Back to School 2016

Nurture with care. Teach with creativity. Embrace life. Treasure faith. These are the guiding principles that shape St. Anne School in Laguna Niguel.

For 25 years, St. Anne School has stirred a passion for learning in students with stimulating, engaging and rigorous academics. The learning environment for Preschool through grade 8 students is intimate with ideal student/teacher ratios and a commitment to fully developing each child in mind, body and spirit. The school uses the latest, proven teaching methods, curricula and technology—combining techniques that make learning fun with a sweeping range of academic studies. St. Anne School students become curious, confident and well–prepared for a life of learning and leadership.

At St. Anne School, students develop their talents through a wealth of extracurricular and scholastic activities. They can play sports, learn new skills and travel to fascinating places. Imaginations are sparked through hands-on collaboration solving real-world problems. There’s something to engage every inquisitive mind both in and outside the classroom. St. Anne believes children who explore their interests are more comfortable with themselves and the world around them. Children who are well-rounded become adults who are well-informed. Ultimately, they are more successful in life. For St. Anne School, that’s the purpose of education.

St. Anne School is a National Blue Ribbon School and is accredited by the Western Catholic Educational Association (WCEA), the California Association of Independent Schools (CAIS), the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) and the National Association of the Education of Young Children (NAEYC).

Launching a two-, three- and five-day two-year-old Preschool program this fall!

To schedule a private tour and learn more about St. Anne School, please contact:

Lil Ray Reed, Kindergarten – 8th Grade Office of Admission
949.276.6753, LRay@st-anne.org

LuAnn Wilson, Preschool Admission
949.276.6783, LWilson@st-anne.org

St. Anne School
32451 Bear Brand Road
Laguna Niguel, CA 92677
www.st-anne.org

Forming Young Men and Women in Faith,
Intellect, and Character

JSerra is an independent Roman Catholic high school that encourages students to pursue personal and professional excellence in life. Guided by the teachings of the Catholic Church, JSerra works in partnership with committed parents and inspirational teachers to form the faith, intellect, and character of its young men and women with a Christ-centered, sacrament-based learning environment.

CORE VALUES
JSerra strives to form students who are:

Academic Achievers demonstrating a higher order of thinking skills; solving problems creatively and analytically; utilizing the appropriate technology to support learning.

Lifelong Learners who manage and direct their own learning; value and pursue postsecondary education; establish personal priorities and achievable goals; develop an appreciation of varying world views.

Responsible Christian Citizens who demonstrate knowledge of the Catholic
Church;  perform Christian service in their community; practice respect of self, others, and community.

Collaborative Workers who use effective leadership and interpersonal skills to foster, develop, and maintain relationships within a diverse setting.

CAMPUS LIFE
Founded in 2003, JSerra has established itself within South Orange County as an exceptional academic institution. Each year at JSerra, new clubs are formed, athletic teams become stronger, and dedicated staff and faculty look for new ways to innovate the learning process.

JSerra also offers dynamic and highly successful magnet programs in arts, business, engineering, law, and medicine. These programs help prepare students for further study and professional careers in their respective areas of interest.

Through these programs and more, JSerra students are formed in faith, intellect, and character. Come learn more about joining the JSerra family at the November 17th Open House event from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.

JSerra Catholic High School
26351 Junipero Serra Road
San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675
949.493.9307 • www.JSerra.org

Our Lady of Fatima Parish School is a 21st Century learning community founded in 1965 that has educated students in South Orange County for over 50 years. Nestled among the rolling hills with a view of the Pacific, OLF is the only Catholic School in San Clemente. The school is fully accredited and staffed by an outstanding team of credentialed, nurturing, and dedicated faculty. The secured campus offers a welcoming learning environment for all students centered on the value of “family.” OLF is a dynamic, technology-driven learning institution that prides itself on spirituality, academic rigor and high student expectations amid small class sizes that “empower today’s children to promote tomorrow’s leaders.” The school’s robust Community Service Program ensures that OLF students value and live their faith-filled Catholic education.

