News for the Week of 10/8/14

October is the Month of the Holy Rosary - "The Rosary is the most beautiful and the most rich in graces of all prayers; it is the prayer that touches most the Heart of the Mother of God…and if you wish peace to reign in your homes, recite the family Rosary.” Pope Saint Pius X

Students in Mrs. Gillen's Grade 6 Literature are sharing "self to text" , "text to text", and" text to world" connections on the novel under study.  

School will be closed Monday, 10/13/14, in observation of  Columbus Day.

Instrumental Music News- Advanced Band will meet on Thursday, 10/9, and Thursday 10/16.  Due to the Mondays school is closed in October, Advanced Band will have 2 rehearsals on the Thursdays shown above.  Please be sure your Advanced Band student(s) bring their instruments and music on these Thursdays. Cadet Band has no changes to their rehearsal schedule.




It is time for St. Mary’s School Fall Open House.  Open House is on Wednesday, November 5^th 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.

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.

Chess Club is Underway - Chess Club will be held on Fridays from 3:30-4:30 pm in the 2nd grade classroom through November 21, 2014.  The club is limited to 12 participants per session and all participants must be registered for the session they attend.  Please click here for more information and to register.

New Third Grade Blog is now available - We are excited to announce that the new Thoughtful Third Graders Blog is now available.  Click here to access Miss Ehrhardt's blog.  Be sure to enter your email address in the subscription area and then follow the subscription directions you receive in order to receive all of her posts directly to your email in-box.


Grade 8 Fundraising - Flower Power Spring Flowering Bulbs 

So far we've earned $557

We are at the halfway point of our fundraiser and still need your help. For every purchase you make: • St. Mary's School 8th grade gets 50% of all product sales. • You'll receive top-quality bulbs that will give you beautiful blooms. • Your order gets shipped directly to your doorstep. • You get a 100% money-back guarantee Click here to place your order.  All orders must be received by 10/15/14.

HSA Monthly Meeting

We will be having our monthly HSA meeting on Thursday, October 16th at 6:30 p.m.

 in the 8th grade classroom.  All are welcome!

Fall Bookfair Continues in the Parish Center through Sunday, 10/12/14 and On-Line until October 22!

Remaining Schedule for School Bookfair & Class Visits is as follows - 

The remaining Fall Book Fair hours are as follows:

- Oct. 8, 9 Wednesday & Thursday 9a.m.-4p.m.
- Oct. 10 Friday 9a.m. - 3:30p.m.
- Oct. 12 Sunday 9 a.m.- 12:30 p.m. (after the 8:00, 9:30 and 11:00 a.m.Masses) Family Event with coffee and doughnuts

Again this year, students in grades Kindergarten - Grade 8 will visit the bookfair as a class. PreKindergarten students do not visit the bookfair as a class but parents are encouraged to bring their children to the bookfair at their convenience.

Schedule for remaining class visits is as follows:

Thursday, Oct. 9th
*********************
Grade 1: 1:00-1:30PM
Grade 3: 2:00-2:30PM

Friday, Oct. 10th
*******************
Grade 5: 9:00-9:30AM

Online Book Fair information for St. Mary’s School

Available Oct 2 - Oct 22 Only!

http://bookfairs.scholastic.com/homepage/stmaryschool

If you can't make it to our Book Fair or you are out of town, you can also help support our school by shopping online.

•   Send wish lists to family and friends

•   Saw something at the Book Fair and decided to buy later?

•   All orders ship free to the school

•   Browse an expanded book selection - all ages through adult

Please note that the online book fair extends beyond our in-school book fair! Help us make our goals and encourage your child to read.

Ladies Night Out

Thirty ladies joined us for our first Ladies Night Out. There was a lot of fun and laughter,  a lot of camaraderie and a room filled with extremely talented wine glass painters!   We want to give a special thanks to Numi from Messy Smocks for her time and incredible talents and John Andreo from Valley Fine Wines and Spirits for supporting our event. We also extend our thanks to Mrs. Beth Scully for organizing such an enjoyable event.  Keep your eyes posted for more exciting Ladies Night Out events in the future!  

St Mary's Gardening Club - Do you have a green thumb? Come help make St. Mary's as colorful on the outside as it is inside!

Our first meeting scheduled on October 16th at 9:00 a.m.  We will be doing a clean up, planting bulbs and sharing our friendship.  Contact Jennifer Pavlonnis atjpavlonnis@yahoo.com if you are interested in being involved!

Trail Race Committee

Good news!  Next fall, the HSA will be putting on their first annual St. Mary's School Trail Race!  We are currently looking to put together a race committee.  If you are interested in becoming involved in this exciting event, please contact Amy Lillis atamylillis73@gmail.com.

Social Saturday at SMS - 

Saturday November 8, 2014 from 6-9 pm

St. Mary’s Parish Center

Come, Sip and be Social

Wine, Beer and Food Tasting hosted by local establishments

Live music and auction items

$35.00 PP/ $60.00 per couple

Must be 21 to enter/ no children please

NWC Tri-M Inductees and Current Members including
Avery Hatch, SMS Class of '12 (front row, third from right.)
  New inductees not pictured, Mary Elizabeth Budnick & Sam Spak,
also SMS Class of '12.

Alumni News - Northwest Catholic inducted 22 students into the Tri-M Music Honor Society on October 2, 2014. To be invited into membership in Tri-M, students must maintain a minimum 3.33 grade-point average, exhibit leadership skills, be nominated by their music teacher, and demonstrate proficiency on their instrument or with their voice. Students should excel in music, and are required to give at least ten hours of service to the community each year.  The new inductees include SMS Alumni - Mary Elizabeth Budnick, Samuel Spak, and Avery Hatch, all SMS Class of '12.  If you have alumni news to share, please send it to dhatch@stmarysimsbury.eduk12.net.  We are always happy to share stories of our alumni's accomplishments.





Northwest Catholic High School Invites You  to attend a presentation on how to pay for college.  This is NOT  a sales pitch, but valuable information for parents to start or continue to plan for the high cost of a  college education.  If you have questions, please contact Katie Rose,Administrative Assistant to the Principal, Northwest Catholic High School 860-236-4221 ext 115 or krose@nwcath.org.