École St. Matthew's School Gazette

We are pleased to share our October newsletter containing important updates and information for all our École St. Matthew's School families. We are looking forward to connecting again with our entire school community as we did recently during our Open House, and the coming months will allow for many opportunities to do just that. Please enjoy our review of the month that was, and all that is in-store for the month to come.

Here's to an outstanding October,

Charmayne & Allison

Charmayne Rumbolt, Principal

Allison North, Assistant Principal

Our newly branded school swag is now available for online ordering until SEPTEMBER 30!

All orders placed by the deadline will be delivered to ÉSMS for

distribution to families when production is complete.

Click image or scan QR code below for access to our online shop!

We will be holding registration for the after school Participation Nation Unplugged program on Tuesday, October 3, 2023 with the activities starting the following week.

What is PN Unplugged?

Unplugged is one of Participation Nation's Development Programs and has been designed for students in Grades 4-9. This program takes place twice a week in the after school time slot. The primary focus of PN Unplugged is unplugging students from their devices and reducing the amount of screen time they're exposed to, all while encouraging them to be physically active.

It's time to register your child for the wonderful Participation Nation Unplugged After School Program at Ecole St. Matthew's School. The free program is designed to include as many students from grade 4-7 as possible with some limitations. The registration is on a first come basis however we do use a token system to make it as fair as possible. We will be holding registration at 6:00 pm to 6:30 pm on Tuesday, October 3 at the school.

There is a great amount of demand for our program so please plan to arrive early as spots fill up very quickly. It is mandatory that one parent/guardian is on site to register their child(ren) as we will need specific family information including an MCP number and signature.

Our program will run for 7 weeks on Tuesdays and Thursdays from the week of October 2 through to the week of November 20. For this Fall session we are offering the following activities:

Tuesday - Cricket (at Cowan Park and the school gymnasium) Pick up @ 5PM

Thursday - Rotary Park Outdoor Activities (archery, shelter building, orienteering, slack-line) Pick up @ 5:30PM

We are looking forward to a great Fall session.

Mr. Spratt and Ms. Burlock

Led by our Grade 7 Leadership Team, St. Matthew’s School will again be partnering with the VOCM Cares Foundation and Metrobus to hold the 34th Annual Metrobus/VOCM Cares Thanksgiving Food Drive.

We kindly ask our École St. Matthew’s School community to participate in this year’s food drive by bringing non-perishable food items to school during the week of October 3 - 6 . We will then arrange pick-up of all donations on October 6th for delivery to the Community Food Sharing Association.

On Wednesday, October 4th, we will be having our 11th Annual Kids Eat Smart Walk for Breakfast. This is our main fundraiser for our Matt’s Morning Munch breakfast program that runs 5 days a week until June.

We are asking as many students, teachers and parents as possible to meet at Cowan Heights United Church on Frecker Drive at 8:00 am. We will then leave at 8:10 to walk to school. There will be teachers onsite to walk with your child, so you can drop them off on your way to work. Parents and guardians are more than welcome to walk with us!

To help us continue to offer a nutritious “Grab & Go” breakfast for our students every morning, we are asking families for donations of breakfast food items such as Cheerios, Multi Grain cheerios, Chex, Shreddies, peanut free granola bars. * rice krispies are too small for children to eat at grab and go.

Gift cards from Sobeys, Dominion & Costco are also greatly appreciated to help with the high cost of fresh fruit. No donation is too small!

Please note that the value of ALL donations will be matched by Kids Eat Smart!

** If the weather does not cooperate, our walk will not go ahead. If this is the case, donations can still be dropped off by your child to our school or you can donate online at www.kidseatsmart.ca and direct your donation to our school

Merci / Thank you for your continued support!

Please note that all schools within the Newfoundland and Labrador English School District will be closed on Monday, October 9th to mark the Thanksgiving holiday. School will reopen on Tuesday, October 10th and it will be day 3 on our 7-day schedule.

We wish you all a very safe and enjoyable Thanksgiving long weekend!

School photos will be taken on Thursday, October 12th by Pegasus. Further information regarding ordering and retakes will be shared once available.

For over 30 years, the VOCM Cares Coats for Kids Campaign has helped keep thousands of families warm during the Winter season. As the cold weather approaches, our Grade 7 Student Leadership Team reminds you that you can help be there for those in need by sending in donations of gently used or new winter wear from October 16th - 20th.

Winter items including coats, hats, mittens, and boots for both youth and adults are greatly appreciated. Please no broken zippers, soiled, or torn items, or out-of-season clothing. This is important for the safety and strength of the program.

Date: Friday, October 20, 2023

Theme: Jamarama Day for the Janeway

Donations: Janeway Foundation

Come to school wearing your Pj’s for our first Silly Squad and help support the superheroes who cannot change out of theirs. Spare change will be collected in support of the Janeway Foundation.

