St. Laurence O'Toole Newsletter: 2015

Tuesday, May 19, 2015

School News 5-18-15

THIS WEEK

Tuesday: Music Classes / Mass at 8:30 /1^st grade to Library at 9:00 with Mrs. O.

Wednesday: Art Classes 1-6

Thursday: Music Performance 1:30-3:00 Gym / Adams Team 3:10 to 4:30/Music Recital St. Laurence Gym 7:00 Grades 3-6

Friday: Math Breakfast 7:00 to 8:00 AM School Gym

RETIREMENT PARTY

Thanks to all who in any way helped to make Sunday a very special “surprise” retirement party for me. I was truly surprised and touched by your gratitude and kindness. Thanks to all who contributed to the retirement gift (my own outdoor rocking chair ) . I’ll try to get to Home Depot before school is out so I can take it to Field Day.

FIESTA AND KIDS FIESTA

The Kids Fiesta by all accounts was a fun time for the kids. Thanks to all for bringing healthy food and drinks and staying to chaperone. We took in about $75 for earthquake relief in Nepal. We will send the money off to Catholic Relief Services who have people working first-hand with the victims and their families. Thank you so much.

Invoices were sent home last week to those families who did not complete their four hours of help during Fiesta. Payment is due upon receipt so please get your check into the school.

NEW PRINCIPAL

The new principal is Doug Spriggs from Fayetteville, Arkansas. I have sent home, with your oldest child, the letter from Mr. Spriggs that was in the St. Laurence Church Bulletin.

REGISTRATION PACKETS

The Registration papers for next year went home last week with your oldest child. Make sure that you get them returned by the last day of school and we will waive the $100 registration fee. So take a few minutes to complete the papers and return them by May 29^th. You will find next year’s school calendar and supply list at the end of the packet. Tear those pages off and place them in a safe spot. Invite your friends and relatives to get enrolled.

SUMMER BIBLE CAMP

If you haven’t signed up for the Our Hands Are Jesus’ Hands Bible School from June 8-12 from 9-12 each morning, please do it today. The deadline was Friday, but you may be able to get in. You can register online at www.fbclaramie.org or by calling 745-4106.

MATH MORNING

Join us for a Math Breakfast on Friday, May 22^nd from 7:00 AM till 8:00 in the school gym. We will play math games while enjoying bagels and cream cheese along with fruit and your favorite morning beverage. Summer packets will be also be available so students can maintain their skills over the break.

MUSIC DAY

Please make plans to attend our All School Music Program coming this Thursday, May 21^st in the school gym. It will start at 1:30 with performances the youngest children and then moving on up to the oldest. Allow about 10 minutes for performance. That evening at 7:00 the Instrumentalists from grades 3^rd through 6^th will take the stage with a recital. Parents plan to bring your child at 6:45 to get tuned and ready.

KINDERGARTEN STEP AHEAD PROGRAM

Albany County School District offers a free summer program to all children who live in Albany County and who will be attending kindergarten next fall. Information letters went home after Easter. This program is open to all Kindergarten students regardless of what school they attend.

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

May 19

Laramie Reads for 1^st Graders at the Albany County Public Library 9:00

May 21

Music Day 1:30 Pre K through 6 Classroom Music Show 7:00 Instrumental Concert Grades 3-6

May 22

Math Breakfast 7:00 to 8:00 in the Gym. No Music Lessons this day

May 26-27 Fifth-Sixth Field Trip to Snow Mountain Ranch (Letter was sent home last week)

May 28^th

Field Day at Undine Park starting at 12:00 till 2:30 (weather permitting) There will be games and activities for all the kids. If it is rainy or cold we will use the school playground and the gymnasium.

May 29

Last Day of School Graduation Mass at 8:30; then Awards for PK through Fifth in the school Gym at 10:00. Dismiss at 11:30. Deadline for Free Registration for 2015-2016 school year.

Grade 1-2 News 5-18-15

Time Flies When You’re Having Fun…

Grade One/Two May 18-22, 2015

Oh my, how can we only have two weeks left together? We’ll really make the best of our precious time, I promise.

We have yet another reader’s theatre this week, this time “Stone Soup!” We hope to present it Thursday morning since we do not have school Mass. There are some fun activities to go with it, including considering steps in a process and ordering events. Our sound this week is the bossy r sound found in are and air.

Our exciting measurement unit begins in math, beginning with linear measurement and quickly moving to liquid measurement. This is lots of fun and is a really hands-on facet of our instruction and learning.

Dinosaur mania continues with our trip to the Geological Museum on Monday and studying fossils all week. We have chosen a dinosaur about which to write a quick but informative report.

I had a little play about Pentecost a few years ago; I am trying to locate that and we’ll talk lots about Pentecost and the coming of the Holy Spirit.

Homework

Monday: spelling sort

Tuesday: math

Wednesday: stick religion. Think of one thing that has happened this week at school, share it with your family. On the other side of your stick is the name of a classmate you’d like to pray for.

Thursday: spelling

Spelling words

care rare hare dare mare stare share

flare

Additional second grade words

air pair hair chair

Tuesday, May 12, 2015

School News 5-11-15

St. Laurence Eagle Eye News

THIS WEEK

Tuesday: Music Classes / Mr. Jims Pizza Night for St. Laurence

Wednesday: Art Classes

Thursday: Mass at 8:30 / Music Classes / Adams Team 3:10 to 4:30

Friday: Tentative Grades 1-2 Young Ranch near Saratoga / Music Lessons (Bring books and instruments) Kids Fiesta! 6-8

KID’S FIESTA THIS FRIDAY

This Friday from 6:00 till 8:00 we will hold the 3^rd Annual Kid’s Fiesta Dance in the Gym. We will need chaperones for the Fiesta as well as snacks. This year the money raised by the Kid’s Fiesta will go towards the earthquake victims in Nepal. The cost is $2.00 per student with a cap of $5.00 per family. (The fee will be waived if you bring snacks to share). Of course, if you can pay and bring snacks (since it is for a good cause), it would be much appreciated. We are looking for munchies like cheese, pretzels, a fruit or vegetable tray, or fruit drinks. Please be creative. We are trying to avoid a lot of sugary treats. Children preschool age and younger must have a parent on site. Friends and family not attending St. Laurence are cordially invited.

FIESTA

Thanks to all of you who helped make the the 2015 Fiesta a success! We have a gross revenue of about $45,000, but we still have some outstanding bills for program printing, catering, and table rentals. I’ll try to update you on our net profit next week in the newsletter. The money from Fiesta is used to pay for teacher salaries and benefits along with operating costs through the summer. There are some families who didn’t do their 4 hours of work. According to the contract, every family is to work for 4 hours on the Fiesta or make a donation of $250. We obtained that $250 number by figuring the income of the Fiesta and reducing your tuition by that amount. If you want to avoid the additional fees please see me about alternative work.

FAMILY PICTURES FOR ST. LAURENCE

Due to the low turnout for the pictures and and the lack of advance notice, we will not be doing the family pictures for a Parish Directory this spring. Instead the date will be in September. There will be notification in the St. Laurence Church Bulletins about the Directory in August.

REGISTRATION PACKETS

The Registration Papers for next year are going home today with your oldest child. Make sure that you get them. If you get your Registration papers completed before the end of school, we will waive the $100 cost. So take a few minutes to complete the papers and return them by May 29^th. You will find next year’s school calendar and supply list at the end of the packet. Tear those pages off and place them in a good spot.

MR. JIMS PIZZA

Tuesday is Mr. Jims Pizza day for St. Laurence School. The school receives 15% of every order. If you can’t order tomorrow, they will accept the slips that went home today through Sunday May 17^th.

MATH MORNING

Join us for a Math Breakfast on Friday May 22^nd from 7:00 till 8:00 AM in the school gym. We will play math games while enjoying bagels and cream cheese along with fruit and your favorite morning beverage. Summer packets will also be available so students can maintain their skills over the break.

MUSIC DAY

Please make plans to attend our All School Music Program coming May 21^st in the school gym. It will start at 1:30 with performances of the youngest children and then moving on up to the oldest. Allow about 10 minutes for performance per grade. That evening at 7:00 the Instrumentalists from grades 3^rd through 6^th will take the stage with a recital. Parents plan to bring your child at 6:45 to get tuned and ready.

KINDERGARTEN STEP AHEAD PROGRAM

KINDERGARTEN SCREENING

Kindergarten screening for St. Laurence Kindergarten students will be help on Friday, August 7 from 8:00 – 9:15. You must have a scheduled time and fill out the paperwork to attend. We encourage all Kindergarten students to attend. Please see Anita for more information and to schedule a time. If your child is going to do the Step Ahead program (see above), there is no need to screen as that is part of the program.

