Hamilton Wentworth Catholic District School Board ST. KATERI TEKAKWITHA Catholic Elementary School MARCH 2013

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1 Hamilton Wentworth Catholic District School Board ST. KATERI TEKAKWITHA Catholic Elementary School MARCH 2013 St. Kateri Tekakwitha 22 Queensbury Drive Hamilton, Ontario L8W 1Z Mr. B. Condari Principal Mr. M. Derikx Assistant to Principal Mrs. I. Fortino Superintendent of Education St. Jean de Brebeuf Secondary School 200 Acadia Drive Hamilton, Ontario L8W 1B Mr. M. Daly Principal St. Margaret Mary Parish 20 Idlewood Ave. Hamilton, Ontario L8T1V Father J. Bergsma Pastor Father M. Downey Associate Pastor Marilyn Sturtevant Parish Minister Prayer for Pope Benedict XVI O Gracious God, thank you for the life and work of Pope Benedict XVI. Keep him in our constant love and care. Bless all the days of his well-deserved retirement with health, happiness and peace. May we follow the example of Pope Benedict and live our lives in dedicated service to others, always giving praise and thanksgiving to God our Loving Father. We ask this through Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God forever and ever. Amen. LENT Ash Wednesday marked the beginning of the Season of Lent. It is a season of penance, reflection, and fasting which prepares us for Christ's Resurrection on Easter Sunday, through which we attain redemption. I would like to extend a personal thanks to both Father Downey and Father Bergsma for their spiritual leadership this month. We are very fortunate at St. Kateri to have clergy directly involved in the faith formation of our students. From regular classroom visits, reconciliation, liturgies and mass, the parish team at St. Margaret Mary prove to be a recognizable source of support for all that is Catholic in our school. We are very grateful. Our next school mass will take place on Thursday March 21 at 10 a.m. in the gymnasium. St. Margaret Mary Parish Easter Schedule Palm Sunday 8:00 a.m. 10:00 a.m. 12:00 noon All Day Confessions Tuesday, March 26 9:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. Holy Thursday 8:00 p.m. Good Friday 11:00 a.m. 3:00 p.m. Easter Vigil Easter Sunday 8:00 p.m. 8:00 a.m. 10:00 a.m. 12:00 noon HOLY WEEK On Palm Sunday, we celebrate the first joy of the season, as we celebrate Our Lord's triumphant entrance into Jerusalem where he was welcomed by crowds worshiping him and laying down palm leaves before him. It also marks the beginning of Holy Week, with the greatest tragedy and sorrow of the year. Jesus' triumphant return to Jerusalem is only one side of the story. By now many of the Jews are filled with hate for Our Lord. They want to see him stoned, calling Him a blasphemer, especially after offering proof of His Divinity during a winter visit to Jerusalem for the Feast of the Dedication. After this, Jesus went to Perea, where he was summoned to Bethany. There he raised Lazarus from the dead, a miracle which wins Him such renown among certain Pharisees that they decided finally to end His life. Jesus took refuge at Ephrem returning six days before Passover to Bethany, triumphantly entering Jerusalem. That evening, He leaves Jerusalem and returns Monday. He spent time with Gentiles in the Temple, and on Wednesday left for the Mount of Olives. Here he foretold the apostles the events of the next several days, including His impending death. He returned to Jerusalem on Thursday, to share the Last Supper with His apostles. He was subsequently arrested and tried. He was crucified at Calvary on Friday, outside the gates of Jerusalem. He was buried the same day, and arose three days later, on Easter Sunday. All of this is done by our Lord for forgiveness of our sins, and for life everlasting with Him. God so loved us, that He sent His only begotten Son to die for us, so that our sins maybe forgiven. Please join us for a sombre celebration of our faith on Holy Thursday in our school gymnasium. Please check the school website for more information.

