our faculty. 

Another new face that you may have noticed around school recently is our new Learning Resource Aide, Ms. Michelle Boppart, who is working with Mrs. Gelsosomo in the Resource Room.  She is doing a fabulous job with our students and we are thrilled to have her!  

Important Reminders:

·         Field Days are May 28^th (for grades 4-7) and May 29th for grades K-3. May 28^th  is also the PTO Hot Dog Day.  All students will be provided with a hot dog lunch and drink on May 28^th. 

·         There will be no school on May 26^th in honor of Memorial Day. 

·         The last day of school for our kindergarteners is Thursday, June 5^th and the last day for our 8^th graders is Tuesday, June 3^rd.   

·         Kindergarten screenings for new kindergarteners will be held on Friday, June 6^th.  Please call the office to set a time for your new kindergarteners. 

·         The last Wednesday letter/envelope for this school year will be June 4^th.  If you have any information you would like sent home to our families that is related to summer athletics or other activities, it must be turned in to the school office no later than the morning of Monday, June 2^nd.  

·         We respectfully remind you that your registration for the next school year can not be processed if you have any of the following: overdue library books, missing athletic uniforms, missing state required medical or dental forms, outstanding ET tuition, unpaid fair ability tuition or other outstanding fees. Report cards will not be issued and access to our Gradebook Program will also be denied until these fees are paid (or contact is made with the parish financial secretary) and items are returned. 

·         The last day of school for grades 1-7 is Monday, June 9th.  Dismissal is at 9:30 with buses. 

 

Sincerely,

Deanne Roy, Principal

Robert Reisenbuechler, Asst. Principal

 

 

May, 2008 

First Holy Communion

We would like to congratulate our second grade students for receiving the blessed sacrament of First Holy Communion at St. Thomas Church last Saturday. The children were so excited to receive Jesus for the first time.  It was a beautiful Mass and a very special day for them and their families.  We also thank their teachers for working so hard to make sure their students were well prepared for the Mass and sacrament      

All School Rosary

May is a very special month as we honor our Blessed Mother by praying to her more often. Each morning we will be praying to Mary as a whole school and will be encouraging students to say the rosary at home with their families.  This Friday we will pray the rosary together as a whole school which will take place in the gym and will be lead by Msgr. Hermes. What a great way to honor the National Day of Prayer too!

Running Revs 

We thank all the Diocesan priests who visited our school last week to play a friendly and entertaining game of basketball with our 8^th grade boys basketball team. Theyprovided much joy and entertainment to all of the students.

The students found our very own priests, Fr. Dennis Morrissy and Fr. John Lovell, along with our assistant principal, Mr. Reisenbuechler, especially entertaining. 

Scholastic Bowl 

We would like to thank the 8^th grade students that participated in the Marengo Middle School Scholastic Bowl this year:  Allie, Anna, Clare, Mark, Amanda, Luke, and Andrew.  Our students came in 6^th place. They represented our school very well and we are very proud of them. 

7^th/8^th Grade Activities 

May is a very busy month, especially for our 8^th graders as they prepare for graduation. They, along with our 2^nd graders, will lead the school in a beautiful May Crowning of our Blessed Mother at the Oak Street Church on Thursday, May 1^st at 1:10. PLEASE REMEMBER THAT WE WILL BE DISMISSING FROM THE OAK STREET CHURCH AT 2:15 ON THURSDAY, MAY 1. 

On Wed., May 21st at 9:15, our 7^th and 8^th graders will be participating in the annual Ribbon Ceremony at

Pierson Street Church.  The 8^th grade students will pass on their role of school leaders to our current 7^th graders. Parents are welcome to attend. 

A big thank you, in advance, to our 7^th grade students and their parents for hosting the 8^th Grade Dinner which will be held on Sat., May 31st at 5:30 p.m. in the Oak Street Community Center. 8^th grade parents and students will be served dinner by our 7^th grade families and will view the 8^th grade video afterwards. Some 8^th grade students will be recognized that evening for excellence through the following awards:

Leadership

Academic Excellence

PTO Scholarship

Knights of Columbus Scholarship

Ringness Athletic Award

Joseph A. Haase Service Award

Finally, our 8^th graders will celebrate their graduation on Wed., June 4^th at 7:00 p.m. Mass at the Oak St. Church.

No Uniform Day 

This Friday, May 2nd is a no uniform day. Students who wish to participate in this no uniform day are asked to bring in $1.00 of their own money.  Our kindergarteners will be collecting the funds which will be donated to Pennies for Patients, for leukemia patients. Please check the school handbook for the “Out of Uniform Day” dress code. 

Our thanks go out to students for contributing $303.91 to the Lazrus House from our April No Uniform Day and to our 1^st grade students for facilitating that collection for the month of April.  

Volunteerism 

THANK YOU to all of the parents/grandparents/siblings who have shared their time and talent

with us this year.  Whether it was in our lunchroom, at athletic events,  chaperoning, field trips, baking, making copies for teachers, being on committees, sewing costumes, hanging dry erase boards, selling spirit wear, etc., we truly appreciate every one of you and the time/talent you have given to our school.  We could not function without you! 

Name Tags 

As usual at the end of the year we run short on visitor tags in the office. Please check your pockets, cars, etc. for possible strays and return them to the school office next time you are in. 

Dennis Uniforms 

Please remember to purchase your uniforms with Denniscrip which you can get through our PTO whenever you need uniform items. Please contact Jean Diamond at 815-477-1502 to order scrip.  Remember that our school receives 6% of all sales, even if you purchase items for your other children who attend Marian High School. 

If you have any Dennis uniform items that are in excellent condition which your own children have outgrown, please consider donating them to our PTO Uniform Exchange.  Pants with holes in the knees are accepted and will be made into shorts. The used uniforms will be offered for resale at the August Orientation Day or by appointment at Mrs. Kim Moceri’s home.  Please join me in thanking Mrs. Kim Moceri for the outstanding work she has done with organizing and running our uniform exchange program this year.  

Walk-a-thon/Auction 

A great big thank you to our PTO and all of our students, families, and staff members who participated in our Walk-a-thon/Auction.  The weather cooperated and the day was a big success. Once all the pledges are collected, we will let you know the final results.  Thank you again for all your support.

Transportation Reimbursement 

Parents who must provide transportation to and from St. Thomas School because free transportation is not available for their children may be eligible to

receive money from the state to help offset some of the cost. If you have qualified for this in the past, you are receiving a form in this week’s envelope.  If you believe you do qualify this year but have not in the past, please contact the office.

Memorial Day

Our school will be recognizing Memorial Day by creating a display case to remember the soldiers who gave their lives for our freedom.  If your family history includes one of our heroes, the students and faculty would consider it a great honor to display a photograph and/or the name of your loved one.  Please send your information to school clearly marked with your name and the room number of your oldest child.  We will return your items after Memorial Day.  Thank you for your help.  Also, thank you to Mrs. Beveridge and her committee for taking the time to put this project together.