| Over the month of April there was renewed energy for learning and community engagement in our school. As the snow melted (and came again, and melted again) students gained more energy for engagement in our school community. Many students engaged in multiple extra-curricular opportunities, . We had Math Club, Choir, Running Club and Soccer Club, so far. In addition to these teacher-led opportunities, students have initiated spontaneous opportunities to involve new friends across grades in student-led play at recess. Students are intentionally and confidently sharing their skills and strengths to include others. In all opportunities to extend learning, students demonstrated commitment to excellence. This was exemplified through our Division One Spring Concert and Division 2 Choir's attendance at the Calgary Performing Arts Festival. In addition to clubs coming to life, we saw lots of seedlings planted as students experimented with and studied plants both in school and in surrounding natural parks. More field trips and community opportunities are planned for the coming weeks. Please be sure to check your child's classroom communication tools for updates. In addition to engaging learning opportunities, May and June will bring many upcoming year-end events and celebrations. Please check your child's classroom communication tools regularly. • Kindergarten Orientation – May 25 5:30-6:30 • Healthy Hunger dates can be found on our school website. • Volunteer Team May 11 - RSVP for Volunteer Tea- if you did not receive your invitation by email but have volunteered, please contact your child's teacher • Grade 6 PATs – May 17, June 20, 22, 23, 26, 27 • School Council AGM- May 30, 630 pm • School Photo Day June 2- 9:45 am (AM Kindergarten should arrive for 9:45) • Sports day June 16 – 10:00am -12:20pm • Grade 6 Farewell- June 28 School Council and Parent Society Thank you for your contributions and attendance at a successful Spring Fling. We would also like to thank all of the parents who coordinated this fantastic event. AGM - May 30, 6:30pm at QES Please join us for the final School Council/ Parent Society meeting of the year! Highlights include: • planning for next year • discussion and approval of next year's budget • Spring Gala summary and celebration! • elections for School Council and Parent Society positions. ALL positions are open for nominees and we would love to have more people join us! If you are interested in becoming involved with School Council or our Parent Society, please contact qeeschoolcouncil@gmail.com and the council executive can give you info on what it all entails and what the time commitment for the different positions look like. No previous experience is necessary - all members help each other out, and most positions can be shared between 2 people. In fact – council members love to have a couple of people helping in each role to spread out the work and to allow more people to learn the roles for succession. The more the merrier! Positions on School Council Chair Co-Chair Secretary ***This position has no current nominees Key Communicator Volunteer Coordinator Book Fair coordinator Garden Coordinator Positions on Parent Society Chair Co-Chair ***This position has no current nominees General Account Treasurer ***This position has no current nominees Casino Account Treasurer Fundraising coordinator ***We would definitely LOVE a co-coordinator for this position! QES Commitment to Truth and Reconciliation: In June 2022, QES Community made the following commitment: “Queen Elizabeth School acknowledges and supports the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) Calls to Action, and makes the following commitment to action for the 2022-2023 school year: Queen Elizabeth School is energized by learning on the land and will seek to expand our knowledge of the stories, histories, and importance of relationships with the land through the building of partnerships to learn alongside Indigenous community members as a stepping-stone towards reconciliation. What have we done so far: • Land-based community excursions. • Engaging with Metis Week Challenges with CBE staff who identify as Metis. • Learning about hoop-dancing from Jackie Wabasca • Appreciating artistic and oral traditions of various Indigenous artists and storytellers. • Engaging in CBE opportunities to learn, virtually, from Elders. • Engaging QES Community members who identify as Indigenous in conversations about learning. Please share your ideas as we look forward to our TRC commitment renewal in June 2023. We look forward to even more exciting learning opportunities in the weeks to come!
