Cambridge - Saint Benedict Grade School at 220 North 7th Street, Cambridge, OH 43725 US - October 26th

Dear Parents,

            Today is the beginning of the second quarter of the 2009-2010 school year. Report cards will be coming home on Thursday. It has been a very positive beginning. I am often asked how our school year is going, and my first response is always about the positive attitude of our students, faculty, and parents. It is a caring community that works so cooperatively together and I feel very blessed to be part of.

            Grandparents Day last week was great! I heard only favorable comments except for the waiting lines at the Book Fair. We’ll try to address that for next year. I counted around 85 grandparents who joined us at Mass and in the classrooms on Thursday. Their support meant a lot to their grandchildren and to all of us!

            Thank you to all who supported our Book Fair last week by purchasing books for your child or donating books to the classrooms or library. It will close at noon today and we will let you know the profit after Sister Eloise balances everything. Special thanks to Sister Eloise for all her efforts to schedule, plan, and set up the Book Fair plus all the hours being there to sell books!

            We welcome Andrew Brown to our third grade. His parents are Shellie and Will Brown, 1828 Maple Rd. 2A, Cambridge, OH, 43725.

            Included in the envelope is your appointment for parent-teacher-student conferences on either Tuesday, November 10 or Thursday, November 12. Please try to keep the appointment that has been scheduled for you. However, if something should change, please call the office to reschedule.

            Thanks to all who signed and returned the statement sheet in regard to the cuts in state funding for private school. If you have not returned yours, please feel free to do so tomorrow. We will get them sent on to the appropriate office.

            We continue to have students out with cold and flu symptoms. By the end of last week we were down to six students absent. Today we have 18 out again. The following are recommended to help keep our students healthy at home and at school:

·       Teach your children to wash their hands often with soap and water or an alcohol-based hand rub. You can set a good example by doing this yourself.

·       Teach your children not to share personal items like drinks, food or unwashed utensils, and to cover their coughs and sneezes with tissues. Covering up their coughs or sneezes using the elbow, arm, or sleeve instead of the hand when a tissue is unavailable.

·       Know the signs and symptoms of the flu. Symptoms of the flu include fever (100 degrees Fahrenheit, or greater), cough, sore throat, a runny or stuffy nose, body aches, headache, and feeling very tired. Some people may also vomit or have diarrhea.

·       Keep sick children at home for 24 hours after they no longer have fever or do not have signs of fever, without using fever-reducing drugs. Keeping children with a fever at home will reduce the number of people who may get infected.

·       Do not send children to school if they are sick. Any children who are determined to be sick will be sent home.

A Few Reminders:

·       First payment for the Washington D.C. trip is due on Monday, November 9, for students and adults who plan to go. The next meeting is Tuesday, November 3, at 6:30 P.M. in the library.

Refreshments at the Book Fair raised $190.00. Raffle tickets for the MP3 player will be sold until the drawing on Wednesday, November 25. Tickets are $1.00 each or 8 for $5.00.

·       Spirit wear order forms were due last Friday. Orders will be accepted tomorrow, Tuesday, October 27, if you missed the deadline.

Looking Ahead:

• Annual spaghetti dinner fund-raiser sponsored by Annie Bride of the Point is scheduled for Wednesday, November 4, 11:00-7:00 P.M. Enclosed is a poster that we ask you to post somewhere to help get the word out. The ending time is wrong on the poster. The dinner will end at 7:00. Larger posters are available in the school office if you would like one. Parents may pick up their children during the students’ lunch breaks if you wish to take them to the spaghetti dinner. (11:15-12:00 for K-4, 12:00-12:45 for 5-8). Please send a note with your child or call the office so teachers know who is going. We realize there may be overlapping if you have children in both groups. Students who are not going for spaghetti must pack a lunch.
• Next parent letter will come home on Friday with November calendar and menu.  God bless you.