St. Matthew Elementary Jaguar Journal
January 3, 2020
St. Matthew Elementary
Jaguar Journal
This week's to-do list:
- RSVP to attend our inaugural Jump Into St. Matts event on the 12th!
- Reach out to those in our community who may be looking for a Junior Kindergarten or Kindergarten for next year to share why St. Matts is a great choice.
- Save the date for St. Matthew Mardi Gras...February 22nd!
"Paws"itive Students
Bella Van Dorn-Thies
Sloane Rosteck
Abby Driscoll
Gavin Ireland
Over break, Ms. Parr made some awesome bookmarks with our teachers on them so we can highlight books they recommend. The students have LOVED them so far! Thanks Ms. Parr!
Important Upcoming Events
Wed, Jan 8 - Mass 835AM (All Staff)
Fri, Jan 10 - End of 1st Semester
Sun, Jan 12 - Jump Into St. Matt's (1030AM-2PM)
Mon, Jan 13 - No School - Professional Development
Tues, Jan 14 - School IS in-session (CR is NOT in session - no busing for XCS)
Wed Jan 15 - Mass 835AM (3rd Grade)
Wed Jan 15 - Kindergarten and JK Roundup (6-730PM)
Mon, Jan 20 - No School - Professional Development
Wed, Jan 22 - Mass 835 AM (Mrs. Ohde's 2nd Grade)
Fri, Jan 24 - Sock Hop from 5-7PM
Jan 26 - Feb 1 - Catholic Schools Week
Jan 26 - Feb 1 - St. Matthew Book Fair
Wed, Jan 29 - Mass 835AM (Ms. Nepola's 2nd Grade)
Wed, Feb 5 - Mass 835AM (1st Grade)
Wed, Feb. 5 - Panera Bread Fundraiser
Wed, Feb 12 - Mass 835AM (5th Grade)
Wed, Feb 19 - Mass 835AM (4th Grade)
Sat Feb 22 - St. Matthew Mardi Gras
Wed, Feb 26 - Mass 835AM Ash Wednesday (3rd Grade)
SCRIP News
New Year, New Goals!
Start the New Year off right by saving where you’re spending!
For January, the class with the highest percentage of families participating will enjoy a pajama day with hot chocolate in February!
Plus, Each new family to purchase SCRIP this month will be entered into a drawing for a $25 gift card of their choice!
Enrollment Code: 6DA5ACAD63825
On Sunday, January 12 come and "Jump Into St. Matts" with us!
We have a full day of activities to bring our St. Matthew's community together in fellowship and faith. Across the generations, this is a chance to celebrate, share, and learn together.
Pop in for any or all of the day's activities including:
- 10:30am - 11:30am -- Celebrate -- Mass featuring the St. Matthew's Jubilation Choir.
- 11:30am-12:30pm -- Share -- Join us for lunch and bring a dish to share if you choose. We will serve walking tacos.
- 12:00pm - 2:00pm -- Learn -- Cycle through the open house stations to learn more about the school, Early Childhood Center, Parish, famous Mardi Gras event, and other opportunities and programs available at St. Matthew.
We are in NEED of any old cell phone devices - Android 4.4 and iOS 8.0 or later
Thanks to the generous donation of virtual reality headsets, we are needing old phones! If you have any old phones around your house that are not being used, we would gladly take those off your hands and use them in our VR setting. This is a critical part of our implementation.
Parent Association
November meeting notes are attached here. Plan to join in the next meeting on
Monday (Jan. 6) at 5:30 p.m.
Mardi Gras Corner
St. Matthew Mardi Gras is doing Pick-A-Pack and Pick-A-Cork again this year and we need your help! We are looking for donations and would need either a bottle of wine or a 6 pack of beer. You can also donate cash by giving it to the main office and letting them know that it is for the Pick-A-Pack or you can order scrip cards either physical or email (there are several places you can buy beer or wine at) so we will take them all.
There are two ways to get your donation to us:
- Drop off at school office (please put in bag to disguise it)
- Bring to Jump into St. Matts and bring to the Mardi Gras table there
Our next Mardi Gras meeting is set for Monday, January 6th at
7 pm in Kearn Hall. This year's event is going to be such fun! Mark your calendar and plan to join us at Mardi Gras on February 22nd! Information regarding tickets will be available soon!
St. Matthew Parish News
The Feast of the Epiphany is coming up on Monday, January 6th. Join us to celebrate! To learn more about the meaning behind this Church feast check out: https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/want-to-know-the-history-behind-todays-feast-of-the-epiphany-75968
Regis Middle School News
Families of Fifth Graders -- Save The Date to Explore Regis!
Please mark 9-11 am, Saturday, Jan. 25th on your calendars to come and Explore Regis at Regis Middle School, 735 Prairie Drive NE, Cedar Rapids. You and your fifth grader will have a chance to learn about all the opportunities Regis offers and will get to meet Regis students, parents, teachers and staff. More information will be coming soon, but you may contact Dianne Clarke at dclarke@regisroyals.org or
319-363-1968 if you have any questions.
So SAVE THE DATE -- January 25th to Explore Regis!
Xavier High School News
Dancing with the Saints: Season 5 Live Event
Date: Saturday, January 18, 2020
Location: Doubletree Hotel, 350-1st Ave. NE, Cedar Rapids – Grand Ballroom
Location: Doubletree Hotel, 350-1st Ave. NE, Cedar Rapids – Grand Ballroom
For tickets, voting and more information visit: https://www.xaviersaints.org/dwtslive
Message from the Principal
Welcome to 2020! The new year is off to a great start at St. Matthew Elementary; while we may have only been here for a short two days, I feel like we have truly picked up right where we left off. Your kiddos are amazing and so resilient!
I am excited for the weeks ahead as we have a ton of learning planned that will continue to challenge your students and push them forward. Thank you for your partnership in 2019, we have made so many strides forward it is absolutely unbelievable! I can't wait to see all we can accomplish in the 2nd half of this school year.
As we start the new year, this is a great time for us to reflect on our work and ministry as parents. During this time, I hope you take some reflective time to see about opportunities that exist in your schedule to partner with the school on our many endeavors. We are continually looking for people like you to be the voice of families as we create new initiatives and work on our marketing efforts to continue our growth and development. We will be sending this information out in the coming newsletters, but I encourage you to look for ways that you can use your talents to aid in the educational experience of your child(ren). Attending Jump Into St. Matts is a great time to explore some of those options, I hope you will consider attending.
--Mrs. Conlon
Essentials Team Highlight
Music: 3rd and 4th graders will be starting our recorder unit soon. Please make sure you have purchased one of the recommended recorders (or have one from last year's unit) so they can come to school soon!
--Mrs. Bunge
Upcoming Birthdays
January 9--Tristan Rosteck
January 10--Oliver Wood
Make sure to follow us on social media:
Twitter - @StMattsJags
Facebook - @StMatthewCedarRapids
