Happy Friday!

Just a few reminders..

• K-8 report cards will open on the portal for parents to access on February 11th.
  
  
• Congratulations to our students in 3-1 and Grade 5 for winning this year's 'Souper Bowl'! Each class has earned a pizza lunch and dress down day at a date to be determined. 3-1 collected an impressive 403 cans with 5th grade close behind at 389! Congratulations and thank you to all for participating in the fun!
  
  
• PK parents should scroll down to access the weekly newsletter for their child's class and the February lunch menu,. A flyer for the Caregiver Session being held on February 15th is attached as well.
  
  

• As the COVID vaccine has now become readily available for children ages 5 to 11, we would ask that you use the following link to record your child's vaccination record. While you are not obligated to share your child's vaccination status, this information will help us move forward with potential larger gatherings, contact tracing and even lunch in the cafeteria. Thank you for your continued efforts to keep our community and school safe.
  
  https://forms.gle/jUQmfRDHVvmRRC3c7
  
  

• As the weather becomes colder, students are invited to dress in their gym uniform/spirit wear on non-gym days. A link to the spirit/ uniform shop can be found here: https://www.liebmansuniforms.com/ecommerce/sbs/st.-barnabas-spirit-store.html
  

Should you need to reach me for anything, please email me at n.cruz@stbarnabasschool.org or call (718) 324-1088.

Every year, during Catholic Schools' Week, the Hyatt Association sponsors an essay contest for our 8th Graders on Why Catholic Education is Important. Six winners are chosen based on their originality and commentary of their own personal experiences. This years' winners from the Class of 2022 are Pranshu Barot, Jenna Byrne, Michael Foley, Christopher Ndukwe, Madina Ouattara and Layla Vazquez. One winner will be reading his/her essay before each Mass this weekend. If you arrive 5-10 minutes before Mass starts, you can be a part of this year's ending celebration of Catholic Schools' Week! Congratulations to all our winners!

February

14th - Happy Valentines Day! All students are invited to dress in either red or pink for the day.

16th- 100th Day of School! Please look for correspondence from your child's teacher for more information.

18th- No School for K-8 Students! PK is in session for a full day.

21st - No School for PK - 8 Students!

If your child's temperature is 100 degrees Fahrenheit or more or they exhibit any other signs of illness (symptoms other than COVID), then your child must stay home and see a doctor. A medical note of clearance with an alternate diagnosis must be provided to return to school even after one day of absence. If COVID is suspected, or your child presents symptoms of COVID, a negative PCR test must be submitted in order to return to school.

If your child is going to be absent, please contact the teacher and the main office directly. All PK absences should be reported to our UPK admin, Mrs. Rivera, at t.rivera@stbarnabasschool.org. A complete list of all teachers and their email addresses, should you need them, can be found on the school website.

It is imperative that parents or guardians email both Ms. Castro-Cruz and Ms. Iorio should their child test positive for COVID or be identified as a close contact due to a positive case within the home. Please be prepared to share a copy of your child's results and the date that symptoms began. This will help us ensure a speedy reporting process to our COVID team. Once the case has been processed, a date for return will be shared with you by either Ms. Castro-Cruz or Ms. Iorio.

Should your child test positive for COVID or have to be quarantined due to exposure within the home, teachers will make work available via Google Classroom.

Contact Information:

Ms. Natalia Castro-Cruz: n.cruz@stbarnabasschool.org

Ms. Lauren Iorio: l.iorio@stbarnabasschool.org

All School Employees, Children and Essential Visitors will need to complete a daily health self-check by answering the questions listed below and by taking their own temperatures each day prior to entering the school or being on the school property. A parent or guardian is responsible for completing the weekly screening on behalf of their child(ren). If you answer YES to any of these questions on any given day, your child may not enter the school building. Contact a medical professional for guidance and notify the school principal. For students with chronic illness, only new symptoms or symptoms worse than baseline should be used to fulfill symptom-based exclusion criteria. By completing and submitting the weekly form, you acknowledge that you read the above will comply with all requirements and received the attached updated daily checklist that you will complete it each week for your child (ren) for the 2021-2022 School Year.

Each week you will be required to complete the Weekly Health Self-Screening Google Form on behalf of your child(ren) before entering the school building Monday mornings.

Surveys should be completed Sunday evening or Monday mornings by 7am.

Please click the photo above to access the newsletters for the week of January 31st.