St. Joseph
Catholic School

Psalm 17

R. Lord, when your glory appears, my joy will be full. 

Hear, O LORD, a just suit;
attend to my outcry;
hearken to my prayer from lips without deceit. 

R. Lord, when your glory appears, my joy will be full. 

My steps have been steadfast in your paths,
my feet have not faltered.
I call upon you, for you will answer me, O God;
incline your ear to me; hear my word. 

R. Lord, when your glory appears, my joy will be full. 

Keep me as the apple of your eye,
hide me in the shadow of your wings.
But I in justice shall behold your face;
on waking I shall be content in your presence. 

R. Lord, when your glory appears, my joy will be full.

From the Principal

Dear Parents:

These are the final two suggestions from the Oprah article. They revolve around organization. This is one of the areas we constantly address in school. Children keep their desks so messy, they cannot find their work. They don’t bring home the correct books to do homework. They don’t get assignments correct. These factors affect their performance in class.


Be Organized
9. Establish a regular routine each night. This includes having children pack their backpacks the night before, to make sure they have everything they need for school the next day. "The number one thing my students tell me is, 'My homework is done, but I left it sitting on the table,'" one teacher says. A simple evening routine can prevent this and prevent children from feeling rushed or disorganized in the morning.

10. Cut down on chaos and clutter at home. If your home life is disorganized, this can carry over into the classroom and make learning more difficult for the child. "When a child walks into my classroom, I can tell by the look on his face what kind of morning he had and what kind of day it will be," says a teacher. Simple things like keeping a tidy home, an organized homework desk, and a clean bedroom can help the child feel prepared and focused on the day ahead. 

Work on these ten suggestions and I believe you will find that the chance of having a successful school year improves dramatically. 

-- Gerard Toups

Current Calendar

Thursday, November 11
* Veterans' Day - SJS has school.
* Veterans' Day Assembly @ 7:45
* Reconciliation (3rd)

Friday, November 12
* Mass @ 8:30 - All are invited to attend.
* Spirit Dress
* Grandparents' Day
* Family Movie Night
* Book Fair Open 4:30-6:30 p.m.

Monday, November 15 - Friday, November 19
* Book Fair Week 

Monday, November 15
* Book Fair Student Shopping 
* Superhero Day ($1.00 donation)
* Thanksgiving Food Drive

Tuesday, November 16
* Field Trip - Fourth Grade
* Book Fair Student Shopping 
* Thanksgiving Food Drive
* Papa John Pizza Night

Wednesday, November 17
* Field Trip - Third Grade
* Midquarter Reports Online - Deficiency Reports Sent Home
* Book Fair Student Shopping 
* Thanksgiving Food Drive

Thursday, November 18
* PreK, First, Third Grades - Thanksgiving Program @ 7:45
* Third & Fourth Grades - Guest Speaker
* Book Fair Student Shopping 
* Thanksgiving Food Drive
* National Appreciation Day for Principals
* Book Fair "Family-a-Fair" - 6:00-8:00 p.m.

Friday, November 19
* Mass @ 8:30 - All are invited to attend. This is our Pilgrim & Indian Mass.
* Crusaders Announced
* Spirit Dress
* Hornets Orders Due (for December 22 game)
* Book Fair - Last Chance Student Shopping 
* Hornets Orders Due - Last Day - for December 22 Game - Tyler Sings!
* Book Fair "Christmas Club" - 9:45-11:00 a.m. - Parents ONLY

Monday, November 22 - Friday, November 26
* Thanksgiving Holidays

Sunday, November 28
* First Sunday of Advent

Monday, November 29
* Classes Resume
* Blessing of Advent Wreaths at Morning Assembly 

Wednesday, December 1
* Pictures with Santa
* Advisory Council @ 6:00

Veterans' Day Assembly

The faculty, staff, and students of St. Joseph School will be celebrating Veterans' Day on Thursday, November 11, during our morning assembly at 7:35. We will be paying tribute to our American heroes. All are invited.

Grandparents' Day

Grandparents' Day will be held on Friday, November 12.

The day will begin with a prayer service in the church at 1:00 p.m.

Following the prayer service, grandparents will meet with grandchildren to watch a presentation in gym, take pictures, visit the book fair, tour the school, and/or have refreshments.

Prepaid picture packages were sent home today.

If grandparents intend to take their grandchildren home from school, please let them know thaty the grandchildren MUST be signed out either in the office or with the homeroom teacher. No one just walks off the school campus.

Family Movie Night

St. Joseph Home and School Association will sponsor their annual Family Movie Night on Friday, November 12, in the gym. Doors will open at 6:00. The movie will start promptly at 6:30.

The movie selected is How to Train Your Dragon. The movie is newly released on DVD and is rated for family viewing.

This is a night for the entire family. The admission is free as well as the popcorn and drinks. A large inflatable screen will be set up on the stage for easy movie viewing by all. Bring lawn chairs, blankets, and other cozy movie watching items.

All children MUST have an adult with them. This event is designed for the family to spend a free night of entertainment with other St. Joseph families. It is not a free night of babysitting. Children may not be dropped off. 

A bonus feature is shopping at the book fair prior to the movie. The book fair will be open from 4:30-6:30 for anyone who would like to make purchases.

We hope to see you at the movies!

Superhero/Community Helper Day

The school library and Student Council are co-sponsoring a fun event in conjunction with the fall book fair.

For the donation of $1.00, students will be allowed to dress as their favorite superhero or community helper (our everyday superheroes). The event goes along with the book fair theme, "Here's to Our Heroes! Reading Saves the Day!

This special day will take place on Monday, November 15. 

Students who are participating should be $1.00 to school ON THAT DAY and give it to their homeroom teachers. All money collected will be given back to the community in some way.

