Hi Whiteside families!

 

We are grateful for all the amazing experiences our families, teachers, and staff provide for our Wolfpack. This week we enjoyed crêpe workshops, cooking to celebrate Eid with Ms. Jaffer, our school wide photos, and hot lunch! What a great week!

 

Thank you for all your care and support. You make Whiteside a special community to learn, teach, and play.

 

The Richmond Board of Education acknowledges and thanks the First Peoples of the hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓ language group on whose traditional and unceded territories we teach, learn and live.

 

Coming Soon:

 

April 23            Earth Day Assembly at 11:00 a.m

April 23            PAC Meeting

April 25            Term 2 reports published

May 1-3            Grade 6 Outdoor Education trip

May 13             Speed Control concert

May 17             Pro-D day

May 20             Victoria day

May 22             Welcome to K event

May 24             Hot Lunch (Chipotle)

May 27             Track Meet

May 24             Ian Maskin concert

June 4              Gr. 7 rafting trip

June 14             Sports Day

June 21             Grade 7 farewell celebration

June 27             Last day of school for students

 

TERM 2 STUDENT LEARNING UPDATES (REPORT CARDS)

Term 2 Reports will be available online on MyEd Parent Portal after school on Thursday, April 25th.  Logins and temporary passwords will have been sent out to all parents by District.  Please login before then.  (The first login must be done from a workstation, laptop, or computer. Do not use an iPad, tablet, or cell phone for this.) Previous users, who forgot their passwords, will need to click through the “I forgot my password” hyperlink on the login page to reset their passwords.  If you do not remember your login, contact the office at whiteside@sd38.bc.ca with your child’s full name and Division number.

 

More info is available on the school website at: https://whiteside.sd38.bc.ca/parents/myed-parent-portal

 

APRIL IS SIKH HERITAGE MONTH

Proclaimed by Parliament on April 30, 2019, this month recognizes and highlights the important contributions that Sikh communities have made and continue to make to Canada’s social, economic, political, and cultural heritage. Canada is proud to be home to more than 500,000 Sikh Canadians, making it one of the largest Sikh diasporas in the world. Since the arrival of the first Sikh immigrants in the late 19th century, members of this community have contributed to Canada through their achievements in all areas of society and have helped shape the diversity found within it.

 

Sikhism’s core principles include equality, generosity, openness, and compassion. Sikh Heritage Month is an opportunity to reflect on the pivotal role that Sikh communities have played, and continue to play, in building a stronger and consciously more inclusive Canada.

 

AUTISM AWARENESS MONTH

April marks Autism Awareness Month, a time dedicated to celebrating the unique perspectives and talents of individuals on the autism spectrum. It's an opportunity for our community to foster understanding, acceptance, and inclusion. Let's embrace diversity and spread awareness to create a world where every individual is valued for their strengths and contributions. For more information, please visit https://www.autismbc.ca/.

 

SUMMER LEARNING

The District emailed the Summer Learning 2024 catalogue to all parents this Tuesday, April 16^th.  Please note that the registration for Elementary Enrichment programs begins on Monday, April 22^nd.  For more information, see the Continuing Education website: https://ce.sd38.bc.ca/news/2024/02/summer-learning-2024-new-programs-camps

 

PAC MEETINGS

PAC are amazing resources for our entire school community. A strong PAC bonds our school community with our families. PAC is an excellent way for our families to connect directly with the action at our school as well as develop relationships within the parent community. Our next meeting is on Tuesday, April 23^rd at 6:30 p.m.! Please reach out to our PAC at whitesidepac@hotmail.com for more information.

 

UPCOMING EVENTS FOR RICHMOND FAMILIES

Family Smart - Events for Parents and Caregivers

Please see information about these upcoming events to share with your school community through usual communication channels (attachments are below):

  

• May 7 - National Child & Youth Mental Health Day online event with Kim Barthell - "Connecting with Kids” Event Link: https://familysmart.ca/event/connecting-with-kids (link)

 

HEALTHY EATING HABITS

Sugar and sugar substitutes

• Offer foods that don’t have added sugar or sugar substitutes. Limit refined sugars (sucrose, glucose-fructose, white sugar) honey, molasses, syrups, and brown sugar. They all have similar calorie counts and contribute to tooth decay.
• Sugar substitutes, such as aspartame and sucralose, do not add calories or cause tooth decay, but they are much sweeter than sugar and have no nutritional value. They may lead to a habit of only liking sweet foods and make it difficult for your child to adjust to fruits and vegetables. It’s a good idea to limit them in your child’s diet.

 

WHITESIDE READING INFORMATION OF THE WEEK

Read about it, talk about it, and think about it! Find ways for your child to build understanding, the ultimate goal of learning how to read. The tips below offer some fun ways you can help your child become a happy and confident reader. Try a new tip each week. See what works best for your child.

• Make books special. Turn reading into something special. Take your kids to the library, help them get their own library card, read with them, and buy them books as gifts. Have a favorite place for books in your home or, even better, put books everywhere.
• Get them to read another one. Find ways to encourage your child to pick up another book. Introduce him or her to a series like The Boxcar Children or The Magic Tree House or to a second book by a favorite author, or ask the librarian for additional suggestions.

 

2024 CHILD CARE SYMPOSIUM - MAY 4, 2024

The Richmond 2024 Child Care Symposium is now open for registration. Organized by the City of Richmond's Child Care Development Advisory Committee, this symposium celebrates Child Care Month and is for early childhood educators, child care providers and parents. More information attached to newsletter email. 

