JSC Weekly Wave

November 29th through December 2nd

Update from JSC Principal

Dear JSC Community,

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving break! The countdown is on until winter break, which is less than 4 weeks away! Our month of December is jam-packed with student learning and fun activities!

We are thrilled to announce that John S. Clarke Elementary Center will be holding a 'Joy through the JSC Halls' family fun night on Tuesday, December 20th, from 5PM to 7PM! All are cordially invited to stroll through our beautifully decorated halls that our staff and students are working so diligently and joyfully to complete! The Grinch will be here at JSC and will be located in the JSC Library, for photo opportunities! We also just booked Leiby's horse-drawn trolley (weather permitting), which will be located in the JSC bus circle! There will be fun, festive, and educational holiday craft activities in our cafeteria, and there will be light refreshments available in the lobby! We hope to see you there!

JSC PTO will be hosting Breakfast with Santa on Saturday, December 17th, from 9AM - 12PM. Our PTO Holiday Shop is next week, where all students will have an opportunity to shop for family and friends. Don't forget about December Spirit Days, which begin on December 12th! Be sure to keep scrolling for more important news and updates!

JSC is the place to be! Have a great week and 'Roll, Tide!'

Your partner in education,

Ms. Kerri Lubinsky

Principal

Thank You, Crimson Tide Foundation!

Kindergarten Teachers Awarded Venture Grant

We would like to thank the Crimson Tide Foundation, for awarding our kindergarten teachers with this year's Venture Grants! Our kindergarten teachers have been awarded over $700 for Heidi Songs - Songs and videos that teach reading, writing, and alphabetic principles.

❄️ JSC's Upcoming Events🧣

Holiday Shop for Students December 5th through December 9th

JSC PTO will be hosting our annual holiday gift shop, from December 5th through December 9th. All students will have an opportunity to purchase gifts for friends and family members. Click here for full schedule.

Breakfast with Santa, Saturday, December 17th

JSC PTO will be hosting 'Breakfast with Santa' at John S. Clarke Elementary, on Saturday, December 17th, from 9:00 AM until 12:00 PM. Advanced tickets are recommended.

Joy through the JSC Halls, December 20th, 5PM to 7PM

Join us for an evening of festive fun for everyone!

Stroll through our joyfully decorated hallways and be sure to vote for your favorite theme (ballot box in JSC lobby)
Leiby's horse-drawn trolley rides (bus circle - weather permitting)
Photos with the Grinch / Holiday read aloud (JSC library)
Fun and Festive Holiday Crafts (JSC Cafeteria)
Basket raffle tickets will be available for purchase (all JSC students will be entered for student prize)
Instagram scavenger hunt - Find the hidden C-Tide logos throughout the halls. Take a selfie and use #JSCjingle for a chance to win prizes
FREE hot chocolate (with additional food and drink options available for purchase)

Mark your calendar for JSC's December spirit days, from December 12th through December 23rd!

PBIS Presents Pizza and PLINKO with the Principal

All students who earn a green ticket (for following PRIDE rules in the cafeteria) will be entered in a weekly drawing for a chance to win pizza and play PLINKO with our principal, Ms. Lubinsky!

JSC Good News

First Grade Receives 'RIF' Books

The 'Books for Ownership' program is a grant that is offered by Reading is Fundamental (RIF) in partnership with UGI. As part of the grant, first grade students at JSC were able to choose age-appropriate, high quality books to take home and keep! This year, JSC was alotted enough books for first grade to have two book distributions!

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Kindergarten's Thanksgiving Parade

Just before Thanksgiving, our kindergarten students celebrated Thanksgiving by learning about Thanksgiving, singing songs, and holding their very own Thanksgiving parade throughout the halls of JSC! Y

Spotlight on JSC's Social Worker, Mrs. Gunoskey

JSC pleased to introduce you to our School Social Worker, Mrs. Migdalia Gunoskey. Mrs. Gunoskey has been employed by the Pottsville Area School District since 2009. Mrs. Gunoskey received her undergraduate degree from Lock Haven University and her Master’s degree in Social Work from Temple University. As the School Social Worker and PBIS Coordinator at John S. Clarke Elementary Center, Mrs. Gunoskey’s goals are to provide a safe and healthy environment where students and staff can grow and learn and have their needs met. She wants to continue to ensure that everyone feels welcome and included at JSC. Mrs. Gunoskey coordinates many of the wonderful social emotional learning and community programs here at John S. Clarke!

Congratulations to our PBIS Team

This year, John S. Clarke Elementary Center is being recognized at this year's PBIS Implementer's Forum at their All Stars Recognition Celebration! Mrs. Gunoskey, JSC PBIS coordinator, will be accepting a Pennsylvania Positive Behavior Support Network (PAPBS) Badge on behalf of JSC, to celebrate the implementation of a School-Wide Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports System during the 2021-2022 school year!

Our PBIS team (in conjunction with JSC staff and students) meets monthly, and works throughout the year to provide positive behavior interventions and supports for our students! Together, they work to promote positive behaviors by creating and organizing fun incentives and activities at John S. Clarke. We are extremely fortunate to have this amazing team! Thank you, Mrs. Gunoskey, PBIS team, JSC staff, and JSC students, for working together to make this possible! You all make JSC "the place to be!"

