Brackendale Elementary

Communicator

Sept 13, 2019

Volume 1

Dear Brackendale Families,

Welcome back everyone! September brings not only a change of seasons but also the happy sounds

of students back to our halls. Everyone is refreshed, rejuvenated and ready for the year ahead.

I am delighted to be working with you and your children. Communication between home and school

is key to student success. Our teachers will provide you with learning highlights each week to enrich

your conversations with your children at home.

I am also excited to announce that we have grown! We are now at 330 students and 15 classes. I know that you and your children will welcome our staff, children and families with the enthusiasm and warmth that

makes Brackendale a wonderful place to live, growth and learn.

Thank you for your support and encouragement in our first weeks back. We are looking forward to

the year ahead filled with community, and a love of learning.

Sincerely, Have a great September!

Ms. Karen Saenger, Principal

42000 Government Road PO Box 280, Brackendale, BC V0N 1H0

Telephone: (604) 898-3651 Fax: (604) 898-4674

Voice Mail (604) 898-9348 + ext # 300 for main office

Playground Update

Coming this October… and November...

Special thank you to our sponsors: Whistler Blackcomb Foundation, BRE PAC, All Terrain Excavating, the Ministry of Educa-tion playground grant program and SD#48.

We are honoured to learn, work and play on the traditional, unceded, ancestral

territory of the Sḵwxwú7mesh Nation and the Village of Waiwakum

Principal: Ms. K. Saenger Front Office: Mrs. Muff Hackett

Website: www.sd48brackendale.org Email: bre@sd48.bc.ca

Brackendale Parent

Advisory Council

Run with the PAC

Zipline Global Motion

School Goal - Critical Thinking

Using specific criteria to make judgements, assess options,

rank and justify choices

Brackendale Elementary

… is a welcoming

community

Brackendale Elementary

… is a giving community

Brackendale Elementary … is our community

Thank you for safely driving and parking

30kmph in School Zones from 7:30am—7:30pm

Be Bear Aware—Pick Your Fruit! We did!

Thank you to Mr. Fieldhouse and his students

Student blanket drive initiative Giving piggy bank savings to our

playground fund

Donating hand made comics to the

Squamish Hospital

Pancake Breakfast fundraiser for

Squamish Community Care

Gardening for Helping

Hands Protecting Owls and donating to the Orphan

Owl Association

Raising awareness for organ donation at the

student created musical: Canada.Hockey.Heroes

Hand drawn

pictures raise

money for the

Children’s

Hospital

Student Leadership fundraising for the

Rare Disease Foundation and the Water

Project

Students inform public about

Wildfire safety at the Adventure

Centre

Coping with Back to School Worries

After the care free days of summer, transitioning back to school can create stress for some

students. Anxious feelings are normal and expected in children and teens returning to school,

changing schools, or for first-timers starting kindergarten. Even kids who are usually pretty

easy-going get butterflies. Worries are normal!

Although it is normal for your child to have worries, it is crucial to have your child attend school. Missing school can increase your

child’s fears because they never get a chance to over come their worries. Furthermore, when children and teens stay home, they miss

out on learning, fostering close friendships with classmates and developing trusting relationships with teachers.

Worries about the new school year and anxious behaviours will fade for most students. Here are some helpful tips for families:

Establish Routines - ensure your child is getting enough regular sleep, meals, healthy snacks and exercise.

Listen to your child’s concerns - you may find listening opportunities when you are in the car, standing in line at the store, at

bath-time or during dinner.

Make a plan - coach your child on how to cope with worrisome situations—“Let’s think of some ways you could handle that

situation.” “Tell me what you are worried about, so we can talk about it and make a plan.”

Focus on the positive - , talk about situations that they successfully coped with in the past. “What is one thing that you are

excited about?” Most kids can think of something positive, even if it’s just playing at recess or going home at the end of the

day.

Model calm and confidence - children will take cues from you, so the more confidence and calm you can model, the more

your child will believe they can handle a new hurdle.

Be supportive yet firm – say goodbye in the morning cheerfully – once! Try saying calmly: “I can see that going to school is

making you scared, you still have to go and our plan will work.”

(Source: anxietycanada.com)

Allergies and Medication

We have students in our school who have peanut/nut allergies. For some, ingestion to even a minute amount of a

food substance containing nuts or nut products could cause a life-threatening allergic reaction. If this should

happen, we have an emergency plan and will take action immediately. Part of the emergency plan is to teach all

students not to share lunches or trade snacks, to create a hand washing routine in our classrooms, and to discuss

anaphylaxis with the students in an age-appropriate form. Teachers have access to our public health nurse who

will help implement these plans

When packing your child’s lunch, please avoid peanut and nut products if possible, and remind your children to eat

only the food that is sent from home, rather than trading or sharing snack or lunch items with other students.

If your child has a severe allergy or health condition please let the office staff and your child’s teacher know

immediately. For medication administered at school, a “Request for Administration of Medication” form which

can be found at the school office is required. This form needs to be filled out by your child’s physician and

signed by a legal parent or guardian.

ELECTRONIC DEVICES

We believe that given the age range of an elementary school, student well being is best served when kids are actively

engaged with a variety of activities during break times. Therefore, students may not use personal electronic devices at school. Devices may only be used during class time with guidance and permission from the classroom teacher.

