St. Christopher School

November 30, 2011

Season’s Greetings, St. Christopher Families and Friends!

It is hard to believe that it is December already. The Christmas season is here and with it comes reflection regarding our faith as well as spending quality time with family and friends, which truly marks this time on the calendar.

I want to thank you for your outstanding participation in the parent-teacher conferences. The teachers have told me how much they have learned about your children by meeting with you. We hope you have learned a lot about your children as students as well. We value our partnership with you and look forward to a continued relationship throughout the remainder of the school year and beyond.

The Christmas spirit of compassion has been pervasive throughout the school community. The students have engaged in a Shoebox Gift Drive, which will benefit children in the greater Nashua area. Our Faith Outreach Committee will deliver the boxes to the Santa Fund and Salvation Army. Help make a child’s Christmas just a little bit more magical!  The toys and other items donated by the students will go a long way towards making this Christmas Day one of joy for these children and their families.

In an effort to refine teaching skills so as to serve students most effectively, our staff has participated in several professional development opportunities.

• In November, 3 of our teachers and myself spent the day at a workshop focused on using technology to reinforcing skills in the classroom.  We learned about several new websites that will help to enhance our use of technology, as well as several unique lesson plan ideas!
• Several other teachers attended workshops to improve their practice and keep up with the current changes in education.
• A series of mini-courses on the utilization of our technology will be set up this month.

Teachers will begin meeting in January on Tuesday mornings from 8:00 to 8:30 and will work on refining their skills in order to continue to create dynamic lesson plans that integrate academics with technology.

I am so grateful to our teachers for their enthusiastic pursuit of excellence.  How fortunate our students are!

Barnes and Noble night was a HUGE success! Thank you to Mrs. Riley for planning this wonderful event!  It was so nice to have Mr. D there as a reader! A big thank you to Mrs. Moore's and Mrs. Durant's 1st grade classes, Mrs. Walley's 2nd grade, Mrs. Mendel, and Deb Carney for volunteering to read and perform. Ashlyn Rockwell, a 2003 St. Chris Alumni, brought a group of Irish Steppers from the McGonagle School of Irish Dance.  Our own Andi and John MacFarlane performed with the group!  We are so proud of them! Cluffie the Clown, Bev Landry, made an appearance with her 2 clown apprentices, Janessa Palmieri and Abby McCarthy!  Lots of happy children left with balloon animals and their faces painted.  Last but not least, thank you to Marta Nissen who is the glue that holds us all together!  I am so proud to be the principal of St. Christopher School!  Thank you to our students, parents and teachers who extended an already long day to come out to support us!!  It was a wonderful evening.

The parent group sponsored two wonderful events in November. Harriet Tubman made a visit to our school and had the students thoroughly engaged! What a wonderful presentation!  Game Night was also a big hit!  Children along with their parents had the opportunity to try out several different games and what a great time was had by all.  I played several games and truly enjoyed myself!  I think I had a slight problem keeping my hand away from the bell while playing Order’s Up!!  A big thank you to the parent group for all of their hard work and dedication!

The pancake breakfast at Applebee’s was a big success!  Several families came out early to volunteer as well as take part in a delicious breakfast! Fun was had by all!

The Interscholastic Robot Tournament at Bishop Guertin was an exciting one for our Lego League team.  Congratulations to the Robot Vipers!! For their support and guidance, I am most grateful to the parent volunteers and the Coach, Lana Tyrrell!

Our Prayer Service was provided by Mrs. Mitchell’s 5^th grade class. They did a short play about people who came to American before the original Thanksgiving as well as after, and what they were thankful for.  It certainly was a great way to begin our Thanksgiving break!

It is hard to believe the second quarter progress report period will be upon us in the next couple of weeks. However, whenever time moves quickly at a school, it speaks of an educational community, which contains great excitement and activity. The progress report grades are important indicators as to how your child is doing in each subject area. Please discuss each grade with your child so you can continue to be a support in their task to achieve academic excellence.  Starting now through spring your child will grow tremendously academically and socially. Your continued commitment to support your child’s learning can only enhance this natural development.

Our Scriptures give us a strong and clear message for this Advent season: “Prepare the way of the Lord.” We hear it at our Advent Masses and we sing it in our Advent hymns. This message seems to tell us to reflect, pray and focus on this great event of Christmas which is about to take place. Our preparations for Christmas often find us racing through concerts, shopping, meetings, parties, baking etc. At St. Christopher, we seem to be on this same path as well! Our goal, though, is to remind the students and ourselves that we want to always “Keep Christ in our Christmas”. May this sacred time be blessed for you and your families. You all continue to impress me daily as I experience your generosity, incredible spirit, faithful support and endless enthusiasm. Your contributions are what make our school and community so special, and you are making a difference in the lives of our children.

Upcoming events include the following:

• Christmas Shopping for Students, November 30 and December 1, Church Hall
• Pre-K- Grade 1 Open House, December 2, 9:30 a.m.
• State of the School Dec. 5, Mrs. Cate’s room 2^nd floor
• Feast of the Immaculate Conception Mass, Thursday, December 8, 9:15 a.m.
• Pre-K – Grade 3 Christmas Concert, December 13, 10:00 a.m. in the Church
• Grades 4 – 6 Christmas Concert, December 15, 10:00 a.m. in the Church
• Fine Arts Festival, December 15, 6:30 p.m. in the Church
• Penitential Service, December 16, 9:15 a.m. in the Church
• Christmas Prayer Service, December 23, 9:15 a.m. 6E
• Christmas vacation begins December 23, 12:30 EARLY RELEASE DAY

On behalf of the teachers and staff at St. Christopher I’d like to extend a heartfelt thank you for all you do and for the gift that you are to our school. Our wish is that you may know the joy, hope, and peace of the Nativity this Christmas Season. We share you with the words of Luke, and hope you find strength in the words of the angel:

Do not be afraid, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David, a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord.

Together in Christ,

Cindy