​Dear Families,
The 2nd week of school is underway already and the school is feeling very settled, which is outstanding since we have 7 new staff and 200 new students who joined us this year.  Thank you for your patience and support regarding classroom assignments.
Here are some important notes:
Photo Day is TOMORROW, Thursday, Sept 13.  Send your student how you would like to see them in their school photo.  There will be a retake opportunity in a few weeks if your student is absent.
Fees are now available on-line through the PowerSchool app.  They can also be paid with cheque or through direct debit if you drop in to the office.  Fee explanation:
Refundable security deposit is $50 – this is a mandatory fee that will be returned to the parent who made the payment once library, text, and technology resources assigned to students is recorded to have been returned to us in June.
Lunchroom activity fee is $30 to help us with lunchtime games, sports equipment, supplies and other related materials.  We do not charge for lunchroom supervision, so this is to assist us in keeping our students productively occupied.  Your support is appreciated.
Yearbooks are $30 – this is an optional fee and is a great keepsake for families.
Gym strip is paid for out of school funds for all new students.  If families need to replace lost or outgrown gym strip, or to purchase additional apparel, this is by item ordered.
Drop-off & Pick-up vehicle etiquette – if you have the practice of dropping your student in the cul-de-sac by our school, you know there is not enough space for everyone and we need to be mindful of safety first and courtesy first.  They go together.  Please keep these suggestions in mind:
Thank you for not dropping your student off in the school parking lot – there are too many pedestrians and staff needing access to make this viable.
Consider dropping your student along 98th Ave or 19th Street for the block walk of fresh air.
If you drop your student in the cul-de-sac, stay with the flow of traffic, wait your turn, drop off your students quickly, move on so others may do the same.  Do not linger as you will be obstructing the traffic flow.
At pick-up time, do not double park, it snowballs and makes things worse for others.
Please do not put me in the position to start wearing a high visibility safety vest and monitoring traffic.  Orange is not my colour.  
Parent Council’s first meeting of the year is Thursday, September 20 at 7 PM in our school library.  Please consider attending to hear information about school happenings, having a voice in upcoming decisions, and contributing to decisions regarding school council expenses.  If you are interested in contributing to the council in a formal role, please contact me as we have some opportunities for specific roles available.
Meet the Teacher BBQ – this was such a popular way to meet other parents and teachers, so we our repeating our BBQ followed by informal conversations with staff.  School council is funding an informal BBQ with staff doing the preparing and delivery.  Details will follow, but mark Thursday, September 27 @ 6:30 PM – 8 PM on your calendars for this event.
Fun Lunch Sign up is coming soon.  If you would embrace the opportunity to not pack a lunch every 2nd Thursday or even some of them, our parent council is nearly finished organizing for this year’s series of fun lunches.  Details will follow in a separate message, but only families who have signed up to receive commercial email will receive it.  See the next bullet…
Commercial Email Sign up – follow this link to sign up for commercial email:  http://calgary.schoolmessenger.com/cbe_subscribe
Tech Talk Tuesdays –our school subscribes to a weekly news item from the makers of Screenagers.  The content is always about youth and technology issues.  Our new Cell Phone Policy was shaped by their resources.  I will be forwarding messages on that I think will be of interest.  I will be judicious about sending only the messages I think are pertinent to our age group and observations of what’s happening at school.  As an educator and parent, I have found many helpful topics and suggestions. 
Feedback – please do not hesitate to provide us positive or constructive feedback on any issue regarding our school through your student’s teachers or to me directly.
Thanks for keeping informed,
David​