Living, Loving, and Learning Our Faith

Important Upcoming Dates

March 7: OOU Day/Scroll down in the newsletter for dress requirements
March 9: Grade Band Spelling Bees
March 10: Middle School to Musical at St. Cath’s
March 10: Prayer Service-8:30AM Deacon Greg/Father Michael on vacation
March 14: No school for students/Professional Learning
March 17: St. Patrick's Day/OOU details forthcoming
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,

Very excited to share that on Monday members from Siena's Senior Leadership team will be joining several of our 3K,4K, K-5 classrooms and reading one of their favorite Dr. Seuss books. In addition, Monday will be an OOU day and the choices are any Dr. Seuss character or fun style from one of the books or school spirit wear! (Please see more details further down in this newsletter).

We are looking forward to the next round of our Spelling Bee to take place on March 9. A big shout out to all students who gave it their very best! We appreciate their efforts and will certainly cheer on the next group. The final round is at St. Catherine's on March 24. We will keep you posted of who moves on to represent St. Rita's. Keep studying.

I could not be more proud of our 4K students and staff who joined us in their first Mass on Ash Wednesday. They were buddied up with our amazing grade 7 who were wonderful role models. Thank you to all for preparing them for this great blessing. I know they will join us again soon!

Still wondering what Lent is about? Prayer, Fasting , and Almsgiving--Check out this 3 minute video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xo1mjuy1NA0

In closing, Pope Francis stated, "Lent is to be lived as a time of conversion, as a time of renewal for individuals and communities, by drawing close to God and by trustfully adhering to the Gospel. In this way, it also allows us to look with new eyes at our brothers and sisters and their needs."

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.

St. Rita’s Lenten Journey begins.

Our 4K attended Mass and received their Ashes along with their church buddies-our fabulous 7th graders.

Out of Uniform Day: Monday, March 7th

Two Choices-YOU Decide!

Dr. Seuss fun OR Spirit Wear!

Dress as your favorite character from a Dr. Seuss book or wear color shirts/bottoms in red and white.

You may elect to wear St. Rita's Spirit Wear which includes royal blue and white tops.

**As a friendly reminder: jeans, leggings, jeggings, athletic pants are acceptable on Monday for bottoms; however, no mid-riffs, sweatshirts, shirts or tops that are NOT noted as Dr. Seuss wear/red/white colors or Spirit wear/colors. Jeans must be free of holes, tears or repairs. Thank you for joining in the fun!

Spirit Wear and Seroogy's Chocolate Bar Order Forms Coming Home Next Week

Middle School Social Studies & Religion

Social Studies:

8th Graders have recently completed their unit on World War I and are working through our current unit, ‘Boom & Bust’ which covers the events of the Roaring 20’s and the Great Depression. Most recently, they started learning about President Roosevelt’s New Deal policies and their effects on the American people. They will have an assessment on Boom & Bust coming the week of March 6th. Our next unit will be on the events of World War II and its effects not just on the United States, but the world.

7th Graders have been working through their unit on the continent of Europe. So far, we have covered Western Europe, Southern Europe and Northern Europe with Eastern Europe and Western Russia coming next. We will also look at the History of the continent, focusing on the Middle Ages, World War I & World War II. They have their European Assessment coming either Friday the 11th or Monday the 14th of March. Once complete, we will move on to the continent of Africa.

Finally, the 6th Graders have recently finished our unit on Medieval East Asian, including China, Japan and Korea. We have been working our current unit, which has focused on the Middle Ages in Europe and the expansion of the Catholic Church after the fall of Rome in 476 AD. We have looked at or will start to study the Holy Roman Empire, Feudalism and the establishment of the Absolute Monarchs of Europe, plus the Church’s relationship to Europe at this time. Their next assessment will be during the week of March 6th. Once we complete our Middle Ages Unit, we will move on to the Renaissance, Revolution & Reformation.

Religion:

Since the completion of our Faith Fair projects, all classes have returned to their usual study in religion class. 8th graders have continued their study of the Story and History of Our Church, with us most recently covering the Council of Nicaea in 325 AD and the Nicene Creed that came from it. 7th graders have continued their study of the Life of Jesus and the New Testament, with our most recent study being on the Euchirist and what it means. 6th graders have continued their study of the Old Testament and most recently went over the story of Joshua replacing Moses as the leader of the Hebrews. All classes are now shifting their focus to the upcoming Lenten Season, having started with a combined middle school Lent Bulletin Board!

4K used Typewriters in Centers.

Stacking Cat In The Hat cups to make a pattern.

A 4K student trying a "top"!

We have high hopes of getting a tulip!

Library- Quarter Sale

The Quarter Sale will be open during St. Rita Parish Fish Fry on March 4, 11, & 18 from 5:00 P.M-close.

It will also be open during Lunch hours on Monday March 7th & Friday, March 18 from 10:30 A.M. - 12:00 P.M.

If you wish to volunteer to run the quarter sale during any other lunch periods, please contact Mrs. Schotz at fschotz@sienacatholicschools.org

FIELD TRIP!

Middle School Students Don't Forget...

Grades 6-8 will be going to St. Catherine's High School on Thursday, March 10th to watch the play.

