Wednesday, September 28, 2016

STM Newsletter for September 28, 2016

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Dear Friends,

A community of faith can provide support when we are in need of help. They can envelop us in caring and love. Since October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, our Student Council has initiated a fundraiser to bring this issue to our attention. Beginning on Monday and throughout the month of October, we ask you to remember to pray for all who have been affected by Breast Cancer, especially those in our school community. Together our prayers can be powerful.                           
PENNY BUCKET CHALLENGE
Beginning Monday, October 3rd through October 31st, the STM Student Council challenges all students from Kindergarten to 8th Grade to bring lots of pennies to school to fill their classroom "Penny Bucket"! Each "Penny Bucket" will be weighed and charted weekly to see which class has gathered the most pennies! (We are also accepting any other loose change!) At the end of the month, the class that collects the most pennies will earn a free dress day!

All of the pennies collected from now through October 31st will be donated to the San Francisco Breast Cancer Emergency Fund in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
We hope to see everyone this Sunday, October 2, for our next Family Mass at 10:00 brought to you by 4th grade. Come and share in the celebration.                     

BLESSING OF THE ANIMALS 
Next Tuesday is the Feast of St. Francis. In honor of his feast day and his love of animals we will have an opportunity to have our pets blessed. Please join us next Tuesday, October 4th, directly after the 3:00pm dismissal in the school yard. You are welcome to bring your family pets, pictures of your pet, or anything else that represents your pet that you wish to have blessed. Sorry, we cannot accommodate your pets in the classroom during the day.
FUN RUN
WOW! What a fantastic effort for our first Fun Run! We shattered our goal of $40,000 and collected $55,467!!  Please know that of this amount, we have expenses that need to be paid; the cost of the employees from fundraisers.org who visited with the classes everyday over the past 3 weeks, the cost of the prizes and t-shirts and other general expenses on Fun Run day. We will report our total funds raised shortly. Families who chose not to participate or did not meet the $100 per child donation will be charged a buyout fee of $150 per child next Monday, October 3rd.
IT'S A 'BOOKANEER' BOOK FAIR!
Thank you to everyone who visited our book fair last week! With your help we raised $2,234 in Scholastic dollars to be used to buy books for our library. A big thank you to Judy Silva and her fantastic crew of parents who volunteered both before and after school throughout the week. Stay tuned for our next book fair during Catholic Schools Week!

As an added bonus, this fair also earned us the Trueflix program bonus which is worth another $919. TrueFlix leverages the award-winning True Books content to help students in grades 3-6 master Social Studies and Science content-area knowledge while honing literacy and writing skills and cultivating 21st Century skills through the inquiry process. www.trueflix.com Username: stmoore Password: flix
PARENT CONFERENCES 
Parent conferences are set for the week of November 1st-4th. In order to plan conferences at a convenient time for you, we are making both afternoon and evening appointments available. Please follow ALL of the listed directions on the conference request form you are receiving in your envelope today. If this form is not filled in as directed, it will be returned to you! Please remember that your accounts, both tuition and extended care, must be in good standing in order for you to receive a conference and your child's report card.

PICTURE RE-TAKES
Those of you who ordered school pictures are receiving them in your envelope today. If you wish for your child to re-take his/her picture on our re-take day, scheduled for October 14th, please return the entire photo package to the classroom teacher by Thursday, October 13th. In addition, all students will be receiving their student ID cards today at no additional cost. How do you like your child's school pictures? Please send an email to office@stmsf.org with any and all feedback about our new picture company. 

INTERNET SAFETY MONTH AT STM
Do you know what your kids are doing online? Facebook? Instagram? Snapchat? Twitter? To help kids maximize the Internet's benefits -- while minimizing the risks -- Common Sense Media offers the latest research, tips, and tools on what really keeps kids safe.

Things to do to help keep your children safe online
1. Talk to your child about internet safety - use the links below.
2. Know your child's usernames and passwords.
3. Log into your child's accounts periodically to ensure appropriate use of sites/apps.

Please use the Family Media Contracts you are receiving today as a guide and take a moment to review the following helpful links (these do not need to be returned to school). 
STM Tech Resource Page (scroll to the bottom of the page)
Common Sense Media on Privacy and Internet Safety
Common Sense Media on Cyber Bullying
SCHOOL TOURS/APPLICATION FORMS
Please continue to invite friends and relatives interested in St. Thomas More School to come to one of our school tours for prospective parents. Click HERE to reserve a place on one of the tours listed below:
  • Tuesday, October 4th at 9:00am
  • Tuesday, October 18th at 9:00am
  • Tuesday, November 8th at 9:00am
  • Tuesday, November 22nd at 9:00am
HALLOWEEN PARADE
Our K-8 Halloween parade, will begin at 11:00 in the schoolyard on Monday, October 31st. All are welcome to attend! When purchasing costumes for wearing to school for the parade, please consider the following: 
  • Age appropriate
  • Bathroom accessible
  • Make up must be applied at home
  • Shoes must be comfortable for walking
  • No weapons of any kind
Also remember that Monday, October 31st is a minimum day with a 12:15/12:30pm dismissal.
Does your child have a October Birthday?
Please click HERE to schedule a birthday party in your child and complete a birthday book request.
BEHIND THE SCAFFOLDING - A SNEAK PREVIEW!
Sincerely,

Marie Fitzpartick
Principal
Copyright © 2014 St. Thomas More School, All rights reserved.
You are receiving this email from the office of St. Thomas More School.  
Thank you for helping us go green.

