The Messenger

January 15, 2016
Vol. III, No.20

St. Michael's Academy

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St. Michael's Academy

It was a busy week at St. Michael's and it's hard to believe that we have only been back to school for two weeks since Christmas vacation!

As the second quarter draws to a close, we completed an all-school assessment that will help to evaluate and formulate future instruction. Evaluating our school curriculum is an on-going process and this is just one of the methods we use in order to ensure that our students are experiencing a well-rounded and challenging educational experience.

In other news, our 1st graders had a visit from Forest Park's "Zoo on the Go" and were introduced to several different animals including a parrot, snake, armadillo and a very large rabbit! Watch for photos from their adventures in next week's newsletter.

Our 8th graders attended a New Spirit retreat today which always provides the opportunity for the students to share, reflect and draw closer to God and one another.

And don't forget on Monday we celebrate Martin Luther King, Jr. Some of our violin and drumming students will be participating in the 2016 Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Celebration "Proclaiming The Dream of our Beloved Community" at the Mass Mutual Center from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. The concert is free and open to the public. Enjoy!

Peace.

Ms. Ann E. Dougal

Principal

Important Dates To Remember!
Please make note of these important upcoming dates: Violin - every Tuesday Banking - every Wednesday PLEASE NOTE: Monday, Jan. 18, 2016 NO SCHOOL Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Friday, Jan. 22, 2016 2nd Quarter Ends

Spread the Word for Open House!!!

From The Classroom of Mrs. Nicoliello - Gr. 6

What Has Grade 6 Been Reading?

This year in 6th grade literature, in addition to short stories and novels, we have been focusing on the different genres. We incorporate reading and writing into a classroom display that we all benefit from by learning new things. We began the school year by reviewing each genre and choosing the ones we like to read the best. Each month has been dedicated to a different genre resulting in our "Genre of the Month" bulletin board.

In October, it was Folk Tales. We read a few folk tales in class, one in particular called "The Homecoming" about a man who learns a lesson about the value of time. The students worked in pairs or solo to write their own folk tale- a five paragraph story about a person (or animal) who learns a lesson through a series of unfortunate events. The students produced some humorous tales with life lessons.

For November, the literature classes interviewed another randomly-chosen classmate. They asked each other questions about the families, interests, and goals for the future (and even what super power they wanted to have) from a teacher-generated survey sheet. They took the results and wrote a five-paragraph biography that we typed using the laptop cart. They were then displayed on the bulletin board. I think everybody learned new things about their classmates.

The December genre was fantasy. We read a story about a dragon that wreaks havoc on a kingdom (by putting frogs in the water and ripping the last pages out of books!) and is finally defeated by a clever cobbler's son. The students then wrote a Christmas fantasy, some starring Santa Claus, his reindeer and even a unicorn. Many students enjoyed letting their imaginations run wild and create a story to be remembered and cherished!

Now as 2016 begins, our latest genre is mystery. We read the stories of Encyclopedia Brown, that famous boy detective, and tried to figure out the solution to the mysteries he's so good at solving. We will spend the rest of the week creating our own mysteries, starting with the solution and working back to the crime. We may even discover some new detectives in the making. The rest of the year we plan on doing historical fiction, poetry, science fiction, and a research paper. It's been a fun experience as we focus even more on the different styles of books that are out there.

Classroom Happenings

Learning About Topography

Ms. Brown's Science class was learning about topography. During this hands-on experiment, students created "islands" and poured two cc's of water into the container. They traced the outline of where the water hit the island. After pouring another two cc's of water, they repeated the tracing. At the end of the process, several tracings showed a topographical map! Quite clever grade 6!

Kindergarten Creates A Special Gift

Mrs. Moskel's Kindergarten class created a very special gift this week for former music teacher, Mr. Rancitelli. As many of you know, Mr. Rancitelli authored the St. Michael's Academy theme song, "St. Michael's We Stand."

The Kindergarten class wrote out all the words with accompanying music notes as a gift! Great job!

SchoolsNEXT Projects Coming Down To The Wire!
The 8th Grade has been working feverishly to complete their SchoolsNEXT projects (formerly School of the Future projects.) The deadline for projects is next Friday, Jan. 22nd with judging on Jan, 27th. There are quite a few impressive projects being built. Good luck students!

Gr. 8 New Spirit Retreat
The 8th Grade enjoyed a day of retreat with New Spirit today. The day provided a wonderful opportunity for prayer, inner reflection and fun!

