FOR HEAVEN'S SAKE
Our Lady Queen of Heaven School :: MARCH 15th, 2014
The FHS is a monthly on-line school newsletter. It will be emailed to you through School Reach. There will be weekly reminders of important events and activities that are planned for the upcoming week.
Dear Parents and Members of the OLQHS Community
I can’t believe we are beginning the 4th quarter of this year. We have so much left to accomplish. We will need to work right down to the last moment because of the “Snow” days and “Lice” days. From Pre-K – 8th grade, the students will be learning new and important things for their future. Please make sure they are ready to learn and be part of their class until the end of the school year.
I believe very strongly that the students of OLQHS are the reason that we are all here. We are here to meet the needs of our students whether they are spiritual, academic or social. Our Mission statement proclaims this: “Learning and Living the Good News: Fostering Academic Success for All Students”. I believe that every year I sign my contract that I am making a year’s commitment to the children of OLQHS. I also believe that every teacher who signs a contract makes a commitment to the students of OLQHS for that entire year. Yes, we all have personal lives but when we sign this contract we are stating that unless a catastrophe event occurs which prevents us from fulfilling our commitment, we will and our obligated to live up to our commitment. I love the fact we sign a yearly contract and not a union contract like I did in Rhode Island. It keeps us all on our toes. The OLQHS staff is the most dedicated group of individuals I have ever had the pleasure to work with. I ask a lot of them and they always come through. Let us pray for our staff and the students of OLQHS during this season of Lent.
Our 8th grade students took the Diocesan Religion test to see how well they know their theology in preparation for entering the Diocesan Confirmation Program and I am proud to say they did extremely well. Thanks to Mrs. Fontenot, Mrs. Houssiere, and Mrs. Thomas and of course, you, their parents.
OLQHS is an incredible place to be.
Ms. JoAnn
"Whoever wishes to be my follower must deny his very self, take up his cross each day, and follow in my steps." – (Luke 9:23)
Important Messages From Our School
The Bishop Scholarship Forms to apply for financial aid will be available February 10th in the accounting office. They will need to be turned in to the accounting office with a copy of your 2013 tax return or extension by April 15, 2014.
Call Pam Goodwin 477-7349 or email pgoodwin@olqhs.org with any questions.
Job Opportunity:
An OLQH family is looking for one-on-one teacher for their autistic child. Private school setting, approximately 20 hours per week, good pay. No specific education required, however, certified teachers are welcomed. Training will be provided. Please call 540-1493
ECC: The ECC is looking for a child care worker. Please call Ms. Kathleen at the ECC (337-477-8438) or e-mail at kstewart@olqhs.org
Yearbook Reminder: The deadline to purchase a 13-14 yearbook and a yearbook ad is Friday, March 21, 2014. Order forms can be found in the front office. If you have questions about yearbook orders email kbabineaux@olqhs.org or pbeverung@olqhs.org. If you have questions about ads email ctanner@olqhs.org.
Teacher Positions for the 2014 – 2015 School year
- 7th and 8th Grade Science Teacher
- 7th Grade ELA Teacher
- 3rd Grade Teacher
- Resource – Middle School and Elementary Teachers
- Applications will be accepted through Friday, March 21, 2014
Student Council News
As our school year continues, we look toward the rest of our scheduled activities. Last year we decided to offer the Variety Show once again to the student body. It was a wonderful evening of talent from our students. We also decided that it would be held on the last Friday of April, thus staying away from a very busy May schedule.
This year, however, due to the Easter break, we will not be in school on that last Friday of April. Our May calendar is more than full with activity that are all wonderful events in themselves. In conversation with the Administrative Team of our school, the decision has been made to hold the Variety Show every other year, opposite from our school’s musical. So many faculty and staff members as well as our student body are involved in both of these major events, not to mention the Beta Convention and Fishing Tournament that is also held around these events. So, the Student Council looks forward to presenting next year’s show with great excitement.