Students are invited to wear costumes on Tuesday, October 31st to engage in activities planned in their classroom by their teachers. Students are asked to leave home any weapon-type accessories as they are potential safety hazards. We ask that students not wear any costume or mask that implies violence or that may be scary to students. Also, we request that students not use hairspray or colored spray in school, due to students who have allergies and asthma.

As well, we will not be accepting any treats from outside to be distributed to students in individual classrooms. Students are not permitted to share treats with peers, but will be permitted to bring along a healthy individual snack for their class activities. Teachers will communicate Halloween activities to parents/caregivers in the coming weeks.

JOIN OUR LIBRARY TEAM!

MEMO TO: School Community Volunteers

FROM: Laun Shoemaker, Teacher Librarian

RE: Volunteers for the School Library Learning Commons

Hello School Community Members:

Welcome to another exciting year at École St. Matthew’s School.

Our Library Learning Commons includes approximately a thousand books, local

newspapers, comfortable and flexible seating areas, a selection of magazines, an

interactive whiteboard and chromebook computers.

Valuable assistance from volunteers provides our students with an efficient and effective

library program. We look forward to expanding our LLC success with the help of our

volunteers.

Volunteers

• help with book circulation, cataloging, and weeding

• give presentations in areas related to their expertise

• help run school book fairs

• work with students and teachers from all grade levels while they collaborate

• help display student work

In our Maker Studio we will be working with students on projects like:

• Coding

• Sewing

• Disassembling

• Minecrafting

• Video production and editing

• Designing and creating prototypes for various products

As a volunteer in our LLC, you can contribute by participating in any or all of the activities

listed above, so check those that interest you! Grandparents are most welcome, too.

Your suggestions for improving and enriching the program are encouraged and welcome.

Donating your time to the ÉSMS Library Learning Commons can help our students grow in

many ways. It also earns BIG smiles from your special learner(s). Please email your areas of interest and availability to our Teacher-Librarian at launshoemaker@nlesd.ca .

Rycor Family Accounts

It is very important that families of students in grades K-6 create their family accounts in the RYCOR Online Forms and Payments system as we hope to begin implementation for sharing and submission of all information and permission forms and fees for the 2023-2024 school year. Grade 7 families will now access forms and fees in the PowerSchool Parent Portal.

Instructions for creating your RYCOR parent account, adding your child to your account, and completing and submitting electronic forms are attached below:

Creating a Rycor Account & Adding Child to Parent Account

IMPORTANT: Once you have created your parent account, you will have to add your child to your parent account using the Student Identification Number sent home last year and again TODAY for those who may have displaced them, and for our Kindergarten families who would not have received them last year. If you do not have this number, please send a request to allisonnorth@nlesd.ca.

If you have technical issues keeping you from completing this process, please let us know at the above email address so we can help find a solution.

School Lunch ordering for the month of November opens on Tuesday, October 10th and closes on Wednesday, October 18th. If you missed out on the orders for October, you can still register and place an order for November. Registration is available online only and is required to order meals. To register/order please clink button below or visit https://schoollunch.ca/.

We also ask that you attempt to select menu options that your child will eat in order to reduce food wastage.

Reminder to parents and guardians that the playground structure is in use throughout the school day up to the dismissal bell at 2:35. Please respect this and refrain from entering the playground during class time, even if the playground is empty.

Cell phones are not permitted to be used for calls, texting or student use at school from the time students enter the building until they leave. If communication needs to be made to the parent/caregiver, students will be accommodated by office staff. Any unauthorised technology will be held by administration if students refrain from storing it away in lockers, and parents/caregivers will need to come into the building at day's end to retrieve devices.

We will be communicating with home this year through email, Twitter, and classroom websites. If you have a question or concern please email your child’s teacher or administration. Please continue to check out our St. Matthew's School Website as it is updated regularly and contains links to valuable information.

All newsletters and memos will be sent electronically to families this year and not in paper copy. It is very important to have current and valid email addresses updated.

Ms. Williams grade 1 class has been very busy settling into new routines and learning. We love using our outdoor time to read and explore. We have planted seeds in our aquaponics kit and are eagerly awaiting our lettuce to sprout. In Math we use items collected outside and things in our class to make lots of patterns; it has been a great first month of grade one!

Ms. Ryan’s Kindergartens are some of the newest learners at ÉSMS. We are learning many new routines to keep us safe while having lots of learning fun.

There was a visit from Ms. Hodder, the “Reading Lady” and a visit to the library with Mr. Shoemaker. Books are very important in our classroom.

We love to paint! Here is our art gallery for September…

Bienvenue aux élèves de la classe de Mme Grace, our newest French learners here at St. Matthew’s! It has been a very exciting first month of school and we just love singing and dancing in our classroom. It’s been so fun learning new French words and making new friends! Our visits and help from Mr. Karl are always appreciated, Mr. Shoemaker has read to us in the Learning Commons, and we even have buddy readers with our friends from M. Barry’s class!

