Announcements & Reminders for week of October 15

"The Church, although made up of persons who have diverse languages, cultures, and rites, nonetheless professes with a united voice the one faith that was received from the one Lord and that was passed on by the one Apostolic Tradition. She confesses one God alone, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and points to one way of salvation. Therefore we believe with one heart and one soul all that is contained in the Word of God, handed down or written, and which is proposed by the Church as divinely revealed."  www.annusfidei.va

Announcements

• ·         The BOOK FAIR has BEGUN!  Students are completing their wish list items and will bringing them home over the next few days. We are still looking for just a couple more volunteers, if you can work one of the following shifts please go online and sign up or just email back. Shifts we are looking to fill are: Wednesday from 6-8pm (during RE), Friday 11-1 and Friday 12:30-2:30
• ·         We are looking for a few volunteers that can help serve lunch during the week. We especially need help Mondays, Tuesday and Wednesdays. The benefits are awesome: Fantastic people, great kids and a free lunch! If you can help please sign up online or contact Cindy Heesemann at cindy.hesseman@saintjohns.net

Reminders

• ·         Friday is parent teacher conferences! There will not be school, but parents are highly encouraged to bring their students to conferences. IF you have not signed up there are still openings. To sign up please go online to www.school.saintjohns.net
• ·         School Pictures for 4-year old preschool, sports teams and retakes are scheduled for October 25^th at 8:30 am
• ·         Teachers will be attending a teacher development day on October 26^th, there will not be school that day
• ·         The Halloween Carnival will be on October 27th, from 4-8pm in the School Gym.  Please bring: Preschool- 3rd grade-large bag of candy, 4th & 5th -3 cans of Pringles, 6th, 7th & 8th –(3) 2-liters of pop. All families please bring a baked item for the cake walk
• *To learn more about the YEAR OF FAITH, go to the website http://www.annusfidei.va/content/novaevangelizatio/en.html

Or “like” on Facebook www.facebook.com/YearofFaith.va

DROP OFF/PICK UP LOOP PROCEDURES

Dear Saint John’s School Families,

One of the items on the S A C (School Advisory Council) agenda last evening was the arrival and dismissal times here on Saint John’s campus, the dropping off and picking up of our students.  On evaluating and discussing our LOOP PROCEDURES,   it was felt necessary to ask everyone to review the plan to insure the safety of our children and make these busy times here on campus flow more smoothly. 

One serious concern that was addressed was during the morning loop drop-off, some drivers choose to pass up the vehicle in front of them in favor of exiting the loop more quickly.  Near accidents have been observed, and it is feared that a child getting out of the front car could easily be hit.  PATIENCE is the answer.  It is understood that everyone, especially in the morning, is on a tight schedule.  The last goodbyes, hugs and kisses, backpacks and projects are so important, and our children are encouraged to exit as quickly as possible.  Keeping a happy attitude during stressful times when everyone is striving to be punctual is a virtue.  Cars entering the loop from the North side of the parking lot may find that those already in the loop may not yield to their entering. 

In the afternoon Loop Pick-Up there seems there is some confusion as to where parents should place their cars while waiting for their children to be dismissed.  Parishioners are sometimes confused also, as to why school parents are in the parking lot blocking the entry and exits to the church as well as blocking parking places.  School vehicles, please accommodate parishioners and others needing to make their way to/from the church by making space for cars to enter or exit.   Father will be meeting with parishioners and those who come to church for Adoration explaining the whys and hows of LOOP.

Attached is a schematic of the loop for our school.   Thank you everyone for your cooperation

Shalom,

Mrs. Schmitt

SAINT JOHN’S SCHOOL CELEBRATES THE YEAR OF FAITH

Dear Saint John’s School Families,

Next Thursday, October 11, to begin the celebration of THE YEAR OF FAITH, students and staff will attend Mass at 8:30 a.m.  Students are asked to wear their uniforms on Thursday and Friday.  We will attend Mass both days.

In an earlier Chronicle letter, I shared with you that each classroom has already adopted a saint who will become very special to them. This saint’s name will identify the students, parents, teachers, and will be used in a variety of ways.  This is just one of many, many special experiences that will be happening this year here at school. I will attempt to keep you informed of the activities, happenings and lessons that will challenge all of us to strengthen our faith. 

Please be sure to post the HALLOWEEN CARNIVAL FLIER on your refrigerator.  Again, to make this carnival extra special, it will have the flavor of our YEAR OF FAITH.  Adults and children alike, everyone, should “press their creative juices” and try to attend wearing a costume that might win a prize that supports our Catholic Faith.       

