Find the rest of the newsletter online at From the Grade 1 s. S- Sun. P- Plants. R- Rain. I- Insects. N- Nature.

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1 May 2016 Find the rest of the newsletter online at From the Grade 1 s S- Sun P- Plants R- Rain I- Insects N- Nature G- Green (Grade One Students 1A) May is the month of Mary and Mother s Day. The grade one students will be praying the Rosary and learning about Mother Mary. We are also learning about acrostic poems in language arts. Our students are working hard on their own acrostic Mother s Day poems! May is a busy month in grade one! We have Teacher s Pet visiting our classrooms to learn about animal habitats! We will also be going to an Urban Farm to learn all about bees! Lots of fun things taking place in grade one! Grade 1A, 1B, 1C

2 May 2016 SUN MON TUE WED THU FRI SAT 1 Kinder B 2-5 Forest School Hats on for mental health Gr. 5 Immunization SAC Meeting at 6: Dodgeball/ Skittle ball Tourney wear the St. Pius t-shirts 12 The NED show Spring pictures Victoria Day No school Care for Creation 27 No kinder classes Gr. 4 Farm school 30th June 3rd 30 31

3 The month of May brings us many things to celebrate warm weather, beautiful flowers, parent appreciation, and Education Week. But perhaps the most valuable thing we have to celebrate this month is mothers! We celebrate Mother s Day for all of the special mothers in our community, around the world and especially the Mother Mary, who is not only the mother of Jesus, but our spiritual mother also. Our Catholic church honors Mary with special prayers, such as the rosary. When you say the Rosary, it is also a time to remember Mary s Life and that of her son, Jesus. Lord Jesus, Son of God above, You, too, have known a mother s love Mary the Virgin gave you birth, so You could serve us here on earth. Today we ask with all of your heart, Lord Jesus, graciously impart Your boundless grace and loving care to faithful mothers everywhere. For letting Mom our teacher be; for precious truths learned at her knee; For all she s done throughout our days, accept our thanks and endless praise. Help us to thank them, Lord, we pray on this and every other day. Amen. K. MacGregor L. Hamstra Principal Assistant Principal

4 Parent Appreciation (Note day change) Please pop by on May 26th for our parent appreciation! Enjoy a hot cup of coffee in the library starting at 7:45am and take away a little token of our appreciation. If you can't make it in, be sure to check your child's backpack for a little surprise! Thank-you to all of our parents for your endless support, volunteer time and positivity towards your child's learning this year!

5 Parking Safety Once again we would like to remind everyone about the parking in the front of the school. There are only a few areas in front of the school that you are actually allowed to park. Most areas are just a drop off only and we have a handicap parking space as well. We would ask that you adhere to the parking bylaws and only park in authorized areas. City police are aware that certain bylaws are not being met and will be out to ticket during the months ahead. We only want our students to be safe and adhering to these bylaws is the first step. Thank you for your cooperation. Spring Weather Please ensure that your child is dressed appropriately for the weather. Although it is starting to warm up, the weather still can change during the day and students are underdressed during recess or for their commute home. It is much easier to remove layers than to be faced with being cold. Recess will only be cancelled if there is a lot of precipitation or a thunderstorm. Bicycles, Skateboards, Etc With Spring upon us, a reminder that students are allowed to ride their bicycles to and from school. Bikes must be secured to the bicycle rack through the use of a durable bicycle lock. Students are asked not to ride their bikes on school property during recess and lunch time. For safety, please remember to wear your helmet as it is the law. The school cannot be held responsible for the theft of bicycles or bicycle accessories. Parents should consider registering the serial number of the bicycle and making a phone call to their insurance company ensuring proper coverage. Scooters, rollerblades, skateboards and heelys are not allowed on school property. The school does not have adequate storage space and safety is a concern. Boston Pizza If you eat at any Boston Pizza location, please keep the receipts and send them into school with your child. Boston pizza will donate 5% of the total receipts (before tax) submitted to St. Pius X school. You can enjoy some delicious food while helping to raise money for your child s school!

6 Bus Passes Elementary $32.00 per month Junior / Senior High $50.00 per month Kindergarten Family Plan (families of 3 or more) Elementary Junior / Senior High $28.00 per month $46.00 per month Annual Pass Elementary $ Junior / Senior High $ Elementary (family plan) $ Junior/Senior (family plan) $ Registrations for We are still accepting registrations for our three programs; 100 Voices, Full day Kindergarten, and Grades 1-6. If your child is already registered with us then he/she will just remain registered unless we hear otherwise. So we are asking at this time, that if your child is not returning to St. Pius X in the Fall of 2016, please notify the office as soon as possible.

