Tiger Talk! September 30, 2016

Dear Parents/Guardians,

As we bring the month of September and our Diocesan theme of love to a close, I cannot help but be sentimental and thank this amazing community for the outpouring of love shown over this past difficult week. Our children have shown genuine love and compassion in response to the loss of our firefighters this week. They have been praying and making cards. We have focused not on the death of our two Wilmington heroes (particularly in the younger grades), but rather on the adoration, appreciation, and admiration we have for our first responders here in Wilmington and throughout the world. Our Wilmington Fire Departments are our close friends and what we refer to in the younger grades as our “community helpers.” Several of our parents are Wilmington Firefighters. We stand in sympathy with the entire community of firefighters, their families, and friends. We are working on cards of hope, love, gratitude, and support to deliver to the local fire departments in our community. As adults we are cognizant of the fact that those heroes were laid to rest in peace this week after a life of service to others. We are sad, and we mourn together. However, with our students we are positive, grateful, and prayerful. We celebrate their life and dedication and our friendship with them.

The love and solidarity from our 8th Grade this week has also impressed me. Our children rallied around their friend and classmate, Nick Mercantini. They immediately started praying, visiting, and planning. They approached me with many ideas for Nick during his hospital stay, rehabilitation, and hopeful eventual return to St. Anthony’s, God-willing. We are eternal optimists here! We believe in miracles! We never lose hope in the possibilities of what is to come for Nick. The children in Nick’s class designed a shirt that I am working on getting prices for. I cried with tears of pride when I saw the images and words they chose. I will not spoil it. I hope to have prices and order forms available within the next week.

We are blessed to be in a school that does more than just teach your children. We love your children, and your children are in an environment where they are surrounded by that love and love others in return. I see it every day! I am really looking forward to our Diocesan theme for October. The theme will be JOY! We need joy after this week. John 15:11 “I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and your joy may be complete.” My prayer is that our community will continue to love and now be joyful together over the next months of this school year. Look for more information on our “joy” as the month begins.

Rosary to School – Please send in a Rosary with your child. We will be praying the Rosary in class during the month of October.

 

School News

New School Website – Please check out the school’s new website at https://sapgs.org ! We would like to thank our Technology Committee for all the work that they have done to produce this attractive and informative website. We are very proud of the website, so please encourage your family and friends to check it out! Feel free to send any comments about the site to Mr. Shields or Mrs. White.

Annual Blessing of the Animals: Join us once again in Father Tucker field (school field) at 2:00 P.M. on Tuesday, October 4th. Please bring all of your beloved family pets for a special blessing and to celebrate our beloved St. Francis of Assisi. The event will begin promptly at 2:00 P.M., so please be in the field prior to that.  Students will meet parents (and pets) there.

  • Please remember our retired sisters, Sr. Jamesanne Taggart and Sr. George Mary Rhodes, as they celebrate their feast day on October 4th.  They are living examples of the spirit of St. Francis of Assisi, and we were blessed to have them serve our parish throughout the years.

Confirmation Meeting – Monday, October 3 rd– This is a mandatory meeting for all 8th Grade students who plan to receive the Sacrament of Confirmation. Parents and Sponsors are expected to attend.

Monthly Parish Social – Please join us on Sunday, October 2nd for good food and fellowship, following the 9 A.M. and 11 A.M. Masses.

Our Lady of Peace Pilgrimage – Please pray for our 8th graders and our Antonians (children’s choir) as they travel to Holy Spirit on Friday, October 7th. Students from all of the Diocese of Wilmington Catholic Schools are invited to join Bishop Malooly and school administrators to pray the Rosary. This is a beautiful tradition, and the students are always so respectful and reverent.

Thank you for Panera Night – Thank you to all of our friends and families who came out last night for a rainy gathering at Panera on Kirkwood Highway. We appreciate your support!

Casino Night – Thank you in advance to our Home and School Board for their countless hours of preparation for our largest fundraising event of the year. Casino Night will benefit our technology department, and we are very grateful to the board for soliciting donations, cooking and preparing food, gathering auction items, and transforming our school gym into a fun casino space. I look forward to seeing many of you there tomorrow night.

Fall Uniforms begin October 1st- Please remember that fall uniforms begin on Monday. Shorts are no longer part of the dress code for the school or gym uniform. For Middle School gentlemen, white dress shirts and solid navy blue ties are the uniform from now until May.

Thursday, October 6th Dress Down Day for Nicholas Mercantini – Our 8th Grade has asked to do a dress down day as a fundraiser for Nick. Nick suffered a debilitating spinal injury last week, and the students did their research. The color for spinal code injury is green, so the children will have the opportunity to dress down next Thursday and give a $1 donation or more to benefit Nick’s family. Please have your child wear green on that day. I would like to get some photos to send to Nick and his family. Presently, Nick is in a medically induced coma, so I am sure his mother and grandmother would love to see us thinking of him here at school.

