website  watertownhistory.org

    ebook  History of Watertown, Wisconsin

     Set of weekly School Newsletters

 

St. Henry School Newsletter

 

December 15, 2006

 

             “While they were there, the time came for her to have her child,

                 and she gave birth to her firstborn son.”    Luke 2: 6

 

A request.  We need to inventory all our parent education library materials which include the Love and Logic videos, audiotapes, DVD’s, CD’s, and books.  Please, please check to see if you have any and return them please.  You can check them out again in January. 

 

Speaking of Love and Logic, I put an all call out for possible resources for parents who would like advice on how to help their children with the inevitable friendship problems that can be a painful part of childhood.  The new assistant superintendent of schools, Mrs. Monica Bischoff, wrote to a special friend of hers who is a public school counselor in Janesville with my request. Mrs. Bischoff wrote back, She recommends Discipline with Love and Logic by Foster Cline and Jim Fay. (I personally used this as a teacher and administrator and it is wonderful!) Santo (another consultant) also mentioned this program during his presentation to us on Friday (during an all principals meeting in Madison).  Those of you who have been around awhile know we have been advocates of Love and Logic since the late 1980’s when it was first becoming known. We have an extensive library of their materials and periodically offer the course, “Becoming a Love and Logic Parent!”  Later in her email Mrs. Bischoff writes about the Committee for Children (committeeforchildren.com) which is a great resource for child advocates. One of the programs they especially like is “Steps to Respect” for counteracting bullying.  That’s a program that has been a part of our curriculum in grades 3, 4, and 5 for a number of years now!  So we felt supported in our decisions to get these top quality materials for our children, their parents, and their teachers.

 

I realized that although this was published in the Watertown Daily Times a few weeks ago we had never shared the first quarter honor roll list in the newsletter itself.  So, here it is and again, CONGRATULATIONS to these students.  Well done!

 

The honor roll students with a grade point average of 3.3 to just under 3.8

Grade Four: Noah Cole, Janelle Hamilton, Brian Hogan, and Leah Uecker.  Grade Five: Jessica Mallow.  Grade Six:  Anthony Bacchi, Alexis Gaster, and Gerald Tracy.

Grade Seven: Kara Denault, Kasey Garity, Francis Hertel, Jacob Jurgella, Jared Keller, Clint Rose, and Alicia Strupp.   Grade Eight: Jarrett Beal, Alexander Beltz, David Olguin, and Natalie Sims. 

 

The high honor roll students with a grade point average of 3.8 to 4.0

Grade Six:  Juliena Herritz, Isabel Kemp, Patricia Ready, Patrick Roche, and J.T. Tesensky.  Grade Seven:  Devin Herritz.  Grade Eight: Emily Ceithamer, Megan Feilbach, Megan McPherson, Catherine O’Connor, Andrew Ready, and Taylor Wagner.

 

Good news indeed from Mrs. Lynn Miller, the HASA Kraemer Fundraiser Chair:

“Thank you to all who participated in our fundraiser.  We raised $1, 224.  Rich, Mike, and Dan from Kraemers also donated an additional $100 for a grand profit total of $1324!  This money will be used for help in purchasing the drumming curriculum Mrs. Oestreicher is excited about.  We also want to thank the moms who volunteered their time to help sort and hand out orders:  Kathy Thomas, Kelly Beltz, Sue Mehltretter, Katie Schroeder, and Ann Jahnke.”

 

GINGERBREAD HOUSES GALORE

 

We have been focusing on the Advent season.  The children know that this is a time of waiting.  Each day we gather around our Advent wreath to pray.  We are currently lighting two candles during our prayer because it is the second week of Advent.  The children gaze into the burning candles as a reminder to them that “Jesus is the light of the World.”  We have discussed the shape of the wreath and realized that it has no ending, just like God’s love for us will never end.  The children made their own wreaths to take home.  What a great job they did!  They will be able to decorate them and add paper candles.  Don’t forget to add another flame next week, parents.

 

A special thank you to our seventh grade study buddies for helping us make the gingerbread houses.  We had so much fun, and they turned out adorable.  Also, thank you to everyone who donated items for them.

 

What a great job all the children did at the Christmas program!  They did work hard to sing their hearts out and make Christmas extra special for us.

 

Happy Advent.

Mrs. Lapp

 

SEVENTH GRADERS ARE ON THE MOVE

 

“On the road again” seems to be the theme song of the seventh grade class.

 

Last Tuesday the group headed to the Overture Center in Madison to see the timeless classic A Christmas Carol performed.  We are also reading this Charles Dickens’ classic and through it the seventh grade class has entered the world of Victorian England and is visiting the life of Ebenezer Scrooge.   Students are traveling a journey circle to the past, back to the present, and then into the future to experience Scrooge’s life.  Of course it happens all in one night for Scrooge, but our literary journey will take the class through Christmas.  Good deed chains are being created in contrast to the one Marley wrought with how he spent his time on earth.  Students will also share with me in writing if they want to experience the same opportunities offered to Scrooge and what they feel their future will be like.

 

The seventh grade also traveled to the Bethlehem Marketplace this week to experience something of what it was like there when Jesus was born.  Next week we will walk down to the Towne Theater to view the new movie “The Nativity” as a class.  A trip to church on Thursday morning (the 21st) will round out our traveling when we present a Jesse Tree program to the students of St. Henry.  Have a wonderful Christmas.

 

Mrs. Smedema

 

Dates to Put on Your Calendar             

DECEMBER

Saturday 16           First Reconciliation for Grade 2 at 7 pm

Monday                18           Grades 1-4 to St. Bernard’s for their Christmas program which starts at 9:00 am

Tuesday 19           Grades 5-8 to Nativity movie in the afternoon

Wednesday           20           Grade 3 fills liturgical roles at 8:15 am Mass

Thursday               21           Seventh grade presentation of Jesse Tree to grades 1-8 in church at 9:20 am

Friday                    22           Amazing Al (magician with a message) for Preschool – Grade 3 in PC at 9:15 am

11:30 dismissal    Christmas break begins

Mid-quarter reports go home

Both parishes grades 6-12 youth go caroling at Marquardt Manor, 4:45 – 8:00 pm

JANUARY

Wednesday           03           School resumes

                                                Grade 8 fills liturgical roles at 8:15 am Mass

                                                Play group in PC, 9:30 – 11:00 am

                                                Athletic Assn. mtg., computer lab, 6:00 pm

Friday                    05           Geography Bee, grades 4-8 in PC, 12:45 pm

Athletic Assn. Parents’ Night

Monday                08           Home and School Association mtg., 6:30 pm, rectory hall

Tuesday 09           No basketball practices – Net Retreat late afternoon and evening for high schoolers

                                                (Education Commission also rescheduled for next week.)

Friday                    12           Student Council Crazy Day

                                                No basketball practices – Net Retreat for Grades 6-8, 5:00 pm – 9:15 pm

Tuesday 16           Rescheduled Education Commission mtg., 6:30 pm, rectory hall

Friday                    19           Second set of Accelerated Reader points should be earned by now (Grades 4-8)

                                                Market Day

Thursday               25           St. Henry/St. Bernard Winter Band Concert at St. Bernard’s, 6:30 pm

Friday                    26           NO SCHOOL

Sunday                  28           Catholic Schools Week officially begins!

 

Memory verse for December 18-22                               Luke 2:7  (from Midnight Mass Gospel)

“She wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger because there was no room for them in the inn.”