Welcome Savannah Mae Tilkens
Mrs. Tilkens welcomed Savannah Mae into her family on Sunday afternoon! Mrs. Antle will be assuming PE duties at JFK for about four weeks while Mrs. Tilkens is on leave.
Catholic Schools Week
Catholic Schools Week is right around the corner, beginning with the all school 4:30 Mass on January 26th followed by the spaghetti dinner and open house. Don’t forget to have your children start working on a talent show act! Every student in grades K – 8 is allowed to perform in an act. These acts may be no longer than 3 minutes, and a student is only allowed to perform in one act. This may be as an individual or in a group. Exceptions are if the entire class performs an act, then a student may still be in another act, or if there is an older and younger sibling act. To avoid exclusion in smaller groups, if there is 50% or less of the students in a grade or homeroom, or 50% or less of the males in a grade or homeroom, or 50% or less of the females in a grade or homeroom that would be left out of a group act, then the group act must include everyone. The entire kindergarten class will again be performing a song at the beginning of the afternoon portion of the talent show. Their song will be followed by any individual acts their class may have. Please keep in mind that music, lyrics, movements, and attire of participants should reflect our Catholic values. Anyone having a song with lyrics as part of an act must have a copy of the lyrics approved by the teacher. I would suggest having the performance/music approved as soon as possible to avoid any last minute changes to an act. Students don’t want to practice something for days, only to have a staff member require that it be revised or changed when they present it to the staff member for final approval. We have had a wonderful variety of acts in the past, and we are looking forward to many this year as well. Acts in the past have included playing instruments, singing, dancing, tumbling, martial arts, jokes, sports demonstrations, skits, magic acts, hula hoops, pogo sticks, puppet shows, reciting a poem or prayer, drawing, showing pre-built Legos, etc.
Details will be sent home shortly for the talent show and all of the other Catholic Schools Week activities.
Special Schedule Next Week
January 17: End of the 2nd quarter. Special dismissal at 12:40. No afternoon PS classes.
January 18: In-service. No classes. ECLC open.
January 21: M.L.King Day. No classes. ECLC open.
MobyMax
Have your children been on MobyMax outside of school? Share your experiences with your child’s teacher so we can acquire some good feedback. MobyMax is an online tool that we are using to supplement math instruction, primarily. It does, however, also have modules for reading, English/language arts, social studies, and science. It can be used both in and outside of school across a variety of platforms. Contact your child’s homeroom teacher if you misplaced the log in information.
Bible Study for Middle School Youth
You’ve never seen a Bible study like this before! OLV’s Faith Formation staff is offering “Encounter: Experiencing God in the Everyday,” for 6th-8th grade students after school beginning in January. Dates are January 24 and 31, February 7, 14, 21, and 28, and March 7 and 21. Each session is 2:45-3:45 in the library or parish center. Cost is $13, and registration is due by January 7th. For more information, or if financial assistance is needed, please contact Jennifer Wemhoff at 563-391-8384 of davolvrek6@diodav.org.
Need the Bulletin?
When I don’t get a hard copy bulletin at church, I always think that I’ll just go look it up online. Then, it seems as if I rarely do. Here’s the link: January 6, 2019.
Blessing Bags Collection Begins
Have an old backpack? A drawstring sports bag? JFK is teaming with OLV’s Christian Service Ministry to collect new or gently used backpacks or similar bags for adults. During Lent in the spring, the bags will be filled with with non-perishable items for the homeless and distributed. Bags can be sent to school through January 13th.
K & 3rd Grade Hearing and Vision Screenings
Hearing and vision screenings will take place for 3rd graders on Wednesday.
Parish Appreciation Party — All JFK Adults Invited
To express thanks to all who perform service for our parish and school community, a FREE party will be hosted for adults on January 12th. Doors open at 5:30 p.m. with food served at 6:00 p.m. Beverages, desserts and substantial hors d’oeuvres will be served. If you pray, sing, perform a liturgical role, donate food, serve on a committee, coach, volunteer, etc., you are invited. Please RSVP to the parish office (563-391-4245).
Music Boosters Trivia Night
The new date for the adults-only trivia night fund-raiser is Friday, January 18th. It will be at the Knights of Columbus on 35th Street. Doors will open at 6:00 p.m., trivia will start at 7:00. The price is $100 per table with a maximum of 8 people per table. “Double Downs” and “Mulligans” are included in the price of the table this year and do not need to be purchased separately. You may bring your own snacks, but drinks are to be purchased from the Knights of Columbus. Cash prizes will be awarded for 1st, 2nd & 3rd place teams. All proceeds go to the JFK Music Boosters in support of the 5th – 8th-grade Music Programs. Contact Ethan Connors at ethan.connors@olvjfkmail.com to reserve your space.
Better yet, attend the boosters’ meeting on January 7th at 6:30 p.m. in the library.
What Did We Learn — About Skipping?
As I enter the 6th hour of work this Sunday, all those wonderful things I mentally wrote in the Principal’s Post all week just aren’t going to make it to paper! I will, however, end with a story of which I was reminded by seeing a post on our JFK Moms and Dads Facebook group. (If you’d like to be a member of this group, please contact Angie in the office: angie.hillebrand@olvjfkmail.com.)
As I was walking down the hall about six weeks ago, I saw a younger student come out of the restroom and go skipping down the hall back to her class. I thought to myself, “She looks so happy. I wonder if skipping makes you happy.” So, I tried it. Making sure no one would see me, I skipped down the hall myself. Sure enough, it is impossible to skip and not be happy at the same time!
And it continues…. I’ve relayed this story to probably a dozen staff members. One morning before Christmas as I was standing in the hall watching for late arriving students, one of the staff members sent an older student down the hall to see me. He was skipping and as happy as could be when he told me that I was right, it’s impossible to skip and not be happy at the same time.
Chad