Family Messenger January 28, 2009

A Message from the Principal
This week Catholic Schools across the nation are celebrating Catholic Schools Week. Catholic Schools Week is an annual national celebration of the important role of Catholic elementary and secondary schools. The theme this year is Catholic Schools Celebrating Service. We began this special celebration with our Mass and Open House on Sunday. Thank you to all families who attended. It was a great turnout! The student council has planned several activities for the students this week, and we hope that you can join us this Friday for Grandparents/Special Friends Day.

The school finance committee has finalized the tuition and fees schedule for 2009-2010. We have raised the tuition minimally for next year to plan responsibly and meet the Archdiocese’s requirement of tuition covering all salaries and benefits.

To be considered a parishioner for 2009-2010, you must have contributed at minimum of $500 to the church from January 1, 2008 – December 31, 2008. School families who made donations will receive two statements. One statement shows detail donations and is for your income tax records, and the other is a summary that can be submitted to us for re-registration. Please remember that we offer financial assistance, and we will notify you as soon as applications become available.

As a reminder, I have been selected as a juror on a case that is expected to run through the first weeks of February. Mrs. Diana Girskis is the acting principal while I am away. If you have any urgent matters, please call the school office to reach her or email her at incafirst@gmail.com. Mrs. Girskis and I remain in constant communication.


Ms. Olivia Carrillo

Important Dates
• 1/28 – Crazy Day – Come dressed with crazy hair, shoes, socks, etc.
• 1/29 – Pajama day – Pajamas must be modest and appropriate. For safety, shoes must be worn
• 1/30 – Grandparents/Special Friends Day
o Student Show – 10:00 a.m.
o Mass – 11:00 a.m.
o Noon Dismissal; No lunch served
o HAPPY BIRTHDAY MRS. LOMASTO
• 2/4 – WASC DAY - NOON DISMISSAL; NO LUNCH SERVED
• 2/7 – ACADECA Cathedral Quiz Bowl
• 2/18 - WASC DAY - NOON DISMISSAL; NO LUNCH SERVED




Scrip Tip from Jennifer Bunt
Friday, is Grandparents/Special Friends Day. Often, the Grandparent/Special Friend will take the kids out to lunch. Don't forget to purchase Scrip for Burger King, Carl’s Jr., Subway, El Pollo Loco, CPK, Islands, Marie Calendars, etc., beforehand.

Valentine's Day is coming soon. We have many options to help you honor your Valentine. For Moms and/or Dads See's, Macy's, Barnes & Noble, TJ Maxx, Bath & Body Works, Ross, J.Crew, and Starbucks, are all great options. For your kids, ITunes, Claires, Borders, AMC Theatres, Blockbuster, Jamba Juice, Chuck E. Cheese’s, would all bring big hugs and kisses of thanks.

As an extra limited time bonus for Special Order Scrip, J Jill (normally 8%) and Talbots (normally 11%) are offering an additional 5% profit through Friday, Feb. 13th.

Back to School Hop Participation Hours
If you volunteered at the Back to School Hop in September and have not received credit for your hours worked, please submit a yellow participation hours slip as soon as possible. Once we receive your slip, we can apply the proper credit.

Spanish Club
We are still accepting students in our after school Spanish Club. Fees will be prorated for late registrants. Please see the flyer enclosed.

Family Messenger January 6, 2009

Father of Light,
May we worship your Son as the Magi did
when they arrived in Bethlehem, and may we return
to our lives with that love and delight in our hearts.
Help us to give your Son all our best gifts and to bring
Your gifts of holiness and peace back to those we love.
Amen.

A Message from the Principal
As we turn the calendar to a brand new year, it is a good time to examine your child’s progress so far this school year. By now your child is settled into the school routine and you can, with your child, set goals for the remainder of this school year. How can you help your child make the most of the remaining half of the school year? Here is a simple process that can make a positive difference in the quality of your child’s learning experiences:

• Begin by sitting down with your child and talking honestly about what is going well and what areas could use a little extra effort.
• It may be that your child needs a little extra assistance in one subject or another. Your child may be able to identify what kind of help he or she needs, or you may want to ask the teacher for suggestions.
• Remember, the most effective help your child can receive is when the parents and school work as a team. Do not hesitate to ask your child’s teacher(s) for a mid-year conference. This can be particularly helpful if a child is experiencing overall difficulty in school.
• Set some specific goals with your child. An older child can write one or two goals for the trimester and at least one goal for the week. It might be helpful to post the goals on the refrigerator.
• Make your child’s learning goals part of a regular conversation. Remind your child of the importance to stick with the goals and make some progress each day.
• Acknowledge effort and celebrate successes in simple ways. Baking cookies with your child or inviting a friend over are ways of encouraging your child to continue to work toward his or her goals.

Remember, your child still has a good part of the school year remaining. There is still plenty of time to re-double efforts and set goals to make this a fantastic learning time!


All of us at Incarnation School would like to wish Father Paul very special birthday wishes. We pray that these next few months will be nourishing for him, and we look forward to his return in the summer. While Fr. Paul is away, Fr. Tom Schweitzer will be Administrator Pro Tem.

Blessings,

Ms. Olivia Carrillo

Important Dates
• 1/11 – Grade 5 School Sponsored Mass
• 1/13 – General PTO Meeting 7:00 p.m.
• 1/14 – Coffee with the Principal 7:45 a.m. in ASP room
• 1/19 – No School: Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
• 1/23 – Progress Reports go home
• 1/25 – Catholic Schools Week Mass 9:00 a.m.; Open House 10:00 a.m. – noon
• 1/30 – Grandparents/Special Friends Day; noon dismissal; no lunch served

St. Columbkille Gift Collection
Thank you to all families who generously donated a gift for the students at St. Columbkille. We were able to collect enough gifts for all of the students! We also thank the parents who volunteered to take the gifts to the school. Thank you for your help.

Scrip Tip from Jennifer Bunt
Congratulations to all of you who used the Scrip Program this Christmas season. The final figures are being compiled, but I can tell you that it was the most successful ever. Hooray for us!!!
We have a few changes that you will see reflected on the updated order forms that are in your home messenger envelopes this week. On Hand, we will now be carrying AMC Theatre Ticket $9.50 (16%), Blockbuster $10 (7%), Borders $10 (9%), Chuck E Cheese $10 (8%), ITunes $15 (4%), and JCrew $25 (13%).
We will no longer keep KMart, Honey Baked Ham, and PF Chang's On Hand, but you can easily get them by Special Order.
On the Special Order Form, Marriott Hotels have decreased their contributions to 8%. KB Toys and Travelocity are no longer available.

See’s Candy Profit
Our total profit from the See’s Candy Fundraiser to benefit our P.E./Athletic Program was $2153.87!
Thank you to all who supported the fundraiser, and special thanks to Lisa Dumansky and Margie Cua-Leon for their help in organizing the sales and delivering the candy.