The Messenger

January 29, 2016
Vol. III, No.22

St. Michael's Academy

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St. Michael's Academy

We have had a very busy week at St. Michael's Academy as the SchoolsNEXT projects have been completed and the judging has taken place. As in year's past, I am so impressed with our 8th grade students and the projects they have created. This competition allows our students to learn on so many levels and there is a noticeable growth of maturity as students experience the trials and tribulations of working in a team to accomplish a common goal.

Next week is Catholic Schools Week; a week that allows us to celebrate our school, our students and our faculty. We have a great array of activities planned that allow us to come together and celebrate as a community. Beginning with our Open House on Sunday, each day will feature an opportunity for celebration. The week culminates with our annual pasta dinner and is a great way to catch up with fellow parents. Please see a complete listing of activities in the calendar section below.

I look forward to seeing you at as many events as your schedule allows during the upcoming week.

Peace.

Ms. Ann E. Dougal

Principal

Important Dates To Remember!

Please make note of these important upcoming dates:

Violin - NO VIOLIN DUE TO WARM WINTER WISHES event

Banking - every Wednesday

PLEASE NOTE:

CATHOLIC SCHOOLS WEEK!

Saturday - Springfield Falcons Hockey Game at 7:00 p.m.

Sunday - Open House and Curriculum Fair at Noon-2:00 p.m.

Monday - School Mass at 9:30 a.m.

Tuesday - "Warm Winter Wishes" Gr. 2 Grandparent and Volunteer Event

Wednesday - Bake Sale

Thursday - Faculty and Staff Appreciation Luncheon

Friday - Student Appreciation Day - wear your favorite sports jersey!

Saturday - Pasta Supper with Calendar and Basket Raffle at 5:00-7:00 p.m.

Best Wishes Mr. Chicon!
The faculty and staff of St. Michael's Academy send our wishes out to SMA Spanish teacher Mr. Chacon. Today will be Mr. Chacon's last day and we wish him the best in his future endeavors. Stay tuned to The Messenger for additional information on the Spanish classes.

Open House!!!

This Sunday, January 31st

Open House and

Curriculum Fair!

Noon to 2 p.m.

Please join us as we open St. Michael's Academy to students, families, friends and visitors!

Noon - Special presentation for prospective students and their families followed by school tours

Noon-2:00 p.m. - All classrooms open for visiting by families

12:45 to 1:45 p.m. - SchoolsNEXT projects on display in gymnasium

1:45 p.m. - SchoolsNEXT winners announced

in gymnasium

In addition, a representative from Pope Francis High School will be there from noon to 2 p.m. in the gymnasium to answer any questions you may have!

See you there!

Get Ready for Falcons Hockey!!

The students are ready and have practiced "God Bless America" many times! Bring on the hockey game! As you know, tomorrow night is Catholic Schools Night at the Springfield Falcons game at the Mass Mutual Center!

The game will begin at 7 p.m. BUT WE NEED ALL STUDENTS THERE BY 6:00 and IN THEIR SEATS BY 6:30 P.M. We are asking for all students to wear their SMA red uniform shirts with your choice of bottoms. We want to be a "sea of red" in order to proudly represent St. Michael's Academy and stand out in the crowd! Families and friends are encouraged to wear red as well!

St. Michael's Academy will be sitting in section 13 so please be in your seats by 6:30 p.m. We will take the students AS A GROUP down to the staging area where they will enter the ice in order to sing. If a student does not go down with the group, they will not be allowed to enter afterwards.

The Will Call Window opens at 3:30 p.m. if anyone would like to pick up their tickets early. If you need to pick up your tickets right before the game, please arrive in plenty of time to do so as there will be MANY people trying to pick up tickets at the same time.

From The Classroom of Mrs. Wozniakowski - Grade 7

MATH DOES COUNT!

"How many factors of 2940 are perfect squares?", "A rectangle measures 18 m by 24 m. What is the sum of the lengths of its diagonals?", and "What number is 75% of the positive difference between 40% of 80 and 32% of 75?" are the types of questions that this year's MathCounts club members had to answer to qualify for a spot on the school's team.

