News for the Week of 6/20/18

We want to hear from you!  - There's still time to participate in our end of year survey.  We've had some great responses but we are still waiting to hear from many of you!  As we wrap up the school year and make plans for the 2018-19 school year we need your help in determining what works for our community from volunteering and fundraising perspectives. These are both crucial pieces to making our community successful. If you could please take a moment and click here to take a quick survey it would be greatly appreciated!

Student iPad Summer Vacation - All student iPads remain at SMS for the summer.  All devices will be "refreshed" for the coming year to assure students have the necessary apps for next year's curriculum.  Please keep in mind that all devices and cases (and for 6th & 7th grade - chargers and cords) will be carefully inspected for damage.   If any damage to the iPad is noted, you will be billed $50 as outlined in the iPad Coverage Agreement that is signed each year and the iPad will be repaired over the summer. If the school issued charger/cord is not returned or there is damage to either or both parts, you will be billed $20 for replacement. If the iPad case is damaged, you will be billed $40 for replacement. You will be notified via U.S. mail if any damage or replacement fees are needed.

Reminder to Smart Tuition Account Holders who make payments via invoice:  as you begin making payments in June on your 2018-2019 Smart Tuition account, please remember to change the school year in your account number from 17 to 18.  Account numbers are broken down as follows:  02300 is the school code; 18 refers to the school year; and the last six digits reflect your individual family’s account.  If you continue making payments using the 17 school year, they will apply to your 2017-18 account, generating an overpayment status.  Your 2018-19 account will then appear delinquent, causing $50 late fees to accrue each month the payments are missing.  If you have any questions about this, please call Smart Tuition’s Parent contact center at 1-888-868-8828.

Note that this change occurs automatically for families who have Smart Tuition draw their payments from checking, savings, or credit card accounts.

Summer Office Hours - Our 17-18 school year is officially over! 

Beginning the week of 6/25/18,  the school office will be on "summer hours".  The office will be routinely staffed on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from 9am-1pm and by appointment as needed.  Both email and phone messages will be checked regularly.

Please note the school office will be CLOSED from Monday, July 2 through Friday, July 6. Please plan accordingly.

Summer CHOICE Sales - CHOICE cards will be available for sale on Wednesdays in the school office between 9am-1pm.

School will reopen on Wednesday, August 29.  This will be a full day of school with both PreK Enrichment and Aftercare available.  "Meet & Greet" for younger students and "Morning in Middle School" for grade 6 and students new to grades 7 and 8 will be on Tuesday, August 28th.  Additional details will be published as soon as times are finalized.

Final Report Cards for students in Kindergarten - Grade 8 will be available via the Educonnect Parent Portal.  An email will be sent when the report cards are available for viewing.

IOWA test scores for students in grades 3-7 will be sent out via U.S. mail during the week of June 25th.  This same mailing will contain class placement announcements for math and literature for students entering grades 6-8.

Supply lists, summer assignments and suggestions for summer reading will be available on both the teacher blogs and the School Blog "Back to School" page.  Look for this information beginning the week of 6/25.

Getting Ready for a New School Year - Again this summer, 
the school blog will have a "Back to School" page.  This page should be available the week of 6/25/18.  There will be Summer blog posts as needed but the "Back to School" page  is always available from the top menu bar of the school blog. 

Be sure to be on the look out for your "Back to School Mailing" in August. Again this year, this "mailing" will be sent to you electronically at the email you have designated as your primary family email address. If you are not sure that the email address we currently have on file for your family is the "best one to use", please send the email you want used to smsoffice@stmarysimsbury.eduk12.net. Put "Back to School Mailing email"in your subject line and we will be sure to update our school database(s).

iPad Orientation Meetings for Rising 6th Grade Students & Students New to Grs. 7 & 8 -  

All students entering 6th grade and students new to SMS for grades 7 and 8 are required to meet with Mrs. Hatch prior to beginning iPad use. Each student must be accompanied by at least 1 parent/guardian.  During this brief meeting, iPad use guidelines will be reviewed along with basic information regarding good digital citizenship. Students will also receive their school email credentials and if all required forms and the iPad coverage fee have been turned in, students will receive their iPad at this meeting. If required forms and fee have not been turned in, iPad use will begin upon receipt of all required items.  Click here to reserve your meeting time.

