Welcome to our New School Year! Last Minute Reminders

If you have not sent in your "Back to School" forms, please do so ASAP.  Student and Field Trip Emergency Cards have either been handed out at "Meet & Greet" or will be sent home with students tomorrow (Wednesday, 8/31/16).  Please be sure to return both emergency cards NLT Friday, 9/2/16.

We are getting ready for our new school year and there are already things to add to your calendar.  Here's a quick calendar review of upcoming events!  As always, we strongly encourage you to regularly check our school's Google calendar for updates and additions! Just click on the calendar tab at the top of the blog or visit our school website.

First Day of School - Wednesday, August 31st. This is a full day of school for all grades, PreKindergarten - grade 8 with PreKindergarten Enrichment and Aftercare available. Students in grades Kindergarten - grade 8 should be wearing their relaxed uniform on the first day of school. Reservation forms for PreKindergarten Enrichment are available here. Reservation forms for Aftercare are available here.

Bus Transportation Reminders - Please remember that it may take several days for school bus schedules to "normalize". The first few days, buses may run either early or late as parents take photos and bus drivers get familiar with their new routes. The ongoing milling and paving on route 185 may also impact bus timing. Please do your best to have your child(ren) out at their bus stop at least 10 minutes prior to the posted pickup time and try not to be anxious if the bus runs later than expected on the afternoon trip home.

Please also note that each school year, there are a number of days where the Simsbury PUBLIC schools are either closed or dismissing early that are regular school days for St. Mary's.  On these days, school buses may bring students home significantly earlier (as much as 10-15 minutes) than usual.  Please make note of the dates below when this may occur this year and be sure arrangements are in place for your child(ren)'s early arrival home.

DATES PUBLIC SCHOOLS ARE CLOSED OR CLOSING EARLY THAT ARE REGULAR FULL DAYS FOR SMS - BUSES MAY ARRIVE HOME EARLY!

9/21/16

10/3/16

10/11/16

10/12/16

10/26/16

11/8/16

11/29/16

11/30/16

12/1/16

1/20/17

3/14/17

3/15/17

3/16/17

5/17/16

Carpool Families - Road Construction Alert - Route 185 Construction

If you regularly travel route 185 between West Hartford and Simsbury, you will note there is significant road work taking place. All the catch basins are currently being replaced and repaving will begin shortly. As you can imagine, this may lead to travel delays just as school is going to start. For those families from towns such as Simsbury and Bloomfield that use route 185, please be prepared for these eventual delays and plan accordingly when coming to school in the morning. Paving is underway from Abigail's Restaurant in Simsbury to the top of Simsbury Mountain. Once that is completed they will begin the downhill portion of the mountain all the way to route 218. It is estimated by Connecticut DOT that this project should be completed by October 1.

School is closed - Monday, September 5th for Labor Day.

Book your babysitter!  Wednesday, September 7th is "Back to School Night for Parents".  

This adult evening has 2 events this year.  The evening will begin with a meeting for parents with students beginning instrumental music and band lessons for the first time this year.  If you have a student entering grades 4-8 that is interested in beginning instrumental music and band with our Future Musician's instructor, Mrs. Debbie Morse, please plan to meet in the music/art portable at 6pm. NOTE - This meeting is NOT required for parents of students that have previously participated in band.

  "Back to School Night for Parents" will begin at 6:30pm in the Parish Center.  Mrs. Williamson will have opening remarks and news about our newly revitalized Home & School Association. This will also be your opportunity to visit your child(ren)'s homeroom classrooms, meet teachers and learn more about the school day and this year's expectations for a great school year.

INDIVIDUAL STUDENT PICTURE DAY IS COMING SOON for students in Prekindergarten and grades K-7!
Picture Day: Monday, September 12
Picture Day ID: EJ416010Q0
Informational flyers from Lifetouch Photography will be sent home with all students PreK, K -7 on Friday, September 2.  All students will have a photo taken even if no portrait package is ordered for use in our school yearbook.  Students in PreK, K -7 may wear casual dress appropriate for school and portrait photography on Monday, September 12.  Details regarding individual photos for grade 8 students will be coming soon.  Group class photos will be taken on Wednesday, November 9.

September School Mass - Our first school Mass will be held on Tuesday, September 13th at 9am in the church.  Please note, this is a change to our original school calendar.  There is no school Mass on Friday, 9/9/16.  All are welcome to worship with us.  Please remember that no physical education uniforms should be worn to Mass.

Virtus Training - We hope that many of you will join us as volunteers in supporting our school and students!  All volunteers must be Virtus trained before beginning volunteer activities.  We will host a Virtus training session on Tuesday, September 13th at 6:30pm in the 5th grade classroom.  Please RSVP to the school office if you plan to attend this session. It is very important that participants arrive on time for the training session.  In order to receive certification, you must be present from the start of the class.  If this day/time are not convenient for you, there will be a training session at Northwest Catholic High School on August 30th at 6pm.  To register for the session at Northwest or to look for other training sessions in the area, click here.  If you completed Virtus training in a prior year, there is no need to repeat the training.  If you are not sure if your Virtus training is complete, have questions or are unsure if the school has proof of your training, please contact the school office.




Parents Knight Out -  Book your babysitter!  Our parent/guardian community is invited to gather for a "Parents Knight Out" in the Parish Center at 6:30pm on Friday, Sept. 16th.  This will be a great opportunity to meet families new to our community, get better acquainted and share "back to school" stories.  We hope many of you will join us for a relaxed evening of community building.

Grade 8 Fundraising - Every year, our 8th grade students conduct a number of fund raisers to help defray costs associated with their field trip to New York and other graduation related activities.  The first fund raiser for this year is a car wash on Saturday, September 17, from 8:30am-1pm in the North (playground) parking lot.  Tickets may be purchased on September 10 & 11 after all Masses.  Tickets will also be available at Fitzgeralds on the afternoon of September 11.  Thanks in advance for your support of our 8th grade!





Teacher Voice Mail - All teachers at St. Mary's have a voice mail box that is checked daily.  A list of voice mail extensions is available here.  Please feel free to use voice mail to request a teacher contact you in regard to your child(ren) but please DO NOT leave information about changes to daily dismissal (e.g., your child needs to go to carpool instead of bus) on a teacher's voice mail.  Requests for changes to daily dismissal should be directed to the school office.

Summer Fun  -Has your family had a summer of fun and adventure?  Again this year, you are invited to share photos of your family's summer fun and activities with our community.  Summer fun photos can be sent to dhatch@stmarysimsbury.eduk12.net.

Kelly D. in Sacramento,Ca at Suzuki 10 Piano. 

Hayden at Barnegat Lighthouse in NJ

Mrs. Hatch spent some time admiring bromeliads
at the Baltimore Botanical Gardens on her
way to drop SMS Alum - Class of '12, Avery, at Elon University
in North Carolina

7th grade friends tried to stay "cool" this summer at a pool party - Jacob, Ethan, James, Evan, Jorryn (from St. Brigit's School), Cole, Mason, Greyson, and Carter

You're invited to share a photo of your child(ren) and/or family on the first day of school with our whole school family.  Photos will be shared via the blog if you email them to Mrs. Hatch at dhatch@stmarysimsbury.eduk12.net.