Winter Walk To School Day

On Wednesday, December 20th, the Grade 4 students, in collaboration with the Everactive School Residency, will be hosting a “Winter Walk to School Day”. This event aims to promote sustainable transportation and encourage physical activity among our students.

Event Details:

Date: Wednesday, December 20^th, starting at 8:45am

Focus: Encouraging students to walk to school or park a bit further away

Alternative Activities: For families unable to walk, there will be an activity station on the basketball court for students arriving by bus or car.

Thank You Treat: On that day, students will be giving out hot chocolate as a token of appreciation for choosing more sustainable modes of transportation or for participating at the activity station.

We are grateful for the leadership of our grade 4 team through their work with Everactive Schools. You might recall that our school was invited to participate in the year-long residency this year as a means to address the ongoing traffic challenges around our school. Our grade 4 students have prepared informative posters that have been flooding our social media

channels (thank you teachers!) and have also been posted around the school. Their excitement to lead and make a difference is palpable. There is nothing better than witnessing the pride students take in their learning and in having the opportunity to tangibly impact their own community in a positive way.

During my morning walks around the school property, I am encouraged by the number of parent/guardian drivers who are parking around the perimeter of the field, or further away from the building which not only reduces traffic congestions at the “kiss and drop” or nuisance parking in the community, but also provides students built-in activity on their way to school. Walking or running across the field to then connect with friends on the field or at the playground provides valuable early morning movement to our students. This physical activation can help to support learning later in the day.

What date is that again? How do I find that information?

We are grateful to have a parent community that engages in the work we do and also provides us with great ideas to improve connection with one another. This is particularly important in our context as our attendance area covers a broad swath of the city which can make getting to know other parents challenging.

Our School Council proposed that WhatsApp grade level parent chat groups be created to provide an opportunity for connection. We are supportive of this connection time.

Please note if your chat group is starting to flood with questions or doubts about anything that the most direct way to confirm information is by reaching out directly to the school. This can be through checking our website to posted calendars or resources, reviewing our weekly newsletter, e-mailing your child’s teacher or calling the office. We are always available to help and reaffirm communication that has been provided.

As a reminder, here is how you can get connected to other parents if you are interested in doing so:

WhatsApp Parent Chat Groups

Did you know that School Council has organized Parent-Led, School Council-supported WhatsApp Chat Groups for each grade? These groups are intended to foster connections between families and the school community, share school events and fundraising activities, and remind each other about important school dates.

The chats are not an official school communication channel and teachers and staff will not review the content. Please continue to connect with teachers directly about student-specific concerns.

If you are interested in joining, please send your School Council team an e-mail to ecsschoolcouncil@gmail.com and you will be added to the correct group.

Subject line – WhatsApp Chat E-mail – your name and phone number, your student’s first name and grade

Lost and Found Deadline and Request for Gently-Used Donations

We are looking for gently used clothing (pants and shirts) for our “Oops I did not see that puddle” bins. It is amazing how many changes of clothes we can go through in a single week.

Our Lost and Found is growing daily. Single mitts, pairs, boots, jackets, snow pants and even socks.

We will be packing everything up to go to Goodwill on Thursday, December 14. If your child is missing something please come in a take a look prior to then, once it is gone, it is gone.