Featured: Meet Ms. Kathol!

Ms. Natalie Kathol, our Director of Religious Education and the Grade 5 Religion teacher this year, says that she enjoys experiencing God in nature.

This week's post will shed light on the incredible work that our fifth graders are doing in Religion class with their teacher, Ms. Kathol.

The Thanksgiving Tree project, featured below, is a way for our students to visually remind themselves of all that they are grateful for in life. Each grade will complete a tree that will be brought forth at our Thanksgiving prayer service on November 26 to recognize and celebrate our blessings.

In class, the students have started a long-term project that they will continue working on throughout the year: Write Your Story on My Heart. It is a reflective assignment about finding the presence of God in every day life and includes different narrative writing prompts, creative projects, and experiential learning opportunities in the form of field trips and retreats.

Last week, fifth grade visited St. Andrew the Apostle Catholic Church and then shared their experiences with second graders through a personal letter. As the year progresses, Ms. Kathol hopes to take the class on their own spiritual retreat, where they can connect with God through nature and share in prayer, reflection, community building, and fun!

Finally, as part of their long-term project, Ms. Kathol had the students select an image in which they truly see God. Their interpretations are paired with powerful words that tie into their faith and memories of how God has influenced their lives. I encourage you to ask your child about their own project. Thank you, Ms. Kathol, for all that you do for our students!

"Vibrant" by Izzy

"Amazing" by Patrick

"Bond" by Chris

"Beauty" by Fiona

"Happy" by Arrington

"Friendship" by Sophia

"Unforgettable" by Joslyn

"Holy" by Sammy

"Loved" by Lauren

"Hungry" by Daniel

"Islam" by Raheem

"Loving" by Aidan

The Week in Review: Feb. 3-7

What a week we had in middle school! From health education to outstanding performances by our students, it was full of excitement. First, the entire class would like to give a big THANK YOU to our hardworking parents and family members who were able to join us for Grandparent's Day and Parent Visitation. It meant so much to them to have you visit them at school and take part in their daily routines. We know that your time is valuable, and it is so appreciated that you chose to spend it with us these past two mornings! On Wednesday, fourth through sixth graders visited Lankenau Medical Center for health education classes. Fourth and fifth graders learned about the importance of "Safety First," where they reviewed the best choices to make to lead a safe life. They went over everything from how to correctly wear a bicycle helmet to administering the Heimlich maneuver on others in crisis. As always, it was a lively lesson full of demonstrations and hands-on learning. ...

Black History Month and Mardi Gras Celebrations!

Fifth graders celebrated Fat Tuesday for Mardi Gras with a King Cake in Religion class! On Monday, the entire school took part in a Black History Month celebration. Here, Ms. Brown leads the middle school in a round of "Finish the Lyric," where they completed song lyrics by Whitney Houston, the Jackson 5, Bob Marley, Beyonce, and more! At another station, they were given iconic images in black history to recreate through illustration. The best work from each division will be chosen to be posted around the school! At their last station, middle schoolers answered trivia questions about famous figures in Black History. This weekend is the annual auction! We hope you can join us this Saturday evening, February 29 for "A Night in Philly" at the Springfield Country Club. The re-enrollment deadline is next Friday, March 6 ! Please remember to send your registration in by next week.

A Special Visitor

The fifth graders enjoyed a visit today from Lt. Lanni, who brought with him a surprise guest speaker, Brent Celek. The former Eagles tight end shared stories of his experiences in school, and the challenges he overcame as a student and athlete to get where he is today. His advice for our students? Respect others, work hard, and dream big. A big THANK YOU to Lt. Lanni for this exciting surprise! Mr. Celek's visit coincided perfectly with a STEAM lesson today, called "Passion to Purpose," where the class had to work together to identify a way to apply their passions in a way that would inspire real change. Their ideas are displayed in the slides below; they hope to expand on this project as they continue their work in the lab. There is no school tomorrow or Monday, Feb. 17. Tuesday will be a Day 1, which means that fifth graders will need to wear their gym uniforms to school. Thank you, and Happy Valentine's Day!

Mrs. DeLuca: Grade 5, Grade 6 ELA

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