Tuesday, January 8^th, 2013

Dear Parents and Guardians,

Welcome back and Happy New Year!  It is nice to see the sun shining earlier in the morning and to have a little reprieve from the cold weather.  The students and staff are all excited to be back at school and I have seen lots of enthusiasm for learning.  The months ahead should be exciting and busy.  A special welcome to all the new families in our community!  Please find the latest information and calendar attached.

Mission Statement:  At Robert Ogilvie we are creating a community of respectful, responsible lifelong learners.  Please find below our School Improvement Plan Goals as a reminder of what we are focusing on at Robert Ogilvie School.

School Improvement Plan Goals:

At Robert Ogilvie, we are creating a community of respectful, responsible lifelong learners.

1. Our first goal is about Social Responsibility: to foster a community where everyone feels safe, respected and accepted.
2. Our second goal is Numeracy: to improve all students’ numeracy skills.

Robert Ogilvie Code of Conduct

The purpose of our code of conduct is to maintain student rights and responsibilities with expectations for behaviour during any school related activity. 

All members of the school community are expected to:

*Take care of ourselves

*Take care of others

*Take care of our school

*Take responsibility for learning

All members of our school community have the right and responsibility to:

• Behave in a safe manner at all times
• Tell an adult of incidents of bullying, harassment or intimidation
• Be accepted and respected
• Care for others and show respect
• Learn and achieve potential
• Listen to and respect others’ learning
• Pay attention in class and complete assignments
• Set and work towards goals
• Be heard and ask questions
• Listen to and respect others’ ideas
• Ask questions and share ideas politely and respectfully
• Work in a healthy, clean environment
• Keep the school clean and respect school property

Rising Expectations:

As students become older, more self-disciplined and mature, expectations regarding their behaviour and responsibility will rise accordingly.   Older students are expected to set a good example for others.

Notification

Parents of student offenders and victims will be notified by school staff when it is deemed necessary to re-assure parents that we are aware of the incident and are taking appropriate action to address it.  Multiple infractions of an expectation and serious infractions will be followed up with a phone call home.

You can’t just say it, you have to do it. Steven Hamell

Paul Hann:  We would like to take this opportunity to thank the staff and the community for welcoming Paul Hann to the school and to all for assisting in the fundraiser to bring Paul here.  Paul has professionally recorded the songs he wrote with our students.  We have the ability to burn the CD, along with the recordings from his last visit, on to a disc.  They are available at the office for $10.00.  If you would like to purchase the recording, please fill in the form attached at the bottom of the newsletter and return it to the office (attention:  Mrs. Scheck).   Those that have already purchased/ordered this CD, the CD will be sent home next week.

Parking:  Parking continues to be a problem at the school front parking lot.  Please be reminded that we need to keep a lane free in case of emergency.  Many people are blocking the front driveway and this is making it extremely difficult for vehicles to leave safely.  We would appreciate it also if vehicles were not left idling.  The classes on the west side of the school breathe in the vehicle fumes and this has created a problem for staff and students.  Your assistance is greatly appreciated.

Basketball:  We are very lucky to have enough volunteers to run three basketball teams.  There will be a grade 4/5 boys’ team, a grade 5/6 boys’ team and a girls’ team.  Thank you to the volunteers who will work with these students.  The games will commence the week of January 22^nd.  Badminton season will begin soon.  Any parents who would like to volunteer for this sport can contact Mrs. Scheck.

Kindergarten Registrations:  Families with children who will be five years old prior to December 31^st, 2013, are able to register their child for kindergarten.  Registrations are now open.  Please feel free to come and resister at your earliest convenience.  Please bring your child’s birth certificate and immunization records.

Hallways:  With the wet and drippy snow, the hallways continue to be a safety issue.  We have purchased “blue hospital booties” for parents and caregivers to wear in the hallway should they not want to take off their boots.  Please put these booties on so that our hallways stay nice and clean as well as dry.  Many students are stepping in puddles of water and “ice salt” that is left in the hallways and this is tracking throughout the school creating slippery spots. The blue booties can be found in the mudrooms and the front office entrance.  Thank you for your assistance in this matter.

