| Thank you to all of our staff, students and their families for a successful year. Our collective collaborative work has given us opportunities to show inspiration, creativity and to move student learning forward. Your children will be starting a new grade this fall and we are so excited to embark on this after a well-deserved and needed summer. We want our students to stretch their talents and imaginations and to discover new interests and abilities this summer. Thanks and gratitude comes immediately to mind as we think of our time together with you this year at William Reid School. We want to say that working alongside such a talented, passionate and focused community has been inspirational. Your parenting and our work together has made a difference in the lives of our students – which will continue to have a positive ripple into the future. We set learning intentions for ourselves, our staff and our students regularly throughout the year and at this point, we would like to set a well-being intention for you for the summer:
Take some time to wind down the year, step away and set down the work and the ‘weight’ of the responsibilities you bear, and enjoy some quality time for yourself and with friends and family for the purpose of rest, relaxation and rejuvenation. Safe travels, wherever you go this summer, – including those moving to new schools/adventures - continue to be amazing! We look forward to our continued work together when we return to school on September 1 2022. Hand to heart, Christine Stiles
Principal, William Reid School
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| Happy New Year William Reid families, I hope that all of you have had a restful break and that you are safe and healthy. I wanted to touch base with you all to give you a quick update on what we at the CBE know so far, knowing that things can still change quickly. - Classes will resume January 10 for students. To be determined what this will look like (in person or online).
- This week, staff will be preparing for student return to learning on the 10th by adjusting their plans that were made this week and moving forward.
- The school building will be operational this week, but with limited staff due to the provincial work from home mandate. If you need to contact the school, please email WilliamReid@cbe.ab.ca and we will connect with you.
- ThinkFast Comedy Improv Artist in ResidEnce, which was scheduled to begin tomorrow, is now postponed. We are awaiting further guidance from Matt Mailandt and will communicate any changes to the school community as it becomes available.
- More information on the announcement for the winter break extension for students is available on the government’s website.
I will be in contact with you as soon as we know more. We are awaiting guidance from the provincial government and the CBE. Take care, Christine Stiles
Principal | William Reid School |
| This year is unique and challenging with some old and some new protocols, like early entry, mask wearing, hand hygene, physical distancing, and cohorts. This school year began full of uncertainty and change but we have managed to work together as a community to support our students. Learning occurs every minute of every day in our building. I want to assure all families these are not wasted years. Our students, families and staff are resilient and caring and we are all working together alongside each other to ensure that learning is our central purpose. I am very appreciative of our parent and community support our school has at this time. Maintaining a safe school relies on all of us doing our part. We have a 15 minute staggered entry to avoid student line ups and vehicle traffic congestion. I'm thankful for this keen and excited student body that shows up every day ready to learn with masks and water bottles in hand. This enables us to focus on our main goal academic excellence and learning as unique as every student. We are able to host scheduled volunteers and artists in residence this year. Students will also be going on field trips providing the venue meets all CBE protocols. Our teachers have established and are maintaining their Google Classrooms for all students. Every week families will receive an email from me that contains weekly information. The emails will also be posted on our Website. Additionally we have a Twitter page that we fill with photos from inside and outside the school: @Williamreid_cbe
Our Website is current and updated, please refer to it often. Looking forward to a wonderful Fall and I look forward to seeing you all on the front steps of our school every morning.
