September - St. Martin de Porres School

September 2016
Welcome Back to St. Martin de Porres “A Catholic school with a Fine Arts focus”
As the days get shorter and the leaves begin to turn color, the entire staff are very
excited to see our students back at school! The many smiles and eagerness to learn is
certainly part of God’s plan for His children. Many thanks to everyone on staff and
volunteers who worked many hours to get our school community looking beautiful.
With many familiar educators in place, we have a few new faces on staff this
year. Miss Connolly will be teaching Grade 1, Mr. Touchette will be teaching Grade 3 and
Miss McQuay will be teaching Grade 5. We invite all parents, guardians and their
children to our “Meet the Staff” evening on Wednesday, September 7th in the
gymnasium from 7 p.m. until 8 p.m. We have many new and exciting things
happening in our learning community and want to share them with you!
Our Division’s faith theme this year is, “Rooted, Nourished and Growing”.
St. Martin’s opening Mass is Thursday, September 29th beginning at 11:15 a.m.
at Sacred Heart Church. Please join us if you can.
September holds some exciting learning opportunities at St. Martin’s. On September 20th, the St. Pat’s/Dawe Run will be hosted for our Grades 4 and 5 students (The
rain out alternative day is September 27th). We will be hosting Earth Rangers, a
presentation highlighting our environment and the wildlife within it, in the afternoon of
September 20th - that way, all students will be back from the run and will be able to
participate in the presentation. Further, renowned Canadian author Sigmund Brouwer,
will be supporting students through a Writer’s Workshop on September 27th.
Our school, with the gracious support of the Red Deer Catholic Education
Foundation and in partnership with the City of Red Deer-Family Community and Support
Services, will be creating “Little Free Libraries” that will be placed throughout the City of
Red Deer to promote literacy. Over the summer, Miss McQuay built 20 Little Free Library
shelters and collected an array of books for this project. Our students will be involved in
painting the shelters over the next while.
If, at anytime, you need to stop by and have a chat, please know that our doors
are always open. Mrs. McCullough and I would be most happy to speak with you! On
behalf of the entire staff, we would like to thank our parents for entrusting us with your
children. They are God’s most precious gift!
God’s blessings to you this year!
Cathy Cameron, Principal
Kristie McCullough, Assistant Principal
Rooted, Nourished and Growing
Mrs. Cathy Cameron - Principal
Mrs. Kristie McCullough - Assistant Principal
Mrs. Flo Brown - Admin Assistant (M,T,TH,F)
Mrs. Kim Skakun - Admin Assistant(M-F am W)
Mrs. Rae-anne Gies - KWF/KTT
Miss April Connolly - Grade 1C
Mrs. Susan Walsh - Grade 1W
Mrs. Nancy Junck - Grade 2J
Mrs. Marie Krushelnicki - Grade 2K
Mrs. Stephanie McLean - Grade 3MC
Mr. Andre Touchette - Grade 3T
Mrs. Chris Kuly - Grade 4K
Mrs. Leanne Oslund - 4O
Miss Allie McQuay - 5M
Mrs. Linda Zazula - 5Z
Mrs. Tara Lawrance- LIFT, Counseling, Art
Addressing Concerns
If you, as the parent or guardian of a Red Deer
Catholic student, have concerns about your child's
education or daily interactions at school, we want to
talk with you. Sitting down and talking with the
people who interact most often with your child on a
daily basis can remedy most concerns.
If the issue or concerns are about the teacher, the
program, program support, and/or issues with other
children such as bullying, the first contact should
be the teacher. If a parent has a concern about the
school administration, the parent should talk with
the school administration first. If, in the view of
the parent, the ruling of the school principal is
unacceptable, the parent may address his/her
concern(s) to the Associate Superintendent of
Student Services.
Since parents and teachers share the responsibility
for the education and socialization of children, it is
important to address an issue or concern quickly.
We want to work together for the benefit of all
our students.
For more information, please refer to Administrative Procedure 353, Parent Concern Protocol.
Specialist
Mrs. Sheila Foley-Grosse - LIFT, Literacy
Specialist
Mrs. Patti Sinclair - LIFT, ESL
Mrs. Brenda Bowman - LIFT
Mrs. Sherry Delaurier - LIFT, Music Specialist
Miss Laura DeGraff - LIFT, Drama Specialist
Mrs. Brenda Russell-Learning Commons Support
Mrs. Jean Gillespie - Kindergarten E.A.