                                                                                                                       

Ideas??????   Father Frank shared some thoughts…..Saints, i.e. Saint Lucy,  Blessed Mother Theresa, Saint John the Evangelist, or the Baptist, Fishermen, Apostles, Candles, Bibles, Nuns, Priests (It is not fair, his and Father Sam are already prepared!!), Angels, Samsun, Cardinals, Alter Servers,  Blessed Virgin Mary,  Archbishop,  a Catechism, etc.  Other costumes, too, will be o.k. and fun, as long as they are appropriate and are in taste, with the use of good judgment.   Please, no blood, gore and only “sweet” little witches and ghosts of that style.

Together let’s make the days and months from October 11, 2012, -November 24, 2013 a time of growth as we continue on our spiritual journey.

Shalom,

Mrs. Schmitt

SUMMER READING 2012

St. John’s 2012 Summer Reading List

The following books are required reading for students going into the following grades:

Kindergarten Summer Reading List

These can be read to the child

Required:

Miss Bindergarten Gets Ready for Kindergarten by Joseph Slate

The Night before Kindergarten by Natasha Wing

Optional:

Chicka Chicka Boom Boom by Bill Martin Jr. and John Archambault

Astronauts Are Sleeping  by Natalie Standiford

The Chicken Sisters by Laura Joffe Numeroff

The Leaf Men by William Joyce

Mouse Mess by Linnea Asplind Riley

My Many Colored Days by Dr. Seuss

Prairie Primer A to Z by Caroline Stutson

Zin! Zin! Zin! A Violin by Lloyd Moss,

Visiting the Art Museum by Laurene Krasny Brown

Sheep in a Jeep by Nancy Shaw

The Scrambled States of America by Laurie Keller

Prairie Primer A to Z by Caroline Stutson

1st Grade Reading List

Required:

Big Words for Little People by Jamie Lee Curtis

Chrysanthemum by Kevin Henkes

Optional:

Lily’s Plastic Purple Purse by Kevin Henkes

Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day by Judith Viorst,

The Bears' Picnic by Stan Berenstain

Bedtime for Frances by Russell Hoban

Caps for Sale: A Tale of a Peddler, Some Monkeys, and Their Monkey Business
by Esphyr Slobodkina

Franklin Rides a Bike by Paulette Bourgeois

Freckle Juice by Judy Blume

If You Give a Mouse a Cookie by Laura Joffe Numeroff

Play Ball, Amelia Bedelia by Peggy Parish

The True Story of the Three Little Pigs by Jon Scieszka

2nd Grade Reading List

Required:

The Story of Ferdinand by Munro Leaf

The Hello, Goodbye Window by Norton Juster and Chris Raschka

Optional:

The Secret Knowledge of Grown Ups by David Wisniewski

Flat Stanley (any in the series) by Jeff Brown

Summer Bridge Workbook 1-2 to keep up skills through the summer)

Detective LaRue:  Letters from the Investigation by Mark Teague

The Adventures of Taxi Dog by Debra Barracca

The Great Kapok Tree A Tale of the Amazon Rain Forest by Lynne Cherry

Is Your Mama a Llama? by Deborah Guarino

Martha Blah Blah by Susan Meddaugh

Stellaluna by Janell Cannon

Any Magic Treehouse Books.

Zelda and Ivy by Laura McGee Kvasnosky

3rd Grade Reading List

Required:

Charlottes Web by E.B. White

The Magic School Bus: Space Explorers by Joanna Cole

Optional:

Stone Soup by Jon Muth

The Best School Year Ever by Barbara Robinson

The BFG by Roald Dahl

Brother Eagle, Sister Sky, A Message from Chief Seattle by Susan Jeffers

Go Free or Die, A Story About Harriet Tubman by Jeri Ferris

How to Eat Fried Worms by Thomas Rockwell

The Keeping Quilt by Patricia Polacco

Miss Nelson Is Missing! by Harry Allard

Mr. Popper's Penguins by Richard Atwater

Poppy by Avi

Ramona Quimby, Age 8 by Beverly Cleary

Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing by Judy Blume

Walking the Road to Freedom by Jeri Ferris

4th Grade Summer Reading List

Required:

FICTION: choose one

Stone Fox- Gardiner

Follow My Leader- James B. Garfield

NON-FICTION: choose one

Naya Nuki (Shoshoni girl who ran) - Kenneth Thomasma

Ameenah  (Zuni boy runs the race of his life)- Kenneth Thomasma

Optional:

Matt Christopher – any of his sports books  (non-fiction)

Dennis – NUBS: The True Story of a Mutt, a Marine, and a Miracle (non-fiction)

Gregory – Cabin Creek Mysteries: Clue at the Botton of the Lake  or Blizzard on Blue Mountain

Hachiko Waits by Leslea Newman (Historical Fiction)

Crooked Kind of Perfect by Linda Urban

Dragon Rider by Cornelia Funke

George’s Marvelous Medicine by Roald Dahl

The Tiger Rising by Kate DiCamillo

The Mouse and the Motorcycle by Beverly Cleary

The Cricket in Times Square by George Selden

 Fudge-a-Mania by Judy Blume

The Indian in the Cupboard by Lynne Reid Banks

The Original Adventures of Hank the Cowdog by John R. Erickson

5th Grade Summer Reading List

Required:

Maniac Magee by Jerry Spinelli

Optional:

Hoot by Carl Hiaasen

Esperanza Rising by Pam Munzo Ryan

Chasing Redbird by Sharon Creech

Dear Mr. Henshaw by Beverly Cleary

Frindle by Andrew Clements

Holes by Louis Sachar

The Warm Place by Nancy Farmer

The View from Saturday by E. L. Konigsburg

Shiloh by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor

Number the Stars by Lois Lowry

My Daniel by Pam Conrad

Matilda by Roald Dahl

From the Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E Frankweiler by E.L. Konigsburg

6th Grade Summer Reading List

Required:

A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle

Special Directions:

You will need the study guide posted on the website AND the novel for the first two to three weeks of class.  If you are using a library book, please make arrangements to have the book in class for at least the first three weeks of school. school.saintjohns.net

Pick two, no report due:

The Giver by Lois Lowry

Whittingtin by Armstrong, Alan

The Adventures of Odysseus by Hugh Lupton

The Shakespeare Stealer by Blackwood

Nory Ryan’s Song  by Giff

Old Yeller by Fred Gipson

Belle Prater's Boy by Ruth White

Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson

Catherine, Called Birdy by Karen Cushman

The Complete Chronicles of Narnia by C. S. Lewis

The Egypt Game by Zilpha Keatley Snyder

I Heard the Owl Call My Name by Margaret Craven

The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain

7th Grade Summer Reading List

Required:

The Yearling by Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings

Special Directions:

You will need the study guide posted on the website AND the novel for the first two to three weeks of class.  If you are using a library book, please make arrangements to have the book in class for at least the first three weeks of school. school.saintjohns.net

Pick two, no report due:

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

Beyond the Burning Time by Kathryn Lasky

The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien

Homecoming by Cynthia Voigt

The Man Who Was Poe by Avi

Night by Elie Wiesel

Nothing but the Truth, A Documentary Novel by Avi

Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck

Redwall by Brian Jacques

Where the Lilies Bloom by Vera Cleaver

Touching Spirit Bear by Ben Mikaelsen

Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli

Call it Courage by Armstrong Sperry

Continued on next page…………………

Tracker by Gary Paulsen

Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech

Flipped by Wendelin van Draanen

A Single Shard by Linda Sue Park

The Clay Marble by Minfong Ho

House of Dries Drear by Virginia Hamilton

8th Grade Summer Reading List

Required:

The Glory Field by Walter Dean Myers

Special Directions:

You will need the study guide posted on the website AND the novel for the first two to three weeks of class.  If you are using a library book, please make arrangements to have the book in class for at least the first three weeks of school. school.saintjohns.net

Pick two, no report due:

I, Robot by Isaac Asimov

Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury

The Skin I’m In by Sharon G. Flake

Red Badge of Courage by Stephen Crane

The Watsons Go to Birmingham-1963 by Christopher Paul

Sunrise Over Fallujah by Walter D. Myers

War of the Worlds by H. G. Wells

The Man in the Iron Mask by Dumas                                                

The Fantastic Voyage by Asimov

The Friendly Persuasion by West

Memory by Mahy

The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman by Gaines

Summer of My German Soldier by Greene

Watership Down by Adams

Summer of the Monkeys by Rawls

Born Free by Adamson

Go Up for Glory by Russell

All Creatures Great and Small by Herriot

The Mousetrap by Christie

A Day No Pigs Would Die by Peck

The Once and Future King by White

Waiting for Rain by Gordon                                                                                                                                                                                                    

Ellen Foster by Gibbons

HB 11-1048 – Concerning the Creation of Income Tax Credits for Nonpublic Education has been moved to the House Finance Committee. The bill is scheduled to be heard on Wednesday, February 9th at 1:30 p.m.