Christine Stiles
Principal
William Reid School
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| “There is nothing in a caterpillar that tells you it’s going to be a butterfly.” B Fuller Our entire staff wish all our students and their families a stay safe and a wonderful summer! What a challenging and difficult year we have endured together. We made it through successfully. Congratulations on a strong finish. We began the year cautious but eager to learn and ended with a new perspective of change and flexibility and an understanding that education, friendships and cooperation are important and all happened here. Thank you to all our families for keeping our community safe. Thank you for wearing masks, sending water bottles, keeping children home when they were sick and for picking up sick children quickly, respecting social distancing, and for respecting the Covid 19 protocols. Thank you as well for the families that were isolated and quarantined and for your patience with on line learning. We were able to have Sound Kreations dance residency, Jump Math resources, French Improve with Matt, Charlotte Diamond, visits from Storykeeper Hal Eagletail, Ever Active Schools, le Carnaval week, literacy and well being resources with your support. FarewellCongratulations to all our staff that has moved on to new adventures this year. Mme M. Martin and Mme Briard went on a maternity leaves, Mme Roberts moved to the States with her family in March, Mme Labrecque will be moving on to David Thompson School, and Mme Shirley retired this year. We would like to thank Mme Lewis, Mme Morrow, and Mme Lisa for covering during these leaves. Welcome We want to acknowledge our newcomers to our school community. Welcome Mme Lindsay and Mme Lidia to our Office. We would like to welcome Mme Chang as our music teacher and Mme Puchalski as our Physical Education teacher. We would like to send huge congratulations to Mme Morrow and Mme Lewis who have confirmed positions at William Reid next year. We have not yet staffed all positions as we are waiting until August when we know more about our enrolment. Grade ConfigurationsWe are expecting to have the following grade configurations and teacher supports for the 2021-22 school year: - 2 AM Kindergarten classes
- 2 PM Kindergarten classes
- 3 Grade 1 classes
- 3 Grade 2 classes
- 2 Grade 3 classes
- 2 Grade 4 classes
- or 4 Grade 3 / 4 classes
- 1.0 PE teacher
- 0.5 Music teacher
- 0.4 FTE Support Teacher
These configurations are based on our best estimates for the number of students we expect in each grade. As with any year, our student population may change come fall. If numbers shift up or down at any grade we may have to re-organize in the fall. Class placements will be available on MyCBE/PowerSchool accounts on August 30 and first day procedures posted on the William Reid School Website and shared by e-mail or School Messenger. Teachers will be out on Supervision on Wednesday September 1 and should you need help finding your child’s teacher. TransportationParents who have registered their child to ride the bus will be able to see their bus information in their MyCBE/PowerSchool account. Staff will meet students at the bus and direct them to their prospective meet areas. The first day that registered Kindergarten students may ride the bus is Wednesday September 1. Covid-19 Update We will have COVID-19 updates to share in August. Please look for an email from the school about our latest re-entry plan and guidelines. Next year: 2021-22Please check out our Back to School Information
2021-2022 School Calendar and Hours: School Calendar website page - Monday -Thursday 8:02 AM – 2:50 PM
- Friday 8:02 AM – 12:00 PM
Upcoming Dates- August 27 – 31 Administration and Teachers in
- September 1 First Day of School for Students
- September 1 Kindergarten Staggered Entry A-M
- September 2 Kindergarten Staggered Entry L-Z
- September 8 School Council Meeting at 7:00 PM
- September 23 – 24 Meet the Teacher
On behalf of the staff of William Reid School, we would like to wish all of our students and their families a safe, restful and relaxing holiday. We look forward to seeing you all in September! Have a wonderful summer and enjoy your time with family and friends.
Christine, Sheri and the William Reid Team |
| Our students and staff are continuing to learn outside and to get outside. We are enjoying the Winter season and all it has to offer. Thank you parents for being so responsive and helping get your children prepared for learning outside on the land. Our Kindergarten classes are looking at indigenous birds and animals and geometrical patterns and forms outside. Other students are measure their shadows and looking at animal tracks and habits outdoors. We have really appreciated coming to school with the sunrise the last few weeks and being able to get outside. Teacher’s Convention was a real success with our teachers attending sessions regarding literacy, math, inclusive education, anti-racism, technology, indigenous ways of knowing, mental health, fairness and wellbeing, cognitive and behavioral, and many other Professional Development Sessions. You will see new activities happening in our school as our professionals test out their developing skills. Convention was all on-line for the first time and teachers and support staff missed that human connection and interaction. We all feel so lucky to be at school with our colleagues and especially with our brilliant and dedicated students. Let us continue to wear masks and physically distance and keep safe. We have celebrated in style our 100 days of school. Please check out our twitter feed @williamreid_CBE as we post what goes on inside and outside the building regularly. I encourage all parents to check out the new CBE High School scenarios that will be posted to the CBE corporate site on Feb. 23, 2021. There are many ways to engage in the process and I encourage you all to have a look at this. Staff deployment and budgeting will begin soon so please attend School Council sessions and check our website for news stories regularly. Excellent deep learning is happening at our school. Our focus continues to be in reading and decoding. All students should be setting a reading goal with their teachers. I want to ensure all parents and guardians that this has been a good learning year. In speaking with our teachers they believe children are not stunted in their ability to learn and grow because of the pandemic. Our teachers work hard every day to ensure the program of studies and curricular objectives are met. Students are working hard and continuing to improve in their studies every day. Thank you parents for all of the home reading you do to support their growth in school. Reading in English or your child’s first language is an excellent way to increase their literacy and abilities in French. Do not hesitate to read to your children or have them read to you. For the younger kids, even letter recognition is reading. This has not been an easy year for all of us but we are more then half way there and we have done this together very successfully. We’ve got this! Christine Stiles, Principal |