Used Uniform Exchange - Click here to view the most current inventory of items available from the used uniform exchange.

CHOICE NEWS - We are excited to share that the Simsbury Peachwave is now participating in CHOICE.  Beginning Thursday, 6/21, Peachwave gift cards will be available in $5, $10 & $20 denominations. Just in time for a delicious summer treat! Our special thanks to the Madrids - local owners & SMS family for participating in CHOICE!

Community News

You are Invited! 

Join us for a Light Reception as we celebrate the 50th Ordination Anniversary of Father Frank Matera.

Sunday, June 24th
12:00 PM - 2:00 PM
Parish Center

No gifts please, Blessings only!

Book of Well Wishes -During the reception we will have a table where parishioners can sign a book with their well wishes. If you are unable to attend but would like to include a message please stop into the Parish Office to sign the book.  If you have questions please contact Joanne Russell (joanne.russell@stmarysimsbury.org).

Everyone is invited to the official groundbreaking for the Campus Connection!  The ceremonial groundbreaking for the Campus Connection will be this Saturday, June 23rd after the 5pm Mass.  All are welcome to come and enjoy this special moment in our community's history!

COMING SOON - Campus Connection Brick Sponsorship Program

An opportunity for our Parish and school community to “leave a legacy”! All are welcome to purchase and personalize a brick to create a circular brick path surrounding our beloved St. Mary statue. Campaign will be held July-September. More information will be shared as the program gets ready to launch.

Again this year, families are invited to submit photos of summer trips and family fun to share with our community.  Photos may be sent to smsoffice@stmarysimsbury.eduk12.net and will be published in an upcoming summer blog post.

News for the week of 6/13/18

The Class of 2018 took a moment on Friday to spend time with
a "friend" across the street from school.  You can learn more about
the Simsbury Art Trail here.

End of Year Prayer Service - All are invited to join us in the church on Friday, 6/15, at 9am, for the Kindergarten End of Year Prayer Service.

Last Day of School!  Our last day of school will be on Wednesday, 6/20.  It will be a 12:45pm early dismissal and there will be NO PreK Enrichment or Aftercare. 

Join us for Coffee & Thanks -  All are invited to join us in the Parish Center after morning drop off on Wednesday, 6/20, for coffee and a sweet as our thank you to all our dedicated parent volunteers.  So many of our school activities, including but not limited to Advancement fund raising, hot lunch, library, bookfair and room parents, depend on the time and talent shared by our parent volunteers.  We are so grateful for all the ways parents enrich our community and our students' educational experiences.

There will be an Awards Assembly beginning at 9:30 in the Parish Center on 6/20.  Teachers will notify parents if their student(s) will be receiving an award but all are welcome to attend.


Your feedback is needed!  - As we wrap up the school year and make plans for the 2018-19 school year we need your help in determining what works for our community from volunteering and fundraising perspectives. These are both crucial pieces to making our community successful. If you could please take a moment and click here to take a quick survey it would be greatly appreciated!

Miss Kane's PreK class celebrated the coming end of the school year
with a beautiful musical program this week.  Parents & friends enjoyed the program.

Reminder to Parents of Rising 8th Graders - There will be a meeting for parents of rising 8th graders on Monday, 6/18/18 at 6pm in the lower church.  As you know, there are many activities and fund raisers associated with the 8th grade year.  Please join us so we can plan a year all will contribute to and enjoy.  If you are unable to attend the meeting, please contact Mrs. Williamson or Mrs. Work and let them know how you will be able to help next year.

Reminder to Smart Tuition Account Holders who make payments via invoice:  as you begin making payments in June on your 2018-2019 Smart Tuition account, please remember to change the school year in your account number from 17 to 18.  Account numbers are broken down as follows:  02300 is the school code; 18 refers to the school year; and the last six digits reflect your individual family’s account.  If you continue making payments using the 17 school year, they will apply to your 2017-18 account, generating an overpayment status.  Your 2018-19 account will then appear delinquent, causing $50 late fees to accrue each month the payments are missing.  If you have any questions about this, please call Smart Tuition’s Parent contact center at 1-888-868-8828.

