It's Fall, Y'All!
Weekly Update October 16 - October 20
Upcoming Dates and Events
OCTOBER
Oct. 13 & 14 - Volleyball Tournament
Oct. 17 - School Council Meeting @ 6:30 pm (Agenda)/ PAS Meeting @ 7:30 pm (Agenda)
Oct. 19 - Linking Generations Visit
Oct. 23 - 27 - Book Fair
Oct. 24 - Grade 6 Immunizations
Oct. 25 - Picture Retakes; Parent Teacher Interviews @ 4:00pm
Oct. 26 - Picture Retakes alt Kinder Group; Parent Teacher Interviews @ 4:00pm
Oct. 27 & 28 - Halloween Howler Jr. VB Tournament
Oct. 31 - Halloween
NOVEMBER
Nov. 1 - Early Dismissal / Cash 4 Care / Jersey Day
Nov. 6-10 - November Break - No School
Nov. 13 - 17 - Bullying Awareness and Prevention Week
Nov. 14 - School Council Meeting @ 6:30 pm
Nov. 16 - Linking Generation Visit
Staffing Update
Congratulations to Crystal Brownlee who accepted the position of Acting Assistant Principal and started last week. She will be the Odd Grade Level Administrator.
Also, congratulations to Robyn Atwood and Katayoon Kohnehshahry who accepted temporary Educational Assistant positions at Lakeland Ridge. Both Robyn and Katy will begin on Monday, October 16.
Parent Action Society (PAS) Meeting
We would like to invite Lakeland Ridge families to attend our first Parent Action Society (PAS) meeting at 7:30PM in the school library. During the October PAS meeting, we will hold executive elections. Available positions include Chair, Vice-Chair, Secretary, Treasurer and Directors At Large. PAS meets approximately 3-4 times throughout the school year to decide on fundraising activities to support school initiatives. In the past, PAS funds have allowed us to upgrade student spaces within the school, such as the school library, as well as purchase physical education and musical theatre equipment. If you are interested in becoming involved, we encourage you to attend our PAS meeting on October 17.
Here are related School Council and PAS documents for your reference:
🗓 Coming Up!
Parent Teacher Interviews
Online booking will open up on Tuesday, October 17 at 4:00PM and will close on Tuesday, October 24 at 4:00PM. Watch for detailed information being sent out on Tuesday morning. Please note Kindergarten interviews will be held Wednesday, October 25 & Thursday, October 26 from 9:00AM to 6:00PM.
💡Reminders
School fees 💲
School fee information for the 2023-24 school year is now posted on the PowerSchool Parent Portal. All fees are due within 30 days of being posted. To access your fee information, simply log in to the PowerSchool Parent Portal and go to “Student Fees.” There you can view your fees and pay them online. This is where you can also add and pay for this year's yearbook.
Don’t forget to also log in to the PowerSchool Parent Portal regularly throughout the year. Fees are often added to your child’s account to cover the cost of various school activities such as field trips, class projects, extracurricular activities fees and more.
If circumstances exist where you’re unable to pay your fees, you can apply to have certain fees waived by submitting an Application for a waiver of fees. The application deadline is December 15, 2023.
For more information about school fees, waivers, and payment deadlines visit eips.ca. Alternatively, contact Cathy Eyben, Business Manager at Lakeland Ridge School at 780-416-9018.
Office Reminders ✔️
Fall has arrived which means the weather is unpredictable and it is getting colder and wetter. Please ensure your child is dressed for the weather conditions and consider packing an extra pair of socks or pants just in case. Thank you!
Student Medication 💊
If your student requires medication to be accessible at the school such as Tylenol, Advil, Benadryl, Reactine, and Tums, please fill out the Medication Management Plan via Permission Click and bring the medication to the office for storage.
Students are not permitted to administer their own medication at school. All medication should be provided in its original packaging and labelled with the student’s name. All medication will be stored in the office with administering recorded.