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| We hope everyone is enjoying a restful break and finding opportunities to spend time with family and friends. We are looking forward to seeing students return to school on April 3, 2023. March was an exciting month filled with rich learning opportunities and evidence of growth. In March, we were proud to participate in student led conferences alongside students and parents. We saw our students involved in conversations about their strengths, areas of growth and goals. We'd like to thank all of our families for attending these conferences which were the first in almost three years. These Student-Led Conferences promoted engagement and growth and asked students to play an active role in planning their own learning. When students share with their families what they're learning—what skills and understandings they have, what areas still challenge them, and their next steps in learning—they must understand their own learning and progress. They take pride in what they can do and take responsibility for what they need to work on. Student-led conferences build motivation, clarity, self-direction, and critical thinking in students; and they also connect families to the achievement and development of their child and the work of the school. Thank you, again for taking the opportunity to celebrate these achievements with your child. As we continue to experience the first school year since 2020 with no COVID restrictions, we are able to plan for longer terms school experiences without concern of cancellation. As a result, we have been engaged in experiences with buddy classes, school clubs, flexible groups for learning, and rich learning opportunities at other city sites. These experiences have promoted an improvement in perseverance and wellbeing for learning. We are excited to have our first school concert in a few years as well. We look forward to inviting families of students in Grades 1-3 to a concert on April 20, 2023. As the weather gets warmer, and learning plans continue to be confirmed, students and teachers look forward to many exciting learning opportunities. As a reminder to our grade 4 families, there is a field trip booked for the first day back to school. Please see the communication from teachers to ensure students are prepared for the day. We have our School Council (QESC) and Parent Society (QEEPES) to thank for funding that provides equipment and other learning enhancement materials. Please visit our school website to learn more about how our School Council and Parent Society support learning at QES. Please join our next School Council and Parent Society meeting on April 18, 2023 at 6:30pm. Ward 6 &7 School Board Trustee Patricia Bolger will be in attendance. Our School Council has also coordinated, Brent Macdonald, a guest speaker for parents in partnership with the School Council at QEHS. Please save the date of May 11, 2023 at 7:00pm to attend this presentation at Queen Elizabeth High School. There will be more information to follow in the coming weeks. May 11, 2023 is also the date of the Open House for our grade 6 students. All of our grade 6 students will be moving to grade 7 next year. If your child is designated to Queen Elizabeth High School next year, students have begun learning about the school in class. If your child is designated to another middle or junior high school, please contact that school to ensure you receive their open house and orientation information. If you are seeking a spot in a different middle or junior high school, outside of your designated school attendance area, please ensure you have spoken with me and that your transfer form has been delivered to the appropriate school. For all grades, transition planning for next year is well underway. We know that family circumstances can change from time to time. If your plans change for next year, please kindly call the office or send a quick email to let us know about your attendance at QES in the 2023-24 school year. As a small school, we have begun the complex planning for the 2023-24 school year including considerations of grade and class configurations. The development of class lists is a complex process involving many factors for decision making including staff resources, space, learning needs, class complexity and strengths. As we look forward to next year, we would like to offer the opportunity to current QES families to email educational requests for class considerations for the 2023-24 school year by May 5, 2023. Please note, only written requests that are educational in nature will be considered in decision-making. Requests for placements with friends or specific teachers are not educational in nature. While every request will be considered, it may not be possible to meet all requests given the small number of classes in our school. We look forward to continued learning after the break. See you all on April 3, 2023 Sincerely, Lisa McConnell
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| It will be March this week and Spring is in our sights! February passed with much community engagement throughout our school and in the broader community. Students demonstrated gratitude for one another, discussed the impact of their small actions on their communities, and worked together to highlight the things everyone can do each day to create friendships, promote wellbeing and advance learning at QES. These actions included participation in Pink Shirt Day, Valentine deliveries within QES and at Queen Elizabeth High School. In addition to these actions, we had Hobby Day which was led by our grade 5s and was designed to help QES learning community members learn more about each other. It was fun to find out the things people are interested in when spending time outside of school. Student Led Conferences Next week, we will be hosting our Student-led conferences at QES on Thursday, March 9 and Friday March 10. These conferences are an opportunity to have your child lead you through learning activities in the classroom, share their successes and outline goals being worked towards this term. We know that students maintain engagement toward learning goals when they articulate their progress and next steps. Teachers will be available to guide students in the discussion of learning targets and highlights of their progress. This includes collaborating on supports for next steps in learning. Please plan to spend 30 minutes in the classroom