January 20 Edition
January is quite busy at Holy Name School as we begin the second half of the school year and anticipate celebrating Catholic Schools Week at the end of the month. This column was prepared by Claire McMullen and Brock Kutskel.
The Holy Name School community celebrated the Feast of the Most Holy Name of Jesus on January 3, 2020, with a liturgy and Faith Family meeting. This feast day is especially important to our school because we share the same name, a name that protects us from evil and brings us grace and blessing. After liturgy, the students met with their Faith Families contemplate the many facets of Jesus’ saving grace by discussing the many names that He has been given in scripture including Bread of Life, The One True Vine, The Good Shepherd, and The Lamb of God.
The Home and School Association invited the Altoona Curve and Subway to present the “Be A C.U.R.V.E. Kid” in our school. In this program students in grades kindergarten to sixth grade will learn that it is okay if you aren’t the best at everything you will do. Different people have different talents, but we can all be a good teammate, friend and person by having a positive attitude.
Our seventh and eighth grade students will be participating in Junior Achievement lessons again this year. Junior Achievement USA provided free lessons lead by community volunteers designed to help students understand finances and be work-ready by emphasizing that the educational choices they make now will have a big impact on their future successes. Starting this month, Mr. Ron Rhoades will present “Economics for Success” to our seventh grade students and Mrs. Angela Balog will present “It’s My Future” to the eighth grade.
The fifth graders have been learning about life processes (get energy, use energy, getting rid of waste, reproducing, growing, and reacting to change.) They will use the presence or absence of these processes to compare and contrast living and non living things. They are also comparing and contrasting plant cells and animal cells, and learning that organisms are classified into six different kingdoms. After we learn about the kingdoms, genus, and species, the students will be growing mold on bread and comparing and contrasting the level of growth produced by clean hands, washed hands, door knobs, the floor, etc.
On Tuesday, January 21, 2020, Holy Name Parish will host special concerts by Tony Melendez, a musician and motivational speaker who was born without arms who taught himself to play the guitar with his feet. During his concerts, he offers a message of hope, encouragement, and faith, of overcoming disabilities and biases. All of the Catholic school students in the Prince Gallitzin Quadrant have been invited to a Student-only concert. A second concert will be offered in the evening at 7:00 p.m. All are welcome to attend.
Our final quote is from Christopher Reeve: “A hero is an ordinary individual who finds the strength to persevere and endure in spite of overwhelming obstacles.”
If you would like to learn more about Holy Name School in pictures and videos, please find us on Facebook at The Official Holy Name School or at our website, HOLYNAMESCHOOL.NET.
[Photo: The Holy Name School Children’s Choir performed with the Holy Name School orchestra on Christmas Eve immediately before the 5:00 p.m. Mass. The concert included a selection of Christmas favorites accompanied by three octaves of hand bells, vibraphone, electric guitars, and a wide array of orchestral instruments.]
