Thunder News Flash – October 10, 2020

From all of the staff at St. James & St. Ann’s School we wish you all the blessings that this Thanksgiving Day weekend offers.  Most important is time with our family – while you may not be able to gather in as large a group as you usually do, enjoy your time with those who are closest to you.  Be grateful for your family and don’t take for granted the time you have together, even when they leave their dessert plate in the living room instead of helping with the dishes!  We live in a time when technology gives us the opportunity to connect with those we cannot see in person right now.  While it isn’t the same as being together, let’s be thankful for these opportunities as well. 

Of course Thanksgiving also gives us the chance to savour many delicious treats, and have those unique family dishes that are only served on holidays or special occasions.  While you are contemplating that second helping or that extra piece of dessert, please remember those who are not as fortunate as we are.  We will be extending our food drive for the Poor Clares until the morning of Tuesday, October 13th in the hope that the bounty we have, which is highlighted this weekend, will inspire all of us to give a little more.  We are already more than half of the way to our goal of collecting 1,000 items of food – let’s keep that Thunder Spirit going!

Here is a short Thanksgiving Prayer by Ralph Waldo Emerson to help us focus on the good things in our lives:

For each new morning with its light,

For rest and shelter of the night,

For health and food,

For love and friends,

For everything thy goodness sends.  Amen.

On Monday, October 19th your child will be bringing home their Interim Progress Report.  Like last year, this first communication of your child’s progress is focussed on learning behaviours – those things that can certainly affect their academic achievement.  As these learning behaviours are tied to their time in school, a separate template has been created for those students who are on the Temporary Transition Option which reflects their time online and the work they have completed at home.  Please note that even if your children do return to school on October 13th, the Progress Report they receive will be the revised template that reflects their time learning from home.

As there are a number of students who are returning to school on Tuesday, I thought some reminders about our drop off/pick up procedures would be timely:

• please remember that both lanes flow only in one direction, and that there is absolutely no passing in either lane
• last names beginning with A – L use the St. James Church fire lane and enter from Townline Rd.
• last names beginning with M – Z use the lane set up on the south side of the Parent Parking Lot and enter from the gates on the west end of the Parent Parking Lot from Gardner Ave.
• both lanes exit onto Gardner Ave. through the east gates, following the direction of the traffic supervisor
• please pull up as far as possible in either lane – if you are using the St. James Church fire lane please pull up to the old white flag pole; if you are using the Parent Parking Lot lane please pull up to the farthest orange delineator

In the morning, please remember that there are St. James parishioners who are coming for Mass at 9:00am, and they often arrive quite early.  Please be patient with them, as they do not know all of our school procedures for drop off, and may be going against the flow of traffic.  As these are shared spaces, gentle reminders from the traffic supervisor are all that are required.

Photo retakes will occur on Thursday, October 15th.  If you would like your child to have their individual photo retaken, please send your child to school on October 15th with their proof package, and dressed in their school uniform even if they have PE that day.  Also, please let your child’s teacher know that they will be having retakes, as the younger students are often unsure if they need to have their picture taken again.  If your child was on the Temporary Transition Option and is returning on October 13th, they will have their individual photo taken on October 15th, but unfortunately there will be no opportunity for a retake of that photo.  If your child remains on the Temporary Transition Option, and you would like to have their individual photo taken, please contact the office directly at 604-852-1788 to be given an appointment time to bring your child to the school for their photo.

Please note that Hot Lunch forms will now be going home one week earlier than they did in the past for the next month’s Hot Lunch.  This is to give the parents a bit more time for processing the forms now that our first week’s order comes from an outside vendor.  So, the next form will be going home on October 16th and will be due back on October 22nd for our November order.

We have a new intercom system at the front door of the school, so now it makes it so much easier to communicate with the office when you come to the school.  Please note that there is now only one button to press, regardless of what time you come to the school.  When you come to the front door, please press the button, and then you will be asked how we can assist you.  It is very difficult to hear through the plexiglass window at the office, so it is better for any communication to be done through the intercom.  If you need to come in to drop something off in the container by the front door, or if you have an appointment, we will “buzz” you in.  When you hear the loud buzzing sound that means you can open the door.

Mabel’s Labels is a new fundraiser for St. James & St. Ann’s School, and it will be ongoing throughout the year.  If you were disappointed because you thought you missed out on ordering those amazing labels for your child’s school items, don’t worry, you can order them anytime!  Just go to their website at https://mabelslabels.ca/en_CA/fundraising/support/ or by clicking here and choose St. James & St. Ann’s School from the list.  Then shop and your labels will ship directly to you, and the shipping is FREE!  St. James & St. Ann’s School earns a commission on every order.  Please support our school as every fundraising dollar we raise helps out.

There are two seats available on the Regional Education Committee (REC) for the 2020-2021 school year.  These seats are for parishioners of Sts. Joachim & Ann Parish.  Serving on the REC fulfills your Parent Participation commitment for the year, and is a wonderful way to be involved in the school.  If you are interested, please speak to your Parish priest as soon as possible.

Our October Work Bee will take place on Saturday, October 17th from 9:00am to 2:00pm.  If you are scheduled to attend this Work Bee, please bring gloves for either inside our outside work.  It would also be appreciated if you can bring a rake, or a cordless or gas blower to clean up the leaves.  Finally, we will be getting some bark mulch to put around the plants in the Parent Parking Lot along Gardner Ave.  If you are able to bring a wheelbarrow and some tools to make spreading the bark mulch easier that would be very helpful.  We certainly do appreciate all of your hard work for our school!

Just a reminder that Friday, October 23rd is the provincial Professional Development Day and there is no school for students.  

Thank you for all your support of this year’s Thunderwear Fundraiser!  We had a huge response and are excited to have made a great start to make our fundraising goal this year!  All Thunderwear Orders should have been sent home yesterday with your designated child.

Just a reminder that parents are asked to complete a Daily Health Check of their children each morning before they come to school.  Please assess your child for the following symptoms:

• Fever
• Chills
• Cough or worsening of chronic cough
• Shortness of breath
• Loss of sense of smell or taste
• Diarrhea
• Nausea and vomiting

If your child has one of those symptoms, excluding fever, they should stay home for 24 hours from when the symptom started.  If the symptom improves, they may return to school when they feel well enough.  If the symptom persists or worsens, seek a health assessment.  If your child has two or more of the symptoms, or they have a fever, you should seek a health assessment for them.