Elmdale School

I hope you have all had a wonderful and refreshing summer! It is important to take these breaks once in a while and reconnect as a family, and rejuvenate with a break from routine. This also helps us to prepare for what is coming next, and for our Elmdale students this means the transition into a new grade. While this can be a little scary, it's also exciting as old friends will reconnect, new friendships will be made, new teacher relationships will be established, and the Elmdale "family" will be back together after a summer off!

One of my favourite days of the year is the first day of school. I love greeting the students as they get off the bus with high 5's and hearing about all the summer highlights. I was talking with a neighboring businessperson over the summer and he commented how it just feels "right" when he hears the kids laughing and yelling as they head outside for recess in September. He recognized that we are an important part of his community too.

We want to welcome back Mr. Gavin Barkman who will be teaching mornings in grade 3. We also want to welcome Ms. Anna Hocking who will be teaching afternoons in grade 3, as well as Ms. Lauren Laninga who will be teaching grade 3 and Mrs. Laurena O'Connor who will be joining our office team as a 1/2 time secretary.

I hope you all come by to say hi, tell me about your summer, and tell me about what you are looking forward to in the 2019-2020 school year. I look forward to seeing you all!

Mr. Vince Hiebert

Principal: Elmdale School

Email: vhiebert@hsd.ca

Instagram: elmdalehsd

Our Annual Come and Meet Your Teacher event for Grades 1-4 students and parents is taking place on Tuesday, September 3 from 5:00 and 6:00pm. We look forward to seeing you there!

Kindergarten students and parents will meet their teacher on Wednesday and Thursday, September 4 & 5 at their scheduled appointment time.

Vince Hiebert Principal

Rose Friesen Resource Dept.

Wanda Hiebert Head Secretary

Laurena O'Connor Asst. Secretary

Angie Penner School Librarian

Nichelle Doerksen KD

Tammy Klassen KK

Susanne Penner KP

Lyndsey Engel Grade 1E

Jennifer Mutter Grade 1M

Connie Johnson Grade 1J

Jo-Anne Giesbrecht Grade 2G

Mandy Murphy Grade 2M

Gavin Barkman Grade 3B

Anna Hocking Grade 3B

Lauren Laninga Grade 3L

Lois Reimer Grade 3R

Bethany Drewlo Grade 4D

Mike Martens Grade 4M

Darnell Thiessen Grade 4T

Louise Redekop Music

Eric Fast Phys-Ed

Pamela Reimer Literacy Support Teacher

Melissa Fry Literacy Support Teacher

Tara Klassen School Counsellor

Kelvin Johnson Head Custodian

Yari Rodriguez Assistant Custodian

Martine Aronson E.A.

Lita Hornan E.A.

Adeline Koop E.A.

Rachel Loewen E.A.

Janet Mehling E.A.

Linda Reimer E.A.

Brooke Rooney E.A.

Anita Wiens E.A.

8:50 a.m. Bell – Students come in

9:00 a.m. Bell – Opening Exercises (optional)

9:08 a.m. Bell – O Canada and Announcements

10:30 a.m. Bell – Grade K-2 Recess

10:45 a.m. Bell – Grade 3-4 Recess

11:00 a.m. Bell

12:00 noon Dismiss home lunch students; Gr. K-2 Lunch; Gr. 3-4 Recess

12:30 p.m. Gr. 3-4 Lunch; Gr. K-2 Recess

12:55 p.m. Bell – Students come in.

1:00 pm. Bell – Classes begin

2:00 p.m. Bell – Grade K-2 Recess

2:15 p.m. Bell – Grade 3-4 Recess

2:30 p.m. Bell

3:35 p.m. Homeroom time – Clean up and get ready.

3:40 p.m. Bus students dismissed.

3:45 p.m. Buses leave & all walkers dismissed.

Morning

As children arrive at school they will be expected to stay outdoors until 8:50 a.m. Supervision is available for early bus students and on the school yard starting at 8:30 a.m. Please do not drop your children off prior to 8:30 a.m. as no supervision is provided. It is preferred that students walking or being dropped off come after 8:40 if possible.

Students are to remain outside until the school doors open at 8:50 a.m. and students are welcome to come into the school at that time.

A reminder that parents are to walk their students from the Family Parking lot to the playground. DO NOT DROP YOUR CHILDREN OFF IN THE BUS LOOP.

