Thunder News Flash – October 26, 2019

On Wednesday, October 23rd our assembly focussed on being thankful, and the Grade 7s shared with the school information about the plight of the migrant workers.  They created and presented a skit about the hard life migrant workers have when they leave their family back home, to work very long hours just to send some money home.  They also shared with us a video about the often horrible living conditions the migrant workers face when the farmers they work for don’t follow the rules set out by our government.  In order to help these men so that they can focus on sending money home to their families, we will have one last day to support them by bringing in non-perishable food items.  Monday, October 28th will be the last day to help build that Mountain of Miracles for the migrant workers.  Let’s see which class can bring in the most food, and there just might be a prize for that class!

The Regional Education Committee (REC) of St. James & St. Ann’s Elementary School has been restructured to include 2 members from each of the four regional parish communities.  We still need 2 parishioners from Sts. Joachim and Ann to represent their parish community and complete our new REC.  If you believe in a Catholic education for our children, please consider taking on this important role.  Any registered parishioner is eligible to serve – you do not need to be a current school family to participate in this committee.  For school families, the REC fulfills your Parent Participation Program requirements.  If you are interested, or know of a family that might be a good fit, please contact Chris by clicking here for more information and eligibility requirements.

Thank you from the St. James & St. Ann’s Elementary School REC

On Monday, October 28th an email will be sent out to all school families with the information that you need to book your child’s 3-Way Conference.  Once again we will be using an online booking system to do this, and that way you can book the time that works best for you.  The 3-Way Conferences will take place from 11:00am – 8:00pm on Thursday, November 7th, and will be an opportunity for the teacher, parent and child to meet together to set some goals in a variety of areas.  These goals might be related to the learning behaviours that were just reported on, or they could be academic goals if there are areas of challenge.  Please sign up for your appointment time as soon as you are able to as the spots do fill up quickly.

After almost two weeks of our new door procedures the staff evaluated these routines, and with the input of some parents, we are making a few slight changes:

• sports practices after school begin at 2:45pm as those staff members who are coaching often have outdoor supervision, brief meetings or are trying to get their own class dismissed.  The students who are attending the practice will take their backpacks, etc., and place them outside the doors of the gym in the main hallway of the school, against the wall by the sports’ bulletin board.  They will then go outside where the other students are being supervised until the bell rings at 2:45pm or their coach calls them inside to change for their practice
• there will now be a supervisor at the main school doors who will let parents inside from 8:10 – 8:30am to check in at the office if they have a scheduled meeting, need to speak to or touch base with a staff member, are at the school to help with a specific task such as supervising on a field trip or Outdoor Kindergarten, or if their child has a previously arranged alternate entry plan.  After 8:30am parents will be buzzed in through the main doors and must check in at the office
• Community Coffee will now take place every Monday morning that school is in session starting on November 4th.  The coffee will be ready by 8:30am in the gym, and there will be lots of space for toddlers to run and play.  Please check the school calendar on the website as Community Coffee may be cancelled if there is a special event taking place in the gym

Please note that there are many opportunities to enjoy our school community by joining us for school assemblies, Masses, praying the rosary with other school parents on Friday mornings in the Library, supervising on field trips, coming to school fundraisers, as well as attending special events the teachers invite you to in the classrooms.  

From time to time there may be other family members who are dropping off or picking up your children from school.  Please let them know about our new procedures, especially that the door is now locked at all times and that the students enter through the glass doors by Kindergarten.

Please join us for two special events this week:

• Living Rosary – we will pray the rosary together as a community on Monday, October 28th starting at 9:00am in the gym
• Mass – we will celebrate All Saints Day with our school Mass on Friday, November 1st at 9:00am at St. James Church.  This Mass will be led by our Grade 4 class, and will also be the enrolment Mass for our Grade 2 and 7 students as they prepare to receive their sacraments this year.