Miss Tori Grebinski - Grade 2 E.A.
Mrs. Angela Grebinski - Grade 3 E.A.
Miss Christine Oleson - Grade 3 E.A.
Mrs. Stephanie Solozano - Grade 4 E.A.
Miss Sara Hileman - Grade 5 E.A.
Mr. Matthew Kuehne - Grade 5 E.A.
Miss Julie Masson - Family School Enhancement Counsel
Criminal Record Checks
Red Deer Catholic encourages the use of volunteer
personnel in schools and school-related activities and
recognizes the valuable contribution volunteers can
make in a school. In order to ensure and maintain a
safe and secure learning environment for our
students, a criminal record check is required every
three years. A letter is available at the office stating
you are required to have a record check for volunteer
purposes. This letter will allow you to get the record
check for a $5.00 charge. You will be notified when
your criminal check is expiring.
Striving to be “Peanut/
Nut Free”
Striving to be Peanut/Nut Free
We are encouraging students to avoid bringing foods
that have peanut products in them. We have some
students that are susceptible to a life-threatening
allergic reaction to nuts/peanuts or products
containing nuts/peanuts/peanut oil. With your
cooperation, we can minimize the risk of an allergic
reaction.
Page 2
St. Martin de Porres Timetable
Absences/Lates
Supervision begins on the playground @ 8:35 am.
All students must attend school as per the Alberta
School Act. Our number 403-347-5650 is available
24 hours to take your call. Although the school
makes courtesy calls home for unexcused absences, it is the parents’ responsibility to notify the school when
students are absent from school.
8:47 Bell
Classes in Session
10:30-10:45 Morning Recess
Classes in Session
12:15-12:40 Outdoor Recess
12:45-1:00
Lunch in Classrooms
Classes in Session
EARLY DISMISSAL @ 2:20 pm every Monday
REGULAR DISMISSAL @ 3:30 PM TUES.- FRI.
Guest and Volunteer Sign-In
All guests and volunteers entering the school must stop
at the front desk. At the front counter there is a
sign in sheet. Name tags are to be worn by volunteers
while in the school. Prior to leaving the school,
volunteers and guests are asked to sign out.
Please remember that in order to volunteer in our
school, you must have a criminal record check on file.
Please see us at the office if you require further information.
Embedded PD Mondays
At St. Martin de Porres School we are committed to
the highest quality learning experiences for your
children, in a Catholic learning environment. One way we
are striving to achieve this is through embedded
Professional Development sessions, every Monday
throughout the school year! As a result, we remind you
that the students will be dismissed, and busses will be
taking students home at 2:20 each
Monday. If you are in need of access to
our on-site supervision, please complete
the form located at the end of the
newsletter and submit it to the office.
Before and After School Supervision
There is no supervision prior to 8:35 am. Please do
not send your child(ren) to school before 8:35 am.
Students are expected to remain on the playground
until the bell rings at 8:47 am and then enter the
school through their assigned doors. Students are
expected to leave at dismissal time whether they
are being picked up or walking home. There is no
playground supervision after school.
Dress Down Fridays
Our school division has adopted the
practice of “Casual Dress Fridays".
Optional participation by staff members
requires a $2.00 donation to charity.
Student Agendas
All grade 1—5 students have received their agenda.
Please use these as a daily communication link
between yourself and your child’s teacher. We
strongly urge you to write any changes to your
child’s school day (eg. appts., pickup/drop off, bus
changes etc.) in the agenda.
ADmazing COUPON BOOKS
ARE AVAILABLE FOR SALE IN THE OFFICE.
DROP IN OR SEND $20.00 WITH YOUR
CHILD
"Thank-You" to Spencer Higginson at the Red Deer
Farm Credit Canada office. He generously donated
$800 that will be used to buy updated equipment in
order for us to continue our egg hatching
project! We're so "egg-cited"!!
Page 3
MedicAlert’s No Child Without Program is at Our School
The No Child Without program offers a free MedicAlert membership to students who attend our school and are
between the ages of 4 up to their 14th birthday. If your child has a medical condition, allergy or is required to
take medication on a regular basis then you should consider a MedicAlert membership through this program. MedicAlert is your child’s voice in an emergency,
MedicAlert membership;

