St. Louis Catholic School News
December 21, 2016
Principal's Corner
SLS Earns "A" Rating!
I am happy to announce that SLS has been awarded the grade of "A' by the State of Indiana for the 2015-16 school year. SLS is the only southeastern Indiana school to earn this rating for 11 consecutive years. Congratulations to students, parents, parishioners, and staff!
Jenny Lents Wins Award
Junior high Language Arts teacher Jenny Lents was selected as the Batesville Area Chamber of Commerce 2017 Educator of the Year. She will be honored at the 2017 Annual Awards Banquet on Thursday, January 26th at Walhill Farm. Congratulations Jenny, this is well deserved!
Congratulations SLS Alumni Paul Ritter
SLS alumni Paul Ritter won the Ripley County Eli Lilly Scholarship!
Speech Team in Criterion
Did you see our Speech Team picture in the Criterion this past weekend? They were on page 6.
In addition, a photo of SLS supporting the children of Haiti will appear on page 6 of the12/24/16 Criterion.
Merry Christmas!
Mr. Moeller
Polar Express Day at SLS
On Tuesday, December 20, St. Louis School held their first Polar Express Day. The night before, the kindergarten, first and second grade teachers as well as several parent volunteers worked to transform the hallway entering school into the Polar Express. Students and guests entered to a train tunnel complete with tracks, train windows looking out to Christmas scenery, carolers, and the Polar Express train at the end of the “tunnel”. It was so wonderful hearing parents and students say how great the hallway looked. Throughout the course of the day students took part in Reading, Math and Writing activities that went with the Polar Express theme. In the afternoon, Kindergarten went out into the hallway and added their own personal touches to the hallway scenery with drawings of snowflakes, trains, Christmas trees and other holiday pictures. Before topping off the day by watching The Polar Express with cookies and hot chocolate, students had to have their ticket punched by “the conductor,” principal Chad Moeller. We had such a great time organizing and decorating. It was even better to see how much our students enjoyed the day. We all felt like we were kids again. We had so much fun and can't wait for the Polar Express to return next year!
Calendar of Events
- December 21st - End of 2nd Quarter
- December 22nd - Christmas Break begins
- December 25th--Have a Blessed Christmas everyone!
- January 4th - School resumes--2nd semester begins
- January 4th -- All School Mass, 7th Grade
- January 6th - Report Cards go home
PTO Corner
A big THANK YOU to all who purchased our Greeting Cards. We have a few more sets available to sell if anyone is in need. Also, if your child did not come home with the replacement set of envelopes, please contact Natalie Scheibler at natalie.scheibler@gmail.com. Out with the old and in with the new! We will be having a recyclable electronics drive in January. This has potential to be a big money maker. We will be collecting old phones, tablets, laptops, computers, i-pads, etc. More information will be coming after the holidays. The PTO hopes everyone has a blessed holiday season. Merry CHRISTmas!!!
Christmas Traditions and Lessons Passed Down
As the Christmas Season began and the Spirit of Christmas seeped into the very being of children all over, the first graders of St. Louis School in Batesville explored the true meaning of Christmas. As we all do this time of year, they decorated a Christmas tree in their classroom. Their teacher, Miss Andi McKee, took that a step further and helped them understand why we bring trees indoors to decorate at Christmas. Her students can recall that the evergreen tree never dies and the trunk is round like a circle, which represents God’s love...it’s never ending. The needles on the tree point up to heaven and the shape of a tree has three corners representing the Holy Trinity.
The bulletin board outside their room, helps everyone remember the reason we truly celebrate Christmas. It is an interactive board which reads, “Even the Grinch’s heart grew...What are you doing to prepare your heart for Baby Jesus?” It then includes a “manger” which the children try to fill with hay. In order to put a piece of hay in they must do a good or kind deed for someone else. That good deed is written on a yellow strip of paper and placed in the manger.
Miss McKee’s room is filled with Dr. Seuss posters, books, and characters. Her students know she is a big fan and she uses Seuss to teach life lessons and connect them to God’s message of love. As they read The Grinch Who Stole Christmas, they discussed the true meaning of Christmas and how they can help people who might be lonely or sad this time of year. In the story, as McKee read, the Grinch realizes that Christmas doesn’t come from a store and that maybe it means a little bit more. Damien Brelage shouted out, “It means A LOT more!”
