Mustang Memo - November 1, 2024
What a spooktacular week!
We thought we were seeing double with all of those minions everywhere in the school! Speaking of doubles, did you see that we had four Mr. Robertson's in the office? Strange things happen on Halloween!
Thank you to all of our parents and family members who came out to watch our Halloween parade this year! It was fun to see the cute and creative costumes that wandered up and down the hallways!
We also would like to say Happy Diwali to our families who celebrate this festival of lights which fell on the same day as Halloween this year! We hope that you had a wonderful celebration.
This weekend, enjoy a little post-celebration quiet as everyone sleeps in one hour longer with the clock change this weekend.
Helene Hewitt & Jay Robertson
Principal & Assistant Principal
A place where you belong!
Table of Contents
Week At a Glance
Action
- Time to Change your Clock
- Rock Your Mocs
- Remembrance Day Ceremony at DCE
- Report Cards Are Coming in November
Opportunity
- First Nations, Métis and Inuit November Newsletter
- Vegreville and Mundare Indigenous Family and Community Evening
- Take a Mind Break!
Information
- School Clubs are Coming!
- Did You Know
- Inclement Weather
- Parents Make the Difference
WEEK AT A GLANCE
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| Tuesday |
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| Wednesday |
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| Thursday |
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| Friday |
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ACTION
Time to Change Your Clock!
This Sunday, it's time to fall back an hour! We get an extra hour of sleep! Woo hoo!
Rock Your Mocs
This year, DCE is inviting you to participate in Rock your Mocs day on November 5. Wear a pair of moccasins at school and we will take pictures and post them on our school Instagram account. We will only post pictures of students whose parents have indicated "yes" to the FOIP option in the student information correction forms.
Why Rock Your Mocs?
Established 2011, Rock Your Mocs, is a worldwide Native American & Indigenous Peoples social media unity event held annually and during National Native American Heritage Month in the U.S.A. People wear their moccasins wherever their day takes them and many take a photo, or create a video/story, and upload to social media with the hashtag #rockyourmocs. This creates an online photo album for the world to see and enjoy while simultaneously uniting Native American & Indigenous Peoples through their unique, and collective, tribal culture and heritage. Additionally individuals, organizations, casino’s, schools, museums and tribes are taking the initiative to create their own independent events, both cultural and contemporary, throughout the world.
Remembrance Day Ceremony at Davidson Creek
Our Grade 2 students, with the support of our talented music teacher, Ms. Falcon, are hard at work getting ready to lead our Remembrance Day ceremony taking place on Friday, November 8.
You are welcome to join us in the gym for this important event where we will honour those brave men and women, past and present, who serve in our armed forces.
We will have an early recess so that students can come down to the gym around 10:25 a.m. and we can begin the program around 10:40. This will ensure that we observe the moment of silence at 11 a.m. Students and community members are invited to wear uniforms such as Beavers, Scouts, and Girl Guides.
Report Cards Coming In November
On November 29, parents and guardians can access report cards through PowerSchool—simply log in to your account and click on the “Report Card” button in the left-hand sidebar.
As in previous years, students will be assessed on a Learner Attributes Scale and Achievement Scale. Some categories have been modified to align with the new curriculum that was introduced this year.
Some outcomes in English Language Arts and Literature (ELAL) and Math will be reported on in each term, while other outcomes will only be assessed once in the year. For example, reading comprehension will be assessed and reported on each term, while the unit on sky science will only be taught and assessed once in the school year.
Report cards are communication tools that represent a snapshot in time of your child's progress on specific outcomes of the curriculum. As with all learning, we expect students to continue to grow and build new skills, knowledge and understandings throughout the year. We hope that the report card provides you with information that will guide further conversation about your child's learning.
If you have any questions about your child's progress, at any time of the year, please contact the teacher directly. Our teachers are able to talk over the phone or they can set up a meeting at a mutually convenient time for all. Your child's success is important to all of us.
OPPORTUNITY
First Nations, Métis and Inuit November Newsletter
Here is a link to the November newsletter for students and families who identify as members of the First Nations, Métis or Inuit communities.
Vegreville and Mundare Indigenous Family and Community Evening
Join the EIPS First Nations, Métis and Inuit Education team for an evening of learning and connection. Enjoy soup and bannock from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m., followed by art with Métis Knowledge Keeper Connie Kulhavy and Giant Floor Map teachings from the Indigenous Peoples Atlas of Canada. The event is free, and all are welcome to attend.
