ADMINISTRATOR’S MESSAGE

I’d like to take the opportunity to thank the Park Meadows School

community for welcoming me to the team. It’s been a great start up,

and I’m thoroughly enjoying my time here. It was fantastic to see such

a strong turnout for our Pancake Breakfast. Thanks to the wonderful

staff here for making that event run so smoothly. A special thanks also

to our many community partners who donated items for the event —

Tim Hortons, Save-On Foods, P&H Milling, ATCO Gas, Sobeys and

Kinnikinnick Foods.

As we settle into fall, we look forward to the first of our major

fundraisers this school year, with the goal of building an all-access

playground for the community. Mark your calendars for a Halloween

Carnival and Dance on Thursday, Oct. 29, featuring the band Dory &

the Weatherman. Great music and great prizes! I look forward to

seeing you there.

T. Newman

Lethbr idg e Scho o l Di s tr i c t No . 5 1

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OCTOBER 2016 NEWSLETTER

The Park Meadows School Council is excited to announce that

the Halloween Carnival Night is a Playground Fund-

raiser! Dress up in your costume and come down to the

school for a fun evening!

The carnival will be held in the hallway around the gym on

Thursday, Oct. 29 from 6-8 p.m.

There will be many prizes to draw from. Every dollar you

donate gives you a chance to win!

Scotiabank is dollar matching our fundraising efforts. $1

donated = $2 for the playground

Children will win sweet prizes at the carnival games.

A live band will play

from 6:30– 8:30 p.m. in

the gym, so plan to dance

with your children!

All children must be ac-

companied by an adult.

No toy weapons.

No chip sales this year.

Donations of new items

for the bucket draws

will be taken at the of-

fice between now and

Oct. 26.

SCOTIABANK PLAYGROUND

FUNDRAISER WITH

DORY & THE WEATHERMEN

The big reveal of the theme for Mission Impossible is

Tuesday, Oct.12. Students will have two days on the course

before they invite you to see their climbing and agility skills!

We are inviting families to a family night to try out the

course on THURSDAY, OCT. 13.

5:30 p.m.– 7:30 p.m. All families welcome.

As we will be on the course, we ask all guests that

evening to wear socks.

No food or beverages in the gym.

Feel free to drop off a “bucket prize” for our upcoming

Playground Fundraiser that evening.

MISSION IMPOSSIBLE FAMILY NIGHT

Dory & The Weathermen

LIVE BAND JOINING US!

PROFESSIONAL LEARNING DAYS

We look forward to working with staff twice

this month on professional learning opportu-

nities. These days give staff time to use cur-

rent research to guide their planning and in-

struction.

October 11 – our teachers will be

developing our School Literacy Plan

and evaluating assessment tools to use in core subject areas.

October 20 (p.m.) and October 21 (a.m.) - our staff will inte-

grate the work on our Literacy Plan and develop lessons for

students to use that help them think critically with the use of

hands-on materials, media, text and visual materials.

Let’s work together to once again make a significant contribu-

tion while inspiring others to do the same!

Our Feed the Bug food drive will take place October 3-7.

We are drawing a gigantic bug on the pavement to fill

just before the Thanksgiv-

ing weekend.

If you wanted to donate a

frozen turkey for a family,

please let us know.

FEED THE BUG

Like us on Facebook– Park

Meadows Elementary School

Twitter– Our Twitter

handle is

@ParkMeadowsSch

Instagram– Park Meadows School http://pm.lethsd.ab.ca

PARENT COUNCIL MEETING

HIGHLIGHTS

We had a terrific meeting of the Parent Council in September! Here

are the highlights:

Volunteers are needed for Hot Lunch dates. Please arrive at

the school at 11 a.m. We are usually finished up by 12:30

p.m.

“Teacher tasks” will be listed on the parent board. If you see

something you can help with, please take the task to help out.

Chip sales will not happen in October this year as the profits

each year are decreasing and families are wanting to purchase

their own snacks.

Parents are able to pay online for hot lunches month by month

or are able to pay for the entire year. If you pay online you do

not need to print a hot lunch form as everything is automated.

We are seeking donations from our community for the Fund-

raiser. We have letters at the office that

you can hand out to local businesses. All

monetary donations will receive a tax re-

ceipt.

Our next meeting is Oct.18 at 6:30 p.m.

Babysitting is available.