Please note that students will have a regular school day, so costumes should be comfortable and should not interfere with usual daily activities of the classroom (including restroom use). Also NO MASKS may be worn.

Students who are not in costume should wear their regular school uniforms.

Book Fair

The Scholastic Book Fair will be at our school soon! The action-packed theme for our Fall 2010 Book Fair is Here's to our Heroes! Reading Saves the Day!

Because volunteers are the heroes behind a successful fair, we hope you will unleash your talents and join us as we bring an exciting reading event to our school.

If you have some time to help us conduct our next book fair, plese complete the form sent home today. Send the form back to your child's homeroom teacher or turn it in to the office. You may also email Mrs. Carroll at jcarroll@sjscrusaders.org if you'd like to volunteer.

The book fair will be open on the following dates: Grandparents Day - Friday, November 12 - 1:30-3:00 Family Movie Night, Friday, November 12 - 4:30-6:30 Student Shopping - Monday, November 15-Friday, November 19 Family-a-Fair - Thursday, November 18 - 6:00-8:00 Christmas Club - Friday, November 19 - 9:45-11:00.

Thanksgiving Food Drive

Student Council is sponsoring a food drive to help the less fortunate in our community this Thanksgiving. 

The food drive will take place from Monday, November 15, through Friday, November 19.

All food donations will be given to the St. Vincent de Paul food pantry at St. Joseph Church for distribution.

Boxes labeled with each grade level will be placed in the gym. Students may drop off their donations when they arrive at school each morning. 

Listed below are the categories that each grade level is asked to bring.

PreK & Kindergarten - cake mix, brownie mix, muffin mix, biscuit mix, cornbread mix

First Grade - breakfast cereal, grits, oatmeal, etc.

Second Grade - canned fruit

Third Grade - juice, condensed or evaporated milk, tea bags, etc. 

Fourth Grade - canned soup, soup mix, gravy mix, canned fish or meat, etc.

Fifth Grade - rice, pasta, dry beans, instant potatoes, etc.

Sixth Grade - canned vegetables

Seventh Grade - sugar, flour, cornmeal, other baking ingredients

Eighth Grade - canned fruit or vegetables

Each grade has been asked to bring food from a certain category so that a variety of items will be donated. If you would like to donate food items that do not fall into your child's designated category, that is absolutely okay. Please make sure that all donated food is non-perishable. 

We thank you in advance for your generosity. May God continue to bless yu and your families.

SJS Papa John's Pizza Night

If you order dinner from Papa John's Pizza on Tuesday, November 16, 20% of your order will be donated to St. Joseph School!

The teacher with the highest total will receive a pizza party for the class!

Please remember to mention St. Joseph School and your teacher's name when ordering! Papa John's has a limited delivery area. Carryout orders count toward the total!

Papa John's Pizza
201 West Pine Street
985-370-0102

SJS Night with the Hornets

Don't miss your chance to show your school pride and watch CP3 and the Hornets as they take on the New Jersey Nets for a night full of excitement and entertainment!

December 22 is St. Joseph School Night at the Hornets' game! One of our eighth graders, Tyler Carollo, will sing the National Anthem. After the game, the St. Joseph group will be allowed on the court to take a group photo with a few Honeybees! Our school name will be on the BuzzVision screen during the game.

Tickets for the game are $25 each and include a special St. Joseph School/New Orleans Hornets t-shirt.

Orders for tickets are due November 19. NO late orders will be taken.

To purchase tickets, please fill out and return the purple form sent home today with payment. Make checks payable to St. Joseph School.

Need more information? Please contact Toni in the office at 985-386-6421.

Thanksgiving Holidays

St. Joseph School will be closed for the Thanksgiving Holidays Monday, November 22, through Friday, November 26.

Classes will resume on Monday, November 29.

Faculty, staff, and students at St. Joseph School wish every a blessed Thanksgiving.

Pictures with Santa

News flash just in the from the North Pole:

Santa will be at St. Joseph School on Wednesday, December 1, for pictures with the students. Cost of the picture will be $7.00 for a 5x7 photo. A group of siblings may be requested.

Please fill out the form sent home today and return with payment to the office.

Partners in Education

TARGET

St. Joseph School just received a check of over $200 from Target thanks to parents and supporters who have signed up for their Take Charge of Education Program.

These donations are accumulated when supporters of the school make purchases using the REDcard. Target donates up to 1% of these purchases to eligible schools designated by the shopper. Each September, checks are distributed to the schools.

You can help support St. Joseph School through Target by following the steps below:

Here's how to participate:
Apply and get approved for a REDcard®.
Enroll in Take Charge of Education and designate a K-12 school.
Start shopping with your REDcard®.

Donations to Schools
We'll track purchases made by participating REDcard® holders, then send a no-strings-attached donation check directly to the school principal.

Checks are distributed once a year. If the total of accumulated donations is less than $25, the amount carries over to the next payment period. You can track your school's progress at Target.com/tcoe.

Altar Servers

Interested in Altar Serving?

There will be registration, an introductory meeting, and the first training session on November 14, at 2:00 p.m. in the church.

The only requirements are that you are a baptized Catholic, in the 4th through 12th grades, and willing to commit to serve God, His Church, and His people.

Parents are welcome to stay. Questions? Contact Glen or Michele Ernst.

St. Joseph Parish

Personnel
Rev. John Dominic Sims, O.P. - Pastor
Larry J. Melcanon - Deacon

Weekend Mass Schedule
Saturday Vigil Mass - 5:00 p.m.
Sunday Mass - 8:00 a.m., 10:30 a.m., 5:00 p.m.

Contact Information
Address - 255 North 8th Street (P.O. Box 368), Ponchatoula, LA 70454
Phone - 985.386.3749
Website - www.stjosephsonline.com