Dear Parents,
As we approach the halfway mark of the school year, I reflect on one of our core values: Unite. In our service towards each other, our school, and our greater community, we are united with Christ and with one another. There are many ways we can unite through service, such as volunteering our time at school or school events, serving at Mass, donating to the school food drive, or reaching out to others for school fundraisers. Living out our KEY—Service Unites—helps us to grow in our faith and open our hearts and minds. Here is a prayer of thanksgiving (by Holy Land Prayer) that we can offer for St. Peter’s School unity:
Lord,
We thank You for our school family. We thank You for the talents and good things that You have given each of us. Please keep us united, and our bond strong as the days pass. Guide us, protect us, and equip us to do Your will each day. Thank You for all that You are, and all that You have given us. Our hearts are forever grateful! AMEN.
--Mrs. Sandra Jimenez
AZTEC TREK
On January 5, your child received the collection envelope for our annual mandatory fundraiser, the AZTEC TREK. Students and families can help support our school by collecting pledges for our walk-a-thon and game day. This fundraiser helps to keep St. Peter’s School’s tuition the lowest in the Archdiocese. The minimum mandatory amount to be collected by each student is $100, but the more a student collects, the more prizes and class points can be earned! This Friday, January 19, is the first early deadline to receive prizes. The due date for all money to be turned in is Friday, February 9. Thank you in advance for your support!
RE-REGISTRATION FOR 2018-2019
Being sent home with your child today is the re-registration form and tuition letter for the 2018-2019 school year. Please return this form no later than February 21. In order to reserve your child’s space for the next school year, the registration fee of $450 per student is due by March 28.
ARCHDIOCESE ELEMENTARY FAMILY GRANT
The application process for the Archdiocese Family Grant for the 2018-2019 school year has now begun. Please go on to mytads.com to begin the application process. Be sure you have your 2017 income tax information or 2017 income information (Calworks, social security, food stamps, etc.).
BASIC FUND
New students entering for the 2018-2019 school year must complete the BASIC Fund Application no later than March 16, 2018.
Renewal families will be filling out their BASIC Fund Renewal Application in March and April. All student accounts must be current with no past due balances. Please be sure you have your 2017 income tax information or 2017 income information (Calworks, social security, food stamps, etc.). Please contact the school office if you have any questions.
An update from the BASIC Fund: The BASIC Fund will increase the maximum scholarship amount from $1600 to $2000. This means that the deadlines for applications will be especially important, so please submit applications for new siblings by the BASIC Fund deadline.
7th GRADE CARITAS CAMP
Next Spring, our 7th graders will be attending Caritas Creek Environmental Education Program and retreat at CYO camp. To help these students raise funds for their trip, visit their GoFundMe page (https://www.gofundme.com/send-mission-kids-to-env-camp) and make a donation, or submit a cash or check donation at the school office. Any amount would help, and please share the GoFundMe page with your family and friends!
UNIFORM CHECK-IN
As the weather gets colder and you bundle up your child, please ensure that he/she follows uniform policy as posted by the school office and stated in the school handbook. All undershirts, including long-sleeve undershirts, should be white. If your daughter wears tights, they should be solid black or white and extend to the ankle. Socks must be black or white. Boots may not be worn.
ST. PETER’S SCHOOL FOOD DRIVE
The food drive still continues, as we work towards our goal of collecting 1200 pounds of food to help the St. Peter’s Church Food Pantry and victims of the North Bay fires. Although this was originally a Christmas food drive, we want to continue to unite in love and service and help those in need, and also reach our school’s goal!
SPECIAL SERVICE
Sister Marian Rose and The Sisters of Mercy Solidarity Committee invite you to attend a “Conversation for Relationship Building” on Sunday, January 21 from 1:00 – 2:30 PM at Mercy Center Burlingame, 2300 Adeline Drive, Burlingame, CA.
