Living, Loving, and Learning Our Faith

Important Upcoming Dates

March 21 FORWARD Testing Begins (State Required Assessment)
March 24: 3rd Quarter Ends
March 24: Winners of the School Spelling Bee attend the final round at St. Catherine's
March 25: No school for students/Teacher Professional Learning
March 28: 4th Quarter Begins
March 29: Report Card Review
March 30: Report Cards SENT HOME
April 14: Grade 4 Lenten Play for students and staff
April 15: Good Friday-April 22 EASTER BREAK
April 25: Classes Resume
April 27: Siena Grades 6-8 Math Competition (more details forthcoming)
April 29: Forward Testing Window Closes
May 16: STAR Assessment begins

May 22: Feast Day of St. Rita
May 26: Spring Musical/Talent Show (details forthcoming) 6:30PM
May 27: STAR Assessment ends
May 30: Memorial Day-No School
May 31: F&P Running Records Due

From the Desk of Dr. Sue!

Greetings,

Spring has arrived! It's been a very fast week and everyone was adorable dressed for St. Patrick's Day. Check out the smiles! Even though the weather is warming up, there is still much more to learn. In addition, as the weather warms up, head outside after school or work to take a walk or visit a park--might even be time to think of gardening.

We are heading into our required state wide forward exam schedule. We know these assessments may be taxing on our 3rd-8th grade students. Some simple tips to make sure your child has the stamina to push through:

Get plenty of rest.
Turn off cell phones and/or other electronic devices an hour before bedtime.
Remain positive and calm. Some students become more stressed during testing times. If your child gets anxious, it maybe a good idea to practice some relaxation techniques.

We are sending our 8th Grade Boys off to play in the prestigious Padre Basketball Tournament. Scroll down for all of the details. It would be wonderful to pack the stands with Royal Blue and White! Go Royals we need a win to stay in the tournament.

"On this the second week of Lent, we are given the hopeful image of Jesus being transfigured before the eyes of Peter, James and John. They witness a small glimpse of His eternal glory and radiance as the Son of God and the Second Person of the Most Holy Trinity. They are stunned, in awe, amazed and filled with the greatest joy. Jesus’ face shines like the sun and His clothing is so white, so pure, so radiant that they shine as the brightest and most pure light imaginable." (My Catholic Life, Resource)

May your Lenten journey continue to shine bright!

Blessings,

Dr. Sue

St. Rita's Mission

Living Loving and Learning Our Faith: Living as members of our Catholic Faith Community; Loving God and all of His creation; Learning for our future on Earth and Heaven.

STATE REQUIRED

FORWARD EXAM

MARCH 22, 2022

We are seeking 100 percent attendance on the dates noted below for the WI State required Forward Exam.

We are looking to have some fun class rewards, if your child's class all participate everyday in these exams.

Please no scheduled appointments during the testing windows.

These exams are for grades 3-8 respectively.

Below you will find the schedule for the Forward Exam beginning March 22.

Please check out the links below.

These are Important for your child to practice.

We highly recommend practice time.

Consider spending 20 minutes a night on these practice tool/sites.

https://dpi.wi.gov/sites/default/files/imce/assessment/pdf/Forward_Brochure_for_Families.pdf

https://dpi.wi.gov/assessment/forward/sample-items

St. Patrick's OOU Day!

1st Grades Leprechauns & Rainbows

COME CHEER US ON!

Support St. Rita's Boys Basketball Team

BASKETBALL-Sunday, March 20th

The 8th Grade boys will be playing this Sunday, March 20th at 1:00pm for the Padre Tournament at St. Thomas More High School.

We would love to see a full house!

St. Thomas More High School

2601 E Morgan Ave

Milwaukee, WI 53207

1080p.MOV

8th Grade Pep Rally

Wishing our 8th Grade Boys Basketball team Good Luck!!

8th Grade Math Designing Games

We lost the instructions to FARKLE...a well known dice game. Yes, we could've googled it...but instead we decided to make up our own rules.

Games are a big industry and our Middle School math classes decided to try it. Not only did they make up the rules, but they taught the game to a younger class. The results were amazing! Our middle school students became the math experts and instructors for giving directions.

I was very proud of how each of our middle schoolers worked with the younger students.

In the following pictures, our 8th graders are working with Mrs. LaCanne's 3rd grade class.

Music

Hello St. Rita families!

In music classes during the Month of March, students began performing rhythm and melody patterns.

One of our favorite ways to perform melodies is on hand chimes. As a group of five, six, seven, and sometimes more, students perform individual pitches of a familiar melody. Students have also played hand chimes as a way to learn new songs.

Students will continue to perform rhythmic patterns on hand held percussion instruments and drums.

Students sing sacred, and popular secular grade level songs, and we will continue to learn about official state songs.

Thank you!!

Spelling Bee Thursday, March 24

Congratulations to our finalist for the Siena Catholic Schools Spelling Bee at St. Catherine High School! Please remember to turn in your child's permission slip. We need to confirm if your child is attending in case an alternate needs to jump in.

The following students will be competing with other students in Siena in their grade level band.

