Dear Annunciation Families,
Although it will look different this year in so many ways, we hope you are able to enjoy your Thanksgiving break. While the pandemic has caused much turmoil and uncertainty, there are still many things to be thankful for. One thing I am most grateful for is our school community and their dedication to keeping our school safely open. It is certainly a team effort and our students are the ones who benefit the most from in-person learning. This school year's bible theme is very fitting for 2020 when so many have had to put others before themselves.
"Let all that you do be done in love." - 1 Corinthians 16:14
I hope you all have a Happy & Safe Thanksgiving!
Kari Zobel,
Principal
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There will NOT be a Weekender next week due to the
Thanksgiving break.
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Our nurse email, nurse@annunciationmsp.org, will continue to be checked during Thanksgiving break. Please continue to notify us of any illnesses/exposures or any questions you may have over the break.
Thank you!
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All students MUST bring a cold lunch and drink from home on Friday, November 20.
We discovered a discrepancy on the AgraCulture lunch calendar stating that Friday is a pizza day, and it is not. We do not have a pizza day in November. There will be no school lunch or pizza on Friday, so please make sure to send lunch with your child.
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Drop-off & Pick-up Reminders:
* PLEASE DO NOT ENTER HARRIET AVE VIA 55TH STREET, USE 56TH OR 57TH TO MAKE CARPOOL RUN SMOOTHLY*
*Please enter in on Harriet and out on Garfield for carpool drop off and pickup. Please respect our neighbors and do not use the ally in the middle of the parking lot.*
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Distance Learning
We understand that it can be frustrating for students to need to be out waiting for tests or with other illnesses and not have access to distance learning. We are working through this new world of education and having some students in person and some at home. Our goal is to make sure that our teachers are able to manage doing both successfully and this becomes an issue when students are moving in and out of this mode of education when they are out for only a few days. High schools may be more successful at it but right now we are having all distance learners work through our distance learning coordinator, Terra Zosel, and are reserving it for students who need to isolate and/or quarantine. We may need to revisit this in the future depending on the course the pandemic takes.
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Thank you for your generosity! We collected almost $5,500!!!
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SCRIP Gift Card Program
Raising funds for our school is now easier than ever with gift card purchases through SCRIP! The SCRIP program allows you to buy e-gift cards or physical gift cards from hundreds of retailers – such as Amazon, Target, Starbucks, Barnes and Noble, Gap, Athleta, and numerous restaurants. Any purchase made through SCRIP will give 3% to 12% back to Annunciation School at zero additional cost to you. SCRIP is a great way to buy holiday gift cards for family, friends, teachers, coaches, and colleagues at the office or load up yourself as you’re running to a store or restaurant.
***On November 19th and 20th (THIS WEEK ONLY!) SCRIP is offering up to 20% back to Annunciation across 120+ retailers. ***
Download the RaiseRight mobile app by ShopWithScrip and simply sign up using Annunciation’s code E4C1CLLL15927 to start giving back today!
To “sweeten” the deal, APO will give one FREE out of uniform pass to any student whose family makes a purchase via SCRIP this year (one pass per student | families with more than one student will get one pass for each student in that family).
Information about our Annunciation Scrip program and ALL the Scrip flyers including the retailer list are located on our Annunciation webpage:
https://www.annunciationmsp.org/school/current-parents/store/scrip-program
See the attached flyer for how to download and start using SCRIP.
Please contact Tina Sunda (clsunda@district287.org) with questions on SCRIP.
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APO's Winter Greens Sale Pick-up
Just a reminder your item(s) will be available this weekend for pick-up in the courtyard of the school. Please enter via 54th street into the small lot near Auto Zone. We will be directing one way traffic into the small parking lot in order to maintain the least amount of contact in regards to COVID. Please also wear a mask when you arrive.
Pick-up your items on:
- Sunday, November 22nd, 9am - 1pm
For those who paid for delivery, your items will be delivered on Saturday.
Thank you for your orders!
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NO SCHOOL (THANKSGIVING BREAK) – NOVEMBER 25th.
ANNUNCIATION EXTENDED DAY PROGRAM IS OPEN
School will be closed on Wednesday, November 25th for Thanksgiving Break. The Extended Day program will be open for our families from 7:00am – 6:00pm.
- Wednesday, November 25th: our theme for the day will be Extended Day Thanksgiving. The day will be filled with crafts/projects and activities that relate to Thanksgiving. The children will not need to bring a lunch this day because we will be ordering pizza and having an Extended Day feast!
We will provide a snack at 9:00am and at 2:45pm. The snack at 4:30p.m. is brought from home. Please dress the children appropriately. We go outside in the morning as well as the afternoon.
Please note: Extended Day will be closed November 26thand November 27th.
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GET READY TO SHINE!
The Catholic Schools Center of Excellence is looking for Catholic school students to share their talents as dancers, actors, singers and instrumentalists, as well as visual artists! Students in grades 4-8 from the 79 Catholic schools in the Twin Cities metro area are invited to audition and submit artwork for our third annual Shine On Talent Competition.