Event Details:
Date: Nov. 20, 2024
Time: 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Location: A.L. Horton Elementary, Gymnasium
5037 48 Ave, Vegreville
RSVP by November 18
Take a Mind Break!
Our students have been learning about the importance of taking mind breaks. What is a mind break? Ask you child to explain it to you! Hopefully, they'll tell you that they are short 30 second activities that you can do to help reset your brain so it is ready for learning.
Why do brains need to be reset?
All kinds of information come into our brains throughout the day and sometimes we find ourselves getting dysregulated. We could be feeling tired or hyper. Sometimes we feel anxiety or stress which makes our brain go into emergency mode where we feel the urge to fight, flee or freeze. When that happens, we are not able to access our prefrontal cortex (or the thinking rational brain). When our brains are dysregulated, we cannot learn.
Mind breaks are short activities that help to shift your brain out of stress and into a calm state ready to face the world.
Here are a two mind breaks that students have learned at school that you can practice at home:
Peace Sign-Thumbs Up Switch
Make a peace sign with one hand and a thumbs up with the other. Now switch hands as smoothly (and as quickly) as you can. Notice how you will need to focus your attention.
Starfish Breathing/Five Finger Breathing
Beginning at the base of your thumb, trace up to the top of the thumb while breathing in through your nose, and trace down the thumb while breathing out through your mouth. Ensure that the outbreath is longer and slower than the inbreath.
INFORMATION
School Clubs are Coming!
Our staff are excited to begin offering some clubs at lunch hour this month. Students will learn about clubs being offered as well as where to go and when during the morning announcements. You will also see which clubs are happening each day in the Week at a Glance section of the Mustang Memo! We can't wait to start having fun together!
Did You Know?
Research shows sustained, collaborative and job-embedded professional learning significantly enhances teacher efficacy and student achievement. Simply put, the more times teachers get to learn from one another during the year, the better it is for student success. Professional learning doesn’t mean a day off for staff—they improve upon their knowledge using time dedicated for collaboration, growth and relationship-building. This ensures students continue to receive high-quality education throughout the school year.
Inclement Weather
With the winter season almost here, we have a few reminders for families:
- Ensure students have clothing appropriate for expected weather conditions.
- If weather conditions are bad enough to impact student transportation, Elk Island Public Schools (EIPS) advises families directly, as well as posting on social media and eips.ca as early as possible.
- Decisions regarding bus cancellations are guided by an EIPS administrative procedure that states, “school bus service may be suspended…when there is a forecast or current temperature of -40 C, including wind chill factor, in one or more regions.”
- Other reasons for suspending or delaying school bus services include adverse weather and poor road conditions.
- When school bus services are suspended, schools remain open to students.
For more information, contact EIPS Student Transportation at 780-417-8151.
Parents Make the Difference
Here is this week's article with helpful tips for families:
Research reveals effective ways to help kids learn math
It’s no surprise that students who don’t practice math don’t do well in class. But sometimes even when students do the work they may struggle. That’s why it’s important to use study techniques that work.
One meta-analysis (a study of many studies) looked at how to help students learn math. It found that the most effective strategy is distributed practice. Instead of studying for one hour once a week, your child should break up that time into shorter chunks distributed throughout the week.
Math must be practiced every day. It’s a subject that builds on what students already know. Solving today’s problems will involve previously learned concepts.
There are many ways that students can practice math without even realizing they are reviewing. Here are three:
- Play games with dice. Take turns rolling the dice and quickly adding up the sum of two numbers. Later, add subtraction, multiplication, and division to the challenge.
- Have fun with coins. Say, “I have three coins. Together, they are worth 60 cents. What are they?” Then, let your child challenge you.
- Pretend your calculator is broken. Say, “Imagine our calculator has no number 8. What are some other ways to represent that number?” It could be 10-2 or 4 + 4 or 24/3.
These activities are easy to fit into spare moments throughout the week. Playing games is an enjoyable way to give your child a chance to practice math facts.
Reprinted with permission from the November 2024 issue of Parents make the difference!® (Elementary School Edition) newsletter. Copyright © 2024 The Parent Institute®, a division of PaperClip Media, Inc. Source: G.M. Donoghue and J. Hattie, “A Meta-Analysis of Ten Learning Techniques,” Frontiers in Education, Frontiers Media S.A.