In The KNOW and Here We GO!

Classes start this Friday for the Intermediate group! After our photos are done, we will head for our classroom for a fun day of activities to help us get to know our new and returning classmates.

Activation Assignments are due now due. They must be marked ‘received’ due by 3:00pm Wednesday September 29^th. Thank you, to all the families who have already returned their child(ren)’s assignment. As of the writing of this blog post, several Activation Assignments have not yet been returned. The Activation is a Min of Ed requirement for ALL Home Learners in BC.  Late or missing Activation Assignments may result in reduced funding for your child.

MASKS now required for ALL Students. The VSB has updated mask requirements. Initially masks were only mandatory for staff and students Grade 4-12. Earlier this week the policy was changed, and they are now required for everyone, including children from Kindergarten to Grade3.

Photo Day is this Friday. It is for ALL students in both groups. Our group goes first, so it is important to meet at the front of the school at 9:00am. Those students who are unable to come on Friday may have their photo taken on the school’s “Photo Retake Day” TUESDAY October 26^th instead.

Terry Fox Run is on Tuesday Oct 5 next week. The Primary group will participate. The school office will have emailed out an online donation form. Please send your children in suitable cloths and running shoes.

Important Immunization Information for Grade 6 and 7 parents.  This school year, we will be running our usual immunization clinics for our Grade 6’s at the school but will also be including the Grade 7’s who missed the opportunity to be immunized for target grade immunizations (HPV and any other outstanding vaccines) last year.

There will be two clinics this year:

• First clinic on Friday, October 8^th 2021
• Second tentative clinic on Tuesday, April 14^th 2022

Due to time constraints this fall term, there will be no follow up phone calls if consents are not returned by 3:00pm on October 1^st.

Students will only be immunized with parental consent. If your child in Grade 6 or 7 does not receive a consent form, it is because they are already in progress getting vaccines elsewhere or are already complete for their age.

Please read the pink form and the immunization consent form very carefully. Return consents to school as soon as possible.

1. If you are consenting to vaccines, please ensure you have ticked the box for the vaccines you want given, signed and dated the form and indicated that you are the parent or guardian.
2. If you are dissenting to vaccines, please ensure you have ticked the box for the vaccines you do not want given, signed and dated the form and indicated that you are the parent or guardian.

Covid 19 vaccine will also be offered to any students who turn 12 by the end of this year, but again, only with parental consent.  Please ensure that your child wears a short sleeved shirt and has breakfast on the day of the clinic.

It was lovely to meet so many of you over the last little while. The past weeks have been a delightful time of introductions and connecting. Student Learning Plan meetings wrap up next week. In person classes begin for the Intermediate group on Friday October 1. As this day is also school photo day, students from both groups are welcome top come to the photo session at 9:00am. We will meet near the front doors of the school right at 9:00. Intermediate students will stay for the whole day. Primary students will leave as soon as their photo is finished. (We will meet the Primary students at 9:00am at the front of the school the following Monday for their first day of attendance.) Exciting times!

It has been brought to my attention that some families are not getting an email to tell them about a new blog posting. As the Administration of the Blog has changed hands, perhaps try subscribing again? A quick reminder that the best way to reach me is through me email (rather than replying to the blog) …. lbaker@vsb.bc.ca

In your envelops you will find some items direct from the school district. This includes an extremely important VERIFICATION SHEET and a Student Reunification Sheet. This information is collected in case of emergency, and it is essential to return it as soon as possible. In addition, you will find information about School Fees. These are collected from every student throughout VSB. Home Learners are not required to pay the Supplementary fees.

The package also includes a school calendar, a media consent form, a consent form that allows us to go on walks to local parks and other locations for educational purposes that are within walking distance of the school, permission for your child to receive free fruits and vegetables provided through BC Agriculture in the Classroom program.  A Parent email is also collected in the package. If you leave the package stapled together this will make things very easy to track; just detach the orange School Calendar page at the back of the package and we should be good to go!

Please complete and return the package before October 15^th by placing it in your child’s envelop before that date. Speaking of the envelops…. I am enjoying the wonderful decorations many students have done on the envelop! Decorating is voluntary but will make it easier for you to identify yours in the tote. To clarify one thing about the envelops: after your next pick-up/drop-off trip the envelop Stays in the tote at School. This way, there will always be a place for me to give items to individuals and families, and for parents families to give items back to me.

