St. Peter School wins contest with faith-based CSW door design
July 29, 2019 at 12:37 p.m.
By EmmaLee Italia | Contributing Editor
When the kindergarten class and teachers of St. Peter School, Point Pleasant Beach, designed their door decoration for Catholic Schools Week, they had no idea it would ultimately win a national contest.
“They all cheered, they were very excited,” said Eileen Baglivio, kindergarten teacher, of her students’ reaction to the news.
Kindergarten aide Cathi Russ agreed. “They are all plotting now, coming up with ideas for what we can get for the classroom [with the prize money].”
A photo of the decorated door was posted on social media by the school’s marketing director with the hashtag #ZBCSW, tagging it as an entry in the Zaner-Bloser “Believers Board” contest. St. Peter School was one of three winners chosen nationwide to receive a $100 gift card from Zaner-Bloser.
The educational publisher of handwriting, reading, writing, spelling and vocabulary programs, hosted its second annual contest during CSW 2019, Jan. 27-Feb. 2. Valuing its longstanding partnership with Catholic dioceses, schools and educators across the country, Zaner-Bloser introduced the contest last year, asking schools and teachers to post a photo of their celebratory Catholic Schools Week bulletin board, door or wall on social media.
St. Peter School had already decorated for CSW when news of the contest reached principal Tracey Kobrin.
“I found out from [Daniel O’Connell] at the Diocese that there was a contest, so I had our marketing person Lorraine Knepple take photos of all the doors; then we posted them on social media,” Kobrin explained. “We were so excited [to learn they won] because we didn’t even know there was a contest when we started.”
The kindergarten door depicted a theme based on the Disney Pixar movie “Finding Nemo,” with a twist – the design was changed to “Finding Jesus.”
“It was the perfect way to combine faith and a popular children’s story,” Kobrin reflected.
Contest judges said the design was “exquisitely executed and awe-inspiring; this classroom door combines a clear message with a beloved story. It really speaks to a journey of faith.”
Kindergarten students helped both with the idea for the door design and the creation of various elements.
“During rest time we listen to Disney songs, and we’ve been studying animal habitats; they happened to like the Nemo story and songs, so the perfect solution was to do something with marine life,” Baglivio explained. “We’re just a few blocks from the ocean. So instead of using Dory or Nemo, it was Jesus. They helped cut out the fish and design the ocean floor … and put halos on all the little fish.”
Russ said the design also incorporated the concept of recycling. “On the door at the bottom, we made ocean rocks out of disposable drink holders,” she said.
Even the font for “Finding Jesus” mimicked the font used for the “Finding Nemo” movie – a detail Russ attributes to Baglivio. “She’s very artistic,” she attested.
The decoration will remain up for the remainder of the school year, Baglivio said, since the class will be studying marine life.
“It’s always wonderful when we get notified of anything that brings attention to our Catholic schools and the Diocese of Trenton,” Baglivio continued. “We couldn’t be happier – it’s really an honor.”
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By EmmaLee Italia | Contributing Editor
When the kindergarten class and teachers of St. Peter School, Point Pleasant Beach, designed their door decoration for Catholic Schools Week, they had no idea it would ultimately win a national contest.
“They all cheered, they were very excited,” said Eileen Baglivio, kindergarten teacher, of her students’ reaction to the news.
Kindergarten aide Cathi Russ agreed. “They are all plotting now, coming up with ideas for what we can get for the classroom [with the prize money].”
A photo of the decorated door was posted on social media by the school’s marketing director with the hashtag #ZBCSW, tagging it as an entry in the Zaner-Bloser “Believers Board” contest. St. Peter School was one of three winners chosen nationwide to receive a $100 gift card from Zaner-Bloser.
The educational publisher of handwriting, reading, writing, spelling and vocabulary programs, hosted its second annual contest during CSW 2019, Jan. 27-Feb. 2. Valuing its longstanding partnership with Catholic dioceses, schools and educators across the country, Zaner-Bloser introduced the contest last year, asking schools and teachers to post a photo of their celebratory Catholic Schools Week bulletin board, door or wall on social media.
St. Peter School had already decorated for CSW when news of the contest reached principal Tracey Kobrin.
“I found out from [Daniel O’Connell] at the Diocese that there was a contest, so I had our marketing person Lorraine Knepple take photos of all the doors; then we posted them on social media,” Kobrin explained. “We were so excited [to learn they won] because we didn’t even know there was a contest when we started.”
The kindergarten door depicted a theme based on the Disney Pixar movie “Finding Nemo,” with a twist – the design was changed to “Finding Jesus.”
“It was the perfect way to combine faith and a popular children’s story,” Kobrin reflected.
Contest judges said the design was “exquisitely executed and awe-inspiring; this classroom door combines a clear message with a beloved story. It really speaks to a journey of faith.”
Kindergarten students helped both with the idea for the door design and the creation of various elements.
“During rest time we listen to Disney songs, and we’ve been studying animal habitats; they happened to like the Nemo story and songs, so the perfect solution was to do something with marine life,” Baglivio explained. “We’re just a few blocks from the ocean. So instead of using Dory or Nemo, it was Jesus. They helped cut out the fish and design the ocean floor … and put halos on all the little fish.”
Russ said the design also incorporated the concept of recycling. “On the door at the bottom, we made ocean rocks out of disposable drink holders,” she said.
Even the font for “Finding Jesus” mimicked the font used for the “Finding Nemo” movie – a detail Russ attributes to Baglivio. “She’s very artistic,” she attested.
The decoration will remain up for the remainder of the school year, Baglivio said, since the class will be studying marine life.
“It’s always wonderful when we get notified of anything that brings attention to our Catholic schools and the Diocese of Trenton,” Baglivio continued. “We couldn’t be happier – it’s really an honor.”
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