Weekly Newsletter

LANGUAGE ARTS STAR TESTING GRADES 2-8

FOSHS COUNTRY LINE DANCING - OCTOBER 14

PHILLIES DRESS DOWN DAY - OCTOBER 20

HALLOWEEN HUSTLE - OCTOBER 21

PARENT/STUDENT CONFIRMATION MEETING - OCTOBER 23

NO SCHOOL FOR STRUDENTS - OCTOBER 24 (FACULTY SPIRITUALITY DAY)

FITNESS FRIDAY - OCTOBER 27

TRUNK OR TREAT - OCTOBER 27

SCHOOL PICTURE DAY - OCTOBER 30

Dear SHS Parents and Guardians,

Thursday, our eighth grade class attended and participated in the Mass for Catholic Schools at the Co-Cathedral of St. Robert Bellarmine in Freehold, New Jersey. The Mass fell on the Feast Day of Blessed Carlo Acutis. Prior to the mass, Bishop O’Connell reflected on Blessed Carlo’s life and his dedication to the Eucharist. Following the Mass, two of our students, Katelynn Baban and Odeneho Konadu were interviewed for the Monitor Magazine. Click below to read their comments on the Bishop’s reflections.

The Monitor Article Catholic Schools Mass 10/12/23

Many Blessings,

Mrs. Joanna Barlow

Principal

The Sacred Heart School Marketing Department is looking for volunteers to help us take Sacred Heart on the Road. Interested parents and their children are asked to help us spread the word about our awesome school.

Who: SHS Parents and Students

What: Be a presence at local events to showcase and spread the word about our school.

When: Tentative Events

12/1/23 - Mt Holly Tree Lighting

1/27/24 - Mt. Holly Fire & Ice Festival

3/2/24 - St. Patrick’s Day Parade

July 2024 Burlington County Farm Fair

If you are interested in being part of the SHS Show on the Road Committee please email schooloffice @sacred-heart-school .org. 7 & 8 grade students who participate with their parents can earn service hours.

Additionally, parents, if you have some time on your hands and would like to volunteer one day a week to assist with lunch or recess duty, please email schooloffice@sacred-heart-school.org. Please be advised that all volunteers must be VIRTUS trained and fingerprinted. If you need to start the process to be fingerprinted and/or VIRTUS trained please email ptaevents@sacred-heart-school.org. Any day you could offer assistance would be welcomed.

To support the Phillies in their run for the Pennant, SHS will have a Phillies dress down day on Friday, October 20th. Dress in your Phillies spirit wear or red and white to support the Phillies in their run to clinch the National League.

Today, fire persons from the Mount Holly Volunteer Fire Department came to Sacred Heart School to show our younger students the fire trucks, fire gear and talk a little about fire prevention. Our students had a blast learning about fire prevention.

Mrs. Fortin, our Art teacher, is excited to introduce the SHS Virtual Art Gallery. This year we will be showcasing the student's artwork through a new online website called Artsonia. We recently began uploading student art to their portfolio. We will be adding to each student's portfolio throughout the school year. If you do not see any artwork for your little Picasso do not worry, we are just finishing up additional projects in each class.

Please take a moment to scan the code on the flyer to access your child's artwork. If you love your little Rembrandt's piece; this site allows you to purchase it as keepsake. Full giftshop options including ornaments, shirts, mugs etc. Twenty percent (20%) of all proceeds will be donated back to Sacred Heart School!

Join us at Sacred Heart School for our annual 1 Mile Family Fun Run.

Date: October 21, 2023

Time: 8:30 a.m.

Prizes given to 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place finishers. Those interested in running the Virtual 5K must complete their race between October 14, 2023 and October 21, 2023. Please click here for more information and to register for the Halloween Hustle.

What is Trunk or Treat??? It’s Halloween Trick or Treating from car to car in our parking lot. Trunks are open and decorated with fun themes. Prepackaged treats are handed out at each car. 1st &2nd place trunks win a prize! PRE-REGISTRATION IS REQUIRED by OCTOBER 24. Click Trunk or Treat for information and registration.

