EE Oliver Elementary
January Newsletter 2020
A chilly welcome to 2020
Please ensure you always send cold weather gear to school with your child. We still send students outside with temperatures at -24. It's better to have everything they need with them, than going out not dressed warm enough. Layers are key!
Pink Shirt Day
Does wearing pink stop bullying? Absolutely not! But people who are caring and kind can and do make a difference. Wearing pink is a way of reminding ourselves to stand together, lift each other up and to be caring and kind to one another.
Now a movement celebrated across the globe, Pink Shirt Day has humble beginnings. It was inspired by an act of kindness in small-town Nova Scotia. Here is a snippet of an article detailing the original incident:
“David Shepherd, Travis Price and their teenage friends organized a high-school protest to wear pink in sympathy with a Grade 9 boy who was being bullied [for wearing a pink shirt]…[They] took a stand against bullying when they protested against the harassment of a new Grade 9 student by distributing pink T-shirts to all the boys in their school.
‘I learned that two people can come up with an idea, run with it, and it can do wonders,’ says Mr. Price, 17, who organized the pink protest. ‘Finally, someone stood up for a weaker kid.’
So Mr. Shepherd and some other headed off to a discount store and bought 50 pink tank tops. They sent out message to schoolmates that night, and the next morning they hauled the shirts to school in a plastic bag. As they stood in the foyer handing out the shirts, the bullied boy walked in. His face spoke volumes. ‘It looked like a huge weight was lifted off his shoulders,’ Mr. Price recalled. The bullies were never heard from again.”
What are your kids up to online?
With so many children now having their own personal devices, as parents we have a responsibility to teach our kids how to use them appropriately. While the staff do endeavour to teach a lot of these skills to our students, we do encourage active involvement from our parents and guardians.
A wonderful website to help navigate this new minefield is https://www.commonsensemedia.org/
Take a look around.
If you have any questions about managing your kids accounts, please call the school and we will try and help. We are also looking at running info sessions at our next parent teacher interview evenings in March
Bullying & PRSD
The work we do to foster safe and caring learning environments is consistent and on-going through various programs, initiatives, and presentations focused on healthy relationships and personal wellbeing. Mentorship and leadership programs, student groups, wellness and character education, behaviour support programs, and our focus on citizenship support a culture of respect and kindness in our schools.
In Peace River School Division, we employ divisional Social Workers, Success Coaches and Youth Education Support Workers who support safe and caring schools through regular programming, small groups, conflict resolution, one-on-one support. Our Social Workers, Success Coaches and Youth Education Support Workers also provide a link for our schools and families to access community resources and supports that may be available from various agencies.
As our Safe and Caring policy states “All those involved with the division including trustees, employees, students, parents, volunteers, contractors and visitors must share in the responsibility for eliminating bullying, discrimination, harassment, and violence. The board prohibits bullying and expects allegations of such behaviours to be investigated in a timely and respectful manner.”
View PRSD’s Board Policy 19 Welcoming, Caring, Respectful and Safe Learning Environment on our website homepage to read Policy 19 in detail.
Safety Advisory Committee
Warm up with a nice bowl of soup
The soup program is not intended to replace the lunches your child brings from home, but rather will be a wonderful hot option for them to add to it.
Order forms / consent for students to receive the free soup have been sent home. If you need another copy, please let the office know.
Please note that due to the arrangements of our joint-use kitchen, at this time we are unable to offer allergen-safe food.
Want to get involved and help out? Please contact the Family School Liaison, Mrs. Kramer at the school.
soup group start-up January 14, 2020
Day #1
97 students served
Chicken Noodle Vegetable
FREE!
Available to students with signed consents AND to those who have ordered it during Tuesday morning attendance
Parents have a voice in education
In January and February many parents will receive a survey in their mailbox from Alberta Education. Please take a few moments to complete this survey - your participation is very important to us.
Your response to the survey provides valuable information regarding what is working in schools and what needs improvement. Your answers to the questions in the survey are confidential and are considered during school and divisional planning. Therefore, this survey provides an opportunity for you to impact decision making regarding your child’s education and school.
The survey is mailed to parents in grades 4, 7 and 10 (unless the school has fewer than 120 students in grades 4-12 in which case the survey will be expanded to include all students and parents). To ensure we receive as many responses back from parents as possible, the survey comes with a postage-paid return envelope.
Thank you in advance for your time spent in completing the survey. Through working and learning together, your input and involvement make our schools great places to grow, learn and be.
Paul Bennett,
Superintendent of Schools
Peace River School Division
Grade 3's are building bridges
Here birdy!!
Indigenous Education
Interested Grade six students have begun to play handgames once a week during lunch recess.
Cultural hand games have been a part of First Nation’s history for hundreds of years and are still being played today all across North America.
Originally, First Nations people played hand games for entertainment as well as for trading purposes. Over time the games became more elaborate and regional variations developed.
The similarities across nations include: it is a hiding and guessing game, players try to distract their opponents with gestures and movements, sticks are used as counters to determine the winner, and the game is played to the beat of a drum.
Grade one and two students are learning about The Teachings of the Seven Grandfathers. These teachings, also known as Seven Sacred Teachings, is a part of the indigenous culture that is intended to guide human conduct towards others.
The first teaching being discussed is Respect - Mnaadendimowin
"Respect is represented by the buffalo. The buffalo gives every part of his being to sustain the human way of living, not because he is of less value, but because he respects the balance and needs of others. To honor all creation is to have respect. Live honorably in teachings and in your actions towards all things. Do not waste and be mindful of the balance of all living things. Share and give away what you do not need. Treat others the way you would like to be treated. Do not be hurtful to yourself or others."
Things are looking fishy around here
We will keep everyone updated as they grow!
Important Dates
24th - Rockstar Day
27th - K - 2 Dental Checks
28th - K - 2 Dental Checks
31st - NO SCHOOL - PD day
February
5th - Wellness Options Day
5th - Winter Walk
7th - Junior Girls Basketball game at 2pm
14th - No SCHOOL
17th - NO SCHOOL - Family Day
18th - Heartbeat Theatre Performance
20th - Parent Council Meeting
28th - Jersey Day