Our mailing address is:
50 Thomas More Way
San Francisco, CA 94132
www.stmsf.org

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Wednesday, September 21, 2016

STM Newsletter for September 21, 2016

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Dear Friends,

Today the Society of Saint Vincent de Paul helps the needy on a one-to-one basis working to break the cycles of homelessness, substance abuse and domestic violence. The SVdP Society is a network of charity in 142 countries. The SVdP Society of San Francisco now serves over 1,000 people in need every day. The volunteers and employees of SVdP try to 'Be the Good' on a daily basis, just as we teach our students to also do.

Monday is the feast day of St. Vincent de Paul. Vincent de Paul (24 April 1581–27 September 1660). He was a priest of the Catholic Church who dedicated himself to serving the poor. He is a saint regarded in great respect. Vincent de Paul was canonized (officially declared a saint) in 1737. Please take a moment to read and reflect on the Prayer of Saint Vincent de Paul. Think about ways you can show a little kindness while making a difference in the lives of those less fortunate. 
Dear Saint Vincent,
the mere mention of your name suggests a litany of your virtues: humility, zeal, mercy, self-sacrifice. It also recalls your many foundations: Works of Mercy, Congregations, Societies. And the Church gratefully remembers your promotion of the priesthood. Inspire all Charitable Workers, especially those who minister to the poor - both the spiritually and the materially poor.
Amen.
FUN RUN - Make a pledge online!
WOW! What a fantastic effort so far! We've almost reached our goal of $40,000! Keep those pledges coming. All pledges are due online or in the school office no later than noon on Monday, September 26.  As a reminder, all families are required to participate in this fundraiser. Each family is to pledge a minimum of $100 per child enrolled in the school. Families who choose not to participate will be charged a buyout fee of $150 per child once all pledges have been collected.
FUN RUN - Information for Friday
All students and staff should wear comfortable clothing and shoes. All students will be receiving a Fun Run T-shirt. Thank you to those who have offered to volunteer. We still need some more help! If you are available from 8:30-12:30, please email office@stmsf.org.

WHEN
Friday, September 23rd, 2016

TIMES
8:45am-9:45am Preschool and Kindergarten
10:00am-11:00am 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th grades
11:15am-12:15pm 5th, 6th, 7th, and 8th grades

WHERE
The STM schoolyard
 
As a reward for all the hard work the students have done to make this such a successful fundraiser, we will host a dance party Friday afternoon and students will receive some treats.
IT'S A 'BOOKANEER' BOOK FAIR!
Thank you to everyone who has visited our book fair! Please feel free to visit the buccaneer themed Scholastic Book Fair any morning before school begins or right after dismissal. Just go straight to the library where Captain Judy Silva and her crew of booksellers will be there to assist you. Can't make it to our Book Fair? Check out our Online Book Fair. Click here to purchase books. All orders will ship directly to school for free when the Online Fair has ended.
PROGRESS REPORTS
Progress Reports are going home today. All students, third grade and up, are receiving such a report. These progress reports show a snapshot of the student's current academic standing with optional comments from their teachers. The grading scale is available here. As a system default, art, PE, music and tech will show P/100% for students who fully participate. Students in grades K-2 with behavior and/or academic concerns have already been contacted by their child's teacher.

STM CHURCH'S INTERNATIONAL FOOD FESTIVAL 
If you are interested in some great food from all over the world, don't forget that food and fun will be available here at the St. Thomas More Church's 10th Annual International Food Festival in the schoolyard, both Saturday and Sunday. Come and enjoy live cultural performances, Zumba, line dancing, games, face painting, raffle prizes and more!

MINIMUM DAY PIZZA LUNCH 
Next Monday, September 26th, is a minimum day. As we have in past years, Extended Care will offer a pizza lunch on all minimum day Mondays this year. One slice of Costco pizza, a treat and a juice pouch will be $4. An extra slice of pizza is available for just $1 more. Starting this year, billing will be exclusively through the FACTS system and will be included on your monthly Extended Care bill. No cash payments will be accepted.
SCHOOL TOURS/APPLICATION FORMS
Please continue to invite friends and relatives interested in St. Thomas More School to come to one of our school tours for prospective parents. Click HERE to reserve a place on one of the tours listed below:
  • Tuesday, October 4th at 9:00am
  • Tuesday, October 18th at 9:00am
  • Tuesday, November 8th at 9:00am
  • Tuesday, November 22nd at 9:00am
HIGH SCHOOL VISITS
It's that time of year again when the seventh and eighth graders will be visited by representatives from several of the local Catholic high schools. On Monday, St. Ignatius  representatives will meet with the students. Sacred Heart Cathedral Prep will visit on October 3, Mercy Burlingame will visit on October 11, and Mercy San Francisco and Archbishop Riordan will make their presentations on October 13.
INTRODUCTION TO COMPUTER PROGRAMMING
STM parent, Mario Lim, is offering this exciting after school class for 15 lucky 6th-8th grade students. For more information, please see the flyer and registration form in today's envelope.
BEHIND THE SCAFFOLDING - A SNEAK PREVIEW!
Sincerely,

Marie Fitzpartick
Principal
Copyright © 2014 St. Thomas More School, All rights reserved.
You are receiving this email from the office of St. Thomas More School.  
Thank you for helping us go green.

Our mailing address is:
50 Thomas More Way
San Francisco, CA 94132
www.stmsf.org

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St. Thomas More School · 50 Thomas More Way · San Francisco, CA 94132 · USA

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