Hello, my name is Sr. Judy Crooker. I am a member of the Sister's of St, Francis Oldenburg. I celebrated my 30th year in community by renewing my vows with the school community.
I went to St. Bernadette from second to eighth grade. Things have changed but the sense of community has not.
Currently I am teaching Kindergarten. This is my 34th year of teaching, I have taught preschool through 2nd grade.
I love to read, lay at the pool and yes I have been spotted at the casino.
St. Bernadette is my second family/ I started teaching here in 2003. The school has a great sense of family and community.
Our kindergarten meets five days a week for a full school day. Since kindergarten is a child’s first experience with formal school, we know it’s important to get them off on the right foot so that they love school and learning. Kindergarten is an amazing year! There is so much going on developmentally at this age. Our students master their letters and the sounds they make and they learn sight words. Soon after, they’re blending sounds and beginning to read. We build the foundation for strong reading skills and foster a love of reading. Kindergartners learn addition and subtraction, basic science and health concepts, and they write in their journals every day. Our students participate in “specials”: gym, art, music, computers and Spanish and we sing songs in the classroom to reinforce concepts. In our faith-based community, they establish a sense of family at St. Bernadette with their classmates and their 7th or 8th grade “buddies.” They attend Mass with the rest of the school and the religion curriculum focuses on Jesus’ love for them.
A typical day begins at 8:00 a.m. and goes until 2:55. Kindergartners have a mid-morning snack and recess, and lunch at 12:20 followed by recess. We attend productions with Cincinnati Children’s Theatre three times a year; kindergartners can play sports, too. Kindergartners are a part of our community in every way and they love St. Bernadette School!