A Letter From Ms. Kaszynski

Summer 2022

Dear Our Lady of Lourdes School Families,

I hope that the first month of summer vacation has been a safe, healthy, fun one for you and your children, and although parents rarely have a moment to themselves, I hope that you have had some “down time” or are planning a “break” in August.
As we officially close out the 2021-2022 school year, I want to thank you for everything you have done this past year as a member of the Our Lady of Lourdes School community.  For some students, this school year marked their return to in person learning after being remote learners for more than a year.  Hybrid learners had to adjust to being in school five days a week instead of two or three.  All students needed to adjust to full classes, the first time since March of 2020.  Understandably there were challenges along the way, but they were outweighed by the reality of live teaching and learning and the sheer happiness of all of us being together again.  There is nothing like the energy of students learning, praying, laughing, and socializing in school!  Thank you for everything you did to encourage and help your children thrive this year.
I think we all felt a milestone had been reached in June when we were able to have two performances of our Spring Concert in person, the first time since 2019!  Hearing children’s voices in song is always poignant, but particularly so this time because we had not been able to have singing in school for more than a year due to COVID contagion concerns. 
Another very special occasion was the Mass Father Angel-Neri celebrated in May when the relics of St. Bernadette Soubirous visited Our Lady of Lourdes Church from Lourdes, France.  The staff who accompanied the relics from France took all of us on a virtual tour of Lourdes as if we were pilgrims actually visiting the apparition site.  Although we annually teach our students about the apparitions of Our Blessed Mother to the twelve-year old Bernadette in 1858, it had a deeper meaning this year.  It was a time of special grace for the whole school community as we were able to have the entire school in church, honoring the Patroness of our school, the Blessed Mother under her title, Our Lady of Lourdes, and St. Bernadette.   
This year we added two special events to the school calendar – an 8^th grade formal Graduation party and a 5^th grade “Welcome to Middle School” party.  Parents did meticulous planning and extraordinary hard work to execute these highly successful events.  Thank you to these outstanding parents!  Our students have wonderful memories because of you.
In addition, we had our usual end-of-year celebrations – the Pre-K 3 ice cream party, the Pre-K 4 “Stepping Up” ceremony, Kindergarten Graduation, the Graduation Mass with Ring-and-Pin Ceremony, 8^th grade Graduation and our class parties.  As you can see, we had many opportunities to celebrate the school year and we enjoyed every one!


A special shout out to our 8^th grade graduates! Collectively, they received $1,000,000 plus in scholarships to high school! The following are among their high school acceptances:  Academy of Mt. St. Ursula, A. Philip Randolph, All Hallows, Brooklyn Tech, Bronx High School of Science, Cardinal Hayes, Cardinal Spellman, Cathedral, Columbia Grammar and Prep, Convent of the Sacred Heart, Dominican Academy, Fordham Prep, High School for Health Professions and Human Services, Horace Mann, LaSalle Academy, Loyola, Maria Regina, Marymount, Mt. St. Michael Academy, New Heights Academy, Notre Dame, Regis, St. Barnabas, St. Jean Baptiste, St. Vincent Ferrer, and Xavier.  Among these you will recognize the names of top Catholic, private, and public high schools.   Thank you to our 2022 graduates, their parents, and teachers.  We are so proud of you all!
I hope this proves to you that the sacrifices you make to send your child(ren) to Our Lady of Lourdes School are worth it!  A solid, stable Catholic elementary school education at OLL cannot be overestimated because it lays the foundation for successful high school and college careers.  It is not only about academics; faith and core values help children develop into exemplary young people who care about others and have the determination and fortitude to face the challenges of life.  Success is the result.
Thank you once again for your involvement and partnership with us.  I will be writing again shortly as we gear up for the 2022-2023 school year.  In the meantime, may God keep you, your children, and your loved ones in His care.  Enjoy the remainder of the summer!
Warm regards,                                                                                                                                                                      Suzanne Kaszynski                                                                                                                                                 Suzanne Kaszynski                                                                                                        Principal
P.S.  Please read the reminders following this letter.



REMINDERS
Summer work/activities have been posted on the class pages of our website for incoming Pre-K 3 through Grade 8 students. (On the website, for example, on the Grade 2 class page, you will find assignments for students who will be in Grade 2 in the fall.)
I cannot stress how important it is for your children to complete these assignments on an ongoing basis throughout the summer.  We are trying to avoid “the summer slide” when students lose a large portion of what they have learned during the school year due to limited reading and learning activities during the eleven weeks of summer vacation.
Students in incoming Grades 1-8 have:

• A reading and writing assignment
• An online assignment in Reading and Math on the Edgenuity program
• A separate Math assignment in certain grades

While most classes have assignments involving reading two books and a related writing assignment, I strongly urge you to have your children read books throughout the summer.  There is no substitute nor will there ever be for encouraging a love of reading in our students and having them read consistently on a daily basis.  The level of their reading comprehension has ramifications for their success in elementary and high school, college, and beyond.
I would ask that you review the New York Public Library website at www.nypl.org where you will find additional resources like reading incentive programs, age-appropriate book lists, and literacy activities.
As for the online Edgenuity program: Research has shown that students who use this ELA (Reading) and Math program consistently show significant gains in learning and score higher on standardized assessments, like the MAP (Measures of Academic Achievement) that students will take upon return to school.  Please contact Mary Angeles at mangesles@ollnyc.org with questions/problems and cc: me at skaszynski@ollnyc.org
Thank you so much for helping to keep our students “on track” this summer.