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

May 15

Living Rosary in the Grotto (weather permitting) 2:30

Kid’s Fiesta and Dance 6:00 till 8:00 in the school gym

May 21

Music Day 1:30 Pre K through 6 Classroom Music Show 7:00 Instrumental Concert Grades 3-6

May 22

Math Breakfast 7:00 to 8:00 in the Gym No Music Lessons this day

May 26-27 Fifth-Sixth Field Trip to Snow Mountain Ranch (Letter will be sent home this week)

May 29

Last Day of School Graduation Mass at 8:30; then Awards for PK through Fifth in the Gym at 10:00 dismiss at 11:30. Deadline for Free Registration for next year.

Grade 1-2 News 5-11-15

April Showers Bring May Flowers;

May Snows bring… wind ???

Grade One/Two May 11-15, 2015

Happy Mother’s Day in the snow and wind! I hope you had a wonderful day with family and loving children. J

I am still praying/hoping for a trip to Young Ranch on Friday of this week. Maybe God can hold any rain till Saturday or even Friday night?!

In the meantime, let’s use our remaining time together well! We will read more about the sea this week. Firsts will complete Fish is Fish by Leo Lionni. There is a lot to explore in that little book! Seconds will read about a ferry boat captain. Skills are: pronouns, fact/opinion, plural nouns, and the sounds of ish and long u spelled ue.

We are moving into probability in math, a really fun way to explore fractions and the likelihood of a result. First graders are doing a great job adding tens and ones, while seconds are mastering adding and subtracting 3 digit numbers.

Our Mesozoic Era display is 99% complete; all we need is a couple more Archaeopteryx’s to get finished and hung, and the diagram of the continents in each period. This week we can engage in other activities related to dinosaurs, like nests, eggs, fossils, and an intro to our dinosaur report. And yes, all this happens with only 3 weeks of school remaining! We won’t stop working hard till it’s all really over!

Religion focuses on the Acts of the Apostles and the early Church.

Spelling words

First graders

fish wish dish true clue glue due

blue

Second graders

true clue glue due blue argue

influence rescue undue untrue

Homework

Monday: Spelling sort as usual

Tuesday: Math

Wednesday: none

Thursday: spelling

Wednesday, May 6, 2015

Grade 5-6 News 5-6-15

This Week in Class:

Spelling:

I will not be teaching any more spelling units this year because of all our May activities. Each week has several interruptions. Our focus will be on History and Science.

History:

We began Chapter 18: Growth of Nationalism and Imperialism. We have been discussing Primary and Secondary Source documents. Lesson 1 concluded with a focus on nationalism. We are currently discussing imperialism in Lesson 2.

Science:

We are beginning a research unit with Beth Fitzpatrick, a UW Doctoral Candidate, involving Greater Sage-Grouse in Wyoming.

· Our last K-kids meeting will be Monday, May 18^th at 2:30pm with snacks and ice cream!

School- Wide Reading Incentive

Bi-monthly Newsletters!!!

I have decided to send bi-monthly newsletters for the rest of the year. My last newsletter will be May 20^th.

No More Spelling Units this year!!!

Since we have so many activities in the month of May, I do not feel it will be productive to have Spelling Tests. After much consideration, I have decided our class time will be better spent getting as far in our history textbook as possible.

This Week’s Special Activities:

· Tuesday, May 5^th - Lab 7 for UW Collaborative Teaching with physical education students from UW. This is our FINAL day.

· Wednesday, May 6^th- Field trip to Terry Bison Ranch in Cheyenne from 8:00am – 2:00pm

· Thursday, May 7^th –12:30pm – 1:45pm Day 1 of our Greater-Sage Grouse Research Project with Beth Fitzpatrick

· HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY on Sunday!!!

Next Week’s Special Activities:

· Monday, May 11^th - 8:15am – 9:30am

Day 2 of our Greater-Sage Grouse Research Project with Beth Fitzpatrick

· Monday, May 11^th – 2:30pm Arbor Day Presentation

· Tuesday, May 12^th – 11:45am – 1:00pm lunch at Altitude with the Laramie Kiwanis Club (they want us to steal the gavel again!)

· Thursday, May 14^th –12:30pm – 1:45pm Day 3 of our Greater-Sage Grouse Research Project with Beth Fitzpatrick

· Friday, May 15^th – 2:30pm Rosaries

Reading Group Updates:

NEW NOVELS!

The Secret Garden: reading novel and discussing content

Where the Red Fern Grows: reading novel and discussing content

The Penderwicks: reading novel with Mrs. Williams

Monday, May 4, 2015

School News 5-4-15

THIS WEEK

Tuesday: Music Classes

Wednesday: Kindergarten along with Grades 3-6 Terry Bison Ranch Cheyenne

Thursday: Mass at 8:30 / Music Classes / Adams Team Starts 3:10

Friday: Grades 1-2 Young Ranch near Saratoga Music Lessons (Bring books and instruments)

INTERNET PROBLEMS LAST WEEK

If we haven’t responded to your emails, it’s because our internet was knocked out by last Tuesday’s power outage. Our regular Network Guru, Tim Gaddis, was out of town all week. We thank John Van Heule and Jason for their valient effort on Friday to get things going.

FIESTA

This is the week to decorate, finalize donations, (see Parent Baskets below), and get all the last minute details worked out. We are hoping to set up the Raffle Tables by Friday after school for those who aren’t coming but would like to buy some chances. They sell for $1 a ticket or 25 tickets for $20. It just gives you a way to help the school if you can’t make it to Fiesta.

If you have not been contacted by a committee chair about your Fiesta hours, or you have not signed up for one, please let us know. Remember if you do not work your hours, you will be charged the $250 buyout fee. If you are on the procurement committee, please turn in all donations by tomorrow morning so we have current information for the program.

This is the school’s biggest fundraiser which brings in over $50,000 for the school. This is where we get the money for paying teacher salaries and buying books and supplies for the next school year. So, let’s all pitch in to make this event a success.

PARENT BASKETS

Don’t forget that every family is obliged to contribute to one of the three baskets for the Fiesta. The three Baskets we are asking you to contribute to are the Reading Basket, the Man Cave Basket, the Gardening Basket. Just drop them off at the office. Thanks for contributing!

FAMILY PICTURES FOR ST. LAURENCE

Members of St. Laurence Church are cordially invited to have a family picture taken for a new directory that will come out this summer. This directory will greatly help Fr. Dave our new priest to get acquainted with you. It will also help you to get a portrait done by a professional photographer. They are doing the portraits starting Tuesday (tomorrow) through Friday at the Parish office across from the school. You can sign up online by visiting the parish website or by calling the Parish Office at 745-3115.

FREE PROGRAMS

The Counselor Education Training Center (C.E.T.C) is offering free and confidential counseling services for individuals, couples, families, and adolescents. We encourage all families who are struggling with parenting or personal issues to take advantage of this service. Also being offered is a Child-Parent Relationship Training (CPRT) which is also free to families. Please take advantage of all these free programs. Information on both programs went home with the oldest student last week.

Please check to see that your child is bringing a coat to school. The weather can change quickly, and it can be cold on the playground during recess.

ADAM’S TEAM

The club meets every Thursday this spring from 3:10 till 4:30 and is headed up by Mrs. Lyford our music teacher. Bring a water bottle, some running shoes, and your Adam’s Team Shirt (should you have one). Reminder: Pre-Kindergartners must be accompanied by a parent.

ENCHILADAS FOR SALE

We have dropped the price. Now you can purchase the last few dozen of the Enchiladas at $15 per dozen or 3 dozen for $40! Get them while they last. The price will never be lower. There are still about 10 dozen left. Stock up for summer or grab some for supper tonight.

KINDERGARTEN STEP AHEAD PROGRAM

KINDERGARTEN SCREENING

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

April 29

All City Choir Event Morning Practice and Evening Concert 7:00

May 6

Field Trip K and 3-6 Terry Bison Ranch Cheyenne

May 8

Field Trip Grades 1-2 Young Ranch

May 9

Fiesta by the Sea 6:00 till 11:00

May 15

Living Rosary in the Grotto (weather permitting) 2:30

Kid’s Fiesta and Dance 6:00 till 8:00 in the school gym

May 21

Music Day 1:00 Pre K through 6 Classroom Music Show 7:00 Instrumental Concert Grades 3-6

May 29

Last Day of School Graduation Mass and Class Awards at 8:30 then dismiss at 11:00

Grade 1-2 News 5-4-15

In the Merry Month of May

Grade One/Two May 4-8, 2015

But how can it be May already?! Oh my, this happens every year, May sneaks up on me! But we will use every moment of every day and make them all count toward effective learning.

In reading we will tie in what is happening in our gym and read stories about the sea; fun, eh? Our skills are: using our gifts and talents, friendship, paragraph writing, using charts, pronouns, and the long a sound.