School Meal Program:  The February menu has been sent home and additional copies are available at the office.   Please return the menu by Wednesday, January 16^th.

Early Learning Opportunities:  Please find the January calendars for Strong Start and other pre-school opportunities at: http://www.earlylearning.prn.bc.ca.  Another useful sight for local events can be found at: www.familyfriendlycommunity.ca.   These are great resources for families to provide activities and information about available opportunities in the region.

Electronics:  Just a friendly reminder to parents and students that the school policy on electronics/cell phones is that these devices should not be coming to school.  We cannot be responsible for lost or stolen items. These items have caused some concern in the school this year.  If a student does have a cell phone or electronic device, it must be turned off and put away in a backpack or pocket during class time.  Students are responsible for lost or stolen items.

Virtue of the Month:  At the assembly on Monday, the virtue of the month was addressed.  Trustworthiness is the virtue that classrooms will be focusing on for January.  Trustworthiness is described as taking responsibility for one’s conduct and obligations; to be relied on as honest or truthful; behaving in an honourable manner; and acting with integrity.  Students will have the opportunity to earn “royal bucket fillers” for demonstrating trustworthiness.

Helping Hands:  Greetings Parents! The Helping Hands program is in need of more parent volunteers in order for the program to run smoothly and efficiently. Helping Hands is only for the duration of the lunch period (11:50-12:35), in which volunteers help the primary classes get ready for playtime outside/inside and assist staff monitors on the playground as well as during the eating portion of the lunch period. With so many students needing help with snowsuits, toques, lost mittens, zippers and opening lunches etc., volunteers are greatly appreciated.

Parents can pick their volunteer days to suit their schedules, even once a month is a huge help. Criminal Record checks must be complete before anyone can volunteer.  Anyone interested in becoming a volunteer or has questions about the program please contact Brittany at: 250-329-9060 or mycockbrittany@gmail.com.   Thank you!

Sincerely,

Mrs. Kathy Scheck – Principal

Mr. Karl Peterson - Vice Principal

Robert Ogilvie Elementary

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Please return this part of the newsletter to enter draw or order a CD:

Student: _________________      Classroom: _______________

I would like to order a Paul Hann CD for $10.00 (funds included)   _______

Please enter my name for the newsletter draw to be held on January 21st, 2013.

Name: ______________________________

Calendar of Events – January 2013

Jan. 7 – School opens after Christmas vacation – assembly at 9:00 a.m.

Jan. 9 – Subway

Jan.14 – Computer lab closed as team here to look at labs

Jan. 15 – PAC meeting at 7:00pm in the library.

Jan. 16 – Booster Juice – Mr. Flury’s class to Anne of Green Gables.

Jan. 17 – Ms. Gauthier and Mrs. Lee’s classes to Anne of Green Gables.

Jan. 18 – Mrs. Dressler / Mr. Peterson’s class to Anne of Green Gables.

Jan. 21 – Assembly at 9:00 a.m.

Jan. 23 – Pizza

Jan. 30 – Subway

Feb. 1 – Pro-D day – No school for students

PAC Report:  Happy New Year and welcome to 2013!  We wish you and your family the very best in 2013!  Our next PAC meeting is going to be held on Tuesday January 22^nd in the Robert Ogilvie Library at 7:00 p.m.  There will be babysitting provided and we hope to see you there.

Our Hot Lunch Order Form will be coming home soon so keep watch for it.  This program offers your child a wholesome homemade lunch and all profits will go towards our playground project!  If you are interested in helping out with this program please email us at robertogilviepac@gmail.com and we will get back to you.  You can leave your name and number at the office and they will pass on the message to us. Thank you to Penn West for their donation of $1500.00, which will also be going towards our playground project!  We are grateful for the donations that have come our way this year.  We would like to thank Logan Fischer who has been applying for grants and working with others to get some funding for our project for the last two years!  If you would like to volunteer and help out with events or have any questions or concerns to do with the PAC please feel free to email us at robertogilviepac@gmail.com and we will be glad to get back to you.