Students at The School of the Blessed Sacrament (SBS) created a colorful and educational Periodic Table as a way to help showcase Catholic Schools Week.

“We are grateful for such a brilliant experience,” Megan Gonzalez, head of the SBS Barry Upper School, told The Good Newsroom. “For all of us, especially the students.”

“At SBS, we always focus on cross-curricular and hands-on learning on a daily basis to engage student learning. These learning experiences are unique to SBS. Throughout the year we create projects in which the whole campus participates,” Ms. Gonzalez added.      

She noted that this school year for Catholic Schools Week, the students developed this idea: “A Periodic Table of Elements of a Catholic School and Students.”  

“We sent messages to Cardinal Dolan, Bishop (Edmund) Whalen, Michael Deegan, Anthony Biscone, and Michael Coppotelli for their best 10 words that describe a Catholic School student and school for a broad range of stakeholders to be involved,” Ms. Gonzalez said. 

She said that then each student at The Barry Upper School came up with his/her own word as well. Students and teachers gathered all the words, “and with the help of the art teacher and the determination of our students, we were able to put them together like a Scientific Periodic Table, to showcase Catholic students and schools.”   

Ms. Gonzalez said the school then photographed the work to present to Cardinal Dolan and Bishop Whalen at the New York Catholic Center. “This is one example of how learning takes place at The School of the Blessed Sacrament, the Catholic school jewel on the West Side!” she said.

“We are grateful to our science teacher, Mr. William Hawthorn, for spearheading the project with support from our entire faculty including our art teacher Ms. Abigail Lelis.”

“This project was special to work on because our teachers had created a sense of unity between the students and heads of the Archdiocese of New York, like Cardinal Dolan,” student Richard Sullivan, Grade 7, said, 

Sullivan added that the project stemmed from “the importance of continuing to work together to build not only unity in our school community but with the leaders of Catholic schools in New York.”

SBS was founded in 1903 by the Christian Brothers of Saint John Baptist de la Salle and Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton’s Sisters of Charity of Mount St. Vincent. It has a total student enrollment of more than 400. The Barry Upper School (Grades 4 to 8) is located on West 52nd Street. The Lower School (Pre-K3) is on West 70th Street.