In math we wrap up telling time and begin a quick unit on fractions. There is not much in standards for first and second regarding this concept, but we want to introduce concepts and language as a foundation. Firsts will add two digit numbers while seconds are having fun adding and subtracting 3 digits with and without trading.

We really need to get more dinosaurs up in the hallway and that will happen this week. Roberto has the distinction of putting up the first dinosaur; congrats, Roberto! Our focus for this display is to learn about the 3 time periods in which these creatures lived: Triassic, Jurassic, and Cretaceous.

In religion we are wrapping up the year, considering even more about the Mass. Sacraments call us to service so we made May Day baskets on Friday and took about 20 of them to Interfaith Good Samaritan. The people there were very pleased and the cherubs were rightfully proud. Me too!

Spelling words

First Grade

tame game came blame shame

take taken awaken

Second Grade

sleigh weigh weight veil reins reindeer

neighbor neighborhood

Homework

Monday: spelling sort

Tuesday: Math

Wednesday: Please pray for your child’s godparents, who pray for them as well

Please remember our trip to Young Ranch on Friday. I need permission slips from most children. Please note the clothing that is needed; no shorts or sandals and shoes that can get soiled. Children need a sack lunch, water, sunscreen, insect spray, and a jacket. We will not take the interstate highway so there is nowhere to stop on the way to buy lunch or other items. This is a pretty remote ranch. J My husband comes and leads the way, so no worries about directions. I will have info for drivers this week. If you are not driving and can donate $2 for those who are, that would be appreciated. Thanks!

Monday, April 27, 2015

School News 4-27-15

INTERNET ISSUES

The school internet has been down all week, so we apologize for the lack of communication. The phones are up and running so if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to give us a call. We apologize for the inconvenience.

THIS WEEK

Tuesday: Music Classes/ Art for 3-6

Wednesday: Spring Sing All City Choir Concert 7:00 at LHS

Thursday: Mass at 8:30 / Music Classes / Adams Team Starts 3:10

Friday: P.E. and Music Lessons (Bring books and instruments)

FIESTA

The committee chairs have your phone numbers and emails so they will probably be contacting you this week to tell you when they need you. Please be generous with your time and talent.

PARENT BASKETS

Don’t forget that every family is obliged to contribute to one of the three baskets for the Fiesta. The three Baskets we are asking you to contribute to are the Reading Basket, the Man Cave Basket, the Gardening Basket. Just drop them off at the office. Thanks for contributing!

FIESTA MEETING

All committee chairs and anyone else helping with various aspects of Fiesta are asked to attend a meeting on Wednesday, April 29 at 9:00 at the school.

FIRST COMMUNION EVENTS

Congratulations to our Second graders for receiving Jesus on Sunday. Now they will join us at the table on Thursday. Thanks to Mrs. Van Heule for making this a meaningful experience for everyone. Thanks to Mr. Van Heule for being the unofficial photographer.

OPEN HOUSE

If you know of someone who planned to come but was unable to make it, please tell them that it is fine to stop by for a visit. Just have them call 742-6363 ahead to make sure that the child’s teacher is available to visit.

FREE PROGRAMS

ADAM’S TEAM

ENCHILADAS FOR SALE

KINDERGARTEN STEP AHEAD PROGRAM

KINDERGARTEN SCREENING

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

April 29

All City Choir Event Morning Practice and Evening Concert 7:00

May 6

Field Trip K and 3-6 Terry Bison Ranch Cheyenne

May 8

Field Trip Grades 1-2 Young Ranch

May 9 Fiesta!

Reservations due today. Stop by the office to reserve a spot

May 15

Kid’s Fiesta and Dance 6:00 till 8:00 in the school gym

May 21

Music Day 1:00 Pre K through 6 Classroom Music Show 7:00 Instrumental Concert Grades 3-6

May 29

Last Day of School Graduation Mass and Class Awards at 8:30 then dismiss at 11:00

Grade 1-2 News 4-24-15

April Showers Bring May Flowers ( we hope J)

April 27-May 1, 2015 Grade One/Two News

Greetings! So far we have celebrated two First Communion Masses and only one major mistake. Bummer, but life happens and sometimes we just mess up, right? Thanks again, parents, for all your loving support in our journey to Jesus. Speaking of coming to Jesus, our sweet Audra will be baptized at school Mass this Thursday! We rejoice!

In reading, firsts will read a fun reader’s theatre story about May Day, while seconds read a sort of Earth Day story (sorry, a week late). Our skills are: writing paragraphs, bossy r, ow that sounds like long o, and for second graders, the tion word ending that sounds like shun.

We are still working on telling time in math. Firsts are doing a great job subtracting larger numbers and seconds are rocking subtracting 3 digit numbers with and without trading.

Now that our big Sunday event has passed, we can jump into our dinosaur display with both feet, this week finishing plant life and beginning to place animals!

I religion, we have many people to thank for First Communion and a couple of things about the Mass that I forgot to mention earlier.

Spelling words:

First Grade only

summer flower dancer grow low show

snow flow blow below

Second Grade only

our hour sour flour scour *Earth action

vacation creation fraction

Homework:

Monday: Spelling sort as usual

Tuesday: math

Wednesday: Pray for Audra and if you are a second grader, pray with your family in thanksgiving for having received Jesus on Sunday!

Thursday: spelling

Monday, April 20, 2015

School News 4-20-15

THIS WEEK

Tuesday: Music Classes

Wednesday: Art and P.E.

Thursday: Mass at 8:30 / Music Classes / Adams Team Starts 3:10

Friday: P.E. and Music Lessons (Bring books and instruments)

FIESTA

Have you turned in your work times for assisting with the Fiesta coming up on May 9^th? The committee chair will probably be contacting you by next week at the latest finding out the times you plan to work. Please consider giving some extra hours as that lightens the load for the chairperson who already giving more than 10 times the required amount.

FIRST COMMUNION EVENTS

First Communion is happening at St. Laurence Church at the 8:00, 12:30, and 5:30 Masses this Sunday April 26^th. Let’s all pray for those students as they prepare this month.

OPEN HOUSE

Thanks to the parents who braved the snow to attend our open house last Thursday. If you know of someone who planned to come but was unable to make it, please tell them that it is fine to stop by for a visit. Just have them call, 742-6363, ahead to make sure that the child’s teacher is available to talk to you.

FREE PROGRAMS

TURN IN YOUR INTENT FOR NEXT YEAR FORMS

Take a minute today, if you haven’t already, to return the intent form for the 2015-16 school year (sixth grade parents are exempt). It helps us in planning for next year.

ADAM’S TEAM

ENCHILADAS FOR SALE

We have dropped the price. Now you can purchase the last few dozen of the Enchiladas at $15 per dozen or 3 dozen for $40! Get them while they last. The price will never be lower. There are still about 15 dozen left. Stock up for summer or grab some for supper tonight.

KINDERGARTEN STEP AHEAD PROGRAM

KINDERGARTEN SCREENING

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

April 24

Deadline for Principal Applications

April 26

First Holy Communion

Interfaith Run-Walk Pledge Sheets available in the office.

April 29

All City Choir Event Morning Practice and Evening Concert

May 6

Field Trip K and 3-6 Terry Bison Ranch Cheyenne

May 8

Field Trip Grades 1-2 Young Ranch (tentative)

May 9^th Fiesta!

Need an invitation for family or friends? Stop by the office to request one or two.

May 15

Kid’s Fiesta and Dance 6:00 till 8:00 in the school gym

May 29Last Day of School Graduation Mass and Class Awards at 8:30 then dismiss at 11:00

Grade 1-2 News 4-20-15

Snow and Rain, bless the Lord!

Grade One/Two April 20-24, 2015

Oh my goodness, a snow day (or half day) in Laramie; such a rare occurrence! I hope you enjoyed the snow; I loved every flake!

We are back to work this week on our dinosaur unit with both literacy and science tasks. Firsts will read a story, If You Invite a Dinosaur to Dinner while seconds will read Digging Up Dinosaurs by Aliki. Spelling will look different for the groups this week. Both will discuss doubling the medial consonant but then firsts will learn about final y that sounds like i, and seconds will learn about adverbs with the ly ending.

We will complete our geometry unit this week with symmetry and ordered pairs. We will then move into telling time. We continue to work on addition and subtraction facts and strategies.

Our dinosaur hall display is a work in progress. Each child has selected a time period to study and show. This week we should be able to get the plant life representations up.

Thank you for your responses re: a spring field trip. There were 2 votes for the Terry Bison Ranch and 7 for Young Ranch, so we will go to my sister and brother-in-law’s ranch near Saratoga on May 8. More information will come to you soon. Please begin today to pray for good weather!

Spelling words first grade

dinner winner dry cry shy spy sky

my why fly

Spelling words second grade

digging putting badly sadly madly gladly quickly

bravely proudly happily

Homework

Monday: Spelling sort

Tuesday: math

Wednesday: religion, ask your child about the 4 parts of the Mass. Which is his/her favorite part of Mass? Draw it in your home journal.

