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 Thanksgiving This week we have a special opportunity to "count our blessings" and give thanks for them. Most of us have too many blessings ever to adequately account for them all, and certainly not if we save them all up for one day. But I am proud to live in a country that sets aside a day each year to remind us to be grateful, especially to our God who is the source of all good things. I am grateful for so many things this year. I fear that if I begin to publicly account for them, I will give offense to those who I forget to mention. But I think that fear of failing should never stop us from trying to do our best. So, I want to express my gratitude for all of the support and condolences I received from parents and staff when my mother passed away in August. I am grateful for the parents who volunteer here at Sacred Heart School, especially those who have taken on leadership roles which take up so much time and energy. Our school could not run without them. I am grateful to those parents who do the jobs that few ever see - the cleaning and hauling, the organizing and filing, and most often these things are done in addition to other service jobs. I am grateful to the parents who serve here at Sacred Heart School at the end or in the middle of a busy day at work, because they believe so strongly in our school. I am grateful for the teachers for whom "good enough" is not their goal; who start and end each work day thinking about how they can help their students to do better and be better. I am grateful for our instructional aides and administrative staff who do so much behind the scenes to make sure that our teachers can do what they need to do. I am especially grateful for those members of the staff who see a need and raise their hand to help, for those who never offer a criticism without an accompanying suggestion for improvement. Finally, I am grateful for this parish and school community that make me glad each day that I work here. Finally, I want to share with you my family's Thanksgiving tradition. Each year we read aloud President Lincoln's Thanksgiving Day proclamation. Without a doubt it is a challenging piece of reading. But I think that no one has better expressed the reason for this day than the man who made it a national holiday. May God bless you all. - Mr. Burroughs Our Book Fair is Coming! The whole school is excited about our upcoming Book Fair. An amazing selection of books is headed our way! At the Book Fair you will find the latest and finest titles for kids, as well as books of interest to parents. Mark your calendar for our Scholastic Book Fair. It will be located in the school library on the following days: - Mon, Dec 3 - 3:00 PM- 5:00 PM (Teacher Preview: Teachers only)
- Tues, Dec 4 - 8:00 AM- 6:00 PM
- Wed, Dec 5 - 8:00 AM- 6:00 PM
- Thurs, Dec 6 - 8:00 AM- 6:00 PM
- Fri, Dec 7 - 8:00 AM- 11:30 AM
- You can also shop online Dec 3 - Dec 10.
Check out the teacher wish list board at the fair! You can contribute books to your child's classroom library. The Book Fair is a great way to get everyone excited about reading. Here's a brief video that highlights the big dreams that can be realized through family reading:
See you at the Book Fair! - Mrs.Hooper Vacation Homework PolicyAs the upcoming Thanksgiving Holiday grows closer, we have received a few requests from families who are leaving early to put together homework for their students to complete while they are gone. In general, all students are expected to complete to work on the following: - Finish or complete the next Spelling (K-5)/Wordly Wise (MS) unit
- XtraMath (K-5)/Go onto the next unit in the Math book (6-8)
- Keep a daily journal; the focus should be on writing descriptive sentences/paragraphs about the things you are doing.
- Finish/Complete the next Lead 21 packet, or read a book for a Book Report; if appropriate, start the Book Report
- Any long-term reports they were working on when they left
Students/families should contact their child's teacher(s) as soon as possible about an absence due to a vacation to find out if there are any grade level specific assignments to be completed, or information needed to complete the assignments above. As with any absence, we ask that the student check in with their teacher(s) upon their return to review what assignments still need to be completed and discuss a time frame for their completion. - Mr. Burroughs and Ms. Gray Accreditation Survey I want to say "thank you" to the parents who have already completed the Accreditation Parent Survey. As of today, we have received 74 responses from almost 250 families. So, if you have not yet had the opportunity to provide your feedback through this survey, please take some time over the next few days to do so. Your participation is crucial. The survey will close on Monday, November 26th at 8:00 a.m. - Mr. Burroughs Winter Spirit Clothing Drive This is a great time to go through your kid's closets and find gently used items to donate to those in need. ASB has boxes at the school entrances and would love for you to donate your coats, hats, mittens etc.. All items will be donated to the Lifespring Store at Bellevue Square. Thank you for supporting those in need! December Shoe Liturgy This year's Shoe Liturgy is scheduled for Thursday, December 6th at 9:00am and will be celebrated in conjunction with mass for the Feast of St. Nicholas. For more information please click here... Annual Parish Pledge All school families who are receiving the "Contributing Parishioner" tuition rate are required to have an annual parish pledge on file and to make regular contributions toward the fulfillment of their pledge. Please remember to fill out your new pledge card for the 2013 calendar year and submit it to the parish office right away. Your parish pledge helps to support all of the ministries, programs and personnel of the parish, including our school. - Mr. Burroughs "Hot Topic" Discussion Forums Coming up soon are some evening discussion forums with the school counselor, hosted by Kari Boyd and Parents Club. Specific dates, time and location are TBD. These discussion nights are mainly to provide information and spread awareness on various "hot topics" throughout grade level groups. These beneficial discussion nights will offer parents an opportunity to learn, ask questions, and chat with other parents in their child's grade level. **Please help select books/topics by completing this survey! | 