Winning acts will receive prizes, and their schools will receive a grant to enhance arts education.
For more information, visit https://www.shineontalent.org/
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A Classic Christmas 2020
As we reflect on this past year, we are reminded of our blessings. Christmas is about love, celebration, and the birth of our Savior. To continue our tradition, we invite you to join us for a virtual presentation of our beloved Christmas program!
Please join us Thursday, December 17th at 6:30pm for our virtual Christmas program presentation. A Zoom link will be sent closer to the show date. Please use the Zoom link to log in and join us for the show.
You won’t just be watching, your participation is needed!! We have pre-recorded our first graders sharing the story of Christmas. In between scenes, we invite you to sing along with us at home to some traditional Christmas carols, and let’s not forget Kermit’s Christmas! A song lyric document will be shared with all Annunciation families so you can safely sing along with us at home throughout the performance.
On the night of the performance, please have your child wear their Carnival shirt. Shirts will be distributed by your child’s classroom teacher. Show us that Annunciation spirit and make a night out of this event by dressing up, showing us your Christmas decorations on your screen, and singing your heart out!
Strength in our community is what brings us together and we are excited to celebrate the Christmas season with our Annunciation family!
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Join us for a Donuts with Santa DRIVE-THRU event as we spread Christmas cheer to our Annunciation Community.
Put on your Christmas tunes and remain safely in your vehicle as you drive thru to pick up donuts, cocoa and holiday crafts to go. Bring your letters to Santa and a donation for our Toys for Tots collection should you wish.
$40 per car. Proceeds will benefit our wonderful and hard-working teachers. Invite your friends and family, the more the merrier!
For questions, contact Courtney Klosner: courtneyklosner@gmail.com or Jen Passa: jennifer.passa@gmail.com
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Annunciation School Council is looking for school community members who are interested in joining a Diversity and Inclusion Committee comprised of parents, teachers and school leadership, to begin exploring ways to increase diversity within the school.
Areas this committee will discuss and focus on are curriculum, activities, school community building and social outreach. Our hope is to have a variety of voices at the table as we work toward a goal of greater inclusivity.
If interested, please reach out to ASC Chair Nicole Farrell at farrellnicolea@gmail.com or 952.240.9341 by November 30.
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Does your family have a child going into Kindergarten next year? Do you have any other children in your family that you would like to enroll at Annunciation next year? Or, do you know other families who are interested in attending Annunciation in 2021-22?
The online application is now open! Please click here for the Annunciation enrollment process, to schedule a tour, and to complete the online application:
https://www.annunciationmsp.org/school/new-families/admissions
We are already seeing a high number of inquiries for next school year! (* please note, families with current students already at Annunciation do not need to tour, they can simply complete the application for their new student, and submit their child's preschool screening or transcripts.)
If you refer a family to Annunciation and they take a tour, you will receive a $50 referral credit on your tuition next year. If that family enrolls, you will receive an additional $200 credit on your tuition! You must email Jennifer Renstrom if you refer a family in order to receive credit: jrenstrom@annunciationmsp.org.
Enrollment for CURRENT students for the 2021-2022 School Year
For the 2021-22 school year, Annunciation School will again use a continuous enrollment model. Students in grade K-7 will be automatically re-enrolled in mid-January, 2021. You will then receive an email from TADS to log on to your billing account to complete registration and set up your tuition agreement.
More information regarding continuous enrollment, financial aid and tuition rates for 2021-22 will be available soon.
Questions?
Please contact Jennifer Renstrom, Office Manager,
jrenstrom@annuncationmsp.org.
or Christy McFadden, Enrollment Coordinator,
cmcfadden@annunciationmsp.org
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Scholarship Applications Now Available for the 2021-22 School Year!
The Aim Higher Scholarship is awarded to students from families seeking tuition assistance. The scholarship follows students from Kindergarten through 8th grade and to other Catholic schools.
For new applicants, the CSAF/Aim Higher Scholarship is awarded to five students from families with the most tuition assistance need per eligible school.
Please click HERE to learn how to apply. Deadline to apply is February 20, 2021.
The Schulze Family Foundation has created the Schulze Early Learning Scholarship Program to assist middle-income families in gaining access to excellent Catholic preschool programs for their children.
The Foundation firmly believes in and supports the strength of the academic experience, the caring community and the spiritual development that is provided by the Catholic elementary schools.
Scholarships will be awarded ranging from $500 to $3000 and will be sent directly to the preschool to pay for tuition.
You are eligible to apply if:
- Your child will be attending an eligible Catholic preschool;
- Your child will be in their last year of preschool in 2020-2021 and
- Your family is middle-income.
Please click HERE to learn how to apply.
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HEALTH & SAFETY INFORMATION
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- The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) recommends that with our recent positive cases and community spread numbers that everyone remain diligent in maintaining mask use, proper hand hygiene and social distance whenever possible. Teachers and staff will continue to be extra vigilant about all the MDH guidelines. MDH is our state's appointed COVID authority for all schools and we will continue to follow their guidance.