2 BE RESPECTFUL AND MAKE A DIFFERENCE Raising kind, generous and empathic children As parents, you are the primary role models for teaching your children to be kind and caring individuals. Some children seem to develop these characteristics more naturally than others but all children need positive modelling. The Social Work Department has prepared these simple tips to encourage children to be kind, generous and empathic: 1. MODEL EMPATHY: Children can learn empathy from you as you express interest in their daily experiences and listen to their stories. As they talk you can reflect back to them what they say and ask questions to clarify their thoughts and feelings. This will teach them the skill of how to relate more deeply to others. 2. PERFORM SMALL ACTS OF KINDNESS: Teach children to be thankful for the blessings and gifts in their lives and encourage them to share their gifts with others. Get your children involved in simple acts of kindness like visiting an elder, collecting cans of food for the poor and/or donating books or toys to a charity. 5. GIVE THANKS: Model respect and consideration for others by saying a simple hello and thank you. Parents can demonstrate gratitude by expressing thankfulness for the good things in their daily life. They can simply tell their child how lucky they are to be their parent. You can teach your children about people in the world who have contributed to making it a better place. You can read about the good works of Mother Teresa and Martin Luther King. You and your children can also make a difference. This is what Jesus would do. SCHOOL MASS Our school mass will take place on Thursday, March 21 st at 10:00 a.m. Being the Lenten Season, all parents, guardians and family are invited to attend our Liturgical Celebration prior to Easter. SACRAMENT OF CONFIRMATION Sacrament of Confirmation will take place on Saturday April 6 at St. Margaret Mary Parish. Please support our students as they become young adults in their faith. STATIONS OF THE CROSS On Thursday of Holy Week, Mr. Derikx s Grade 8 students will present the Stations of the Cross en tableau, with narration and prayers led by Mr. Welsh s Grade 7 student. The Stations will begin at 1:00 p.m. in the gymnasium. All are welcome. GRADUATION The school has started to plan the Grade 8 graduation on Thursday June 20, The graduation will take place at the school in the gymnasium. Our committee of school staff would like to extend an invitation to participate as a committee member to any interested parent of a child in grade 8. If the school receives more than one interested parent, one name will be randomly selected to sit on this committee. All other parents are more than welcome to support this representative. We have a number of items that may require additional support (entertainment, refreshments, decorations/theme/set-up etc.). If you are interested please contact Mrs. DeSantis by Monday March 18, KEEPING THE FLAME ALIVE CLUB CURRICULUM CORNER 3. WORK AS A TEAM: Help children recognize that the family unit is like a team. Everyone can be given a responsibility like feeding the cat, setting the table and making their bed. This contributes to all members feeling a sense of belonging and having a shared pride. Chores are done for good of the family and do not need monetary rewards. 4. DO UNTO OTHERS: As the parent you can demonstrate kindness and patience by holding a door open for someone, allowing someone to step ahead in the grocery line and shovelling the snow for a senior. The flame is the light of Jesus that we cherish in our hearts. How do you keep that flame alive? You stir it up! Students at SKT have been meeting on Wednesdays at lunch to stir up their faith. We share and grow in our faith by talking about God, listening to and reflecting on His word and exploring how we enjoy spending time with God. We are also keeping the flame alive this month by reaching out to our community through our Lenten food drive. How do you keep your flame alive? We ask the greater St. Kateri Tekakwitha community to help support our Lenten food drive to help make a difference in those who are in need. On February 21 and 22 St. Kateri hosted a mathematics HUB where educators from around the HWCDSB co-planned and co-taught a mathematics lesson to students in grades 3-6. The students performed very well and were very eager to express their "accountable math talk" and problem solving skills. We are very proud of you! Thanks to the SKT teaching staff especially for their ongoing commitment to the students and in embracing best practices to support student learning and achievement. On Wednesday April 3, the Grade 1-8 teaching staff will participate in a collaborative coplanning and co-teaching mathematics lesson to specific grades within the school.

