Parent Letter September 30, 2015

September 20, 2015

Dear Parents,

I want to make you aware of an incident that occurred in the girl's bathroom on the second floor of the school on Tuesday, September 29, 2015

At approximately 11:30 AM while a number of students were in the bathroom with the teacher's aide from PreK -3 the window frame fell downwards on top of the teacher's aide Mrs. Taveras. Mrs. Taveras along with Mrs. Manan quickly acted and evacuated the children from the bathroom.

As you know your child's safety is of paramount importannce to all of us here at Our Lady Queen of Martyrs School and thanks to the quick response of Mrs. Taveras and Mrs. Manan no one sustained any injuries.

The second floor girl's bathroom will be closed until the window has been replaced and Catholic Mutual our risk management company will be undertaking a full assessment of the whole building in the next few days.

Until everything has been completed the girls will be using the bathrooms on the first floor of the school.

Should you have any questions please feel free to see me.


Estimados Padres/Guardianes,

Esta carta es para informales del incidente que se produjo ayer el Martes, Septiembre 29 de 2015 , en el baño de las niñas en el segundo piso

El incidente occurio aproximadamente a las 11:30 AM durante el cual un grupo de estudiantes de Prek 3 estaban con la asistente , el marco de la ventana se cayó en la cabeza de
Mrs. Taveras. Mrs.Taveras y Mrs. Manan actuarón rapidamente y evacuarón a los estudiantes del baño a los salones.

Como ya saben la seguridad de todos los estudiantes es la prioridad de nuestra escuela Our Lady Queen of Martyrs School. Les queremos agradecer a Mrs. Taveras y a Mrs.Manan por responder rapidamente y evacuar a los estudiantes por la cual no occurierón heridas.

El baño de las niñas en el segundo piso estará cerrado hasta que remplacen la ventana y Catholic Mutual nuestra compañia de gestión de riesgos estarán haciendo una evalución
completa del edificío en los proximos días.

Hasta que todo este proceso se de por terminado las niñas van a usar el baño del primer piso.

Atentamente,



Andrew G. Woods

Week of September 27, 2015 Announcements

Flynn and O'Hara Uniform Company
There are forms available in the office for Flynn and O'Hara uniform company. Parents should remember that they must tell the company if they are ordering by phone or e-mail that their child attends Our Lady Queen of Martyrs in New York City.

Parents in the PreK classes must indicate if their child is in the PreK For All program or the PreK program of Our Lady Queen of Martyrs School. Any questions please call Alba at 212-567-3190

Friday October 2nd - Mass at 9:00 AM in celebration of The Feast of St. Francis of Assisi.
Mass will be celebrated on Friday at 9:00 AM led by students of grades 5 & 6. At this annual Mass in honor of St. Francis of Assisi students may bring in domesticated animals from home to have them blessed.
Because of allergies of some students - dogs and cats will have to be picked up by a parent after Mass. Parents are welcome to join us.
Early dismissal Day -Friday October 2nd
There will be an early dismissal at 12:00 noon on Friday October 2nd so the faculty may meet in the afternoon.The After School Program will be in session for the day and parents who are in need of child care just for Friday should see either Mr. Marcial or Mrs. Resto in the school office.

Cornerstone Student Information System (SIS)
Beginning Monday October 5th the parent access for the Cornerstone Student Information System will be available. There is a link for the system on the school web site of www.olqmnyc.org under the tab academics. Parents may e-mail Mr. Woods at olqm1@aol.com for login and password information or may see Alan in the office from 8:000 AM -3:00 PM.

The Superintendent of Schools for the Archdiocese of New York has had the system adjusted over the summer to reflect changes that will occur in the 2016-2017 school year - a new report card. The system does noot record weekly conduct or effort marks, the weight of homework is now higher along with the weight of tests in figuring out an individual student's average. A reminder to parents that they should be checking their child's grades on SIS (Student Information System) weekly. Should they notice that their child is not doing well academically they should schedule an appointment to see the teacher(s) of their child.

Should parents misplace their login information they should see Alan so it may be reset.

Progress Reports will be distributed during the month of October as an indicator of a child's progress to date--it is a reminder to parents that report cards will be distributed at the end of the first quarter in November and some students may need to work harder before report cards are distributed.

Monday, September 28, 2015
Trip for Grades 3, 4 and 5 to St. Francis in the Schools to be held at Good Shepherd School and Van Cortlandt Park.

CCSS (Common Core State Standards) Module 1 Week 3

Tuesday, September 29, 2015
A reminder to parents that all paperwork should have been submitted to the classroom teacher by now. This week is the annual census for Catholic Schools and parents will be called to remind them that paperwork is missing and is required to complete thee census.
Also in October the Home Language Survey must be submitted to the New York State Education Department.