IN THE CLASSROOM
KINDER - This week we will be reading A Grand Old Tree by Mary Newell Depalma. We will do a research project to make an apple tree life cycle display. Students will work in pairs and discuss about the different stages of an apple tree's life. Then students will note their ideas by drawing pictures and write about a tree life cycle. Also, we will continue to read in pairs during reading workshop and review our sight words.
1A - This week in first grade we are reading, writing, and learning about folktales. In math we are continuing to work on place value with double-digit numbers. In religion we are discussing the importance of thanking God for our special gifts. In science we are continuing to observe the clouds and learn about how they affect weather. In social studies we are learning about the differences between cities, towns, and suburbs.
2A - Second grade will be reading about Volcanoes! We will continue subtracting with regrouping, adding two-digit numbers, and solving word problems. We will talk about making good choices and forgiveness, investigating our mixtures we made in science, and using our mapping skills.
3A – This is a very exciting week for the third graders. This is the week that our author/friend will visit our classroom. She will tell us about the book writing process as well as read her favorite chapter from her book. In Social Studies, we are finishing up our unit on the early California Native American tribes. By working together, these tribes lived in peace and harmony. They united, grew, and accomplished as a community. We as a school strive to do the same.
4A - This week 4A students will pray the Lord's Prayer using sign language, combine simple sentences into compound sentences correctly, and multiply 3-digit whole numbers and money amounts by 2-digit multipliers with regrouping.
5A - In social studies this week, 5th grade will be learning about the original 13 U.S. colonies. We'll practice identifying the main idea in reading passages and work on writing clear main ideas in our own work.
6A Religion – Students will be visited this week by Paula Pardini to continue their Building Bridges Program to strengthen their Faith Communities. Language Arts – 6th Grade ELA is finishing our unit on non-fiction text with a writing workshop. Students will create informational Google Slide presentations on a famous historical figure, focusing on using credible resources and proper citations. Math - 6th graders continue their investigation and learning of everything fraction as we prepare for this year’s Fraction Fair. This week is mixed numbers (adding and subtracting) and regrouping. Social Studies – 6th Graders have completed their ancient dynasty research and will be taking a dynasty group test this week. Science – This week, students will learn about the reason our planet has different seasons and begin discussing how radiation affects our weather.
7A/7B Religion - This week finds us taking a deeper look at prayer using temptation journals and seeing what provokes and defends us as we face temptations in our daily lives. This will lead us into a deeper look at the tolerance in our school and explore how we can help others around us resist temptations that middle-schoolers face every day. Language Arts - Students are continuing to work on Poetry, writing a Metaphorical Poem, explaining a hidden truth using a metaphor to capture the comparison of a personal experience, obstacle or hope. They are also continuing to work on grammar, sentence structure. Math - The 7th graders are looking at how finding the percent of a number can help us through everyday life, by applying this to different variables and investigating how this changes things with their careers as they work through their career project. Social Studies – 7th Graders are finalizing their comparisons of Japan and Europe in their five paragraph essays.
8A Religion - Students will be visited this week by Paula Pardini to continue their Building Bridges Program to strengthen their Faith Communities. 8th Grade is also preparing for the Religion ACRE exam that they will take in the beginning of 3rd quarter. Language Arts - Students are still raving about the Holocaust Guest Speaker from last Thursday! His experience resonated with so many of them. The opportunity to witness someone first hand, made all their research and reading come to life. They have officially ended Night and will now transition to their Speech and Poetry Units. Math - 8th graders will determine if they make a profit or not in their small business plan using equations and inequalities, then we get to move on to the world of functions and linear equations. Social Studies – 8th Graders will give their amendment speeches to Congress and will finish 2nd quarter with an Amendment Art project with a guest art teacher.
REMINDERS
Jan. 19 End of the 2nd Quarter
Jan. 19 First early turn-in deadline for the AZTEC
TREK
Jan. 22 8th Grade Graduation Portrait Day
Jan. 22 12:30 Dismissal
Jan. 23 School Mass, 8:15 AM
Jan. 24 Report Cards go home with students
Jan. 28 Catholic Schools Week Sunday Family Mass at
9:30 AM, followed by reception in the Parish
Hall