One last reminder: Activation Assignments are due before 3:00pm Wednesday Sept 29^th.

Student Learning Plans now well under way! The meetings are in
Person, and held in our classroom. Please phone the school upon arrival and someone will meet you at the front doors to bring you in. Please remember the masks are required for all adults and students Grade 4 and older. The VSB strongly encourages younger students to wear masks as well and I would also appreciate it.

If you have not already booked a time for this essential part of the program please go to the calendar and email me a first and second choice for a meeting time as soon as possible.

Every registered student now has a personal envelop for returning assignments, picking up materials etc. It can be found in the Home Learner Tote n the front steps of the school. Please check it frequently. Feel free to decorate it! 😊

Another essential part of the program is the Activation assignment. They are due on September 29^th. Feel free to pick them up from the tote ahead of time.

Save the Date: Monday Oct 1 is school photo day. Details to follow.

Orange Shirt Day is a community wide initiative to acknowledge the impact that Residential Schools have had on Indigenous people in Canada. This year our Orange Shirt Day is September 29. Please note that school will not be in session on September 30, the new statutory day of reflection.

There are many other special even days, and days when school is not in session. These include Professional Days, Stat holidays, Portfolios Meeting dates, Immunization clinics, Winter Break/Spring Break etc. These will be posted on the calendar attached to the Blog.

I’ve attached information about resources and events your children might also be interested.                    I am very much enjoying the Student Learning Plan meetings, and look forward to meeting with you soon.

Society for Canadian Women in Science and Technology (SCWIST)  Society for Canadian Women in Science & Technology – SCWIST. is hosting workshops and events for kids from K-12, currently online. All workshops are free.

For Science Literacy week 2021  http://www.scienceliteracy.ca/, they are hosting virtual Climate themed hands-on activities for kids ages 7-12, from Sep 21st-Sep 24th.  They host live sessions and also provide pre-recorded videos of the activities and instructions to all schools that register. The materials needed for the activities are easy to find household materials. ​​​​​​​

Sessions planned: 1. Learn about the factors affecting climate

2. Be a polar bear and learn about polar adaptations
3. How does climate change affect food chains
4. Day 4 is surprise​​​​​​​

Link for sign up.

FuturePLAY are thrilled to support STEM Sorority (a club that offer girls a comfortable and supportive environment to explore their passion for STEM) and their latest initiative – Project Escape. This Escape Room activity is for grade 6-7 students to incorporate & build upon their science knowledge.

Check out THIS video to learn more. Also, here is the link to the Project Escape description to include links to all the Project Escape materials.

To get the project scape for your class go here:  https://www.stemsorority.com/project-escape/

If you have any questions you can contact STEM Sorority : stemsorority@gmail.com or Mónica Aguirre @maguirre@vsb.bc.ca

In the Know

Topic: Beyond Behaviours: When Is It More? What It Looks Like at Ages 4 to 8 years

When our kids are having a hard time, or we are seeing something for the first time, we might wonder what’s going on?  In this video conversation, a parent and a counsellor talk about the developmental stages of 4 to 8 year old children, what are typical behaviours and how do we know when something more might be going on.  This conversation is for all families and caregivers who feel like they are parenting in the deep end of the swimming pool or are just wondering what they can do when it feels like more.

Date:  Monday, September 20 @ 4:30-6:00 PM

Registration: Click here to Register

My name is Lorraine Baker, and I am your new Home Learner Program Teacher! I was delighted to be offered and accept the opportunity to lead this unique and innovative program. I am very familiar with the program having been its administrator several years ago. Ms. Hobson has keep me well informed about how this program continues to thrive and I look forward to connecting with you soon.  Until then, the best way to reach me is through email at lbaker@vsb.bc.ca

In the next few days I will be contacting those of you who have already emailed me, to confirm dates and times for the planning meetings. I will also be reaching out to those of you who are new to the program and our routines. Meanwhile, I urge you begin thinking about what sorts of interests and strategies you would like to discuss for best meeting your child’s learning goals this year.  Your former teacher, Ms. Hobson has created an amazing resource with this blog, and I will be adding to it regularly.

