11 December Letter from Mr. Kelly

December 11, 2020

Friday of the Second Week of Advent

Dear SJS Catholic School Community,

Our quarantining COVID numbers have not gone up dramatically since Thanksgiving break.  Way to go, SJS!  Just one more week to go before Christmas break!  Let’s focus our efforts on keeping the kids in school.  That means mask use in and out of school, in addition to social distancing and hand cleanliness.  There really have been very few instances of positive cases in the student body, and no evidence of spread within the school.  This means that we are doing a good job of keeping the kids separated and safe.  Our cleaning processes are working.  And, masks are a powerful tool as well.  The masking really seems to be making a significant difference in our school setting, hopefully it is part of student life outside of school as well.  Thanks for your continued support.

Sometimes it can be difficult to know when to allow your student to stumble and learn from that situation, and when to step in.  It is always helpful to look for patterns of behavior.  If your child is too rushed completing homework, or you begin to wonder if you are receiving all school communications, or even if you notice behavioral changes in your child that concern you, it is probably time to get in touch with your child’s teacher.  It is wise to contact the teacher before the problem becomes too big.  Sometimes a small adjustment can be enough to put your student on the right track.

We were lucky this semester to have two excellent student teachers at SJS, in Kindergarten Megan Majewicz, and in 3rd grade Lauren Pritza.  We want to thank these educators for their hard work and contributions over the semester.  They have really stepped up and helped in a variety of ways.  It is a unique year, and we were glad to have their input and help.  They did an excellent job and SJS and we wish them the best.  We are excited to see where their career takes them.

As you do your holiday shopping you may consider using the parish HOPE gift card program.  It is an easy way to help generate income for the parish and school.  Feel free to contact the SJ rectory for more information.

Next Thursday is an optional out of uniform day.  We want to help the needy in our neighborhood, so a canned good will be your ticket for this out of uniform day.  All will then be donated to the St. Vincent DePaul to help those in need in our community.  And then Friday is our annual “Red/Green Day” in which students can be out of uniform if wearing something red/green/Christmas themed.  It’s always wise to check the Sycamore calendar for all that is going on at school.  Christmas break does also provide you an opportunity to look at school uniforms and the hair requirements and make sure all is in order.  Thanks for all you do.

Peace,

William Kelly

Principal