The idea for the board is not one she can take credit for. It is a Christmas memory forever etched in the heart and mind of many students from St. Mary’s School in Greensburg. Laura Jo Tebbe, retired 2nd grade teacher of St. Mary’s, made mangers with her students each year at Christmas with the same concept; fill the manger with good deeds, written on pieces of hay. Each student would get their own manger made from the bottom of a Velveeta Cheese box. “To this day, at Christmas time, I cannot look at a Velveeta box without thinking of Mrs. Tebbe and making the manger nice and fluffy for Baby Jesus,” McKee shared.
Other alumni of St. Mary’s during Tebbe’s tenure have been know to say similar things. Natalie Scheibler, current St. Louis PTO officer, shared that it wasn’t any big extravagant decorations she remembers at Christmas, but the simple meaning of that box and the joy and pride she felt filling it with good deeds. Scheibler’s daughter, Lillian, is currently in McKee’s class and just another generation to fill a manger with good deeds of hay.
Miss McKee was inspired by the passion of Tebbe in her teaching to become a teacher herself. “She was such a role model and inspiration to me and many things I do with my children are what I learned from her. This bulletin board is just one of the many ways I remember learning about the true meaning of Christmas and how Advent is a time of waiting and preparing your heart.”
On top of those lessons this year, McKee had her students discuss how they thought Mary and Joseph felt. This proved to give a totally different perspective to the story of Jesus’ birth. These wise first graders provided insight most adults have probably never thought of, especially since Christmas cards paint such a beautiful scene of the manger. Here are just a few thoughts out of the mouths of babes:
**Mary and Joseph felt doomed because they were traveling on a donkey to Bethlehem, no one knew they were having Jesus and they had to stay in a smelly barn.
**Maybe Joseph was scared of the animals because he was a carpenter.
**Mary could have been worried that the animals would lick Baby Jesus.
**They felt disgusting because they had to stay and have Jesus in a feces infested barn.
**Joseph maybe wasn't ready to have a baby, so he could have been worried to be a dad.
**I think Mary was excited, nervous and surprised because it was her first baby and didn't know what to expect.
**Mary said, "Whoa!" And backed up to her bed when Gabriel came and told her she was having Jesus.
**Joseph felt bad because he couldn't do any better than a barn for Mary and Jesus and it was his job to take care of them.
Now that gives you something to think about the next time you picture Mary and Joseph all warm and cozy laying Jesus in the manger surrounded by the animals. Pretty humble beginning for the Savior of the World.
Rummage Sale
The Rummage Sale is in need of pant/skirt hangers (ones with the clips). If you have any that you want to get rid of please send them to the office.
Thank you!
Jan Narwold
Electronics Recycling Drive
‘Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house
Not an electronic was stirring
Not an iPad, iPhone or mouse…..
As you prepare for the Holidays and trim your tree, please hold on to the items below with glee! A Recycling Drive will occur in early January to raise $1000. The students will vote to determine what to purchase for the school. Following is a list of items we will be collecting:
Cellphones - any Apple, Blackberry, Casio, HTC, LG, Motorola, Nokia or Samsung
Laptops - 2006 or newer, Apple and Windows versions
Tablets - Ipad 2 or newer, Samsung Galaxy (2006 or newer)
Please see the attached flyer for more details. Thank you for your help in making this "RECYCTRONICS" a success!
