St. Ambrose School, 2007-2008
Weekly News Files
January 10, 2007

NewsCalendarEvents and ActivitiesIn the Classroom and the CommunityVolunteer OpportunitiesMiscellaneousReference

Happy New Year and New Quarter!      

Mark Your Calendar
Now that you've turned the calendar page to 2008, save the date of November 15
for the second St. Ambrose Auction.
Mark the afternoon of Sunday, January 20 to be with us at St. Ambrose.
We want everyone to share in some good news!


NewsTop

Third PTO Family Night:  Mardi Gras Dinner
Rose of the Hill (located on Edwards)
February 5, 2008
$10 per person
Doors Open at 6:00 pm, Open Seating
Sit Down Dinner served at 6:30 pm  
Reservations limited to about 350 people  
No Homework Night
Be sure to check your backpacks for information on this event and the Open House.

NCADA Classes
The National Council for Alcohol and Drug Abuse (NCADA) will be teaching classes to all grade levels this year. Each class will be age appropriate and range from information about drugs and alcohol and making healthy choices to leadership, peers, and social issues. These classes are provided by grant money. The seventh grade's class called "Challenges and Choices" is January 10 for 7E and February 7 for 7G. It is a three-and-a-half hour program which helps students understand that attitudes, beliefs, peers, and media all play a role in decision-making. Other classes in January will be on the facts about alcohol and marijuana for the 8th grade (1/17 and 1/24). The 4th and 5th grades will begin their series of classes on "Respect and Bullying" in January as well. Classes for other grades will be held in February and March.

Act Now to Maintain Title V-A Funding
Funding for the 2007-2008 school year is set, but Title V-A will cease to exist unless Congress acts. The best thing to do is contact your federal legislative representatives, both House and Senate, and let them know how important Title V-A is to your students. In the past, these funds have been used to purchase the sound systems in most of the rooms and we are currently using Title V funds to purchase another sound system for another room. The funds have decreased considerably over the last couple of years and now the threat is that it will be completely gone. Private schools really depend on these monies for a variety of items.

Classroom Sound Systems Enhance Audio Learning
Proceeds from the Box Tops and similar collections, plus the Quilt Social, have helped to purchase these $1700 sound systems, but more funds are needed. If you, your company, or any organization you are affiliated with is looking for a contribution opportunity, please contact Sr. Carol. We need to equip four more rooms.

Box Tops
Continue to save your boxtops for the upcoming contest in February.

Campbell's Soup Labels
Mrs. Moses is a member of the Labels for Education Coordinator Advisory Board. Congratulations!

Technology Update
St. Ambrose students benefit from age-appropriate use of technology in the classroom. In Kindergarten through Second Grade, students are exposed to the internet via educational web sites projected in the classroom. Grades 3 through 5 attend Computer class in the lab where students learn keyboarding and the basics of Office software. Students in Grades 6 through 8 visit the Computer lab with their teachers and learn advanced Office skills applied to projects in specific subject areas. All students benefit from our subscription to United Streaming, a web site with curriculum-enhancing videos. The manipulatives and visuals engage and excite our students, regardless of their age.

Video Streaming
Check out the new video clips on the St. Ambrose web site. Click the St. Ambrose link here or atop the upper-left column on the Fast Direct home page. Or enter www.stambroseonthehill.com in your web browser.

Collection for the Homeless
St. Ambrose School has joined other Catholic schools in the Archdiocese in the Key Player Initiative to eliminate homelessness. This initiative wants to provide opportunities for self-sufficiency and dignity to those who are homeless or who are at risk of becoming homeless.
An update of the money collected by the school children for the Key Player Initiative for the homeless: September--$179.29, October--$207.76, November--$274.06. Students continue to collect for the homeless during December and January for this initiative to fund housing and programs for the homeless of St. Louis.
Submitted by Cathy Griner


CalendarTop

Wednesday, January 9Grades Closed for Viewing, 3:00 pm
Thursday, January 10Faculty Meeting: Noon Dismissal
Casual Dress Day
Friday, January 11Second Quarter Ends
Saturday, January 12Fit 4 Fun Workshop: B Mense and S. Nelson
Monday, January 14Third Quarter Begins
ACRE Tests, Grades 5 and 8
PTO Board Meeting, 7:00 pm
Tuesday, January 15School Board Meeting, 7:00 pm
Thursday, January 17Grades K and 5 Field Trips
Grades Open for Viewing, 3:00 pm
Sunday, January 20Open House:
New Families and Parishioners, Noon - 1:30 pm
Current School Families, 2:30 pm - 3:45 pm
Family Mass, 4:00 pm
Monday, January 21No Classes:  Dr. Martin Luther King's Birthday
Tuesday, January 22Re-registration Begins
Thursday, January 247th and 8th Grade Parent & Student Confirmation Meeting, 6:30 pm in Church
Friday, January 25Honors amid Clelian Awards Mass, 8:00 am
Saturday, January 26Trivia Night, sponsored by Athletic Association
Sunday, January 27Catholic Schools Week Begins
Monday, January 28Service Day
Assembly, 1:30 pm
Tuesday, January 29Spirit Day
8th Grade vs Faculty Volleyball Game
Wednesday, January 30Buddy Day
Special Olympics
Student Council Special Lunch
Thursday, January 31Heroes Day


Events and ActivitiesTop
The Scholastic Book Fair will begin on February 10, with Family Day after all the masses and continue through the week ending on Friday, February 15.

