Principal's Message
As I look out my office window, I see the beautiful Chilliwack mountains being lit by the warm afternoon sun. My, how easy it is to welcome Autumn and the month of October with weather like this! Like all earthly things; however, it won’t last forever, and we will not only be preparing ourselves for the rainy season coming our way, but the equally daunting Ministry of Education school evaluation. This year, St. Mary’s falls into the 6th year of the cycle, and we are preparing to show how our support staff, teachers, and administration have worked hard to ensure that the kids get the best education possible with the resources that we have. Although there has been a lot on our plates, we are in a very good position to showcase all the extraordinary things our school has to offer...
...For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do - Ephesians 2:10
I have been especially impressed by the way the teachers and EAs have implemented the BC Redesigned Curriculum in our classrooms. I can especially see how their focus on the Core Competency skills of Thinking, Communication, and Personal/Social Awareness has enabled the students to look at the world with inquiring minds, thinking outside the box, and outside themselves. Giving our students more specialty teaching, such as P.E., Music, and Technologies has in turn given teachers more Prep time, and everyone wins. I want to say a special “Thank You” to the PEC for helping to make this happen!
As for sports and extra-curricular activities, cross-country, 4/5 mixed soccer, karate, and Tech Club will be running throughout this month. Grade 7 recently came back from a fruitful Camp Squeah trip, where the entire class grew closer to God, the outdoors and each other. Grade 1 and 2 recently went to Blue Heron Nature Reserve to observe the wildlife. High Touch High Tech is coming again for Grade 1-3 on October 12th to supplement our hands-on Science program. We are beginning our Food Drive for the less fortunate this month, so please keep in mind the “Need of the Week”, marked on the calendar enclosed. We have Family Movie Night on Friday the 12th from 6-8 p.m., and are also looking forward to seeing you at Parent/Teacher/Student conferences on October 25th & 26th. There is truly something for everyone at St. Mary’s!
Thank you for continuing to entrust your children to us, and for supporting the school with all that you do! I ask that you keep our entire school: students, teachers, support staff, administration and pastors in your prayers.
T. Slivinski, Principal
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Highlights
- Thanksgiving Food Drive, Oct 1-31
- (PFG) Parent Assoc. Meeting 7 pm, Oct 1
- Confirmation Meeting (Parents & students) 6.30pm, Oct 2
- Karate starts today, Oct 3
- Thanksgiving - No school, 8 Oct
- Parking Fundraiser @ Heritage Park, Oct 10
- Free Family Movie Night, Oct 12
- Mass for Confirmation Candidates 9.30am, Oct 14
- First Communion Meeting (parents only) 6.45pm, Oct 16
- Gr 1 FT to Petey's Pumpkin Patch, Oct 17
- Photo Retake Day, Oct 18
- Province-wide Pro-D Day - No school, Oct 20
- CWL Harvest Lunch & Pie Sale, Oct 20
- Mass for First Communion Candidates 9.30am, Oct 21
- Scholastic Book Fair, Oct 23-26
- Student-led Conferences 5 to 8pm, Oct 25
- Student-led Conferences 8am to Noon - NO SCHOOL, Oct 26
- Grades 4 & 7 FSA Tests, Oct 29-Nov 2
- Halloween Dress Up Day, Oct 31
- Donations of Halloween Candy accepted for AGAPE Ministry, Nov 1-2
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PARENT/TEACHER/STUDENT INTERVIEWS
October 25th & 26th
Scheduled time blocks are 10 minutes. Please be on time and adhere to the timeline.
Some issues and concerns are not best supported in this meeting format; all teachers are available to make another appointment. To arrange for an interview time, complete & submit the form enclosed in the brown envelope. A schedule of interview times will be sent home mid-October.
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PARENT ASSOCIATION (PFG)
We hope to see many of our parents at our next PFG (Parent Association) meeting on October 1st , 7 p.m. (in the staff room) We will be discussing our Family Movie Night (Oct 12) and our upcoming OKTOBERFEST (Nov 10).
Your attendance at a PFG meeting counts as parent service hours!
Hope to see you there!
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HALLOWEEN CANDY DONATIONS To AGAPE Ministry
…Halloween Treats…
Children are often ‘gifted’ with an abundance of candy at Halloween. For the past few years, we have invited our students to donate some of their Halloween candy, and have been overwhelmed by the response!