Our PBIS team members:

Mrs. Migdalia Gunoskey

Ms. Molly Kleeman

Mrs. Debbie Lecker

Ms. Christine Schuebel

Mrs. Christina Seiger

Mrs. Lisa Chistakoff

Mrs. Kaier Trovato

Ms. Alexa Heffernan

Mrs. Leigh Ann Bosak

Mrs. Deneen Reese

Mrs. Stacie Cromyak

Ms. Kendra Boris

Mrs. Mary McGinley

Mrs. Liz Grow

Mrs. Kim Martinko

Mrs. Kelly Lombel

Mrs. Katie Dougherty

🥶 JSC Shout Outs🧦

This Week's Shout out Winners

Congratulations to the following students, for winning JSC's Weekly Shout out drawing:

Ruby Copeland

Ava Balulis

Izabella Messer

Winners - Please report to the main office to choose a prize!

Shout Outs

Help us celebrate our amazing JSC community by giving a out shout out (which will be posted in next week's newsletter). Don't forget to add your child's name for a chance to win a prize at school!

Drop shout outs here.

Students

Hannah Fletcher - For being positive every day and being the best you can be!
You got this!

Ruby Copeland- Keep up the great work kiddo!!

Mason Jackson- Dude you are awesome and I am so proud.

Penelope Romando- You are so smart and I am very proud of you!!

Zoey Ketterer - shout out for being a great kid!!

Kayliaunna Wertz, your outstanding job on your very first report card!! So proud of you!!

Staff

Ms. Hand & Ms. Bubnis are amazing for all the hard work and wonderful things they do to help their kindergarten students grow and learn.

Mrs. McGinley -For being the best first teacher my daughter had going into JSC. You make school fun and exciting every day.

Mrs. Oakill is an amazing teacher! She takes the time to make each of her students feel important and valued. Thank you for engaging the children in your classroom.

Mrs. Fidler & Mrs. Bertsch are wonderful teachers!

Mrs. Elaine McDonald! She is doing such a great job with our daughter Autumn in school! She was so sweet to us at her school conference. She is just wonderful and so kind!

Miss Moore- My daughter had struggle with her old school when it came to learning and doing her school work. Since we have moved here, she’s been doing wonderful with her school work and bringing home good grades and she doesn’t struggle as much as she use to. Short little time my daughter has been going to school, she has learned so much, and getting so much better with her reading, and she’s able to do her own work on her own for the most part. I want to thank you! Keep up the good work with the students.

Mrs. Murray- I had Struggled with my daughter going to school and putting her on the bus at her old school. She is super shy! Since we’ve moved here, she’s been wanting to go to school every day. She even asks me on weekends if it school day yet. She’s been loving school, she talks about her classes and how she made a friend or two. She always excited to be going to school and she enjoys her class. She even asks if she can do homework or have homework to do. I just want to say thank you and keep up the good work with your students. She enjoys having you has a teacher.

Mrs. Oakill for being such a communicative, caring and understanding teacher!

Mrs. Grow for being such a great teacher! She is very understanding & is amazing with communication!

Mr. Narita because he is fun and teaches us all about our iPad!

Mrs Drummer for being kind and patient with the students!

Mrs. Joyce for being and amazing and wonderful teacher to our kindergarten class!!

Mrs Kutsmeda- My son absolutely loves her. She also fixed his sunglasses when they broke in school during one of the spirit days. He came home so happy that we was able to wear them. Thank you Mrs Kutsmeda for all of your hard work, dedication, and your love for our children.

Mrs. Dillow for helping her student adapt to their new environment. My child now looks forward to school and absolutely loves it! I cannot thank Mrs. Dillow enough!

Ms. Heffernan - For always keeping us informed of what is happening with our children! You are so kind! Thank you!

JSC Celebrates 'Spirit of Giving' for the Holiday Season

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Homemade Seasonal Cards for our Community

Remember, we are still collecting homemade holiday / seasonal cards for homebound citizens of our community!

Grab some cardstock or construction paper, crayons or markers, and any other craft item you'd like to add. Create a friendly card with warm wishes to brighten someone's day!

All students who create a card will have their name entered in a random 'Pay it Forward for Kindness' drawing at JSC.

Bring your cards to school and give them to your teacher. There is a collection box outside the main office (next to the office envelopes box).

Deadline for holiday cards is December 16th!

JSC Resource Center

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JSC Elementary Student Assistance Program

The Elementary Student Assistance Program (ESAP) is designed to assist children who are experiencing difficulty with academic, attendance, behavioral, mental health, and/or social concerns.

Currently, if you have a concern for a child who is experiencing difficulty with academic, attendance, behavioral, mental health, and/or social concerns, please contact our JSC school counselor, Miss Alexa Heffernan, (570) 621-2945. You may also contact your child's teacher, or Miss Lubinsky, school principal.

Weekender Backpack Program

Thanks to those who have signed up to have your child(ren) receive weekender bags each Friday! If you have not signed up, but are interested, please complete the link below:

Please click here for more information and to register your child

JSC Student Handbook

Click here to access the John S. Clarke Elementary Center Student Handbook