Ms. Tibbs’ Kindergarten class loves the outdoors. Exploring their new surroundings at the school is one of their favourite things to do. From play-doh letters to library visits - it is all new and exciting.

Agriculture In The Classroom NL and Little Green Thumbs will be at the NL Federation of Agriculture’s Ag Expo this weekend September 29-Oct 1.

Pop by our booths and say hello.

FREE admission and lots to see!

For the past 3 years, Badminton NL has been running a junior development program at the Paul Reynold's Community Centre on Carrick Drive in the east end of St. John's. This program has been extremely successful and has been filled to capacity each year.

This season, we are offering badminton instruction for a second group and location. The program is open for registration to youth ages 9 - 15, and provides coaching to develop badminton skills as well as some fitness and game play. I hope you can pass the following information on to the parents of your students in the above age range. Some details:

• The program will be run at Ecole Roche du Nord, Topsail Road (Note that the language of instruction is English).
• Registration is for two sessions per week: Tuesdays and Fridays, 5:30 - 7:30 pm.
• The program will begin October 3, 2023 and end on May 17, 2024.
• Cost to join the Junior Development Program is $285, which may be paid in two installments of $142.50 or three installments of $95.00.
• The head coach is John Gillam who has over 40 years experience in coaching, coaches Badminton NL's provincial program and was Canada Games Coach in 2015, 2019 and 2023.

Please note that Badminton NL is a non-profit organization, registered with Service NL (Registration # 10230). We operate throughout the province using a volunteer Board of Directors with no paid staff. Our coaches are all volunteers working without compensation. Registration fees are used to rent facilities and pay for materials, with any surpluses reinvested into junior programming.

For further information or to obtain a registration package, please email j_barachois2@hotmail.com

John Gillam, ChPC, ACD, MACP

Badminton NL

The City of St. John’s is considering converting two tennis courts in Cowan Park (Cowan Heights) to pickleball courts. Once converted they would include six courts with markings and netting appropriate for pickleball play. They would no longer be used as tennis courts. Review the information on EngageStJohns.ca to learn more and then provide your thoughts on this proposed change. Staff will consider your feedback when making their recommendation to Council on whether to proceed with this project.

The City of St. John’s is creating a new Accessibility Plan to help guide how barriers can be removed that prevent persons with visible and invisible disabilities from fully accessing City-operated programs, services, and public spaces.

There are a variety of ways to provide feedback. Learn more and participate:

https://www.engagestjohns.ca/accessibility-plan

Students in Grades 4-7 are welcome to register for the annual NLAA X-Country Running Series that takes place across three weekends at Bowring Park.

• Saturday, September 30
• Saturday, October 7

Please visit https://www.nlaa.ca/xcseries/ to register for meets. Families can use the following school code to receive a discount when registering: SMEL

School Council would like to proceed with process for official renaming of St. Matthew's School to École St. Matthew's School as a means to reflect our English and French Immersion streams and our dedication to the promotion of both of Canada's official languages. Any feedback on this initiative can be forwarded to charmaynerumbolt@nlesd.ca for consideration by Council when it meets next month.

Monday 2 October

National Day for Truth & Reconciliation

No classes for students & staff

2-6 October

Kids Eat Smart Week

• Province-Wide Walk to Breakfast October 4
• Province-Wide Smoothie Day October 5
• Province-Wide Kids Eat Smart Radiothon November 8

Tuesday 3 October - Friday 6 October

VOCM Cares Thanksgiving Food Drive

Wednesday 4 October

Kids Eat Smart Walk for Breakfast

Monday 9 October

Thanksgiving Day (School Holiday)

October 8-14

Fire Prevention Week

Tuesday 10 October

School Lunch ordering for November begins

Thursday 12 October

School Picture Day

Wednesday 18 October

School Lunch ordering for November ends

Monday 16 October - Friday 20 October

VOCM Cares Coats for Kids

Friday 20 October

Silly Squad Pyjama Day for the Janeway

Monday 23 October

District Close-Out Professional Learning Day; no classes for students

Tuesday 31 October

Halloween Activities throughout the day

Wednesday 1 November

Professional Learning Day for teachers; no classes for students

Monday 13 November

Remembrance Day Holiday/Fall Break

Monday 20 November

Professional Learning Day for teachers; no classes for students

Friday 1 December

Term 1 Reports released

Monday 4 December

OPTIS Home-School Meeting Scheduler opens at 9:00 am

Wednesday 6 December

OPTIS Home-School Meeting Scheduler closes at NOON

Thursday 7 December

Home-School Interviews, early dismissal

Friday 15 December

Tentative 1st Kinderstart Session; no classes for Kindergarten students

Wednesday 20 December

Final day of classes prior to holiday break.

Tuesday 2 January

School reopens