28 August Letter from Mr. Kelly
You have been emailed a video link with information from SJS administration. The following are additional notes:
Curriculum Night 2020
Notes from School Administration
St. James/Seton Catholic School
Fundamental beliefs of SJS
Every student can learn, every student can progress, every student learns differently. Our job is to figure out how to help each one succeed.
Parents are key to making foundational changes to student performance, behavioral or academic.
Kids make mistakes-it’s what they do. We should help them learn from those mistakes.
Catholic Schools are great, they are the best possible way to educate student because we are combining academics and Catholic values.
How do you know you are getting a top flight education?
The Terra Nova scores that the students (3-8) take are above the national average, and in many grades/subjects above the diocese.
STAR testing is also above national and diocese averages.
Last year we had sixteen 8th grade win scholarships to the area Catholic high schools.
To help teacher deliver effective lessons there are 2 computer labs, 4 chromebook carts and an iPad cart.
SJS has a part-time nurse, counselor, various specials classes, Student Services teacher, and paras at each grade level.
Cell Phones and Social Media
We all want to trust our students.
But, there is freedom that students feel while online or on their phone, that freedom can lead to bad choices.
Significant discipline can be administered for comments/behaviors online or on the phone.
Please, monitor your student’s use. Let them know you are monitoring. The best way to avoid an unpleasant situation. If they know you are looking at the phone, it makes a huge difference. There are online tools you can use as well.
Lessons to help students learn-what they say online can impact life for a long time. Catholic expectations don’t stop after school.
We want kids to have the right relationships with things, so they can have the right relationships with people.
Faith is important to our school
Religion class daily-lessons on faith, virtue, holiness, right judgment, Church teachings. Weekly priest visits. Student led Masses twice a week-all are welcome.
Faith will be a part of all that we do-interactions, discipline, purchases, handbooks, etc.
We want our students to know the lives of our patron saints.
Will home and school always agree?
Unlikely. School is a human institution so there will be disagreements and mistakes.
It’s how we handle those situations that matters as they provide a powerful lesson to your student.
It’s wise to remember that students have a certain perspective to situations. That perspective can be shaped by a desire to keep themselves out of trouble
We can have a conversation in a respectful manner. I’ll listen, you’ll listen, we’ll gain an appreciation for each other.
You won’t know the discipline administered to another student. Professional educators do not discuss the discipline given to other students.
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