In a recent story on Global News it was reported that kids are spending far too much time inside.  Some of this happens because as parents we often feel that there are many dangers that our children face when they go outside.  According to Dr. Mark Tremblay, a senior scientist from the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario Research Institute, our belief that children are safer inside is “the biggest myth going, because from a health perspective almost nothing good happens indoors.”  As educators we also believe that being outside is important for our students – there is much to learn outside, which connects to our curriculum, and spending time in physical play outside actually improves learning when they do come back into the classroom.  Therefore, we are happy to share three things with you:

• last year we applied for a Wild BC grant to become a Wild School, and we were accepted into this program for a three year period starting this school year.  With the support of our Wild BC facilitator, all classes will now be spending time outside, just like our Kindergarten class, learning in the natural environment.  This may take the form of a lesson planned for outside to support a unit of study, an additional field trip that is completely outdoors, an outside buddy activity or a multi-grade outdoors celebration.  Due to our amazing location, the possibilities are endless!
• our morning recess is an excellent opportunity for your children to engage with their peers and help to prepare their brains to learn.  No, I’m not talking about the morning recess at 10:30, but the morning recess that occurs when your children arrive at 8:10am each morning.   We provide the supervision, and all you need to do is start your morning routine a few minutes earlier so that all children can benefit from our first morning recess!
• since we know how important being outside is to student learning, we will be going outside for our recess breaks each day, rain or shine.  Of course if the weather is very inclement, or our field is in rough shape, we may keep the students inside, but that will be the exception rather than the rule
• please ensure that your children come to school dressed to be outside including boots, mitts, scarves if necessary and good jackets with hoods – no umbrellas please!  If your child doesn’t want to bring these outdoor clothes, particularly a jacket, please let them know it is a new school rule and blame the principal!

Most Parent Participation (PP) Task Groups are in full swing by now, and each school family should be well on their way to accumulating at least 10 of their 20 PP task group hours before the end of January (not including their fundraiser commitment).

Please remember it is up to each family to log these hours as soon as they are done on the school’s PP portal to receive credit.  No hours recorded = no hours credited = PP cheques cashed.  The link to the PP portal can be found at the end of this newsletter or on the school’s website.  If you are unsure of your login/password information, please email Marilyn by clicking here.

The Regional Education Committee would just like to remind all school families that parent participation task group and fundraiser helpers must be at least 16 years of age to be able to earn hours for the purposes of Parent Participation.  Children who are under the age of 16 are not eligible to earn hours for Parent Participation.

If you are still unsure of which task group you are with or have any questions, please contact the Parent Participation Administrator by clicking here as soon as possible.

On October 31st the Leadership Team is encouraging students to come to school dressed for Halloween.  Please note that costumes may not include masks, weapons or blood/gore, and should not be too scary.  We encourage the students to come dressed in costumes that reflect heroes, careers, a positive character from a book or movie, or their favourite saint, etc.  Here is the information that you need to know about Halloween:

• We will have a parade of costumes in the gym starting at about 8:45am – please join us for our parade
• Costumes will be judged by the Leadership Team and prizes will be awarded
• At recess we will have a sock hop for the primary students in the gym
• At lunch we will have a sock hop for the intermediate students in the gym
• We will be starting lunch a little bit early as we will be watching the movie Nanny McPhee in the afternoon
• 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 4th – 6th in each classroom.  
• Just a reminder that Halloween treats should be enjoyed at home, not at school!

On November 1st we will be celebrating All Saints Day, and will attend Mass at St. James Church at 9:00am led by the Grade 4 class.  The students are:

• encouraged to come to school dressed as their patron or favourite saint, with a badge or sticker identifying the saint they are dressed as
• the Leadership Team will be awarding a prize to the student in the best saint costume in each class

The monthly Hospital Mass will take place on Sunday, October 27th at 4:00pm at the Sacred Space in the Abbotsford Hospital.  Any students wishing to read, please meet Mrs. Wakely at 3:45 at the Sacred Space.  This is a wonderful outreach opportunity for our students and their families.