Gives emergency first responders immediate access to a your child’s medical information on their MedicAlert
bracelet or necklet

Enables first responders to quickly obtain up to date medical information by means of the child’s Electronic
Health Record through the 24 Hour Emergency Hotline.

Communicates with the parent or emergency contact upon activation of the Hotline
Allows free updates of the child’s medical record as needed
MedicAlert identification can alert school staff, friends, coaches and others about your child’s medical condition
should an emergency occur.
For further information come to the office for a brochure or go to www.nochildwithout.ca.
To register your child you will need a No Child Without brochure from the office.
Parking & Idle Free Zone
Please note the staff parking lot is for staff only. It is very dangerous for children
to be walking through the parking lot. The area directly in front of the school is a drop
off/pick-up zone where the driver is expected to remain in the vehicle. Street parking
is available further back/ahead of this zone. There is also parking available behind the
bus zone on the west side of the school.
St. Martin’s as an idle free zone. As part of this program in an effort to reduce
greenhouse gas emissions we encourage parents and visitors to turn off their vehicle
when parked. Your help is appreciated in cutting vehicle idling and exhaust emissions
especially around our young students who because of their size, are generally more
impacted by these toxic fumes than older adults.
We appreciate your cooperation in keeping our students healthy and safe!
Page 4
The Arts
In music, students will learn the concepts of pitch, rhythm and
team work through movement, singing, and playing instruments.
There will be music clubs for students to choose to participate
in outside of class time, as well as a variety of performance opportunities. Mrs Delaurier, our music teacher, is looking forward
to a fun and exciting year in music!
Drama is an opportunity to move, make noise, and imagine in the classroom!
We tell stories and become characters through working together and
appreciating the gifts God has given us. Miss DeGraff will be spending time
in each class this year working on various Drama skills that will give students a foundation for the art form as well as life and career skills for the
future. Students should keep an eye out for extracurricular Drama
opportunities this year to be able to delve deeper and build more skills.
Get ready to paint, create, sculpt, explore, imagine and much
more!! Mrs. Lawrance will be working with every class once a week to
explore a variety of techniques and mediums while helping the
students to create their own masterpieces. Please make sure every
student has a paint shirt...sometimes creativity can get messy!
Counselor’s Corner
My name is Tara Lawrance and I am so excited to be embarking on a new role at St. Martin de Porres as your School Counselor. I am
here to help ALL students be successful in our faith filled environment, socially, emotionally and behaviorally so they may access
their education without barriers.
Here’s what I will be doing at our school:

Classroom Lessons- I will visit all grades to teach social emotional skills such as feelings, communication, problem solving etc.
dependent on the needs of the group.


Small Group Counseling- I will facilitate small groups for students who need a little extra support in certain areas.
Individual Support- I will work with students short term to work through problems and provide strategies with issues affecting
them at school.
Consultation with Staff/ Parents- I am available to meet/ talk with teachers and parents to help support students and provide resources and education about issues affecting children.
Here’s what I’d like you to know about me:




I am ONE part of the team that works to help your child succeed.
I will be working to get to know ALL students so they may feel connected and safe while they are with us.
I respect your right and your child’s right to privacy. Confidentiality is a paramount part of my job.
Please feel free as parents to reach out to ask questions or share concerns, as well as, to share positive things about your child.
I am looking forward to helping your children along the path of becoming respectful and responsible citizens.
Page 5
Events this Month

