February 16, 2010

Mount St. Mary Academy


74 more days until our 150th celebration!



REMINDERS: Friday, Feb. 19: Report cards go home


Math-a-thon: Thank you to all our participants. We raised over $1,700.00 for St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital! All monies have been sent in. For those waiting for prizes, they will not arrive until later this spring.


SPORTS CORNER: This is the last week of Boys' Basketball.  TODAY, back in our gym at 4 P.M. is a game between MSM and Grass Valley Charter.  That game is followed by a game between Yuba River Charter and Cross Roads.  On Thursday we play Chicago Park at 4 P.M. here.  Grass Valley Charter and Nevada City School of the Arts follow. The tournament is played on Friday and Saturday. Uniforms can be returned next week.  Girls' Volleyball forms will go out this week.  Please get fees and forms in before practices start. GO EAGLES! -Tim Blaney/Barbara Hurley


Choraleers meet this Thursday at 6:50am


Sunday, Feb. 21, 11:00am Mass: MSM Students are preparing this Sunday’s 11:00am Mass. If your student(s) would like to help, please contact Mrs. Doerr as soon as possible. Thank You!



ATRIUM – MRS. VALVO: - Ordinary time following Christmas season has been a prayerful, purposeful time in the Atrium, focused on the parables of the Kingdom of God. The Pre-K and Kindergarten students have listened to, prayed with, and worked with materials of the parables of the mustard seed, the pearl of great price, and the leaven. The first and second graders revisited these and more from last year comparing the hidden treasure and the pearl of great price, and deepening their understanding by looking at other parables they know about the growing grain. We added the moral parable of the Good Samaritan and begin our journey about what it means for each of us to participate in the building of the Kingdom. As we as we enter Lent, the second graders will have a procession this week into the Atrium to change their prayer table cloth to purple for Lent and will hear the parable of the Good Shepherd adding the element of the wolf and the hireling.

Atrium wish List: stapler, white card stock, someone who can cut mat board for our religious art cards.





CLASS NEWS


PRE-K – MRS. QUENTMEYER: Welcome back from a long weekend! Thank you to all the parents that were able to make it to the Valentine's Day party. Your help was much appreciated. The Pre-K students will be working on the letter Ss. The children will be practicing the sound of the letter S with the poem "Sammy Seal sat in the sun". In religion we will be learning about belonging to the Catholic Church family. On Friday we will be heading to Dr. Griego's Dentist office. Please return permission slips ASAP so I can determine who will need rides. The class will leave at 9:45 and be back around 11:00. The Pre-K gala project is complete! It will be hanging in the classroom starting Wednesday. Come and look at the beautiful pictures the children captured!



KINDERGARTEN – MRS. RIDENS: I hope you all had a fabulous weekend.  We are working on the letter Qq, studying about Abraham Lincoln and preparing for our trip to Dr. Griego's office on Friday.  Your students are learning so well and I am so proud of their accomplishments.  Carry on! 



1ST GRADE – MRS. KENT: Hello First Grade families!  I hope you had a lovely four days!  Each day this week we'll have something different than our regular routine, but we're going to have lots of learning going on, too. This week in Reading and Spelling we'll be focusing on the long "a" sound made by either the letters "ay" or "ai".  In Math we'll use sharp eyes and practice both addition and subtraction simultaneously. On Tuesday we'll begin with the Fat Tuesday Pancake Breakfast and at the end of the day we'll celebrate Sydney's birthday. Wednesday will find us at Mass for Ash Wednesday.  On Thursday we'll travel to NUHS for a live performance of Charlotte's Web ( I still need a permission slip and $5 from many of you, but we have enough drivers, thank you all).  And on Friday afternoon we'll have the famous Jewel Party, viewing the classic 1964 movie, "Ghidrah the Three Headed Monster" (starring Godzilla, Mothra, and Rodan!) with the famous local celebrity, Mr. Kent!  Have a good week!


2ND GRADE – MRS. KEANE-STEIN: I hope you all had a lovely long weekend! We begin our short week with our story from our new Anthology, Officer Buckle and Gloria. This book needs to be covered. Math continues with addition of 2 digit numbers. In religion, we are talking about the Mass. Please find a creative way to share with your family that the Mass is a meal, a sacrifice, and a memory of Jesus. Our next Sacramental Prep Workshop will be February 24th. Our hero report in social studies may come home to write the final copy. Presentations will also be this week. I will send home an outline for your child to practice in presenting their hero to our class. Thanks for all you do!



3RD GRADE – MRS. REYNOLDS: It looks like we will have a fun Mardi Gras today! Thank you parents for putting so much work into the Pancake Breakfast for the students and teachers. We appreciate you so much! Tomorrow is the beginning of Lent, where we prepare our hearts and minds for Easter. In Math, we are going to learn our multiplication tables. Starting this week for homework, the students will work on memorizing their times tables. Parents, please drill your child with the Multiplication Tables 1-12 Study Sheet starting with the 0's, 1's, etc. Sign the sections that they have mastered and send them to school. We should have them memorized all the way to 12's by the middle of March. In Science, we will take our Unit B Chapter 1 test on Wednesday. We will also take home our Unit 1 Test on Wednesday for Religion. For Social Studies, a packet will be coming home this week, explaining all of the Mission Project requirements. Parents: please sign the packet and return the signature page to school. The Mission Projects and research reports are due April 14th."



