Principal's Message
July 3, 2018
Dear Families,
Happy summer to all of our new and returning families! On behalf of Saint Maria Goretti Catholic School, I pray that you are all enjoying a wonderful summer break filled with faith, family, and fun. I am so excited to be at SMG as your principal and am looking forward to a fabulous school year ahead. Over the past several weeks, we have been busy preparing for the 2018-2019 school year and have information and updates in this mailing that we hope you will find helpful.
Faculty/Staff Updates
We welcome the following new faculty/staff members to our SMG family:
Mrs. Kellee New, PreK-4 Aide; Ms. Sarah Felty, 3rd Grade ELA & Social Studies Teacher; Ms. Elizabeth Seyer, 4th & 5th Grade Math & Science Teacher; Mr. Andrew Keller, 6th-8th Grade Math Teacher; Ms. Maggie Hoerdeman, 6th-8th Grade English, and Mrs. Martha Zavala, 3rd-8th Grade Spanish Teacher. We will inform you of other new faces as that information becomes available.
In addition, a few of our returning teachers have changed grade-levels and/or subject areas: Mrs. Ellen Gutierrez, 3rd Grade Math & Science; Mr. Reid Rose, 6th-8th Grade Social Studies; Ms. Taylor Jordan, 6th-8th Grade Religion; and Mrs. Amy Utendorf, Assistant Principal.
Curriculum Updates
In the new school year, you will see additional curriculum resources aimed at strengthening the instruction of math. These resources will provide teachers with cohesive instructional materials that will better develop students’ foundational understanding of math concepts from one grade-level to the next. As well, while teachers always aim to differentiate instruction to meet the needs of students in their classrooms, math classes for grades 4-8 will be leveled to allow for more effective targeted instruction to meet the needs of all students.
Additional instructional resources will also be added to support the instruction of English, specifically grammar and writing. The instruction of writing will be more rigorous and writing will be incorporated across the curriculum. Foreign language instruction will also be more rigorous and the number of days students will attend Spanish class each week will increase; students in 3rd-5th Grade will attend Spanish class twice weekly; 6th-8th Grade students will attend three times a week. Students in Pre-K-2nd Grade will continue with Spanish instruction once a week.
In addition to the religion curriculum resources, we will be incorporating the Dominican Sisters of St. Cecelia, Nashville, TN virtues program into religion classes, as well as other areas of the curriculum. Virtues in Practice is a program for children in grades pre-kindergarten through eight to grow closer to Jesus by imitating His life and virtues. More information about the program can be found at
https://www.nachvilledominican.org/apostolate/evangelization-and-catechesis/virtues-in-practice/
Band
Band will be offered to students as an elective during the school day on Tuesday and Thursday mornings. Students in grades 4-8 who do not choose band as their elective will attend music class to fulfill their fine arts requirement. Please look for the 2018-2019 Band Form and Fee Information from Learning Music Band that will be emailed to parents of 4th-8th Grade students soon.
Calendar Updates
Please review the updated calendar as a few changes have been made. In place of the Ice Cream Social and Student Orientation, we will have a Meet the Teacher event that will take place on Monday, August 13th from 4-7PM. During this event students will learn who their homeroom teacher will be, drop off any school supplies, sign up for band, sports, and other activities, submit required forms, and the Kona Ice truck will be on site for all to enjoy. Back to School Night (also known as Curriculum Night) will take place on Tuesday, August 28th for PreK - 3rd Grade and Thursday, August 30th for 4th-8th Grade. These evenings are for parents/guardians only. Students should not attend. More details about Back to School Night will be communicated in August.
There are several changes to the May calendar. The snow day that was on the calendar for May 10th has been moved to Tuesday, April 23rd; May Crowning will take place on Tuesday, May 14th, rather than May 7th; Finals will be May 20-22; 8th Grade Candle Passing & Robing Ceremony will take place the morning of Thursday, May 23rd; instead of a luncheon, the 7th Grade will host an 8th Grade breakfast before the Candle Passing and Robing Ceremony; Kindergarten Promotion will take place on Tuesday, May 28th at 10:30AM; the Awards Ceremony will be for 4th-7th Grade students and will take place on Wednesday, May 29th at 9:15AM; and Field Day will take place on Thursday, May 30th, which is also the last day of school.