Let us look ahead as we prepare to celebrate in May:
- Grandparents’ Day with the First Graders
- Junior Beta State Convention
- Run for Others
- Student Council Elections
- 8th grade Parent Mass
- Mass to celebrate retiring teachers: Mrs. Lisa Billodeau, Mrs. Sharon Hearn & Mrs. Sandy Hudson
- Pep Rally for PE Awards (to include Beta Club Talent Winners)
- Choir and Band Spring Concert
- Middle School Awards Prayer Service
- 8th grade Graduation
- Fishing Tournament
- Celebration of First Holy Communion
- Pre-Kindergarten Closing Ceremonies
- Kindergarten Stepping-Up Celebration
- Closing School Ceremonies
Instant Wisdom
Ways to help your Younger Child with reading:
• Read to your child every day.
• Choose a book that you like.
• Sit together on the couch or a chair.
• Talk about the book.
• Look at the pictures.
• Talk about what might happen next.
You are building vocabulary and understanding about what is being read.
What a gift you are giving your child!
Read everywhere that you go. Read the stop sign, the Walmart sign, and the billboards on your way around town. I remember when my daughter was 5 years old and we went to the mall. She said,"That says J.C.Penney." She was amazed that she could read the signs above the stores. What an amazing discovery!
Make homework fun! Spend only 15-20 minutes on homework. Have one on one time. Sit together! Don't stress about it. If something is too difficult, come back to it later.
Children love to write! Use markers, crayons, or sidewalk chalk.
Writing words make them easier to remember.
Thanks for all you do to help your child!
Caught You Being Good this week at OLQHS!! Let’s Celebrate!!
A.J. Willis and Sage Sikich for cleaning up the 8th grade hall for me.
Awesome job! Thank you girls.
HOMEWORK FOR ABSENT STUDENTS
We appreciate conscientious parents and students in requesting homework when absence from school is necessary. However, because of frequent class interruptions to request homework assignments, a structured procedure must be followed.
Reliable friends in the classroom have always been good sources for getting assignments to absent students, but if that is not possible, the following procedure is to be followed:
1.Call the school office (477-7349) before 9:00 A.M.
2. The secretary will send an assignment form to the student's homeroom teacher requesting homework.
3. The homeroom teacher will circulate the sheet to all course teachers.
4. The completed form will be returned to the reception office with materials necessary to complete the assignments.
The assignments can be picked up between 2:30 and 3:30 P.M. Parents or siblings are not to go to the classrooms to get assignments. Assignments will not be ready before 2:30 P.M.
If a student is too ill to complete a homework assignment, please do not request it. If the homework for an absent student is requested, it becomes his/her responsibility to have it completed when returning to class.
No homework assignments will be given in advance of an unexcused absence, for example, a family trip. It is the responsibility of the parent and student to make up missed work. The student will be allowed one day for each day out to allow make-up work to be done.
Skate Night
On behalf of the student council, I invite all in our school community to come and join in our fourth skating night of the year on Monday, March 17, 2014 at Skate City on Nelson Road. We will begin at 6:00 pm and will end promptly at 8:00 pm. Entrance fee is $6.00. Only OLQH School families are invited to our private skating nights. If you choose to bring your own skates, please be sure that your skates are clean and dry. As usual, hats and the chewing of gum are not permitted. These are Skate City rules. If you choose to play in the Jump City play area, that is an additional $3.00.
As our tradition, we invite all of our families to attend, as we celebrate with our 8th grade and 2nd grade buddies! We look forward to this special evening when our students can skate together as buddies, in addition with the rest of our student body in attendance. The theme for our skate night is “Celebrating St. Patrick’s Day!” by wearing your favorite green attire! One Elementary and one Middle School student will be chosen as the Best Dressed in showing their St. Patrick’s Day spirit! Winners will have lunch with me at school.
When arriving at Skate City, check in with a student council member. The homeroom class with the most students in attendance by percentage will win a t-shirt day for the class! One winner from the Middle School and one winner from the elementary school will be selected. A great big thanks to those of you who continually come out to show your school spirit! We will announce the winning classes on the morning program on Tuesday, March 18, 2014.
Good luck to all classes! These fund raising events support the efforts of the student council in providing spirit filled activities for our students. We look forward to seeing each of you on Monday night!
----Benji Chatters/Commissioner of Special Affairs
Mardi Gras Parade!
We hope everyone had a wonderful Mardi Gras. Here are a few pics from the Kindergarten Mardi Gras Parade on Friday, February 28th.