PLEASE CONTACT YOUR REPRESENTATIVE AND MEMBERS OF THE HOUSE FINANCE COMMITTEE AND ASK THEM TO SUPPORT HB 1048.


This legislation would establish a private school tuition income tax credit for income tax years commencing on or after January 1, 2012. The tax credit would allow any taxpayer to claim a credit when a private school issues the taxpayer a credit certificate for enrolling a dependent qualified child in the private school or when the taxpayer awards a scholarship to a qualified child for enrollment in the private school.

As a large provider of private education in Colorado the Catholic Church believes Colorado receives an enormous financial benefit and substantial contribution to society from Catholic Schools. Therefore, we should help find ways that allow families to have options in education and HB 1048 is a good step in that direction.


READ HOUSE BILL 1048
FINANCE COMMITTEE - 13 Members:

Representative Brian DelGrosso - Chairman
HD 51 R
Phone: 303-866-2947
E-mail: brian@briandelgrosso.com

Representative Keith Sewrdfeger – Vice Chairman
HD 47 R
Phone: 303-866-2905
E-mail: keith.swerdfeger.house@state.co.us

Representative Cindy Acree
HD 40 R
Phone: 303-866-2944
E-mail: cindy.acree.house@state.co.us

Representative Don Beezley
HD 33 R
Phone: 303-866-4667
E-mail: don.beezley.house@state.co.us

Representative Kathleen Conti
HD 38 R
Phone: 303-866-2953
E-mail: kathleen.conti.house@state.co.us

Representative Crisanta Duran
HD 5 D
Phone: 303-866-2925
E-mail: crisanta.duran.house@state.co.us

Representative Dickey Lee Hullinghorst
HD 10 D
Phone: 303-866-2915
E-mail: dl.hullinghorst.house@state.co.us

Representative Janak Joshi
HD 14 R
Phone: 303-866-2937
E-mail: janak.joshi.house@state.co.us

Representative Daniel Kagen
HD 3 D
Phone: 303-866-2921
E-mail: repkagen@gmail.com

Representative John Kefalas
HD 52 D
Phone: 303-866-4569
E-mail: john.kefalas.house@state.co.us

Representative Jeanne Labuda
HD 1 D
Phone: 303-866-2966
E-mail: replabuda@yahoo.com

Representative Dan Pabon
HD 4 D
Phone: 303-866-2954
E-mail: dan.pabon.house@state.co.us

Representative Spencer Swalm
HD 37 R
Phone: 303-866-5510
E-mail: spencer.swalm.house@state.co.us

Catholic Schools Week 2011

Catholic Schools Week 2011 List of Events
All week, our student’s artwork will be on display in the
Church & School for our annual Art Show!
Saturday, January 29th
New This Year!! If you had fun at the sock hop then you are going to LOVE our new theme a
Barn Dance! 5:30 - 8:00 pm, Hoying Gym – all Parish families are welcome!
Saturday/Sunday January 29th and 30th –Mass “In our Parish”
Celebrating Catholic Schools during the Mass.
Monday January 31st– “Our Community”
Fourth Annual Birthday Bag Community Service Project : Each class brings different items for the bags; we
will donate them to local agencies who will distribute them to families who may not have the resources to celebrate a
child’s birthday.
Tuesday, February 1st– “Our Students”
We will have our Annual 8th Grade vs. Teacher competition! This year’s theme is SHOWDOWN, following last year’s
Olympic theme.
Wednesday, February 2nd – “Our Nation”
Students will be doing a LIVING ROSARY prayer service at 11:00 am for our nation. The service will be held in
Hoying Gym. This is sure to be an amazing event as the students are representing the beads of the rosary.
All Parish members are invited to join us!
Thursday, February 3rd – “In our Vocation”
Parents, Grandparents, Relatives and Friends are invited to eat lunch with their students.
***Saint John’s Annual Open House will take place from 5-7:30pm. Please invite any family,
friends or neighbors you think might be interested in sending their child to Saint John’s.
Additionally, any Parish members are welcome to come and see the school***
Of special note, we will have demonstrations taking place showing off our new Promethean
Interactive Whiteboards – come see what they are all about!
All Parish members are invited to attend – demonstrations will be in the Middle School!
Friday, February 4th –“Teacher Appreciation Day”
Students will attend Mass on Friday at 8:30am. Please try to join us for this moving experience.

Update on Kristen Adlhoch

Extra! Extra!
Kristen Adlhoch Tackles Therapy with Characteristic Strength and Smiles!
Hospital Food … Interesting!

