Theme Days

Thank you to our leadership 9 students for organizing some festive theme days during the last few school days before the break.

Monday, Dec. 19 will be Pajama Day! Kona and Candy Canes for our Elementary students.

DECEMBER

Dec 20 - Last Day of School before Christmas Break

Christmas Break Dec. 21 to Jan 3, 2023

January

Jan. 4 - First day back from break & Early Dismissal 2:10 pm

Jan. 10 - Saffron Presentations 73/74

Jan 11 - Saffron Presentations 81/82/83

Jan 12 - Linking Generations Visit

Jan 13 - Saffron Presentations 71/72/91/93

Jan 16 - Saffron Presentations 92/94

Jan 24 - Field Trip Sunridge Ski Area Grades 4 to 7

Jan 26 - Linking Generations Visit

Jan 30 - PL Day - No School

This is just a friendly reminder that the website is now open for our January - March hot lunch orders!

We have some great vendors on the menu for this round, so please remember to order and pay in full prior to our deadline, which is SUNDAY, DECEMBER 18th.

Also remember, this is a major fundraiser for our great school! Any proceeds raised from your hot lunch orders go towards paying for the "extras" that our kids would not otherwise be able to enjoy.

Happy ordering!!

Kathi Engel

LLR Hot Lunch Coordinator

Is your child considering the Elk Island Public Schools (EIPS) Junior High Honours program for the coming school year? The EIPS Junior High Honours program is designed for students in grades 8 and 9 with high achievement in their core courses and who enjoy a challenging academic environment. Students enrolled in Junior High Honours are expected to complete 25 hours of community service in an area of passion and will be automatically enrolled in the “CTF: Enterprise and Innovation” option course. Students must have a minimum 80 per cent average in each of the four core subjects to be eligible to apply to the Junior High Honours program.

On January 9, the parent/guardian No. 1 on file in PowerSchool for all current grades 7 and 8 families will receive direct communication from EIPS outlining the application process for the EIPS Junior High Honours program—including a link to the application form. Applications for the 2023-24 EIPS Junior High Honours program are due Jan. 18, 2023.

EIPS will confirm conditional acceptance in the 2023-24 Junior High Honours program in late-January—based on a student’s marks as of January 18. Students must maintain their honours standing on the year-end report card in June to receive final acceptance in the Honours program for the upcoming year.

Tryouts will begin right after school at 3:15 and go until 3:45. Students will be excused as soon as their tryout is done. A change of clothes and good running shoes are recommended. Tryout dates are as follows:

• Monday, December 12: Grade 6

• Tuesday, December 13: Grade 5

• Wednesday, December 14: Grade 4

• Friday, December 16: any students who were absent or could not make their tryout date

The team list will be posted on December 21st. Students will need to listen to the announcements for the date and location. Students selected to be part of the team will practice in the mornings (Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday mornings from 7:45-8:15), allowing students who have extracurricular activities to participate. If you have any questions please contact one of the track coaches (the coach who teaches the same grade as your child).

Mrs. Beecroft Mr. Szydlowski Mr. Baker

Mrs. Cutforth Mrs. Verbitsky Mrs. Travis Mrs. Cohn

Please note:

***Tryouts are closed to spectators

***There will be a fee for those students who make the team of up to $46.00 (covering

the associated costs for meets) plus a $15.00 uniform usage fee

***Our first practice will be on Tuesday, January 10th at 7:45am

IMPORTANT INFORMATION:

TRACK MEETS:

Due to the last couple of Covid years, some of the meets have been canceled or information has not yet been provided. At this point, we are only aware of the Running Room Games meets scheduled for the following dates:

• Wednesday, February 22 OR Thursday, February 23 – Elementary Elimination

• Saturday, March 11 – Games Finals

There will also be a potential outdoor EIPS meet in May.

Only students who are available to attend the dates above should be trying out as full commitment to the team is required.

Is your child turning five on or before Dec. 31, 2023? If so, it’s almost time to register for kindergarten.

Kindergarten registration opens for the 2023-24 school year on Feb. 1, 2023.

