Principals' Peek at the Week

Saints Joseph and John School - May 15, 2025

DEAR SJJ FAMILIES,

It’s hard to believe we are already halfway through May! As the school year begins to wind down, we continue to celebrate milestones, achievements, and the incredible growth of our students.

Tomorrow, we bid a special farewell to our Preschool-4s and Pre-K students as they graduate and prepare to take their next steps into Kindergarten. It’s a JOYful moment, and we are so proud of how much they’ve grown this year!

Also on Friday, we will gather for our Sacrament Mass, honoring our 2nd graders who received their First Communion and our 8th graders who were recently confirmed. These are such meaningful moments in their faith journeys, and we are grateful to be able to celebrate them as a school community.

This past week, we completed our final round of MAP assessments. To that end, we are excited to share that SJJ has been recognized by the Office of Catholic Education with the Honor Roll for Academic Growth in Mathematics! This diocesan distinction is awarded to schools demonstrating exceptional student growth on the MAP Growth Assessment. SJJ ranked in the top 5% in growth as measured by the percentage of students reaching proficiency from the 2022–2023 school year to 2023-2024 school year. This recognition reflects the dedication of our teachers, the hard work of our students, and the power of using data to inform instruction.

As we head into these final weeks, let’s continue to stay focused, finish strong, and celebrate all that this year has brought us!

SJJ VIKINGS IN ACTION

First Grade’s Butterfly Release
Last Friday, magic filled the air as Mrs. Tinnirello’s first graders released their butterflies into the world! Each classroom had the chance to observe the complete butterfly life cycle—from tiny larvae to beautiful winged creatures. It was a wonderful reminder of growth, change, and the beauty of nature.

Spring Music Concert: Grades 3–5
Our 3rd–5th graders lit up the stage this week with their Spring Music Concert! From cheerful tunes to colorful outfits, the concert was full of energy and JOY—just what we needed as we head into the final stretch before summer break. Bravo to all our young performers!

Digging for Treasures in 3rd Grade
Mrs. Nadeo’s third graders had a blast digging through real sediment from the Aurora Fossil Museum! With tools in hand, students discovered shark teeth and other amazing fossils. It was a hands-on science experience they won’t soon forget!

LITTLE VIKINGS PRESCHOOL

This week the P3 students ended their school year with a beach party. Although the weather didn't cooperate, the Little Vikings made the best of it and enjoyed summertime fun and snacks with their families.

The P4 and Pre-K students have been practicing for Graduation this Friday. The Preschool staff wishes all of our Graduates congratulations and looks forward to hearing about summer adventures when we return to Saints Joseph and John in the fall!

FIRST COMMUNION

Congratulations to all of our 1st Grade students who made their First Communion on Saturday, May 10.

FROM THE SJJ PTU

Friday, May 16th - The PTU will provide flowers and treats to celebrate Grades 2 and 8 at their sacrament mass and reception.

Tuesday, May 27th is FIELD DAY - The PTU will provide a Student Appreciation Lunch! The lunch menu is: Antonio’s pizza, potato chips, apple slices and bottled water. We will also have Dilly Bars from Dairy Queen (there will be non-dairy bars or popsicles for students with allergies). We are in need of volunteers to help serve lunch! Please sign up at the link below if you are able to volunteer! *Must be Virtus trained.

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0A44A9AD2BA7F49-56763897-ptustudent

Thursday, May 29th - The PTU will announce the (6) essay winners at 8th Grade Graduation (7PM @ St. Joseph church) who will each be awarded $500 towards their tuition for their selection of a Catholic High School next year.

CYO UPDATES

Congratulations to all our 8th grade students as they complete their SJJ Athletics careers! It has been a true pleasure to see these young men and women advance in our programs from 1st grade! It was great to recognize them all at the 8th grade CYO banquet last week! May God Bless you all!

Registration for the 2025 Fall Sports season is now open!! Registration will be open through July 18th. Due to time constraints and deadlines from CYO, we are unable to guarantee roster availability after July 18th. So please register early! Please go to www.sjjathletics.com to register. Participants should register for the grade they will be in for the 2025-2026 School year. If you need any assistance with registrations, simply click the Contact Us button on the home page and someone will get back to you.

The Fall season is tentatively set to begin on July 28, 2025. However, this date is subject to change from CYO. As of now, they have not released an official date, only this tentative date. So please keep an eye on the website for any changes or updates throughout the summer.

A Fall Sports Parent meeting will be held on July 23, 2025 at 7:00pm in the SJJ gym. All are encouraged to attend as there is plenty of time for questions and answers as well as sharing updates about each sport and any changes to the CYO Bylaws.

All participants are required to have a Physical Pre-Participation form completed for the season. Forms can be downloaded from the Athletics website under Downloads. Completed forms should be given to the head coach at the first practice. They should not be sent to the school office. Players may not participate until the completed form is submitted to the head coach.

POTENTIAL NEW SPORT: On the registration page you will see a selection for Soccer. This is only being used to gauge interest at this time. If your son or daughter is interested in participating in CYO Soccer, you may complete a registration for them at no cost. Soccer in CYO is open to grades 3-8 only. THIS IS NOT A GUARANTEE that we will have a team at this time. Due to the popularity and conflicts of schedules with the Strongsville Soccer League, we are not certain we will have enough players to make a roster. Players are encouraged to register with the Strongsville Soccer league as well if they are used to playing in that league. After a few weeks, we will know if the interest is there to field a team and we will contact those that signed up with further information or to release the registration.

And finally, please see the information for our annual SJJ Volleyball camp. The camp is a great way to come and see if volleyball is of interest before committing to playing the season. The camp is run by CYO Hall Of Fame Coach Karol Coundourides and all questions can be addressed to CoachKarolC@gmail.com. To register go to www.coachkarolvball.com/events. The Camp will be run June 23rd through 25th in the SJJ Gym.

As always, should you have any questions, please do not hesitate to reach out via the Contact Us link on the website or directly at sjjcyo@gmail.com.

Wishing you all a blessed and safe summer and we will see you in the Fall!!