Halloween
We have many students with wonderful, creative ideas about what costumes to wear. What is important to remember, though, is costumes that portray stereotypes about a specific group, culture or race can be hurtful. While we are confident our students would not intentionally try to offend their classmates or teachers, we need to be sensitive to the fact that having one’s background or identity depicted as a costume can be viewed as disrespectful. Elk Island Public Schools is committed to providing a welcoming, caring, respectful, and safe learning and working environments. It is important that celebrations being held at our schools can be enjoyed by everyone - please help us ensure Halloween is fun for all our students! If you have any questions about whether a costume would be appropriate, please contact the school. We are looking forward to a Spooktacular day!
Jr Boys Cross Country Champions!! Congrats to Milo for breaking a record with 6.44!!!
🏃🏃♂️🏃♀️
Lifetouch Picture Proofs
To view your photos please go to mylifetouch.ca
Start by creating an account with your email. Enter Sherwood Park, Alberta, and Lakeland Ridge School. Add your student's First name, Last name, and their 9-digit ASN number (found in PowerSchool under school fees) and enter your relationship to the student. You can then search for their picture. If you have any issues, please contact Lifetouch at 866-457-8212.
Parent Resources 🤗
From Alexa to Algorithms: Parenting in the era of AI
Join the University of Alberta and Amii for an engaging 45-minute online webinar designed to boost AI literacy for parents of kids of all ages, from kindergarten to graduate students. The session will focus on global citizenship, online safety, and education and career guidance.
Don't miss this fun and informative opportunity to empower your parenting in the age of AI, ensuring your kids thrive in tomorrow's tech-driven world.
Event Details:
Date: Nov. 2, 2023
Time: 10:30 a.m. to 11:15 p.m.
Location: Virtual
REGISTER NOW
Respiratory Illness Guidance
The health and safety of staff, students and visitors is a top priority. Continue to reinforce the following hygiene habits to protect staff and students from spreading respiratory illnesses, including COVID-19.
- Stay home if you’re feeling sick.
- Wash or sanitize your hands often.
- Cover your coughs and sneezes.
- Avoid touching your face.
- Clean and disinfect high touch surfaces regularly.
- Wear a mask if you get sick or develop symptoms while at school or work.
As per Alberta Health guidelines, staff, students, contractors and visitors who have symptoms of respiratory Illness or test positive for COVID, should stay home until:
- symptoms have improved,
- they feel well enough to resume normal activities, and
- they have been fever-free for 24 hours without using fever-reducing medications.
For anyone who has a respiratory illness or has tested positive for COVID, it is recommended that they wear a mask for a total of 10 days from the onset of symptoms—even if the symptoms have resolved or improved—when in indoor settings with other individuals.
Enhancing Literacy and Numeracy
As part of Elk Island Public Schools’ (EIPS) ongoing efforts to enhance the literacy and numeracy of students in all grade levels, the Division is once again administering the Star Early Literacy, Star Reading and Star Math assessment tools in the 2023-24 school year. These tools focus on literacy and numeracy, are digitally based and offer an opportunity for students to demonstrate their learning. The goal: To provide timely information to teachers, help enhance classroom instruction and identify student learning needs.
Three times a year, EIPS students in Grade 1 complete the Star Early Literacy assessment and students in grades 2-12 complete the Star Reading assessment. Both assessments are administered electronically and take about 20 minutes. Students in grades 2 through 10 also complete the Star Math, a mathematic screening tool. It, too, is administered electronically and takes about 30 minutes for students to complete. The results offer teachers a clearer picture of a student’s learning needs and help determine if subsequent instructional planning is required. NOTE: Semester students complete the Star Math twice, at the start and end of the course.
In addition to the Star assessments, Alberta Education now mandates all students in grades 1-3 complete additional literacy and numeracy assessments. Students in Grade 2 and Grade 3 complete these provincial assessments in September. Grade 1 students will complete the assessments in January 2023.
The scores of the assessments aren’t used toward a student’s grade, and there is no need to study ahead of time. The tools simply provide the teacher with information to better understand where each student is in terms of reading comprehension and mathematic ability. If, after analyzing the results, it’s determined a student can benefit from extra support, the teacher will contact the family to discuss possible support strategies.
For more information about the Division’s Star and MIPI assessment tools, contact EIPS Supports for Students at 780-464-3477.