November 25 BUZZ

Happy Monday!

While we enter our final week of November we have a lot of great things to look forward to!

Glen Allan's Annual Food Drive begins today and we will collect donations until Friday, November 29. We hope to collect food to match or beat last year's total of 772 pounds! 

This week's BUZZ also includes information about the upcoming Winter Showcase. This year's winter showcase will be once again be held at Glen Allan School. Information about the showcase schedule, ticket allocations and volunteers needed can be found in the blog post article below.

Also, a reminder that on Friday report cards will be published to PowerSchool. More information about accessing report cards can be found in the blog post articles below. 

It's a great week for a great week!

Please read through the following blog post articles for important Glen Allan information. 

Week-at-a-Glance 

Upcoming Important Dates and Events 

Action 

• Glen Allan Food Drive for Strathcona Food Bank
• Strathcona Christmas Bureau
• Winter Showcase 2024 Information 
• Volunteers Required for Winter Showcase!
• Want a front-row seat to this year's Winter Showcase? 

Opportunity 

• Regulation Strategies

Information 

• Report Cards are Coming!
• Report Card Frequently Asked Questions
• Shelter in Place Drill

First Nations, Métis, and Inuit Information

• Indigenous Artist Showcase - Destiny Swiderski

WEEK AT A GLANCE - November 25 - November 29

Upcoming Important Dates and Events 

• November 25 - 29: Glen Allan Food Drive
• November 29: Report Cards Published
• December 4: Early dismissal
• December 10: KB Winter Showcase (2:15-2:45) 
• December 11: KA Winter Showcase (2:15-2:45), Gr. 1 & 2, 2/3 Winter Showcase (6:00-6:30), Gr. 3 & 4 Winter Showcase (7:00-7:30), Gr. 5 & 6 Winter Showcase (8:00-8:30)
• December 16: Theme Day - Wear Holiday Colors 
• December 17: Theme Day: Holiday Accessories
• December 18: Theme Day: Socks and Slippers Day
• December 19: Theme Day: Holiday Sweaters
• December 20: Theme Day: PJ Day
• December 23 to January 3: Christmas break (schools closed to staff and students)
• December 25 to January 1: Central Services Christmas closure days
• January 8: Early dismissal

ACTION

Glen Allan Food Drive for Strathcona Food Bank

Glen Allan's 5th Annual Strathcona Food Bank Drive

We are very excited to announce Glen Allan’s 5th Annual Campaign to Support the Strathcona Food Bank! 

Students that bring in an item(s) for the Food Bank will be entered into a draw to win Front-Row tickets for guests to our Winter Showcase! Students will receive only 1 ballot to enter our Best Seats of the House draw regardless of the number of food items that are donated.

Monday, November 25 – Friday, November 29, 2024

The Strathcona Food Bank is a charitable organization operated by volunteers and a volunteer Board of Directors all year round.  They rely on donations to provide food assistance to those in need in Sherwood Park and rural Strathcona County.

The top needed items are:

• No-sugar-added canned fruit and fruit snack cups
• No-sugar-added fruit juice, both 1 liter and juice boxes
• Low sugar, cold cereals
• Canned tuna and meats
• Canned mushrooms and mixed vegetables
• Low sodium broth, 1 liter tetra
• Ready to serve soup, chili or stew
• Box Macaroni and cheese (such as KD or Annie's)
• Personal hygiene items including feminine hygiene, bar soap and shampoo
• Size 4T, 5T and 6 diapers and baby wipes
• Dry Dog and Cat Food (we are struggling to meet the demand for pet food so we would really appreciate it if donors would be willing to donate to support furry companions).

Thank you in advance for your kind and generous donations of any size!

Let’s see if we can match or beat our donations from previous years! In 2020 Glen Allan Elementary donated 1600 pounds of food/other donations, in 2021, we donated 932.5 pounds, in 2022, we donated 1042 pounds, in 2023 we donate 772 pounds! !! GO GLEN ALLAN!!

