Registration for 2022-2023 Religious Education Classes Grades K-8

Registration for classes will take place in person on

Sundays AFTER the 7:30AM and 10:00 AM Masses in the Church Office 

on June 26th, July 3rd, 10th, 17th, 24th, and 31st.

Wednesdays in the Parish Center on

June 15th, 22nd, and 29th from 3PM to 5PM

July 6th and 27th from 11:30AM to 1PM.

To register for classes at St. Mary's:

You must be a registered parishioner with a Census card on file.

New registrations must be accompanied by a Baptismal Certificate.

Re-registrations must have a Baptismal Certificate already on file or bring one in. A Letter of Transfer is required if you're coming from another parish.

Classes will take place on Sundays from 8:30AM to 9:40AM 

or Wednesdays from 3:45PM to 4:55PM.  

We will try to honor all requests to the best of our abilities.

Registration fee is $155 for 1 child or $225 for 2 or more children, payable by check to 

ST. MARY'S CHURCH. (If your family is currently experiencing financial difficulties, please let us know to make other arrangements.)

Faith Formation Program 2021-22 Guidelines and Information

Welcome to a new year of learning about our faith! Our faith is all about our relationship with God. Building that relationship is a lifelong journey. During each year of Faith Formation classes, we hope that your friendship with God grows stronger.  As with any friendship, we want to know more about the other person.  Our classes are meant to help you know more about God and in turn learn more about the wonderfully, unique person you are.

We are using a hybrid schedule this year.  Students in Grades K-4 and 5-8 will alternate when they are in-person.  The weeks when your child is not present are called Independent Study weeks. During those times, parents are to lead the lesson and work with them on completing their assignments. 

In-Person Classes 

When children are in-person, the catechist will lead the lesson, work on activities in the book and supplement with other resources.  Students do not have to complete an online lesson review on these weeks.

Class Times

Sunday 8:30am-9:45am

Wednesday 4:00pm-5:15pm

Calendar

The calendar given out at the beginning of the year will cover September-December.  This will give us the ability to make any changes for the 2nd half of the year in case of changes to Archdiocesan, State or Local guidelines.

Health & Safety

We ask that if your child has COVID-19, been exposed to COVID-19, is sick or exhibiting any of the following symptoms that they please stay home. 

a fever

cough

trouble breathing

symptoms of a cold such as a sore throat, congestion, or a runny nose

chills

muscle pain

headache

a loss of taste or smell

nausea or vomiting

Diarrhea

Before your child comes to class, we ask that you please complete the online health check which will be emailed home each week and available at the top of our website.

Health & Wellness Form

If your child is exposed to COVID-19 or tests positive for COVID-19, please notify us so that we may notify the parents and teachers that were in contact with him here at class.  If your child has been exposed to COVID-19, we ask that they remain out until the following class.

Masks

Masks must be worn by all children and adults when they are in our buildings.

Social Distancing

We are setting up our classes so that we can have 3ft of distance between students while in the classroom. We will be using the cafeteria and a few of the classrooms in the Phoenix Center school building & Walsh Hall for classes.

Arrival & Dismissal

In consultation with the Phoenix Center, we are going to try to limit the amount of people coming and going into the building. We will offer instructions on how this will work once we know where classes will meet.

At dismissal, students will be brought out of the buildings by their teacher: parents can wait outside to receive their children.

Absences

On the health check that you will complete each week, there will be a question asking if your child will be attending class that day. If they are unable to attend, students can complete the lesson for that class as if it were an independent study week. 

Supplies

Students will be given a book on the first day of classes. This book should come with them to class every time they meet.  Students should also bring a pencil or pen.  

Usually, we have shared supply boxes for our younger students but this year, we are asking that they have their own. I will ask teachers to let you know of any supplies that will be needed (crayons/markers).  If a teacher is doing a special project, we will supply glue sticks and scissors for each child in the class to use.

Independent Study Weeks

We are using a hybrid schedule this year.  Students in Grades K-4 and 5-8 will alternate when they are in-person.  The weeks when your child is not present are called Independent Study weeks. During those times, parents are to lead the lesson and work with them on completing their assignments. 

In-Person Classes

When children are in-person, the catechist will lead the lesson, work on activities in the book and supplement with other resources.  Students do not have to complete an online lesson review on these weeks.

Independent Study Lessons

When your child is not in-person, parents will take on the role of catechist.  

