St. Mary Catholic School DeKalb is a private preschool, kindergarten, elementary school and junior high ​that builds a solid academic foundation for student's future success. Our average student to teacher ratio is 18:1. 
When we ask parents why they continue to send their children to St. Mary and the common themes are
faith based, virtues, and academics. ​Starting in grade three, our students take the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills.
The below charts indicates the grade the student is in and the grade level they test in that subject.
​We are incredibly proud of how hard our students work.

An eighth-grader would expect to score at the eighth-grade first-month level (8.1). ​In 2019, our eighth-grade class composite score was 9.7.
An eighth-grader would expect to score at the eighth-grade first-month level (8.1). ​In 2018, our eighth-grade class composite score was 11.0.

Our Classrooms

8th Grade - Mrs. Dobie
7th Grade - Mrs. Stadler
6th Grade - Mrs. LeBouef
5th Grade - Mrs. Pelikan
4th Grade - Mrs. Wyruchowski
3rd Grade - Mrs. Tumminaro
2nd Grade - Mrs. Morgano
1st Grade - Mecca/Casiano 
Kindergarten - Mrs. Cox & Mrs. Pristave
The world of a kindergartner includes new friends, new experiences, and new learning opportunities. 
Our program offers a nurturing, creative, and academic environment for the younger student.  Through a balance of spiritual, social/emotional, physical, and academic means, each kindergartner is provided with developmentally appropriate surroundings to foster a high level of individual achievement. 

On a spiritual level, the program is strongly based on Catholic Christian values that are incorporated throughout the day. This encourages meaningful relationships with their peers while forming a strong relationship with God.
Academically, our Superkids reading program provides a strong foundation in reading, writing, and oral language.  The Savvas Envision math program allows for a great introduction to many concepts and skills using a variety of manipulative materials. 
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A few highlights throughout the year include, arts & crafts, lots of movement activities including dancing and yoga, music, and a chicken embryology project which results in hatching baby chicks!   We end the year with a Kindergarten Graduation ceremony in our cafeteria.
Little Lancer Prekindergarten
This program is 3 and 5 day a week starting at 3 years old! Our Little Lancers program offers the perfect backdrop for encouraging progress at a child’s own pace while introducing important cognitive, social and language skills. Your child will work through play-based activities introducing math, science, dramatic play, music, art and technology to provide opportunities to stimulate and encourage them while they get ready for Kindergarten.

Advanced Math

Students can qualify for advanced math starting in 5th grade. Students are selected based on test scores in both math and reading. Scores must be at least one full year above grade level, they should demonstrate excellent work habits and have their parent’s and teacher’s recommendation. Students in the program will take the math course a grade level above their own. In all advanced classes, we work at a faster pace, and there is more opportunity for enrichment projects. 
In the 2020-21 school year, we have four 5th grade students, eight 6th grade students, ten 7th grade students, and ten 8th grade students in our advanced math program.

Spanish

At St. Mary School we have a passion for diversity and inclusion as evidence by our Spanish program. We start students learning from a young age in hopes to foster appreciation of the cultures where Spanish is spoken as well as for the language itself.
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We focus on the four main skills of a language: listening, reading, speaking and writing as students learn through a differentiated approach that is age appropriate to each grade level and more importantly, each student’s ability. Just as with learning their first language, students will not understand every word that is spoken, read, or heard, however the classes are designed to introduce and expose students to Spanish in a natural way that prepares them to attain an age-appropriate proficiency level as they develop an appreciation for the language and culture. 
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Music 

Our students Pre-k through 8th grade spend
1 - 2 days a week exploring music styles through song, dance and various instruments.

​We learn how to read music and count to the beat. 
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Students also sing each week at our all school mass, perform in seasonal concerts and a school play. 

Explore our concerts and musicals

Technology

Our school focuses on Google Suite for the academic portion of technology. Our students
in grades 2 - 8 have one-to-one Chromebooks.

​We teach Google Classroom, Gmail/email etiquette, and other google products that will help with papers, research projects, and presentations within their grades curriculum. This includes google slides, google sheets and google docs as well as folder structures for organization within google drive. 

Beyond classroom support, we want to ensure we build a technology curriculum that is fun too!
Learn more about what we offer in our technology class