OLF’s students are committed learners who demonstrate excellence in academic expectations, technology acquisition, and service to their community. With a cross-curricular and cross-cultural approach to instruction, OLF offers each student differentiated opportunities to explore, investigate, and demonstrate understanding by means of a hands-on approach to learning that integrates 1:1 technology opportunities. By complementing the academic rigor with the offerings of innovative electives, the OLF faith-filled student cultivates a zest for life-long learning, develops into an effective communicator and advances as a globally responsible citizen. Proudly, 100% of OLF graduates are accepted into local Catholic High Schools. Most of OLF’s graduates place into Honors/Advanced Placement courses and/or Magnet Programs. OLF students are recognized within the local and regional contests of various competitions including Chapman University’s Holocaust Art, Writing, Poetry and Film Contest, Orange County Science Fair, Jr. High Academic Decathlon, Knight’s of Columbus’ Writing Contest, and OC Catholic Charities Poster Contest.

OLF’s Early Education Center’s Transitional Kindergarten program is the first year of a two-year academic Kindergarten program that is specifically designed to give four-year-olds and young fives the “gift of time” to develop socially, emotionally, and cognitively. All students participate weekly in the enrichment classes of Spanish, Music, Piano, Art, and PE. K-2, 3-5, and Middle School Musical Productions are a highlight of the school year along with the annual all-school Christmas Program and 5th Grade Passion Play. The extended field studies programs for 4-8th graders include Sacramento day trip, The Pilgrim, Catalina Ecology Safari, ECOS Science Camp, Channel Islands, and Philadelphia/Gettysburg/Washington D.C. OLF School enthusiastically hosts upwards of 30 community-building events for students and parents throughout the school year.

OUR LADY OF FATIMA PARISH SCHOOL
105 N. La Esperanza, San Clemente, CA 92672
949.492.7320 • www.olfschool.net

With academic tracks tailored to meet the needs of varied learners; more than 85 clubs and activities; competitive, character-building athletics and an award-winning arts program – all in a nurturing, Christ-centered environment – Santa Margarita students are empowered to grow spiritually, intellectually, socially and morally.

Be You
At Santa Margarita, the uniqueness of each individual is celebrated. Athlete? Great. Dancer? Super. Game designer? Perfect. Writer? Awesome. Straight-A student and Harvard’s your fallback? Understood. At SMCHS, students can stay true to themselves and discover their God-given talents.

Believe In Yourself
In addition to the academic foundation, critical thinking skills and character developed at SMCHS, the school provides a nurturing environment where self-confidence grows. All through college, in the big meeting on the job, and in millions of moments to come, there is no expiration date on the confidence gained at Santa Margarita.

Achieve More
Achievement matters at SMCHS, whether a “C” student striving for a “B” or a student-athlete pursuing a national high jump record while managing multiple AP courses, Santa Margarita students are supported by their classmates, teachers and coaches who expect them to succeed. This school-wide culture of positive peer pressure instills an enduring desire to excel – to do more and be more.

Love as Christ Loved
Inside and outside of the classroom, Santa Margarita students are encouraged to love as Christ loved. Empowered and inspired, SMCHS students become more thoughtful sons and daughters, act with greater compassion to friends and strangers alike, and harness the courage to consistently do what’s right, no matter the consequences.

Make a Difference
At every grade level, SMCHS opens students’ minds to social issues by providing opportunities to apply problem-solving abilities to real world troubles. By demonstrating a commitment to the global community, the school equips students to be far more than just bystanders when faced with exclusion and inequality.

Change the World
In prominent colleges and universities throughout the United States, and diverse organizations and companies around the globe, Santa Margarita graduates are making this world a better place – learning, leading and thriving.

Find It Here
While some students already know what makes their hearts beat faster, it’s a journey of discovery for most. Whether it’s the daily rigor of the school’s International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme, mastering the choreography of a school musical production, assembling a robot, or simply enjoying new friendships at a club meeting, there is something for everyone at SMCHS.

