Happy Friday Whiteside!

 

Happy Mother's Day to all the wonderful women in our school community! We appreciate how you nurture and support our learners, helping them grow into remarkable individuals.

 

A big thank you to our PAC for the delicious lunch on Friday afternoon – what a yummy treat! We also loved hearing the beautiful music from Ms. LB and the honour band; it was a fantastic way to end the week.

 

Exciting times are ahead for our Whiteside Wolfpack! Until the end of the year, each week our Wolfpack will enjoy special events, assemblies, field trips, or amazing learning opportunities. Please keep an eye on your child’s planner, our newsletters, and the school website for all the details.

 

Important Dates: Please note that Friday, May 16th is our Non-Instructional Day this year, and Monday, May 19th is Victoria Day. The school will be closed on both of these days.

 

 

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

 

We acknowledge and thank the First Peoples of the hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓ language group on whose traditional and unceded territories we teach, learn and live, and upon where the Musqueam people continue their traditions and cultural education.

 

Coming Events:

May 15             Krispy Kreme delivery

May 16             Non-Instructional Day (school closed)

May 19             Victoria Day (school closed)

May 20             Grade 7 Day at McRoberts

May 20             PAC meeting at 7 p.m.(online)

May 21             Welcome to Kindergarten

May 24             Hot lunch (Subway)

May 26             Track Meet at Minoru

June 13             Sports Day

June 20             Gr. 7 Farewell assembly

June 26             Last day of school

June 26             Final report cards posted on MyEd

 

 

WHITESIDE INFORMATION AND EVENTS

Hatch Pre-K and Summer Programs

Our local out-of-school care program, Hatch, is expanding their registration to include pre-k children in September. This is a great opportunity for our families and the younger siblings of our Whiteside students. They also run programming throughout the summer. Please see the attached flyers for more information.

 

Personal Items at School

There has been an increase in students bringing personal items (toys, stuffies, Pokemon cards, video games, etc.) to school. Unfortunately, when these items come to school, there is a chance they can get dirty, lost, or broken. We strongly recommend keeping all personal items at home.

 

Keeping Our Community Clean

There has also been an increase in litter and refuse around our school and local community. We ask for your support in keeping our community clean. These are some ways you can help:

• Reuse reusable snack and lunch containers instead of single-use plastic bags, wrappers, and foil.
• Resuse reusable drink containers too.
• Send “boomerang” lunches – all uneaten food and packaging can be returned home.
• Talk with your children and lead by example:
  • Reinforce proper sorting of waste at home (recycling and compost)
  • Pick up in the park – help pickup litter around South Arm

Thank you for your help!

 

Track Update

Our students are having fun and working hard during their track attack stations this month. Our track meet is scheduled for May 26^th at Minoru. Permission forms and information were sent home earlier. Please ensure you have these forms returned to school by May 12^th. Thank you!

 

Team and Group Photos

Edge Imaging has now uploaded your additional group photos online and digital downloads are now available for purchase. An email with links and information was sent home on May 1^st.

 

PAC Update

Events like hot lunches, movie nights and Spring Fair rely on the generosity and hard work of our PAC. We encourage our parents and families to join a PAC meeting or, if you are interested in taking on a role on the PAC, please let Mr. Cameron or Ms. Lai know. The elections will be held during the June AGM. If you would like to know what PAC does, come join one of our remaining monthly meetings. Before the school year ends there are a few more activities happening (hot lunches, after school treat sales, sports day concession) that we can always use some help with.  Our next PAC meeting will be online on May 20^th at 7:00 p.m. Thank you for your support! - Whiteside PAC

 

Notice Of Late Return 2025-2026

The attached form must be completed for any student(s) who anticipate a delayed return to school in September and will not be in attendance by 12:00pm on Wednesday, September 3, 2025. Please return the form to the school principal by June 20, 2025.

 

Grade 7 Farewell Planning

Grade 7 parents have met to discuss and begin planning our grade 7 farewell celebration. If you are interested in joining the planning team, we would love your ideas and support. Please email our principal, Brett Cameron, at bcameron@sd38.bc.ca if you can join our team.

 

Whiteside Fundraising

After a summer of collecting empty cans and bottles, you can help raise money for Whiteside. 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.

 

Spring Weather:

Spring weather in Richmond can be unpredictable and we play outside every day. Please ensure your child is dressed in layers and ready for the rain. We encourage our Wildcats to keep a spare change of clothes and shoes at school just in case they get wet.

 

DISTRICT INFORMATION AND UPDATES

 

Nut Awareness

Nut products can cause severe and life-threatening allergic reactions. To help us maintain a safe and inclusive environment for all students and staff, we ask that you refrain from bringing any items containing nuts to school. While we cannot guarantee an allergen-free environment, the district is committed to taking reasonable steps to minimize the risk of accidental exposure to life-threatening allergens. 

 

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

The provincial government continues to fund the 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.

 

THE MORE YOU KNOW…

Making connections when reading strengthens reading comprehension. When reading with your child at home try to make connections in three ways:

1. Connect to Their Life (Text-to-Self): Ask questions that help your child relate the story to their own experiences, feelings, or memories. You could ask, "How is this character like you?" or "Does this remind you of anything that happened to you?".
2. Connect to Other Books (Text-to-Text): Talk about how the story, characters, or themes are similar to or different from other books you've read together. Asking, "Does this character remind you of the character in the book we read last week?" can help them see patterns across stories.
3. Connect to the World (Text-to-World): Discuss how events or themes in the book relate to things happening in the real world, either in your community or beyond. You might ask, "How is the school in this story different from your school?" or discuss how the story relates to something you saw on the news or learned about together.

 

Have a great weekend!

 

~Whiteside Elementary