as your child leads you through their learning presentation. As this format is student-led, there will be multiple families sharing in the classroom during this round of conferences. Student-led conference times are as follows: Kindergarten- Grade 6: Thursday, March 9 from 4:30-7:00pm and Friday March 10 from 8:30-11:00am *Please note that Thursday, March 9 is a regular school day for grades K-6 students. We will once again be utilizing the 'My CBE Account' to book student-led conferences. This is the same account many families already access for online fee payments. You can access the site here: My CBE Account. The following link connects to the parent guide, which provide step-by-step instructions for booking conferences: https://webapps.cbe.ab.ca/ParentTeacherInterview/Info_files/School%20Conferences%20Parent%20Guide.pdf If you do not currently have a 'My CBE Account' you will need to create an account before you can select a conference time. This can also be set up on the 'My CBE Account' homepage. Conference booking will open on March 2 at 4:00pm. When you sign up, you will be signing up for the 30 minute time block which is designed to be your time with your child while the teacher circulates with you and the other families as students lead the conference. School Engagement Survey In addition to the student led conference opportunity to engage in our learning environment, there is a School Engagement Survey which opens February 28. You can also Participate in our school council meeting on March 7, 2023 at 6:30 pm to learn more about school planning. There will be an opportunity to provide feedback at this meeting. The online survey is open from February 28 to March 14. Watch this short video to learn about the planning work schools do to improve and support student learning. For more information about our School Development Plan (SDP) follow this link: The SDP is a three-year plan. Please look to the 2022-23 section to view our current goals. For more information about school based fees follow this link. Please see our school website for more information about our school. Alberta Education Assurance Survey In addition to conferences and the previously mentioned school engagement survey, each year Alberta Education conducts a survey, as well. The Alberta Education Assurance Survey is now open and closes Friday March 17, 2023. Alberta Education uses the Assurance Survey as a way for school authorities to measure their success and assess their progress towards meeting their learning goals. Parents / Legal Guardians of children in grade 4 will receive their survey in the mail from Alberta Education. You are encouraged to complete the survey online. Students in grade 4 and all teachers will complete their surveys online at school. Your voice matters. Your participation in the survey helps provide important information on the quality of education your child is receiving. Alberta Education and The Calgary Board of Education thank you for returning the parent Assurance Survey promptly. If you have questions, please contact the main office. Should you have any questions about these opportunities to engage at QES please feel free to contact the office directly. We look forward to meeting with you on March 9 and 10 to promote advancement of learning and the advancement of learning confidence as we collaborate with your child to share their successes and progress.
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| January was a busy month with everyone getting back to school after the break. It flew by and before we knew it, we were at the end of Term 1. Report Cards are available for viewing on PowerSchool. In March, we will again report on student progress and goals in the form of conferences. We look forward to meeting with you then. If you have any questions in the meantime, please be sure to reach out to your child’s teacher. February in elementary schools is always a month in which we pause to highlight belonging, friendship, and community connection. February 14 is Valentine’s Day and families are welcome to participate by sending in cards. If your child chooses to participate, we ask that a card is sent for everyone in the class. We ask that no food items be shared. We will also have Pink Shirt Day on Wednesday, February 22. Students have also planned a fun inclusive Spirit Day for February 23 which is also our next Fun Lunch day. Stay tuned to classroom communication tools for more information. Our February Kindness focus has grown from our continuing efforts to create a strong QES learning community. As you know our School Devlepment Plan goal for Wellbeing is to understand the impact of interpersonal exchanges and intentional goal setting. As a result, we held a winter outreach event with the intention of seeing that when each of us intentionally contributes to personal and school wide goals, everyone benefits. The details are on the website. At this event our Kindergarten students were inspired by parents, teachers and other students at QES. They began a kindness challenge at the beginning of January. They have been working to enhance wellbeing and belonging through their intentional actions. One of the actions was to make cards for the West Hillhurst neighbours. We have received much positive feedback and our students are learning they can have a big impact on their community by doing a few small things. In fact, their impact was so significant that I was invited to do a short radio segment which will be aired tomorrow at 6:50am on 98.5 Virgin Radio about our amazing QES students. If you happen to miss it, the station will be sharing the audio segment with us and we will share it with you. In addition to our Kindergarten’s continuing inspiring actions, there will be more details to come about all QES students and staff as we share information about our February Kindness Challenge on the school website later this month. In February and March we will also have engagement surveys, which will be additional opportunities to celebrate our school community. One of the surveys will be for parents of grade 4 students and will arrive in the mail. It is called the Alberta Education Assurance Survey and is conducted by Alberta Education. The other will be shared through email after Teacher's Convention (Feb 16, 17) and Family Day long weekend (Feb 20). We look forward to this month of February and the many ways we can continue to positively impact our school community.
