STA News

Submit your child’s absence via email: staattendance@rdcrs.ca or call our attendance line 403-346-8951 press 1. Please provide students name, class and reason for absence.

For upcoming important dates please see the school calendar.

STA School Calendar

Teachers & School administration have enjoyed getting to know their students this past month and connecting with parents/guardians through our Meet the Staff event, as well as phone calls and emails. If you have any questions, please reach out to your child's teachers.

Thank you to the parents who attended our September 24 Annual General Meeting. Our council is excited and ready to support our school community. Our next meeting will be November 25 at 7:00 here at the STA library. We will provide a link for those who wish to attend virtually closer to that time.

Your child’s teacher will communicate with you about what is happening in their classes during the afternoon of Halloween. The morning of October 31, will be regular classes, although students can be dressed up all day if they choose. If your child decides to wear a costume, they must be in good taste and follow our school dress code and our principles to honour a safe and caring environment. Students should refrain from bringing the following: 1. weapons of any sort (spears, knives, guns, swords, bow/arrow ...etc.) 2. masks that are gory - discretion can be given here i.e Minecraft masks, -police/fire/hockey/baseball/football helmets would be appropriate.

Thank you to the families who have already updated the form. If you have not done so for your student please login to complete. If you need help logging in please contact the office for your login information.

This form is a requirement and will take approximately 2-3 minutes to complete.

How to access the **RDCRS Student Information Update Form - 2024-2025:

• Log in to the PowerSchool Parent Portal from a PC, Mac, or Chromebook: Click Here

• If you are unsure of your username/password, use the "Forgot Username or Password?" link to reset it, or feel free to contact your child's school for assistance.

• In PowerSchool, select the "School Engage" button (scroll down and select the last button on the left-hand side)

• In School Engage, select the Students tab, then select your child’s name.

• Look for the **RDCRS Student Information Update Form - 2024-2025 on the right-hand side of the screen.

• To open the form, click the blue, "Open" button under **RDCRS Student Information Update Form - 2024-2025.

• After opening the form, please look over the information carefully and make updates if necessary. Advance through the pages using the Next button at the bottom of the page.

• Complete the process by clicking the Submit button at the bottom of the last page.

𝐂𝐎𝐓𝐓𝐎𝐍 𝐂𝐀𝐍𝐃𝐘 𝐃𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐌

Two sugar cookies stuffed with cotton candy ice cream on a bed of whipped cream, drizzled with caramel sauce,

topped with house-made cotton candy with powdered sugar

$1 from every ice cream sandwich sold will go towards St. Thomas Aquinas Middle School - supporting their fundraising efforts for field trips, guest speakers and retreat opportunities for their students.

The Sacrament of Penance, Confession, or Reconciliation...

This sacrament is one of the two sacraments of healing, the other being the Sacrament of the Sick. Reconciliation is where God forgives us all of our sins and reconciles us with the church community.

For more information on the meaning and importance of this beautiful sacrament please scroll down.

Please click below to find out more!

1st Reconciliation & 1st Eucharist Registration

The Final Sacrament of Initiation...

Confirmation is the sacrament where God the Holy Spirit makes us strong to serve in the kingdom of God! Without Confirmation, a person is not fully a member of the Church. This sacrament finishes the saving work that was begun at Baptism.

Please scroll down for more information.

Confirmation Registration

This October, we want to focus on gratitude. Whether you choose to celebrate Thanksgiving or not, it is always a good idea to take a moment to reflect on the things and people in your life that you are thankful for and to express our thanks to those around us. Practicing gratitude can improve your mood and overall sense of well-being. Watch the short video below on gratitude and try out the exercise she explains. You may just make yours and someone else's day a little bit better:

Video

The Science of Gratitude

● Schoology will continue to be the primary platform used for communication and sharing of information. You will use the same information to log in that you established last year if you were in attendance at STA or were in attendance at an RDCRS elementary school for 2023/24 (i.e. Holy Family, St. Elizabeth Seton, St. Martin de Porres, Father Henri, Maryview etc.)

● For students that are new to STA and RDCRS please know that we will be sending a unique (specific to your child only) QR code home which will provide you the information to sign up for Schoology.

● If you are still having difficulty setting up your Schoology account, please contact the office. We will assist you in getting everything set up.

PARENT LOGIN.

● All parents are required to have a PowerSchool account. This program allows parents to access information about attendance, and school fees and update student information in the fall & spring.

● Student Update Forms will be accessible in PowerSchool in the coming weeks.

● Once your Student Update Form is available in PowerSchool (you will receive an email notification)

https://rdcrs.powerschool.com/public/home.html

Online Informed Consent

Thank you to all our parents who have completed the necessary informed consents in RYCOR. We appreciate your prompt attention to this important matter. These forms are required by our insurance provider and must be completed as soon as possible to ensure that all students can fully participate in our school activities. Please note that these consents apply to all students and cover the following:

● Athletics: This one-time form covers all sports try-outs and rosters throughout the year.

● Mass: As all students attend school Mass at St. Mary’s, this form is necessary for participation. If you haven’t yet completed these forms, please do so at your earliest convenience to ensure there are no delays in your child's participation. Thank you for your cooperation!

https://rdcrs.powerschool.com/public/home.html

• Limiting Distractions in Alberta Classrooms - Alberta Education
  
• Ministerial Order
  
• Please review the expectations as a family. We will be making some changes to our existing cell phone policy
• Phone Expectations to specifically include all Personal Mobile Devices (PMD) to align with Alberta

Education’s Ministerial Order. Expectations include the following:
i. All personal mobile devices need to be powered off / silent and stored in student lockers
ii. Students may not access social media on school networks or school devices

• Parents will be notified via email for first and second offenses, PMDs will be confiscated and stored in the office for the student to pick up at the end of the day. On third and subsequent offenses a school administrator will contact the parent and the parent will be responsible for picking up the PMD from the office.

Menus are available on our website. Please consider pre-ordering your child's lunch. When lunches are pre-ordered, your student's lunch will be ready for them at their lunch break.