September 2024 Newsletter

September 6

Welcome everyone! We hope you had a great summer. My name is Scott MacDonald and I am the principal at School of Hope. Catholic education is of the utmost importance to me and I am honoured to be able to serve the families from across Alberta. I am excited to be starting another school year at School of Hope and cannot wait to start meeting students and families from our school.

It is wonderful to have so many returning students and I want to welcome all of our new families. We hope you take a few minutes each month to read our newsletter to help keep you up to date on what is happening at the school. Our key values are flexibility and relationships and we will continue to build upon the great things already happening at School of Hope.

SOH A-maze-ing Kickoff

We would love to meet each of you at our SOH A-maze-ing Kickoffs. If you are able, please join us in Bowden Sun Maze September 17th, Kitscoty at Maizax Corn Maze on September 23rd, Ye Olde Hobby Farm- Fort Kent September 24, Toefield on September 25th and/or Lethbridge on September 26th. Not all of our teachers will be joining us in all locations but we do encourage you to come out and meet the educators from their respective areas. This will be an excellent opportunity for us to come together as a school community to build relationships.

School of Hope Kickoff (Maze Dates, Places and Times)

Sept 17 - Bowden Sun Maze (Red Deer County) (A-maze-ing Kickoff - 1:30-3:00)

Sept 23 - Maizex Corn Maze (Kitscoty) (A-maze-ing Kickoff - 1:30-3:00)

Sept 24 - Ye Olde MacLean Hobby Farm (Fort Kent) (1:00-3:00)

Sept 25 - Toefield (A-maze-ing Kickoff - 1:00-3:00)

Sept 26 - Lethbridge (A-maze-ing Kickoff - 2:00-4:00)

Teacher Contact

Teachers are your number one contact person for help. They are able to answer most questions or point you in the right direction, so please reach out!

For grades 1-9, your homeroom teacher will be contacting you soon if they haven’t already done so. They will:

• Introduce themselves and start to get to know you and your child!

• Ensure you know how and when they can be contacted

• Go over work expectations

• Ensure you know how to log into courses and online lessons

For high school students, you will be getting called by your core course teachers if you haven’t already been contacted. They will go over a similar list as in the younger grades.

Work Expectations

Online learning work expectations are similar to those in brick and mortar buildings. Your teachers will be expecting work handed in each week. Not only will it help your child stay on track to finish the course on time, but teachers will be able to see if your child is understanding the concepts being taught, and will be able to help them if they need it. It is also one of the ways we monitor attendance.

Although the baseline expectation is to receive work each week, it is important to remember that one of our core values is flexibility. We realize that many circumstances and opportunities may occur in the year (ex. Seasonal farm work, family vacations, sickness, domestic changes, etc.) Our families are encouraged to contact their teacher to arrange a teacher approved alternative schedule that will allow them to meet their circumstances and still finish their course work.

Courses/Online Lessons

Canvas courses were opened on September 3rd, and should be accessible. As per the informational email sent out earlier this week, online lessons will begin September 9th. Lessons will be recorded and posted in the Canvas course so that you can access them later that day, or any time going forward. This can be very useful to review at a later time! Links for those lessons will be available in your Canvas courses.

Tech issues? Call our tech support expert, Iain at 1-866-888-9010.

Virtual In Person Checks (VIP checks)

Relationships are vital to learning. In order for teachers to get to know their students, and to be able to more accurately assess their progress, we are continuing with our monthly check-ins (meetings) for students who are not interacting regularly with their teachers in online lessons. Students are always welcome and even encouraged to meet with teachers whenever they feel the need.

If students are putting on their cameras, even briefly during online lessons, they would not need to complete a separate Virtual In Person Check (VIP check). This can be done during a lesson, while in a Zoom breakout room or at the start of class before the lesson begins. Teachers really want to get to know their students and we believe the scheduled VIP check will be one more way for this to happen.

Parent Council

Parent council is a vital part of every school and we are no different. Together, we ensure that students have the best educational experience, teacher interactions and learning outcomes. If you are interested in learning more about the parent council, please contact our office. (1-780-853-2188 Ext 3108 or email your child's teacher)

Textbooks and Resources

Texts and resources have been shipped throughout the summer and continue to be mailed each day. Families who registered in the spring or first half of August should already have their books, while those who registered in the last part of August until now should have resources on the way soon. If you are waiting for resources, many of our courses do not require texts to get started. We suggest contacting your teacher who may be able to point out where you could get started, or may be able to send you a temporary digital copy of the first section of a required text so you may get started on the course.

Gmail and Chat

This is a friendly reminder about the proper use of student email and chat. All East Central Catholic Schools gmail accounts are to be used for educational purposes and are intended to assist students with their education. If email or chat is used, it should be used appropriately, and on topics directly related to what is being studied. Most of our students use our technology in this way and find it very helpful, but if you are aware of inappropriate use please report it to a teacher or administrator. Thank you!

Home Schooling

Our facilitators are finishing up the process of dividing up family lists. This process is based on maintaining existing facilitator/family pairings when possible, assuring facilitators have a reasonable number of families/students to care for, and attempting to make efficient use of facilitator travel time. You should be getting contacted next week by your facilitator, where they will introduce themselves and begin the process of booking 1st visits.

Thank you for choosing the School of Hope, and allowing us the opportunity to serve you. Have a great school year!

God Bless,

Scott MacDonald, Michel Despins and Alicia Rudkowsky

“But if any of you lack wisdom, you should pray to God, who will give it to you; because God gives generously and graciously to all.” James 1:5

4-H Intro Clubs are returning and they’re ready to give Calgary youth a taste of what 4-H is all about for another year! With options available for both homeschool families during the day and evening sessions in both SE and NW Calgary, there’s something for everyone.

Since its launch last fall, 4-H Alberta's Intro Clubs have introduced 4-H in the City to 75 Calgary youth ages 9-16. With the support of the Calgary Foundation, we are thrilled to extend this pilot program for another year.

While 4-H has its origins in agriculture, urban 4-H clubs have expanded the program to include projects that cover a wide array of projects, including foods, science, crafts, health & fitness, performing arts, photography, and much more! The 4-H program combines youth-led activities with adult-guided instruction to teach members lifelong skills such as effective communication, leadership, and friendships. After attending an intro club program, one mom commented, “My daughter is growing in confidence and creativity. This program is her favourite day of the week. She loves the new skills each week, the friends she has made and the “club” format with special jobs for each member.”

Now, more youth will see what 4-H is all about through these six-week programs. During Intro Clubs, participants will “Learn to Do By Doing” with hands-on activities as they explore a variety of different 4-H projects such as Health & Fitness, Food Sustainability, All About Bees, Art, Pottery, Baking with Sourdough, Floral Arranging, and more. Each club has a limit of 15 youth so register soon to avoid disappointment. If you’re intrigued and eager to learn more, feel free to reach out via email at introclubs@4hab.com or visit our website for NW CLUBS or SE CLUBS