Please join us at Sacred Heart on
Thursday, September 29th at 11:15 for
our school opening Mass.
Rooted, Nourished and Growing
Our 2016-2017 Division Faith Theme is Rooted, Nourished
and Growing. We are rooted in God’s love, Nourished by a
relationship with Christ, and Growing to bear fruit with
the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
Join us this year as we delve into this theme.
Prayer About
Learning
Holy God, you taught your
Son, Jesus, about many things
when he was a child. He valued
all the lessons he learned
from his earthly parents and
the elders. As we begin a new
school year, we are excited
about all the things we will
learn this year.
Bless our learning. Bless our
parents and teachers who will
guide us. May we use the
knowledge we gain to help
others and to spread your
Good News. We ask this in the
name of Jesus your Son, the
master teacher.
Amen
Let’s Pray! Prayers for the Elementary
Classroom By: Heather Reid
Page 6
Sacred Heart Parish
September Newsletter-2016
Hoping that you had a restful and a Happy Summer!
Baptism
Workshops for the month:
Wednesdays 7 and 28 at 6:00 - 9:00 p.m.
2016 - 2017 Tentative Schedules for the Preparation and Celebration of the Sacraments
First Reconciliation & First Eucharist Registration: Tuesday, September 27 at 7:00 p.m. Please bring your child’s Baptism Certificate and a picture wallet sized. Donations appreciated to cover the cost of books and supplies
Choose one class from the sessions for First Reconciliation Preparation:
Session
Date
Time
1
Wednesday October 5
5:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.
2
Saturday October 15
10:30 a.m. -
3
Wednesday October 19
5:00 p.m. - 6:30 p.m.
4
Wednesday November 2
5:00 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.
5
Wednesday November 9
6:00 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.
6
Saturday November 19
10:30 a.m. – 12:00 noon
November 26
10:00 a.m.-12 noon
Saturdays December 3, or 10, or 17
11:00 a.m.
Retreat
Celebration:
12:00 noon
First Eucharist
Choose one class from sessions #1 and one from sessions #2 for First Eucharist preparation
Session# 1
Date
Time
1
Wednesday, January 18
5:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.
2
Saturday, January 21
10:30 a.m. to 12:00 noon
3
Saturday, February 4
10:30 a.m. to 12:00 noon
4
Wednesday, February 15
5:00 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.
5
Wednesday February 22
6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
6
Saturday, March 4
10:30 a.m. to 12:00 noon
Session# 2
Date
Time
1
Wednesday, March 8
5:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.
2
Wednesday, March 15
6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
3
Saturday, March 25
10:30 p.m. to 12:00 noon
4
Wednesday, March 29
6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
5
Saturday April 1
10:30 p.m. to 12:00 noon
6
Wednesday, April 5
5:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.
Retreat
Saturday April 8
10:00 a.m. to 12 noon
Celebration
Weekend of April 29/30
Rehearsal: April 29 at 10:00 a.m.
Weekend of May 6/7
Rehearsal: May 6 at
10:00 a.m.
Page 7
September 2016
Attendance Line 403-347-5650
Transportation Dept. 403-309-8801
Sun
Mon
Tue
Wed
Thu
Fri
Sat
1
2
3
Mark your Calendar
Picture Day
Kindergarten
Oct. 11 & Oct 12 (KWF)
4
5
Labour Day
No School
6
11
12
13
18
19
Dawe Run
20
Staggered Entry
8
9
10
14
15
16
17
21
22
23
24
28
29
Opening Mass
Sacred Heart
11:15 am
30
7
Meet the
Staff Evening
7:00 pm
Dawe Run
Earth Rangers
Presentation
2:00 pm
25
26
27 Alternate
Dawe Run
Sigmund Brower
Presentation
Evening of
Authors 7:00pm
Page 8
St. Martin’s on Site Supervision Registration Form
As part of ongoing commitment to excellence through Embedded Professional Development, our school
will continue to dismiss early on Mondays at 2:20 pm. As a result, we are prepared to provide a supervised
area for those students adversely impacted and with no other option who require supervision on early
dismissal Mondays. If you require this assistance from the school please complete the registration form
and return it to the school office. (Please Note: Registration required to access this service.)
On Site Supervision is….
Safe supervised area where students can work quietly
and independently on items such as homework, quiet
reading and studying.
Student/Family Expectations….
On Site Supervision is Not….
This time will not be instructional time nor will it be activity
based. It will be an opportunity for students to work in a
safe and secure environment until they are able to be
picked up
Students are expected to:
• comply with the rules of the school as privilege can be revoked
• come prepared for independent work
Parents are expect to:
• Provide a healthy snack and
• Pick up their child/children by their identified time
To ensure student safety, parents/guardians or approved caregivers will be required to sign their child out.
Child(s) Name/Grade:_____________________________________________
Parent/Guardian Contact Information
Mother/Guardian:
Father/Guardian:
Home Address:
Home Phone:
Cell Phone (1):
Cell Phone (2):
Work Phone (1):
Work Phone (2):
Approved Caregivers who can sign out your Child?
Emergency Contact (Provide 3 contacts)
1. Contact Name
1. Phone Number
2. Contact Name
2. Phone Number
3. Contact Name
3. Phone Number
Medical Information (allergies etc.)
My Child/Children will be picked up at:
___________________________
Parent/Guardian Signature
_______________________
Date