Hi Whiteside families!

Congratulations to our grade sevens and their families! Today, we celebrated the successful conclusion of our eldest Wolves' time in elementary school. We wish them all the best for a successful journey through high school and beyond.

As our school year ends, we appreciate all the kindness and support you have given our community this year. We were delighted to celebrate the achievements of so many at our year-end assembly and to bid farewell to some of our teachers and staff. We wish them all the best as their experience and expertise will support new communities in the fall.

Many of our classes are enjoying fun and exciting year-end field trips. Events like these would not be possible without the support of our amazing PAC. Thank you, PAC, for your generosity, teamwork, and support. At this week’s AGM, our PAC executive was voted back for another year of leadership. Congratulations and thank you! We hope that more parents will join our PAC next year to support hot lunches, movie nights, and other school events.

We look forward to a busy but wonderful final four days of school next week!

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:

June 25             Year end assembly

June 27             Last day of school for students

June 27             Report cards posted on MyEd

Sept. 3                First day of school

                         (9 a.m. for gr. 1-7)

                        (10 a.m./1p.m. for Ks)

 

WHITESIDE INFORMATION AND EVENTS

Last Day of School and Report Cards

Your child’s final report card for the school year will be posted on MyEdBC on the last day of school, June 27^th. Additional information will be sent from the district about accessing reports on MyEdBC. School will be dismissed at our regular time of 2:45 p.m.

 

Back To School Info

Grade 1 – 7 students return to school from 9:00 a.m. – 10:00 a.m. on September 3^rd. All returning students will meet their teacher from 2023-2024 on the south field. All new students can meet our resource teachers on the south field. Signs will be present to help guide students.

Kindergarten students begin their gradual entry from 10:00 a.m. – 10:45 a.m. or from 1:00 p.m. – 1:45 p.m. They can meet their teacher at the front entry door. Gradual entry schedules and information were sent to our new Kindergarten students during the summer.

All Gr. 1-7 students will attend for their regular schedule on Wednesday, September 4^th at 8:45 a.m.

 

Farewell To Staff

Unfortunately, June is also the time of year that we have to say goodbye to some of our staff. This year, we will say goodbye to Ms. Jaffer, Ms. Kowall, Ms. Nixon, Mr. Pelletier, Mme Sadler, and Ms. St.-Cyr. We hope that our paths will cross again and wish them all the best in their new endeavours.

 

Grade 6 Outdoor Ed – October 2024

Students who will be Grade 6 in September save the date for camp, October 15-16, 2024.  More information to come the first week of school.

 

Lost and Found

Please remember to check our lost and found before the end of the school year. There are still many water bottles, jackets, shirts, and much, much more remaining.

 

PAC Meetings and AGM

Our final PAC meeting of the year was held this week. Thank you to our current PAC for all their hard work and support. We congratulate our new (ish) PAC executive:

• Co-Chairpeople – Sandeep Bhullar and Ken Loy
• Treasurer – Jaylene Sandhar
• Secretary – Carrie Viloria
• Hot Lunch Coordinator – Karen Au
• Social Media and Communications – Chris Ho

Our PAC is a great group of parents that care for our school and students. 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. Please reach out to our PAC at whitesidepac@hotmail.com for more information and an invitation link for our next PAC meeting in September.

 

School Supplies and Kindergarten Cooking Fees

Our school supply fee will be $33 next year. Our agenda fee will be $7. Our Kindergarten cooking and craft fee will be $22. We will collect these fees in the new school year. Other field trip and special programs may require additional fees to be collected next year as plans are made throughout the school year.

 

Whiteside Fundraising

With BBQs and camping season coming up, recyclables may pile up over the summer. You can still help raise money for Whiteside throughout the summer. 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.

 

DISTRICT INFORMATION AND UPDATES

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.

 

THE MORE YOU KNOW…

National Indigenous History Month

In June, Canadians recognize and celebrate National Indigenous History Month to honor the history, heritage, and diversity of Indigenous peoples in Canada. Please visit: the NIPD site or the NIHM national site for more information.

 

Summer Fun

As we look towards the summer, here are some summer ideas to help your children have a fun, memorable summer:

• Please visit https://www.richmond.ca/parks-recreation/about/sports/summerpass.htm for the City of Richmond Swim, Skate and Golf Summer Pass
• Schedule fun – What family activity is on your bucket list? Mark something fun on the calendar, share with your kids, and look forward to the fun together.
• But don’t overschedule! – Routines are important, but children need summer to unwind, relax, and enjoy unstructured time.
• Spend time together – Run through a sprinkler. Ride your bikes to get a Slurpee. Find small ways to connect with each other.
• Try something new – encourage your children to find a new hobby, activity, instrument, type of book, or sport. Summer is a great time to experiment with new things.
• Limit screen time – Screens are often the default to cure boredom. Encourage other ways to enjoy summer vacation.
• Consistency is good – Freedom during the summer is great but kids still need some routines. Bedtimes, meals, chores, family expectations should still be consistent through the summer.
• Have fun!

 

COMMUNITY INFORMATION AND EVENTS:

FamilySmart – Peer Support, Workshops, and Events for Families

FamilySmart is available in the summer to provide support for families who are navigating mental health and substance use issues. Two upcoming events (click here for details (link)) include:

• Wed, August 7 (6:30-7:30 p.m.) – Mental Health and Preparing for the Transition to Post Secondary

 To access peer support, click here (link) for more detail

 

Integrated Child and Youth Teams (ICY) – Art in the Park

Facilitated by ICY youth peer support workers, this non-clinical, drop-in group will run on Fridays from July 12 to August 23 (1-3 p.m.) at King George/Cambie Community Park. No registration or commitment is required. Please see attached flyer.

 

Fire & Flower Empowerment Camp

This camp is for girls and non-binary youth aged 10-12 during the week of August 19-23 at Terra Nova Rural Park. Please see the flyer attached to our weekly newsletter for more information.

 

City of Richmond - $29 Summer Active Pass

The $29 Summer Active Pass (richmond.ca/SummerPass (link)) is now available for purchase. This low cost, unlimited pass is for 5 to 18 year olds to participate in select drop-in activities including:

• Swimming, fitness centre access and select drop-in group fitness classes at Minoru Centre for Active Living and Watermania
• Swimming at South Arm and Steveston Outdoor Pools
• Skating* at Richmond Ice Centre (public skating only)
• Golf** at West Richmond Pitch & Putt (Monday to Thursday, 12-4 p.m., excluding holidays)
• Fitness centre access and select drop-in group fitness classes at Cambie, City Centre, Hamilton, South Arm, Steveston, Thompson and West Richmond Community Centres
• Select drop-in activities at community centres

 *Skate rentals extra. **Golf rentals extra; children under 12 years old must be accompanied by an adult.

 

Have a great weekend!

 ~Whiteside Elementary