Thursday, August 30, 2012

Ember Day Reminder


 Harvest time will soon be here! Don't forget to fast and pray for the ember days of fall.

Wednesday, September 19th
Friday, September 21st
and
Saturday, September 22nd

If your family does not already participate in ember days, you have plenty of time to learn more about them before September 19th. 

God bless you!

Sunday, August 26, 2012

Old Testament Free Printables!


With our first co-op day just around the corner, we are gearing up for the Old Testament in history, and you might be interested in coloring pages. Here is a wonderful website with free printables that our Kindergarten-1st Grade Teacher found to share with everyone! Bible Printables.



We also recommend these coloring books from Dover Publications!







AND this book from Bellerophon Books:


Saturday, August 25, 2012

Teachers and Volunteers 2012-2013


Teachers and Assistants:

Preschool Teachers:        Adele Fell, Anne Jansen
                Assistants:       Katrina Grajeda, Mary Belton, and Amy Cronkhite

K-1st Grade Teacher:      Kathryn Stocco
                Assistants:        Allison Schwartzmiller and Anne-Marie Cummings

2nd – 3rd Grade Teachers:  Sharon Echaniz and Monique Gilkison

4th – 6th Grade Teachers:  Jodi Shaffer and Irma Powell

Music Teachers:                Margaret Baron

Art Teachers:                   Valerie Clark and Elizabeth Pullen

Memory Work Leader:     Jamie Spiering and Allison Schwartzmiller
               
Study Hall Supervisor:      Hall Monitors on Duty

Other Jobs of Import:

Discipline Director:            Christina Durgin
Clean-up Director:            Mary Belton
Hall-way Clean-up:           Pamela Qualkinbush
Hall Monitors:                   Jamie Spiering, Pamela Qualkinbush, Christina Durgin, and Alecia Rolling
Field Trip Organizers:       Volunteers! 
First-Aid Provider:            Mary Belton and Irma Powell
Curriculum Committee:      Christina Durgin, Alecia Rolling, and Jodi Shaffer

Thursday, August 23, 2012

Making Letter Books for Preschoolers

Last year, the preschoolers worked on a "Letter Book" after learning the "Letter of the Week". It was good reinforcement for the kids because they were able to take them home and show Mom and Dad. They also became a nice keepsake for the children to look at again and again throughout the year.  If they weren't finished in class, the preschoolers also had work they could do at home. Here is a quick tutorial on how to make these books.

Here is a finished book that my son made last year. The children glued feathers on the front for the letter F. 

 


Inside the book are pages with a Saint and a Virtue that start with the letter. The other pages had a big F and a little f for them to color and a dot to dot page.


 
All you need is a regular file folder. 
 
First, you cut off the tabs. (The tabs were not cut off from this folder)


  
Then, you fold the file folder in half longways and cut the folder in half.

 
This will give you two books. I held up the "F" book to show you how one half of the folder makes one book. Remember that the tabs should be cut off.


Then you pick out what pages you want for the inside. I got all my pages on-line. I print them right off my home printer. But make sure that when you go to print, you must go under "Page Scaling" and pick "Booklet Printing". This will print the image smaller and only on one side. Then you will be able to print a second image on the same piece of paper. Fold the papers, stick them in the book and then staple the edge. Your book is finished!

Links for inside pages used:
Saint Coloring Pages
More Saint Coloring Pages
Alphabet of Virtues
Animal Letters
Words that start with the letter
Nursery Rhyme ABC's

Wednesday, August 22, 2012

Fun at the Shenandoah River State Park!

Greetings in Christ! We had a wonderful time at the Shenandoah River State Park on Tuesday, August 21st! 7 families came out and enjoyed the "Going In-Seine" program hosted by Park Staff. Students were introduced to the Seine Net, how to set it at a "riffle", and how to kick up rocks to release macro-invertebrates (large invertebrates that can be seen without a microscope)! Then, everyone went down to the river to try their luck with the net. Once sufficient rocks had been turned over, the net was brought onto shore, where the children looked for macro-invertebrates of all kinds to sort and identify. Once all was said and done, we enjoyed a picnic and some chit-chat with new families. 






Thank you for coming out!


Monday, August 20, 2012

Feast of the Immaculate Heart of Mary


Father Carr will be offering a Solemn High Mass this Wednesday, August 22nd, at 6:30PM. The Mass will be at St. John the Baptist in Front Royal, VA.

Saturday, August 18, 2012

We've Reached Our Max!

Thank you to everyone who has shown an interest in Schola Rosa Homeschool Cooperative. Unfortunately, we can no longer accept any new enrollments. All classes have been filled. 

To those of you who have already joined, we look forward to spending the 2012-2013 school year with you! For those who wanted to join but missed the cutoff, we're sorry to miss you. We hope that we will be able to offer you a spot next year.

God bless you all!

Thursday, August 16, 2012

Another Successful Meeting!

Today's meeting proved to be our best turnout yet. We now have 20 families enrolled!! Thank you to everyone who came out to ask questions and learn more about the co-op. It is so rewarding to see other families get excited about the coming school year. We also have all of our main teacher positions filled! We knew that if this co-op was God's will, He would provide, and He certainly has! Deo gratias!!

