Dear SJCS Families,
The first few days are behind us and we have the rest of the year to look forward to. Thank you to all of our faculty, staff, and families for making the first few days a success! It’s always challenging to come back to school in August but paired with resuming school for the first time since March, in addition to having a significant number of new families has made this year particularly challenging. We’ve learned a few things this week and as always, sometimes we need to adjust once we see how things play out. Please read through the following items to make sure you are informed with new information.
Back2School COVID Screening:
This is going VERY WELL. You will continue to get a text message each morning to remind you to complete the survey. One question that has been coming up a lot is, “What if my child has a runny nose?” While we are not medical professionals, the direction we have been given is to let you know that less common symptoms of COVID, such as a runny nose, are not as worrisome as some of the more common symptoms (shortness of breath, fever, cough, etc…). Most children will have a runny nose at some point during the school year. If you feel like this is a change from their normal patterns, please keep them home. Otherwise, they can likely participate at school safely.
Face Coverings:
On a positive note, students are doing a pretty good job of keeping them on their faces. We have to remind the younger ones somewhat often, but that’s to be expected. A few things for you to know:
- Gaitors are NOT working well. Students are either keeping them up too high, so we have a hard time to see their eyes and their ears are covered OR they slip down and the student is playing with it during class or outside at recess. I recognize that some of us spent money on gaitors – and they are not banned (yet), but please do your best to send your child in with a face mask that has ear loops, as these ones have been working significantly better to stay up while students are playing and during class time.
- Send extra. Some students have been sneezing in their masks, or getting them soiled by breathing heavy during recess. Please have an extra one in your child’s backpack so they can change it if necessary.
- Paper masks are not sufficient. Cloth masks/face coverings are required. Paper masks are for use only in emergency situations when a student doesn’t have access to a cloth face covering. Please do not send your child to school in a paper mask.
Morning Drop Off:
This will get easier after this week when the Primary Cohort will be dropping off in car line with the rest of the school. A few things to note for safety:
- When you come around the side of the building, it is NOT TWO LANES. There were several “near miss” situations this week when one parent was pulling out after dropping off a student at the door, and another was trying to go around them into the parking lot. Please merge into the line of cars to make your way out to Pleasant Street.
- The Church parking lot is ONE WAY. When you depart from dropping off you MUST turn right and drive in front of the school and then take a left to go the length of the parking lot and on to Pleasant Street. Please see the diagram attached for reference.
Fundraiser:
The 8th grade class is selling Fall Flower Bulbs to kick-off their fundraising for the 2020-2021 school year. The 8th grade raises money for their year-end field trip (we hope) as well as other small activities throughout the year.
Volunteering:
The next Protecting God’s Children class is on September 3, 2020 at 6:00pm. This is a required class for adults to volunteer at St. John’s and it is completed online. You can register by emailing Mrs. Snow: Alicia.snow@portlanddiocese.org
If you have further questions, please let us know. God is good and He has truly blessed us as we embark on our new school year. Your families are in my prayers as we adjust back into a consistent schedule and for many of you, a new school environment for your children. May God continue to send his grace upon us!
God Bless,
Shelly Wheeler
Principal
Peek of the Week – August 31, 2020
Monday, August 31
Grades PK, Walsh 3/4- Phys Ed Uniform
Tuesday, September 1
Mass Uniform for ALL
(No Mass this week, but we will resume next week)
Wednesday, September 2
Grades 2 & 2/3 Phys Ed Uniform
Thursday, September 3
Daily Uniform for ALL
Protecting God’s Children – 6pm (Online Course)
Friday, September 4
Grades K, 1, 5, 6, 7, 8 Phys Ed Uniform
*Reminder that LC closes at 5:00pm on Fridays
Coming Up:
Sept. 7 – Labor Day – No School
Sept. 10 – PTA Meeting – Virtual, 6:00pm
Sept. 22 – School Pictures – Mass Uniform required for pictures
Oct. 9 – No School, Professional Development Day
Oct. 12 – Columbus Day/Indigenous Peoples Day – No School
Oct. 21 – Early Release, 11:30am – Learning Center Available
Oct. 21 – Parent Conferences, Virtual, 12:30-7:00pm
Nov. 11 – Veterans Day – No School
Nov. 20 – End of First Trimester
Nov. 23-27: NO SCHOOL – THANKSGIVING BREAK
Dec. 16 – Christmas Pageant – Details TBD
Dec. 22 – Early Release, 11:30am, NO LEARNING CENTER AVAILABLE
Dec. 23 – Jan 3: NO SCHOOL – CHRISTMAS BREAK