Grades 1 and 2 finalists :

1st: Alejandro R. 2nd: Abigail E. 3rd: Olivia L. Alternate: Gracie D.

Grades 3-5 finalists

1st: Carmine C. 2nd: Liliana G. 3rd: Yaneisy V. Alternate: Giana G.

Grades 6-8 Finalists

1st: Tressa W. 2nd:Amanda D. 3rd: Stephen S. Alternate: Arlette B.F.

Families are welcome to bring family and friends to this event. The Spelling Bee will take place on Thursday, March 24, at 3:00 p.m.

Thursday Mass

Grade 7 led this week's Mass. Sixth graders, Ella P. and Javier A. were this week's Altar Servers

8th Grade Parents – St. Catherine’s Freshmen Orientation (March 22nd and 24th)

We are excited to welcome our future Angels moving on to St. Catherine’s! SCHS Counselors and Principals will meet with families next week to select classes for 2022-2023. Click here to see the SCHS Course Selection Guide before your meeting. St. Cat’s is looking forward to meeting you!

Children’s Liturgy and Family Resources

A theme of the readings this week is that of responding to God’s call. In the first reading, we read of God’s request that Moses go to Pharaoh and lead the Israelites out of Egypt. Moses responded at first with uncertainty as we often do when we hear God’s call in our own lives. But as we learn in the gospel, our God is steadfast, reaching out to us and helping us to become who we are meant to be. As the gardener recommended in the parable, God responds to our “barrenness” with patience and hope for the day that we will bear fruit. St. Paul reminds us in the second reading to repent of our sins and align our lives more closely with God…a good Lenten reflection for us all.

Bringing the Gospel Home:

*Talk with your family about a time that you heard God’s call in your life. Did you experience uncertainty or fear about living out the calling? How did you overcome that initial uneasiness? What “fruit” is God asking you to produce today?

*Moses asked God who he should tell the Israelites was sending Moses to them. God answered, “I am who am.” Discuss with your children how God is always so much more than we could ever understand or know. What do you find most amazing about God?

*Lent for Kids

*8 Ways to Pray During Lent | Loyola Press

Yearbook Sale: ONLINE ONLY

Order your yearbook today at https://ybpay.lifetouch.com/

Yearbook ID Code: 2270722

Seroogy's Chocolate Bar Orders Due Wednesday, March 23.

Library- Quarter Sale

The Quarter Sale will be open during St. Rita Parish Fish Fry March 18 from 5:00 P.M. until closing.

COVID-19 Testing at St. Catherine's High School

Siena Catholic Schools has maintained a focus on safety throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. As an organization, Siena continues to find ways to support our students, staff, and family as the pandemic progresses. Testing has become a key resource to monitoring the spread of COVID and identifying proper quarantine timelines for students, staff, and family members.

Siena is happy to announce that we will be providing onsite testing for our students, staff, and family members. This service will be available from 7:30 a.m. until 3:15 p.m., Monday through Friday. We have designated a testing location at St. Catherine's High School (1200 Park Ave., Racine, WI 53403, Door 9) which is located on the west side of the building with parking on Villa Street.

Here is what you need to know:

Testing is free: you will not be asked to provide any insurance or payment information.
Testing is walk-in, but it is recommended that you pre-register for your appointment. The attached document is the same process for registering, just select the school where you work.
Paper registration forms will also be available for walk-ins.
Parents should complete registration forms prior to their students arriving for a test and accompany their students for testing.
Antigen tests will be used when available, but PCR tests may also be used with results arriving in 24-48 hours of testing.

Below you will find a link for Instruction on how to pre-register. By pre-registering prior to testing the process will run more smoothly, will cover consent for testing, and the patient will receive an email notification once the result is available in their patient profile.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1aNYoowlYuPb8opDnckQXII3ZToRA9TKd/view?usp=sharing

We are excited to continue to support our system through this next stage of the pandemic.

SCRIP

While we cannot have SCRIP in person like we used to, we CAN participate in SCRIP online with E-gift card delivery, which is instant and completely contact-free.

You can ONLY purchase E-gift cards (there are over 750 vendors to choose from, including Amazon, Target, Kohls, Home Depot, Walmart, Starbucks, etc.!)
A percentage of that purchase (2-17%) "gives back" as a rebate:
- 50% of the rebate goes toward your family's tuition bill, student activity fees, spirit wear or a check at the end of the school year
- 50% of the rebate directly supports St. Rita’s.

Click on the link to Learn more : https://drive.google.com/file/d/1UAVWKOFQDJwnlFhUO_3CJ3Z7OUaaGPS8/view?usp=sharing

Siena is looking for Substitutes

If you or you know someone interested in becoming a substitute, please contact bschurman@sienacatholicschools.org for more information.

Facebook

Be sure to check out our Facebook page and all the great videos we post! We need you to "LIKE" us!

https://www.facebook.com/stritaschoolracine

Catholic Social Responsibility Guidebook

Please see the newly released Catholic Social Responsibility Guidebook from the Archdiocese of Milwaukee under the direction of Dr. Kathleen Cepelka. It is available at https://www.archmil.org/Education/Catholic-Social-Responsibility.htm.