Our suggestion would be to set a time for Faith Formation class and be consistent so that they know Sundays at 9am, Sundays at 6pm or whenever you choose are dedicated to working on their faith. A lesson and lesson review should take 25-40 minutes depending on the grade level and reading level. We ask that you complete the lesson for the week by the time of your child's next in-person class. This will help them to not fall behind and be ready to learn the next lesson in class.

Prayer

Begin with prayer. If your child is just learning their prayers, go slowly with them or allow them to read the prayers from their book.  In Grade 1, they are just starting to pray the Sign of the Cross and will learn the other prayers throughout the year. In Grade 2, they have been introduced to all of the basic prayers (Sign of the Cross, Hail Mary, Our Father, Glory Be) and will be learning the Act of Contrition after the new year. Children in Grades 3-8 can pray any of those prayers and we will be introducing some new ones this year as well.

How to Complete a Lesson During an Independent Study Week

You can find the lesson for that week by going to the Faith Formation website.  On the right side of the website you will find a list with all the classes listed. Find the day and grade that your child attends and follow the link to their class's syllabus. We are not using Google Classroom at this time

1. Find the date of the lesson that you need to complete. 
2. Read the lesson together. Be sure to complete the activities in the book as well. Once you have finished reading the lesson. You can use the link on the syllabus to complete the Lesson Review on Google Forms.
3. When completing the Google Form, be sure to put your first and last name and to choose your day and teacher. When you are finished, just hit submit and we will receive your responses. You are then finished with your lesson for that week.

Mass

Even though you may not be leaving your house for class, we hope to see you at Mass on Saturday evening or Sunday morning.  Coming to Mass is so important because it gives us the chance to spend time with God in prayer, worship and thanksgiving. Hearing God's word and receiving the Eucharist are vital to our spiritual lives.  I have 2 boys (4 & 6) so I know that Mass is not always the peaceful and spiritually uplifting time that it should be. Taking your family to Mass every week builds a good habit in their lives. As they grow, receive the sacraments and build their relationship with Jesus they will be able to receive so much more from Mass. So I encourage you to bring them to Mass and join with your parish family of St. Mary's in praise and worship of our loving and merciful God.

Faith Formation Program 2021/22 - Update 1

We are still finalizing our program with the guidelines given to us from the Archdiocese. I know that many of you are looking for concrete answers, but I thank you for your patience with us as we do our best to put our program together for this year. I wanted to take a moment to answer some frequent questions that I have been getting about our program for the 2021-22 school year. 

What will the schedule look like for this year? 

Our schedule is ready, however, where classes will be able to be held is holding us up from releasing it. As you know, we share our school building with the Phoenix Center. Due to the special needs of their student body, classrooms are not always adaptable to our needs. In addition, we are working out details on how to clean and sanitize the building both after our classes on Sundays and in-between them on Wednesdays. With that being said, we may not have as many areas available to us as in the past. The most likely possibility for at least September-December is that we will have a hybrid option for Grades 1-8. This means students will be in-person one week and do an at-home lesson the following week. Example: September 26: Grades K-4 in-person, Gr 5-8 at-home lesson October 3: Grades 5-8 in-person, Gr K-4 at-home lesson 

Will students and teachers have to wear masks? 

Teachers and students will be required to wear masks in the school building regardless of vaccination status. 

Will there be a virtual option? 

At this moment, we do not have the volunteer staff to handle both in-person classes and a virtual learning platform. If things change, I will let you know. 

Can I home-school my child for the entire year? 

Yes. Home-school is an option for grades 1-8. Students will need to follow and stay up to date with the curriculum by completing the lessons at home with a parent and then completing a Google Form with the Chapter review. While this is an option for all grades, we do find that in the sacrament preparation years (Grades 1, 2, and 8) it would be best for students to attend in-person. 

We hope to have more details for you next week, until then we encourage you to register your family for classes for Grades K-8 using the link below: 

https://forms.parishgiving.org/form-2666191/Student-Registration-Form 

Also, If your children will not be in classes this year, please let us know so that we open that spot up for other students. 

We thank you for your patience and understanding as we again look to navigate a school year that may look different from what we had been accustomed to in the past. Our continued goal is to help support you and your family in growing deeper into a relationship with Jesus, to experience his amazing love and to walk with you in this journey of faith. 

May God Bless you and your family.