Eighth graders, Julia Puppolo, Cameron Dougal, and Derek Wesley, and seventh grader Brendan Connors won the school competition and earned the right to represent St. Michael's Academy for the annual math competition held at Hamden Charter School in Chicopee on February 6, 2016.

This year's school competition was close with four seventh graders tying for the team spot in the sprint round. It wasn't until the target round that a winner was decided.

Testing for Mathcounts is highly competitive and being part of the competition is a great achievement for these students. The students competing for the spots are members of the Mathcounts club here at St. Michael's Academy. To be chosen for Mathcounts, a student has to show an appreciation as well as an aptitude for math.

Mathcounts is "a national enrichment club and competition program that promotes middle school mathematics achievement through grassroots involvement in every U.S. state and territory." It combines the competitive spirit of athletics with academics to create an enjoyable and engaging way to demonstrate an interest in mathematics.

Grade 8 Students Present SchoolsNEXT Projects

On Wednesday of this week, 13 teams took turns filing into the SMA Conference Room as they presented their polished SchoolsNEXT projects to an outside team of judges. Nerves were running a little high and a few sweaty palms could probably be found but all the students did a phenomenal job presenting their projects!

Don't miss the Open House on Sunday where all the SchoolsNEXT projects will be on display in the gymnasium beginning at 12:45 p.m. and the winners will be announced at 1:45 p.m.

Good luck students!

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! Lily- Gr. PreK-3 Sage - Gr. 3 Tiffany - Gr. 8

Raffle Baskets

The Raffle Baskets are starting to come in and they are fantastic! As you know, each grade level is creating a basket with a different theme. Tickets for the baskets will be available during Open House and all through Catholic Schools Week.

The winners will be announced at the Pasta Supper next Saturday!

Here is just a sampling of some of the baskets:

It will be a hard decision on which baskets you want to enter a ticket for!

Friends Are Special!
PreK Friends The Messenger just happened to capture some of our PreK-3 friends having fun in their classroom!

Teaming Up With The Big Y For Our Troops!
Cards for Our Troops! Thank you buddy! The 6th graders teamed up with their PreK buddies to create cards for our troops! St. Michael's Academy is joining with The Big Y to create cards for our military men and women. The completed cards will be collected on Feb. 1st. and brought to the Big Y.

Don't Throw That Away!

St. Michael's Academy collects "Boxtops for Education" so please check your box or package before you put it in the recylcing! The school receives $.10 for every boxtop and that really adds up!

And speaking of helping the school, have you registered your Stop and Shop card in the A+ School Rewards program? You can earn money for St. Michael's Academy every time you shop! It's quick and easy - just click here and help us earn rewards!

Placement Test

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

Holyoke Catholic High School

134 Springfield Street, Chicopee

For prospective ninth grade students 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

Hearty Italian Supper at Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Church on Saturday, January 30, serving 5-6 PM.

Pasta fagioli, sausage and potatoes, salad, rolls, dessert and coffee.

In lower floor Marian Hall. Adults $10, children 12 and under $6.

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

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Holy Cross Knights of Columbus

The Holy Cross Knights of Columbus are hosting a Sweetheart Dance on Saturday, Feb. 13th in the St. Michael's Academy gym. Tickets are $25 a person. Doors open at 6 p.m. with a social hour including coffee, tea, soft beverages and a cheese bar. BYOB if you'd like wine with your dinner. Catered buffet-style dinner is at 7 p.m. with a DJ and dancing until 10:30 p.m..

Tickets can be purchased after Mass (at Holy Cross) or online using debit/credit/PayPal by visiting holycrosskofc15864.groupspaces.com. Please call Darin Cook at 386-8413 or Bob Bys at 796-5522 for more info. Tickets are limited, and will only be on sale until February 7th.

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.

George Sidor, Jr.

Phyllis Marshall Moriarty

Mr. and Mrs. Gilbert Hall

Claire Gaudette

James Sullivan

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.


Thank you for your interest in St. Michael's Academy. To ensure receipt, please add smanews@smaspringfield.org to your address book. You may unsubscribe if you no longer wish to receive our emails St. Michael's Academy 153 Eddywood Street - Springfield, MA 01118 www.smaspringfield.org 413.782.5246 office 413.782.8137 fax