Santa Margarita Catholic High School
22062 Antonio Parkway
Rancho Santa Margarita, CA 92688
949.766.6080 • www.smhs.org

Always learning, The Parish School graduates are confident and compassionate young men and women who will make a difference.

Faithful to Catholic values, The Parish School at St. Edward the Confessor Catholic Church sustains an evolving schoolwide learning environment that inspires each learner to achieve his or her God-given potential inside and outside the classroom.

Benefit: She Is Always Learning.
She digs out a rock during her class’s nature walk, her dirtied fingers deciphering textures to determine its geological origins. She collaborates with a classmate to code a game in Scratch, their story coming to life in scripts and pixels. She raises her hand as the priest asks about the Gospel reading. Her heart beats faster – she knows the answer. No matter where or what or when, she is always learning at The Parish School.

Benefit: He Discovers His Faith.
Though his shoes don’t quite touch the floor when he sits in the pew, he thinks deeply about God. Does God know his name? Is God watching him at this very moment? He finds himself doing things and not doing things because of God. More and more, something or Someone seems to be guiding his decisions. It is transformative. He is discovering his faith.

Benefit: She Speaks Her Mind.
At first she is scared to talk in class. But her teacher gently coaxes her. By lower school, her voice doesn’t tremble anymore. Her upper school teachers encourage her to ask big questions. Classmates sometimes challenge her ideas, and she defends them. She listens to other learners too, adopting bits of their new thinking even as she adapts her own. Confident yet open-minded, candid yet thoughtful, she is speaking her mind.

Benefit: He Is Resilient.
His engineering experiment doesn’t work. For a moment, he is embarrassed. His fists clench, but he catches himself. He sits and thinks. He soon gets back to work, disassembling and reassembling pieces of his machine. When he’s ready again, he releases the ball bearing. Eureka! He is so giddy he could dance. Led by expert educators who embrace classroom mistakes as real learning, he is becoming a resilient young man.

Benefit: She Gets Involved.
She has the worst balance on the Surf Team but is first to the beach for practice. She struggles with the F chord but plays her dad’s old Fender until her strumming hand aches. She runs for Student Government. She wins. While she is not the tallest or the most talented or that learner who others naturally follow, she refuses to be a bystander in school or life. She is going to be involved.

The Parish School St. Edward the Confessor Catholic church
33866 Calle La Primavera
Dana Point, CA 92629
949.496.1241
www.stedschool.org

CALL TODAY
to Schedule a Tour:
(949) 234-1385

Mission Basilica School honors Saint Serra’s mission of preparing every student for a life of leadership rooted in Catholic values. The beautiful campus, uniquely located in the historic Mission San Juan Capistrano campus, has a student body of 260 in grades Pre-K to 8th. Mission Basilica School is a WCEA/ WASC ac-credited, National Blue Ribbon School, staffed with highly skilled and credentialed teachers. Mission Basilica School continues to foster Faith Formation and Academic Excellence through its highly acclaimed programs.

Faith

• Strong Catholic Identity
• Christ-centered learning environment
• Weekly Mass in Mission Basilica
• Ongoing Christian Service
• Spiritual Retreats

Academics

• Pre-K and TK Programs
• Accredited by the Western Catholic Educational Association
• National Blue Ribbon School
• Rigorous Academic Curriculum aligned to State Standards
• High Test Scores on High School Placement Exams
• Student-centered classrooms with small group instruction
• 1-to-1 iPad Program
• STEM Program
• Fitness, Sports and Health Education
• Rich Fine Arts Program
• Spanish Language Program
• After School Clubs and Extracurricular Programs
• Extended Day Care

Mission Basilica School
31641 El Camino Real
San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675
949.234.1385 x2
www.MissionBasilicaSchool.org

As one of the first Private Christian Schools in the area, Capistrano Valley Christian Schools has been serving the South Orange County community since 1973. With programs for children in junior kindergarten all the way through high school; a focus on a Biblical Worldview as well as college prep academics gives CVCS a definite edge. The vision at CVCS is to develop leaders who are prepared to impact the world for Christ.