Thank you for a Great Year!

I can't believe that this is our final virtual class for this year! Back in July, I was full of anxiety and was not quite sure how we could make the program work. Among the many things that I have learned during this past year is that St. Mary's Parish is extremely blessed to have the people that we do as volunteer catechists. (I have actually always known this, but it became even more apparent this year!) Those who were hesitant at first, spent time learning and practicing. Those who were more comfortable with technology shared their knowledge. After a few bumps in the road at the beginning of the year, things got easier and here we are! We have completed 26 weeks of lessons and with one more to go, I just want to say THANK YOU! 

Thank you to all of our catechists for the time you spent preparing lessons, looking up activities, sharing your faith and teaching the children of our parish about God's great love for them!

Thank you to our parents for your patience with all of us, your children (and technology), we hope that as you spent time teaching and assisting your child in faith formation that you too were able to learn and grow in faith with them!

Thank you to our students for being present, for completing work on your own and for participating in class discussions and prayer! We pray that this year, while difficult in many other ways, still offered you the opportunity to grow closer to Jesus!

For anyone who may have fallen behind on lessons, they will remain active and available on our Google Classrooms until at least the end of June, so you can go back at any time and catch up on something that you may have missed.

While this is the end of our Faith Formation school year, we will continue to share ways for our families to continue to grow closer to Jesus throughout the spring and summer.  

The best way to grow in relationship with Jesus is by attending Mass as a family.  Being nourished by the Word of God and the Body and Blood of Christ at Mass unites us directly to Jesus, the True Vine! I know that many families have gotten out of the habit because of the pandemic, but we invite you to come, join us at the Table of the Lord!

I look forward to celebrating sacraments with many of you, please pray for our children receiving 1st Holy Communion and those that will be confirmed in June.

Peace,

Anthony

Schedule of classes for 2021

Happy New Year to all of our families! We hope that during this year, we can all grow closer to the Jesus, the Light of the World and share his light with all we encounter. We look forward to seeing you all again next Sunday, January 10 for our first class of 2021.

Schedule of classes for 2021

January 3, 2021 - No Class or Work Assigned

January 10, 2021- Virtual Learning via Google Meet at 9am or 11am

January 17, 2021 - Independent Learning

January 24, 2021 - Virtual Learning via Google Meet at 9am or 11am

January 31, 2021 - Independent Learning

February 7, 2021 - Virtual Learning via Google Meet at 9am or 11am

February 14, 2021 - Independent Learning

February 21, 2021 - Virtual Learning via Google Meet at 9am or 11am

February 28, 2021 - Independent Learning

March 7, 2021 - Virtual Learning via Google Meet at 9am or 11am

March 14, 2021 - Independent Learning

March 21, 2021 - Virtual Learning via Google Meet at 9am or 11am

March 28, 2021 - Independent Learning

April 4, 2021 - No Class or Work Assigned

April 11, 2021 - Virtual Learning via Google Meet at 9am or 11am

April 18, 2021 - Independent Learning

April 25, 2021 - Virtual Learning via Google Meet at 9am or 11am

Start of a New Year!!

I want to welcome you to St. Mary's Faith Formation Program.  We look forward to walking with you and your family in your journey of faith.  Although this year will look a lot different than years past, we hope to help you and your child to get to know Jesus and learn all about our beautiful faith and what it reveals to us.

Books

You can pick-up your child's books at the Parish Center, which is located on the corner or St. Mary's Place, Monday-Thursday 9-4pm, Friday 9-1pm.  When you pick up the books, we ask that you also sign a permission slip for our virtual learning program this year.  I have attached it to this email in case you would like to complete it at home and bring it with you.  

 

To log on to your child's Google Classroom, you will use a St. Mary's Faith Formation account that we have created for you.  It is not a Gmail account, so please sign into Google Classroom: https://classroom.google.com/

 

If you do not see your child's Google Classroom:

Be sure that you are on your St. Mary's account. When you open a new tab, it will default to another Google account that is signed in (your personal Gmail or school).  We suggest signing out of other Google accounts to prevent confusion.

Once you are in the St. Mary's Google Classroom, you will see your child/children's classes.  You will need to hit Accept to enter the classroom for the first time.