Due to COVID we will continue to eat our snacks and lunches in the Classroom. Also, although masks are only mandatory for Grades 4 through 12, the VSB strongly encourages students from Kindergarten through Grade 3 to wear masks as much as possible. And I hope they do as well.

Please note: students will need to update their VSB passwords…I am including a link here for easy access:  – students will need to make new 2-3 word passwords, student option- https://studentpass.vsb.bc.ca/

Some of our communication will take place online. Occasionally I will be sending out meeting invitations through TEAMS. Please install the app so that our connections can go through more quickly and it is easier to share screens etc. I look forward to meeting you and working with you soon!                                     Warmly, Ms. Lorraine Baker

As this school year wraps up, I would like to take this opportunity to let you know how much I enjoyed a year of learning adventures with your children, and how much I appreciated all the support of the parents.    What a great community we have in our program!  As of Wednesday, June 30th, the school will be closed and all staff away until Wednesday, September 8th, 2021. 

On September 8th, the mainstream school students convene at 9:00 a.m. for a whole-school assembly in the gym to find out their classroom placements.  Home Learners do not attend that day.  As soon as practically possible on the 8th and 9th, your teacher will be contacting all registered student’s families to book or confirm their Student Learning Plan Meetings.  These are very busy days and we will contact everyone as soon as we possibly can.  The Home Learners’ classroom is closed on the 8th, as all staff have meetings immediately following the classroom placement assembly, for the remainder of the day.

As with the rest of the distributed learning world, for Home Learners’, the first weeks of September consist mainly of planning, preparing and completing individual Student Learning Plans with the teacher, working on and completing each student’s Activation Assignment, and starting (or continuing) their home learning. It is important to understand that everyone must attend a Student Learning Plan meeting and their child must complete an Activation Assignment before they are fully registered in the program.  That is a Ministry of Education requirement.

Starting immediately, please look at the calendar on the left column of this site (or click onto the calendar page) to view available times to book for Student Learning Plan meetings.  Please email the lbaker@vsb.bc.ca with your 1st and 2nd choice of Student Learning Plan meeting times.  Please ensure the heading of your email is: “Home Learners – Student Learning Plan Meeting” or it might get missed or re-directed.  We will book people into meeting times on a first-come, first-served basis. Although we will not be accessing  VSB email over the summer, your email will be saved and read upon our return in September. For newly registered families,  we will contact you during the first week of the school year.  For waitlist families, we will contact you if and when we are able to provide you a placement. Otherwise, we are not able to contact people regarding “where they are on the list.”

We will do our best to book people into their requested meeting times on a first come, first served basis, and will email you confirmation on or shortly after September 8th.  

Hello Everyone,

The last day of school for this school year is Tuesday.  For those who are not attending, I will have everyone’s report cards in the blue mail bin on Tuesday morning.  The bin will be outside on the front steps from 8:30 a.m. until 3:00 p.m.

I will give attending students their report cards to bring home.

For the last two days of school, please ensure your child has a water bottle, sunscreen, and a hat.  Even inside the school, it is very hot – 1914 brick buildings were not built for hot weather!  On Monday, I will have some fun activities in the morning and will be showing the students Frozen 2 in the afternoon.  I have a few bags of extra clothes that none of the students claimed this past week, so please talk to your child if these are your clothes, so they can go home.  If they are unclaimed, they will be donated to charity.

On Tuesday, the Primaries will join the primaries in the main school for a mini sports day, for the morning only.  Please ensure your child has running shoes, a water bottle, hat, sunscreen, and a snack and lunch.  In the afternoon, the children will do activities, playtime, and clean up.

I know the Intermediates are ready to enjoy the summer and to say goodbye to a very peculiar school year and year in the life of pandemic living.  I just want to provide an overview of the next two days so everybody has what they need for both days.

On Thursday, we will be going to Trout Lake park to enjoy the weather, get out of the brick oven that is our school building, and have some fun.  Please have the students pack a towel or something to sit on at the park, a water bottle, snack and lunch, sunscreen, and maybe a hat.

