Autor: Janis DeVore

All Saints Catholic School will once again be participating in #iGiveCatholic on #GivingTuesday to jump start our 2024-2025 Annual Fund campaign.

#GivingTuesday will take place on Tuesday, December 3rd, but our portal is already open!

Your generous support of our Annual Fund campaign will make a meaningful difference in our school. Previous campaigns have supported the purchase of new ActivPanels throughout our school, the extension of Wi-Fi enabled classrooms, purchase of ActivPanels for each classroom, the creation of our parish Video Production Studio, and our new Book Vending Machine.

The goal for this year’s Annual Fund Campaign is $25,000 with $10,000 coming from #GivingTuesday. The Annual Fund will support of the following initiatives:

• Programa de Robótica
  Launched in the spring of 2014, our Robotics Club is in need of upgraded hardware and
  equipment, and additional training opportunities to better serve the students in our middle
  school club and competition team.
• Habilidades ampliadas de matemáticas
  New K-8 math instructional resources and materials will focus on strengthening critical math
  skills, including fact fluency and computational thinking.
• Language Fluency
  Real-time English/Spanish translation devices will enhance communications during parent-teacher conferences, PTO events, and Open Houses.
• Cafeteria (K-8)
  Funds will supplement the cost of replacing cafeteria tables in need of a refresh.
  Purchase of an Electronic Visitor Management System to allow a digitized process and enhanced security screening for all visitors entering our school.

This is a perfect opportunity for those looking to make charitable contributions prior to year-end for tax purposes.

Join us for the All Saints Catholic School Thanksgiving Food Drive during our Annual Thanksgiving
Prayer Service on Tuesday, November 26, 2024, at 9:30 a.m. In partnership with the Bethany
Food Pantry, our National Junior Honor Society members will once again collect food donations
to help provide Thanksgiving meals for families in need.

To ensure a balanced distribution, we kindly request grade-level donations as outlined below. Additionally, if any families would like to contribute a turkey, turkey breast, or whole chicken, please include it with your grade-level donation. Turkey and chicken donations can be dropped off on the day of the prayer service, November 26.

Thanks to the generosity of our school community, many families will be able to enjoy a
wonderful Thanksgiving meal this year!

Pre-Kindergarten – 3 boxes of Stove-Top stuffing mix
Kindergarten – 2 (two-pound) bags of carrots
Grade 1 – 2 (three-pound) bags of onions
Grade 2 – 2 (three-pound) bags of apples
Grade 3 – 2 (three-pound) bags of rice (no instant, please)
Grade 4 – 2 Dessert “Kits” (cake/frosting or pie crust/filling)
Grade 5 – 2 (48-ounce) bottles of oil (no spray oil, please)
Grade 6 – 2 (five-pound) bags of sugar
Grade 7 – 2 (five-pound) bags of flour or Maseca
Grade 8 – 2 (five-pound) bags of white potatoes
Faculty/Staff – 2 boxes of oatmeal

On Monday, November 25, we will host our annual Thanksgiving Luncheon. All parents are cordially invited to attend this special event with their child(ren). For a number of years, we have linked this celebration to an outreach effort to benefit the St. Lucy Project, a large warehouse in Manassas where staff and volunteers process and distribute donations to numerous food pantries in our region. This initiative is in support of We Care Week to benefit Catholic Charities, which is scheduled for the first week of December.

Again, this year, donations may be included with your Thanksgiving Luncheon payment. Please see the order form link below for more details. Additionally, the NJHS will set up a collection station at the entrance to the cafeteria on the day of the event. We invite your participation again as we work together to support the mission of Catholic Charities and to make a positive difference in our community of Manassas.

Thanksgiving Luncheon Order Form

Volunteers are needed to help with set-up and decorations, clean-up, food preparation, and with serving food during the Thanksgiving Luncheon. Volunteer shifts are designed so that you will be able to sit and enjoy your meal with your child (ren). Please consider helping for at least one shift throughout the day. If you are available to assist, please sign up via Track It Forward (Note: VIRTUS compliance is not required for volunteers helping with set-up on Sunday but is required to volunteer on the actual day of the event.)

What is the All Saints Robotics Club working on during these last few weeks of 2024? Here is an update from club moderator, Mr. Ben Roy.

Building Momentum:

• Base Builds: Most of our teams have completed the construction of their base robots. This is a significant milestone, and we’re proud of their hard work and dedication.
  
• First Programs: Our teams have taken their first steps into programming by executing simple programs on the competition board in Mr. Saffian’s classroom. Witnessing their problem-solving skills as they debugged their code to achieve the desired robot movements was truly inspiring.

Wednesday 11/20 Challenge: Uber Driving Robots!

This week, we’re taking our learning to the next level. We’ll simulate a real-world scenario by transforming our robots into “Self-Automated Uber Drivers”! Students will navigate their robots through a city maze on the competition board, first using a remote control and then writing a program in Vex Code IQ. (See attached challenge)

Vex Code IQ is a user-friendly visual programming software that makes it easy for our students to understand and implement coding concepts. https://codeiq.vex.com/

I’m continually amazed by our students’ enthusiasm and creativity!

