NAN-O-GRAM

As you may know, the State of Idaho Department of Education has new administrators at the helm. Tom Luna, the current Superintendent of Public Instruction, is spearheading major changes. The department has restructured several areas, some will affect our students and others will not. Federal and state funding will remain the same in distribution, as all children in the state are eligible for all funding offered. However, educational core standards and assessments have changed dramatically.

The Idaho Reading Indicator is administered to all students in the state in Kindergarten through third grade, and has been totally revamped as of this fall. In my opinion, it’s long overdue. Our students participated and completed the new testing, however, what the new assessments are “indicating” is a bit different.

The core of the new indicator is phonics, on what the children are able to read, not how fast they can read. Can they recognize letters by name, segment sounds, blend sounds and decode multisyllabic words? These assessments no longer evaluate comprehension or spelling skills, focusing only on phonics, an essential building block for successful reading. They are straightforward, designed to help your child’s teacher target instruction by pinpointing strengths and weaknesses in a specific reading domain.

The teachers and I still have questions…that’s an understandable given, but change is good, and education is all about change.

Keep reading to your kids!

Mrs. Corgiat

FREE & REDUCED LUNCH DEADLINE

Applications for free or reduced lunch are due by the end of September. Please return your completed application to the school office. All applications are kept confidential.

Altar Server Training

There will be an Altar Server Training session on Wednesday, October 3^rd at 6:30pm in St. Anthony Chapel. All baptized Catholic boys or girls who have received their First Communion are eligible to be altar servers. This training is not only for those who have never served, but also for those who need a refresher course.

Ice Blocking

Looks like the weather will be cooperating with our plans for Ice Blocking tomorrow afternoon. Please make sure that your child brings clothes and a towel that can get wet and dirty! All parents are invited to join us in the fun. We will begin bussing the students up to Bartz Field on the ISU campus at 12:30. Should be lots of fun for the students and parents alike!

REQUIRED FORMS NEEDED!

Upon checking our school records, we have found that we are still missing many registration forms, proof of immunizations and birth certificates. For those families that have forms missing I have attached a note stating what forms are missing. For those families that have missing registration forms, I have sent home a copy of last year’s form, which you may re-sign and date if all the information has remained the same, or you can complete a new one. Please note that a new signed tuition commitment form needs to be done each school year. Please submit all missing forms to the school office by Sept. 27. Thank you.

NO SCHOOL

Don’t forget that the next two weeks of school will be short ones. Next Thursday, Sept. 27 is an Early Release Day, and there is no school on Sept. 28. The faculty will be attending the Catholic Fall Conference in Boise. Please keep them in your prayers for a safe trip.

Child care will be open both days, but arrangements do need to be made with Miss Shauntel or Miss Lisa.

Next Thursday and Friday, Oct. 4 and 5, both child care and school will be closed. The faculty will be doing Statewide In-service activities and the child care staff will be attending classes for their continued licensing.

Make sure to mark your calendars!! Early Release days end at 1:00 p.m.!

When it comes to backpacks….Pack it Light, Wear it Right!

On September 21, 2007, Idaho State University Occupational Therapy Program and Holy Spirit Catholic School are holding a school backpack "weigh-in" to encourage students to "Lighten Up." This effort is part of National School Backpack Awareness Day held nationwide to educate children, parents, teachers, and communities about the serious health problems children may have from backpacks that are too heavy or worn improperly. Occupational therapy practitioners advise a backpack strategy of Pack it Light, Wear it Right.

Loriann Helgeson MOTR/L (ISU Clinical Instructor & HSCS parent), KC Austin MOTS, and Race Russell MOTS from Idaho State University will present back-pack awareness to our students. Please see the attached handout for further information. (Handouts in Spanish are available in the school office).

If you have any questions regarding this event please contact Loriann at (406 -8973).

SCHOOL SWEATSHIRTS

Sorry, but we are still waiting for prices for the school logo t-shirts, and sweatshirts. Hopefully next week we can start accepting orders.

Wow! Look what we did!

Holy Spirit Catholic School was the American Heart Association’s highest grossing school in the Pocatello area raising almost $1,800.00 towards heart research. We even raised more money than some of the schools in Boise. Way to go!

Albertson’s Community Partners

Every time you shop at Albertsons you can raise money for Holy Spirit Catholic School. All you need to do is fill out the Community Partners form and return to the school office and your Preferred Savings Card will be linked to Holy Spirit Catholic School. Or if you prefer, you can register on-line at www.albertsons.com. Click on “In The Community” then click on the Community Partners logo link. Once you log in, click on “Sign me up”.

Last year Holy Spirit received almost $2,000.00 from Albertson’s for people just doing their regular grocery shopping. The more people who register, the more money the school will earn.

ONGOING STUFF

Holy Spirit Catholic School Raffle tickets will continue to be sold through Oct. 1.
Collection of Yoplait Yogurt Pink lids will continue through October. Please support this cause for those special “ladies” in your life.
Collection of canned and boxed food for the Stone Soup Drive will continue through October 15. According to our sources, the food banks are running extremely low, so please help if you can.

Smith’s Earn & Learn

The attached parent letter from Smith’s, talks about their Earn & Learn program. If you shop at Smith’s Food & Drug Stores please take the letter with you so the bar code at the bottom of the page can be scanned with your Fresh Values Rewards Card. Holy Spirit will then receive money every time you shop at Smith’s. If you registered during last school year, you will need to do it again for this school year. The Earn & Learn program is only valid for one school year at a time. Last year Holy Spirit earned $500.00.

SAFE ENVIRONMENT TRAINING (S.E.T.)

The remaining training sessions for this fall are Sat. Oct 6 from 10:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. at St. Paul’s Chapel in Pocatello and at St. Bernard’s in Blackfoot on Sat. Sept. 22 from 10:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. or Thurs., Sept. 27 from 7:00 – 9:00 p.m. Please contact Miss Polly in the school office at 232-5763 to pre-register. Only those who have not attended a training session must attend. If you do not attend one of these training sessions, you will not be allowed to volunteer or participate in any school activity per Diocese mandate.

Also, the school is charged $30.00 per person for this training and background checks so if you are able to help with that cost please pay in the school office. Thank you!

TRAFFIC ON 7^TH STREET

Don’t forget to sign the petition in the school hallway regarding the traffic on 7^th. We would love to get a four way stop at 7^th and Wyeth as well as a crosswalk in front of the school and you know, the squeaky wheel gets fixed first (or something like that!).

DATES TO REMEMBER

Sept. 27 – Early Release – School Dismissed at 1:00 p.m.

Sept. 27 – All missing forms need to be returned to the school office

Sept. 28 – No School

Oct. 4 & 5 – No School or Child Care

But all who humble themselves before

The Lord shall be given every blessing and

shall have wonderful peace.

Psalm 37:11 TLB