Breakfast With Santa is Saturday Morning!
After a Thanksgiving Break, we started our week with an Advent wreath lighting and prayer in the gym. We'll end the week with Breakfast with Santa, one of our most beloved events.
Tuition Assistance Deadline is Friday
Please make sure that you complete your tuition-assistance application this week. The deadline is Friday, Dec. 6.
Remember that applying for tuition assistance through the Archdiocese is a requirement for receiving assistance through the parish, as it allows the parish and school to determine need.
To apply, log in to your TADS account and go to the Financial Aid tab.
Archdiocesan assistance is available to Catholic school students in grades PreK-12. Assistance is based on financial need, which families must show each year. The Archdiocese reviews applications over the winter and, in March, awards grants for the following (2020-21) school year.
Please note that a parent may complete one form for all children in a family, whether they are elementary school students or high school students, even if they attend different schools.
The Archdiocese awarded $6.1 million to about 8,000 students last year.
Check the tuition assistance website for information, or log in to your TADS account and go to the Financial Aid tab.
Please Read the Letter from the SJB Christmas Fund Committee
Christmas Program Is Thursday, Dec. 19
Please remember to mark Thursday, Dec. 19, on your calendar. Our annual Christmas Program will begin at 7 pm in the Church.
The school program will include readings and songs by each class. Together, the music and words will tell the story of the Birth of Jesus.
Teachers have been working with students on their Christmas Program performances, and rehearsals will pick up as we get closer to the show.
Students Appreciate Ugandan Drums
SJB held its third cultural arts presentation of the school year just before Thanksgiving. Ssuuna, a versatile artist specializing in songs and music from Uganda, entertained students in preschool through 8th grade. Ssuuna performed with several instruments including the endinkidi, engalabi, and kalimba. A highlight came when several students joined the talented artist for a song.
Students previously were treated to presentations by the Howard University American Sign Language organization and Baba Bomani, a hip-hop artist and educator who told the story of American history hero Frederick Douglass. On Friday, Dec. 13, a musical performance -- Bach to Rock -- will come to SJB.
Upcoming Events
Saturday, Dec. 7, at 8:30 am and 10:30 am -- Breakfast with Santa
Tuesday, Dec. 10, at 10 am -- Reconciliation for Students in Grades 3-8
Tuesday, Dec. 10, at 6:30 pm -- Open House
Thursday, Dec. 12, at 2 pm and 7:00 pm -- Band Concert
Wednesday, Dec. 18, at 10:30 am -- Christmas Program Dress Rehearsal
Thursday, Dec. 19, at 7:00 pm -- Christmas Program in Church
Friday, Dec. 20, at 10:45 am -- Christmas Liturgy and Shower for Baby Jesus
Friday, Dec. 20, at 12 Noon -- Half-Day Dismissal
No After Care
Start of Christmas Vacation
Square 1 Art Orders Are In!
Help SJB By Delivering Open House Flyers
Can You Deliver to Child Care Center or Nursery School?
There are two stacks of Open House flyers and postcards by the front door of the school house. Let us know how many you need, and we will send them home with your child.
Here's a list of places to deliver flyers.
Become an SJB Parent Ambassador
- Deliver Flyers and/or Postcards to child care centers and nursery schools
- Give tours to families during Open Houses
- Write short thank you notes to families who come to Open Houses
- Follow up with phone calls to new parents
Please Drive Carefully in the Neighborhood
What We Do When It Snows
St. John the Baptist follows the decisions of Montgomery County Public Schools regarding school cancellations, delayed openings, and early closings. If MCPS has a 2-hour delay, SJB has a 2-hour delay. If MCPS closes early for snow, SJB closes early for snow. Please make a contingency plan if snow or ice is in the forecast. If an early closing decision is made, please arrange for your child to be picked up early if from school. If SJB closes early, After Care and after-school activities will be cancelled. No child will be left unattended at SJB, but please consider that decisions to close school are made for the safety of children and school staff.
Archdiocesan Catholic Schools must follow a major jurisdiction on weather-related school closings as a matter of policy.
Communication When School is Closing for Weather
Primary notification will come from Montgomery County Public Schools through the media. Please check a reliable media outlet, such as WTOP closings, for decisions on school closings, or sign up for a weather alert with MCPS.
SJB will notify families of a school-closing decision by text, email and SJBSilverSpring Twitter.
Communication to parents works only when family contact information is correct. Please make sure that you have correct email addresses and mobile phone numbers for Parent/Guardian 1 and Parent/Guardian 2 on your Household page in TADS. You can change household information through Edit Household.
The TADS Household page is a source of contact data for school email lists, the Rediker Parent Portal, the text-alert service, and the annual Family Directory. If you update your email address on TADS, please also notify the school secretary by email (georgine.baugher@sjbsilverspring.org) so that we can update the class email list.
If you need help finding or updating the TADS Household information, call the parent hotline at 612-548-3320 from 8 am to 9 pm on weekdays.
Please Dress Children for Weather
Please send children to school with warm coats, hats, and gloves on cold days. The children will play outside for recess on most cold winter days. If conditions are dangerous or miserable, we will have indoor recess. We do not set a strict temperature point for outdoor recess. We do take seriously the recommendations of our recess monitors. A 24-degree day may be tolerable if it's sunny, and the air is dry and still. A 28-degree day may be intolerable with high winds, cloudy skies, and moisture.Newcomer Immigrant Students in Need of Coats, Hats and Gloves
Each year, High Point High School has welcomed a new group of immigrant students from Central America. This year, over 120 students will be spending their first winter in the United States. St. John the Baptist has so graciously supported these students in the past by providing them with warm winter clothing. High Point is seeking help again this year. Please consider donating new or gently used winter coats, adult sizes small and medium are mostly needed - preferably blue or black. 75% of the students are male, so more men's jackets are needed than women's. Hats and gloves will also be appreciated! This year’s coat drive will run through December. Please call Cynthia Norris 301-622-1122, for more information. Donations can be dropped off at the Parish Office in the Kazista Center.