Wednesday, September 30, 2015
Feast of St. Jerome

Thursday, October 1, 2015
Feast of St. Therese of the Child Jesus

Friday, October 2, 2015 - Feast of Guardian Angel
Mass at 9:00 AM in honor of the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi. Blessing of animals will occur at this Mass. Parents welcome to attend.

Sunday October 4, 2015- School office open until 4:00 PM
Biology Class 9:00 AM
Mass for all students in sacramental program 1:00 PM with Mr. Woods
Registration for Sacramental Program 2:00 PM - 3:00 PM

Announcements Week of September 21, 2015

Uniform Company Update
A contract was signed with Flynn and O'Hara Uniform Company on Monday. They should have everything in place by October 1st so that parents may order uniforms. Again, I apologize for the mess that was created and in talking to other principals they have been experiencing the same problem. Hopefully, by the end of the week we will have a number for you to call or you will be able to visit their Bronx store. Just remember to say that your child attends Our Lady Queen of Martyrs in New York City as they have an account also with the Our Lady Queen of Martyrs School in Queens.

Achieve 3000
Students in grades 2 through 8 were administered Level Set testing this week by Achieve 3000.
Achieve 3000 is an online company that assists children in raising their Lexile Levels (Reading Levels). The students have been given their login and password information for the site and students should use the site at least 60 minutes a week. Their are numerous articles that are adjusted by the computer to assist the child in reading and comprehending at their level - what we call in education Differentiated Learning.
Most articles and the questions with the article take approximately 20 minutes to complete and students are given their score immediately upon completion.
The goal is to have your child score 75% on each reading they complete. After they have done this the program will then readjust their reading level to a higher standard.
Parents should make reading a daily exercise at home at the same time - whether it is before dinner, after dinner, when they come home from school.
At the first report card distribution representative from Achieve 3000 will be here to assist parents with questions they have concerning the program and how their child is progressing with the program.
Mrs. Bagley, Mr. Badia, Mrs. Ramsey and Ms. Serewko are the teachers working with the students and they may also be able to answer your questions or refer you to the parent portal for assistance.
Teachers will be giving assignments on readings in Achieve 3000 to keep students on task with the program and parents may assist by having their child read topics that are of interest to them or choose a career and the child may read about the work of people in that career.

IXL
IXL is also another online program to assist students in Mathematics and Reading. Mr. Marcial has been working with students in grades Kindergarten through 8 grade with this program and it may also be accessed at home. Students were given their logins and passwords.

Rowland Reading Online Access
Rowland Reading also has online activities for children in grades Kindergarten, First and Second grades. Teachers have or will this week send home login information for the program and many activities will cover topics that are being covered by the teachers.

A reminder that school is closed on Friday September 25 in celebration of the visit by Pope Francis.

Candy Bars
Candy Bars are available to assist parents in meeting their fund raising requirements as outlined on the contract signed during registration or re-registration. Parents may pay Smart Tuition the money after they have sold their candy boxes or may give the money to Mrs. Resto in the office and the money will then be credited to your account in Smart Tuition.

Monday September 21, 2015
CCSS (Common Core State Standards) Module 1 Week 2

Tuesday September 22, 2015
Extended Day Class Grades 4 & 5 - Mathematics
Grade 3 - ELA
Students are given snacks during the program and no other food is permitted in the classroom during extended day.

Wednesday September 23, 2015
Autumn begins at 4:21 AM
Anti-bullying curriculum will be covered today.
Extended Day Mathematics Grades 3, 6 and 7
Registration in office with Ms. Larios for sacramental program. Parent must have Baptismal certificate for registration for Reconciliation, First Holy Communion or Confirmation.
There are 4 students from grades 1-4 that will be receiving Baptism this year - parents who have not had their child baptized should sign up with either Ms. Larios or see Fr. Antonio.

Thursday September 24, 2015
National Punctuation Day
Extended Day Grade 8 Mathematics
Last day for registration for sacramental program in office with Ms. Larios

Friday - September 25, 2015 SCHOOL CLOSED

The School Office will be closed this weekend.

Announcements Week of September 14, 2015

Candy Bars- for Fund Raising
Candy bars will be available Monday afternoon to assist parents in their fund raising requirements. Smart Tuition lists the required fund raising requirement and Mrs. Resto or Alan will assist parents if they do not understand the fund raising requirements.

