Westboro Weekly Newsletter

October 28: Grade 1G Field Trip to Save on Foods 9:30 - 11:30 a.m.

October 31: Halloween at Westboro

October 31: Grade 5D, 5G, 6W Swimming to Kinsmen Pool 8:30 - 11:00 a.m.

Looking ahead:

November 4 - 8: Project Five Residency Program - Grade 4, 5, 6

November 6: Early Dismissal - Students will be dismissed 1 hour early at 2:12 p.m.

November 8: Remembrance Day Ceremony at Westboro

November 11: Remembrance Day

November 11-15: November Break - No school for students or staff

November 19: School Council Meeting

November 26: Grade 2 and 3 field trip to Salisbury Composite High Theatre

November 29: Report Cards available for viewing

As Halloween approaches, we are excited to celebrate this fun and festive occasion with our students! To ensure everyone enjoys the day, here are a few important guidelines for our school’s Halloween activities:

• Students may change into costumes at lunch. They may also use lunch recess if need be.
• If costumes include makeup, please apply it before school. Staff will NOT be available to assist with makeup during the day.
• Please remember that costume weapons of any kind are not allowed. Inflatable costumes are also prohibited for safety and space reasons.
• As our school serves a wide range of ages, we ask that all costumes be age-appropriate and not overly scary. Let’s keep the atmosphere fun and inclusive for everyone, especially our younger students who may find frightening costumes overwhelming.
• Students will participate in a Halloween costume parade throughout the school halls to show off their costumes to the entire school community.

We can’t wait to see the creativity and excitement from our students on Halloween! Let’s all work together to make this day both fun and safe!

As the temperatures begin to drop, please send your student(s) to school dressed appropriately for the wide range of temperatures we can experience this time of year! We suggest including a warm jacket, warm footwear, mittens, toques and scarves. You may also consider snow pants once the snow starts to fly! Students will be outside for recess and we want to ensure they are comfortable. Thank you.

Project Five is a curriculum-linked program that’s all about having fun while learning crucial public speaking skills. Using games, activities and a final presentation, students work on communication skills that will benefit them in both their school career and, eventually, their professional lives.

The sessions work with the Project Five 5 P’s, PREPARE, PRACTICE, PACE, POSITION, PRESENT

Westboro Elementary School has been given the opportunity, as part of the Mental Health Flagship Schools project, to participate in the Elk Island Public Schools 2024/25 Restorative Practice Implementation Team. Mrs. Desautels, Mrs. Perotta, Mrs. Prouse, and Mrs. Labrecque will be attending training to support our school community in new and meaningful ways focusing on a preventative, proactive, relational approach that builds and strengthens welcoming, caring, respectful and safe learning environments. The first strategy that we will be learning about is called Playshops and is meant to strengthen our co-regulation strategies. Our Elk Island Public Schools Support for Students consultant, Tamia Richardson, will be coming to a few Westboro classes in the upcoming weeks to teach Mrs. Prouse and Mrs. Graziano about these sessions so that they can continue these teachings in all our classrooms. We feel so fortunate to have been able to participate in this valuable and very meaningful project!

Click the image for a larger view.

Most parents may feel puzzled by their children's feelings and behaviours at some point in their parenting journey. Join Strathcona County for a presentation that helps parents understand what's behind children's behaviours and learn how to support children with emotional and behavioural challenges.

No Such Thing as a Bad Kid: For Parents and Caregivers, Tuesday, November 19, 2024, 5 - 6:30pm - Family and parenting supports | Strathcona County

Last week we had our “Ribbon Club” meeting as named by our students. It will be a time where our self-identified Indigenous students can come together to participate in activities that allow them to grow together and extend their learning of their cultures. These meetings will happen twice a month on Fridays after lunch for about 30 minutes. On occasion students will have the opportunity to invite a friend to join them. Since we won’t always know which friend(s) they will choose, please contact Mrs. Richard at courtney.richard@eips.ca or Mrs. Prouse at tracey.prouse@eips.ca only if you do not want your child to take part. We always want to respect our families and the choices they make for their children, understanding these can be for a variety of reasons.

We have also been spending time since the beginning of this year diving deeper into our Westboro land acknowledgement in our morning announcements. We are excited we were also able to print posters of our land acknowledgement for each classroom and an extra-large one to put up at the front of our school. Our land acknowledgement was written several years ago by our grade 6 students at the time and we are proud of all the work and learning that went into creating something meaningful for our school.

Our School Council and Parents' Society is looking to fill the role of Treasurer. The time commitment for this position is approximately 1 hour per month plus 1 School Council Meeting per month. The Treasurer plays a key role in budgeting, tracking funds, and ensuring our council remains financially transparent.

If you’re interested or would like more information, please reach out to us at westboroparents@gmail.com.

Westboro has several fundraisers that are ongoing year round! Please see the information below to learn how you can participate!

Skip The Depot

Mabel's Labels

Alberta Health Services offers free online programming for parents and caregivers of children and youth. Sessions are offered through Zoom. The list of October 2024 sessions is now available.

Friendships build kids' confidence, resilience, and sense of belonging. Try these tips to help your child with friendships. Learn more here.

Reconciliation is about creating and maintaining respectful relationships between Indigenous and settler (non-Indigenous) people in Canada. Here are some ideas to help you and your family take part in reconciliation. Learn more here.

Kids develop social emotional skills through everyday life experiences. Here are 10 ways you can help them learn to handle emotions, cope with stress, get along with others, and solve problems. Learn more here.

Head to Fire Station 6 (915 Bison Way) on Saturday for Strathcona's Safe Halloween. Learn about Halloween safety, grab a photo with an officer, and pick up a goodie bag. Emergency Services, Enforcement Services, the RCMP, and Victim Services will all be on-site to wish you a happy Halloween!

Remember to dress for the weather. This event is all outdoors.

Visit the link below for events for children, everything from Junior book clubs and chess meets, to PJ parties and Halloween Crafting!

Events | Strathcona County Library | BiblioCommons

We got you covered for fall break! Check out these fun programs that build skills and boost mental and physical well-being in your kids through games and fun activities:

• Healthy Me (For kids in grades 3 & 4

• Get Your Game On! (For kids in grades 5 & 6)

Weds, Nov. 13 ⏐ 5 - 7 p.m. ⏐ Millennium Place

Learn more and register at https://ow.ly/STFC50TSJ7r

View our program guide: https://ow.ly/n3Sz50TSJbi