On Friday, we will have our own Home Learners’ ‘Sports Day.’  Please have your students bring their snacks and lunch.  I will be providing snacks and drinks as requested by the kids, and I think most of the students want to bring a treat, as we discussed in our small group.  Thanks to Claire (‘s Mom!) who provided everyone with two murder mystery games to play also!

Monday, June 21 is the Primaries’ Sports Day

Please pack a snack and lunch as usual, water bottle, sunscreen, and hat.  We will be both outside and inside for our activities.  I will be giving out some potato chips and freezies as treats.

I have put the students into two colour teams.  If possible, please dress your children in whatever they have that is their team colour.

Yellow Team:

Skye, Theo, Chloe, Lauren, Sophia, Tisa

Orange Team:

Sophie, Audrey, Brixton, Stella, Dasha

With the school year wrapping up, I’ve planned some fun theme days for the students to add a bit more fun into their weeks!  Mark your calendars!

1.  Crazy Glasses Day:  Primaries:  Monday, June 7th, Intermediates, Thursday, June 10th.  I have cool cardboard glasses that the kids can decorate, put coloured “lenses” in and wear for the day!
2. Crazy Hair Day:  Primaries:  Monday, June 14th,  Intermediates: Thursday, June 17th.  Come to school with your craziest hair-do!
3. Tacky Tourist Day:  Primaries:  Tuesday June 22nd,  Intermediates:  Thursday June 24th.  Come to school dressed like a tacky tourist!

End of the year celebration.  The School Board is still following strict guidelines regarding gatherings and events, so, unfortunately, we are unable to hold a family-type gathering.  As per my previous posts, The PAC is providing each class with some funds to do something as a class, so the kids will get a small celebration in class, but we are unable to meet outside the school or gather as groups.

Classes will have their celebrations the last full week of school, Primaries on Monday, June 21st and Intermediates on Friday, June 25th.  

If any Home Learners would like their photo retaken, please meet me at our usual entrance/exit door of the school at 9:00 a.m. tomorrow morning.  I will take all the students who want a re-take to the photographer, then bring them back once their photos are taken.

Thank you,

Shannon

This may be of interest to parents.

The ducklings have been an endless source of joy and wonder for our students these past weeks.  We have had many visits from other classes in the school, and the children have all demonstrated kindness and a deep awareness of our human role in caring for the health and wellbeing of these small souls.  They are growing so fast that they have almost grown out of their brooder bin, so in consultation with the owner of the ducks, she will be taking them back to their mama and the farm tomorrow or Friday (and before I get so attached that I won’t be able to let them go…)

This coming Monday, May 24th is Victoria Day, so there will be no school.  There will be programming on Tuesday the 25th, then we transition into Portfolio Meetings.  Portfolio Meetings are being held from May 27th through June 4th.  There is no programming during Portfolio Meeting time.  School will resume on Monday, June 7th.

Please ensure you have booked your portfolio meeting with me if you have not done so already.  As previously discussed, I need parents to write out an overview of everything your child(ren) has/have been learning at home.  If you can please email this to me at least the day prior to your meeting it will allow me the time necessary to go through it, prepare questions or clarifications, etc.  For the majority of my students, this information will provide the basis of their final report for the school year.

What I need specifically is a listing of what was accomplished for each curricular area.  Please include:

Mathematics

Language Arts (for Primaries:  a) reading b) writing c) listening/speaking

Science

Social Studies

Applied Design, Skills, and Technologies

Physical and Health Education

Arts Education

Career Education

Second Language (for Intermediates)

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to ask!

Finally, the Beaconsfield PAC is providing us with approximately $7-8 per child to do something special for the end of the school year, as a class.  I have asked both groups what they might like to do, but with the parameters of covid, the kids are at a bit of a loss.  I am thinking of planning an outing/picnic at Trout Lake and providing some fun food/snacks for the kids?  If anyone has any neat ideas, I more than welcome them. Every year in past years I have also held a beach day at Spanish Banks for families and kids.  If families are interested in doing that during the last week of school, please let me know.  The Park Board has gotten a bit grouchy about booking those days, so I would need to hear from people ASAP on that one.

Individual photo day will be on Thursday, May 6th.  Our Principal will be sending out a message to all families about photo day shortly.