School Day and Arrival/Dismissal Procedures
In order to be sure that we are meeting the number of instructional minutes outlined by the Diocese and the Texas Catholic Conference of Bishops Education Department, there will be a slight change to the arrival, start and dismissal time of the school day this year. Morning drop off will begin at 7:30AM. Students must be in their classrooms by 7:50AM, and the instructional day will begin at 7:55AM. In addition, we will add 10 minutes to the length of the school day, moving dismissal to 3:10PM.
We are making some changes to the arrival and dismissal procedures and will communicate the specifics of those changes to you as soon as they are finalized. One change that must take place relates to the arrival of students who walk to school in the morning. Parents, please be sure that you supervise your student(s) as they cross the street and see to it that they are safely on school property each morning. SMG faculty and staff are responsible for supervising car line and students getting out of cars in the morning. They cannot be responsible for supervising students walking and entering school property from various locations along the surrounding streets each morning.
Summer Reading
All students (except incoming PreK students) are expected to complete the summer reading assignments before the start of school. Please see the enclosed summer reading information or the school website for details on specific grade-level assignments.
School Uniforms
As you may be aware, we have selected Mills Uniform Company as our new official uniform provider. Mills just celebrated its 70th year in business and is known for providing exceptional quality and customer service and we're excited to be partnering with them. Given the timing of this transition, Mills is doing everything possible to get our uniforms in-stock as soon as possible.
Mills’ local store is located in the Arlington/Fort Worth area:
Mills Uniform Company
5460 E. Loop 820 S.
Ft. Worth, TX 76119
Phone: 817-563-7100
Retail Manager: Sherri Klassen
Our custom webstore at millswear.com will present the full uniform program for the coming school year. https://www.millswear.com/school.jsp?path=-1|29675&id=413211.Our School Code is 3424.
Documents and Forms
In this mailing, you will find the following important documents and information:
· School/sports physical form (to be completed and returned)
· Emergency contact form (to be completed and returned)
· Parent Acknowledgement form (to be completed and returned)
· Revised 2018-2019 School Calendar
· August Calendar
· Uniform Information
· School Supply Lists
· Summer Reading information
· Play Like A Champion Training Dates (for 6-8th grade Parents and Coaches)
· School Picture Date
· Safe & Sacred Training Date
· SMEED (Before & After School Care) Information
· Social Media Policy
· Parishioner Rate Requirement Letter
Many of these forms can also be found on the school website, www.smgschool.org, under the Parent Information section.
We hope you all enjoy the remainder of your summer and we look forward to seeing you in August!
Blessings,
Laura Behee, M.Ed.
Principal
2018 -2019 Uniform Updates
2018-2019 Uniform Policies
Mass Dress
Students attending mass may not wear sweatshirts or fleece jackets to mass. The only acceptable outerwear will be the school uniform sweater or vest. For grades 5-8, the sweater or vest is navy blue, and for grades PK-4 the sweater or vest is red. Plaid skirts are the only acceptable mass wear for girls.
Dress Down Days
Throughout the year, the school may announce student dress down days. Students who wish to participate in periodic dress down days will be allowed to wear an approved spirit shirt and a uniform bottom and regular uniform shoes. Approved spirit shirts consist of Navy Blue SMG spirit wear for grades 5-8 and Red SMG spirit wear for grades PK-4. NO OTHER SPIRIT SHIRTS OR SWEATSHIRTS ARE ALLOWED.
Kountry Karnival T-Shirts
On Mondays in September and the Monday following Kountry Karnival, students who purchase the 2018 Kountry Karnival t-shirt may wear them with uniform bottoms. Only 2018 Karnival Shirts will be allowed and only on the days indicated here. Karnival shirts are not considered acceptable periodic Dress Down Day attire. Shirts will be available for order or for purchase at the Meet the Teacher Night on August 13.
Safe Environment Training
Saint Maria Goretti Catholic School
Email: nbenson@smgschool.org
Website: www.smgschool.org
Location: 1200 South Davis Drive, Arlington, TX, USA
Phone: 817-275-5081
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/StMariaGorettiArlington/?ref=bookmarks