Craig Hospital, Englewood, CO – I spent yesterday evening and today with Kristen, attending all of her physical and occupational therapy sessions, and “extra curricular” classes. Today was a busy day!

It started with Kris missing Fitness Class due to a miscommunication among the morning nurses – they didn’t get Kristen in her wheelchair and give her her morning medicine until a half hour after class started. We missed some sort of wheelchair soccer game that sounded fun – and they would have let me play!

Physical therapy (PT) was next. Kristen learned how to transfer herself from the wheelchair to a raised mat without the slide board. Then she spent half an hour getting stretched by the therapist and her father. (Kristen’s father, not the therapist’s.) During the stretching there was a lot of discussion about what we need to do to Kristen-proof our house. Those of you who have seen our two-storey-shower-only-on-the-second-floor house can imagine it will not be easy. Maybe Angel will get that new house she is always looking for? After stretching, the therapist strapped some electrodes to Kristen’s thighs to see if her muscles would respond to electrical impulses. They did, and it was amusing to watch the muscles wiggle and jump. This is a good sign, and means they will enroll Kris in a bicycling class starting next week. Apparently they will stimulate her muscles with electricity while she rides the bike – sounds more like torture than therapy to me.

Recreational therapy (T-Rec) was next. These folks purport to be the most fun people in the hospital. Last weekend we tie-dyed shirts with them. Yesterday they held a casino night. A couple times a week they bring dogs in for animal therapy. Saturday they will take Kristen and several other patients to the mall. Today’s meeting was just informational.

Somewhere in there we did a load of wash and ate lunch. Kris ordered the catfish, and received a large white plate with a slab of breaded catfish on it. No frills or side of parsley here.

After lunch we went to occupational therapy (OT). So far, there is not a lot of difference between PT and OT. During today’s hour Kristen learned to place various pillows and pads under her body and turn herself from side to side while laying on a large mat – a task now done by the nursing staff. Eventually she will be given a larger bed and will be expected to take care of her own comfort needs.

Between OT and Wheelchair Hyjinx one of the staff readjusted Kristen’s wheelchair. Apparently the axel was too far back and she could not do a proper wheelie. And yes, wheelies are VERY IMPORTANT here. You can’t graduate without knowing how to do them. Imagine pedaling a unicycle with your hands – kind of the same thing. Kristen was expected to travel twice the length of the gym in wheelie mode – not allowing the training wheels to touch ground. (See a short video of her doing this on her Facebook page. While you’re there, say “hi” to her – she appreciates that.) Another patient who has been at this a little longer was expected to maneuver a swerving course of tightly packed traffic cones in wheelie mode. Then we went outside to have a wheelchair race. This was really about racing against yourself and beating your previous time. However, Kristen – who had never done the course before – came within 12 seconds of beating the other two, more experienced patients. The course included a long downhill slope with many twists and turns (some 90 degrees) and then – you guessed it – a torturous return to the top. After the race, we went back inside and they were expected to descend a small flight of stairs – backwards, and in a controlled fashion (otherwise it would be fairly easy). They had help this time, but will learn to do it on their own. (Again, see a short video on Kristen’s Facebook page.)

We ran into Kristen’s doctor twice in the hallway today. We chatted with him for some time; he even drew a curious stick-figure-like schematic of Kristen’s spine to make some interesting points. Last night in the shower and again in bed Kristen’s legs experienced spasms. This is the first internal movement she has had in them in 2 weeks. The doctor explained that this is expected and may be a good sign or may be just a meaningless reflex (in either case, it is not a bad sign). I won’t go into the details – you’d need to see the stick figure spine drawing to understand them. He also told us that he will schedule another MRI for Kristen next week. He is anxious to see if there are any differences since the previous one done in Honolulu.

Dinner was interesting. Kristen had chicken strips with sweet and sour sauce that she said tasted like Mexican food. I had a stuffed bell pepper, which looked like something Calvin would not have eaten.

As I write, Kristen is studying for one of her finals. (All of her friends at Benedictine better be doing the same! You hear that Mariah? Margaret? Taryn?) Other than that, her spirits are high.

We are all looking forward to a white Christmas since we can’t travel to Phoenix. We will miss all of our family and friends there but will be thinking of them throughout the holiday. If we are really lucky, the doctor will let Kristen come home for a day at a time later this month so we don’t have to sing carols and open presents in the hospital, and we can schedule an “open house” for all her Colorado friends to stop by and see her.

Joe, Angel, Kristen & Lauren