Any items for the parent council agenda

can be sent to our Parent Council Chair,

Lana Hansell.

Head Lice can be a problem in any school! Lice are wingless

insects that live on the head. They are greyish-brown in color and

are very small and hard to find. Nits are tiny eggs laid by the female

louse and are attached to the hair shaft close to the scalp. Lice are

spread from human to human. Any family can get lice, they are not a

sign of poor hygiene. Lice spread either by close head to head con-

tact or indirectly by sharing hats, combs, scarves, pillow, bedding

etc.

A great site for parents and caregivers: MyHealthAlberta.ca

PARENTS: REMEMBER TO CHECK YOUR CHILD’S HEAD WEEKLY.

HEALTH AND WELLNESS

LETS BE RESPECTFUL - RESERVING

HANDICAP PARKING FOR

THOSE WHO NEED IT

A reminder to parents that handicap parking is reserved for those

with handicap signs.

Currently we have 4 families that require space to get out of their

vehicle so they can accompany their children to the building.

The loading zone is reserved for handicap parking for

vehicles with ramps. This is not a student drop off and

pick up area.

Bylaw 4626, City of Lethbridge states:

B/L 4626 1327 (1) A Handicapped Parking Permit shall

entitle the holder to preferential parking at prevailing

meter rates in any stall on City streets or public parking lots, desig-

nated for use by Handicapped Parking Permit holders only. The fine

for parking in handicapped zones without a sticker is $250.00.

STUDENTS REACHING OUT

Since 1946 it has been the objective of The Gideons in Canada to

offer each grade 5 student a New Testament Bible. The Gideons of

Lethbridge have been privileged to do this in our city.

School District policy requires that in order for a student to receive a

New Testament Bible, a consent card must be signed by a parent and

returned to the school. These consent cards will be available at the

schools in October.

If you wish your Grade 5 child to receive a Gideons New Testament

Bible, please have him/her pick up a card at the office. After a parent

has signed the card and it has been returned to the school office the

Gideons will present your child with a New Testament Bible.

GIDEONS

We are thrilled to highlight projects that our students are doing out-

side of school that are making an impact in our community!

Ava Fletcher joined Earth Rangers and chose

to work towards gathering donations to help save

Wolverines, which have become endangered in parts

of Canada. In mid-September she

completed her first fundraising efforts towards her

goal of $500!

Ava set up a lemonade stand. She created a sign,

dug the float money out of her piggy bank which

she had earned from doing chores around the house,

had a few written notes to share with her customers

about her cause, and made her first batch of lemon-

ade. She quickly fired off a picture and quick message on Facebook

and Instagram and, even in the terrible wind, the customers

came. Ava was super excited to find that at the end of her first

"shift" she raised $94.10. Her next fundraising project is a toy sale

on Kijiji. Her goal is to raise $50 from that sale. The Earth Rangers

will be doing a presentation Nov. 22 at 9 a.m. Families are welcome!

Avinish Chowdhury celebrated his 6th bir thday in style by

giving back to others. With money he was given for his birthday, he

bought food for the Lethbridge Food Bank. In addition, his family

helped him out collecting a total of 81 pounds of food for his birth-

day! In the spring he raised almost $100 for The Fort McMurray Fire

Relief. We salute this young volunteer!

Noah Skidmore is busy making bracelets to help out with our

new playground. Bracelets will be available at the office for $1 each.

We are proud to report he has already made $7 for the playground.

Alex McColl-Schimanski and Nicholas Johnson will be work-

ing at the fundraiser to earn their Purple Star Badge for Cubs. Look

for these students doing service work in the school the night of the

Carnival and Dance.

One of our grade 5 students is also rais-

ing money for the playground! Veronica

Malmberg is creating drawings of ani-

mals in exchange for a donation. You can

“order your drawing” at the office and pay

upon receipt. Thank you Veronica for shar-

ing your artistic talents toward a great

cause!

Lana enjoying the Pancake Breakfast!

SCHOOL COUNSELLOR

This year, our CARE team is made up of our Making Connections

staff member Christine Bishoff, our new FNMI staff member Mandy

Plain Eagle, and Elementary Liaison Counsellor (teacher counsellor)

Christine Oviatt.