Class Notes

  • Preschool 3 has been working on letters. They are on letter “C” and have been using the iPads! The students love the iPads and have even talked about what it means to be responsible when using them.

preschool

  • Preschool 4 is working on the letter E and has learned three sight words.
  • 1st Grade has been learning about the five senses in Science. This week the children learned about the sense of touch.  They wore blindfolds as they tried to identify various objects by only using their sense of touch.
  • 2nd grade is working on adding 3 digits in Math, learning the continents and ocean in Social Studies, and discussing the Solar System in Science.
  • 3rd grade has been working on investigating volume and water in Science. The children have learned that larger objects have more volume and smaller objects have less volume. They also learned that the volume of an object is equal to the amount of water the object displaces.
  • 4th grade has learned that convex lenses magnify images, while concave lenses reduce the size of images in Science class. They have also been talking about how love, our Fruit of the Spirit for this month is an action, not just a feeling
  • 5th grade has been working on their grammar skills by correcting and editing sentences every day.  They have already corrected 50 sentences this year!
  • 6th, 7th, and 8th grade Science and Reading classes are beginning to use Schoology.  Students have been watching videos, taking quizzes, using discussion boards, and connecting with Quizlet.
  • 7th Grade has been studying the upcoming Presidential Election on Fridays during their Social Studies.  Key issues that have been discussed and debated include the economy, immigration, the environment, Isis, America’s role in the world, and guns.  Our students enjoy current events and understand that it’s important for a voter to know a candidate’s position on key issues.
  • 8th Grade has begun classroom preparation for the sacrament of Confirmation. They are opening their hearts to receive the Holy Spirit in December.  They are also starting to prepare for the high school placement test.Parish NewsParish Monthly Social – Our first parish social for the fall will be held on Sunday, October 2nd, in the Ballad Room following the 9:00 A.M. and 11:00 A.M. Masses.  Stop by for food, fun, and socializing with fellow parishioners and friends.  SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT: We will be featuring the annual recognition slideshow of Italian Festival volunteers at these socials.  Be sure to take a few minutes to relive all of your fun memories from the 2016 Festival!  Copies of this DVD will be available for sale for $20, with $10 of the sale benefitting our Grade School.  Prints of photos on the DVD will also be available (4×6” or 5×7”) for $10, with $5 of the sale benefitting the Grade School.  For more info, please contact Anne D’Ascoli ((302)547-8107 or adascoli@stanthonynet.org).  Hope you can make it!Columbus Day Communion Breakfast – Tickets are still available for the annual Columbus Day Communion Mass & Breakfast to be held on Monday, October 10th (Columbus Day).  The event celebrates outstanding contributions by Italian-Americans to our local community and benefits St. Anthony of Padua Grade School and the Oblates of St. Francis de Sales retirement fund.  Mass will be celebrated by Bishop Malooly at St. Anthony’s at 7:30 A.M., followed immediately by a delicious catered full breakfast at Padua Academy Cafetorium (enter via 10th St.).  This year, the Committee is pleased to honor Fr. Richard DeLillio, OSFS.  Fr. DeLillio, who is celebrating 50 years as an Oblate, has held many leadership roles in the Order, including service as President of Nativity Preparatory School during its fledgling years.  Breakfast tickets are $35 each, and full tables may be purchased.  To purchase a ticket or table please contact Mike Malchione at (302) 652-4194 x122 or via e-mail at: mmalchione@dossnet.com.Important Dates
    • Monday, October  3rd– Fall Uniform begins
      • Student Council Meeting – Preschool – 3:00 – 3:30 P.M.
      • Confirmation Meeting – Ballad Room – 6:15 P.M.
    • Tuesday, October 4th – Kindergarten Field Trip – Highland Orchards – 8:30 – 12:00 P.M.
      • Blessing of the Animals – Father Tucker Field – 2:00 P.M.
    • Thursday, October 6th – Dress Down Day for Nick Mercantini
    • Friday, October 7th – Our Lady of Peace Pilgrimage – Antonians and 8th Grade – 10:00 A.M.
    • Trimester 1 Midterm
    • Monday, October 10th– No School – Columbus Day
      • Columbus Day Communion Breakfast – Church/Padua Academy – 7:30 A.M.
    • Wednesday, October 12th– Student of the Month Dress Down Day
      • Parent-Teacher Conferences – 3:15 P.M. – 6:00 P.M.
        • Thursday, October 13thNOON DISMISSAL
          • Grandparents Day – 8:15 – 9:00 A.M. in the Ballad Room;

        9:00 – 10:45 A.M. in classrooms

        • Grandparents Day Prayer Service – Gym – 11:00 A.M.
        • Parent-Teacher Conferences – 1:00 P.M. – 6:00 P.M.
        • Monday, October 17th – 2nd Grade Field Trip – Coleman Farm
          • Student Council Meeting – Preschool – 3:00 – 3:30 P.M.
          • First Penance Meeting (Parents Only) – Ballad Room – 6:15 P.M.
        • Thursday, October 20th3rd Grade Field Trip – Delaware State Fire School – 8:45 – 11:45 A.M.
        • Sunday, October 23rd – Open House – Padua Academy and St. Elizabeth High School
  • Please visit the website for details about upcoming events. The new website is https://sapgs.orgBlessings,Mrs. White and Mr. Shields“A Christian brings peace to others. Not only peace, but also love, kindness, faithfulness and joy.”            ~ Pope Francis

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