Daysland Digest

Welcome back! On behalf of the staff at Daysland School, I would like to say how great it is to have our students back to begin the 2023-24 school year. We hope that all of our families had a wonderful summer. This year's first newsletter has many essential updates on what you can expect this school year. Here are some key points I would like to highlight to begin the year.

We will continue to use PowerSchool as our primary source of student information and communication on progress. We are in the second year of a two-year pilot using Real-Time Reporting. This means we will not have traditional report cards sent home. All student feedback will be through PowerSchool using assignment comments. These comments will be provided consistently throughout the school year, emphasizing Literacy and Numeracy in Elementary and the core subjects in High School.

To establish early connections with families, we will be conducting early Parent Teacher Interviews. Interviews will be on Thursday, September 28th, from 3:30 to 8:30 pm. These interviews will be by appointment, and a link will be sent home early next week so that you can book a time.

One key change to our calendar this year is Staff Meetings days. They will continue to be on the first Thursday of the month (except January and February, which will be the second Thursday). However, this year, students will be dismissed for an entire half day at 11:40. We will continue to have reminders in the newsletter about our early dismissal days. The first one will be October 5th.

Another difference this year is that we welcome Sedgewick high school students during the afternoon for shop class with Mr. Kerslake. They are sending their Gr. 11s and 12s during block three right after lunch and then the Grade 10s during the last block of the day. You will see their bus in our bus lane until 2:40.

We plan to continue celebrating our students during our monthly school assemblies. Our students do great things, and we look forward to recognizing them for it. We will also continue to build school culture through our cross-graded squad groups. Squad time is when we get together in groups with students from each of the grades to do various activities. We will share the highlights with you in our newsletters and Social Media posts.

Along with our bi-weekly Daysland Digest, please stay tuned to our school website and social media for further updates. You can follow us on Instagram, Facebook and X (Twitter).

If you have any questions throughout the school year, please do not hesitate to contact us at the office. We look forward to a fun and rewarding year of learning together at Daysland School.

Last week, we sent home communication regarding an interaction that one of our students had with an unfamiliar man while walking in the community. We provided this information because it was necessary for our families to be aware and take extra vigilance following a potentially dangerous interaction like this one. This week, a student also reported an interaction with a stranger. It was less alarming than the one reported last week and did not require direct parent notification. However, it continues to highlight the importance of having conversations with kids of all ages about stranger awareness and ways to avoid a compromising situation. Please continue to talk with your child about the importance of stranger awareness and safety. Please encourage them to walk with a buddy whenever possible and immediately report any strange interactions with unfamiliar people to an adult they trust. Your attention to this is greatly appreciated. If you have any questions, please reach out to Mr. Wilson.

Sept.

14 - Welcome Back Breakfast!

15/16 - Jr. V-Ball @ COMP

18 - Sr. Golf Zones @ Camrose

21 - Camrose X-Country

22 - Terry Fox Run

22/23 - Sr. G V-Ball @ Wetaskiwin

25 - Staff Collaboration Day (no classes)

28 - New Norway Cross Country

29/30 - Jr. V-Ball @ Hay Lakes

29/30 - Sr. G V-Ball @ OLMP

Oct.

5 - Hardisty X-Country

5 - Staff Meeting (Early Dismissal @ 11:40)

6 - School Photos

9 - Thanksgiving (school closed)

Permission form packages have been sent home with each student. Please carefully read, fill out, sign, date, and return all forms before September 22. If you have not received your package or if you have any questions, please call the school at 780-374-3676.

If you have not already done so, there are also Verification Forms that were sent by Battle River school Division that need to be completed through SchoolEngage. If you are unsure how to access SchoolEngage or the PowerSchool Parent Portal, please contact Mrs. Omoth at somoth@brsd.ab.ca.

Our first School Council Meeting is on September 20th at 7:00pm in the Learning commons.

All parents and guardians are encouraged and welcome to attend.

Our Athletics Seasons have begun! Our gr. 4 - 12 Cross Country runners are meeting on Tuesdays and Thursdays after school. Typically, they will be done practices by 4:00pm. Their first competition will be in Camrose on September 21.

Our Girls Volleyball teams have been practicing, and have begun tournament play as well. The season is looking promising!

Our annual Terry Fox Run/Walk will take place for all students in grades 1 to 12 on Friday, September 22. Students will walk in groups around the pond. We will be running a "Toonie for Terry" donation box on this day for anyone interested in making a donation.

*Please note: Students who have not returned their Local Field Trip Consent form will have to remain on school property for the run/walk.

We have contracted with Smart Photography to take the students' photographs this year. All Kindergarten to Grade 12 students will have their individual portraits and group photos taken on Friday, October 6th.

If you are interested in purchasing Daysland School clothing, please visit

https://dayslandschool.entripyshops.com

Orders can be paced at any time of the year and will ship directly to the purchaser.