Thursday: spelling

Second grade parents, please remember the required practice for First Communion on Saturday, April 25. Please check your time and attend the respective practice. Thanks!

Thursday, April 16, 2015

Principal Position Announcement

St. Laurence O’Toole Catholic School

Laramie, Wyoming

The St. Laurence O’Toole Catholic School Commission is seeking applicants for the position of Principal. A coeducational elementary school (grades PK – 6) located in Laramie, WY. Founded in 1951, the guiding principles for St. Laurence O’Toole are faith, academics, and service. The school’s mission is to “integrate strong academics with moral and spiritual values.” Working with the St. Laurence O’Toole community the school instills “a passion for lifelong learning and service to others” and prepares students for continued success. The principal of the school should be an experienced, energetic, and innovative person of integrity who will be an educational and pastoral leader who continuously builds and maintains a school community of teachers, students, parents, and parish. We are looking for a relationship-builder who has good communication skills, is adaptive to change and active in planning for the future, and can communicate the mission of the school to constituencies in the parish and throughout Laramie. We require the applicant to be a practicing Catholic with at least five years of teaching experience at the elementary level. Demonstrated administrative experience is preferred.

Interested and qualified candidates are asked to submit electronically the following three items:

A letter of introduction that relates the applicant’s qualifications to the qualities articulated in this position announcement.
A full resume including three letters of recommendation.
A statement that presents a vision for St. Laurence O’Toole Catholic School.

Send all materials to: Principal Search Committee, St. Laurence O’Toole Catholic School Commission, at contact@stlos.com.

Deadline for complete applications: April 24, 2015

In-person interviews will follow. Salary and start date to be negotiated with the School Commission.

Monday, April 13, 2015

School News 4-13-15

THIS WEEK

Tuesday: Music Classes / UW Students Test Students 1-6 8:10

Wednesday: Art and P.E.

Thursday: Mass at 8:30 / Music Classes / Adams Team Starts 3:10

Friday: P.E. and Music Lessons (Bring books and instruments)

ENCHILADAS FOR SALE

We have dropped the price. Now you can purchase the last few dozen of the Enchiladas at $15 per dozen or 3 dozen for $40! Get them while they last. The price will never be lower.

FIRST COMMUNION EVENTS

First Communion is happening at St. Laurence Church at the 8:00, 12:30, and 5:30 Masses on Sunday April 26^th. Let’s all pray for those students as they prepare this month.

LENTEN JOURNEYS

We have completed Lent so we are asking you to turn in your Rice Bowls.

Thanks to all who brought them in last week. Thanks to the many of you who contributed to our 40 Cans for 40 Days for Interfaith Campaign. Thanks to our First and Second Graders who used their hard earned class money to buy items for the needy throughout Lent.

OPEN HOUSE

This Thursday April 16 the school will be holding an Open House. The teachers will be on hand to answer questions and talk about their classroom for next year. Be sure to tell all your friends and neighbors to stop by. We will be here till 6:00 that evening. We would like to increase our enrollment by 20 students for next year. If any of our returning parents want to come by at that time to talk to your child’s future teachers, you are welcome to do that as well. So spread the word about the great things that are happening at St. Laurence School.

FATHER JAMES LEAVING

It occurred to me that some of you might not have heard the news that Father James is leaving us at the end of June. He will be the pastor at Holy Rosary in Lander. The current Pastor in Lander, Fr. David Erickson will be coming to Laramie this July.

TURN IN YOUR INTENT FOR NEXT YEAR FORMS

Take a minute today, if you haven’t already, to return the intent form for the 2015-16 school year (sixth grade parents are exempt). It helps us in planning for next year.

MR. JIM’S NIGHT

This Wednesday, April 15 is St. Laurence night at Mr. Jim’s Pizza. Your purchase, either delivery or from the store, generates a 10% kick back to the school. Just turn in the bottom of your flyer so we get the credit. Thanks.

ADAM’S TEAM STARTS UP

Permission forms went home last Thursday. The club meets every Thursday this spring from 3:10 till 4:30 and is headed up by Mrs. Lyford our music teacher. Bring a water bottle, some running shoes, and your Adam’s Team Shirt (should you have one). Reminder: Pre-Kindergartners must be accompanied by a parent.

FIESTA SIGN UP

Last month we emailed you a sign-up sheet with the opportunity to help with making the 2015 Fiesta a success. Please print it off and return it to school this week. There are extra copies on the table near the front offices.

You all received an invitation to the Fiesta. It will be a black and white photo copy of the original. It went home last week with the oldest child at school. Additionally, if you know of a family member or a friend who would like to receive an invitation, please let Anita know. This could be a relative who lives out of town, but has shown interest in supporting the school. Additionally, you, or someone you know, might have a business or a hobby or service that you would like to offer as a donation to the Fiesta. This is good way to grow a business or increase name recognition. Contact the school for more information.

KINDERGARTEN STEP AHEAD PROGRAM

Albany County School District offers a free summer program to all children who live in Albany County and who will be attending kindergarten next fall. Information letters will be going home with PreK students today. This program is open to all Kindergarten students regardless of what school they attend.

KINDERGARTEN SCREENING

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

April 15

St. Laurence night at Mr. Jim’s Pizza. Check those backpacks for flyers.

April 16

Open House from 2:00 till 6:00 Invite all your friends and relatives with school-aged children

April 26 First Holy Communion

May 9^th Fiesta! Get those sign up forms in so you can get your choice of jobs.

Grade 1-2 News 4-13-15

Divine Mercy Sunday

Grade One/Two News April 13-17, 2015

Greetings on the Second Sunday of Easter! While the stores put Easter items on clearance, in the church we get to celebrate Easter for 50 days! Woohoo!

As you know, we have begun our unit on dinosaurs. In reading/language we will read a fiction story about dinosaurs and read it as a reader’s theatre. I hope that we can perform it later in the week; I will get back to you on that as things develop. Our sounds are the prefixes un, re, and dis.

In math we continue the geometry unit and discuss congruency and coordinates. Firsts will learn more about place value, while seconds subtract 2 and 3 digits with and without trading.

Religion’s focus is the Mass, of course, and the Eucharist. Thanks to all who helped make our retreat such a wonderful event! Special thanks to the Mrs. Adams and Hague for cutting out all those pesky letters. J

We will learn about the 3 time periods in which dinosaurs lived and begin our famous hall display which shows that. Our virtual field trip is Tuesday. If you have not had an opportunity to send your child’s $5 for that special event, please do so. I am sorry, but this time I just feel I need to ask your help with some of the cost for this worthwhile event. Thanks much.

You may have heard that my husband’s mother died last week. Three of my children and I are headed to Casper right after the retreat today for her Monday funeral. Please pray for the repose of her soul and peace for my husband’s family as they deal with the loss. And I hope you can excuse some of my disconnectedness which has been pretty apparent the last few days. J

Spelling words

undo untie dislike rerun retie exit

Second grade: unhappy unlucky disagree disappear

reread repack

Homework

Monday: spelling sort

Tuesday: Math

Wednesday: name and draw your favorite gospel story

Thursday: none, Open House

Grade 5-6 News 4-13-15

This Week in Class:

Spelling:

Unit 20 Spelling: adding -ion. The suffix –ion can change verbs into nouns. A great spelling strategy is: if the verb ends with e, drop the e before adding –ion. If the verb ends in de, drop the de and add

-sion.

History:

We are busy designing our own factories. We will finish on Friday and present to the class on Monday.

Science:

Here are some pictures from our chemistry lesson on Tuesday, April 7^th with Trevor LeValley . It was fantastic and all the kids had a great time!

Our next K-kids meeting will be Monday, May 18^th at 2:30pm

Earth Day

Wednesday, Aril 22^nd is Earth Day! Please have your child bring work gloves to help beautify our school!

School- Wide Reading Incentive

Drivers Needed!!!

We need drivers for two field trips:

· April 21^st (Tuesday) Ag Expo

from 9:00-1:30am

· May 6^th (Wed.) Terry Bison Ranch

all day

Open House-April 16^th

We will have an Open House on Thursday, April 16^th from 2pm-6pm. Please come by to discuss enrollment for next year! Snacks are provided!! Hope to see you there!!!

This Week’s Spelling List

Test 04/16/15 Retest 04/17/15

Unit 20 Vocabulary

instruct
instruction
graduate
graduation
confuse
confusion
conclude
conclusion
oppose
opposition
explode
explosion
affect
affection
suggest
suggestion
discuss
discussion
except
exception
correct
correction
express
expression
substitute
substitution
exclude
exclusion

*25-28 are extra credit words

Next Week’s Spelling List

Test 04/23/15 Retest 04/24/15

Unit 21 Vocabulary

consumer
control
constitution
comment
confront
compete
conference
computer
conflict
commotion
conquer
content
concert
contact
confirm
composition
conversation
community
contest
complicate
compare
contain
concern
complex
convince
consequence
comprehensive
commission
compensate
compliance

*25-30 are extra credit words

Reading Group Updates:

The Giver: This group is working on a final project and will start a new novel next week.