For all Home Learners, Primaries and Intermediates who would like a photo taken, please bring your child to meet me at the regular door we enter and exit for school every day.  I will meet all students who would like a photo taken right at 9:00 a.m. at the door on Thursday.  Parents are asked, as regular protocol, to wait outside the school property on the sidewalk.  I will then take all the children, Primaries and Intermediates, to have their photos taken.  I will bring the students back to our regular entry/exit door for parents to pick up once the photos are done.  In total, it should take about 15 – 20 minutes.

Please be on time as all the classes in the school are tightly scheduled for the morning.  Late arrivals will not be accommodated.  There will also be picture re-takes at the end of the month, however, they occur during our portfolio meeting week.

Portfolio meetings are fast approaching.  They will be held from May 27th through to June 4th. Please take a look at the available appointment times and email me your first and second choice of meeting times. Portfolio meetings are a mandatory component of the Home Learners’ Program, so please ensure you make an appointment with me.  Once I have booked your meeting time, I will send a link for us to meet virtually.

Due to the fact that we will be meeting virtually, I need parents to go through the Student Learning Plans for your child(ren) and prepare a written outline of the goals of each curricular area and what activities/reading/worksheets/workbooks/courses/books, etc., your child engaged in to fulfill their curricular goals. Just use the Goals and Content information on the left-hand column of the Student Learning Plan to indicate what they have completed, what they are still working on, or what they did not cover during this school year.  Please email me your written outline at least 1 day prior to your appointment day so I will be able to read it and prepare for our meeting.

Many of our parents already do this for all their portfolio meetings, so if you have questions, there may be some parents willing to share how they go about it – it isn’t onerous. Especially for Primaries, it won’t be detailed like my example, so don’t worry.

Here is a brief example of what I mean by outlining the goals of each curricular area.   If I had a grade 6 child, I would look at the goals for Grade 6 mathematics on the SLP and write for Mathematics:

Goals:  1.  My Child learned about whole number percents and percentage discounts using JUMP Math 6.2, figuring out what the percentages mean on advertisements, in flyers, and out shopping, and how much we saved on items discounted by a percentage when shopping.  They also have been working on pencil and paper calculations to future out percentage discounts using the formula to do so.

2.  My child is still working on improper fractions and the ordering of whole numbers and improper fractions using JUMP Math 6.1 and math manipulatives (fraction tiles).

etc… to complete the goals for Math.

Then I would do the same for each curricular area.

You may have received an email from the Principal which mentioned early dismissal next week.  Please note that early dismissal does not apply to Home Learners.  Students will be attending as usual, 9-3.

Also, please note that Monday, April 26th is a Professional Day, so there is no school on Monday.

Enjoy the sunshine while it lasts!

I am thankful for today’s rain, as I spent my long weekend tearing out my lawn and planting an alternative wildflower lawn.  We’ll see this weekend if I simply spread out very expensive birdseed, or if a blanket of pollinator flowers takes root!  With the gardening season emerging, I have asked for a garden plot for our class in the school garden and a small budget to purchase some seeds and plants with the kids.  I will keep everyone posted about what will happen with that.

Many questions about allotments…The last day to submit allotment requests is Friday, April 30th at noon.  There are no exceptions to this deadline as it has to do with the accounting deadlines at the school board.  I have had to say no to families who have submitted after the deadline in the past, and it isn’t something I enjoy doing.

Families have also asked me how much they have left in their allotments and those questions aren’t as easy to answer as usual.  I usually have a good idea myself, but since I was away, I don’t know how much was submitted before I returned, and with all the extra admin work for the office because of covid, our admin staff are swamped and tallies are not current.  I ask that families do their best to figure out what they have spent to date and submit for what you think you have left.  The earlier the better.  If you submit for something and there are not funds left in your allotment, I will simply let you know.  However, please keep in mind that if you want to do this, please don’t wait as we won’t be able to advise you of monies left over after the 30th as the accounts are closed at that point.

Scholastic orders please email directly to me.  Anything else, please place a paper allotment form with your items or invoices attached directly in the mailbox at the front door.  Thank you.

Finally, for the Primaries, please mark April 26th off on your calendar as that is a Professional Day and there will be no school that day.