Trivia Night, sponsored by the St. Ambrose Athletic Association, is Saturday, January 26.


In the Classroom and the CommunityTop

Middle School News
Students worked on these academic activities before Christmas: reading "A Christmas Carol" (7th grade), writing a Christmas short story (6th grade), making a powerpoint on vertebrates (7th grade), working on scales and maps, (7th grade), starting geometry (Mrs. Scherer's 8th grade), reading the novel To Kill a Mockingbird (8th grade), making a powerpoint on the edited version of Glory (8th grade). The week of January 7, middle school took their exams for the first semester. Whew!

Thanks so much to the PTO for the Christmas all-school field trip to see the movie Alvin and the Chipmunks at Ronnie’s Theater on December 19. The students loved the event. Here are some comments from upper grade students:

“I loved the movie! I would go and see it again with my family without a second thought! I connected with the movie by personal experience.”—Shannon Bryant, 8th grade

“The movie was cute! My favorite character was Theodore!”—Gwen Calcaterra, 8th grade

“The message is to be thankful and care for who and what you have.”—Morgan Grasso, 8th grade

“I thought I was going to dislike this movie. I saw it though and loved it.”—Ryan Pearson, 8th grade

“It was the best movie I saw all month!”—Matt Rancilio, 7th grade

“It was supercute!”—Claire Jegle, 7th grade

“I loved the music in it.”—Nicci Amato, 7th grade

“The chipmunks were so cute and funny.”—Liyah Welch, 7th grade

So thanks again to the PTO for sponsoring this Christmas gift to our students.
Submitted by Mrs. Griner

New Year/New Space in Kindergarten
We worked hard and practiced the letter “o” sound in the middle of words and also added the sight word “YOU” to our list. In math, we talked more about solids and their attributes such as which ones can roll, which one cans slide, and which ones can do both. Then we made a cone hat. Sr. Ruth reviewed all the Italian they had learned from the beginning of the year.

I am very impressed with their behavior at church. They have really come a long way this quarter. Many are also singing along to the refrains of some of the songs.

We had the first centers of 2008. The four activities include: tangram puzzles, making a snowman ruler and measuring, alphabet bingo and/or memory games, and sequencing cards and puzzles.

Miss Courtney is a high school senior who is with us part time for the next two weeks. She is doing her senior service hours by volunteering at the school and frequently she comes into our classroom to lend a hand.

We reviewed all the social skills from the Boys Town Classroom Management program that the school uses. We re-posted (since the construction) all the skills we have learned so far and practiced many of them by role-playing. A few examples are: making an apology, listening, taking NO for an answer, getting the teacher’s attention, etc.
Submitted by Mrs. Patke

At the Missouri State Gymnastics Championship December 7-9 in St. Joseph, Grace Frisella came in first place in the 8-year-old age group - Level 4. She placed first on bar, first on floor, first on vault, and second on beam. Her overall score was a 37.30, which put her in First Place all around!


Volunteer OpportunitiesTop

Please remember that you must attend the
Protecting God's Children Workshop
and complete the paperwork in order to volunteer with the students.
The workshops are listed on the Archdiocesan website
or you may call Linda in the school office (772-1437).

Bernadette Mense is in charge of Lunch Room Parents and looking for more volunteers. If you would like to help with lunch duty, please contact Bernadette.


MiscellaneousTop

Link to Lunches
You may check the link on the main Fast Direct page to view a spreadsheet of Taste of the Hill lunch payments through December. The special lunch for January 14 is being rescheduled. Watch for more information on this and regarding ordering for the second semester.

Yearbook Photos
It is time once again to start compiling photos for the 2007-2008 yearbook. Laura McQuay, a 5th grade parent, has taken over the yearbook and is looking for sports photos, pictures from LaFesta, scouts, Trunk-or-Treat, field trips, etc. If you have photos, please send them to school on a CD, addressed to Laura McQuay. As always, thank you for your help!
Submitted by Mrs. Elmore

Notes to Parents
Recycle Your Ink Jet Cartridges, Paper, and Aluminum Cans
This free program generates money for St. Ambrose and helps protect the environment. Simply drop the cartridges off in the cafeteria and the paper and cans in the bins on Hereford.

New Instructions Regarding Campbell's Labels
Please send in the entire label, as the instructions for submitting labels have changed. We will have homeroom parents help with the cutting that is required. Pass the word to grandparents and neighbors who may save them too. And, don't forget to keep clipping boxtops and labels and saving them for upcoming contests!