SLS 5Th Grade Basketball Last Game of the Season -- record 10-6
Lost: SLS 24- Greendale 29
Scoring:
Hank Ritter - 9 pts
Conner Miles - 7 pts
Evan Flaspohler - 5 pts
Carson Meyer - 3 pts
Thank you,
Coach Roell
St Louis 6th Grade Basketball Recap--Last game of season
The St. Louis Cardinals 6th grade boys basketball team defeated a very good Greendale team last Wednesday night by a score of 31-24. The Cardinals started slow and were down 10-3 at the end of the 1st quarter and battled hard to tie the game 10-10 at halftime. The 3rd quarter was hard fought with Greendale leading 20-19 at the conclusion. Then in the 4th quarter, the Cardinals managed to pull away with clutch free throw shooting. The Cardinals made 10 of 13 free throws in the 4th quarter to seal the win. The team was led in scoring by Charlie Schebler (16), Alec Bunselmeier (6), Ben Harmeyer (4), Noah Tuveson (3), and Frank Forbeck (2). Another key aspect of the win was the effort of Nate Vankirk, Luke Meyers and Jack Hollins who played really aggressive defense!
This concludes the 6th grade boys basketball season who posted an impressive 12 and 2 record and champions of the annual St. Louis tournament. Each player scored and made significant contributions to the success of this team throughout the season. St. Louis is blessed to have a talented 6th grade basketball team that should achieve much success in the years to come and more importantly we are blessed with terrific young men who represented St. Louis with much pride and respect. The team would like to thank everyone for their support throughout the season!
Thanks,
Ryan Schebler
St. Louis 8th Grade Wins Over South Ripley in OT
The St Louis Cardinals 8th grade team hosted the Raiders from South Ripley last night and it turned out to be a great game as the talented teams came out playing well from the opening tip. St. Louis took a 1st quarter lead as LLeyton Ratcliffe came out with the hot hand scoring 10 of his team’s 14 points to the Cardinals a 14-11 lead going into the 2nd quarter. The Cardinals were able to improve on their lead in the second quarter as they got a big three point bucket from Wil Freeland with time running out putting the Cardinals up 27-21 at intermission. In the 3rd quarter the Raiders hit some big three point shots of their own and were able to cut into the lead as St. Louis led by the score of 36-33. South Ripley continued shooting well from the outside in the fourth quarter and were able to tie the score and had a chance to win the game as they held the ball for the last shot. However, the Cardinals played some tough defense and forced the game into overtime. The Cardinals got a quick bucket off the tip in overtime along with clutch free throws from Wil Freeland to put St. Louis up by four with 10 seconds to go. Lane Sparks came down and hit a three but time expired for the Raiders and the Cardinals won 52-51. The scoring for St. Louis consisted of Kurt Siefert with 5, Andrew Oesterling 16, Lleyton Ratcliffe 10, Wil Freeland 16, and Sam Voegele had 6. Defensively Voegele led the team in rebounds and Riley Schebler played some tough defense as well.
The Raiders were led by Cody Samples with 20 and Ryan Sparks with 16.
St. Louis will meet up with South Ripley again as they are scheduled to play each other in the 4th Annual Holiday Tournament on December 27th The tournament will be at the St. Louis Activity Center.
Thanks!
Jim Oesterling
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Cincy Music Series - The Gift Of Music For Christmas
Hope many of you have finished the majority of your shopping, cookies are baked and the cards are in the mail - me neither. I am WAY behind. Heading to Texas on business tomorrow and hoping I may experience some warmer weather. As soon as I get back, I will have to kick t up a notch.
An important piece of news. The Cincy Music Series is going to begin including some additional charities in our philanthropy. We want to keep our focus on education and children’s health. In our mission to support Catholic education, we will begin including a charitable organization to support at each show. This will hopefully increase our exposure while helping make the Cincy Music Series more impactful for families in Cincinnati.
At the Sierra Hull show in January, we will include support for the Aubrey Rose Foundation. It is a wonderful Foundation spearheaded by Jerry and Nancy Hollenkamp. They support families who come in to Children’s Hospital and provide financial assistance. They also have a scholarship program for students about to enter Catholic High Schools. We are proud to have them on board with us.
Please see the bulletin info below. We appreciate your support and wish you all the best throughout
the Christmas season.
Warmest Regards,
Pete Ellerhorst President Cincy Music Series PO Box 11011 Cincinnati, Ohio 45211
Contact us:
Email: jriedeman@st.louisschool.org
Website: www.st.louisschool.org
Location: 17 E. St. Louis Place, Batesville, IN 47006
Phone: 812-934-3310
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/StLouisCatholicSchoolBatesville
Twitter: StLouis_School