We encourage parents to say goodbye at the drop-off point. Parents are not permitted to roam the playground, however those who wish to wait with their child until the 8:50 bell rings are welcome to wait at the Flagpole.

End of Day

When you are picking up or dropping off your child at the end of the day, please either meet them at the fence near the Family Parking lot to walk them across the bus loop, or meet them by entrance C. Please do not wait outside your child's classroom door.

All guests are asked to use Entrance A & C (centre of the school) when entering and exiting the building.

Please remember to sign in at the office when attending the school. Whether volunteering, dropping something off, or picking up your child during the day, we ask that all guests sign in at the office. Those volunteering at the school will be asked to wear a volunteer badge or sticker to identify you. Adults in the hallway without proper identification will be asked to check in at the office.

Please notify the school if someone other than a parent/guardian is picking up your child. We will not allow a child to go with a different adult without proper notification.

Please make arrangements with your child in advance if possible. The office gets very busy from 3:30-3:50, so it is difficult to get all phone messages to their proper place in a timely manner. If plans change, please contact the school before 3:00 if possible.

If your child is absent, please remember to inform the school ASAP. Our practice is to phone all families whose children are absent without notification as soon as attendance is completed in the morning. This is to ensure the safety of all of our students. If you are going to be away for an extended period of time, we can enter this in our attendance in advance.

Due to the number of students with allergies to peanuts and tree nuts, Elmdale is a Nut Aware school. We ask that students do not bring lunches or snacks to school that include peanut or tree nut ingredients, including peanut butter and Nutella.

Please click HERE for further information.

All parents/guardians are encouraged to create and regularly check their Parent Portal Account.

The HSD Parent Portal is a communications tool designed to enhance and increase parent/guardian involvement in the education of their children. The portal provides parents/guardians with secure online access to our Student Information System. With a single username and password, parents/guardians can access the following information for each of their children attending an HSD school:

· Student Information

· Attendance Information

· School Fees Account

· Permissions & Consent Forms

· Report Cards

· Change of Contact Form

Follow this LINK to create your account, or contact the school office.

Please note that all students will have their photos taken as well as class photos by Lifetouch on October 7 & 8. Reminders will be sent home prior to those days.

Hanover School Division will no longer be providing a calendar, and is instead moving to an online calendar available HERE.

A Year at a Glance calendar will be sent home with each calendar, with a link provided HERE

Our Annual Terry Fox Run will be held on Friday, September 27th. Our Toonies for Terry will be collected during the week leading up to the event. Parents are welcome to join us! Stay tuned for a fun challenge coming!

Mrs. Klassen would like to remind all families that her blog is loaded with helpful information and tips for back to school. If you need to contact Mrs. Klassen, her information is also available there. Click Here for more information

The Hanover Parent and Child Community Program would like to invite Elmdale parents and their preschool children to visit our free weekly program each Wednesday afternoon at SOUTHWOOD SCHOOL in Hut C-2 from 1:15 - 3:15 beginning September 18. Please note that families can attend weekly or just drop in when they can. We will follow the school schedule according to closure days. Follow this LINK for more information

A petition for Religious Exercises and Instruction for Elmdale School for the 2019-2020 school year was presented to and approved by the Hanover School Division Board of Trustees in Spring of 2019. Further information is provided HERE.

Located in our main parking lot on the North side of our school, we have our Family Parking lot. This is where all families park to pick up and drop off children. Parents must walk their child from their vehicle to the school playground. Please be aware that at these pick up and drop off times, we have school buses that enter and exit the school parking lot.

"Soup's On" provides daily school lunches to families in need. It can be started and stopped as needed. Contact our Resource Teacher Ms. Rose Friesen (rfriesen@hsd.ca) or your child's teacher via agenda book to register your child.

Please check our website for the bus pick up times and location near your house.
If your address has changed, please call transportation at 204-320-2347 to make sure that your children are riding the correct bus to and from school.

Steinbach Ringette Association along with Manitoba Ringette are hosting a Come Try Ringette event on September 15, 2019. Click HERE for more info

Elmdale's eNewsletter

Publisher: Mr. Hiebert

Email: elmdale@hsd.ca
Website: http://elmdale.hsd.ca/
Location: 160 Elmdale Street, Steinbach, MB, Canada
Phone: 204-326-3325
Twitter: @elmdalehsd