Kindergarten Parade
Kindergarten Parade
Kindergarten Parade
Kindergarteners Making Great Strides as Spring Approaches
Achievement, growth, and success are evident as the students and teachers of the OLQHS Kindergarten continue to work hard to prepare our kids for the 1st Grade. To this point, 32 high frequency words (i.e. “sight words”) have been introduced. This week the a_e pattern is being taught and the silent e making the a long. Literacy centers with small group instruction are ongoing, and all consonant and vowel sounds have been introduced. Fluency in reading is being taught through phonics skills and leveled readers in addition to the sight words. This year the teachers have utilized the new Wonders Reading Program from McGraw- Hill to help meet the challenge of new, higher standards. This new reading program, in conjunction with other “tried and true” learning strategies, is proving effective.
There is also a new McGraw-Hill Math Program being utilized in the Kindergarten this year. Currently the students are learning to tell the number of sides and vertices of a shape and are learning to recognize and know the value of coins.
Don’t forget to check the Kindergarten and teacher webpages on Edline to stay current with what you child is learning and doing in class. We are continuing to work hard for you and your child. An important date to mark on your calendar is April 14-16. These are the dates of the Scholastic School Readiness testing
5th Grade tracking the 42nd Iditarod Sled Dog Race in Alaska
Ms. Racca’s 5th grade class will be reading the novel Woodsong by three-time Newberry honor author Gary Paulsen. In this book, Paulsen remembers and shares many of his amazing experiences as he gets his first team of sled dogs and later begins training for the Iditarod Sled Dog Race in Alaska. The Iditarod is considered to be “The Last Great Race on Earth”, and the official start of the race was Sunday, March 2nd. In addition to reading the novel, students will be assigned a musher in the actual race to research and document daily progress as they make the journey from Anchorage to Nome. Students will be responsible for various other assignments like constructing a timeline, time conversions from Alaskan time to Central time, and writing a biography about their musher.
ASH WEDNESDAY: WHAT’S WITH THAT DIRT ON YOUR HEAD?
Who hasn’t gotten that question on Ash Wednesday before? Do you feel silly when people ask you about your ashes? And is it hard to answer their questions? Having ashes on your forehead isn’t just some weird Catholic thing: it’s a tradition that finds its roots in the Old Testament. “I turned to the Lord God, to seek help, in prayer and petition, with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes”.
When the ashes are placed on our foreheads in the sign of the Cross, it is a reminder of several things. First, it is a call to repentance: a physical sign that we are sinners in need of forgiveness, which is how the prophets used it in the Old Testament. Second, it is to remind us that God created us from the earth and when we die, we will return to it.
But here’s the best part: As Pope Benedict XVI once said, “Man is dust and to dust he shall return, but dust is precious in God's eyes because God created man, destining him to immortality.” God so loves us that, even when our bodies return to the dust, our souls are meant to live forever with him. The ashes symbolize all of this.
OLQHS Math counts team
The OLQH MATHCOUNTS Team consisting of Alyssa Johnson, John Noble, Travis Sharp, and Katherine Jester, placed 3rd at the regional competition held at McNeese on Saturday, February 15. Students that placed in the individual competition were John Noble 4th place and Alyssa Johnson 2nd place. Alyssa received a $750 per year scholarship to McNeese State University. The team is eligible to attend the State Competition in Pineville on March 28.
Other participants on Saturday were Olivia Moncrief, Gabrielle Kuehn, and Maggie Bruchhaus.
Congratulations to all these students.
The Art World
There are many new members of Artsonia’s Hall of Fame this month. They are Kindergarten student Keelan McCall and Second Graders Ellie Nickel, Ethan Posch, and Chance Guillory. We have some Middle School students in the Hall of Fame this month. They are Eighth Graders Tyler Hoover, Will Upshaw, Elizabeth Broussard, and Conner Williams. Congratulations to all!!
Kindergarten students have made their world famous “Surprised Crazy Faces” where they blow in the hair with a straw. Go see them in the Fine Arts Building. First Graders are coloring with cray pas on black construction paper. They are doing a snowman picture to scare off the last of the COLD WEATHER. Second Graders are learning to weave by making an Easter Egg Placemat. Third Graders are finishing their Mary of Guadalupe in cray pas. They are beautiful!