Altar Servers & Ash Wednesday Mass

This week's Altar Servers were Ella P. and Fernando A. Grade 6th led this week's Mass.

BASKETBALL-SATURDAY, MARCH 5

Our 8th Grade boys and 7th Grade Girls will be playing at St. Catherine's High School on Saturday, March 5th.

The 8th grade boys will play their Championship game at 10:00 A.M.

The 7th grade girls will play their last game of the season at 11:00 A.M.

COME CHEER THEM ON!

Track Sign Up

St. Rita School Track and Field Sign-Up will be on Thursday, March 10th 6:00pm to 8:00pm in the school gym.

Track and Field is open for boys and girls in grades 5-8.

Flyers being sent home next week.

If you have any questions, please email Mr. Tom Ferguson.

tferguson@awimetalfabrication.com

Children’s Liturgy and Family Resources

On this, the First Sunday of Lent, we are reminded to keep the important and essential things at the center of our lives. Unfortunately, we can become complacent and forget the great things God has done for us. Just as the Israelites did, we can lose sight of the fact that we are the beloved sons and daughters of God. Lent is a time to pare down, contemplate our dependence on God and focus on what is fundamental. We follow Jesus’ example when he went to the desert to fast and pray. When he was tempted, his time with his Father and the scriptures gave him strength. May we take time to be with God this Lent, so that we can realign our lives with His will, remembering His great love for us.

Bringing the Gospel Home:

*Discuss the ways in which the devil tempted Jesus in the desert: comfort, the esteem of others, and power. What tempts you? How do you deal with temptation? How can the pillars of Lent (prayer, fasting, and almsgiving) give you strength in temptation?

*Read Oh No, George! about resisting temptation: Oh no, George! Read Aloud Children's Story Audio Book BRITISH ACCENT Bedtime

*Video for parents: Lent FAQ with Joe Paprocki - A Short Video - Catechist's Journey

Descubre

My name is Geraldine Bodi and I am the new counselor for St. Rita's and St. Lucy's. You can reach me by email or calling St. Rita's on Wednesday or Thursday. You can also reach me at St. Lucy's on Monday and Tuesday.

There is a fabulous opportunity for your middle school student explained below. The experience also will inform you of financial opportunities for college as well. If you do register and want to use the shuttle the Racine pick up locations will be 21st Century Preparatory School and Starbuck IB Middle School.

UW-Parkside is hosting a DESCUBRE Parkside Spanish visit day on Saturday March 12 from 9 AM-1 PM. The program is geared for middle school students to explore careers via hands on workshops while Parents learn more about how to support their students through HS on a path to higher education.

The entire family is invited! UW-Parkside will provide child care, lunch and transportation will be available from area schools.
Transportation will be available from 2 area schools in Kenosha and Racine, make sure to indicate if you would like to receive information about the nearest shuttle pick up and drop off.

o Shuttles will depart from area schools by 8:30am

Shuttles will depart from Parkside at 1:00pm

If families are interested interested in attending on Saturday March 12, please register at WWW.UWP.EDU/DESCUBRE

Questions? Contact Gia Gutierrez at gutierrg@uwp.edu or (262)595-3001

Our Descubre Parkside program seeks to partner with heavily populated dual-language schools to foster the idea that college is an achievable option for any student. Descubre Parkside offers useful information for the entire family about our programs of study, tools to prepare students on a path to college and engaging workshops that introduce both students and parents to higher education. WWW.UWP.EDU/DESCUBRE

Nuestro programa Descubre Parkside colabora con escuelas secundarias que ofrecen clases bilingües a sus estudiantes para promover estudios superiores como una meta que es posible de alcanzar por cualquier estudiante. Descubre Parkside ofrece información para toda la familia sobre programas de estudio, herramientas para preparar a estudiantes en camino a la universidad, y talleres dinámicos que introducen al estudiante y familia a estudios superiores. WWW.UWP.EDU/DESCUBRE

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.

St. Rita School

If you missed our Open House, you can view our video using the link https://youtu.be/_Ao8KjNlknQ.

Royal Parent School Association

Welcome to St. Rita

BOX TOPS APP

Help us earn money for our school by using the Box Tops app. It’s an easy way to make a difference. Plus, use my referral code JENN7A81 when you sign up and you’ll get 40 Bonus Box Tops when you scan your first receipt now through 02/14/2022, while supplies last. Use the link below to download the Box Tops app:

https://btfe.smart.link/c2jjdifkw?referral_code=JENN7A81

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.

Parish Lenten Prayer

Heavenly Father

As I look to you for ways to become closer to you, give me a special grace to open my heart during this time. Help me to assure your faith and pray for your guidance and forgiveness as I leave the darkness of sin and become the light in the Lord, like his children of light, those who shine with love and truth.

Through prayer, fasting and almsgiving help me to discipline my body and be renewed in spirit. May my acts of penance bring me your forgiveness, open my heart to your love and prepare me for the coming feast of the Resurrection of Christ.

Give me the strength to reach out beyond my own life and to give just a little more to those who may be struggling. May I journey toward the cross prayerfully and purposefully, even through the pain, doubt, questions, and searching. May my praise never cease in this season. May my worship be unending. May my love for you find new depths.

We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit.

Amen