3 MARCH BREAK DIVERSITY Graduation Fundraiser: Pizza Days This year March Break will begin on Monday, March 11 and end on Friday, March 15. All staff and students return to school on Monday, March 18 at 8:50 a.m. DAYLIGHT SAVING TIME On Sunday, March 10 remember to turn your clocks ahead one hour to daylight saving time. WELCOME We would like to take this opportunity to welcome Mr. Luciani to the St. Kateri community. He will be replacing Ms. Sokal for the next few months as she will be taking time to take care of some health issues and will be returning to work in a few months. We wish Ms. Sokal the best of luck in her time away from St. Kateri Tekakwitha. We know that she will be missed by her students and the staff and we look forward to her return. In the mean time, Mr. Luciani will continue the good work done by Ms. Sokal and you will find him to be a very capable replacement and knowledgeable individual. PANCAKE TUESDAY Pancake Tuesday once again was a big success at SKT. A special thank you to Ms. Simpson who spent a great deal of time planning and preparing for this event. Additional thanks is given to the many parent volunteers who were able to assist in the distribution of pancakes and sausage. Thank you to the SKT staff who were also very involved in the many parts of Pancake Tuesday. As a community we came together in prayer and fellowship to enjoy a long standing tradition. On Friday, February 15 the Grade 7 and 8 students participated in a day long school based Diversity Conference. It was an opportunity to learn about living respectfully together and to reflect on helping create a world free from bias and discrimination. The students will continue with a variety of Diversity throughout the rest of the year. BASEF Science Fair For over 50 years, the Bay Area Science & Engineering Fair has provided a forum for students in the Hamilton/Halton area to develop their scientific skills and prepare for national and international competition. The Intermediate Students will be attending the BASEF Science Fair at Mohawk College on Thursday, March 21. H.W.C.D.S.B. Science Fair The students selected by our panel of judges to represent S.K.T at the System Science Fair are: Rebecca: The Ozone Layer and UV Protection Olivia: Spicy, Salty and Sweet! Mirna: Remarkable Reflexes! Anthony: Organic Versus Mechanical Power! Alexia: I Love Dairy, But It Doesn t Love Me! Isaac: Buoyant Buoyancy! Angelo: Bubble Rush! The Science Fair will take place on Saturday, March 2, 2013 beginning at 9:00 a.m. at Bishop Ryan Secondary School. Thank you to Mr. Callaghan for his leadership. Congratulations and Good Luck!! On behalf of the Grade 8 students in the school, thank you to all those who have purchased pizza during the last two weeks. Proceeds from these sales have been dedicated to help off-set the costs related to the Grade 8 graduation activities. The Grade 8 students are looking forward to serving you again throughout the spring. STUDENT COUNCIL Student council will be having a BEACH DAY on Friday, March 8. All students are encouraged to dress in appropriate beachwear: T-Shirts (No tank tops) Sandals (No flip flops) Shorts (No bathing suits) Hats Sunglasses Please remember we well be going outside for recess, so bring proper attire for outdoor winter play. Student council will also be selling treats on this day. More information to follow. SWIM TO SURVIVE Grade 3 Students This month our grade 3 students participated in the swim 2 survive program. The students were very well behaved and represented SKT with pride. Most importantly, our students gained invaluable skills and confidence learning how to "survive" in the water. Another session will take place on March 7.

4 ECO NEWS. SWEATER DAYS POLICE SAFETY PRESENTATION CSC PARENT S CORNER Once a month, the heat will be reduced by 5 degrees and students may wear a sweater of their choice over their uniform to stay warm. Sweater Day will be held on Thursday, March 7. POWER DOWN FRIDAYS As a part of our energy conservation initiative, lights in the classrooms will be turned off after announcements and turned back on after our first recess. PASSION FOR E-RECYCLING In April we will be hosting Passion for E-Recycling School Challenge. This initiative has families searching for E-Waste which stands for electronics. It is the safe and responsible disposal of electronics which prevents hazardous environmental contamination and needless waste of our natural resources. Participation in the Passion for E-Recycling School challenge helps to raise lifelong awareness of the critical need for recycling electronics. Winning the challenge gives schools a chance to update their existing electronics while responsibly recycling unwanted electronics. On Wednesday, March 20 there will be a Police Safety Presentation for the ELKP classes. SKT BASKETBALL PLAYERS AWARDED On the February 16 th weekend Blessed Sacrament House League recognized individual players with awards. SKT was very well represented. The boys worked hard, dedicated themselves and made the commitment to improve their basketball skills over the years. Congratulations to: Kenneth Kevin Anthony Brian Christopher Peter Markell Duante BOYS GROUP AT ST. KATERI We are very excited to be offering a Boys Group here at Saint Kateri in the spring. We feel it is important to give our boys the opportunity to express themselves in a positive and safe environment. The boys will learn to better their communication skills, build on their self esteem and learn strategies that will help them to problem solve and improve their interactions with their peers. It is also a lot of fun and ends with a pizza party celebration. Stay tuned for more info after the March Break or call the school. Next CSC Meeting Our next meeting is scheduled for Monday March 25th, at 5:30, in the school library. We will be joined by the CSC of St. Daniels to discuss an exciting initiative. All are welcome! Save the Date! An exciting and informative evening will be coming to SKT Monday May 6 th. Please save this date..you will not want to miss it! CSC Blog NEW!! A CSC blog has been created on our website. Please make sure to visit it for updated school event information REGISTRATIONS If you will be registering your child for Junior Kindergarten or Senior Kindergarten, please contact Mrs. De Santis the school secretary to set up an appointment at The following items of information are required at the time of registration: Baptismal certificate Birth Certificate Proof of residency Immigration papers (if applicable) A List of eligible waste will be sent home in the near future to get an early start and gather these items to bring in April. Time of drop off and collection will be available in the April newsletter and on our website.

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