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Student Service
We are proud of our students for their commitment to service for others. Each grade has service projects that they do yearly. Most recently the second graders in room 103 and 101, Mrs. Burrow and Sr. Katie’s classes collected for Unicef. They were able to send $343.93 to this worthy organization that helps children around the world. The second graders began this service project in October as part of their Halloween activities. Just this past Advent the sixth seventh and eight graders collected donations from their classmates for Heifer International. Under the leadership of the eighth graders in Mr. Onofrey’s room these students were able to collect $410 and purchase a water buffalo, a goat, a flock of ducks/geese and a flock of chicks for a needy family in a third world country. Service to our school, our community, and our world is how we live the gospel message. We are proud of these students!
Cardinal Visits Pope John XXIII School
What a blessed day! This was Sunday, September 23rd when Cardinal George celebrated mass at St. Nicholas Church. The children of Pope John XXIII School congratulated the cardinal on his ten year anniversary of service to the Archdiocese of Chicago. They made cards for him and gave him a basket of Pope John XXIII memorabilia that included a hat, sweatshirt, pen, pencil, calculator, and even chocolate M& M's with the school logo on it! The highlight of the day was when the cardinal went up stairs to see the new Reed Multi Media Center and to bless the just finished renovated science lab. Science Olympiad Alumni students of Pope John XXIII School were on hand along with current students to bless the new science lab. Cardinal George enjoyed trying out Mr. Becker's (the science teacher's) new chair and learning about the Science Olympiad events. We were grateful to Cardinal George for coming to our school and for coming to bless our lab!
NEW Science Lab
I am very excited to have a new and improved science lab this year. The room looks awesome! I would say we are about 85% complete on all of the new additions, with the final pieces arriving shortly. The old lab received several updates over the summer including new floor, chemical and flame resistance lab tables with book storage, cabinets with loads of space and locking doors, and a learning wall with sliding whiteboards. Safety was a very important aspect of the design for the lab. We now have locking flammable and corrosive chemical storage, a new standing fire blanket, and two eyewash stations to help promote good safety practices in the lab. Technology was a key issue when designing the lab as well. We will have two new flat-screen computers, wireless internet access to utilize the laptop computers we purchased last year and a Smartboard to help students use technology to interact with the curriculum. These updates are much more conducive to learning than the old lab and will help the students stay focused, interested and actively engaged in science. I can see the students’ excitement already!
Mr. Becker
Illinois Science Olympiad:
Pope John 23 takes 5th Place in their division
Urbana, IL-April 27, 2007 Looking forward to another successful year in Science Olympiad for the 2007-2008 season. Mrs. Garber (a.k.a. Ms. Joja), Ms. Eichberger and myself (Mr. Becker) welcome back all returning team members and our sixth graders who are now eligible to take part in Science Olympiad for the 
first time. We are coming off of one of our most successful seasons ever at Pope John XXIII School, receiving fifth place at the state competition in Champaign/Urbana. Way to go team! We hope to continue a winning tradition and have many more students recognized for their achievements this year.
Our first team meetings will be taking place in late October. I will keep students posted on details about our events and meeting times. The events this year will cover several topics, from constellations and oceanography to gliders and robots! It should be a very interesting and exciting year. We are always looking for helpful and handy parents to support the team, so please contact one of us if you are available to contribute. Hope to see you soon!
Mr. Becker