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Catholic Schools Week 2011 in the News

Catholic Schools Week officially begins next week on January 30, 2011, but some schools are so excited they just can’t wait. Here’s a roundup of stories featuring what some schools are doing this year:

To keep up with all the Catholic school news, be sure to follow Catholic School Chronicle on Twitter. And did you know you can get Catholic School Chronicle delivered directly to your email inbox? To subscribe, enter your email address in the form on the right sidebar. No spam, I promise!

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Help a Catholic School Win $50,000

Piqua Catholic SchoolWith Catholic Schools Week just around the corner, here is your chance to make a huge difference to one Catholic grade school.  Piqua Catholic School in Piqua, Ohio is competing for a $50,000 prize from Pepsi. The school’s gym floor is over fifty years old, and if the school wins the money they plan on installing a new floor as well as initiating a before- and after-school fitness program and providing other equipment to make their school a safer place. To help them, simply text 104632 to 73774. You can vote up to three times per day. The ten schools receiving the most votes by January 31, 2011, each win $50,000. Right now, Piqua is in 5th place and they could use your vote! If you don’t use texting, head on over to their page and vote via the web.

Looks like a great cause. But don’t take my word for it. Let the students themselves tell you their story:

And here’s what Piqua’s local TV station had to say about the contest:

You could also help out by spreading the news to your friends on Facebook and Twitter.

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Bishop Cupich on Why Catholic Schools

Bishop Blase Cupich
Bishop Blase Cupich

In the latest issue of my local Catholic newspaper, the Inland Register, Bishop Blase Cupich recently responded to the question “Why do Catholics have their own schools?”

“It is a good question,” he responds. “The state allocates huge sums of money each year for public education and provides a solid academic program on all levels. Why should the Catholic Church bother with even trying to duplicate or compete with these efforts?”

His answer is three-fold:

  • “Catholic schools are part of our mission.”
  • “We have been at this a long time.”
  • “We are good at it.”

Bishop Cupich points out, among other things, that Catholic schools

hold “in trust” all the accumulated knowledge over the centuries about how to live the life God offers us and how to promote a culture that enhances living together in society. As sacred guardians of this heritage, our schools aim at preparing our students not just for a job, but for life here on earth, and life eternal.

He also acknowledges the Church’s commitment to educating all members of society:

Even before the state took up the task of offering public education, Religious orders in a male-dominated society promoted education for girls and women, the poor and underprivileged.

Finally, in recognizing the way Catholic schools succeed despite limited financial resources, he pays tribute to the people who lie at the heart of Catholic education:

Much of this lower cost is due to the generosity and sacrifice of our teachers and staff. We should never overlook that each year these fine women and men contribute to the education of our children by accepting lower salaries and taking on many added duties. In many ways, they are serving in the tradition of the Religious women and men, who built the Catholic school tradition in our country.

As a product of Catholic education and a Catholic teacher for over twenty years, I am grateful for his support and I feel blessed to have such a shepherd for the Church in Eastern Washington.

I encourage you to read the entire article. It’s a fitting tribute to the “rich and noble heritage” of Catholic education.

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A Teacher Is Like a Crazy Bowler

Bowling PinsAn old Russian proverb says that God writes straight with crooked lines. Anyone who has taught in Catholic schools knows the truth of this. You can spend hours and hours on a lesson, only to have it fall apart in front of you in the classroom. And then the next day, after a lesson which you quickly pulled together with string and baling wire, a student will come up to you and say, “That was a great class. I never really thought about God like that before.”

It’s like trying to bowl a strike, but ending up doing what this guy did on his third throw:

You just never know what you’re going to hit. It may not be what you were aiming for, but with God’s grace, you’re going to hit something.

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Sharing Catholic Schools Week Plans

Catholic Schools Week 2011What is your school doing for Catholic Schools Week 2011? That’s the question Ann Oro wants you to answer on the Catholic Education Resources wiki. Ann, a New Jersey technology teacher and blogger, has created a special page on the wiki for schools to share their Catholic Schools Week events. I’ve added my school’s events, and I encourage you to add yours. It’s a great way to get ideas for the upcoming celebration from January 30 to February 5.

Here are some of the things we do at my school during this week-long celebration:

  • Before the week begins, students create bookmarks with the Catholic Schools Week theme, and they write or draw thank-you letters to their parents for sending them to Catholic schools.
  • At the weekend Masses, students participate by lectoring, serving and ushering; after Mass, student volunteers hand out bookmarks to parishioners.
  • Our annual food drive is held during Catholic Schools Week to help replenish the food banks that have been depleted during the Christmas season.
  • Each class decorates their classroom door in their assigned color for the spirit competition. Doors must include the Catholic Schools Week theme and the class saint. The color for my 8th grade class is blue, and our saint St. Damien of Molokai.
  • At recess, students participate in games such as relay races and free throw contests.
  • Students are given academic awards for their achievements of the first semester.
  • On Thursday, a parent newsletter is sent which includes highlights from the thank-you letters students wrote to their parents.
  • The week concludes with students wearing their class colors and celebrating in a spirit assembly.

How does your school celebrate? Visit the Catholic Education Resources wiki and share with the rest of us! And if you’re short on ideas, be sure to check out Jared’s new post at TheReligionTeacher.com, Catholic Schools Week 2011 Ideas and Activities. He’s collected a regular cornucopia of resources.

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25 Kindle Books for Catholic Teachers

So, you got a Kindle for Christmas, and you want to do some professional reading. The following books may be just what you’re looking for:

Catholicism/Catechesis

Technology/Writing/Reading

General Education/Productivity

Just this past week, Amazon has implemented a rudimentary lending system for those with Kindles. If the publisher of a book allows, you can lend a Kindle book one time to someone else. They can have the book for no longer than 14 days, and while they have it, you cannot read your copy. It’s not a perfect lending solution, but it’s better than nothing.

I’ve noticed that Goodreads has already started a Kindle Lending group for people who want to exchange books. If you’re not a Goodreads member, I highly recommend it as a place to share with other readers. It’s free, and integrates easily with Facebook and Twitter. I would love to connect with other educators via Goodreads and compare reading lists, so please feel free to friend me.