'Twas the day before Christmas break, and all through the halls,
Laughter and cheer echoed off lockers and walls.
In cozy pajamas of red, green, and white,
Our students arrived filled with festive delight.

Congratulations to our 5B Girls and 8th grade Boys Volleyball teams on their championship victories in the Tri County Catholic Conference!

We are thrilled to announce that we have reached our $50,000 goal for the 2025 Color Walk! This incredible milestone was made possible by the generosity of our entire community—and a special donor who closed the final gap in honor of Sister Carolyn.

📚 SJA Shines at the Diocese of Joliet Battle of the Books! 📚

21 of our SJA students proudly represented our school at the largest Diocese of Joliet Battle of the Books competition in over a decade, with 10 schools and over 250 students gathering at the Cathedral of St. Raymond! After months of preparation and countless pages read, our teams had an incredible showing:

🏆 4th Grade Team – 1st Place
🏆 5th Grade Team – 1st Place
🥉 Junior High Team – 3rd Place

Hope is more than just wishing—it’s trusting in God’s promises! Each week, our students will reflect on the Virtue of Hope, writing down their hopes and prayers on special cards.

Memorable Experiences: Can you share a memorable experience or favorite memory from your time at the school?

I have two very memorable experiences that I still think about today and talk with my kids about, All Saints Day and Stations of the Cross.

Congratulations to the Junior High team on their 1st place finish in the Wheaton Library Young Adult Battle of the Books Competition. The team had been hard at work since June. The library provided a list of 20 books for the season. The students participated in 6 rounds of competition where they tested their knowledge of those books against other private and public schools.

There’s been a lot of research about the best ways for kids to learn how to read. This includes things like sounds (phonics), reading smoothly (fluency), and understanding what they read (comprehension). This is called the Science of Reading (and writing). It shows that kids learn best when teachers give clear and organized lessons based on what we know works. While most of this research has been used for younger kids in kindergarten to fifth grade, it can also help older students, like those in middle school, become better readers and understand their other subjects too!

What is i-Ready? i-Ready was invented in 2011 as a combination of the i-Ready Diagnostic and an online instruction program. This combo allows for assessments that are followed up with personalized instruction. Once students complete the Diagnostic, i-Ready builds a unique lesson plan with a starting point for each learner based on their individual results. i-Ready gives teachers the flexibility to add lessons or adjust the lesson sequence based on their own knowledge of their students. The tests are adaptive in nature allowing students to reach beyond what they may currently have mastered.