Draft:St. John School

St. John School, named after St. John the Baptist, is a private, Roman Catholic school located the North End in Boston. The K-8 school opened in North Square in 1873. St. John School serves students from all backgrounds and from all parts of Boston.

Tower Gardens
Students at St. John School participate in a tower garden program. The students harvest Basil, Swiss Chard, Lettuce, and Arugula. It is an aeroponic vertical growing system that grows herbs and greens. They create colorful tags on the bags that the people receiving the food keep and collect. They engage the students in growing their own food and donate it to the Franciscan Food Center. The students created a fence system to stop people from tripping over wires. All grades at St. John School take part in the program.

Technology
The students at Saint John School participate in a program called technology. Students in grades K-2 participate in Scratch Jr., a program specifically designed for younger children which teaches them how to code. Students in grades 3-8 participate in a Scratch program. Older students also get to create robots with True Robotics and LEGO Education Bricq and Spike. Each grade has class once a week.

Drama
In recent years, St. John School has continued to build a drama program both during and after school for grades PreK-8. This program focuses on improving students abilities to communicate, express themselves, and build community through acting and creating. Students in the afterschool program also participate in a full-length musical each Spring.

History
In 1872 St. Stephens sold the property for $18,712. Bishop Williams sends for two Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur from Cincinnati to open a small school, chapel and parish hall. SJS remodeled the property from a slaughterhouse to a school over the course of 14 years spanning from 1880 to 1894. St. John’s School officially registers 300 boys, 500 girls, many of whom are newly arriving immigrants from the south of Italy. WW2 and the economical situation of the 40’s saw deterioration and finally the removal of the entire third floor auditorium and tower in 1946.

Notable alumni

 * Rose Kennedy, mother of President John F. Kennedy and three U.S. Senators