Candies collected are forwarded to the AGAPE program. Agape Street Ministry reaches out to women in downtown Chilliwack, and volunteers provide the ladies with candy bags, each with a simple message to “Tell them He loves them…”
Candy donations will be collected at the school from November 1st and 2nd.
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OPPORTUNITIES FOR PARENT SERVICE HOURS
St. Mary's is using SignUp.com to organize our upcoming activity.
Please sign up for School Volunteer Opportunities!
Here's how it works in 3 easy steps:
1. Click this link to go to our invitation page on SignUp.com: http://signup.com/login/entry/1107018631126230066
2. Enter your email address: (You will NOT need to register an account on SignUp.com)
3. Sign up! Choose your spots - SignUp.com will send you an automated confirmation and reminders. Easy!
Note: SignUp.com does not share your email address with anyone. If you prefer not to use your email address, please contact me and I can sign you up manually.
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LADIES BOOT CAMP held every Monday in St. Mary’s Gym; 5:45 pm—6:45 pm. $2 drop in. Bring a mat and weights if you have them (and a water bottle).
Open to all fitness levels!
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Don't Forget!
If you haven’t already done so, please return any unsold
coupon books ASAP. All books given out must be accounted for.
Thank you for your support of this fundraiser.
We still have a few books for sale if you need extras (call the office).
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LOST AND FOUND
Our “Lost and Found” bin is beginning to fill up with jackets, school sweaters, shoes etc.
There are no names on these items, which makes it difficult to reunite them with their owners.
PLEASE remember to label ALL your child(ren)’s belongings! Thank you!
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BEFORE & AFTER SCHOOL CARE
Our Before and After School Care Program is full so it is very important that, if your child is not able to attend on any given day, you contact the BSC/ASC Manager, Mrs. Chiappetta via email (jchiappetta@saintmarysschool.ca). Notifying the school about an absence enables other people on the waiting list to attend. Thank you for your co-operation.
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THANKSGIVING FOOD DRIVE
October 1st—31st
October…. the month of Thanksgiving. Each year, St. Mary’s School community holds a Food Drive to help the needy in our community. This food drive runs the whole month of October.
Donations of any of the following would be greatly appreciated!
Macaroni & Cheese, Pasta & Sauce, Rice Peanut Butter or Jam, Beans (tin) Cereal or Porridge, Soup (tin or package), Cake or Muffin Mixes, Vegetables (tin) Pancake Mix and Syrup, Tuna or Salmon (tin) Juices (cartons, bottled, or small boxes), Coffee or Tea, Oriental Noodles, Fruit (tins) or Jello.
Donations of any of the above can be dropped off at the school office any time.
Consult the school calendar for the “Need of the Week”.
Thank you for your support!
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KARATE CLASS
8 week Karate class begins October 3rd (pre-registration is required). The class runs from 3—4 pm on Wednesdays and is open to students in Grades 1-7. Cost is $50/child.
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St. Mary’s Library Update
Library class visits have begun so parents/caregivers should already have seen library books coming home with their children or home stay students. Each grade has been assigned a time to visit the school library and allowed to take out a certain number of books according to their grade level. Student loan periods are approximately two weeks and books can be renewed if needed.
How Many Books Can My Child take out?
Classes can take out a certain number of books based on their grade level. Students who still have outstanding library materials from previous years will notice that the number of books they can take out will be reduced by the number of outstanding books (lost or damaged) indicated on their school library record.
Scholastic Book Sale
Our annual Scholastic Book sale this year will be held the week of October 23-26. During the book sale we need volunteers to help setup, during the sale and to take down book sale on Friday afternoon. Any parent who wishes to help during sale hours please contact the office or Alison ten Bohmer at atenbohmer@saintmarysschool.ca
Did you know?
Teachers receive a weekly overdue report listing students with overdue library items.
Parents can receive weekly emails of their child’s overdue materials if a home email address is available. If you are not sure if the library has your email address and you would like to receive notifications, please email library@saintmarysschool.ca to have your email added to your child’s library record.
If a book is lost or damaged, you will be contacted in regards to the replacement value. If fine is left outstanding, your child’s borrowing privileges may be suspended.
Parents and caregivers can email the library at library@saintmarysschool.ca if they have any questions about their child/student’s library record.
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The hot lunch order form for November, December and January is enclosed in the brown envelope.