All Saints Catholic School will host an Open House for prospective parents for the 2025-26 school year on Thursday, January 9 at 7:00 PM.  Following a presentation and introduction, tours of the facility will be provided. Plan to attend and experience the dynamic, Catholic environment of All Saints Catholic School.

To RSVP for the Open House, please complete our online Open House Registration Form. For questions or more information, please contact Mrs. Mary Rodriguez at 571-516-3170 or admissions@allsaintsva.org.

Last year we launched the All Saints Aviation Club, an after-school STEM enrichment program for our second grade students. Aviation Club returns this fall with a session running from mid-October through early December. The club provides second graders with an opportunity to explore the inspiring world of flight through hands-on interactive demonstrations, crafts, and games.

Each session of the Aviation Club includes 18 students led by school parent Mrs. Briones, who earned her Masters of Aeronautical Science from Embry–Riddle Aeronautical University. Mrs. Briones actively applies her knowledge and experience in developing this engaging program. 

Topics covered in this eight-week mini-course include: four forces of flight – thrust, weight, drag, lift; main parts of a airplane; aviation terms; business aviation in action; and special aviation projects. The cost to participate is $30 per student. 

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Aviation Club – Lottery Registration Information

If your student is in second grade and has an interest in participating in the Aviation Club, please click the form below for additional information. Note that due to limited space, registration will be offered through a lottery system. The deadline to apply for this session is Thursday, October 3, 2024.

Aviation Club Registration Form (English/Spanish)

We wish to express our gratitude to Mrs. Briones for her efforts in developing this innovative co-curricular activity.

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El año pasado pusimos en marcha el Club de Aviación de All Saints, un programa extraescolar de enriquecimiento STEM para nuestros alumnos de segundo grado. El Club de Aviación regresa este otoño con una sesión desde mediados de octubre hasta principios de diciembre. El club ofrece a los alumnos de segundo grado la oportunidad de explorar el inspirador mundo del vuelo a través de demostraciones interactivas, manualidades y juegos.

Cada sesión del Club de Aviación incluye a 18 alumnos dirigidos por la Sra. Briones, madre de la escuela y licenciada en Ciencias Aeronáuticas por la Universidad Aeronáutica Embry-Riddle. La Sra. Briones aplica activamente sus conocimientos y experiencia en el desarrollo de este atractivo programa.

Los temas tratados en este minicurso de ocho semanas incluyen: cuatro fuerzas de vuelo – empuje, peso, resistencia, sustentación; partes principales de un avión; términos de aviación; aviación de negocios en acción; y proyectos especiales de aviación. El costo para participar es de $30 por estudiante.

Club de Aviación – Información de Inscripción de la Lotería

Si su estudiante está en segundo grado y tiene interés en participar en el Club de Aviación, por favor haga clic en el siguiente formulario para obtener información adicional. Tenga en cuenta que debido al espacio limitado, la inscripción se ofrecerá a través de un sistema de lotería. La fecha límite para aplicar para esta sesión es el jueves 3 de octubre de 2024.

Formulario de inscripción para el Club de Aviación (inglés/español)

Deseamos expresar nuestra gratitud a la Sra. Briones por sus esfuerzos en el desarrollo de esta innovadora actividad co-curricular.

2024-2025 BOYS & GIRLS BASKETBALL

CYO registration for 2024-2025 Boys and Girls Basketball! Registration will be open from September 15 through October 15.  Boys and Girls from both the Parish and the School in 3rd-8th Grade are eligible to participate. 

Practices are one weeknight a week in the All Saints Gym and start November 4. Games are on Saturdays and Sundays throughout the Diocese. There will be 2-3 preseason games in December. Regular season games take place in January and February 2025.

Cost is $75 per player.

There will be a preseason skills clinic for boys on Sunday, October 20, afternoon times to be announced. There will be a preseason skills clinic for girls on Sunday, October 27, afternoon times to be announced.

We are still seeking head and assistant coaches for some grades, especially for 3rd grade. Please email Laurie Short, Assistant Basketball Commissioner, at glshort1@comcast.net, if you are interested in coaching. You must be certified for Diocesan child protection (including VIRTUS™) before working with participants. If you are not, we can help you get the process started. 

The mission of the Arlington Diocesan Junior Catholic Youth Organization (JCYO) is to organize sports programs through its member parishes for youth to reinforce Catholic values taught in parish schools and religious education programs. In addition to encouraging healthy physical activity, JCYO sports are designed to foster cooperation, respect, sportsmanship, responsibility, leadership, competitiveness, fairness, and courtesy.

If you have a general question, you can email jcyosports@allsaintsva.org or to connect directly with Chi Young, CYO Sports Director and Basketball Commissioner, you can email sportsdirector.cyo@allsaintsva.org. No child will be denied participation due to financial need. Please email sportsdirector.cyo@allsaintsva.org if you would like to discuss options for financial aid.

CYO Sports Registration Link: https://reg.sportspilot.com/106526/leagues

Registration will be open from September 15 through October 15.