Dear Parents,

This week, we celebrate two feasts of Mary: the Feast of the Immaculate Conception and the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe. It’s very appropriate that we celebrate Mary during the season of Advent as we prepare for the coming of Jesus, because without Mary, and without her faith, strength, and love, we wouldn’t have Jesus. And after all, Jesus is the reason for the season.

Pope Francis wrote an Advent reflection a few years ago that reminds us of how Mary is a role model for us today. Mary also reminds me of our Sisters of Mercy, past and present--like Sr. Marian Rose, Sr. Lucy, Sr. Paulina, and Sr. Toni Lynn--who answered the call of Mercy at St. Peter’s. As Pope Francis describes, Mary is a loving mother who inspires us all to put God first in our lives. Here’s a part of what Pope Francis wrote:

“We bet on hope, on the hope of peace, and it will be possible! The journey is never finished. Just as in each of our own lives, there is always a need to restart and to rise again. Mary is a model of this spiritual attitude, to this way of being and of journeying in life.Although she was just a simple girl, she carried in her heart the hope of God. In her womb, the hope of God took flesh, became man, and made history: Jesus Christ. Let us be guided by her, she who is mother, she is a ‘mama’ and knows how to lead us. Let us be guided by her in this time of waiting.”

So let’s remember Mary, during Advent and every day, and how she is a role model for us to have courage, to put God first in our lives, and to have open hearts and open minds. And when we do that, GREAT things can happen!

--Mrs. Sandra Jimenez

SCHOOL MASS AND PRAYER SERVICE

Tomorrow, Thursday December 12, we celebrate the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe with a school mass at 9:30 AM. Next week on Friday, December 20, we will have our Christmas Prayer Service and Program beginning at 9:00 AM in the church. Parents are welcome to join in these celebrations!

ST. PETER’S FOOD DRIVE

The 8th graders are leading the school in a SERVICE project of collecting dry or canned foods and cash donations for the SF Marin Food Bank to show LOVE to the thousands of hungry families who live in the Bay Area. Last year, we collected 1,000 pounds of food. Let’s UNITE to match or beat that goal! The homeroom that collects the most donations will win a special prize.

TUITION POLICY

All student tuition accounts must be up to date and paid through December 2019 in order for your child to return to class on January 6, 2020. If your tuition is not up-to-date before leaving for Christmas vacation, your child will not be able to return to class on Monday, January 6, 2020. Please plan ahead so your tuition is received on time.

If you have any questions, please call the Tuition Office at (415) 647-8662.

*** CALENDAR CHANGE! ***

The second round of Parent-Teacher Conferences has been moved to March 17-20, 2020. These were originally scheduled for January 28-31.

Now, January 28-31 will be regular 3:00 dismissal days (except for the usual 2:15 dismissal on Wednesday). March 17-20 will be changed to 12:30 dismissal days to accommodate Parent-Teacher Conferences.

If you have any questions, please contact the school office. Thank you for your understanding with this change in our school calendar.

IN THE CLASSROOM

KINDER - “Hark! The herald Angels sing, Glory to the newborn King!” Please help our little “Angels” stay healthy to celebrate this joyous moment on December 20th! As illness is being passed around Kindergarten, it is important that we fortify ourselves by getting plenty of sleep, staying warm, hydrating, eating healthy and washing our hands! Thank you for your help!

1A - This week we are beginning our study of long vowels, specifically working on the long “a” sound, in words such as gate and take. In religion, we are celebrating Mary. In math, we are continuing our work on subtraction and related addition facts. In social studies, we are continuing our study on maps and globes.

2A - We will be reading about some wild weather with the story, “Tornado!” We will continue measuring with centimeters and especially solving word problems using addition and subtraction. During the season of Advent, I hope you are able to make time for family and prayer.