Here is an example of the programs that may be offered in your

child’s classroom this year (depending on the needs of the students in

the classroom as identified by the teacher):

Fabulous Feelings – lessons focus on themes of identity, feel-

ings, identifying worries, relaxation, thoughts, and support

systems

Mindfulness – lessons focus on understanding the brain and

our emotions, mindfulness, and several adaptive coping strat-

egies

As the seasons change and routines are re-established, we sometimes

find ourselves wondering how to effectively manage stress and the

related emotions. In this situation, self-regulation strategies can help.

self-regulation is learning to recognize and respond to stress

in a way that works for you

self-regulation includes 5 steps:

1. Reframe the behaviour

2. Recognize the stressors

3. Reduce the stress

4. Reflect: Enhance stress awareness

5. Respond: Develop personalized strategies to promote

resilience & restoration

As always, I welcome your questions, and the most convenient way

to reach me is through email christine.oviatt@lethsd.ab.ca or cell

phone (403-394-6838).

MAKING CONNECTIONS

The Lethbridge Public Library is playing the family movie

“Inside Out” on Oct. 6 at 6 p.m. at the downtown location. The mov-

ie shows how a girl who moves to a new city copes with the change

in her life and all the different emotions she experiences. The movie

is a free event and is one of the many events happening for Mental

Health Awareness week.

The Making Connections Fall Clothing Exchange will take place

on Oct. 24 for 4-7 pm at Galbraith and Fleetwood Elementary

Schools. Watch our Facebook page for details.

Some tips for a successful bedtime routine:

Start the bedtime routine one hour before lights out: can in-

clude a bath, small healthy snack, reading a story

Shut off all electronics one hour before lights out; this in-

cludes TV, computer games, ipads, phones. The light from

these devices keeps the brain busy, interfering with falling

asleep; this is true for adults as well

Keep the bedtime the same each day, including holidays and

weekends

Keep electronics out of the bedroom: children frequently stay

up later unknown to parents, or use these devices if they

wake up in the early hours as a way to fall asleep but they

keep them awake longer

Recharge electronics in a different room away from the bed-

room, the sounds and lights won’t wake you up and there’s

no temptation to use them in the middle of the night

Keep activities to the late afternoon/early evening so children

have a chance to wind down before bedtime

PLAYGROUND UPDATES

We want to extend an enormous thank

you to The Gord Laurie Foundation for

their generous donation towards our

new playground.

We will be meeting about the playground at our Parent Council meet-

ing on Wednesday, Oct. 18 at 6:30 p.m. and will be meeting on

Wednesday this week (Oct. 5) at 6:30 p.m. to organize the Carnival

and Dance taking place at the end of the month.

Lexii in grade 1 has designed a

postcard for us that we will be

dropping into mailboxes. We

hope this helps gets the word

out in our community about our

fundraiser.

The Scotiabank Bright Future

program will be sponsoring our

Dance by dollar matching dona-

tions!

Bring a donation of a bucket

prize for our dance.

Reach out to community part-

ners who could donate funds or

sponsor purchasing a piece of

equipment.

WHAT WILL YOUR CHILD BE LEARNING THIS YEAR?

SCHOOL CASH ONLINE

For safety and efficiency reasons, Lethbridge School District No.51 would like to reduce the amount of cash & cheques coming into our schools. Please join the thousands of parents who have already registered and are enjoying the convenience of paying ONLINE! It takes less than 5 minutes to register. Please follow these step-by-step instruc-

tions, so you will begin to receive email notifications regarding upcoming events involving your child(ren).

NOTE: If you require assistance, select the SUPPORT option in the top right hand corner of the screen.

Step 1: Register

If you have not registered, please go to the School Cash Online home page (https://lethbridge.schoolcashonline.com/) using the link on the

Park Meadows Website and select the “Get Started Today” option.

Step 2: Confirmation Email

Step 3: Find Student—This step will connect your children to your account.

Enter the School Board Name, School Name, Your Child’s Name & Birth Date, Select Continue.

On the next page confirm that you are related to the child, check in the Agree box and select Continue.

Your child has been added to your account.

Step 4: View Items or Add Another Student

THE ANNUAL PANCAKE BREAKFAST

THE TERRY FOX RUN

Healthy Children Parent Newsletter

October 2016

To find an electronic copy of this newsletter, visit: www.albertahealthservices.ca/csh.asp

5 Tips on Talking About Sexual Health with Your Child

Talking about sexual health topics like puberty and menstruation can be daunting and uncomfortable for many parents. The good news is there are ways to prepare and moments to take advantage of, which will help you talk with your child about these topics.

