Academic Information

Religion
Religious education includes the following areas of study: sacramental/liturgical expression, study of Scripture, experience in prayer, values formation, community service, and study of the Catholic Church with its application to daily life. The celebration of Mass is scheduled each week for grades 1-8. Students participate in the preparation and serve as lectors, altar servers, and choir members. Religion is not only taught as a daily subject, but also is integrated into the curriculum and daily life at St. Mary's to form a total program of Christian education that reflects our Catholic identity.

Art
Art is part of the curriculum. Art lessons and projects are content and creativity-based. Students learn techniques, art terminology, and art history. Some of the media used are drawing, printmaking, clay modeling, 3-D paper construction, papier maché, crayon batik, etching, painting, and weaving.

Music
Music is part of the curriculum. Also, students in 6th-8th grade have the opportunity to participate in the Choir that sings at the weekly School Masses. Starting in 3rd grade, students are invited to join the Children's Choir which sings at the weekend Parish Masses.

Spanish
Spanish is part of the curriculum. Students in lower grades are taught Spanish as an enrichment class and in grades 7 and 8 Spanish is a regular academic class.

Technology
St. Mary of Gostyn Parish has a local area network that includes four buildings and connects the main school building as well as the Learning Resource Center to the servers. Students become proficient at logging onto the network, saving files to it, and sharing files in various network locations. Students have access to the school library and the Internet from their classrooms. The Joliet Diocese Internet User Policy must be signed by a parent and the student before the student is allowed to go on the Internet. The school has a computer lab and a wireless computer lab for student use.

Library
The school library is open during school hours on school days for students to use for their individual needs or research projects. Behavior consistent with school rules is expected in the library.

Books are checked out for two weeks; encyclopedias, reference books, reserve books, and current magazines are checked out overnight only. Overdue book fines are 5 cents a day; 25 cents for an overnight book. Two-week books returned before 8:30 a.m. the day after they are due will not be considered late. A student who has been ill will not be charged a fine if he or she returns the book the day he/she returns to school. A student is responsible for returning a book even if an overdue notice was not given. A student with overdue materials may not check out other materials until all has been returned. A student who repeatedly has overdue books or who is a behavior problem may lose library privileges. A student must pay for damaged or lost books. The cost of the book is the price the school paid. A student will not receive a final report card until all library losses and fines are settled.

Homework
Homework is a scheduled part of each school day that extends the learning process beyond the classroom. It must be completed on time; unfinished assignments affect grades. A quiet place to study should be provided at home; parents should check that assignments are completed. Homework may be given over the weekend. If a student is absent, it is his/her responsibility to ask for work missed and to complete the missed homework as well as the material covered in class. (See Homework Request under General Information.)

Tests / Assignments
Teachers in grades 3-8 often send tests and major assignments home to be signed and returned. Our purpose is to inform the parents of the student's academic progress.

Progress Reports
At the midpoint of each quarter, progress reports are issued to inform parents of their child's progress. These are to be signed and returned to school the next day. See calendar for dates.

Report Cards / Grading Scale
Report Cards are issued four times a year. St. Mary uses the following Diocesan grading scale to measure achievement in grades three to eight.

A+ = 100%	B+ = 92-91%	C+ = 84-83%	D+ = 76-75%	F = 69% & below
A = 99-96%	B = 90-88%	C = 82-79%	D = 74-72%
A - = 95-93%	B- = 87-85%	C- = 78-77%	D- = 71-70%

Criteria for achievement grades include ability, participation, daily class and home assignments, tests, and other assessment tools. A student also receives an effort grade in subject areas to indicate the teacher's perception of how hard the student is working to achieve his/her potential. In classes that do not meet daily, grades are given in appropriate grade levels and at appropriate intervals. Modified grading is used when circumstances warrant it.

Kindergarten through 8th grade issue a learning standards-based report card designed by the Diocese to reflect reflect student progress in a manner appropriate at these grades.

Honor Roll
Students in the 7th and 8th grades are eligible for the Honor Roll. Letter grades are weighted as follows: A = 4 B = 3 C = 2 D = 1.

The academic subjects are included in determining a student's average and a D or higher must be earned in all of these. A minimum of a C must also be earned in all other areas to qualify. Inappropriate behavior could disqualify a student from the Honor Roll.

HIGH HONORS 4.0
FIRST HONORS 3.9-3.5
SECOND HONORS 3.4-3.0

Conferences
At any time of the year, parents should contact a teacher if they have a concern with tehri child's progress. Formal conferences for grades 1-8 are held in November. Kindergarten conferences are held in January. Parents are assigned conference times in K-6. 7th and 8th grade conferences are in the gym; there are no assigned times.