Devices brought to school are required to be turned off and stored in the student’s backpack.

We strongly suggest that students leave their electronic devices at home as we cannot be responsible for loss or

theft. We do recognize that some devices are an important communication tool for students and their family,

however use is restricted to before and after school, outside the school building.

A multitude of laptop carts and iPad carts are available for classroom use.

Students may have their device confiscated for the day if it is not being used in accordance with this policy.

The school does support teachers who wish to supervise students using a

personal device as a learning tool

Welcome back Brackendale students! Did you know breakfast club is open every school morning at 8:30am! Fun fact: last year (September 2018 - May 2019), 4634 Brackendale kids were served breakfast at school. We were open 126 days of the school year. We would like to continue to be open every school day. Please make this possible by offering some volunteer hours with us. Please email Lisa Park at lisapark1116@gmail.com if you are interested.

SCHOOL NEWSLETTERS & FRIDAY BRE COMMUNICATOR

An important link between home and school is our school newsletter. Newsletters are emailed, posted on our school website and will be given to students. They are distributed at the beginning of each month. Current copies will also be available at our school office. A

calendar of events will be included with each newsletter. Please keep this handy so you are aware of what is going on at BRE.

BELL SCHEDULE

08:50 am Morning Bell 08:55 am School Begins 10:45 am Recess 11:00 am Classes resume 12:10 pm Lunch break (students go outdoors) 12:45 pm Bell (students return to eat lunch) 1:05 pm Classes resume 3:00 pm Dismissal

2019-2020 PAC

COMMITTEE

President: Stephen Fryer stephenfryer@hotmail.com Vice President: Shawna Lang slang@tourismwhistler.com Treasurer: Heather Teasell hteasell@aberrant.ca Secretary: vacant DPAC: Shawna Lang slang@tourismwhistler.com Stephen Fryer stephenfryer@hotmail.com

Meetings are the 3rd Wednesday of every month. Our 1st meeting: September 18, 2019 at 7:00pm

All are welcome!

Terry Fox Run Friday, September 20th

1:30 p.m. Our students are running to raise awareness and funds for cancer research next Fri-day, and we need your help! If you are able to volunteer as a marshal (directing stu-dents along their run), please email Mrs. Fieldhouse sfieldhouse@sd48.bc.ca. You are also welcome to join us to run, walk, push a stroller, or cheer us on along the route. Our Leadership Students are hoping to collect a dollar from each student in our school to donate to the Terry Fox Foundation. Donations will be collected in classrooms during the week leading up to the run.

All Families, Relatives, Siblings Welcome!!

Meet the

Teacher

Night Wednesday, September 25th

6:00pm - 7:00pm

Everyone is welcome to come visit their child’s

classroom and meet our staff and teachers.

Each school year, Brackendale Elementary hosts

two Scholastic Book Fairs with the help of many of

our parents. The book fairs provide students with

the opportunity to purchase the latest and great-

est books available. The proceeds from the fair

help fund library purchases

and author/illustrator vis-

its.

The first book fair this

year will be:

Wednesday, September 25th 9:00am to 7:00pm

and

Thursday, September 26th 8:30am to 4:00pm

Upcoming Events

Wed, Sept 18 Michael Mitchell performance 11:00am PAC Meeting - 7pm Fri, Sept 20 Terry Fox Run - 1:30pm Tues, Sept 24 Wildlife Drill Wed, Sept 25 Book Fair - 9:00am - 7:00pm Meet The Teacher Night 6:00 - 7:00pm Thur, Sept 26 Book Fair - 8:30am - 4:00pm Mon, Sept 30 Orange Shirt Day Tues, Oct 1 Fire Drill Mon, Oct 14 Thanksgiving Day - not in session Wed, Oct 16 Photo Retake Day PAC Meeting - 7:00pm Thur, Oct 17 Great Shake Down Drill Fri, Oct 18 PAC Hot Lunch Wed, Oct 23 Grade 6 Vaccinations Fri, Oct 26 BCTF Professional Day - not in session

Do You Feel Like Singing? Ms. Moo invites you to join the BRE Choir! Practices are at lunch time - the first practice will be September 24th.

2019-2020 Staff

Office: Ms. K. Saenger, Principal Mrs. M. Hackett, School Clerical

Teachers

Ms. L. Boersma Mrs. T. Borsoff Ms. B. Cornish Mrs. B. Schulz Mrs. S. Fanzega Mr. J. Fieldhouse Mrs. S. Fieldhouse Mr. D. Grantham Mr. D. Hirn Ms. C. Jorgensen Ms. N. Mah Ms. J. Mowbray Mrs. B. Smith Mrs. M. Stroh Ms. S. Watson Mrs. S. Webb Ms. J. Wong Mr. A. Zigar

Learner Support Music: Counselling Support Staff Ms. W. Drenka Mrs. J. Murakami Ms. B. Schutz Mr. J. Evoy Ms. B. Fairbairn Ms. J. Minkus Ms. T. Forsyth Ms. K. Hunter Ms. P. Longridge Mrs. J. Rainbow Mrs. C. Rochetta Mrs. N. Sjogren

In the next few weeks please take the time to introduce yourself to your child’s teacher and Ms. Saenger, Principal