1. Start young! Teach young children the correct terms for their body parts. Talk about puberty before they are already experiencing it. The more you talk about it while they’re growing up, the easier it will be to discuss more difficult topics later.

2. Use teachable moments. These moments can happen when you least expect them. You may hear lyrics to a song, watch TV together, or your child may tell you a story about someone in school. Ask your child's opinion, and use it as an opportunity to talk about sexual health and family values.

3. Answer their questions as best as you can. If your child asks a question and you are unsure how to respond, simply let your child know that you’ll get back to them. The biggest struggle for parents is to decide what topics are age-appropriate. The thing to remember is that, if you avoid answering a question, you may be sending the message that it is NOT okay for them to talk to you about sex.

4. Make it a regular topic. Think of sex education as an ongoing process. Smaller, frequent conversations are better than a big, one-off talk. Remember that healthy development, including sexual development, is a lifelong process.

5. Aim for a friendly chat. Try to see the talks as two-way discussions, not lectures. Ask what your child thinks and feels and be willing to listen. Aim to get a lively discussion going.

For more tips on talking to your child about sexual health, please visit the Alberta Health Services www.teachingsexualhealth.ca

Developmental Assets

Parents and caregivers are a major influence in a child’s life and it’s normal to feel uncertain at times when it comes to raising your children. The Search Institute has identified a list of 40 research-based, positive experiences and qualities that influence young people’s development, helping them become caring, responsible, and productive adults. Below are few examples of developmental assets for you as a parent to consider discussing with your child.

Supporting and loving your child – Do you and your child communicate openly, respectfully and frequently? Does your child receive support from other non-parent adults?

Empowering your child - Does your child contribute to family decisions? Is your child given useful roles in the community?

Setting clear and realistic boundaries – Does your family have clear rules and consequences? Do you monitor your child’s whereabouts?

Helping your child use her or his time in meaningful, constructive ways – Is your child involved in weekly extra-curricular activities?

Encouraging your child to develop a lifetime commitment to learning – Does your child want to do well in school?

Instilling in your child positive values – Do you encourage your child’s development in recognizing and telling the truth?

Developing social competencies in your child –Does your child recognize risky or dangerous situations and are they able to seek help from trusted adults?

Encouraging your child to form a positive identity – Does your child feel good about themself? Does your child seem curious about the world?

For the full list of developmental assets and to learn more visit www.search-institute.org.

Driving is

Reminder: Routine immunization consent forms were sent home last month with Grade 5 and 9 students.

Also, as the best defense against influenza infection & illness, an annual influenza immunization is recommended for all Albertans six months of age and older. For more information about influenza immunization visit http://www.albertahealthservices.ca/influenza.asp

S u M o n Tu e W e d Th u Fr i S a t

Our newsletter is online. See our website to subscribe!

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2 3

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Online cut off date for hot lunch

5

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7 Hot Lunch Forms Due.

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9 10

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18 19

20No Kindergarten

EEP for PUF students in

the a.m.

Classes Dismiss

at 11:47

21

Staff Professional

Learning Day

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26

27

Carnival/ Playground Fundraiser 6:00 p.m.

28 29

No classes:

PARENT COUNCIL

6:30 PM

MISSION

IMPOSSIBLE

STARTS

Assembly @ 12:45

Miss Thielen’s and

Mr. William’s Class

Photo retakes

No classes:

FEED THE BUG WEEK– BRING NON-PERISHABLE FOODS FOR THE FOOD BANK

No classes:

Professional

Learning Day

Halloween Parade

12:30 p.m.

No classes:

MISSION

IMPOSSIBLE

FAMILY NIGHT

6:00 P.M.

Home Alone Pro-

gram with Making

Connections

Home Alone Program

Parent Council meeting

about the fundraiser and

carnival.

6:30 p.m.

Snack Club with

Making Connections

Snack Club with

Making Connections

2:30-3:30 Book Mobile every Thursday

Roots starts October 5 in Miss

Thielen’s room with Mrs. Hir-

sche and baby Hayden!

Snack Club with

Making Connections

Thielen Swimming

Kindergarten

Skating

Kindergarten

Skating

Kindergarten

Skating

Kindergarten

Skating