Dragon of the Lost Sea: This group is working on a final project and will start a new novel next week.

The Penderwicks: This group has started a new novel.

Wednesday, April 8, 2015

Principal Position Announcement

Principal

St. Laurence O’Toole Catholic School

Laramie, Wyoming

Interested and qualified candidates are asked to submit electronically the following three items:

A letter of introduction that relates the applicant’s qualifications to the qualities articulated in this position announcement.
A full resume including three letters of recommendation.
A statement that presents a vision for St. Laurence O’Toole Catholic School.

Send all materials to: Principal Search Committee, St. Laurence O’Toole Catholic School Commission, at contact@stlos.com.

Deadline for complete applications: April 24, 2015

In-person interviews will follow. Salary and start date to be negotiated with the School Commission.

Grade 5-6 News 4-8-15

This Week in Class:

Spelling:

Spelling test on Thursday—please make sure your child studies!!!

History:

We will finish reading Chapter 17 this week and then design our own factory instead of taking a test over this chapter!!

Science:

Our Chemistry lesson on Tuesday, April 7^th was fantastic! Trevor LeValley, a chemical engineer at UW, taught us about chemical reactions. It was incredible! Be sure and ask your child what experiments we did. And ask your child if an “atom” is the smallest particle. You may be surprised at their answer.

Our next K-kids meeting will be Monday, April 13^th at 2:30pm.

School- Wide Reading Incentive

I have attached an airplane decorated by your child in the hallway so look to find it! Your child will travel 100 miles for every 20 minutes they read. Your child can use these minutes for Book It as well. I will send home another reading log today. Please sign your child’s reading log—they must record the book, page numbers and time spent reading first.

Reminder

Please have your child bring back Rice Bowls from Lent

Open House-April 16^th

We will have an Open House on Thursday, April 16^th until 6pm. Please come by to discuss enrollment for next year. Bring anyone who may be interested in enrolling their child next year with you! Hope to see you then!

This Week’s Spelling List

Test 04/09/15 Retest 04/10/15

Unit 19 Vocabulary

construct
construction
connect
connection
combine
combination
cooperate
cooperation
attract
attraction
admire
admiration
situate
situation
examine
examination
contribute
contribution
explore
exploration
inspect
inspection
locate
location
excavate
excavation
insulate
insulation

*25-28 are extra credit words

Next Week’s Spelling List

Test 04/16/15 Retest 04/17/15

Unit 20 Vocabulary

instruct
instruction
graduate
graduation
confuse
confusion
conclude
conclusion
oppose
opposition
explode
explosion
affect
affection
suggest
suggestion
discuss
discussion
except
exception
correct
correction
express
expression
substitute
substitution
exclude
exclusion

*25-28 are extra credit words

Reading Group Updates:

The Giver: This group did a comparison and analysis of the novel vs the movie and has now begun their final project.

Dragon of the Lost Sea: This group will finish reading the novel by the end of next week.

Dragon Rider: This group is working on their final project.

School News 4-7-15

URGENT! FIESTA HELPERS NEEDED

We need help Wednesday starting at 3:00 with getting the invitations out for Fiesta. We will be meeting in Room 6, so come on down anytime between 3:00 and 5:00 to get these ready for the mail. This will count toward your 4 hours of work for the Fiesta.

THIS WEEK

Tuesday: Music Classes / Science Posse in Ms. James Class

Wednesday: Art and P.E.

Thursday: Mass at 8:30 / Music Classes / Adams Team Starts 3:10

Friday: P.E. and Music Lessons (Bring books and instruments)

ENCHILADAS FOR SALE

We have dropped the price. Now you can purchase the last few dozen of the Enchiladas at $15 per dozen or 3 dozen for $40! Get them while they last. The price will never be lower.

FIRST COMMUNION EVENTS

Second grade parents should know that there will be a retreat for the students coming up on Sunday April 12^th with First Communion happening at the 8:00, 12:30, and 5:30 Masses on Sunday April 26^th. Let’s all pray for those students as they make prepare this month.

Please be aware that there is an error on the April calendar. Students will not be singing at the 5:30 Mass on April 26^th due to First Communion. Sorry.

LENTEN JOURNEYS

We have completed Lent so we are asking you to turn in your Rice Bowls.

OPEN HOUSE

Next Thursday April 16 the school will be holding an Open House. The teachers will be on hand to answer questions and talk about their classroom for next year. Be sure to tell all your friends and neighbors to stop by. We will be here till 6:00 that evening. We would like to increase our enrollment by 20 students for next year. If any of our returning parents want to come by at that time to talk to your child’s future teachers, you are welcome to do that as well. So spread the word about the great things that are happening at St. Laurence School.

FATHER JAMES LEAVING

TURN IN YOUR INTENT FOR NEXT YEAR FORMS

Take a minute today, if you haven’t already, to return the intent form for the 2015-16 school year (sixth grade parents are exempt). It helps us in planning for next year.

ADAM’S TEAM STARTS UP

This Thursday the school’s running club, Adam’s Team, kicks off the spring season. The club meets every Thursday this spring from 3:10 till 4:30 and is headed up by Mrs. Lyford our music teacher. Bring a water bottle, some running shoes, and your Adam’s Team Shirt (should you have one). She will probably have a permission slip available for those who want to join for the first time this spring. Reminder: Pre-Kindergartners must be accompanied by a parent.

FIESTA SIGN UP

You will all receive an invitation to the Fiesta. Additionally, if you know of a family member or a friend who would like to receive an invitation, please let Anita know. This could be a relative who lives out of town, but has shown interest in supporting the school. Additionally, you, or someone you know might have a business or a hobby or service that you would like to offer as a donation to the Fiesta. This is good way to grow a business or increase name recognition. Contact the school for more information.

KINDERGARTEN STEP AHEAD PROGRAM

KINDERGARTEN SCREENING

SURVEY

You still have a couple of days to turn in your surveys for Chris’s college class. Don’t forget to sign the consent or he will be unable to use your information. Thanks for helping him out.

DENTAL HEALTH CHECKUPS

Dental screenings will take place next Monday and Tuesday. A letter about the screenings is going home this week with an option for you to opt out of having your children screened.

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

April 12

First Communion Retreat in the Gym 1:30 – 3:30

April 16

Open House from 2:00 till 6:00 Invite all your friends and relatives with school-aged children

April 26 First Holy Communion

May 9^th Fiesta! Get those sign up forms in so you can get your choice of jobs.

Grade 1-2 News 4-7-15

Christ is Risen! He is risen indeed!

Grade One/Two April 7-10, 2015

Greetings this Easter week! Easter is such a big deal in the church that we get to celebrate it for a whole week! I hope you had a lovely and faith-filled weekend. The cherubs did two amazing performances of the Holy Week play last Thursday. I was super proud of them!

The time has finally come: we will begin our dinosaur unit in science! We will read non-fiction stories in reading/language this week, the firsts reading Dinosaur Babies and seconds will read Let’s Go Dinosaur Tracking. Our sound is the sounds of e: short e, e with bossy r, and long e spelled ee. We will learn about main idea and the schwa sound (didn’t get to it last week. J)

We will consider slides and flips in our math geometry unit while we learn more about subtraction. Seconds will add money with trading.

As stated above, our dinosaur unit kicks off this week. Next Tuesday we will participate in a virtual field trip with the Atlanta Center for Puppetry and Arts and each child will create a dinosaur puppet during that presentation. I need to ask your help financially for this event; may I ask each child to bring $5 for this exciting event? Thanks so much.

We will begin the dinosaur unit by considering myths and realities about these creatures, realizing that paleontological knowledge is growing by leaps and bounds at this time. Our focus will be the three time periods in which dinosaurs lived, the types of bodies they had, number of legs, and types of teeth.

Our long-awaited book party will take place this Thursday from 2:30-3 PM. You are most welcome to join us as we read these delightful books about places on God’s lovely Earth!

We are thinking much about the Mass and Eucharist in religion as we prepare for our big day on April 26. Our retreat will be this coming Sunday, April 12 @1:30 PM in our school gym. It is most important that all the children join us if at all possible. You are welcome to come, too. It’s lots of fun! If you have not yet selected a Mass on April 26, please do so this week if you can. Again, we will use the 8 AM, 12:30 PM Spanish Mass, and 5:30 Sunday evening Mass on that day. Just select one of those Mass times for your family. Thanks.