Perfect Attendance
Congratulations to our perfect attendance dress-down winners! In order to qualify for the weekly drawing, a student must have no absences, tardiness or early dismissals the previous week of school. We select one from PreK - 2nd grade, one from 3rd - 5th grade and one from 6th - 8th grade. Congrats to this week's winners! Camry- Gr. 1 Sophia - Gr. 3 Jasmine - Gr. 7

Attention Parents - Don't Forget!

Don't forget to sell five (5) calendars for $10 each to friends, relatives, and neighbors. Those who purchase the calendar will have 29 chances to win prizes up to $500! The families who sell all five calendars will receive a Uniform Free Day!

Don't forget to purchase tickets for our Mangia and Mingle Pasta Dinner (tickets must be purchased in advance) on Saturday, February 6th. At the dinner, the names of 29 lucky winners will be drawn and all will be given a chance to enjoy food and fellowship with the St. Michael's Academy community!

Don't forget to send in your themed raffle basket item.

The assigned themes are:

PK- Coffee and Tea K- Chocolate Lovers

Grade 1- Mexican Grade 2- Italian

Grade 3- Arts and Crafts Grade 4- Family Game Night

Grade 5- Dog Lovers Grade 6- Movie Night

Grade 7- Local/New England Sports Grade 8- Bath and Spa

Each student is asked to donate an item for their class' gift basket or make a small dollar donation.

And lastly don't forget this fundraiser, along with our Walk-a-thon, are the only two fundraisers St. Michael's holds each year and the school relies heavily on the proceeds from these events to fund its operational expenses.

So...let's sell some calendars, have fun while eating a great pasta dinner and maybe even win some $$ or a gift basket! We can rock this thing!!

Lost and Found

Has your child not returned home with the same items you sent them to school with? Perhaps it is in the lost and found box! The box is located on the right before you enter the cafeteria. The box always seems to be full so take a look...you might recognize something!

And speaking of items, don't forget to write your child's name on all of their belongings. It's an easy task that can help things get returned to their rightful owners!

Uniform Exchange
Are those uniforms getting a little small? Are you ready to trade a few in that are still in good condition? Here's your chance at the next SMA Uniform Exchange on Saturday, January 16th from 9 a.m. to noon in the SMA gymnasium. And don't forget...if you bring in items, you will receive 50 percent off your order! Don't you just love a bargain?!

Springfield Falcons Hockey

Saturday, January 30th is Catholic Schools Night with the Springfield Falcons! Celebrate the kick off to Catholic Schools Week and join your friends for a fun night of hockey action as the Springfield Falcons take on the Portland Pirates at 7 p.m. at the Mass Mutual Center.

Tickets are only $12 for students and faculty but must be purchased ahead of time and can be picked up at the Will Call window the night of the game. St. Michael's students have been asked to sing God Bless America so don't miss an opportunity to see and hear your child sing!

For additional information and to purchase tickets, contact Matt McRobbie at (413) 276-4340, mmcorbbie@falconsahl.com or mail in the order form that was sent home with your child. Extra forms are available in the office. Order deadline is Thursday, Jan. 28th.

See you there!

Placement Test

Saturday, Feb. 6, 2016 at 8 a.m.

Holyoke Catholic High School

134 Springfield Street, Chicopee

For prospective ninth grade student who are interested in attending Pope Francis High School in September, 2016. Placement test registration forms may be downloaded from the website www.popefrancishigh.org or by calling Ann Rivers, Director of Admissions at (413) 331-2480, ext. 1132.

Snow date for test: February 13, 2016

Parish Corner
Mt. Carmel Family Valentine Supper Saturday, Feb. 6, downstairs Marian Hall 123 William Street, Springfield Hearty Pasta & Dessert Served 5-6 PM DJ Face Painting Craft Project $10 in advance 734-5433 or from Frank Grimaldi 219-9279 $12 at the door $5 ages 5-12

Prayer Corner

St. Michael the Archangel, pray for us!

We pray for all St. Michael's Academy students, families, faculty, and staff, and their special intentions.

Kathy Collins

Mr. and Mrs. John M. Miller

Mr. and Mrs. Anthony Marafioti

Barbara Barbato

Gale Candaras

And we pray in a special way for all our recently departed.

Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them. May the souls of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen.

Our prayers continue to be with Mr. Rancitelli, who is undergoing treatment for a cancer recurrence. Each week, a different homeroom sends him cards. If your family would like to send a card, please send it to school with your child, clearly marked for Mr. Rancitelli. His family has set up a blog to write about this experience.Click here to read the blog.


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