- We remain committed to notifying specific classrooms or families when directed to do so by the MDH.
- We are also committed to following FERPA & HIPAA guidelines for individuals who do test positive.
- Do not send a student or any siblings to school if you have a pending COVID test on anyone in your household. If you have a known exposure to someone who tested positive for COVID, you must stay home for 14 days from the date of contact. You can NOT test out of this quarantine.
- If one of your children is showing one of the more common symptoms or two of the less common symptoms, ALL children must stay home even if other children are feeling fine. Please notify nurse@annunciationmsp.org for the next steps.
- Our school nurse, Christy McFadden, can guide you on helpful testing locations and procedures to get your children safely back to school while keeping everyone else healthy too.
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Self-Screen Daily:
Please follow Annunciation’s self-screening protocols each day to check for COVID- 19 symptoms in your child(ren).
Our goal remains the same - keeping everyone healthy!
These symptoms are consistent with the current
Minnesota Department of Health guidelines and decision tree updates.
More common symptoms:
Have one symptom? Stay home
-fever greater or equal to 100.4, new onset and/or worsening cough, difficulty breathing or new loss of taste or smell
Less common symptoms:
Have just one? Monitor symptom progression
Have two symptoms? Stay home
-sore throat, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, chills, muscle pain, excessive fatigue, new onset of severe headache or new onset of nasal congestion or runny nose
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The Annunciation Tree Lot will be open Friday—Saturday—Sunday December 4th through December 20th [or until all trees sellout] on the east side of the church.
We are eager to help you find just the right tree, each uniquely named, for your home. In addition, we will be selling wreaths, garlands, and tree bags.
All funds raised benefit Annunciation Church and School throughout the year. We will continue to offer free delivery for seniors and people with disabilities [within five miles of Church].
NEW THIS YEAR!
Pre-purchase your tree online! Receive a 10% discount, invitation to a private tree picking party on—Tuesday, December 1— 6:00pm to 9:00pm and if you want we will deliver it for FREE that evening [within 5 miles of Church].
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Questions? Email Jimmy Dunn, jdunn@annunciationmsp.org
TREE LOT HOURS:
* Pre-Purchased Tree Private Party Pick Up *
Tuesday, December 1 from 6:00pm to 9:00pm
December 4 to December 20:
- Friday 6:00pm to 9:00pm
- Saturday & Sunday 10:00am to 8:00pm
- Monday - Thursday CLOSED
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Annunciation Family Advent Wreath Making!
Annunciation Church South Foyer
After 9:30am Mass (10:30-11:30am)
Sunday, November 29th 2020
NEW THIS YEAR!
Come join in a wonderful tradition with a TWIST! Create an Advent wreath with your family to enhance life and prayer in your home. With the current restrictions on gatherings, we will provide greens, frame materials, candles, tablecloth, directions and a prayer when lighting the candles. You pick up the supplies in the south foyer of Church after Mass and make your wreath at home this year!
Cost:
- $8.00 individual
- $16.00 per family
- If needed permanent frame $6.00
Please pre register and make payment using the link below:
https://annunciationmsp.wufoo.com/forms/s1x975ke1r2fl38/
Questions: Email Jimmy Dunn jdunn@annunciationmsp.org
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Annual Nut Sale benefiting the Our Lady of Peace Home
Please place your orders by November 28.
Nuts will be available for pick up at Annunciation Church in the parking lot on Sunday, December 13 from 11am to 3pm.
*Make Checks out to Our Lady of Peace Home*
Questions: Call Meg Pospisil 612-532-7035
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LEADING WITH SPIRIT AWARD
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Thank you to everyone who continues to fill out Spirit Awards for our amazing staff! The November drawing will take place this Friday and we have a really fun gift basket lined up for the winner!
Filling out a Leading with Spirit card online is such an easy way to show our appreciation for all they do. The teachers and staff get to know what impact they're having and be entered into the monthly drawing. It is free, you can send them any time, and your nominee could win great prizes!
To fill out a recognition, go to:
https://www.annunciationmsp.org/school/show-spirit.
If you have any questions, would like to see a certain teacher's list of favorite things, or would like to organize something special for these monthly drawings, please reach out to either Tara Dietenberger at
tdietenberger@gmail.com or Jenny Kearney at jakearn@gmail.com.
A special thank you to all the families who have contributed to our awesome drawing prizes - including the Smith family!
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Have information you'd like included in the Weekender?
The Weekender is sent out on Thursdays during the school year.
If you would like to have something featured in the Weekender, please submit contributions for consideration by Tuesday at 12pm for the week of distribution.
Please submit it using this form or by emailing Jessica Knutson. Thank you!
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If you have an additional family member who would like to receive these emails please contact Jessica Knutson.
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OUR VISION STATEMENT
Annunciation Catholic School fosters each child’s potential to create a better world through faith, virtue, knowledge, and service to others.
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