May 25, 2012 Newsletter

Families That Care

Educational research confirms that when families show they care about learning, children take learning seriously. When families show that learning is important, children work harder. When families help children with schoolwork at home, children do better in school.

And when families are involved constructively with the work of the schools, whole schools improve their performance.

Spelling Bee

The Diocese held their annual Spelling Bee on Friday, May 4, 2012 at St. Mark’s Center. Alyssa VanSlyke from Grade 6 was the winner from St. James School. She faced twenty other students from the Erie Diocese.

After thirty-two rounds there were four players remaining. At this point they went to a list none of the students had seen before. Alyssa spelled TUNGSTEN correctly and then went down on the word ANCHOVY.

We are very proud of Alyssa for placing third in this spelling bee. She is a winner in our eyes.

Mrs. Pacinelli

Cell phones can be just as dangerous as weapons.” “5.7 million students in the U.S. have been bullied.” These are very strong words spoken to students of Grades 6 and 7 on May 9 ^th. Special Agent Elaine Surma has been in law enforcement for thirty-five years dealing with narcotics, violence, and cyber bullying and her warning to the students was loud and clear. If you bully, you are breaking the law. Her focus was on the use of the computer especially, the social media sites. She said that any message put on the Internet leaves a trail and can be traced by going back to the cell phone company. She showed three short videos to the students that showed all too clearly the effects of bullying. Those who did the bullying or harassment by communication were taken to Juvenile Detention Centers. Those who were bullied were so hurt and frustrated that they took desperate measures. Her suggestion – First of all, follow the Golden Rule and second be part of the solution, not the problem. We are grateful to Special Agent Surma for her informative presentation and her words of caution. May God Bless her in her difficult work.

Sr. Martha, C.D.S.

Many thanks to all who faithfully saved aluminum cans for us. The money was used to pay for buses for our field trips. God bless you!

One hundred years from now,

it will not matter…

What kind of a car I drove -

How spacious the house I chose –

How much money I had saved

Nor what my clothes looked like.

But the world may be a

little better because I was

important in the life of my child.

Classroom News

They’re coming. What? You may ask. Purple Martins. They have already built nests in the gourds at St. James Manor and they’ll be in our back yard soon. These purple martin houses are a gift to us from Mr. Craig Kern, a parishioner of St. James and father of three former students. Mr. Kern is on the board of the Purple Martin Conservation Association at Presque Isle. He spoke to our 7 ^thgraders about the project on May 14 ^th. These large American birds of the swallow family with bluish-black plumage nest in the homes we make for them. Their favorite home is gourds. If we can get a colony started in the houses on our property the birds will stay for the spring and summer and come back every year. That is if they survive the 5,000 mile flight to Brazil for the winter and the trip back. These birds won’t just be pretty to look at. They’ll do us a big favor. Their specialty is eating big bugs like wasps and dragonflies. Not only that, they are people friendly. They won’t mind if you look into their homes while they are nesting. When they arrive we will all know it because they are very noisy birds. When that happens Mr. Kern will come back and lower the houses so we can see them. Hurry and come, purple martins, we eagerly await your arrival.

Sr. Martha, C.D.S.

The second grade had a Zoo-rific time at the Erie Zoo! We saw and learned many things. The children went to a presentation called “Amazing Adaptations”. There we learned that adaptations are special characteristics of an animal that help it survive in its environment. They can include their size, coloring, and coverings. They got to do different activities like the touch boxes where they just put their hand in and felt what the object was. They learned how an animal’s legs are an adaptation. The activity they did was can you try and jump as far as a giraffe walks among others animals. We enjoyed seeing all the animals in the Zoo and learning about them.

Mrs. Keinath

The month of May has arrived and spring has sprung. Grade 4A will continue to work on many concepts in our classroom. Here is a little that we will be working on. In PA History we have been learning about the French and Indian War. Mathematics has been interesting as we have been exploring decimals. In our Health class we have been learning about infectious and noninfectious diseases and ways to prevent them. We will begin our unit in English on adverbs and prepositions. These are just a few of our subjects and the information we are covering. As we finish up the school year we are hoping to be even more prepared for our next year. Fifth grade here we come!

Mrs. Sigler

Did you know that soap was discovered 5,000 years ago? Ever since then, blowing bubbles has been an enjoyment for people of all ages around the world. Grade 3 discovered some creative ways to use bubbles in experiments. We all made bubbles with a big and small wand, wire, a funnel, a straw, and our hands to see what object was the easiest to make bubbles with. We were able to make bubbles inside of bubbles and even drive a toy car inside a bubble. Now that our curiosity has opened our eyes to other experiments to try, we have many fun activities to try during the summer. Can you make a soap bubble frame and hold it like a tray to bounce a bubble on the film like a trampoline? Can you freeze a bubble? If you had a bubble in a jar, how long can it last? (The record was over a year.) Maybe you might even do some research to find out why a bubble is a circle no matter what shape of the object you use to make the bubble.

Tips:

• Distilled water works the best. Ordinary tap water is hard because it contains lime so the softer the water the better.
• Bubbles last longer when the humidity is high. When it is too hot the water evaporates faster from the bubble.
• Wind is harmful so find the most sheltered area.

Mrs. Case