Weekly Newsletter
October 2-October 6, 2023
FROM THE DESK OF…
Terri O’Daniel, Executive Director
“Mark Your Calendar” for the next parent presentation by Dr. Bruno, “Understanding Autism.” This live presentation will occur in the cafeteria on Wednesday, October 18. Dr. Bruno is highly regarded in his field of expertise. I have selected Dr. Bruno for our Parent Series to support all of you, our Academy families, with the journey you and your child are traveling together.
PRINCIPAL’S CORNER:
Thank you for another great week with your amazing children! As we move further into the school year, familiar struggles arise. Many of our students have difficulty with non-preferred tasks. How we handle those challenges and persevere through and complete them is essential. Often, we equate those challenges with school and academic work, but for many of our students, it is broader than that. Simple transitions or even a fun activity can feel overwhelming.
Dealing with dysregulation takes practice, lots of it. We deal with it every day here at school. I know many of you deal with it at home as well. I encourage you to let your children “work through” non-preferred tasks at home to practice those coping skills in a safe environment. Having a special needs child who struggles with everyday things is overwhelming. You build your world around avoiding the things that trigger them or are non-preferred for the sake of everyone in your home. While this makes sense, it robs your child of the opportunity to learn coping skills and strategies they will need throughout their lives. Avoiding challenges together is not helping your child, ultimately limiting them.
As parents, you know your child better than anyone else. You will know when they can take on a new challenge. Most importantly, you are there to coach them through it and celebrate their success!
Enjoy the beautiful fall weather!
UPDATE ON THE AFTER SCHOOL SPORTS
Based on the positive survey results for afterschool sports, we have partnered with Skyhawks Sports Academy to offer our families a session on Tuesdays after school starting October 17 from 2:50-3:50 on the SJM soccer field. This Multi-Sport session will run for nine weeks, featuring Soccer, Baseball/Softball, and Track and field in one setting. The kids will learn each sport’s rules, essential skills, and vital life lessons such as sportsmanship, inclusion, and teamwork. The cost is $100.
For more information and to register, please visit www.skyhawks.com and search for 63021, then click Academy of St. Louis.
FINAL DAY TO ORDER SPIRIT WEAR!
Monday, October 9, is the final day to order the 20th Anniversary Academy of St. Louis T-shirt. Please click on the link below to place your order.
https://forms.gle/FFNrFAAgTJcmPJ347
VETERAN’S DAY
We are starting to prepare for the Veteran’s Day Assembly, and we need your help. We will honor Academy Veterans and their families who have served or continue to serve in the military on Friday, November 10, at 10 a.m. If you have a service member you would like to honor, please email a picture with name, rank, and branch. If you know a Veteran who would like to attend our Veteran’s Day celebration, please contact Kathy Lagos at klagos@acadstl.org
We will be happy to send them an invitation to attend.
We are also looking for any Boy or Girl Scouts who want to help with the flag ceremony.
Thank you to all the family members of students at the Academy who have served or continue to serve in the military.
Our class is AMAZING! We had a wonderful week together. A shout-out to our friend, Jonathan. He earned 32 cents this week!! Through poetry and song, we are learning all about the different coins and the values of each coin. It’s fun to recognize how five pennies make a nickel, two nickels make a dime, and two dimes and a nickel make a quarter EVERY TIME!💰
I am so proud of our class for their hard work and perseverance! I love watching them interact and helping each other through challenges. We have been working on being a good friend and treating others with respect. We made our own Oobleck on Friday after reading the Dr. Seuss story, “Bartholomew and the Oobleck.” It was so fun playing with the Oobleck and discussing how it is both a solid and a liquid.
This week, we successfully concluded our lessons on the colony of Jamestown. Everyone performed admirably on the quiz, demonstrating a solid grasp of the subject matter. Next week, we’ll explore other colonies, including the Puritans and Pilgrims.
This week, we enjoyed a second trip back to Eckert’s. We had fun exploring pumpkins and picking the perfect one for each of us. In the future weeks, we will learn more about pumpkins by doing some pumpkin investigations to coincide with our trip.
Kenny is our highlight this week! He was super proud of his gigantic pumpkin! It’s almost as big as him!
Upcoming Events
- Wednesday, October 11– Parent Coffee at 8:15 a.m.
- Thursday, October 12– Bhavik Patel-Parent Resource Night via Zoom 7:00 p.m.
- Wednesday, October 18– Dr. John Bruno Presentation 7:00 p.m. Cafeteria
- Thursday, October 19– End of First Quarter
- Friday, October 20– Grandparents Day 10:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. Early release
LUNCH ACCOUNTS
Each day, the entree includes fruit and chips.
You can select additional items a la carte.
Please be sure to place your order by midnight the night before.
Please call Mrs. Cantareira with any questions at 636-534-5099.
SNACKS
DON’T FORGET SNACKS!
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