Fourth Graders are working hard on their Picasso Portraits while Fifth Graders are beginning to paint their Indian Mask Gourds. Seventh Graders have studied the art of the Aborigines of Australia and are painting their own Aborigine style birdhouse gourd. Eighth Graders are finishing their own Zentangles which include rhinos, penguins, and minions—yes, and minions. Go and check them out in the Fine Arts Building.
I am so proud of the work that my students do in class. Please go to the Artsonia website and let them know how proud YOU are by making a comment on the website.
Remember we are busy creating, making messes, and having fun!
Brenda Foshee, Art
O.L.Q.H. School’s FINE ARTS DEPARTMENT Presents Finian’s Rainbow
Join Our Lady Queen of Heaven Fine Arts Department as they present the musical, “Finian’s Rainbow” in the Auditorium at the Lake Charles Boston Academy. Performances for parents and friends will be at 7:00 P.M. on Thursday, April 3 and Friday, April 4. Students in Grades 2-8 will attend special student morning performances on April 3 or April 4. Student permission slips will go home soon. Reserved seating for evening performances may be obtained by purchasing tickets from the school office. Order forms will be sent home to each family and are available in the office.
Tickets will be distributed daily on a first come first serve basis.
Adults-$12.00 and Children-$7.00
FOOD, FUN, and FELLOWSHIP
You're invited to the 4th Annual PTC Family Fun night to thank all of our volunteers and just have fun. Join us on Thursday, March 20th, in the FLCC Gym from 5:30-7:30. Bingo! Jambalaya! Prizes! Music by Avid Sounds/David Verret!
There is no cost for OLQHS Families to attend this event.
NEWS FROM THE LIBRARY
Congratulations Double AR Star Quinn Marceaux and AR Stars Andrew Wright, Conner Williams and Sam Drouilhet, 7th grade; Jane Radde, Juliana Broussard, Sadie Belaire, Katherine Jester, Ryan Ieyoub and Bryant Fusilier, 6th grade; and Ashleigh Tassin and Audrey Heinen, 5th grade.
BOOK FAIR March 17-28. Parents are welcome to shop all day! Student hours are 7:30-9:00 and 2:30- 4:00 each day and also during their scheduled library classes.
The Fair will be open on Family Fun Night, March 20.
Visit us before, during, or after activities!
SAVE THE DATE – 2014 OLQHS GOLF CLASSIC!
Thank you to all who have submitted registration and sponsor forms. We truly appreciate your support. We still have a few teams left, if you are still interested in entering a team, please contact Megan O’Quin: moquin@olqhs.org. We are looking forward to a great event on Friday!!
OLQHS 4-H
OLQH 4-H members proudly represented their school on February 22.
Public Speaking:
1st place - Alivia Mudd - Soybean Division 1st place - Darby Gabbert - Cooperatives 1st place - Gabriell Little - General
Personal Development Elementary Division:
2nd place- Win Goodwin
Honorable Mention - Megan McGee
Personal Development Jr. Division:
1st place - Gabriell Little
2nd place- Madeline Stickell
3rd place- Alivia Mudd
Honorable Mention - Darby Gabbert
Insect Identification:
2nd place - Gabriell Little
Horticulture:
3rd place - Alivia Mudd
Dog Care:
Honorable Mention- Gabriell Little
Good Shepherd Annual Book Sale 2014
March 28th - 30th
Friday: 8am - 6pm
Saturday: 9am - 3pm
Sunday: 12 - 3pm ($5 Bag Sale)
www.facebook.com/goodshepherdusedbooksale
Shop for NEW & USED BOOKS, AUDIO
BOOKS, DVDs, CDs & more
Sponsored by
Episcopal Church of the Good Shepherd
715 Kirkman Street
Lake Charles, LA
Proceeds go to local charities.
Cornerstone Capital Campaign
What extraordinary generosity. THANKS!
About Our School
Lake Charles, LA 70605
Phone: 337.477.7349
Fax: 337.477.7384
Email: drivero@olqhs.org
Website: www.olqhs.org
Location: 3908 Creole Street, Lake Charles, LA
Phone: (337)477-7349