Teaching Staff

Mrs. J. Thomas - Assistant Principal

Mrs. K. Tanton (Miss A. Pfeffer) - Kindergarten

Mrs. K. Reber - Grade 1

Mrs. M. Schlaut (Mrs. C. Tucker) - Grade 2

Mrs. H. Schmidt-Teigen - Grade 3

Miss K. Halback - Grade 4

Mr. T. Kerslake - Grade 5

Mrs. B. McKay - Grade 6

Mr. B Pastachak - Grade 7/8

Mr. R. Gratrix - Grade 9

Mrs. C. Tobler - Grade 10

Mrs. V. Zimmer - Grade 11

Mrs. R. Walker - Grade 12

Mrs. C. Holt - Elementary PE, Art & Jr. High Options

Support Staff

Mrs. S. Omoth - Administrative Assistant

Mrs. L. Robbins - Administrative Assistant

Mrs. T. Zimmel - Learning Commons

Ms. K. Auburn - Educational Assistant

Mrs. C. Bendfeld - Educational Assistant

Mrs. G. Klein - Educational Assistant

Mrs. C. Kroetsch - Head Custodian

We would like to welcome back Mrs. Theresa Kruchten who will be available by appointment to assist students in academic and career counselling. The focus will be on post-secondary opportunities, process and requirements. Students in high school who wish to meet with Mrs. Kruchten can book an appointment using the online booking calendar in HS+Google Classrooom.

On the morning of Friday, September 22, we are excited to welcome Canadian renowned author Eric Walters to our school for an author visit!

Mr. Walters will be presenting to students in grades 1-9. He will be sharing with us his love for reading, writing and storytelling. This promises to be a fantastic opportunity for our students to connect with a celebrated author and foster a deeper appreciation for literature.

About Eric Walters:

It all began in 1993 when Eric was teaching a Grade 5 class. His students were reluctant readers and writers, and Eric began to write to encourage them to become more involved in literature. His first novel, Stand Your Ground, was created for this class. It is set in the school where Eric was teaching, Vista Heights Public School, and some of the features of the community of Streetsville and many of the names of his students were incorporated into the story.

Since his first novel Eric has exploded on the children’s and young adult scene. Over the past two decades he has published 125 published novels and picture books, with an additional nine scheduled in the coming years.

These novels have been enthusiastically received by children and young adults and critically acclaimed by teachers, reviewers and parents. Eric’s novels have won more than 100 awards including eleven separate children’s choice awards.

Eric has presented to more than 1,500,000 students across North America and internationally in Japan, Kenya and Germany. His presentations blend drama, storytelling, audience participation and interaction.

Opportunity to purchase Eric Walters books:

We have many of Eric Walters books in our school library, but if you would like to purchase one of your own, attached is an order form. To find out more about his books, please check out his website at www.ericwalters.net. If you are interested in purchasing a book, you can complete this form and return it in an envelope with cash or check payable to Rule of Three Inc. Eric will also be bringing some books with him the day of his presentation for students and teachers to purchase.

Thank you,

Mrs. Zimmel

Learning Commons Facilitator

In order to better monitor students' whereabouts and improve safety, Daysland School has a "closed campus" policy for all K-9 students.

K-9 (bus) students require a signed and dated parent note for each and every occasion, and "blanket notes" will not be accepted.

A "blanket" permission form for senior high students was included in the registration package that came home last week.

As part of our emergency preparedness plan, a variety of emergency drills are held throughout the year. In addition to fire drill, we will also practice our lockdown procedure and what to do should there be a severe weather event/tornado. Bus drivers will carry-out bus evacuation drills. The purpose of these drills is to ensure that staff and students know what to do in the event of a real emergency, and practicing helps us to review our procedures and to adapt them if necessary. The drills are generally not announced to students in advance (except at the very beginning of the year), and we will always notify families if there ever was a real emergency.

The purpose of this bulletin is to provide clarification of the school policy regarding students and staff with severe (anaphylactic) allergies. Daysland School recognizes the dangers faced by students and staff with severe or anaphylactic reactions (allergies) to foods, insect stings, medications, latex or other substances. While the school cannot guarantee an allergen-free environment, the school will take whatever reasonable steps are necessary to ensure a safe environment for children and staff with life-threatening allergies. Our policy and practices are based on the guidelines and recommendations contained in the document entitled Anaphylaxis in Schools and Other Settings, which can be viewed in its entirety on the Allergy Safe Communities web site:

www.allergysafecommunities.ca .

Within our school community there are several individuals who have a potentially life-threatening allergy (anaphylaxis) to foods, predominantly to:

Ø Peanuts

Ø Tree nuts (e.g. walnut, almond, cashew, hazelnut, pistachio)

A teacher letter will be sent home with each child in those elementary classes directly affected by having an allergic individual (student or staff member) who primarily works in the room. These classrooms will be declared “allergy safe” zones, with heightened adult supervision in place during eating times. Children in the class will learn about life-threatening allergies and ways to help their allergic friends stay safe.Students at risk of anaphylaxis must progressively learn to avoid specific triggers in order to function in society outside the school setting. This happens over time as the child becomes developmentally more mature. Parents should teach food-allergic children to stick to strict safety rules (not sharing or accepting food, carrying epinephrine, etc.) While the key responsibility lies with the students at risk and their families, the school community must also be aware, and for that reason we ask that all families avoid sending the foods (or products containing them) listed above. We need to be particularly vigilant at times of special events, such as Halloween, when classroom treats may be brought from home.

The junior/senior high school setting is much harder to control than the elementary school setting. Certain “allergy safe” zones will be declared, however anaphylactic secondary school students must take on the primary responsibility for allergen avoidance at school and in other environments since they move around the entire campus and interact with many teachers and peers. Again, we believe the best way to reduce the risk of accidental exposure to these students (and staff members) is to respectfully ask for the co-operation of all parents/guardians within this school community to avoid sending products to school that have peanuts or tree nuts listed in the ingredients.

Your cooperation and understanding of this matter is appreciated.