If you know a family in need of assistance from the Strathcona Food Bank, please have them call 780-449-6413 as indicated on the Strathcona Food Bank website.

Strathcona Christmas Bureau

If families are interested in donating to the Strathcona Christmas Bureau this year, they are currently accepting donations for the 2024-2025 Christmas season on their webpage. 

The top needed items are:

• Gifts to give to children ages 9-11
• $25 gift cards for children ages 12-17
• Cash donations to provide Christmas gifts to families in need.

If you know a family in need assistance from the Strathcona Christmas Bureau this season, please refer them to the Application link available on the Strathcona Christmas Bureau website.

All donations made to the Strathcona Food Bank and Strathcona Christmas Bureau stay in Strathcona County to help our community members.

Winter Showcase 2024 Information 

Classes are preparing their songs for the winter showcase! We are excited to host our families once again in our school gym. We have taken feedback from last year's concert and are looking forward to having classes preform on our school stage!

Due to fire regulations that dictate the gym's capacity, we will be holding 1 showcase on Tuesday, December 10, and 4 separate showcases on Wednesday, December 11. Four tickets will be provided for each family, for each show that your child(ren) are performing in. If you do not need all 4 tickets, you can send the extras back to school. (If you have a child performing in one showcase but they have a sibling in another showcase, you will need to use one of your four tickets for them when they aren't performing). An additional ticket may be provided under special circumstances. Please contact the office if you may require another ticket. Tickets will be sent home with students next week.

Winter Showcase Showtimes

Students will be expected to arrive to their classrooms 15 minutes before their showcase and doors will open to parents 15 minutes before showcase begins

Volunteers Required for Winter Showcase!

Stage and Gym Decorating

We require some parent support to decorate the stage and gym Monday, December 9th in the afternoon. We have limited decorations at the school. We are in the need of extra trees and wrapped boxes to add to the Christmas decor. lf you have these items at home to lend for the showcase that would be greatly appreciated.

Trucks for Chair Pick-Up 

We will be borrowing some chairs from Wes Hosford School to be used at our Winter Showcase. We are hoping to have some volunteers with trucks to help us transport about 400 chairs on Tuesday, December 10th at 9am and again on Thursday, December 12th at 9am. 

If you are able to help us with these big tasks, please email Crystal.Brownlee@eips.ca and indicate which date(s) you are able to help!

Want a front-row seat to this year's Winter Showcase? 

'Tis the season of giving, and GASC (our school council) has a special treat for our generous school community! This year, every donation to the Strathcona Food Bank collected at school November 25-29, will earn you a chance to win front-row seats to our Winter Showcase! 

Here’s how it works:

• Every donation counts: Whether it’s one food item or a full bag or box, each donation earns you one ballot.
• Students will fill out the ballots: Students will receive ballots from the office, to fill out with their name when they bring in their donations.
• Win big: The lucky winner(s) loved ones will enjoy the best seats in the house for our festive concert!

Let’s come together to spread joy and support those in need. Your generosity will light up the holiday season for many, and you might just find yourself with the best view in the house! 

Happy Holidays and good luck! 

OPPORTUNITY

Regulation Strategies

Here at Glen Allan we are aimed at enhancing capacity to nurture emotional resilience and well-being among students. We are actively involved in collaborating with our staff to introduce effective regulation strategies and deepen understandings of brain development. We continue to work on integrating these strategies into everyday classroom practices.

Each week, we will share the strategies being practiced as an entire school in the announcements as part of our Wellness Wednesdays. The strategy that students and staff practiced this past week was "Rainbow Breath". Click here to learn more! Ask your child to demonstrate this at home and practice as a family!

INFORMATION

Report Cards are Coming

Term 1 report cards will be published Friday, November 29. On Friday, report cards will be available through the PowerSchool Parent Portal—simply log in to your account and click on the “Report Card” button in the left hand sidebar. 

The report card marks are reflective of what would be expected of students in their grade at this time of year and is based on curricular outcomes covered to this point in the year. 