Save More Labels
Please save labels from Nestle Pure Life Purified Water. The school gains points for every label saved and we can earn equipment at the end of the year. Please turn these labels in separately from the Campbell labels.


ReferenceTop

Homeroom Parents
Kdg: Captain - Jennifer Mayberry, Ellie Lankford, Rachel Rickert
Gr. 1: Captain - Karen Sinak, Carolyn Mitchell, Teresa Bozikis, Teresa Weitz, Jill Springer, Nickie Collora
Gr. 2: Captain - Bernadette Mense, Toni Paulus, Jill Springer, Tammi Miles
Gr. 3: Captain - Julie Passanise, Stacey Byrne, Carolyn Mitchell, Cami Johanningmeier
Gr. 4: Captain - Angie Kaestner, Kathy Ward, Joanie Stark, Teresa Severino
Gr. 5: Captain - Ann Konzen, Karen Sinak, JoAnn Cronin, Janice Summers, Jennifer Byers
Gr. 6: Co-Captains - Diana Smith & Margie Meyers, Toni Paulus, Pam Vollmer, Angie Kaestner
Gr. 7: Captain - Bernadette Mense, Anna Stremlau, Robyn O'Leary, Jeanne Bergfeld
Gr. 8: Captain - Michelle Calcaterra, Donna Nappier, Stacey Byrne, Lynn Berra, Vicky Crump, Elaine Hall

Special Lunch Schedule (served from 11:00 - 1:00)
January 30 - Student Council Domino's Pizza Day
February 25 (Grade 2) - Anthonino's
March - None
April 21 (K & Grade 1) - BBQ

Class Celebration/Activity Schedule
This list identifies the classes responsible for hospitality at each event, as organized by the room parent:
2007-2008 Student Council Members
Officers
President: Rachel Pearson
Vice President: Gwen Calcaterra
Secretary: Alyssa Hilderbrand
Treasurer: Sam Herbig
Class Representatives
5th:  Marissa Sinak and Julie Dempsey
6th:  Addyson Collora and Julia Stark
7th:  Michaela Mense and Nicci Amato
8th:  Samantha Been and Zach Bandera

School Rewards
Target's Take Charge of Education Program
Apply for a Target REDcard or Visa and 1% of your purchases are returned to your designated school.
Foot Locker School Rewards and Flowers into Dollars
Present the key tags recently sent home at Foot Locker stores or shop online at footlocker.com and 1-800-flowers.com, using our School Code WL3B when checking out. Whatever your method of payment, 5% of what you spend will be donated to St. Ambrose.
Macy's Shop for Education Program
Sign up to support St. Ambrose and every time you use your Macy's card, the school earns money. Complete the flyer sent home this week and return to the office to start earning from 1 to 3 percent of your monthly charged purchases at Macy's.
Internet Search Website
Search the web with www.goodsearch.com and money from their advertisers will go to your favorite charity.

Also check out the Apostles of the Sacred Heart of Jesus Website at www.ascjus.org. Our sisters are now engaged in retreat work at Queen of Apostles Center in Imperial. If you are interested in joining or taking a group for a day or overnight retreat, please contact Sr. Rosemary Buttice, ASCJ, at 636-464-0163.

Archdiocesan Mandate
All parents who wish to participate in any event (lunch duty, field trips, class parties, Breakfast with Santa, etc.) at school involving children MUST attend the Protecting God's Children Workshop. For information on times and locations of the workshops, please visit the archdiocesan website www.archstl.org and follow the link or consult the recent message to parents on Fast Direct. Don't forget the November 6 workshop here at St. Ambrose.

Our Fabulous Faculty
GradeTeacherHomeroomVoice Mail
KMaria Foster107134
Michelle Patke108134
1Mary Lynne Harris205138
Jennifer O'Toole202125
2Jennifer Smith204137
Margaret Rotter203136
3Emily Elmore103123
Ann Grandstaff105130
4Anne Henning106133
Sr. Margaret Mary Stoverink104129
5Judy King307145
Debbie Hilderbrand (homeroom)
308146
6Eugene Marella303141
Leanne Durham304142
7Cathy Griner305143
Dwight Elmore302140
8Shanna Kar306144
Mary Scherer301139
ArtJoAnn Dreas201117
ComputerDebbie HilderbrandComputer Lab126
Learning Consultant, 5-8Lisa HornerPenthouse119
Learning Consultant, K-4Terry KellarPenthouse120
Physical EducationBeth BrickeyGym263
Italian, K-3Sr. Ruth Aubrey
Italian, 4-8Annunciata Buzzai
Teacher AideSr. Sandra Krupp
PrincipalSr. Carol SansoneOffice114
Office Hilma MosesOffice115
OfficeLinda GambaroOffice116
Extended CareSusan NelsonCafeteria314-922-9475