We've had some great mystery readers! One reader read The Kissing Hand by Audrey Penn. It's a story about a young raccoon starting school. The raccoon is anxious about the separation from his mother, so she kisses his hand and tells him to press it to his cheek every time he misses home. Then our mystery reader shared a snack with everyone. Our next mystery reader read The Legend of Rock, Paper, Scissors by Drew Daywalt. The story about how the game Rock, Paper, Scissors started is very funny. In the kingdom of backyard, rock was the undefeated warrior; in the empire of mom's home office, paper was an undefeated warrior; and in the tiny village of junk drawer, scissors was the undefeated warrior. When the three met, they all enjoyed playing games where they could both win and lose.  Our reader gave all the students Pop Rocks to help us remember the story. 

Here are some important upcoming dates: 
April 23: Ancient Under the Sea Assembly 
April 25: Delone Band Tour 
April 26:​  Golf Tournament
April 30: Field Trip to the Whitaker Center
May 1:  School Mass at 8:30
May 5-8:  Middle States visit
May 8:  Early dismissal at 11:45 a.m.
May 10:  Hernandez Family Concert; Parents and Pastries 
May 11: St. Josephs Athletic Association 5K
May 15:  Talent Show 
May 16: Field Day
May 22: Water Fun Day
May 24: MegaShambucks Party
May 27:  Off School for Memorial Day
May 28:  Eighth grade graduation 6:30 p.m.
May 31:  Last day of school; Closing Mass 8:30; Early dismissal 11:45

We had mystery readers this week read an exciting book. They read the Story of Ferdinand by Munro Leaf. Ferdinand is about a peaceful bull who doesn't want to fight and snort. He'd rather sit in the shade and smell the flowers. Our readers brought us each a beautiful rose to help us remember the story and a snack to enjoy. 

We had some mystery reader fun and some St. Patrick's Day fun in first grade! The Wonkey Donkey by Craig Smith was read to the students. It is a hilarious story about a three-legged donkey. The use of adjectives in the story had the students cracking up laughing. Some important upcoming dates are below. 
March 19th: St. Joseph's Day Mass at 8:30
April 5th: Race for Education
April 17th: Early Dismissal
April 18th - 21st: Easter Break
April 23rd: Underwater Science Assembly
April 26th: SJS Golf Tournament
April 30th: Field Trip to the Whitaker Center

We have had a busy, but fun February. First, we celebrated the 100th day of school. Then Ms. Pam planned an awesome winter carnival for the students with games, prizes, cotton candy, and popcorn. Then we had a Valentines Day Party in the classroom with more games and treats. And in honor of Oral Hygiene month, we had a guest come in and read a story, talk about good oral hygiene, and she gave some awesome gifts to the students to help them take care of their teeth. Below you will see some pictures of winter carnival fun, some of the fun we have when stuck inside for recess, and our work and experiments done to help us learn good oral hygiene. Some important upcoming dates are: 
March 6th: Ash Wednesday Mass at 8:30
March 13th: Report cards sent home
March 15th: Mega Shambuck Party
March 19th: Feast Day of St. Joseph Mass 8:30 (first graders lead Mass)
April 5th: Race for Education

We had such an exciting Catholic Schools Week! From the opening Mass, to the Jump Rope for Heart, to gym games, and super hero games with our prayer partners, we had a great time all week! Then the fun continued today when we celebrated the 100th day of school! Below are some important upcoming dates:
Feb. 13:  Sub Sale pickup in church library 
Feb. 14:  Winter Carnival and Valentine's Day party; If your child wants to bring in a Valentine for each of their classmates, they will be able to hand them out at the Valentine's Day party
Feb. 15-18:  No school
​Feb. 16: Daddy/Daughter Dance 

Catholic Schools Week is upon us! The following is our schedule:
January 27th: Opening Mass 9:00 am
January 28th: First grade will make cards to thank our local firefighters.
January 29th: Dress down in our favorite superhero t-shirts; Students will receive a soft pretzel snack at school from the Home and School Association; No homework!
January 30th: Dress down in spirit wear; Please wear sneakers and comfortable clothing for the Jump Rope for Heart; Students will participate in the Jump Rope for Heart; Students will attend a pep rally in the afternoon.
January 31st: Wear gym uniforms with silly socks; Students will participate in gym games; Parent lunch will begin at 12:00; Family skating party at Magic Elm will be held from 6:00 to 8:00.
February 1st: Students will make thank you cards for our priests and deacons. Closing Mass will start at 8;30, followed by an open house for prospective families from 9;30 to 10:30. First grade will have superhero fun with their prayer partners in the afternoon.

The 100th day of school happens to land in the middle of Catholic Schools Week this year.  I love to celebrate the 100th day, but I am going to wait to celebrate till Monday, February 4th, since we already have lots of fun scheduled for Catholic Schools Week. For the 100th day of school, I would like all students to collect and bring in 100 of something small.