Mrs. DeLuca: Grade 5, Grade 6 ELA

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.

This week, Holy Child students celebrated Random Acts of Kindness! The  movement , which has spread nationwide with a special focus this year on the week of Feb. 16-22, encourages students, educators, families, and communities to strive to "make kindness the norm" in every day life.  Fifth graders challenged themselves to think about the ways that they could spread kindness throughout the week both in and outside of school. Maybe you've observed your child go out of his or her way to help out with a chore, sibling, or neighbor? They have been recognizing their good deeds anonymously on our star chart. We will quickly be at 100 acts of kindness, but know that the message behind this movement doesn't end when we've colored in each space and the week runs out. Organized by Ms. Kathol, our director of religious education, each grade picked another class from N2-Grade 8 to surprise with an act of kindness at some point during the week. On Wednesday, fifth

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!

On Wednesday, fifth graders enjoyed a spiritual retreat led by Ms. Kathol. After a hearty breakfast (thank you, parents!), they settled in for a morning of prayer, reflection, and discussion. There was inward reflection, a collective sharing of personal moments with God, mindfulness activities focused around breathing centered in God, and station work. Fueling up for the day at breakfast. Welcoming the fifth grade and going over expectations for the day.  Ms. Kathol begins the retreat with an opening prayer by St. Therese of Lisieux (below). Students pass the candle around to share their hope(s) for the day. May today there be peace within. May you trust that you are exactly where you are meant to be. May you not forget the infinite possibilities that are born of faith in yourself and others. May you use the gifts that you have received, and pass on the love that has been given to you. May you be content with yourself just the way you are. Let this knowledge settle into you