Sacramental Program
Parents may register with Brianna in Alan's office for the sacramental program on Monday and Tuesday from 8:00 AM - 3:00 PM.The last day for registration is Sunday September 20th from 9:00 AM - 1:00 PM
Baptism - any student who has not been Baptized. Mr. Woods and Fr. Antonio will meet with the parents who request Baptism for their child. They ned to be registered also.
Grade 2 - Sacrament of Reconciliation
Grade 3 - First Holy Communion
Grades 7 & 8 - Sacrament of Confirmation
There is no charge for registration or the program.
The requirement for the program is that ALL children must attend the 1:00 PM Mass each Sunday with Mr. Woods. If you have prior commitments on Sundays please do not register you child for the program this year but wait until the child can attend Mass on Sundays.
There will be no classes on Sundays only Mass. Mr. Woods/Mr. Placido/Ms. Saville will be teaching the classes during the regular school day. So the ONLY commitment is regular Mass attendance which is part of the Ten Commandments view to honor God on the sabbath. The class attaneds Mass as a group so that they learn to sing as a group and participate fully during Mass.
ONLY document need -Baptismal certificate if not handed in at registration. Parents will not be able to register without a copy of the Baptismal certificate.

********UNIFORM COMPANY********
Again, I apologize for the mess that has been created by Ideal Uniform Company. If you have an order with Ideal that has not been sent - CANCEL it and tell them thy are not to use your credit card. Mr. Woods will be meeting with the old uniform company on Monday to sign a contract with them. Information will be sent home as soon as everything is worked out. Please understand that IDEAL uniform company was highly recommended with a cheaper price - but as many have found out their service is absolutely terrible. All parents will receive information this week as soon as I sign a contract with the company.

Cornerstone Student Information System
The cornerstone Information System is being updated this week. As soon as the updates are completed Alan will be available to give passwords for parents so that they may view their child's academic progress on a weekly basis. All information will be distributed as soon we are notified that the system is up and ready.

School Supplies and Parent Signature Pages
Please have all school supplies in this week along with Parent Signature pages.

Monday September 14th
Feast of the Triumph of the Cross
There will be a Fire Drill today - the first of the 12 required drills under NYS Education Law.
LAST DAY TO ASK FOR EXTENSION ON OCTOBER"S TUITION WHICH IS DUE ON TUESDAY September 15th

Tuesday September 15th - Feast of Our Lady of Sorrows
Mass at 9:00 AM led by the students of the 7th and 8th grades. Parents Welcome
Extended Day Classes - 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM Grades 4 and 5 ---no ELA Grade 3 classes today will start next week.

Wednesday September 16th
Extended Day classes - Mathematics Grades 3, 6 & 7--3:00 PM - 5:00 PM

Thursday September 17th Feast of St. Bellarmine
Extended Day classes 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM --Grades 4 - ELA; Grade 8 Mathematics

Friday September 18th Early Dismissal Day 12:00 noon
Students in PreK-3 (Ms. Sanchez), PreK-4 (Ms. McCarry) and PreK-5 (Mrs. Reyes) will be dismissed at 3:00 PM
AFTER SCHOOL PROGRAM IN SESSION.
If you need child care just for Friday - please see Mrs. Resto or Mr. Marcial

Sunday - September 20th
Last Day for registration for sacramental program 9:00 AM - 1:00 PM with Ms. Larios
Mr. Woods will be in the office to meet with parents from 2:00 PM - 4:00 PM --no appointment necessary.

Announcements Week of September 7, 2015

Parent Meetings- Tuesday September 8, 2015

PreK For All -- 5:00 PM
Ms. Sanchez
Ms. McCarry
Mrs. Reyes

PreK and Kindergarten ---6:00 PM
Pre-1 - Mrs. Fundora
PreK-2 - Ms. Rodriguez
Kindergarten - Ms. Ocasio

Grades 1-8----7:00 PM
Grade 1 - Ms. Wong
Grade 2--Mrs. Bagley
Grade 3--Ms. Saville
Grade 4 - Mr. Badia
Grade 5 - Mrs. Larios
Grade 6 - Mrs. Ramsey
Grade 7 - Ms. Serewko
Grade 8 - Mr. Placido

Mr. Marcial will be available for parents to register for the After School Program. As a reminder payment for the After School Program must be made when registering for the program.

Wednesday - September 9th
Students in Grades Kindergarten, 5 & 6 - gym class today.
7:15-7:45 AM Breakfast Program
7:45 AM - students line up in the backyard of the school Grades 1-8
8:00 AM - school bell rings and students proceed with their teachers to the classroom.
9:00 AM - PreK students arrive
3:00 PM - Dismissal - After School Program begins Wednesday.

Thursday - September 10th
7:00 AM - Early Drop off program begins
7:15-7:45 AM - breakfast program
7:45 AM - students proceed to their classrooms
8:00 AM - Classes begin
3:00 PM - Dismissal

Friday - September 11th Patriot's Day
7:00 AM - Early Drop off program begins
7:15-7:45 AM - breakfast program
7:45 AM - students proceed to their classrooms
8:00 AM - Classes begin
3:00 PM - Dismissal

Sunday September 13th
Parish Feast
School Office will be closed today.