Spelling words

egg herd seed weed

need green

Second grade: breed bleed seen teeth

Homework

Tuesday: spelling sort

Wednesday: religion family journal: please discuss and write about how Jesus showed us his love through his death, and more importantly, his resurrection

Thursday: spelling

Thursday, April 2, 2015

Grade 5-6 News

This Week in Class:

The kids have had a fantastic time pulling “April Fools” pranks today…be careful!

Spelling:

Unit 19 Spelling: adding “ion” or “ation”. The suffix –ion or –ation can change verbs into nouns. A great spelling strategy is: if the verb ends with e, drop the e before adding –ion or –ation. We will work on this unit Wednesday and Thursday of this week and then Monday-Wednesday of next week. Our Unit 19 Spelling Test will be Thursday, April 9^th.

History:

We are continuing with Chapter 17: The Beginning of the Industrial Age. This chapter examines how industrialization changed the way people lived and worked. Discuss with your child what kind of economy the United States has: traditional economy, command economy or market economy?

Science:

On Tuesday, April 7^th we will have another Science Posse lesson! Trevor LeValley, a chemical engineer at UW, will teach a chemistry lesson on that date.

Our school- wide reading incentive is underway!. Your child will travel 100 miles for every 20 minutes they read. Your child can use these minutes for Book It as well. I will send home another reading log today. Please sign your child’s reading log—they must record the book, page numbers and time spent reading first. I will highlight in yellow the minutes I record so we can keep using the reading log until it is filled up.

Reminder

No School on Friday, April 3^rd or Monday, April 6th

No Class Supplies Needed!!!

NO CLASS SUPPLIES NEEDED UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE!

This Week’s Spelling List

Test 04/09/15 Retest 04/10/15

Unit 19 Vocabulary

construct
construction
connect
connection
combine
combination
cooperate
cooperation
attract
attraction
admire
admiration
situate
situation
examine
examination
contribute
contribution
explore
exploration
inspect
inspection
locate
location
excavate
excavation
insulate
insulation

*25-28 are extra credit words

Next Week’s Spelling List

Test 04/09/15 Retest 04/10/15

Unit 19 Vocabulary

construct
construction
connect
connection
combine
combination
cooperate
cooperation
attract
attraction
admire
admiration
situate
situation
examine
examination
contribute
contribution
explore
exploration
inspect
inspection
locate
location
excavate
excavation
insulate
insulation

*25-28 are extra credit words

Reading Group Updates:

The Giver: we finished our novel, answered questions and discussed each chapter. Today we will begin watching the movie version of “The Giver”.

Dragon of the Lost Sea: we have read the first sixteen chapters, answered questions, and will be discussing them.

Dragon Rider: we finished the novel and will begin a final project.

Monday, March 30, 2015

School News 3-30-15

St. Laurence Eagle Eye News

FIESTA HAPPENINGS

The St. Laurence Fiesta by the Sea is scheduled for May 9^th in the school gym. Invitations will be going home later in the month. Be sure to fill out and return your committee commitment.

THIS WEEK

Tuesday: MASS at 8:30

Wednesday: Art and P.E.

Thursday: Easter Play by Grades 1 & 2 10:30 and again at 11:00

Friday: Good Friday NO SCHOOL

Monday: NO School

ENCHILADA SALE

Last chance to purchase some more or of the St. Laurence Enchiladas. If you would like some more, please contact the school this week. They are selling for $20.

FIRST COMMUNION EVENTS

Please be aware that there is an error on the April calendar. Students will not be singing at the 5:30 Mass on April 26^th due to First Communion. Sorry.

LENTEN JOURNEYS

We are in our last week of Lent so we are asking you to turn in your Rice Bowls and bring your non-perishable items for Interfaith.

We have a few Lenten projects for the students and families for the 40 days of Lent. This is the season for alms giving, prayer, and fasting. As always we sent home the Rice Bowls for Catholic Relief Services in support of poor nations across the world. Some families combine fasting and almsgiving by not going out to eat one day a week or having a simple meal and putting the savings in the Rice Bowl.

The school will also be teaming up with the Knights of Columbus project of 40 cans for 40 days for Interfaith Good Samaritan. You will see a shopping cart in the entry to the school where you can drop off canned goods, other non-perishable items and personal care products. A complete list of items will be attached to the shopping cart and will be sent home to put on your refrigerator as a reminder to give. Thanks to everyone who has given so far. Let’s fill the cart again!

We are encouraging more reading and family time during Lent. As an incentive for more reading, we will be sending home Reading Logs during Lent. We will attempt to “travel” to Australia via the other 4 continents during April. We will move our airplanes down the hall a meter (1 meter = 1000 miles) towards Australia for every 20 minutes we read.

CLASSROOM NEWS

Holy Week started with about 10 students participating in the Palm Sunday Mass at St. Laurence Church. Thanks for your ministry in singing and serving. We are renewing our commitment to see “holiness” in everything and everyone as we approach the Pascal Mysteries. We will attend Mass this Tuesday. On Thursday, Mrs. Van Heule’s class will present a short play on the events leading up to Easter. Friday there is no school as the students and teachers get to prepare for the Easter Triduum.

TURN IN YOUR INTENT FOR NEXT YEAR FORMS

Take a minute today to return the intent form for the 2015-16 school year (sixth grade parents are exempt). It helps us in planning for next year.

ALL SCHOOL PICTURES

We added a picture of the entire school when we took class pictures last week. You can purchase that picture with the whole school and all the classroom teachers for an additional $10. Please place the money or check in an envelope write your name and write whole school on the envelope. In order to get your print, we need to have the money by this Wednesday April 1^st.

FIESTA SIGN UP

Last week we emailed you the opportunity to help with making the 2015 Fiesta a success. Please print it off and return it to school this week. If you want to work on the Auction Procurement Committee, the forms need to be in by Wednesday.

KINDERGARTEN STEP AHEAD PROGRAM

Albany County School District offers a free summer program to all children who live in Albany County and who will be attending Kindergarten next fall. This program is open to all Kindergarten students regardless of what school they attend.

KINDERGARTEN SCREENING

Kindergarten screening for St. Laurence Kindergarten students will be help on Friday, August 7 from 8:00 – 9:15. You must have a scheduled time and fill out the paperwork to attend. We encourage all Kindergarten students to participate. Please see Anita for more information and to schedule a time.

SURVEY

You still have a couple of days to turn in your surveys for Chris’s college class. Don’t forget to sign the consent or he will be unable to use your information. Thanks for helping him out.

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

April 3

No School Good Friday

April 5

EASTER

April 6

No School Easter Monday

April 12

First Communion Retreat in the Gym 1:30 – 3:30

April 16

Open House from 2:00 till 6:00 Invite all your friends and relatives with school-aged children

April 26 First Holy Communion

May 9^th Fiesta! Get those sign up forms in so you can get your choice of jobs.

Grade 1-2 News 3-30-15

Grade One/Two March 30-April 2, 2015

Thanks to all who were able to join us at 5:30 PM Palm Sunday Mass as we begin the holiest week of our church year! We carry that theme with us all this week. Last year, the cherubs wrote a play about Holy Week; we will present that play again this year. We plan to present it at 10:30 AM and again at 11 AM Thursday morning in our classroom. It is short but very sweet and significant to the cherubs. Maybe you can join us? J

In reading /language we will continue to read stories of days past as seconds read a Little House adaptation, and firsts complete The Golly Sisters Go West. Our skills are: pronouns, character and setting in a story, and alphabetizing. Sounds are ou as in mouse and out; seconds also have the ou sound as in double.

We continue our geometry unit in math as we consider attributes of solid shapes. We are also adding and subtracting, just as we should be. J

There will be a book party to share our amazing informational books, but not this week. I hope to have that scheduled by the end of this week and will inform you ASAP; my hope is for the first full week of April. I hope you will be able to come and celebrate this magnificent achievement!

Religion focuses on Holy Week and the Liturgy of the Word in Mass.

Spelling words

house mouse blouse out about shout

Second grade words: double trouble tough rough

Homework

Monday: Spelling sort

Tuesday: Math

Wednesday: please discuss ways your family will observe the Triduum (last days of Lent during Holy Week) and Easter and journal about it.

Tuesday, March 24, 2015

School News 3-23-15

THIS WEEK

Tuesday: Basketball After School / PAWS Testing resumes

Wednesday: MASS The Annunciation of the Lord

Thursday: Class Pictures / Basketball Game with Harmony 1:30 Here

Friday: Stations of the Cross 8:30 /Library/ Bring Instruments upper grades

ENCHILADA SALE

SIGN UP NEXT YEAR

Today we are sending home a simple application for enrollment for next year. Please fill out the form and return it to school. Even if you have other plans that do not include St. Laurence, could you write that on the form and return it. The form will help in planning for next year. We will send out the Tuition Contracts in mid April.