School picture day is October 30, 2023 Students should come to school in their Dress Uniform for Picture Day. Click below for picture day information.

Picture Day Flyer

Picture Day Paper Flyer

Next week students in grades 2-8 will be taking the Language Arts Star Assessment.

Each year, the elementary schools of the Diocese of Trenton administer the Renaissance

Star Assessments in mathematics and reading during three assessment windows.

The assessments, which last less than 40 minutes each, are given in the fall, in the

winter, and in the spring. The assessments from Renaissance, like many other

standardized assessments, measure academic proficiency. In addition to proficiency,

however, these assessments also track the academic growth of a student during the

course of one school year as well as over the period of a student’s career from grade

two through grade eight. Click here to read a letter from Daniel O’Connell, Assistant Superintendent for the Diocese of Trenton about the Star Assessments.

Star Assessment (window #1) is October 9, 2023 through October 27, 2023. Specific assessment dates will be communicated by the classroom teachers. Results are sent home to parents after each testing window.

The FOSHS is sponsoring a Country Line Dancing evening at Sacred Heart School.

Join us on Saturday, October 14th, from 7 pm - 10 pm. Food and drinks will be available for purchase. No experience or partners needed. Tickets are $20 if purchased by October 9, $25 if purchased at the door. All proceeds benefit S.H.S. Click here to purchase your tickets online.

The Friends of Sacred Heart School will once again sell delicious pies supplied by Russo's Farm for your Thanksgiving table. There are four pies to choose from:

Old Fashioned Apple, Pumpkin, Coconut Custard, and Cherry.

The cost is $20.00 a pie. Orders will be accepted October 14 - November 12. Pie pick-up will be November 18 & 19 after Mass. School pick-up is November 21.

All proceeds benefit our school.

Mark your calendar! Friday, October 27th will be our first Fitness Friday of the year. During the months of October, November, March, April, and May, Fitness Fridays gives participating students the opportunity to walk one mile to school. Classes compete to have the most student participation. The class with the most students who walk to school wins the "Golden Sneaker" trophy. The trophy is displayed in their class until the next " Fitness Friday" when a new winner is selected.

Participating students in grades K-8 should meet at 7:25 a.m. at the Fairgrounds Plaza in Mount Holly near the Santander Bank. We will begin our walk down High Street at 7:30 a.m. Parents are invited to join us. If your child should miss the start of our walk, please do not drop them off on High Street, instead, follow the regular morning drop off procedures.

***Applications will be available online November 1***

General Information - For Families with Children Attending Catholic Schools in The Diocese of Trenton. Tuition assistance is awarded each year to families with children in our Catholic schools in grades K-8. Awards are made based on financial need.

How is the determination made? Information contained in the application along with the supporting materials is used to determine financial need. The formula utilized has been especially designed for families with children attending Catholic school. This calculation is based on a moderate standard of living for the geographic area of the applicant, further ensuring a realistic result. This formula determines the ability of a family to pay for private education. FACTS includes a comprehensive review and verification process ensuring the accuracy of the data.

Award Amount - Families who apply can receive up to one-half of the school’s in-parish tuition

Rate. Click here to learn how to apply.

MySchoolBucks is a convenient online service that allows you to securely pay for your student’s meals online using your credit/debit card or electronic check.

You can:
- Set Up Automatic Recurring Payments
- Track & Review Meal History
- Create Low Balance Alerts
- Make Payments with the Mobile App
- And More…
Sign up now! Registering for your FREE account is easy, go to https://www.MySchoolBucks.com. Create a secure account and never worry again about sending cash or checks with your student(s) to school again!
https://www.MySchoolBucks.com | (855) 832-5226

Have a smartphone? Get the MySchoolBucks Mobile App:

iOS (iPhone) - https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/myschoolbucks/id661878685?mt=8
Android -
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.hss.msb&feature=search_result

Just a reminder, starting October 4th students are to be dressed in their winter uniforms. The cold weather uniform runs from October 4th – April 29th. Please note: (SCHOOL ISSUED) HOODIES ARE ONLY PERMITTED on gym days/ class trips/ school events. Uniform guidelines can be found in the Student/Parent Handbook.