As in previous years, students will be assessed on a Learner Attributes Scale and Achievement Scale.  Some outcomes in English Language Arts and Literature (ELAL) and Math will be reported on in each term, while other outcomes will only be assessed once in the year. 

There are important concepts to understand when looking at the grading scale.

• This scale does not represent a percentage conversion. Meaning, if you see your child has a 3, in a particular subject, it does NOT reflect a 3/5 or 60%. Elementary students do not receive a percentage for any grade or subject.
• It is about the descriptors not the numbers. For example, if your child receives a 3 in “Understands Visual and Written Texts”, it means your child is meeting learner expectations, applying concepts in familiar learning situations, and requires reasonable support, using skills and strategies. In other words, your child is meeting the curricular demands for that specific time of year with grade appropriate content.

Report cards are communication tools that represent a snapshot in time of your child's progress on specific outcomes of the curriculum. As with all learning, we expect students to continue to grow and build new skills, knowledge and understandings throughout the year. We hope that the report card provides you with information that will guide further conversation about your child's learning. 

If you have any questions about your child's progress, at any time of the year, please contact the teacher directly. Your child's success is important to all of us. 

Report Card Frequently Asked Questions

• If my child has received mostly 3’s on the report card, do I need to be worried?
  • No. Receiving a 3 on the report card means your child is demonstrating what they need to in order to show understanding in that outcome area.
• My child received a 3 for this concept in term 1 and again in term 2, are they struggling?
  • No. As students progress throughout the year, expectations and demands also change. Maintaining a 3-level on the report card from term to term is a demonstration of growth, as the expectations for learners increase as the year progresses. In order to stay the same, they have to show growth. There is no cause for concern if your child has remained at a 3-level. 
• My child received a 3 in term 1 and has received a 2 in term 2, should I be concerned?
  • As mentioned above, in order to maintain a grade, students need to grow. If you child has a 2 on their report card, it is indicating that they have not yet reached the learning outcome or may require high levels of support to be successful within a particular outcome. Examples of this occur when new units are being learned. Your child may have demonstrated understanding of adding and subtracting in term 1; however, struggle when beginning the multiplication unit for term 2. Teacher and home communication is paramount. If teachers are seeing different levels of understanding, there should be regular communication with home.
• My child is consistency demonstrating 3’s. How can they demonstrate a 4 or 5?
  • Students demonstrating a 4 or 5 are showing highly independent learning strategies. They are able to transform their learning into new and different ways, highlighting mastery and extension of topics.

Shelter in Place Drill

• In our ongoing efforts to keep families informed, you will receive regular communication from the school regarding all emergency preparedness drills the school conducts. This week we will hold a shelter-in-place drill. As this is only a drill, there is no action parents/guardians need to take. 
• In the event of a shelter-in-place in response to an actual incident, we would provide information on any actions parents/guardians need to take to co-operatively support our emergency response procedures. A shelter-in-place is used when it is safer to be inside the building than outside. It is most commonly used during a severe weather event. It can also be used to control movement inside the building due to situations such as an injury incident or chemical spill. Depending on the situation that triggers the shelter-in-place, any people outside are directed back into the building, and all students, staff and visitors move to the nearest designated shelter-in-place area of the building.
• For more information about Elk Island Public Schools’ emergency preparedness planning, visit www.eips.ca/parents/emergency-preparedness.
• Thank you for your co-operation in keeping students and staff safe.

FIRST NATIONS, MÉTIS, AND INUIT INFORMATION

Indigenous Artist Showcase - Destiny Swiderski

Destiny Swiderski (b. 1981, Winnipeg, Manitoba) is a Métis Canadian artist. She is known for site-specific installation art that utilizes everyday materials that follow a precise algorithm. Milled Wood creates an intimate space within a busy setting. Off-cuts of 2×4 spruce were cut, sanded and stained to reproduce an optical illusion of Mill Creek Ravine. This art is located at Mill Woods Seniors and Multicultural Centre in Edmonton, Alberta. To learn more about this art installation click here.