Please complete and return by October 22nd. Payment may be made with cash, post-dated cheque, direct debit (payment can be split up—see form), Visa or Mastercard.
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STUDENT ABSENCES
Please remember to phone the school before 9:00 a.m. to report your child’s absence. We have a voice mail system for off-hours. You may also e-mail the school office or report via the SCHOOL APP.
If you haven’t emailed us /notified us in advance about the absence, please ensure you send in a note the DAY your child returns. State the DATE and the REASON for the absence. Our attendance and absentee notes are AUDITED each year to determine the grant we receive from the government. Please be clear as to the reason for absence e.g. sick, holidays etc.
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STUDENT SAFETY
STUDENT SIGN OUT SHEET
If you are picking up your child for any reason during the school day, we ask that you inform the teacher via email (in advance of the absence) and come into the office and sign him/her out.
EMERGENCY CONTACT
In this age of technology, many parents/guardians have cell phones. If you do have one, and have not provided us with the number, please do so. This will increase the chances of getting hold of you in the case of an emergency. NOTE: It is imperative that our school records be kept up to date. If you have moved or changed any registration information (including your child’s medical information) , please let the office know IMMEDIATELY.
MORNING SUPERVISION
Outside supervision does not begin until 8:30 a.m. Students should never be dropped off and left alone outside. With off-site meetings and other scheduled events, there is no guarantee staff are on site before 8:30 a.m.
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SCHOOL MASS
We invite you to join the school at our Wednesday Mass
October 3rd at 9:00 A.M.
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GYM BAGS
A limited number of St. Mary’s gym bags are available from the school office ($5.00 each)
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The school is always happy to receive:
Canadian Tire Money: In past years, the school has purchased various “emergency prep” items from Canadian Tire, thanks to parish and school families donating their Canadian Tire “money”. We will continue to collect this “money” throughout the year. Thank you in advance for your generosity!
Recycling Program: St. Mary’s “Kids Who Can” club continues to
collect recyclable bottles and cans. Items may be dropped off at the school during the week. We are looking for a parent volunteer (or 2) to collect recycling from the school and bring it to the bottle depot for us. Contact the school office if you are interested.
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RETURN THESE FORMS TO THE SCHOOL VIA THE BROWN ENVELOPE
- Request for Parent/Teacher/Student Interview
- Parent Participation form (for September hours) - you can also submit hours via the school app or website
- Order form for Pizza for Movie Night
- Order form for Gift Cards - we'd love to have all our school families try this program.
- Hot Lunch form for Nov/Dec/Jan
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St. Mary's "Shopping Through Our School Program"
Our inventory has arrived and we are ready to roll!
We have the following gift cards on hand in the office (stop by any time to purchase). We can also set up a standing order for you if you wish (contact Mrs. Kwan in the office to arrange).
· Walmart ($50s & $100s)
· Superstore ($50s and $100s)
· Safeway ($50s and $100s)
· Save On ($50’s and $100s)
· Fraser Valley Meats/Mad Butcher ($25s)
· Chevron ($25s)
· Esso ($25s, $50s, $100s)
· Shell ($25s, $50s, $100s)
· PetroCan ($25s, $50s, $100s)
· Shoppers Drug Mart ($25s, $50s)
· Starbucks ($25s, $50s)
· Tim Hortons ($25s, $50s)
· Greek Islands Restaurant ($25s)
· Homer Restaurant ($25s)
You buy the cards from us at FACE VALUE (e.g. $100 SaveOn card costs you $100)
The school receives a percentage from the vendor (e.g. SaveOn gives us 8%). Over the course of a school year, the school typically raises $5,000—$7,000.
So, if you’re heading out the door to do your groceries, get gas for your car, or you just need your morning coffee fix, stop by the school first and purchase a gift card from us!
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact the school office.
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OKTOBERFEST TICKETS ON SALE NOW!
Saturday 10th Nov from 6pm to Midnight.
$35 per person, includes dinner and dance!
Music by; S-Bahn, Vancouvers popular Oktoberfest specialist!
Tickets are available in the school office.
Options to buy a table if you'd like to ensure you sit with your friends!
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Keep informed by signing up for our School App
(for Android and iPhones), we encourage you to do so!
It's Free - Upload the APP today!
St. Mary's Catholic School
Click the links above to see our Facebook page, Instagram page and website
Request to join our 'St. Mary's School Parents Group' on Facebook
(a closed group for St. Mary's parents only)
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