Thank you to all of the parents who attended the first 8th grade parent meeting for this school year. Our next meeting is Wednesday, November 15 at 6:30 p.m. All 8th grade parents and guardians are welcome.

Mrs. Burke, the SHS Yearbook Advisor, is asking parents of 8th graders for the following:

• Please submit one baby picture of your 8th grader

• Please put child’s name in subject line

• Pictures should be sent to photos@sacred-heart-school.org

Let’s show everyone all the amazing things happening at Sacred Heart School! Have you taken some great pictures of events or activities at SHS? If so, share your photos with us. Your photo(s) could be used to promote our school via our website, newsletter and our social media accounts. We will also use the photos for our 23/24 school yearbook. See below for our photo sharing criteria and email address; and get clicking.

Genesis credentials were sent to new users. These credentials come from Genesis SIS – not Sacred Heart School. Existing users should use the credentials they already have. If you have forgotten your credentials, click on the Forgot Password link. If you attempt to access an account 5 times using incorrect credentials, NO PASSWORD, even one sent from the Forgot Password link, will work until the account is re-enabled. Accounts are re-enabled Tuesday – Friday, sometime between 8:00 am and 1:00 pm. If your parent account is disabled please:

· Wait until midnight

· Go to https://parents.dioceseoftrenton.org

· Click on forgot password link

· Wait for a new password to be sent

· To avoid errors, copy and paste the new password

If you do not think you received credentials, please check your SPAM before posting a parent access support request.

*** If you did not complete and sign off on the start of school forms:

• Sacred Heart School 2023-24 Photo Release Form
• Sacred Heart School 2023-24 Student/Parent Handbook & Acceptable Use Policy

Your Parent Access Account has been deleted. You can no longer access your child(ren)’s assignments, grades, or report cards. Your Parent Access Account will not be restored until you provide physical copies of the forms.***

To view our great products click SHS SPIRIT WEAR to enter the website. Remember all your purchases support our school and show our Chargers Pride!

ARRIVAL AND DISMISSAL TIMES:

Drop-off begins at 7:30am. Pick up for our K-8 program is at 2:30 and 2:15 if you child is in Pre-K 2:15.

CAR LINE TIPS ON ARRIVAL:

Form 2 lanes. The right lane is for grades K-8, the left lane is for our Pre-K students. Families with students in both PreK and K-8 should stay in the right lane.

When arriving you will be greeted by Father John and myself. Please wait your turn in the car lanes. Once in the drop off area, have your child exit the car. K-8 students will be dropped off in front of the main gym doors. Pre-K will circle around and be dropped off in front of the church. Our staff on duty will assist in making sure your children arrive safely to their classrooms.

Once you have dropped off your child/children please do not cut out of lane instead wait until the car in front of you moves to exit the campus. When exiting please be mindful that cars may turn in front of you to drop off at preschool or to exit the campus.

CAR LINE TIPS FOR PICK-UP

Form 2 lanes. In the interest of safety for your child/children and others:

Children will not be permitted to enter a car until the car is in front of the auditorium. Please pull all the way up to the "Drop off ends here" sign even if your child is standing in another place. If one of the car lanes is moving, children must wait until the cars stop moving before going to their car. If you must exit your car to buckle seat belts, we ask that you use the lane closest to the auditorium. Please pick up your child as quickly as possible, being mindful of the extremely long line behind you. We are discouraged from blocking Clifton Avenue.

Morning Care (6:30am-7:30am) and Extended Day Program (EDP) is available. If you are interested in either of these programs, please be sure to visit the website to get all the information you need. This is also where you can register your child for the programs.

If you are happy with our school, please consider giving us a 5 star review on google and yelp. If you are not happy, please let us know at schooloffice@sacred-heart-school.org

If you would like to submit pictures, or need an event posted to Facebook or Instagram please contact yfortin@sacred-heart-school.org