 

 

 

CITY OF RICHMOND – EARTH WEEK (APRIL 20-28)

Earth Week (www.richmond.ca/EarthWeek (link)) is happening April 20-28 with lots of free and low-cost family-friendly activities. 

 

CHINESE MENTAL HEALTH LITERACY PROJECT - RECRUITMENT

Please find attached information on a research study called “Rising Up: Collaborating with Chinese Families and Communities on Parenting Resources”. This project is conducted by Dr. Janet Mah and her research team at BC Children’s Hospital and University of British Columbia. Chinese parents and caregivers (including grandparents) of children aged 3-12 living in BC are invited to attend a 90-minute workshop either in-person at community sites or virtually over Zoom. Here, family members will discuss what they want for parenting resources related to child behavioural and social emotional well-being. The research team aims to identify family needs and preferences in order to co-design culturally meaningful resources for Chinese families.

 

BIKE TO SCHOOL WEEK

Bike to School Week is an annual celebration where students of all ages are encouraged to bike, roll, or walk to school. This year Bike to School Week takes place June 3-7, 2024. Over 140 schools participate in a typical year across Metro Vancouver. HUB Cycling offers support such as resources and event ideas, prizes and packages to make ride tracking easy. 

 

WOLFWEAR UPDATE

For those of you who missed the sale in February, Wolf Wear has been set up as an online boutique store: https://urstore.ca/group/whiteside-wolves_531344

Please note, this is a per order store and your item(s) will be made when you place the order and will be delivered to your address.  This is reflected in the higher pricing. 

 

MORNING ROUTINES AT WHITESIDE

Our Wolfpack are expected to enter school from their outside doors until 8:45 a.m. Please ensure that your children make their way to the back of the school to meet their teachers. This ensures that all children are met by their teacher or supervising adult and can begin the day with their class.

Play n’ Eat is on Friday mornings only. Only students in our breakfast program may enter the gym early during the week.

 

PARKING LOT SAFETY

Although the mornings are getting brighter, it is important to mindful in our parking lot. Our east parking lot is closed to parent drivers. Please use the South Arm lot or our drop off lane. Students and families use the crosswalks in front of the school all day. Please be mindful of pedestrians and other cars when driving in front of our school. When using the drop off lane, please continue to pull forward to allow more space behind you, but do not block or park on the zebra crosswalks. Blocking crosswalks creates danger for pedestrians trying to cross to our school. Please drive slowly through the drop-off area.

 

When leaving our parking lot, please remember that the access road to Williams Rd. is a 2-lane road. Cars are able to turn right into the school at all hours of the day. Please keep the entry lane clear at all times.

 

 

EVIDENCE-INFORMED MENTAL HEALTH RESOURCES

HealthyMindsBC provides evidence-informed prevention and early intervention tools and resources, including online learning opportunities. This site is for parents, caregivers, families, educators, and other professionals to help them support the everyday mental health of children and youth. A series of courses that focus on Everyday Anxiety Strategies for Educators (EASE K-7 and 8-12) and Early Years are available. The newest course, Walking Alongside Youth with Anxiety (WAY), is designed to build capacity and support the foster care providers and out-of-care/kinship care providers who are caring for Indigenous and non-Indigenous youth with mild to moderate anxiety.

 

STUDENT AND FAMILY AFFORDABILITY FUND

The provincial government recently announced a renewal of one-time funds for the Student and Family Affordability Fund. This fund is designed to assist families who require financial assistance with school-related costs in the following areas:

• school and course fees.
• school supplies and course materials.
• field trips.
• school-related extracurricular opportunities. 
• clothing and footwear required for sports and school activities. 

Please reach out to our principal, Brett Cameron, (whiteside@sd38.bc.ca) if you need assistance.  As always, all requests will be treated with dignity and your privacy will be respected. We want to work with our families to ensure that our students, your children, have everything they need to be successful at school. Please do not hesitate to reach out if we can help.

 

FEEDING FUTURES

Recently, the provincial government announced a new Feeding Futures School Program Fund, designed to assist schools in the development and enhancement of school meal programs and other nutritional supports for students. If you would like to request support for your child at school, please reach out to our principal, Brett Cameron (bcameron@sd38.bc.ca). We currently provide breakfast and lunch options for students daily. All requests will be treated with dignity and your privacy will be respected. We want to work with families to ensure that your children have everything they need to be successful at school. Please do not hesitate to reach out if we can help.

 

OUTDOOR EDUCATION FUNDRAISING

To help lower the cost of our annual intermediate outdoor education experiences, Whiteside has partnered with Return-It Depot to fundraise.  Return your cans and bottles to our local Return It depot (Unit 110 - 11020 Horseshoe Way), go to the Express area, type in our number 604-668-6419, affix the label to your bag, drop, and go.

 

CHECK IN AND CHECK OUT

If your child is arriving late to school, please check in at the office through the front entrance.

If your child needs to leave school early, please sign your child out at the office and wait at the front entrance for them.

 

WEST COAST RECESS

During recess and lunchtime breaks, students are expected to be outside at all times this year.  Students are strongly encouraged to dress appropriately for the weather. You may also send a change of clothes to school just in case your child gets wet. Playing outside will ensure our students get some fresh air and exercise to enliven their day.

 

SCHOOL VISITORS

In the interest of safety, everyone entering the school must check in at the office. Classrooms are busy learning places, and we try not to interrupt them during instructional time.  If you need to see your child, leave them a message, or drop off a lunch, our office staff will happily take care of that for you.  As well, it is difficult at the end or beginning of the school day for our office staff to have in-depth discussions with parents.  Making appointments either by phone or in person is preferable. Thank you for your support!

  

 

Have a great weekend!

 ~Whiteside Elementary