CVCS students are academically challenged; starting with a full day Kindergarten program, with a math matriculation system that allows students to move ahead when ready, as well as honors courses in junior high, honors, AP and dual credit courses in high school. All classes are taught by credentialed caring teachers.

The schools utilize the latest technology:
1 to 1 Tablet program in Junior High and High School, digital text books for high school, iPads and laptops for JK-6. The beautiful Library houses over 20,000 titles and is used by all students. Accelerated Reader program helps develop strong readers.

Each student at CVCS reads and studies God’s Word regularly. Educators seek to show students how the truth of every discipline finds its source in God and His work. They learn that God’s handiwork is revealed in Science, His goodness and justice in History, His beauty in Art and Music, and His order and design in Mathematics. All are given opportunities to serve locally as well as internationally with mission trips to places as far away as Russia! In junior high, apologetics is introduced, and by the time students graduate from high school, they are well-prepared to defend their faith in this ever changing world.

CVCS offers an environment in which each student has the opportunity to participate in a wide variety of activities from championship athletics, award winning performing arts, and unique student leadership programs that help them understand where they fit into God’s plan.

Capistrano Valley Christian Schools
32032 Del Obispo Street
San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675
949.493.5683 • www.cvcs.org

St. John’s, an independent Episcopal school in Rancho Santa Margarita, offers a dynamic educational program for children from 2 months of age through 8th Grade. Students are encouraged to develop independence, practice self- confidence, and think creatively. St. John’s combines a rigorous academic environment with values of service and compassion to uniquely prepare students for higher education and for life outside the classroom.

Honoring Tradition, Embracing Innovation
Founded on the traditions of Episcopal education, values, and character, students learn what it means to be a good person as well as a good student. For more than 28 years, the School has provided its students with a loving and nurturing environment to prepare for high school, college, and beyond. The values of integrity, responsibility, tolerance, and respect are reinforced through character education, community outreach, and individual service and are modeled by the adults on campus. Building positive relationships with teachers, peers, and others sets the tone for life-long learning and citizenship.

The Value Of Art And Music
Significant enhancements have been made to the School’s music program in the past year, including the addition of Music Together in Early Childhood, Orff Schulwerk in Elementary, and expanded instrumental and choral music in the Middle Division. Music education, specifically, has been shown to significantly improve children’s academic success. Children who study music tend to have larger vocabularies, more advanced reading skills, and show greater brain development and memory improvement than children who do not participate in music lessons.

Steam Education For Tomorrow’s Leaders
The STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, and math) approach to teaching and learning presents an innovative and engaging method of instruction, teaching students through project-based learning to address real world problems.

STEAM integrates and reinforces concepts across subject areas and has been implemented in all grade levels, beginning with the Early Childhood program. The integration of skills and concepts throughout the curriculum provides students with a depth of understanding which goes beyond traditional education.

New Steam Center
In August, St. John’s will unveil its innovative STEAM Center, a new building on campus that will provide dedicated spaces for a Makers Lab, science, and robotics. The STEAM Center will further support St. John’s mission to foster every child’s full intellectual, physical, and spiritual development through an ideal balance of tradition   and innovation.

St. John’s Episcopal School
30382 Via Con Dios
Rancho Santa Margarita
949.858.5144 • www.StJohns-ES.org

Some describe it as a hidden jewel by the sea. Perched hillside along Coast Highway, Saint Catherine of Siena Parish School overlooks a panorama of the pacific Ocean, from Montage Laguna Beach to Catalina Island. This backdrop sets the scene for the unique educational experience St. Catherine of Siena provides, blending academic excellence, spiritual development and cultural enrichment.