LENTEN JOURNEYS

We are encouraging more reading and family time during Lent. As an incentive for more reading, we will be sending home Reading Logs during Lent. We will attempt to “travel” to Australia via the other 4 continents during Lent. Details will be going home from your teacher about the contest to read your way from Laramie to Sydney. We will move our airplanes down the hall a meter (1 meter = 1000 miles ) towards Australia for every 20 minutes we read.

Finally, there will be Stations of the Cross for grades 3-6 on Fridays at 8:30 during Lent. They continue this commemoration this Friday at the church.

SURVEY OPPORTUNITY

If you haven’t turned in your survey for Chris Grissom’s class project, please return it ASAP. Remember you need to sign the consent form and turn it in for your answers to count. It would really help him out, and it will help you to explore your own parenting style. The survey is completely confidential. We will detach the consent page with your signature before turning the forms over to Chris. Thanks for your help.

CLASSROOM NEWS

We are grateful to our terrific volunteers who are helping Mrs. Van Heule with her class. Annie Nelson has been coming in for an hour every morning to work with the reading groups and Mary O’Flannigan comes in to help by teaching a math group. They are a real blessing to the school and to Mrs. Van Heule’s Ones and Twos. The upper grades will continue the PAWS testing this week. Parents, please see that the children get plenty of rest and a good breakfast. Ms. James’s class has been having regular visits from UW’s Science Posse.

BASKETBALL GAME

We won our game against Harmony on that Friday before the break 33-12. This Thursday there will be a rematch at our gym starting at 1:30. All are invited to attend. Go Eagles!

CLASS PICTURES

Also this Thursday we will be taking class pictures and the opportunity to get individual packets as well. All the information is going home today.

FIESTA DATE

There is a last minute change to the date of our Spring Fiesta. Our Auctioneer Zane Burns cannot make it on May 2. Since he is a big part of the success of previous Fiestas, we are changing the date by one week to Saturday May 9.

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

March 26

Class Pictures

March 24-April 1

PAWS Testing grades 3-6

April 3

No School Good Friday

April 5

EASTER

April 6

No School Easter Monday

May 9^th Fiesta! (Please note the change in the date.)

Grade 1-2 News 3-23-15

March Madness in Grade One/Two

March 23-27, 2015

I hope your spring break was lovely, fun, and restful. We had a delightful and love-filled time with our very new baby granddaughter, Emma Grace, who finally arrived on March 13 after a long and arduous journey into the big wide world. God is good!

We are back to work in a big way, needing, not just hoping, to finish our amazing social studies books. We are ready to cover this week after a great and valiant push to complete all writing before spring break! Woohoo!

I have a virtual field trip about dinosaurs scheduled with the Atlanta Center for Puppetry and Arts on April 14, so we need to start the dinosaur unit next week.

In reading/language, we will read stories of long ago (which to these kiddos means when I was born, back in the dark ages J). Firsts will read a delightful book called, The Golly Sisters Go West while seconds read Two Lunches at the Mill. Both give insight into life in times past. I would like the kiddos to begin making simple dioramas as a story response. We will have two weeks to complete this in-class project. I think I am crazy doing this along with covering books, but oh well… It should be fun! Our sounds are ing and es word endings. Seconds also have the nch word chunk. We will talk about pronouns, plurals, and story characters. (Hence the diorama.)

Mrs. O. is out of town visiting family so we will not have her help in math for the next couple of weeks. Firsts will review addition strategies and work hard on subtraction strategies while seconds learn about adding and trading with 3 digit numbers. All will work on geometry, solid shapes in particular.

We continue to learn about the parts of the Mass in religion. We will be singing at the 5:30 PM Mass at St. Laurence on Sunday. Palm Sunday is a big deal and I am hoping for a good number of children to come sing!

Spelling words

move moving go going box boxes

stop stopping

Second grade words: bench benches lunch lunches

crunch crunches

Homework

Monday: spelling sort as usual, neat and readable, please!

Tuesday: Math, geometry

Wednesday: no homework, 2^nd grade parents please come to the important and necessary gathering to discuss First Communion at 6:30 PM at St. Laurence church (upstairs in the body of the church)

Thursday: spelling

Monday, March 9, 2015

School News 3-9-15

THIS WEEK

Tuesday: Basketball After School

Wednesday: Grade Reports go home.

Thursday: MASS 8:30/ Basketball / Mr. Jim’s Pizza Night

Friday: Stations of the Cross 8:30 /Library/ Basketball Game at Harmony 1:30 / Bring Instruments upper grades

ENCHILADA SALE

Thanks to all who worked to make the 2015 Enchilada Sale a success! We have cleared about $19,300 so far. I say so far because we still have some extras that we would like to sell. If you would like some more, please contact the school this week. They are selling for $20 to parents and $25 to the general public. Get them while they last. Thanks also to the folks from Wyotech for their volunteer hours. They all were awesome workers. Thanks to ALSCO and Pepsi for donating for the fundraiser. Thanks for the Fraustos who made the green and red chili that we sold out of at about 10:30.

LENTEN JOURNEYS

The school is also teaming up with the Knights of Columbus on the project of 40 cans for 40 days for Interfaith Good Samaritan. You will see a shopping cart in the entry to the school where you can drop off canned goods, other non-perishable items and personal care products. A complete list of items will be attached to the shopping cart and will be sent home to put on your refrigerator as a reminder to give. Thanks to everyone who has given so far. Let’s fill the cart!

We are encouraging more reading and family time during Lent. As an incentive for more reading, we will be sending home Reading Logs during Lent. We will attempt to “travel” to Australia via the other 4 continents during Lent. Details will be going home from your teacher about the contest to read your way from Laramie to Sydney. We will move our airplanes down the hall a meter (1 meter = 1000 miles) towards Australia for every 20 minutes we read.

Finally, there will be Stations of the Cross for grades 3-6 on Fridays at 8:30 during Lent. They continue this commemoration this Friday at the church.

SURVEY OPPORTUNITY

Chris Grissom, Faith and Olivia’s dad, has asked our help with a project he needs to complete for his college class. His project is a survey that he is asking every family, both mom & dad to complete about parenting styles. It would really help him out, and it may give you some insight to explore your own parenting style. The survey is completely confidential. We ask that you detach the consent page with your signature before turning the survey in to the office. Chris needs the surveys back no later than March 24^th. Thanks for your help.

CLASSROOM NEWS

We are grateful to our terrific volunteers who are helping Mrs. Van Heule with her class. Annie Nelson has been coming in for an hour every morning to work with the reading groups and Mary O’Flannigan comes in to help by teaching a math group. They are a real blessing to the school and to Mrs. Van Heule’s Ones and Twos. The upper grades will begin the PAWS testing this week. Parents, please see that the children get plenty of rest and a good breakfast. (That time change is throwing everyone off.)

BASKETBALL GAME

The Basketball team will be playing a game at the Harmony Gym this Friday afternoon with the game starting at 1:30. All the students in grades 3-6 will be going. Permission slips are going home today. Go Eagles!

FIESTA DATE

There is a last minute change to the date of our Spring Fiesta. Our Auctioneer Zane Burns was unable to make it on May 2^nd. Since he is a big part of the success of previous Fiestas, we are changing the date by one week to Saturday May 9^th.

MR. JIMS PIZZA NIGHT

Mr. Jims has set Wednesday March 11^th as St. Laurence night. A flyer is going home tonight.

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

March 11

2^nd Trimester grade reports will be sent home / Mr. Jims Pizza Night

March 16-20

Spring/Winter Break No School

March 26

Class Pictures

March 10-April 1

PAWS Testing grades 3-6

April 3

No School Good Friday

April 5

EASTER

April 6

No School Easter Break

May 9^th Fiesta! (Please note the change in the date.)

Grade 1-2 News 3-9-15

The Luck of the Irish!

Grade One/Two March 9-13, 2015

Greetings! Since we won’t be in school on St. Patrick’s feast day, March 17, we’ll do a bit of celebrating this week! We will learn about this important saint and have a couple of fun activities to remember him.

In reading/language, we will read two more stories about space and the moon. We have bunches of skill lessons this week, including ABC order, making inferences, pronouns and syllables, magic e, and doubling the middle consonant in a word.

We will complete our money unit in math. Thanks for all you do to help your child learn about money. As you have probably seen, it’s really a challenge when counting money to switch from quarters, to dimes, to nickels, to pennies! We are also working on place value. Seconds will add and subtract 3 digits this week.

Writing books is slow and hard and we probably will not have them all bound by the end of this week. Oh well!

Lent and the Mass are two topics in religion. This is the big week to make clothespin crucifixes, a really nifty project! We are learning the parts of the Mass to help enhance that celebration. Knowledge and understanding mean so much. Our trip to the Cathedral and Synagogue was wonderful! We had a great discussion about it on Friday. Based on the children’s responses, I think it was very worthwhile.

