GRAMMAR GAZETTE

Thursday, November 10, 2022

Dear Fabulous Nova Classical Families,

Welcome to the second quarter of the school year! We have grown so much already this year and I can't wait to see where this year takes us!

This newsletter contains important information about how to celebrate Nova Classical staff, Academic Bees, Conferences, and more!

Our monthly virtue assemblies are the first Wednesday of every month. The next one will be Wednesday, December 7, at 9:15am with 3rd grade presenting on the virtue of Temperance. Virtue assembly days are also Nova Classical spirit wear days for Lower School students. Students are encouraged to wear Nova spirit wear with uniform bottoms on those days. Nova spirit wear includes any Nova t-shirts or school colors. If you are in need of spirit wear, Nova Classical works with the following vendors: Game One (password: novaknights) and BSN.

As always, please let us know if you have any questions.

Warm Regards,

Ms. Tousignant

Do you want to celebrate a Nova Classical teacher, staff, para, or EA's great work? You are invited to share why you think a Nova staff member is awesome using this short Google form.

These responses will be shared with staff at faculty meetings, in internal communications, in front of their class, or when they might need a positive boost! Thanks so much for taking the time to share some positive feedback!

Literacy Parent Education Night - Thursday, December 8 @ 6:30

Uncertain about how to keep your child reading? Wondering how to find books that fit your child's interests and reading level? Looking for fresh ideas to read together as a family? Interested in making the most of reading aloud with your child? Come join Ms. Buri, Ms. Taylor, and Ms. Knowles as they arm you with tips and resources to help your child foster a love of reading!

Did you miss last week's Singapore Math Parent Education Night? Feel free to view the resources below to learn more about Singapore Math at Nova:

Zoom Recorded Video (Recorded on 11/9/21)

Singapore Math Night Slides

Model Drawing Examples

Additional Math Resources

We have over 120 students preparing to compete in this year's Battle of the Books! The Nova Battle of the Books is slated to be held the week of December 12. That date will be confirmed as we get closer. The December battle will serve as Round 1, and the top 12 teams will advance. All of the teams that qualify will get a new list of books and we will have a final round to determine a school champion in April. This team will move on to the final battle, to be held at Eagle Ridge Academy in May. We have a small lending library in the main office if students would like to check out a book.

For your convenience, the Round 1 Booklist can be found here.

Nova Classical continues to partner with the St. Paul Public Library to provide library cards and access to the city's libraries. Your library card is on the back of your student ID or you can reserve and check out books using your number alone. Learn more about our library access here.

Spelling Bee: Grades 3-8 Students

Week of December 12: Interested students will be given lists of words to study

After winter break: Classroom and School-wide Bees take place

Week of February 6: School-wide winner takes online test

March 9: Regional Bee @ Fridley High School

Please contact Ms. Marchand for any questions about the Spelling Bee.

National History Bee: Grades 4-8 Students

December 2: Deadline for grades 6-8 to register for Bee. Sign up in Upper School Office.

Week of December 5: Grades 4-5 (ALL students) and any registered grade 6-8 students will take written test

Week of January 9: Online Regional Qualification test for Top 20 qualifying students

Week of February 18: School-Wide Bee for Top 20 qualifying students

March/April (date/location TBD): Regional Bee for Top 20 qualifying students

To prepare for the exams and find more information about the competition, please refer to the National History Bee Site. Feel free to contact Ms. Tousignant for additional information.

Science Olympiad: Grade 5 Students

Week of November 28: Registration begins

December 16: Registration closes

April 15, 2023: Regional Elementary Science Olympiad

More information can be found on the club website here or by contacting Ms. Gabor or Mr. Kimble.

In-person conferences will take place on Thursday, November 17th from 4:30-8pm.

Online conferences will take place on Monday, November 21st from 8am-4pm via Google Meet. Please note that for convenience and consistency for our faculty, online conferences will not be offered on the in-person day and in-person conferences will not be offered on the online day. Thank you for your understanding.

You should have received an email confirmation from pmail@pickatime.com. Please check your spam folder if you did not receive it. Due to the number of conference slots available, please follow the directions here and contact your child's teacher if you have any questions. Thank you in advance for following these guidelines.

Pick A Time Link (log-in information was sent directly from Pick a Time)

NEW THIS YEAR: Parents are invited to hang out in the Parent Lounge in the Great Room between conferences on Thursday, November 17. Mix and mingle with fellow Nova Classical families!

We love volunteers! We need help in classrooms or prepping materials behind the scenes, chaperones for field trips, as well as help with Nova Classical and NPTO-sponsored community events. Some opportunities are just a few hours and some are year-long.

Apply to volunteer with Nova Classical.

Browse and sign up for opportunities here.

NEW THIS YEAR: Families only need to report positive cases, not symptoms or household cases. Please use the link below (not the 21-22 version). Thank you!

2022-2023 COVID-19 Student Reporting Form

Nova Classical's biggest fundraiser, "Give to the Max", is happening now until November 17th. This year, we are raising funds to enhance our sense of school pride and community. Learn more about our goals on our Give to the Max page and help our community by making a donation, helping us spread the word to relatives, friends, and neighbors! On Give to the Max Day (11/17), we’ll have extra fun with incentives, community prizes, and more, so stay tuned to our social media for details that day.

As the colder weather approaches, students will need to have winter gear every day. This includes at least a coat, hat, and gloves, as well as snow pants and boots as it gets colder and the snow arrives. Students will go outside to recess every day unless it is 0 degrees air temp or -5 degrees with the windchill. It is important that they are bundled up and are able to stay warm at recess! Thanks for your help with this!

In order to ensure your child’s items make it back to them when lost, please label all the items that they wear or bring to school. Here are some suggestions:

• Many items have a designated place for labeling - this is the usually the best spot to put your child’s name and contact information
• Label items using a black permanent or Sharpie marker or personalized, purchased labels (www.namebubbles.com or to support the Nova PTO fundraiser through Mabel’s Labels, go to www.mabelslabels.com, and enter NOVA CLASSICAL ACADEMY PTO (ST. PAUL)
• Make sure to include your child’s full last name and first initial or if there’s room, their full or abbreviated first name. Parent’s cell # for texting is also helpful - especially if you are purchasing labels for your whole family with just your last name
• If there is a pair (for example, shoes and mittens), please label both

Thank you in advance for your help with this!

November:

7: Start of Q2 for Lower School

10: Strategic Plan Committee Meeting, 5pm-7pm

11: Lower School Drama Performance

17: K-12 Conferences, 4:30pm - 8pm (in person)

21: K-12 Conferences, 8am - 4pm (virtual)

21-25: NO SCHOOL

28: Strategic Plan Committee Meeting, 5pm-7pm

December:

6: NPTO Mtg @ 4:15pm (in person)

8: Literacy Parent Education Night @ 6:30 (virtual)

12-16: Lower School Book Week

15: School Board Strategic Plan Review

19-30: NO SCHOOL

See Full Calendar