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| Happy New Year QES Families! “The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams" -Eleanor Roosevelt We are excited to be back with students. We are looking forward to continuing to learn and make connections to our surrounding community. Open Houses and Transfers January 16th 2023 will mark the first day of registration for Kindergarten and new grades 1-6 students. If you have friends or neighbours in the QES catchment area, please remind them to register! Just call the main office for more information. In the coming weeks we will be hosting a Kindergarten Open House. The date and time will be shared on our website soon. This is the time of year when we begin the long process of transitioning our grade 6 students to their designated Junior High Schools. Students who have their identified residence as being in the QES catchment area are designated to Queen Elizabeth Junior/High School. If your child has been attending QES from out of the attendance area, and they are in Grade 6, please check the Find A School application to determine your designated Junior High school. All students are automatically transferred to their designated schools in June. Out of attendance area transfers will be considered by the requested school's principal depending of available space and resources. Should you have questions about designated schools or the transfer process, please contact me at lamcconnell@cbe.ab.ca as soon as possible. Planning now makes for a good transition in September! Late French Immersion at Branton School will also be a transfer option for Grade 6 students. More information will be forth coming about Branton School. Grade 6s will have a presentation on January 18th about the program. You can also visit their website for more information. 2023-24 School Instructional Calendar Approved The first day of school is: CBE schools currently operating on the modified calendar will be transitioning to the traditional calendar starting in the 2023-24 school year. Unique-setting schools will continue to operate on the calendar that best meets the needs of their students. In support of student and staff well-being, the instructional calendar includes a short fall break with more consecutive days off than previously provided in the traditional calendar. The number of instructional hours in the school year remains unchanged. Two non-instructional days combined with a day in lieu for Remembrance Day allow for this break. This decision responds to what was heard through an engagement process related to transitioning to one calendar this fall. For 2023-24, this break will happen Nov. 9 – 14. Please visit the system calendar page for more information. You can also receive system and school updates by Subscribing to School Messages Alberta Education Assurance Survey Each year in January, Alberta Educations sends an important survey to all parents and guardians of students in Grade 4. The survey is called the Alberta Education Assurance Survey. Your voice matters. It is very important that families complete the survey and return it to Alberta Education. This survey presents an opportunity to celebrate the tremendous achievements of students, staff and yourselves, as community members. As a school community we have remained engaged in fostering school environment focused on achievement, and building a sense of community. Results of the survey are shared publicly and present an opportunity to share the successes QES with all community members! Parent Council and Association Another way to stay engaged with our school community is to attend our Parent Council and Association meetings. Our next meeting is on Tuesday, January 17, 2023 at 6:30pm. The Queen Elizabeth School Parent Society or QEEPES is responsible for funding many initiatives and events. The have made our days fun by offering Popcorn Snacks, Fun Lunches on Thursdays, Our Parent Council and Society ensure classes have any additional items they need. They have also made it possible for us to be a school in which programming is enriched through residencies and equipment. They have significantly contributed to the advancement of learning through their support for our teachers as they advance learning through quality community programs and partnerships. Welcome back! It was a pleasure to be back together today. Stay warm and healthy, Lisa McConnell
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| It is hard to believe we have completed two months of learning and are already into November! The first eight weeks have given staff time to work closely with your child, get to know them as a learner, and set goals as we work towards our first official reporting period in January.
Throughout September and October, we as a staff have been using a wide range of data sources to develop our school-wide focus for ongoing student success. The School Development Plan (SDP) is an important document that teachers use in their daily practice and grade team planning. This year our focus will be to develop strong writers with literacy tasks focused on written organization, highlight mathematical discourse about patterns and computational understanding within reasoning tasks, and positive relationships and efficacy in the learning community. The time we have spent as a staff over the past eight weeks analyzing achievement data from last year and gathering baseline data from this year (report card marks, diagnostic assessments, school-based assessments, perception surveys) has served to develop a data driven plan which addresses any gaps or trends in our student achievement. Our School Development Plan will be shared at the next School Council meeting on November 29th at 6:30pm. A final copy will also be posted on our website after November 30th, 2022. November will be a busy month for our students as we continue to focus on learning and being connected to our school community. With an upcoming hoop dancing residency funded by QUEEPES Parent Society, intramurals, and other engaging activities. QES will continue to be a hub of activity for both students and teachers. Thank you for your continued support and commitment to your child's learning we look forward to seeing you in the coming weeks. Sincerely, Lisa McConnell Principal
