Thunder News Flash – October 24, 2020

A new term has recently been coined – pandemic-fatigue.  People are getting tired of all of the rules and restrictions, and are beginning to feel like there is nothing to look forward to.  We see Christmas on the calendar, but with the uncertainty of how we will be able to celebrate this special season, even the thought of Christmas is not holding the same joy as it usually does for some people.  At St. James & St. Ann’s School our answer to this is to focus on all of wonderful, but small things that happen each and every day, and take delight in them.  Keep reading to find out about all of the amazing things happening at our school to be excited about, to look forward to, and to combat any pandemic-fatigue that you might be feeling!

The students and their families exceeded our expectations for our food drive for the Poor Clares and they won the top prize, which is a dress down day as well as their choice of a fun activity.  This will be taking place on Monday, October 26th.

There have been a variety of ideas for the dress down day, everything from a pyjama day to a casual day, so this will be a “free choice” dress down day.  As always what the students wear to school for this dress down day must be appropriate.  Students MAY NOT wear the following:

• ripped jeans
• short shorts
• tops with inappropriate logos, pictures or sayings, or spaghetti straps

The teachers also spent some time talking to their students and having them vote on their “free choice” activity. Most classes chose to watch a movie, although Grade 5 will be having extra time to play outside and Grade 3 will be having a fun activity in their classroom.  So, on Monday if your children tell you they want to wear their pyjamas to school, that is a perfectly appropriate choice for the day!

On Thursday, October 29th, your children will be treated to a surprise activity at school.  All students should be dressed in clothing appropriate for an outdoor activity, such as their Thunderwear or PE strip, even if they don’t have PE on Thursdays.  Boots would also be a great idea, as well as a sturdy bag labelled with your child’s name.  This activity will take place at approximately 9:00am, so please make sure your children are at school on time on Thursday.  They won’t want to miss this fun!

On Friday, October 30th the Leadership Team is encouraging students to come to school dressed for Halloween.  Please note that costumes may not include masks that cover their eyes for safety reasons, weapons or blood/gore, and should not be too scary.  We encourage the students to come dressed in costumes that reflect heroes, careers or a positive character from a book or movie, etc.  This year we know that there may be some families who are not celebrating Halloween due to COVID-19.  We do not want to add any stress to your family, so why not send your child to school on Friday dressed in last year’s costume or wearing Halloween colours instead.  

Here is some information that you may need to know about Halloween:

• we will still have a parade of costumes, but in order to practise the required health and safety protocols, this year the parade will take place outside.  If it is raining we have planned a virtual option for the parade
• costumes will be judged by the Leadership Team and prizes will be awarded in each classroom.  This year the Leadership Team will focus on two categories – the “most creative” costume and the “Leadership Team’s choice”
• each PE class on Friday will begin with a fun Halloween warm up activity led by members of the Leadership Team
• fun Halloween activities will take place in the classrooms throughout the day

After Halloween, students are encouraged to sort through the candy that they have collected, and donate the extras to NightShift.  We will be collecting this extra candy at the school from November 2nd – 5th in each classroom.  Also, just a reminder that Halloween treats should be enjoyed at home, and not at school!

Monday, November 2nd is All Souls Day.  We should all take some time on Monday to pray for our family members, or those dear to us, who have passed away, as well as those souls who have nobody to pray for them.  While we won’t be at school on Sunday, November 1st, it will be All Saints Day, so on November 2nd we encourage all students and staff to come to school dressed as their favourite saint.  Unfortunately we won’t be able to gather together for Mass on November 2nd and take a picture of all of those “saints” on the altar like we did last year, but we are sure to get pictures of those students and staff who do dress up to put on our website, and hopefully in our yearbook.  The Leadership Team will once again come around to all the classrooms and judge the costumes to award prizes in each classroom for the best male and best female saint.  Let’s see if we can top the amazing creativity that was shown last year!

Congratulations to now Deacon Raffaele Salvino, who was ordained a Deacon on Friday, October 23rd.  Even though it was a Professional Development Day, we hope that many of you took the opportunity to watch his ordination live streamed from Holy Rosary Cathedral.  

If you haven’t already done so, please ensure that you return your child’s signed Progress Report folder and envelope to the school by Monday, October 26th.  The next formal opportunity to read about your child’s progress will take place on Wednesday, November 18th when your child brings home their next Progress Report, focussed on goal setting.  Please note that these Progress Reports replace the previously scheduled Parent/Teacher or 3-Way Conferences scheduled on that day due to COVID-19, and it will be a regular school day.

The possibility of snow at higher elevations this weekend makes us all realize that Summer is long gone, and it is time to bring out the winter clothes.  Please ensure that your child comes to school each day with boots, a warm jacket with a hood, and it is time to find those gloves and scarves too!  On PE days the students are encouraged to either wear their Thunderwear over their gym strip, or wear it in place of their gym strip.  If you did not order Thunderwear, please note that your child may substitute either navy or black sweatpants and sweatshirts to keep them warm.

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.

Just a reminder that there are two Professional Development Days in November – Friday, November 6th and Friday, November 20th.  Please note that there is no school for the students on either of these days. 

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.