Serving students from transitional kindergarten through eighth grade, this tightly knit academic community offers a well-rounded curriculum designed to educate the whole child — mind, body and spirit. This is achieved through an emphasis on cross-curricular, active learning that incorporates proven educational strategies and state-of-the-art technologies.

Originally opened in 1957, the school was completely reconstructed beginning in 2008. The new facility offers larger classrooms, separate elementary and middle school buildings, a science lab, cutting-edge computer facilities, art lab, library, music room and gymnasium.

Although St. Catherine comprises only about 200 students, Principal Mike Letourneau notes that alumni are represented at top universities throughout the nation.

Laguna Beach has long been known for its flourishing artistic environment, a heritage St. Catherine of Siena eagerly embraces. The school employs experts in visual arts, music and theater, and holds its own annual Pageant of the Masters, where students bring to life such paintings as “The Last Supper” by Leonardo da Vinci and “American Gothic” by Grant Wood.

St. Catherine of Siena is served by the Pacific Symphony’s Class Act program, introducing students to symphony musicians who lead classroom lessons, ensemble performances, assemblies and concert performances.

The arts are also incorporated into St. Catherine’s cross-curricular learning platform. For example, students studying California history demonstrate what they have learned through art projects, student-produced theatrical productions and more.

As a Catholic academic institution, St. Catherine of Siena nourishes each student’s faith journey while embracing a diversity of creeds. The inclusive community makes catechesis and faith formation part of daily learning, developing students into responsible citizens ready to serve the global community.

Saint Catherine of Siena is hosting an Open House on February 2 at 5:30 p.m., the same evening as its community wide Pasta Dinner hosted by the 6th grade class. Bring your child to look at the school, meet the teachers and sit down with the families. There isn’t a better time for prospective families to “Come and See” Saint Catherine of Siena Parish School.

St. Catherine of Siena Parish School
30516 S Coast Hwy.
Laguna Beach, CA 92651
949.494.7339
www.StCathSchool.org

At Mathnasium Learning Centers, math makes sense! Whether your child started out far behind or is already ahead in math, Mathnasium helps students advance because they know that any child can be successful in math—it’s a matter of teaching it in a way that makes sense to them.

Experienced math tutors utilize proprietary teaching materials and techniques, The Mathnasium Method™, to deliver a customized learning plan designed to address each student’s needs. This instructional approach goes beyond traditional math tutoring to develop an understanding and build a love for math.

If math is a problem, Mathnasium can solve it. Students will grow more excited and confident about math—and their grades will reflect that.

For students who already excel in math, the sky’s the limit. Mathnasium’s instructors will work to expand your child’s math skills. When learning math is made exciting, students will discover all the doors that will open by being proficient in math.

Students engage one-to-one with their instructors in a unique combination of mental, verbal, visual, tactile, and written exercises. These do more than just meet state math standards; they surpass the recommendations of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics and the Common Core State Standards.

Basic math concepts and skills are blended with a program specifically designed to help students build number sense. This special program shows them how and why the useful number rules they’re learning work so they are able to understand how they can be applied to interesting areas such as computer science, biology, and psychology.

Students are evaluated with a written and verbal assessment unique to Mathnasium. Based on the results, they develop a custom-tailored program designed to close any educational gaps they may have so they can jump ahead when they’re ready for advanced math challenges.

Mathnasium builds upon your child’s existing foundation and focuses on explaining why mathematical rules work so that children learn and understand the rules, not just memorize them.

Instructors also help students understand their homework as part of each session and prepare them for school tests, as well as standardized tests such as the California High School Exit Exam, SAT, ACT and ISEE.

By giving your child a firm foundation—and confidence—in math, Mathnasium can unlock the potential for continued educational success in the future.

Mathnasium
Dana Point 949-240-MATH (6284)
Laguna Niguel 949-360-MATH (6284)
San Clemente 949-481-MATH (6284)
www.Mathnasium.com