Annunciation School NewsletterAnnunciationbvm.org

April 22, 2020

God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son,

so that everyone who believes in him might have eternal life. John 3:16

Dear Parents,

Happy Easter to all of our Annunciation families! While we’ve never experienced an Easter

such as this year’s, it reminded us of the very first Easter when Jesus’ resurrection was met with no

pomp or fanfare. I hope you and your family could experience the pure joy of the day. Here you see

some more of our chalk cross pictures from the Dulceak, Gutierrez, and Seifrid families. Thank you

to everyone who participated in this challenge!

As you know, Governor Pritzker announced last week that in-person classes will be

suspended for the remainder of the school year. On Monday, I met with the teachers to discuss a

change to our e-learning schedule that was then approved by our Education Commission last

evening. Starting this week, the teachers will engage in daily lessons/assignments for

four days of the week on Monday through Thursday with Friday being an off day for

the students. The teachers will use Fridays to plan lessons, make videos, grade work, and

communicate with students/parents, as needed. The Illinois State Board of Education authorized

five extra professional development days for this purpose. Also, the last day of school will now

be Friday, May 22 rather than May 29. This decision was based on the fact that we felt that it

seemed more purposeful to end remote instruction prior to Memorial Day weekend. Remote e-

learning is our permanent reality for the rest of this year. As I have said, it is far from ideal and has

difficulties and frustrations for all - teacher, parent, and student. But I continue to be very proud of

both our teachers and our students as they continue to move forward and grow in knowledge. I

applaud the teachers for their flexibility and creativity and I applaud the parents for their

adaptability and support.

Tomorrow we will start a fun ABC countdown toward the end of the year…really this might

just be a chance for the principal to look silly on video, but we’ll see Each day I’ll be posting a

short video on Facebook @annunciationbvmaurora and on my YouTube channel

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCXlBL7lR9CA9dB1lAgG08_A. Each day will focus on a fun theme or

activity of the day starting with A and ending with Z. I provided a cheat sheet on the days at the end

of this letter in case you want a preview. Families can post their pictures or videos to the Facebook

page or send their pictures to school@annunciationbvm.org. I look forward to having some fun with

our students with these activities!

There are many end of the year things to address given this new reality. I will try to touch on

most of those below:

Graduation – We plan to hold a full graduation ceremony and reception for our 8th grade

class as planned, but the date is yet to be determined. We have some other surprises planned

for our graduates

2nd

Grade Sacraments - I have been talking with Father Patrick about plans for the

children to receive the sacrament of Reconciliation individually and to push Communion

back to the beginning of next school year, but nothing is yet finalized. I will keep 2nd

grade

parents informed of the decision.

WALKATHON – Home & School is still planning to hold the WALKATHON at a later date

either this summer or at the beginning of next school year. A decision will be made next

month. Thank you to all who have sent in their donations. If you have not made a donation,

you can easily do through our school website.

Used Uniform Sale – We will hold an on-site sale this summer TBD.

Extended Care Billing – By next week, Mrs. Brouch will email families their extended care

balances through 3/13/20. Please send in a check payment or you can drop cash payments in

an envelope through our mailbox slot because our new mailbox is locked for security.

o Pizza Friday/Hot Lunch – Home & School moved any remaining balances from

these accounts of students in PS through 7th grade to next year. Balances from 8

th

grade students without younger siblings will be communicated to families who can

either request a refund NOTE: Some families still owed the $10/student class party

fee from the beginning of the year. If you did not pay this fee and you had a Pizza/Hot

Lunch balance, then the credit was applied to your overdue class party fee. Those with

outstanding class party balances will receive an email this week for payment.

End of the year pick up – When we know more about the current shelter in place

restrictions, we will be able to determine a process for picking up your child’s things from the

school buildings and dropping off chromebooks, etc.

I will continue to send out a Wednesday newsletter each week updating you on any

developments. Please do not hesitate to contact with any questions or concerns. I want to help our

students and families in any way I can.

Sincerely,

Mrs. Jennifer Wardynski

P.S. This week Mrs. Mazur encouraged the junior high students to complete Earth Day activities,

such as cleaning up their yard, making a recyclable craft, wearing green. Here’s a few pics of their

accomplishments…Vince Hefke wearing the green, Evie Precup’s flower cupcakes, Marianna

Partida’s green cookies, Ian Roskuszka weeded the patio, Savana Sanchez made bread

.

ABC COUNTDOWN TO SUMMERLook for the daily video on Facebook and YouTube

Send in your pictures or videos to school@annunciationbvm.org or post to our Facebook page

Let’s have some fun!!

Thursday 4/23 A – Animals & B – BubblesFriday 4/24 C – Chalk DrawingsMonday 4/27 D – DinosaursTuesday 4/28 E - ExerciseWednesday 4/29 F – Flags around the worldThursday 4/30 G – Games (non electronic) Friday 5/1 H – Crazy HatsMonday 5/4 I – Inside Out Tuesday 5/5 J – Jokes & Jumping ropeWednesday 5/6 K – Fly a KITEThursday 5/7 L – Laid Back Day Friday 5/8 M – MusicMonday 5/11 N – NatureTuesday 5/12 O – Opposite DayWednesday 5/13 P – PETSThursday 5/14 Q – Quiet as a mouseFriday 5/15 R – RosaryMonday 5/18 S – Sports and sunglassesTuesday 5/19 T – ToysWednesday 5/20 U – “Under” DayThursday 5/21 V – VIKINGS PRIDE DAYFriday 5/22 WXYZ…..wait and see