3A – 3A is celebrating the 2nd week of Advent with many activities. We did some Christmas shopping on Monday in our very own Christmas shop. We received our Advent Sacrament of Reconciliation to help us prepare for Jesus' coming as well as attend our special Mary Masses. We led the school in the Immaculate Conception Mass on Monday, and on Thursday, we will honor Our Lady of Guadalupe with a 9:30 Mass. We are spending much of our curriculum time learning about the traditions, colors and beliefs associated with the season of waiting for Jesus. Each of these celebrations UNITE us with our school community and show LOVE for our Catholic faith and each other. God bless us, every one!

4A - We continue to prepare our hearts for Jesus' birth. As we enter into the second week of advent, we will be focusing on the important feast days during this season including the Immaculate Conception and the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe. We also celebrated the Sacrament of Reconciliation on Tuesday. In Reading, we will conclude our story and create a comparison paragraph on our fairytales. In Math, we will focus on subtracting multi-digit numbers using tape diagrams, place value charts, and regular algorithms. In Science, we will have our December STEM project. We are off to the public library on Thursday!

5A - This is a busy week for 5th grade! We'll be continuing to work on our fictional narrative gingerbread cookie writing project, learn mental strategies for attacking multi-digit multiplication problems, and focus on figurative language in the next chapters of our Harry Potter novel study. Our class field trip to 826 Valencia will be this Friday, December 13th. Please make sure your child comes with a bag lunch!

6A Religion – Students will be learning about the Immaculate Conception and the Feast Day of Our Lady of Guadalupe. They will be leading the mass for Our Lady of Guadalupe on December 12th. Language Arts – Students will continue proofreading and editing their short stories as we get ready for the "publishing" stage. We will practice our typing and formatting skills as we convert our rough drafts into their final book form. Math – Hello families! Students will be working mostly with solving and comparing unit rates from word problems, as well as finding equivalent fractions, decimals and percents, and solving problems involving percents. Students will have an exam next Tuesday on lessons 20-27 from their workbook, (excluding lesson 22). Social Studies – Students will be learning about the beliefs of the Ancient Egyptians. Science – Scientists will expand their understanding of other forms of heat transfer other than convection. They will take a test on Friday.

7A After having to reschedule because of the fires, 7th graders are visiting Caritas Creek at CYO camp up in Occidental, California. This week they will focus on ecology! They will do a variety of community building activities, nature hikes and explorations. They will also reflect on their faith and on God! They will return this Friday afternoon.

8A Religion – Students will conclude the meaning of Advent, the wreath and its purpose. They will also examine December feasts days, the Immaculate Conception of Mary and Our Lady of Guadalupe. Language Arts - Students are continuing to read Night. Many lively discussions have already taken place as they learn of Elie's journey through the concentration camps. They will focus next on answering what it means to be a bystander or an upstander. Math – Hello families! In 8th grade will be working on operating with integers and will have an exam next Tuesday. Students will also be familiarizing themselves with high school entrance exams. We will be discussing strategies as well as practicing how to solve problems. Social Studies – Students are working on a "Whose more perfect Union?" project. They are studying about the groups of people who were not invited to the Constitutional Convention and learning of ways that the Constitution could have been written differently to support different interest groups. Science - Students are working hard to learn the skills necessary for their first project of the year: balancing equations, measuring mass, and calculating area. Good luck!

REMINDERS

Dec. 9-13 7th grade retreat, Caritas Creek at CYO Camp

Dec. 11 Free Dress for No Tardies in November

Dec. 12 9:30 AM School Mass, Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe

Dec. 12 12:45 PM, 4A Field trip to Mission Branch Library

Dec. 13 9:00 AM, 5A Field trip to 826 Valencia

Dec. 13 6:00-8:00 PM, BVCC La Posada in the Gym

Dec. 17 Holiday Hat Day

Dec. 18 Christmas Sweater Day

Dec. 19 Winter Gear Day (Beanies, earmuffs, scarves, mittens)

Dec. 20 9:00 AM, Christmas Prayer Service and Program

Dec. 20 12:30 PM Dismissal