I would like to also thank Alecia Rolling, who has put so much time into planning these meetings. Not to mention the time it takes for her to gather everything together, print out all the paperwork, carry all the books to the meeting (always with 4 young children in tow too!) and to always have a ready answer for anyone's questions or concerns. Without her, this co-op would not be possible. Thank you, Alecia!

To all the families who joined our co-op today, welcome!

Tuesday, August 14, 2012

Last Meeting!

We will be having our last information meeting this week!

 Please join us at 
Samuel's Public Library in Front Royal, VA
330 East Criser Road
Front Royal, Virginia 22630

on Thursday, August 16th 

from  10:30-11:30 
 This is our last meeting before the registration deadline on August 25th. If you have been on the fence or have just heard about us, this is your chance to come and learn more. We will have books for you to browse through and will be able to answer any questions you have. Children welcome. 
Hope to you see you there!

Feast of the Assumption


Father Carr will be offering a low Mass for the Feast of the Assumption tomorrow, August 15th, at 7AM in the main church of St. John the Baptist in Front Royal.

Monday, August 13, 2012

Which RC History Books do I buy?


Greetings! For the RC History Program to work best for you at home during the week, it is essential to have their core book lists for each grade, which can be found here: http://www.rchistory.com/volume-one/ Simply click on the grade-range you need, and a list of  lists will appear. Click on the Core Booklist for that age range to see the books required. These are usually only 2-3 books and can often be found at the local library. 

There are also recommended literature and non-fiction books that can add up quickly! Are you having trouble choosing  which ones to buy from RC History? Here are their new "Economy Lists" to help you choose the books that are used over multiple units!

Special Note: Schola Rosa Homeschool Cooperative does not require the purchase of these books to participate in the co-op. Most families, however, use the Connecting with History program from RC History throughout the week at home, since the co-op activities for history are largely created with this program in mind. 

Friday, August 10, 2012

13 Families/46 Children Enrolled!

 Deo Gratias!

Our Schola Rosa family is rapidly growing! We are so excited to now have 13 families enrolled in the co-op. Only 7 more to reach our goal of 20 by August 25th! This means lower costs for all, more children in the classroom for our kids to make friends with, and more mothers to support each other through this endeavor! :) The classes have the following number of children in them:

Preschool: 14
K-1: 12
2-3: 8
4-6: 12

Let us give thanks to God for blessing us with a wonderful opportunity to grow together, as we strive to teach our children.

May our patroness continue to look over our efforts and guide us as we get closer to our first day!
St. Rose Venerini, ora pro nobis!

Wednesday, August 8, 2012

Connecting with History from RC History

Something fun we are doing at the co-op is combining the Classically Catholic Memory Program with the Connecting with History Program! If you are curious about the books used with Connecting with History, here is an interactive book list which can be found at their website: http://www.rchistory.com/content/cwh-vol-one-online-catalog.pdf

Connecting with History is a history program that can be used for the whole family. It includes readings lists and assignment ideas for grades K-12!


Saturday, August 4, 2012

Science Gadgets for the Classroom this year!

Home Science Tools is having a 10% off Sale this week! At Schola Rosa teachers will be using several activities from Home Science Tools that will be shared by all members of the co-op. At the end of the year, we will have a raffle for all items that are shared! During the year, though, you may find yourself wanting to do extra experiments or activities, so now is the time to take advantage of the sale! Below you will find the items we will use at Schola Rosa:



Friday, August 3, 2012

Event Announcement: Learn about river creatures on August 21st!


Greetings in Christ! We have scheduled an event with the Shenandoah River State Park for our group as a way to kick-start the year and to meet everyone in the co-op!  The name of the program provided by Shenandoah State park is "Going In-Seine!". Here is their description:
"Join us for a hike down to the river and learn about some of the creatures that inhabit the river bottom. Discover what macroinvertebrates live here and what they can tell us about the health of the river. Catch and identify some of these critters using a "seine" net. Water shoes recommended."

Location: Shelter 3 at the park
Time: 10 am

Please pack a picnic lunch and enjoy some time chatting after the program. All children are welcome and all children are allowed to participate!

We look forward to meeting you!
Alecia Rolling
Schola Rosa Committee Member 

Preschool Supplies List!



Take advantage of the VA Tax Free Weekend and buy supplies you do not already have TAX FREE! 

  • 1. 1 set of watercolor paints
  • 2. 1 pack of 24 crayons
  • 3. 4 empty toilet paper rolls
  • 4. 1 empty paper towel roll
  • 5. 5 ¾ x 4 ½ inch piece of cardboard
  • 6. 3 band-aids (for a project)
  • 7. 3 metal nails (biggest you have)
  • 8. plastic crucifix (such as you would find on a rosary)
  • 9. pack of colored paper
  • 10. 1 rhythm instrument (e.g. shaker, tambourine, rattle) (You could make your own.)
Photo credit: duboix from morguefile.com

K-6 Supplies List: A Note


Below you will find the K-6 Supplies List. If you do not have all these supplies just lying around your house, then you may want to figure out a way to save some money by letting students share! For example, if you have two children in one class, these two children could share the supplies in bold below:

Photo credit: anitapatterson from morguefile.com

Thursday, August 2, 2012

First Friday Mass


Father Carr will be offering a Low Mass at St. John the Baptist this Friday at 6:30PM.