Each year Saint James School middle school students participate in the annual Szopka (Polish Creche) Competition sponsored by the Polish Cultural Club of Greater Hartford.  In this contest, students transform everyday items – bottles, paper tubes, boxes – into a “palace” befitting the birth of Jesus.  Participation in the contest is required for students in grade 6 and optional for 7th and 8th graders.

Today, students participating in the competition listened to a guest speaker – Mr. Marek Czarnecki – talk about the meaning of the Szopka, the history of Szopka making, and the general rules for the contest.

For parents of participating students – please note, students must drop off their Szopka entry the Saturday after Thanksgiving between 10:30am and 2:30pm at the Polish National Home in Hartford.  The festival takes place the following day – Sunday, December 1st – beginning at 9:30am, with awards being given out around 2:00pm.

For additional information and contest rules, please visit the Polish Cultural Club’s Website by clicking here.

Sign-up sheets for parent-teacher conferences will be posted in the main hallway (by the main office) all next week (beginning Monday, November 4th).  Conferences are being held on Monday, November 18th and Tuesday, November 19th.  Please STOP IN during morning drop-off, afternoon pick-up or during school hours to sign up for a time slot.  Please do NOT call the office to make an appointment.  Thank you

Tomorrow is the last day to submit Box Tops for the month of October.  Remember, the class with the most Box Tops each month wins a dress down day!  We thank you for your support!

Just a reminder for students playing basketball this season – the sports fee is $65 for boys and girls Junior Varsity and Varsity teams.  The fee is due to the school office this week.  Coaches will be in touch with their team regarding practice dates and times.

As previously mentioned, due to an overwhelming demand among boys this year, Saint James School is designing a structured developmental play program for our 4th & 5th grade boys.  This will allow our students to play against teams equally matched in ability.  This program will have a $40 sports fee.  Please bear with us as we work out the details concerning this new program.  We expect to have more details for parents shortly.

We are excited to announce that our Saint James School Scarecrow won 2nd place in the Downtown Manchester Scarecrow Festival!   A huge congratulations to Mrs. Sabatella, Mrs. Thrall, and the entire SJS Student Council on the fantastic job they did coming up with an idea and putting it together!!

Thank you to everyone who voted!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mrs. Vassallo’s Kindergarten class pictured above with the SJS Scarecrow.