7 May 2016 Jesus said to them again, Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you. When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them Receive the Holy Spirit. ~John 20: 21-22~ This Gospel passage is very important to all Catholics, but especially to those in Catholic education. It comes from the reading for Pentecost Sunday. In it, Jesus appears to his disciples and sends them forth to carry on his mission. Just as he came to show us the enduring love of Our Father, so he tells them to go forth and to carry on in his name. This is the essence of our mission as Catholic educators. We are called to help our students know the peace and love of Jesus each and every day. That is the gift of God s grace that comes with our vocation to Catholic education. We are getting so close to the end of the school year, and this brings a flurry of activity to our vibrant Catholic educational community. May 4 th is our 27 th Annual Celebration of the Arts at the Jubilee Auditorium. This event is a showcase of the amazing gifts that our students have in the visual and performing arts. May 5 th is World Catholic Education Day. This day, which is always on Ascension Thursday, offers Catholics around the world the opportunity to give thanks for the gift of Catholic education. Here in Alberta, we are particularly fortunate to have the gift of publicly funded Catholic education. Edmonton Catholic Schools is proud to host the 35 th Annual Ben Calf Robe Traditional Pow Wow on Saturday, May 7 th from 1:00-10:00 p.m. at the Commonwealth Recreation Centre. This day is an amazing expression of indigenous culture and spirituality. Visit our website at to learn more. May 2 nd 8 th is the Canadian Mental Health Associations 65 th Annual Mental Health Week. Again this year, CMHA is asking Canadians to GET LOUD for mental health, by using #GETLOUD. On May 4 th, 2016, Albertans are invited to wear a hat to raise awareness of the importance of good mental health. To support mental health within our district, we have developed a Mental Health Strategic Plan that is currently being implemented district wide, with a focus on the health promotion and prevention of our students. Staff will be trained in Mental Health Literacy, so we can support the needs of all students. We want our students to be healthy, happy individuals and positive mental health is vitally important. It involves how we feel, think, act and interact with those around us. By focusing on a comprehensive, collaborative, continuum of support, we will be responsive to the needs of our students, staff and families within Edmonton Catholic Schools. 2

8 Edmonton Catholic School District Parent Newsletters May 2016 Feast of the Ascension of Our Lord Aspiring to New Heights The Feast of the Ascension of Our Lord, Jesus Christ, is celebrated forty days after Easter. According to the Gospel of Mark, Jesus is seated at table with the remaining eleven disciples. He instructs them to go into all the world and proclaim the good news. Then Jesus was taken about or ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father. After Jesus ascension, the disciples, guided by the Holy Spirit, indeed went out and proclaimed the good news everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the message by the signs that accompanied it (Mark 16: 20). Ascension. Arise. Climb. I confess. I m afraid of heights. It wasn t always like that. As a teenager I used to love spending time with my dad on various carpentry projects he did for neighbours. The projects sometimes included shingling roofs of houses and garages. At the time I thought nothing of scrambling up the ladder and onto a roof. Heights didn t bother me then. Things changes when I got older. As a young priest, an incredible opportunity presented itself. At the time, Saint George s Ukrainian Catholic Parish in Edmonton was working on an ambitious iconography project. World renown iconographer Heiko Schlieper was chosen to paint the interior of the church, telling the story of our salvation through icons. On one of my visits to Saint George s Parish to check on the progress, the late Father Volodymyr Tarnawsky, the parish priest of the time, invited me to take a closer look at Mr. Schileper s latest work: he was painting an icon of Christ the Pantocrator in the main dome of the church. If you ve ever been in a Byzantine Church, you know we re talking several stories high! Like an excited school boy, I quickly ascended the scaffolding up towards the dome, but half ways up my knees began to shake. Father Tarnawsky encouraged me on upwards, assuring me that I would never have such an opportunity in my life again. I replied, It looks fine from here. He smiled but I knew he was thinking chicken. One of the characteristics of Eastern Christian church architecture, including Ukrainian Catholic churches, is the huge domes. Upon entry into one of these churches, your eyes are immediately drawn up into the heights of the dome. Not only your eyes but your entire being as well. It s as if your spirit, your very soul, is lifted from earth into the heavens. And that s exactly what the architect intends, not just the human architect who designed the church, but the Divine Architect God. You see, the story of Jesus Ascension is also our story. Where Jesus is, he wants us also to be, with his Father in heaven. So forty days after his resurrection, Jesus becomes a source of strength for the disciples. He encourages them by telling him that he would always be with them, in his Word, in the Eucharist, and through the Holy Spirit. With Jesus work on earth complete, he returns to the Father. The disciples must now continue his work, telling others you and me