| Dear William Reid families Our teachers were involved in many different forms of Professional Development on our CBE System Professional Development Day Oct 30 2020. The sessions they attended will trickle into your children's classrooms over the next few weeks. Our teacher's were happy to be students for the day and are looking forward to sharing what they have learned in thier classrooms with your students. Please feel free to ask their teachers about the highlights during these sessions. Some of the sessions they attended included but not limited to: Indigenous Education, Learning Opportunities in Outdoor Spaces, Thrive outside, Combined-Grade Classrooms K-6 | Planning for Differentiated Instruction, Literacy Development, Assessment and Calibration, Health and Physical Education amidst COVID 19, Fostering Fun, Engaging students in Asynchronous Environment, Keeping students engaged, Exploring On-line resources such as Smart Notebook, Google Suite, Je lis je lis and Idéllo. We will be continuing getting student's outside exploring curriculum on the land for the month of November. Getting students outside allows for more space and more movement. This helps students with engagement, sensory and emotional regulation. Large-scale models can provide real world applications. Being outside is not just for recess and play and the shift in our building is to go outside to learn as well. Mother Nature can be a wonderful teacher. As teachers, we feel the more life like the activity is, the more meaningful it is to students and the more enhanced learning. Additionally the outdoors provides 'just right' sensory experience. There are softer colors, natural light, and noise is easier to tolerate. A regulated sensory system is necessary for higher level thinking and learning to take place. For this month of November, we will be taking skills from indoor learning and challenging students to apply it to the outdoors. For example, measurement in math, jumping in the gym. We are continuing to build our outdoor spaces and we ask for donations of tree stumps, buckets, rope, string tape measurers, magnifying glasses, old pots and pans, milk crates, and tarps or other useful supplies. Looking forward to an exciting new month of learning in November, Christine Stiles, Principal William Reid School
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| Our school culture this month is focusing on identifying with the indigenous culture and learning on the land. Being outside and learning on the land are important to our staff and teachers. Our students have been listening to indigenous music, exploring the fields and nature by looking at Fall leaves, talking about patterns in nature, walking down to Christ Church and doing the mathematical maze...etc. This month we have paired up with Ever Active Schools in order to support us with our goal of getting outside and learning on the land. Our Grade 2 class with Mme Puchalski will be leading this work with this new partner this Fall for our school. They will be actively participating in directing their learning and interests towards how they want to get outside and what they want to learn. All classes are encouraged to go outside to the playgrounds and outside to the nearby parks in order to continue and to enhance thier learning. With Ever Active Schools all of our students are encouraged to explore the 2.4km walk zone of our school. We want to encourage physical activity, improve traffic safety skills and foster a sense of connection to the space and to indigenous ways of knowing. Teacher's will email or school message your child's class 48 hours in advance of an outdoor activity off the school grounds within walking distance. We look forward to enjoying the next few weeks before it snows outside the school grounds. At this time, unfortunately we cannot have parent volunteers but you can participate by asking your child what did you learn in school today and outside the school grounds today. Christine Stiles,
Principal
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| Our school culture focused this week on identifying with the indigenous culture and on Orange Shirt Day activities. September 30 marks Orange Shirt Day which honors residential school survivors and works to spread awareness of racism. Our staff began the week with a sunrise smudge in the field. We did this in order to connect with the earth and to focus on building important relationships and connecting with our students and our parents. We spoke of “otherness” and of the need as to teachers to accept differences. All teachers and administration are striving to be visible to parents either before or after school in order to try to connect in person with parents. This trickled into the classrooms where some of our students made baskets and gathered parts of the earth in our naturalization area. Being outside and learning on the land are important in the indigenous culture. Others decorated orange shirts and hands that said: “Every child matters”. Our whole school focus this week centered around tolerance and accepting others even if they are different from us. We intend as a staff to continue our work with Truth and Reconciliation in our school over the month of October. As your children come home, we ask you to discuss the themes of connectedness and otherness and the importance of accepting differences in others.