Spelling words

rabbit little hammer game same name

2^nd additional words: basket rocket blame flame

Homework

Monday: spelling sort

Tuesday: math

Wednesday: talk about how a Catholic church and a synagogue are the same and different

Thursday: spelling

Have a great week!

Monday, March 2, 2015

Grade 1-2 News 3-2-15

March came in like a lion!

Grade One/Two March 2-6, 2015

Greetings on a snowy and chilly first day of March! Just like the old post office saying, neither rain, nor sleet, nor snow will deter us… from learning!

Reading/language finds us first on Monday, celebrating Read Across America Day and the birthday of Dr. Seuss. I have both literacy and math activities to mark the day. Later in the week we will read stories about space exploration. A reading skill this week is finding the main idea of a passage, and our sounds are oo as in moon and oo as in book.

We continue to explore money and place value in math.

Steady albeit slighty slow progress is being made on our book projects in social studies. My hope is to begin making covers on Friday. These are very special, cloth-covered books which your child has worked very hard to complete. I hope they will find a safe place in your home (instead of under the bed or at the bottom of a toy box. J)

In religion we will begin to learn about the Mass in preparation for First Holy Communion. We continue to talk about Lent and ways to observe it as we grow in holiness and relationship with Christ and His Body.

Weather permitting, and hopes for healing of sick parents (my husband and me) we will make our Lenten pilgrimage to Cheyenne on Thursday of this week. I hope you saw and read the note sent home Friday. We have drivers and do not need more, but if you are not driving please send $3 to school by Wednesday to help with fuel costs. Thank you. We will walk the 8 blocks from St. Mary’s Cathedral to Mt. Sinai Synagogue, so while we need to dress appropriately for church visits, we need walking shoes (no dress shoes, please) and warm clothes for outdoor time. Thanks. Please remember not to send a peanut butter sandwich for lunch that day.

Spelling words

moon soon noon book took cook look

looking *2^nd grade additionals: shook spoon

Homework

Monday: spelling sort, neatly

Tuesday: Math

Wednesday: Ask your child to tell you one thing about the Introductory Rite of the Mass and write a bit about it.

Thursday: study spelling, please. No written assignment as we will be returning from our trip

Have a lovely week!

Monday, February 23, 2015

School News 2-23-15

THIS WEEK

Tuesday: Basketball After School

Wednesday: 6:00 Enchilada Set up Potatoes and Peas / Meat Prep

Thursday: MASS 8:30/ NO Basketball / Enchilada Making Meat Cooking

Friday: Stations of the Cross 8:30 /Library/ Spanish in Afternoon / Bring Instruments upper grades / Enchilada Making

ENCHILADA SALE

We made it! At last count there were about 1180 dozen orders turned in and processed. Great job of making that last minute push everyone.

Now comes the work. As a reminder, wear ( or bring ) old clothes including shoes. This is messy work for the most part. We will start Wednesday night prepping the kitchen and getting the potatoes to size and the peas ready. Thursday starts the ground beef cooking and cooling and if time permits we will start rolling enchiladas. Friday all day is a rolling and packaging day. Saturday is pick up and clean up in the morning.

LENTEN JOURNEYS

We are encouraging more reading and family time during Lent. As an incentive for more reading, we will be sending home Reading Logs during Lent. We will attempt to “travel” to Australia via the other 4 continents during Lent. Details will be going home from your teacher about the contest to read your way from Laramie to Sydney. We will move our airplanes down the hall a meter (1 meter = 1000 miles ) towards Australia for every 20 minutes we read.

Finally, there will be Stations of the Cross for grades 3-6 on Fridays at 8:30 during Lent. That will start this Friday at the church.

CLASSROOM NEWS

Dr. Suess’s birthday is March 2, which is also Read Across America Day. Some the classes are planning special reading events. 1^st and 2^nd graders have invited guests from the community to come in and read to and with the students. Don’t forget to spend some time reading with your kids every night.

SINGING AT 5:30 MASS

Thanks to the St. Laurence School Singers at Mass yesterday. Thanks to Winter, MaKayla, Donavin, Audra, MacKinzie, Brandalynn, Rita, John Paul, Melody, and Harmony (altar server).

FIESTA DATE

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

February 25-28

Enchilada Makin’ and Distribution

February 28

End of the trimester

March 4

2^nd Trimester grade reports will be sent home

March 16-20

Spring/Winter Break No School

March 23-April 3

PAWS Testing grades 3-6

May 9^th Fiesta! (Please note the change in the date.)

Grade 1-2 News 2-23-15

Let all around us be peace…

Grade One/Two February 23-27, 2015

Life is eventful lately, isn’t it? Second grade families shared a beautiful penance service on Saturday as our children celebrated the sacrament of reconciliation for the first time. Last week, our Roberto was baptized and Kaden was received into the Catholic Church! We have much to be thankful for. On the flip side of big events, my Dad, who was suffering from a stomach virus last week, was taken to the hospital in Cheyenne Saturday night. So my hope, weather and favorable roads permitting, is to spend most of Monday and Tuesday in the ICU unit in the Cheyenne hospital. Mrs. Mary O’Flannigan, our daily math co-teacher, will be my sub. Prayers for my 88 year old dad, please. Thanks.

In reading we will read about children who are hearing impaired. A skill is drawing conclusions based on text, and sounds are ask and ear.

In math we are learning about money, this week mixing coins. We use pennies, nickels, dimes, and quarters. Please keep playing money games with your child at home, counting purse or pocket change nightly. We are also talking about place value, firsts learning tens and ones, while seconds will move into thousands.

Our book project continues in social studies as each child becomes an “expert” on a place of his/her choice. Writing a book is much work!

In religion we will recap our experience with First Reconciliation and thank the many who helped make that celebration so wonderful! We will quickly move into studying for First Communion and we begin by talking about the Mass.

Hence, our pilgrimage next week (weather permitting) to St. Mary’s Cathedral and Mt. Sinai Synagogue. A pilgrimage is a visit to a holy place, and walking is often part of it. We will walk the eight blocks from St. Mary’s to the Synagogue. Hopefully you have been able to consider driving for this trip; I sent the first notification earlier this month so that arrangements could be made if you can possibly go. Thanks. Permission slips come home this week.

Spelling words

ask mask task ear hear dear tear

near *Second grade additionals: asked clear

Homework

Monday: spelling sort, neatly please

Tuesday: math money

Wednesday: please talk more with your family about Lent and ways we can help others in need, especially ways to help members of our own families!

Thursday: spelling

Wednesday, February 18, 2015

Grade 5-6 News 2-18-15

This Week in Class:

* Please be on the lookout for our missing history textbook: Harcourt Brace- Social Studies-The World (it is purple and tan)

Spelling: Unit 15 Spelling—the prefix “in”

The prefix “in” is spelled “im” before a base word or a word root beginning with “m” or “p”.

History: Chapter 16: Lesson 2— Democratic Ideas in Latin America

We will be working on vocabulary and review questions from this lesson this week. We will take our Chapter 16 Test next week on Thursday.

Miss James’s Math Group:

We will continue with our division chapter over the next few weeks. Please remember to have your child practice both multiplication and division facts.

We will begin a school wide reading incentive! Your child can use these minutes for Book It as well. Reading logs for the month of February went home last week.

Reminder

Today we are beginning Lent—please remember not to pack meat in your child’s lunch on Fridays during Lent!

Class Supplies Needed!!!

We could still use a few more of those listed below. Thanks in advance for any extra supplies you can send our way!

Current Inventory of Supplies:

· Paper towels (4 spares)

· Clorox Disinfecting Wipes (1 spare)

· Computer paper ( 1 ream)

This Week’s Spelling List

Test 02/19/15 Retest 02/20/15

Unit 15 Vocabulary

1. impolite

2. informal

3. include

4. involve

5. individual

6. improper

7. inquire

8. innocent

9. immediate

10. immigrant

11. immovable

12. indirect

13. infection

14. indent

15. import

16. incomplete

17. instrument

18. inclined

19. immense

20. inactive

21. insist

22. impress

23. improve

24. insult

35. increase

26. imply

27. infer

28. impartial

29. inflexible

30. inadequate

*26-30 are extra credit words

Next Week’s Spelling List

Test 02/26/15 Retest 02/27/15

Unit 16 Vocabulary

1. balance

2. item

3. secure

4. require

5. minus

6. release

7. unite

8. panic

9. stupid

10. vital

11. recent

12. rebel

13. beware

14. relief

15. pirate

16. deserve

17. adopt

18. poison

19. spirit

20. alert

21. credit

22. value

23. remind

24. protect

25. report

26. delete

27. decade

28. flourish

29. vigor

30. crevice

*26-30 are extra credit words

Reading Group Updates:

The Giver: beginning novel at the end of the week—still finishing up projects from Frozen Summer

Dragon of the Lost Sea: beginning novel and answering chapter questions

Dragon Rider: reading novel