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| "There is no power for change greater than a community discovering what it cares about." – Margaret J. Wheatley Our school start-up has been exciting and rewarding! I have enjoyed being able to spend time in classes and observe students working collaboratively while developing strong relationships. Students have been engaged in a variety of tasks and initial projects that have required both teamwork and perseverance. Teachers have also been working diligently to know your child's strengths and understand both their academic and social/emotional needs. Our 'Curriculum Evening' also provided families the opportunity to learn more about the co-teaching and planning that is occurring amongst all grade teams. This night also outlined our focus on the big idea of “our roles within our learning community" and how this will be taken up throughout this year. Our grade teams are working with this and the program of studies and the new curriculum to build meaningful and engaging curriculum connections. If you would like more information about the Alberta Program of Studies and the New Curriculum at each grade level please see the website: http://www.learnalberta.ca/content/mychildslearning/. Or https://curriculum.learnalberta.ca/home/en Much of our work this year will also focus on working with students in the area of mathematics, literacy and wellbeing for learning. This involves developing purposeful learning experiences and opportunities for disciplinary engagement and assessment as well as working alongside our students to support them in developing positive relationships at school. Students and staff are committed to participation in our school culture in ways that will continue to foster a safe and caring learning environment. With that in mind, we are excited to have Nicole Balachorek join us part time to teach in the gym and implement the Physical Education Programs of Student and the new Physical Education and Wellness Curriculum and QES. I hope you will join me in welcoming Ms. Balachorek to the school community. At Queen Elizabeth we are also committed to making learning visible for our families. As partners in education we also welcome parent feedback and input in a variety of ways. Please feel free to contact your child's teacher with any questions you might have or call the office to arrange for a meeting.
I hope you enjoy the autumn weather and find ways to engage with city opportunities for Truth and Reconciliation today! Sincerely, Lisa McConnell
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| Welcome back, and I hope you have had a great summer. I am excited to meet you and our students on Thursday September 1, 2022! I always love the way the start of a new school year feels as classrooms are prepared with care within the building. The beginning of each school is always fun with, positive energy, excited connections and reconnections, optimism and hope for the great things to come and opportunities to be experienced this year. Staff at QES are all excited to see many familiar faces as well as some new ones as we greet students next week. It has been communicated to me by Ms. Marr, Mr. Tinaburri, and many other staff members that the QES school community has spent the last few years working together to maintain a learning community of which you can all be proud and of which I am, now, very excited to be a part. All students and staff are invited to wear their spirit wear or school colours on T-shirts on Friday Sept. 2nd to celebrate being back in school. Stay tuned for information from our parent society about spirit wear in the coming weeks. Thank you and we look forward to a successful 2022-23 school opening and another exciting year of learning. Sincerely, Lisa McConnell
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| I would like to take one final opportunity to say thank you to the students, families and staff at Queen Elizabeth School. It has been a pleasure and a privilege to learn and lead alongside of you. I will take many lessons and magical memories with me on my journey and I hope that each of you will do the same. The QES wolf pack is a very special group and I am very proud of the learning we have accomplished in the midst of such challenging times. For the outstanding team members who are also leaving this year, THANK YOU! Your efforts as educators and support staff are deeply appreciated and we wish you all the best in your next adventures. For the team members continuing on, KUDOS! I know you will continue to foster resilience, growth and success for each of our learners. For our students and community, my deepest GRATITUDE! I know that you will welcome Principal McConnell with enthusiasm and kindness into the wolf pack. Wishing you all a summer of rest, relaxation and FUN! All the best, Cristin Marr
Principal
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| Dear QES Families, I am writing today to share the news that I will be transitioning into a new role in the CBE at the end of this school year. It has been a pleasure and a privilege to lead in this amazing learning community of students, staff, and families of West Hillhurst. Through the many unforeseen circumstances of the past three years, I have appreciated the wonderful support of this close-knit and caring community. I want to deeply thank all of the parent volunteers and our marvellous School Council and QEEPES teams for all of their tremendous efforts to support student learning at QES. These amazing volunteers are truly the strength of our wolf pack. I would also like to greatly thank our entire staff team for their care, expertise and commitment to student learning and well-being – they bring the heart to our wolf pack each and every day. The Calgary Board of Education welcomes input from parents, students and staff regarding the programming and leadership attributes valued in a school principal. You can provide input at this survey link. Information collected will be used in the Principal selection process. The survey data will also be shared with the new Principal to inform their entry plan into the school. The survey will be available until 4:00 PM, Monday, June 1, 2022. I look forward to working closely with the new principal to ensure a smooth transition and a continued focus on success for each and every student into the next school year. We have some fun events planned for the remainder of the school year and I look forward to these opportunities to say goodbye in person. With gratitude, Cristin
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