To: Parents/Guardians January6, 2017
From: C. Bartlett/ J. Beckett-O’Leary
Whenever you feel that something as simple as a smile or kind act will go unnoticed, do it anyway. You never know how much it might change someone else’s life.
Erin Bishop
Welcome Back!
Happy New Year!! Welcome back to all students after your Christmas break. We hope everyone had a wonderful holiday with friends, family and loved ones. We wish all MQW friends and families a very happy, healthy and successful 2017!
Thank you!
We wish to extend a sincere thank you to our community partners who bestowed gift certificates upon us during the Christmas season to share with many of our families. We were certainly blessed with kindness.
On behalf of MQW staff we would like to say a very sincere THANK YOU to our parents who overwhelmed all of us with beautiful gifts, flowers and treats during the Christmas Season. We all wish you and your families a very Happy New Year!
Christmas Activities
Congratulations to all of our students in grades K, 1, 2, & 3 who performed on our Christmas concert.It was absolutely beautiful. The students had lots of fun and they were very proud to perform for a wonderful audience. Our Elementary choir sang their hearts out in a couple of events just before the holidays and they were amazing.
Our Christmas Food Drive was once again an overwhelming success. We are very thankful to our families for your very generous donation of food items to assist the St. Vincent de Paul Society and share with families less fortunate. THANK YOU!!
Kinder Start Information
Our Parent Information session for our Kinder Start parents will be held on Monday, January 16 at 7:00 in our Gymnasium. Please also mark Monday, January 30thon your calendar for our first KinderStart session for our new students for the 2017 - 2018 school year.
There will be no classes for our current Kindergarten students on this day.
These sessions are scheduled for our new KinderStart students. All kindergarten and Kinder start parents will be given follow up Kinder start session dates. If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact our Kindergarten teachers or call the school office for assistance
Grade 6 ICF 2017 - 2018 School Year
Very soon we will be sending home an Intensive Core French information package which contains registration information for our grade five students. If you are interested in learning more about the ICF program there will be an information session coming up later in January/early Februaryat MQW School, so please look for this information the coming weeks and at this time we will have the closing date for registration.
Grade 6 LFI
In the next week or so we will be sending home a Late French Immersion information package which contains registration information for our grade six students going to St. Peter’s Junior High. If you are interested in learning more about the LFI program you are encouraged to read the information and attend a session that is highlighted in the package.
Outdoor Play at Lunch
As part of our Active Schools commitment to health and wellness it is important to get outside for some fresh air and exercise whenever possible during the lunch time break. We have a wonderful area for playing and the children love outdoor play. Please ensure your child is dressed appropriately with boots, snow pants, coat, hat and mittens so that they can enjoy themselves at lunch time. Thank you for your support and cooperation.
Head Lice
From time to time we have cases, as do all schools, of head lice among our students. We ask all parents to take an active role by checking your child’s head regularly. Head lice are passed from person to person by close contact. If you find your child has head lice, please contact our school health nurse, Ramona Kelloway at 752-4867. She will provide you with information on effective treatment.
Elementary Intramurals and After School programs
We are pleased to inform you that lunch time intramurals are ongoing for our grade 5 & 6 students 2 times a cycle. We also have after school basketball programs. Our SLIC group (Student Leadership In Co-curricular) continues to meet once a month with Mr. Pike to discuss and plan various initiatives that involve health, wellness and sports programs in our school. We are very grateful to a number of teachers and parents who sponsor these events as well as some wonderful volunteers who assist with programming and supervision.
Synervoice ~ Home School Communication
The SYNERVOICE Communication system is a very valuable system for us indelivering messages and notifications to parents in a timely and efficient manner. This service is particularly helpful for situations such as unscheduled school closures.To assist with this process, it is essential that we have accurate and updated information regarding home contact and emergency numbers. Please notify the office immediately if you change address or telephone numbers.Thank you for your cooperation.
Allergy ALERT
Please take note that we have a number of students who have severe life threatening allergies in our school. Parents are requested not to send the following items to school: nuts, tree nuts, peanut butter, fish, seafood and shellfish. Contact with these foods may result in a severe allergic reaction requiring immediate medical attention. We ask all students and their families to be very conscious of these products when packing snacks and/or lunches.
Electronic Equipment
Many students have received new electronic equipment for Christmas, such as Ipads, DS systems, Laptops,cell phones etc. We do not allow the use of these electronics during the school day and suggest children leave them at home. We cannot take responsibility for lost, broken or stolen items brought to school.
Lost and Found
We keep a Lost & Found container on the main floor and in the gym entrance of our school. We invite both children and parents to check periodically for items that may be missing. Also, in this regard it is wise to label as many school items as possible. Names or initials should go on sneakers, book bags, lunch bags, jackets, caps, pencil cases and other supplies.
Doorbell
Parents and visitors to our school should use the main office entrance located on the west side of our building. This door will be locked during the school day and you are kindly asked to ring the doorbell, identify yourself and Ms. Case will buzz you in. For safety reasons it is important that we are aware of visitors in our school at all times. Parents and visitors are not permitted in the classroom areasunless permission is given by the administration. The corridors must be accessible for all students should we need to evacuate in an emergency. Your support is appreciated.
Late arrivals
Our doors are unlocked each day from 8:30 – 8:45 in the morning when teachers are on duty and are monitoring the corridors. After 8:45 the gym entrance, student entrance and office will be locked for security reasons.
Please note:
Any students arriving late to school will have to use the office entrance and admitted in by Mrs. Case. We will be monitoring late arrivals through our sign/out binder in the main office. Your cooperation and support is appreciated as we strive to ensure the utmost safety of students and staff in our school.
Parking / Kiss and Ride
Please take note of the parking lot for vehicles coming onto the parking lot each day during the winter season. As you know, this is a continuous safety concern and we ask for your cooperation. Always be conscious while driving in this area especially when busses are off loading the children. Parents who drop off and pick up children are asked to use the Kiss and Ride Lane in the morning and the parking lot by MQW Church in the afternoon. This area has more space and better flow for traffic. Please do not park in the convent parking spaces on the west side of the school.
Dates to remember:
January 14 ~Kinder Start Parent session at 7:00 MQW School
January 22nd~ Kinder Startstudent sessions, No classes for Kindergarten students
Happy New Year!!