To help families prepare, Elk Island Public Schools has put together an online EIPS Kindergarten Tool kit to make the transition as smooth as possible. The kit includes information on registration, important dates, programming options, what to expect, eligibility, how to find your designated school, transportation and more.

Elk Island Public Schools (EIPS) will once again conduct an online returning student registration process to confirm student registrations for the 2023-24 school year. Families of all current students—with the exception of graduating Grade 12 students—must complete the process to confirm the school their child plans to attend in the 2023-24 school year or advise the Division of their plans not to return to EIPS. Additionally, students who want to attend a non-designated school need to make that request through the returning student registration process—acceptance is based on available space. The 2023-24 returning student registration takes place Feb. 1-28, 2023.

Access to the Returning Student Registration Form is provided through the PowerSchool Parent Portal. If you don’t have a PowerSchool Parent Portal account, you need to set one up before Feb. 1, 2023.

Create a PowerSchool Parent Portal account

If circumstances exist where you’re unable to pay school or transportation fees, you can apply to have fees waived by submitting an Application for a Waiver of Fees. The application deadline is Dec. 15, 2022. If you’re new to the Division, the deadline is the latter of Dec. 15, 2022, or 45 days after registration.

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 using Visa or MasterCard. All fees are due within 30 days of being posted.

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 and more.

For more information about school fees, waivers and payment deadlines, visit www.eips.ca/schools/fees and and lakelandridge. Alternatively, contact Cathy Eybren at Lakeland Ridge School at 780-416-9018.

Lakeland Ridge will close for the Christmas break at the end of the day on Tuesday, Dec. 20, 2022. The school will reopen on Wednesday, Jan. 4, 2023. During this time, if you have any school-related questions or concerns, contact Elk Island Public Schools (EIPS) Central Services at 780-464-3477.

EIPS Central Services Christmas Break Hours

Open December 22 and 23; 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Closed Dec. 26, 2022 to Jan. 2, 2023

Open January 3; 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

*for location and contact information visit www.eips.ca.

From everyone at Elk Island Public Schools, we wish all of you a happy holiday season and a wonderful New Year.

The Annual Education Results Report 2021-22 is now available. The report is a summary of how EIPS is doing relative to Alberta Education’s performance measures; how it's supporting students to achieve the best possible outcomes; and its successes, challenges and priority strategies moving forward. Both the full report and an overview are available for readers.

Reflecting on this report and the past school year, Elk Island Public Schools (EIPS) wants to hear from you to gain a deeper understanding of your confidence in the Division and its strategic direction. As such, the annual EIPS Year-in-Review: Stakeholder Confidence Survey is open December 1-18.

The survey covers a range of topics, including student growth and achievement, learning supports, teaching and leading, governance and resource allocations. The information gathered will help EIPS:

· assess stakeholder confidence—families, staff, Grade 12 students and community members;

· gather input to guide future decision-making;

· gather feedback to enhance its Four-Year Education Plan; and

· provide a platform for families, students, staff and community members to have a voice in ensuring high-quality, student-centred learning environments in EIPS schools.

EIPS will share the results in the Annual Education Results Report 2022-23.

TAKE THE SURVEY NOW!
Survey closes Dec. 18, 2022

NOTE: EIPS encourages everyone to respond honestly. Your identity and answers are confidential and cannot be linked to you or your child’s school. Grade 12 students will have an opportunity to complete the survey at school. Families who do not want their child to complete the survey simply need to advise their child’s school.

Elk Island Public Schools (EIPS) will once again conduct an online returning student registration process to confirm student registrations for the 2023-24 school year. Families of all current students—with the exception of graduating Grade 12 students—must complete the process to confirm the school their child plans to attend in the 2023-24 school year or advise the Division of their plans not to return to EIPS. Additionally, students who want to attend a non-designated school need to make that request through the returning student registration process—acceptance is based on available space. The 2023-24 returning student registration takes place Feb. 1-28, 2023.

Access to the Returning Student Registration Form is provided through the PowerSchool Parent Portal. If you don’t have a PowerSchool Parent Portal account, you need to set one up before Feb. 1, 2023.

Create a PowerSchool Parent Portal account

For more information, contact the school office at 780-416-9018.

