August 24, 2022

Dear St. Monica Academy Families,

After three very solid days our first through eighth graders are off to a great start. Today, our school family grew as we welcomed our kindergarten students to their first day. It was wonderful to hear the lighthearted chatter and cheers of delight as some of our youngest students got to see their new classrooms and meet their friends. Tomorrow, we welcome our preschool students to their first day of school. We cannot wait to see them!

Today, I was able to watch a little bit of a lesson Ms. Wilwers did with her students. The lesson focused on self-awareness, self-regulation, and the words we choose. Students were given tubes of toothpaste and invited to squeeze the toothpaste out of the tube, then they tried to put it back into the tube. When I asked the students what they learned they said, “It’s easy Mrs. Zver. We learned that it is so easy to say something hurtful, but you can never really take the words back.” As adults we know it can take years to learn this concept completely, but today Ms. Wilwers’ students got a great start on an important skill. We are so fortunate to have Ms. Wilwers and other teachers just like her who help our students learn to make positive, affirming choices for themselves and others.

I have been a part of several schools in the Archdiocese, and I continue to count myself blessed to be part of SMA. This is by far the most welcoming, committed and just plain nice community I have met. The faculty is outstanding. They are skilled, knowledgeable, and truly dedicated to seeing our school thrive! Pease keep our teachers in your prayers as they continue to poor their hearts and spirit into their students.

It is very important to report student absences. We take safety very seriously and making sure we have accounted for all our students in the morning is part of that commitment. If your child will be absent, please call the school office at 773-631-7880 by 8:30 a.m. and leave Ms. Reykjalin a message. Please include your child’s name, grade level, and the reason for the absence. If we do not receive a call from you Mrs. Reykjalin will have to reach out to confirm that your child is not at school.

Please make sure to share information about any new medical conditions or allergies your child may have developed so we can be sure they are getting the care they need while here at school. We have had a few children comment about newly developed allergies. We want to be sure all the bases are covered!

We have had a little trouble getting our emails out to all our school families in the last few weeks. We think the problem has been solved and hope everyone is receiving the broadcast today. If you are still not receiving emails, please call the school office and let us know right away!

Finally, take some time this weekend for family fun. SUMMERFEST! happens this Saturday from 11:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. There will be live music, food, bounce houses, tons of kid’s activities and the Dunk Bucket! Many of our faculty members, Fr. Greg and I will be taking on the dunk Bucket Challenge. Make sure to get your chance to tip that bucket over on your favorite teacher!

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