Ms. Monaghan's Message - Sept. 20
Challenge, Inspire, Empower, & Serve
Important Upcoming Events
Sept. 21: PTO Family Fun Night @ 5:00pm
Sept. 25: Meet me at the Pole; Church Night
Sept. 27: Spirit Day
Oct. 1: Bring a plain t-shirt to school (see more info below)
Oct. 6: Student Led Mass @ 11:00
Oct. 7-9: FIRE Week (Dress Down Days TBA)
Oct. 9: Noon Dismissal - Parent/Teacher Conferences
Oct. 10 - No School - Parent/Teacher Conferences
Oct. 11 - No School - Diocesan Professional Development Day
Why Should We Attend PTO Family Fun Night???
So why would anyone want to give up even more time to attend a school event on the weekend??
At one point in my life, I had 4 children in an elementary school building. At another point, I had 4 children in 3 different buildings with 3 different start and end times. Do you have any idea how many PTO functions we had going on in any given year??? Too many! But guess what...to this day, I don't regret attending them.
As parents, we are pulled in many different directions. Practices, recitals, concerts, scout meetings, church events, school events, not mention those pesky jobs we all have. We spend more time in our cars than we spend in our homes, more time in fast food lines than at the dinner table. It's not our fault. It's just the way things are now. We can't really change it if we want to allow our kids opportunities to be involved in different activities...and we DO!
But there is something we can do. We can take time to slow down. Come together as a family, have a meal, play a game, socialize with other families. We can say "Our family time is important!".
PTO Family Fun Night is all about slowing down, celebrating your family, allowing you to be together in a place where the only obligation is to simply HAVE FUN! Bring a side dish...something quick that you can grab from the store...and bring your family to a night of games, fellowship, and fun. As an added bonus, you can even get your family picture taken...which is pretty perfect timing with the holidays quickly approaching. In one night, you can spend a little time together as a family AND knock out your family Christmas card picture. Believe me, time is a vicious beast. Before you know it, your kids will be off to college like mine and you'll be struggling to find ANY time to be together. Take the opportunity while you have it!
Mark your calendars for this Saturday following the 4:00 mass. We hope to see YOU there!
50% off on our Shutterfly Storefront until September 22
See You At The Pole
All parents, grandparents, and other family members are encouraged to join us for school mass at 8:00am on this day. What a great way to start your day!
What Can Your Child Wear for Spirit Day?
What IS allowed on a Spirit Day?
Tops: Any St. Patrick t-shirt or sweatshirt, Class "Our Family" t-shirt, Any PLAIN green t-shirt or sweatshirt
Bottoms: Jeans, uniform shorts, uniform skirt, or uniform pants, Green/Black St. Patrick gym shorts, Gray St. Patrick Athletic pants
What is NOT allowed???
Tops: any top other than St. Patrick, any tops that have words or writing on them, hoodies/sweatshirts that say anything other than St. Patrick.
Bottoms: Shorts other than uniform shorts or the approved green/black St. Patrick shorts, sweatpants of any kind, yoga pants of any kind, leggings of any kind.
October 1 - Bring a Plain T-Shirt to School
Don't feel like you have to go out and buy something new! If your chid has a plain t-shirt hanging in his/her closet (that you don't mind donating), just send it in! If you have a bunch of extra plain t-shirts around, send those in, too! Students will be decorating their "Be Kind" t-shirt and bringing it home over the weekend so that it can be worn on Monday, October 7th for our "Be Kind Dress Down Day".
If you are unable to provide a plain t-shirt for your child, just send me an email at kmonaghan@stpatrickkc.com. If you are willing to donate extra t-shirts, please send those in by October 1st as well! Thank you for helping us with this project!
Reminder: Bring in a plain t-shirt (any color, no writing or designs) by October 1st.
S.O.S - Signs of Suicide - Youth Suicide Prevention Program for Middle School Students
To provide an educational opportunity for students, parents, and faculty to gain a deeper understanding of depression and suicide and to be able to communicate with each other using a common language.
To help understand that depression is a treatable illness.
To explain that suicide is a preventable tragedy that often occurs as a result of untreated depression.
To provide students, parents, and faculty training in how to identify serious depression and potential suicide risk.
To impress upon students that they can help themselves by taking the step of talking to a trusted adult about their concerns.
To partner together in understanding, identifying, and helping those dealing with depression and to provide resources to assist families with this very serious issue.
On Wednesday, November 13 at 5:30pm, St. Patrick School will host a parent information night where you will learn more about this program. Parents will have a chance to understand how the program works, gain access to a parent portal where you can find a lot of great information, and ask any questions you may have.
All parents of middle school students are encouraged to attend this PARENTS ONLY meeting. After the parent information night, you will have the chance to opt your child out of this program or to allow your child to participate in this program fully. Please make plans to attend!
Student Led Mass - Sunday, October 6 @ 11:00am
All students who participate in mass and wear their uniforms to church on this day will receive a dress down pass!
FIRE Fun Week - October 7-9
Tuesday, October 1: Classroom Coin Challenge Begins - Which classroom can collect the most coins for FIRE?? The classroom with the most donations by October 9th will receive a popsicle party!
Be Kind Dress Down Day - Students will wear the t-shirts they design, along with jeans to show their support for inclusion!
Tuesday, October 8:
K-5 - "Superheroes for Inclusion" - Students are invited to wear Super Hero costumes or t-shirts on this day.