Want to know when things are happening? We have an athletics calendar on the LLR school website. https://www.lakelandridge.ca/athletics/athletics-calendar. Please visit often as our Athletics staff will update as often as they can. Please feel free to contact Mr. Fisher (our Athletics Director) if you have any questions or require more information.

Elk Island Public Schools and Lakeland Ridge use a handful of key systems to share information with students and families. Depending on the information you’re looking for, it’s important to know where to look.

PowerSchool is the primary student information system within the Division. There is an associated app, but the functionality is limited, and families don’t need to download it. From the PowerSchool Parent Portal, you can:

· Access student grades and report cards;

· Review student absences;

· Pay school and transportation fees; and

· Submit official updates to student or family information.

The PowerSchool Student Portal provides similar access to grades and absence information for students directly.

Brightspace provides more of a day-to-day look what’s happening with your child’s learning communicated directly from your child’s teacher. From Brightspace Parent & Guardian, you can see your child’s:

· classroom activity feed,

· grade items and grade feedback from instructors,

· upcoming assignments,

· portfolio evidence and

· quizzes

depending on which of the program functions are specifically used by your child’s teacher.

Brightspace for Students is where teachers share updates, calendar reminders and learning materials with students. Compatible with Google, it also allows students to submit assignments, complete quizzes, and see grades and teacher feedback. The Pulse app for students is associated with Brightspace for Students.

SchoolMessenger is the system the Division and schools use to send email and phone communication to families. The contact information in SchoolMessenger is populated from PowerSchool. Through SchoolMessenger, families can:

· receive general, emergency and attendance messages by phone, email or both; and

· manage their subscription preferences for these types of messages.

The easiest way to stay connected is to download the SchoolMessenger app. Get the latest updates direct to your mobile device and enable push notifications to never miss a message. Families can also check back on past messages—for up to 30 days—directly in the app rather than searching to find an old message buried in your inbox.

If you have trouble accessing any of these systems or have questions about them, contact Lakeland Ridge School a 780-416-9018.

With the winter season almost here, we want to remind families to dress children appropriately for the weather when getting ready for school or the bus. The weather often changes unexpectedly throughout the day, so please select suitable outerwear and ensure your child is prepared for changing conditions.

If inclement weather conditions occur, Elk Island Public Schools (EIPS) advises families of any bus cancellations using various communications tools—automated-telephone messages, alerts posted on www.eips.ca and school websites, Twitter, Facebook, local radio stations, and notification through both the Bus Status and the Ride 360 apps. Morning bus cancellations are posted on www.eips.ca by 6:30 a.m.

Decisions regarding bus cancellations are guided by EIPS administrative procedures that state, “school bus service may be suspended…when there is a forecast or current temperature of -40 C, including wind chill factor, in one or more regions.” Other reasons for suspending or delaying school bus services include adverse weather and poor road conditions. When school bus services are suspended, schools remain open to students. EIPS believes families have the right and responsibility to make choices for their children based on their beliefs and perceptions of safety during times of inclement weather.

For more information, contact EIPS Student Transportation at 780-417-8151.

Lakeland Ridge School fees have now been applied to your child’s student account. Please log into your PowerSchool Parent Portal account to view and pay these fees. If your child does not stay for lunch at all during the school year contact the office at 780.416.9018 by October 14, 2022, to have the fee removed. If you have already made a payment, please check your account again for any changes/updates.

If a yearbook is desired, please add it to your cart when you pay your school fees.

Fees are due 30 days following assessment as per Administrative Procedure 505 – School and Administrative Fees.

If you are experiencing difficulty in meeting this commitment to pay fees, please contact our Business Manager, Cathy Eyben to arrange installments or review the Division’s fee waiver process on the EIPS website. The deadline for receipt of a Waiver Application is December 15, 2022. No applications will be accepted after this date.

Please check your child’s student account throughout the year for any changes, and/or additions (i.e., Optional Fieldtrips, Athletic Team Fees).

For more information about school fees, waivers and payment deadlines, visit www.eips.ca/schools/fees and Lakeland Ridge Fees. Alternatively, contact Cathy Eyben, Business Manager at Lakeland Ridge at 780-416-9018.

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