St. Christopher School - Vandalia, Ohio

405 E. National Road
Vandalia Ohio 45377
Phone 937-898-5104

Art Enrichment - Service Project

Students in grades 6, 7 and 8 are again using their art talents as part of a service project. They are working together to produce art objects which can be sold or raffled. The profits will be sent to two charities, one local and one international. Last year we sent $1,200 to The House of Bread in Dayton and $1,300 to Doctors Without Borders. We hope to top that this year!

The sale will be in the spring. Dates and times will be posted when we have them confirmed. Thank you in advance for your support!

Passport to Safety

This kindergarten Program is run the week before school starts. The Police and Fire Departments, the EMTSquad, the Bus Garage, the Park and Recreation Department and a local veterinarian teach all the safety information Kindergarteners need to know.

The students also spend the week becoming familiar with their school, classroom, teachers and classmates. Because of this excellent program, our St. Christopher Kindergarteners get the best possible start to school. They are safe and happy to be here.

Life Group

“ I pledge to spread the belief that all life is precious and deserves respect.”

This pledge contains the heart and mission of the St. Christopher School Life Group. Junior high students meet at least twice a month to share this common goal through prayer, laughter, field trips, and service projects.
Some of the projects include making stuffed animals at Build-A-Bear for the patients at Children’s Medical Center, raising money for disaster victims such as those who felt the blows of Hurricane Katrina, making blankets for Project Linus, and sharing an afternoon of bingo with residents at a nursing home. At school the Life Group sponsors two jeans days a year which require 25 cents and a jar of baby food for an out-of -uniform day. The baby food and money are donated to Elizabeth New Life Center and Right to Life. Each year new and exciting projects and activities fill the calendar.
Everything the Life Group does invites all to “Love Life!”

Power of the Pen

Through a series of interscholastic writing tournaments designed for grades 7 and 8, Power of the Pen encourages schools to identify excellence and develop writing teams, allows young writers to meet, compete, and receive recognition and awards for excellence in three rounds of impromptu writing, and offers immediate feedback from teacher-judges on the quality of their written expression.

Power of the Pen is a program that seeks to motivate schools to develop greater proficiency in writing; to encourage creative and critical thinking; to acknowledge and reward excellence in written expression; and assist teachers in the on-going challenge of improving the writing skills of their students.

The English faculty (Mrs. Castellano, Mrs. Tracy, and Mrs. Nolan) begins the process of selecting writers after Thanksgiving by having the students write for twenty minutes to a writing prompt during English class on Fridays. Writing prompts from previous Power of the Pen contests will be used. The faculty then begins selecting those students who show exceptional promise as creative writers. Approximately 12 seventh graders and 12 eighth graders will be offered the opportunity to participate. Participation is not mandatory for students who are offered the chance to participate. Each team will be comprised of 6 writers and 2 alternates (in case of illness on contest day), who will be selected from the initial offering. The district and regional contests are held on 2 Saturdays from 8:00 A.M. to 2:00 P. M. in late Winter and Spring. The State Tournament is a 2 day, Thursday-Friday event at the college of Wooster in Wooster, Ohio. Anyone advancing to the State level will be accompanied to Wooster by Mrs. Nolan, and a parent, if possible. Students qualifying for State are granted excused absences for the two days. Students stay in the dorms on Wooster campus and are well chaperoned. There is always an exceptional well known author, who speaks at the State tournament, inspiring and motivating the young writers to excel. There is a sock hop and the opportunity to meet other young writers from the state of Ohio.

Mrs. Nolan is the official Power of the Pen coach for our teams.