Christine Stiles,
Principal
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| Welcome back to the 2020/21 school year! After months of virtual learning due to the pandemic, we are doing our best to provide a safe and meaningful in-school experience for our students. It has been wonderful meeting and seeing our students back to school this week. Our protocols for school re-entry have been guided by Alberta Health, Alberta Education and the CBE. Maintaining a safe school relies on everyone to do their part. Our facility operator has a strict cleaning regime to follow and all of our staff have taken Covid-19 training. All of the sorts of safety measures taking place in retail environments and Calgary businesses are now visible in schools. More information regarding Covid -19 preparation is available on the CBE website www.cbe.ab.ca. Please refer to the Website for the most up to date information. During the first few days of school the safety protocols will be discussed, modelled and rolled out. Cohorts, frequent handwashing, masks, hallway travel, seating arrangements, lunchtime routines and seating arrangements are all part of the mix. We also want to provide our students with engaging learning opportunities despite the more restrictive environment. The last few months have shone a light on the benefits of everyday school life verses the online learning environment. School life is all about relationships, flexible approaches to learning, socialization, extra-curricular offerings and camaraderie. We missed being with our students and are looking forward to seeing everyone. Friendships, learning from each other, the human touch, memorable experiences, honouring diversity and supporting one another are all important hallmarks of our school. Also, bringing the curriculum to life is paramount. Some of our students are participating in Hub learning because it works better for them. We wish them continued success and happiness. Classes were thoughtfully organized in the spring and revisited in August. Teachers take into consideration gender balance, academic diversity, special needs and the social dynamic when crafting class lists. Thank you for honouring their work. We value your trust and support as we navigate this uncharted territory. School changes based on feedback, new information, observations and system directives will continue to occur. We will keep you in the loop. We are looking forward to our work together. Christine Stiles, Principal
William Reid Staff |
| Dear Families,
I hope you are all feeling healthy and safe heading into the May long weekend. We are moving into our third month of the pandemic and it looks like next week May 21 we may see a bit more activity. I have enjoyed my last two Walk and Talk's and it has been great and very helpful reconnecting with parents. I encourage you to join me at 10:00 Wednesday's on the front steps. There have been a number of announcements lately regarding the budget and transportation. I encouage you to visit the CBE website and this website for this new information. Our administration team is currently working on the budget for next year and your input is valuable.
Grade 4 legacy paintings
We have reorganized our school and we would like to display Grade 4 student flora and fauna paintings in our staff room and in our hallways. We would like to invite our Grade 4 students to contribute a painting of flora or fauna for us to put up and display for the 2020-2021 school year. We are thinking of the emerging Spring gardens in Calgary and of all the indigenous plants and flowers that grow around Alberta. The school is open every Tuesday from 9-12 for you to drop them off. Thank you in advance for these creative pieces and we look forward to seeing them by the end of June.
New Acting Assistant Principal Sheri Bullough
Welcome to our school Sheri Bullough! Sheri comes from the All Boys School as our new Acting Assistant Principal. Her background is in math and literacy and resource. She speaks french fluently and we are very very luck to have her. Next week she will send out her letter of introduction. Welcome Sheri!
School Council Dialogue and Engagement Session:
Tuesday at 6:30 we will be having a School Council Skype session in order to engage and to discuss the organisation and deployment of staff for the 2020-2021 school year. Your input is needed and I will be sending out a link to all of those on Parent Council. If you would like to join this session, please e-mail us.
Wednesday Walk and Talk
Please e-mail the school or tweet "talk" if you would like to join me Wednesday on the front steps for a 35 - 45 minute walk and talk with the Principal at 10:00AM. I look forward to meeting you and to talking about your ideas.
Lastly, I would like to thank our parents who are currently looking after our Naturalization Area on the West side of the school. It looks beautiful and the plants and green leaves and needles are coming out thanks to all of your hard work watering them. Thank you also Lindsay Bleik for all your hard work with the bikiing and walking to school you have initiated. We have a great community at our school and it shows. Take care and get out and exercise and enjoy the nice weather,
Christine Stiles
Acting Principal
William Reid School
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