If you have any issues on Sunday Mornings, please contact Mrs. Joanne Porecco: jporecco@stmarysnutley.org 

Faith Formation 2020-21

We will be using Google Classroom for our program this year. Each Sunday, you should sign-in with your family's St. Mary's Faith Formation Account (you can use this on multiple devices) you should go to your child/children' Google Classrooms. https://classroom.google.com/ 

 

Starting this week... October 4

You will find a new assignment posted in Google Classroom (it should actually post on the Saturday before class). In this assignment, you will find a reminder of our Virtual Class via Google Meet (on weeks when we have them), directions on what to do (read the chapter, do assigned activities, etc) and you will find the Chapter Review.

Entering a Google Meet

The link for the Google Classroom will be posted in the Google Classroom. When you click the link, please be sure that you are in the St. Mary's Account. When the Google Meet opens, it may default to another Google account that is signed in. If this happens, you will not be able to enter the Google Meet.

 

On Weeks with a Virtual Class

October 4 & 18, November 1 & 15, December 6 & 20

Students will attend a Google Meet Class (30-40 minutes)

Read the Chapter with their families

Complete any activities assigned by the Catechist

Complete the Chapter Review

 

On Weeks with no Virtual Class - Independent Learning

October 11 & 25, November 8, 22 & 29, December 13

Students will watch a video (10-15 minutes)

Read the Chapter with their families

Complete any activities assigned by the Catechist

Complete the Chapter Review

 

If you have any questions, please let me know.

I look forward to meeting all of you!

 

Peace,

Anthony Armando

Faith Formation Update #3

I can’t believe we have just turned the calendar to September… As you prepare for a new and definitely different school year, we have been developing our program for the upcoming year of Faith Formation.  

Thank you to everyone who has registered for classes already. If you have not yet had the opportunity to register or have been waiting for more information, I encourage you to register your family for classes as soon as possible so that we can be ready for everyone.   

The Archdiocese of Newark has issued guidelines for all Religious Education programs in light of the pandemic.  All programs in the Archdiocese are to be virtual (no in-person classes) at least until January 2021. They will reevaluate where things stand and provide further information at that time.

What Faith Formation will look like at St. Mary’s Parish for September-December of 2020

• Classes for Grades 1-8 will begin on Sunday, September 27th. Unfortunately, this year we will be unable to have a Kindergarten class. We will have a calendar ready very soon.

• Classes will only be on Sunday mornings. There will be 2 sessions: 9am and 11am.  

We will assign students to a session and class according to their class from last year. Many (not all) of our catechists have moved up with their classes to provide some familiarity and consistency for the students.  If your child is assigned to a time that does not work for your family, please let us know and we will make the change.

• Students will have “live” classes every other week. These “live” classes will be conducted using Google Meet and will be only 30-40 minutes long.  Following the “live” class, students will read the assigned chapter and complete a chapter review.  This assignment can be completed at any time during the week.

• On the weeks that there are no “live” sessions, students will watch a short introductory video, read the assigned chapter and complete a chapter review. This assignment can be completed at any time during the week.

• We will use Google Classroom to help parents, students and catechists to stay organized with the work that is assigned. It will also provide a place for students, parents and catechists to be able to communicate with one another.

• All families and catechists will be provided with an @stmarysnutley.org username so that they will be able to use Google Meet and Google Classroom.

• Students will have hard copies of the student workbooks so that they can use them during virtual class sessions and in case we are able to return to in-person class sessions after January 2021.These will be distributed beginning next week.

• We invite parents to be present with their children during all of our “live” sessions, but especially for our younger students in Grades 1-4. We will also be sending out a code of conduct to all of our families and catechists to provide a safe environment for all.

• We will record all “live” sessions for safety purposes. These recorded sessions will not be viewed or shared with anyone, but will be kept digitally until the end of the school year. We will be sending a permission form for parents to sign regarding this as soon as we receive it from the Archdiocese.  Parents who do not wish to have their students recorded can simply have the camera turned off during the class.   

While this year will be different than most, our goal is to provide quality religious education to our students and families. Many of our teachers are just learning this technology so we realize there may be some bumps along the way. We ask for your understanding and patience as we navigate new methods of teaching. We will also be reevaluating things as we move forward and will keep you updated to any changes that need to be made. We hope that during this year of virtual learning, we can help you and your children engage in faith formation in a different way and allow for you as a family to have opportunities for sharing and living out the Gospel message.

We thank you for being with a part of our program and look forward to continuing the journey of faith with your family.