4TH GRADE – MRS. REYNOLDS: It looks like we will have a fun Mardi Gras today! Thank you parents for putting so much work into the Pancake Breakfast for the students and teachers. We appreciate you so much! Tomorrow is the beginning of Lent, where we prepare our hearts and minds for Easter. In Reading, we will be getting our directions on our next Book Report. The students are to chose a Mystery Book by Feb. 23rd and complete their Book Report by March 31st. We also will begin writing a Persuasive Essay. We will also take home our Unit 1 Test on Wednesday for Religion. For Social Studies, a packet will be coming home this week, explaining all of the Mission Project requirements. Parents: please sign the packet and return the signature page to school. The Mission Projects and research reports are due April 14th."



5TH GRADE – MRS. DOERR: Thank you to all our parents for a ‘very fat’Tuesday breakfast this morning! Tomorrow we begin the holy days of Lent with Mass at 8:30. Please feel free to join us if you can. The historical fiction book report project was handed out today. It’s due next Tuesday. We began Lesson 21 in spelling today. The packet is due and a test on Friday. Today was also State ID test #7. Congratulations to Brie Parker who has achieved State ID Expert status with two consecutive 100%. Way to go, Brie! Through prayer, sacrifice, and giving may this Lent be one of change for us all. We’ll make our personal commitments on Friday. “Take up your cross and follow in my footsteps.” (Mark 8:43)



JUNIOR HIGH GRAMMAR – MRS. DOERR: Thank you for the contributions to the 3x5 card supply in the classroom. We use approximately 750 cards every two weeks and we’ve come to the end of our supply. So any cards you can contribute will be appreciated! Today begins the third trimester and I wish everyone great success in these next few weeks. May your Lent be prayerful and your relationship with our Lord be strengthening!





4TH – 8TH GRADE – MR. ELLIS Math: Welcome back everyone! We have a lot of math to cover in a short amount of time since we have a short week again-but I'm confident that we can do it! 4th grade will wrap up chapter 8 this week with a test on Thursday. 5th grade should finish chapter 9 this week and prepare for a test on Friday. 6th grade will finish chapter 6 on Wednesday and prepare for a test on Friday. Pre-Algebra and Algebra are both on pace to finish their chapters on Friday which means we will take our tests early next week. 


Social Studies: 6th/7th will begin chapter 11 and analyze "Mongols in China" and 8th grade will review all week with practice tests and review sessions to better prepare them for the Constitution test. The tentative test day is next Thursday 2/25! Make sure you are studying for at least fifteen minutes every night!




4TH – 8TH GRADE SCIENCE – MRS. McDANIEL.  I hope everyone had a restful and long weekend as we jump into our 3rd and final trimester of the year.  Even though 8th grade finished their chapter on Energy and Power last week we are going to be spending this week in the same topic as we study roller coasters.  Students will be in the computer lab designing and testing roller coasters that not only have to compete the selected track but also have to provide the largest thrills.  Later in the week we will be building "tennis ball" roller coasters in the classroom.  6th/7th will be studying the skeletal and muscular system this week.  They will also begin their "On the Move" group projects which requires them to build models of a common skeletal/muscular motion.  All students in 6th-8th grade should also be continuing their work on their science fair projects.  An outline for their background research paper is due on Friday.  In 4th-5th grade we will continue our study of hydroponics, effects of arsenic, phytoremediation, and the amazing power of plants.  At the same time we will continue to perfect our "Planet Challenge" portfolio which is due for digital submittal next Friday, the 26th. I will be available after school beginning today for any students that may want to work in the computer lab on their project after school.  If your child requires more time to work on their digital page, but is not able to stay any day after school, I will make arrangements to work with them during the regular school day. 




SPANISH – MRS. McDANIEL: In 6th-8th grade we will be using our rapidly developing verb vocabulary to work in pairs to write a dialog that will be shared in front of the class.  We will be using our class time to write and practice these dialogs and then to also present so we will not be having a quiz this week.  In 4th- 5th grade folios will go home so students can practice their -ar verbs and conjugating them in simple sentences.  In the younger grades we will be adding to our vocabulary folios.  Students in 1st-3rd are quickly grasping the different parts of the body while our kindergarten class is practicing the words for water, milk, tea, juice, apple, and hot chocolate. 



3rd GRADE LANGUAGE ARTS – MR. PETERSON: This week we will continue our reading voyage with a new story called Trapped in the Ice. We will continue our finishing touches on our descriptive writing. Keep practicing your spelling words – there will be a test on Friday.



JUNIOR HIGH LANGUAGE ARTS – MR. PETERSON: 6th/7th/8th Language Arts: This week students will begin typing their final drafts for their business letter. We will also make final edits to their first business letter. Keep up the good work. 6th/ 7th/ 8th Spelling: Spelling test this Friday! Continue to study Lesson 19. All homework is due this Friday. We will be playing spelling review games on Wednesday.



8TH GRADE RELIGION – MR. PETERSON: This week students will learn about Fat Tuesday, Ash Wednesday, and an introduction to Lent. Students will be attending Mass on both Wednesday and Friday.