Update from Mrs. Dalmut – October 6, 2014
Posted on October 7, 2014
Dear Parents,
First of all, congratulations to the PTO and the STEM Committee for the successful Paper Airplane Contest that was held on Saturday. For the life of me, I could not picture how this would work, so I just trusted them to pull it off, and they did — in grand style! I was most impressed with the organization of the event, the number and dedication of the volunteers, and the enthusiastic participation of the students! It was truly a fun no-hassle day! The kids were fully engaged, and seemed to love learning about flight. Thank you to all those who helped make this event so enjoyable. I hope we’ll do it again!
Second, I would like to follow up on the Interim Progress Reports. I look at every Interim — grades 3-8. I noticed a trend that needs to be explained. Our school places a strong emphasis on communication skills, including proper grammar. Many school systems do not teach parts of speech, capitalization, and proper grammar, but our diocesan schools do! The students who are new to our school had particular challenges in these areas. That is OK! Grammar is not intuitive — it is a long list of rules. Your children will need time to learn all the rules and conventions. Please encourage them to work hard at their grammar, but do not over-stress them about grades. The goal is learning, not grades. The middle school is declaring a War on Grammar! You will even see your child’s science and social studies tests with red lines if they do not use complete sentences, proper capitalization and grammar! We want to encourage children to use proper grammar in all subject areas, not just on English tests. Please reinforce with them that the best way to learn grammar is to practice it! Some Interims have not been returned. Please sign and return as soon as possible. Thank you.
WINTER UNIFORMS — start Tuesday, October 14. Please check now to see if your child has all the necessary uniform items. If the weather turns warmer, they can still take off their sweaters in school.
SCHOOL PICTURES — Tuesday, November 4.
FIELD TRIPS are starting in full swing! If you have signed up to be a chaperone, please remember that you must be compliant with the Safe Environment requirements of the diocese, and you will need to be able to ignore your cell phone for the duration of the trip. Supervision (from both teachers and parent chaperones) requires full undivided attention. (Can you tell I just went to a School Law class last week?)
Finally, on a personal note, thank you for all your prayers for my mother and my family. My mother Theresa Sheppard passed peacefully on Sunday afternoon. I will be traveling to Georgia for her wake and funeral services on Wednesday. I would prefer that you tell your children, rather than making an announcement at school. Every family has their own unique experience with grief, and you can better answer your children’s questions. For my part, I want you to know that we prayed for a peaceful death for her, as she has struggled these past few weeks. She was an amazing woman, and we will miss her dearly. She is no doubt in a very heavenly place now, and we are thankful!
God bless,
Barbara Dalmut