6-8 - Field Trip - Spirit Day - Wear St. Patrick Spirit Wear
Wednesday, October 9:
Wear Red or Blue for FIRE! Wear your red/blue FIRE t-shirt or any red/blue t-shirt to show your support for FIRE! We will announce the winners of the Classroom Coin Challenge on this day. All donations will go to the FIRE Foundation.
October 9-10 - Parent/Teacher Conferences
Kids and teens do better in school when parents get involved. Attending parent–teacher conferences is one way to be involved and help your child succeed.
A parent–teacher conference is a great opportunity to:
- discuss your child's progress
- share your child's strengths and needs
- work with the teacher to help your child do well in school
Remember, we are a TEAM working towards the common goal of helping your child find success, but you are the most important member of that team. Your feelings towards school, your attitude about the importance of doing well, even the way you speak about school will become the internal dialogue in your child's mind.
How do you speak about school? How do you speak about your child's teacher? Do you model speaking up when you're frustrated about something? Do you model positive communication with the teacher?
Parent/Teacher conferences are a great time to show your child that you and the teacher are a team, working together for the best interest of him/her! Be sure to email your child's teacher today to ensure you have a time to come in.
Have You Joined the St. Patrick PTO?
Top 10 Reasons to Join PTO
10. Helping with School Needs - parents can use their different skill sets to help out in areas where the school has needs. Lunch room volunteers, Classroom Mystery Readers, Assistance with Middle School Elective Classes, Marketing, and Fundraising. If you have a special talent, we can find a place for you!
9. Kids are Proud of Involved Parents - nothing makes your child happier than to see you working at a school function! Believe me, they may act "embarrassed" or like they don't want you to be there, but kids are prideful when their parents are involved!
8. Socialize with Other Parents - get to know other parents in the school so you can feel comfortable asking questions or so you feel comfortable when your child is invited to birthday parties, etc. Plus, sometimes it's just nice to have another adult to talk to when you are feeling overwhelmed and stressed out. Parents need friends, too!
7. PTO Involvement Helps Improve Classroom Behavior - Studies have shown that kids with more involved parents are less likely to act out in the classroom. This might be because the PTO connects the student’s parent with their teacher, or it might simply be because their parents have set an example when it comes to valuing the classroom and the professional who manages it. Either way, students with involved parents tend to have fewer behavior problems, higher homework completion rates, and less of a reputation for disrupting the learning process. That doesn’t just benefit one student: Improvements like this benefit the entire class throughout the year.
6. You Can Be as Involved as You Want to Be - Though the PTO regularly schedules meetings during the week, most PTO chapters know that they need to accommodate the growing number of parents who simply don’t have an extra minute to spare in the evening. That’s why these organizations regularly schedule weekend meetings or take advantage of common days off. As long as parents are willing to consider unique ways of fitting PTO events and meetings into their already busy calendar, they’ll be able to attend at least one meeting a month that will reveal how their student is doing, how the school district is performing, and where new opportunities exist for support, fundraising, volunteer services, and more.
5.
Students Benefit Academically from Parent Involvement in PTO
Much has been made of standardized test scores, with words like “advanced” and “proficient” becoming the biggest buzzwords of education over the last decade. Many parents are concerned with the quality of their child’s education and the outcome of their performance on these standardized tests, and there’s one proven way to improve both of these areas: More involvement in organizations like the PTO.
In study after study, researchers have shown that students who have more involved parents are simply more likely to get high marks on standardized tests. They’re also more likely to volunteer in class, get good grades on class tests and quizzes, and make more friends. In fact, these same studies showed that more involvement by parents equated to higher achievement by their students.
4. PTOs are Not Nationally Controlled or Affiliated
The terms PTO and PTA are sometimes used interchangeably, but they shouldn’t be. PTO organizations are and have no national affiliation. That means they’re less rigid, less structured, and more accommodating to the unique needs of parents in a given school. In a world where it can be hard to schedule time to volunteer, this independent operation and more accommodating nature are absolutely essential. They’re also a persuasive argument for joining the group and seeing exactly which opportunities are available.
3. PTO Members Get the Inside Track on New Developments
Ever wanted to know in advance whether a key school program is changing or being eliminated? Ever wanted to have a say on the implementation of new, important programs that will benefit student achievement? PTO members get that opportunity in most school districts. They’ll meet with administrators, and they’ll learn of important developments before the broader community hears about them. This gives them more time to prepare their student or to consider pursuing new opportunities in the district that might benefit their child’s achievement and learning.
2. PTO is About Organization, Not Solicitation
Many parents fear that their role in a PTO group will be to solicit fundraising donations from community members, going door-to-door until a goal is reached. This just isn’t the case. While parents are always welcome to offer new ideas for school fundraising campaigns, and can even chair a given fundraising campaigns in some districts, that’s not the primary goal of the PTO. Parents aren’t expected to be fundraisers. They’re expected to be members, supporters, volunteers, and proud parents working for the benefit of all students in the district.
1. Better Education and Professional Morale
Times haven’t just been hard for school districts. By extension, these have also been trying times for teachers who simply don’t have the resources or staff levels needed to accommodate every unique need and teach every critical lesson. Parental involvement in PTO organizations has been shown to lift a bit of this burden off teachers’ shoulders, improving the quality of education for all children in the classroom and directly raising teacher morale. When teachers see parent involvement in action, they feel as if they have an assistant at home. That kind of participation is encouraging no matter what grade level is being taught.
St. Patrick School
Email: kmonaghan@stpatrickkc.com
Website: www.stpatrickkc.com
Location: 1401 Northeast 42nd Terrace, Kansas City, MO, USA
Phone: 816-453-0971
Facebook: facebook.com/St.PatrickKC
Twitter: @StPatrickKc