Note that this change occurs automatically for families who have Smart Tuition draw their payments from checking, savings, or credit card accounts.

Summer Office Hours - Beginning the week of 6/25/18,  the school office will be on "summer hours".  The office will be routinely staffed on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from 9am-1pm and by appointment as needed.  Both email and phone messages will be checked regularly.

Please note the school office will be CLOSED from Monday, July 2 through Friday, July 6. Please plan accordingly.

Summer CHOICE Sales - CHOICE cards will be available for sale on Wednesdays in the school office between 9am-1pm.

School will reopen on Wednesday, August 29.  This will be a full day of school with both PreK Enrichment and Aftercare available.  "Meet & Greet" for younger students and "Morning in Middle School" for grade 6 and students new to grades 7 and 8 will be on Tuesday, August 28th.  Additional details will be published as soon as times are finalized.

Final Report Cards for students in Kindergarten - Grade 8 will be available via the Educonnect Parent Portal.  An email will be sent when the report cards are available for viewing.

IOWA test scores for students in grades 3-7 will be sent out via U.S. mail during the week of June 25th.  This same mailing will contain class placement announcements for math and literature for students entering grades 6-8.

Supply lists, summer assignments and suggestions for summer reading will be available on both the teacher blogs and the School Blog "Back to School" page.  Look for this information beginning the week of 6/25.

It's almost TIME for first grade!  Students in Miss Ciarcia's
Kindergarten created clocks to help master telling time.

Getting Ready for a New School Year - Again this summer, the school blog will have a "Back to School" page.  This page should be available the week of 6/25/18.  There will be Summer blog posts as needed but the "Back to School" page  is always available from the top menu bar of the school blog. 

Be sure to be on the look out for your "Back to School Mailing" in August. Again this year, this "mailing" will be sent to you electronically at the email you have designated as your primary family email address. If you are not sure that the email address we currently have on file for your family is the "best one to use", please send the email you want used to smsoffice@stmarysimsbury.eduk12.net. Put "Back to School Mailing email"in your subject line and we will be sure to update our school database(s).

Saying Good Bye to the Portables!

Students in Miss Kane's PreK were excited

to watch the portable classrooms get all packed up and "ready to roll".  

Community News

St. Mary's Parish Invites Everyone -All are welcome as we celebrate the 50th Ordination Anniversary of Father Frank Matera.  There will be a light reception on Sunday, June 24th from 12-2pm in the Parish Center.  No gifts, please - Blessings only!






Simsbury Public Library Summer Reading Program is open to readers of all ages!  The program runs from 8 weeks from Monday, 6/18 - Saturday, 8/11. For more information, click here.  A brochure about the summer reading program will be coming home this week with all students.






Is your daughter interested in field hockey? The Simsbury Sparks is a travel team for 7th and 8th grade girls, and their season starts at the end of August.  They will practice 1-2x per week and have 2 games per week (no schedule set yet — games may be a combination of after school and on weekends). They anticipate forming two teams, and they hope for no cuts. They will play teams from the Farmington Valley and West Hartford. Cost will be $275 before July 1 and $300 after. This covers buses, insurance, referee fee and uniforms. The season will start at the end of August and run until early November. Girls must have stick, goggles, mouth guard, shin guards, and cleats. If you think you might be interested, please send an email to simsburyyouthfieldhockey@gmail.com, and they will put your name on their contact list and answer any questions you may have. You can also Like their “Simsbury Youth Field Hockey” Facebook page, and follow them at @simsburysparks on Instagram.

Hats Off to the Class of '18!

News for Week of 6/6/18

Celebrating the SMS Class of 2018

Please keep in mind that no physical education uniforms should be worn to Mass on Friday.  Graduates should follow the dress guidelines provided by Mrs. Work.

