March 5, 2015


Dear St. Katharine of Siena Families,
   


                                                               March Blizzard

                 I am done shoveling....for now anyway, so nothing better to do then blog away. Well, I guess the meteorologists got this one right?    Snow in March ..ugh ...enough already. We are getting blasted!  Your guess is as good as mine for tomorrow, depending on the clean up , buses, and freezing up!  What can I say - shades of last year.  Ladies, please mark down Wednesday, March 25th as the SKS Fashion Show rescheduled date.  Tonight would have been a real adventure.


                                                                          Lent

                 How's Lent going for you? Giving up chocolate or something else good you like?   Getting to mass possibly during the week?  Trying to exercise some more patience with the kids?  Finding  time to pray a little more?  All good ideas I think. Lent is a personal commitment to be a better person for yourself and for others. Self sacrifice, doing for others especially those less fortunate,  and furthering your relationship with God can only be good things for us.  The idea  of sacrifice is to bring us closer to God.  It's as simple as watching less television or computer time, which affords us  more time for prayer. That's how it works.  We find more time to be with God, and by doing so we also model the example for our children. If you need a copy of The Little Black Book  for Lent  I have a few extra here at school. The daily meditations  are "spot on" most days and can really help us reflect on this time of year, as we move closer to Easter.  Lent is about creating a change in ourselves, a change of heart in something we are doing or not doing, or perhaps improving a relationship with God or with someone with whom we need to forgive or be forgiven.

                                                 SKS  Guys  Night Out.....SKS Girls Night Out

              I saw a lot of SKS Dads who were happy to get out last Thursday at Casey's in Berwyn for the GNO (Guys Night Out).  Over sixty guys made it that evening and I was thrilled to see some SKS Alumni Dads whose kids had graduated.  Special thanks to Steve Graham, (grandfather of Charlotte and Graham Roe). Steve is the owner of Casey's and was very generous in helping us. Also thanks to the ladies: Rebecca Roe, Renee de Gennaro, Eileen Bookbinder, Crissy Pyfer ,and Darcy Wieser,who organized the event and had to put up with those guys for a night!  This Thursday it's the ladies turn at the SKS Fashion Show at Overbrook.                                    

                                                   End of 2nd Trimester and Standarized Testing 

              The end of the 2nd trimester is this Friday, March 6th . Your child will receive his/her report card on March 17th or 18th.  The teachers need time to get grades together and I like to review every child's report card. We have started spending some time prepping the students for the upcoming Terra Nova Tests. The In View Test is Thursday morning, March 19th.  The actual Terra Nova Test will be given throughout the week of March 23rd in the morning.  Perhaps you have seen some of those commercials on television about the parents from New Jersey venting about the state standardized test?  I think we as as school have a good perspective on standardized testing. We do not teach to the test and are not pressured by demands of school boards or even angry parents (nor yet anyway)! We do recognize that the standardized testing is one piece of a child's academic profile and can be used to help a child and a school  recognize strengths and areas of growth.

   Art Goes to School

              Last week,  our Art Classes were visited by outside lecturers such as artist Maureen Haley (Matt Haley 's Mom) and photographer/artist Helena Quigley ( mother of alums Shannon and Alexandra). Students were exposed to a wide variety of  art and different mediums to gain an appreciation of the importance of art in our lives.  

                                                                         Winter Sports 

             Congratulations to all our winter sports teams  and coaches this season.  I am grateful for the efforts of the volunteer coaches and the work of Paul Evans and Mike McCormick this past winter. It's not an easy job coordinating so many teams. Congratulations to our 7th and 8th Grade Boys team and their coaches for their amazingly successful season. The team played really well, but lost last Saturday to eventual champion , St. Ignatius, in a close, hard fought game. The support from our students and families at the game was awesome.   As a coach for many years, I truly believe there are lessons learned on the court and playing fields that sometimes are not able to be taught in a classroom.  Sports and activities are a huge part of our education of the "whole child." The programs offered outside of school are an important part of our school community and helps give each child a way to find their niche.

Mrs. Sonier, a guest lecturer from Art Goes to School, teaches our students about "realism." 

The Boys Varsity Basketball team reached the Final Four! 

A great crowd showed up for Guys Night Out last Thursday at Casey's in Berwyn.

Third graders, Kate Sharkey and Maeve Seeger, were two of the students honored as peacemakers for the 2nd trimester  at the monthly school  mass on Tuesday.  A good number of parents showed up at the Parent Coffee after mass. 

  Take care,

  Bud