News

First graders have been learning a lot about the birth of Jesus, and the real reason why we celebrate Christmas during religion class. Students learned that Advent is the time when we wait and prepare for our Savior. They made Advent wreaths, and now know the meanings of the four candles. They also enjoyed making candy canes and learning about how they represent Jesus.

What a busy day December 15th has been! Assumption Catholic School students had an engaging itinerary filled with learning and fun! The entire school attended a Science Day at the Liberty Science Center in Jersey City. The trip was organized by grade level and each science lab was developed based on that grade’s science focus. Grades six through eight enjoyed their 3D printing science lab and were able to take away basic commands and the imp…ortant concepts related to programming and creating. Pre-kindergarten through second grade enjoyed learning about the sun and the water cycle. Third and fourth grade were able to plot the temperature readings for different countries around the world and determine the climate of each using and interpreting the data collected. It was a rewarding learning experience. Thank you to the parents who chaperoned, the teachers who planned and followed the itineraries, students who behaved so well and of course to the Liberty Science Center for hosting our first whole school science day. This is just the beginning of our science initiative… Stay tuned for more ACS Science discovery and innovation.

The sixth grade class is working hard! They are an extremely busy group of students. In Religion they worked in groups and created each season of The Church Calendar. In Language Arts they have started a new unit on Science Fiction writings. In Math … rigorous as usual… they are using and constructing scale models! Social Studies the study of India is completed and they are extremely engaged starting the topic of Ancient China. And as a reward this week they baked Christmas cookies. Our sixth grade class has incredible energy and curiosity and Mrs. Shumny is proud of their hard work and efforts.

This week was a very busy week for the Class of 2018. They celebrated their last Saint Nicholas Day at ACS on Wednesday, followed by the day they have been waiting for since September. After Divine Liturgy on Friday they received their class ring. They were so excited on their way to church that it almost seemed as if they were floating on air!

When Liturgy was finished Father Ivan spoke to the class on the symbolism of the ring and Mrs. Shumny, our principal, congratulated them on their accomplishment. The ceremony was followed by a celebratory light breakfast. After spending some time with their parents they returned to school where they went to each class to have the teachers and students turn their ring for luck.

As the year continues we know that the Class of 2018 will continue to lead by good example. Time will pass all too quickly and in the blink of an eye it will be time to say farewell to this outstanding class. Until then we look forward to watching the Class of 2018 continue grow reflect Jesus in their daily routines, and hope that they continue to make wonderful memories that will follow them into the next chapter of their lives.

ACS’s Mrs Pickering and Mrs Shumny along with a wonderful group of 8th graders have started a Food Club!  The ACS Food Club met for the first time today and picked lasagna as the first meal they were going to prepare.  They made their own sauce – from scratch – they seasoned their own beef and even wrote out their Recipe to share with their classmates.  Next month! You guessed it – empanadas and arroz con gandules!

Each year St. Nicholas pays a visit to the students of Assumption Catholic School. Born in Patara, a land that is part of present-day Turkey, St. Nicholas was a Christian bishop who helped the needy and gave gifts to good children. In Ukraine, children wait for St. Nicholas to come and to put a present under their pillows provided that the children were good during the year. Children who behaved badly may expect to find a twig or a piece of coal under thei…r pillows. On Wednesday, December 6, 2017, ACS students welcomed him with once again much enthusiasm. Students were first treated to a play about St. Nichalas performed by the Junior Drama Club members and then called to the stage by class where each child received a present sponsored by the school ( FSA) Family School Association. As St Nicholas was leaving for the next visit on his list, students returned to their classroom to enjoy their new gifts.

The Perth Amboy Police Department and the New York Jets have joined together to "Stomp Out Bullying" in schools. ACS first grader, Sophia, was selected for her efforts to report and being a true friend for those in kindergarten through second grade. Having young student take initiative to be positive role models is what the police department is looking for and what ACS works hard to instill in each and every student.

On Wednesday, November 22, 2017 a Thanksgiving tradition at Assumption Catholic School continued. What begin several years ago as a simple gathering to give thanks to God together as a school, has grown into a real Thanksgiving Feast. This year students in the Senior Drama Club prepared a short program about the history of Thanksgiving: Fact or Fiction. The FSA board member, students and volunteers, under the direction of Mrs. Maria Derevenska, our kindergarten teacher, prepared and served a full Thanksgiving dinner. In addition to pie baking, the students of ACS also helped with the preparation of the cornbread and potatoes. At the end of the day all of the students felt good that they had contributed to what would be a wonderful Thanksgiving meal that was shared by everyone in school. This year, we were highly honored by the presence of Mrs. Wilda Diaz , Mayor of the City of Perth Amboy and the Perth Amboy’s New Fire Chief.

We would like to wish all of our ACS families a very happy Thanksgiving Weekend! Thanksgiving is a time for family and we hope that you and your family have an extra enjoyable weekend. Happy Thanksgiving and may God bless you all! Thanks for sharing your child with us.

Friction – a contact force that opposes motion. The sixth grade students at ACS completed an investigation to learn how to reduce the effects of friction when they visited the lab. They discussed the definition, read over the lab, wrote their hypothesis, then, tested their hypothesis. Each group worked together making sure to carry out each step carefully, recording their data as they went along. They measured the force it took to pull a piece of wood along the floor, on a set of marbles, and across sand paper. In the end they were able to observe the effect of friction as a force and have a better understanding of how friction works.