Saint Mary's 39th annual Spring Carnival opens TONIGHT, 6/6

 The carnival runs through June- 9^th at 34 Hopmeadow Street in Simsbury (Field North of Eversource Energy formerly Connecticut Light & Power – same location as 2017).

50% of the proceeds directly benefit St. Mary’s School!!!

Carnival Hours

Wednesday (June 6)    6-10 pm
Thursday (June 7)       6-10 pm 
Friday (June 8)          6-10 pm*
Saturday (June 9)    5-10 pm

* We're excited to share that on Friday night, Matt Forneris' band SoundRisk will be performing.  Matt is the father of Greta (Gr. 3)  and Noelle (K)!

Ride all night!

$20/person Wednesday & Thursday
$25/person Friday and Saturday

(Individual ride tickets also available) 

     -          Volunteers are needed. Please join us to make this fun-filled event a success.

             Click here to be directed to the Volunteer Page of the carnival website.

-          Raffle tickets are officially for sale at $20 per ticket. 1^st prize - $10,000; 2^nd prize - $600 Gift Certificate to Bill Selig Jewelers; 3^rd prize - Cake-of-the-Month for one year plus $250 gift certificate at Fitzgerald’s; and 4^th prize - $500 Holloways Appliance Store Gift Certificate. Drawing to be held Saturday, June 9, 2018 at 8pm at the St. Mary’s Carnival (winner need not be present)

Reminder to Smart Tuition Account Holders who make payments via invoice:  as you begin making payments in June on your 2018-2019 Smart Tuition account, please remember to change the school year in your account number from 17 to 18.  Account numbers are broken down as follows:  02300 is the school code; 18 refers to the school year; and the last six digits reflect your individual family’s account.  If you continue making payments using the 17 school year, they will apply to your 2017-18 account, generating an overpayment status.  Your 2018-19 account will then appear delinquent, causing $50 late fees to accrue each month the payments are missing.  If you have any questions about this, please call Smart Tuition’s Parent contact center at 1-888-868-8828.

Note that this change occurs automatically for families who have Smart Tuition draw their payments from checking, savings, or credit card accounts.

It was a busy, happy week at school last week! 
Our Spring BOGO Scholastic bookfair was a big hit with our students.  We extend our thanks to Mrs. Prausa for coordinating this bookfair and to all who volunteered to help setup, staff and clean up the fair.

We are also so grateful to all who came and helped us clean out the portable classrooms and move the contents into safe storage.  The whole job was accomplished in 2.5 hours thanks to the hard work of the volunteers who came to help!

Lost & Found - We are hoping to reunite as many lost items as possible with owners before summer starts.  The Lost & Found bin is full again.  If you are coming to school for an end of year event, please take a moment to look through the bin for things your family may be missing or encourage your children to stop by and look for their lost items.

PE Club has ended for this school year - There is NO PE Club during June.  Thanks to all who joined the club this year.  We are looking forward to more PE Club fun next year!

Several 17-18 Yearbooks are available for sale - Did you forget to place your yearbook order? We still have several copies that are available for sale. They are $32 each and are available first come/first served. Reserve your copy now by sending payment to the school office. Your check should be payable to St. Mary's School with "Yearbook" in the memo section. Yearbooks will be distributed to 8th grade on Thursday, 6/7 and grades PreK-7 on Friday, 6/8.

Interested in Instrumental Music for 18-19? Is your rising 4th - 8th grade student interested in beginning participation in our instrumental music next year? Our FMI instructor, Deb Morse, will meet with interested parents on Monday, June 11th at 7pm in the third grade classroom. This meeting is designed for parents whose students will be NEW to instrumental music and band next year.

Supporting the Class of '19! Our rising 8th grade is selling beautiful SMS logo bracelets and keychains.

Bracelets are $20 and keychains are $10. The colored crystal beads on the bracelet are clear and dark blue (brighter than indicated in the picture). Proceeds from this fundraiser will help these students begin to save for the expenses associated with their 8th grade field trip and graduation activities. Click here for order form. Payment may be sent into the school office. Checks should be made payable to St. Mary's School with "bracelet/keychain" in the memo section.