January 2018 Administration Team Message:

Wishing everyone a Happy New Year! The month of December was one of celebration! This year, we lit all four candles of our Advent wreath in weekly Advent celebrations on our BGTV Broadcast and in our classrooms, as we were together until December 22

nd, preparing for Christmas. Our

heartwarming Christmas Concert, “Sharing the Warmth of Christmas!” was also very well attended. Our students, Ms. Prediger, and our entire staff did an outstanding job! It was truly a very beautiful way to end the holy Advent season. As we begin 2018, the staff of Bishop Greschuk School extends sincere appreciation to our parent community for your support of our mission and educational goals and your positive involvement in your children’s learning. We wish to acknowledge the volunteer efforts of the many parents who assisted with classroom activities, as well as, parents that assist on School Council, help with the lay-by, organize the Hot Lunch Program, and assist with fieldtrips, bulletin boards, hallway displays, and in our office. Without these helping hands, our school would not have the enriched programming and learning environment, which our students enjoy. God bless you for your generous contribution of time and talent! A new year is upon us, a time to start fresh! We are looking forward to these next few months of the year, full of living and learning! We are especially looking forward to celebrating Jesus’ birth and the Epiphany of our Lord. We will have a “Happy Birthday Baby Jesus” celebration led by our Kindergartens when we return on January 8

th at 1p.m. in the gym.

The staff of Bishop Greschuk wishes everyone a Happy New Year, a year filled with many blessings and joys. We pray:

Dear Jesus, As You led the Three Kings to You by the light of a star, Please draw us ever closer to You by the light of Faith.

Help us to desire You as ardently as they did. Give us the grace to overcome all the obstacles that keep us far from You.

May we, like them, have something to give You when we appear before You. Mary, Our Mother, help us to know your Son.

Amen. We look forward to a wonderful new year, and hope that these next few weeks are full of wonder and acceptance for you and your family. God’s choicest blessings to you for the year ahead. Karen Craig Leslie Zydek Principal Assistant Principal

January 2018

To celebrate Mary as Mother of God and our mother at the beginning of the new year means recalling a certainty that will accompany our days: we are a people with a Mother; we are not orphans.

(Pope Francis, Homily, January 1, 2017)

Each year, January 1 marks the Solemnity of Mary, the Holy Mother of God. As Pope Francis shared, turning our gazes to Mary as the new year begins fills our vision of the horizon in front of us with a model of perfect love. We see the example of faithful love for God when we think of her “yes” in response to His call. We see the example of parental love in the mother who tenderly nurtured her Son, walking alongside Him through His life and to His death. We see the example of selfless, humble love in her willingness to be the instrument of bearing Salvation into the world. As we contemplate our plans and aspirations for the new year, let us take inspiration from Mary!

We are always so excited to spread the great news of the amazing things that take place daily in our schools. We want everyone to know that Catholic education offers rich and vibrant opportunities for students to learn and grow in a Christ centred environment. We have launched a new hashtag, #ECSDfaithinspires, which beautifully portrays how our Catholic faith guides every aspect of our schools as we live out our District vision to learn together, work together and pray together in answering the call to a faith-filled life of service. We encourage all our staff, students, and ECSD families to use this new hashtag and help us share the good news of how faith inspires our daily lives at Edmonton Catholic Schools!

We are so pleased with the participation in our Hour of Code Week last month. This week, which saw 25,804 of our students engage in a variety of coding based activities, brought so much excitement and creativity into our classrooms. Special thanks to our EmTech team for their drive and passion in ensuring that our students have the skills that they need to navigate our digital world.

The month of January brings the end of the semester for our high schools. One of the enhanced services that we are pleased to offer our students who will be writing Diploma Examinations is Diploma Prep courses. These courses provide an excellent structure for students to review the content of their exam courses so that they can approach them with greater confidence. Visit www.ecsd.net and click on the Diploma Prep banner for more information.

The new year brings much new information and opportunity for our students and families. This is always reflected on our District website. Watch for our new Guide to Schools as well as information on registration for 2018-2019, Open Houses, and our upcoming session on Breaking the Cycle of Anxiety from our Mental Health Caregiver series. The newest information is always highlighted in the rotating banner at www.ecsd.net for your convenience.

The Government of Alberta is seeking the input of Albertans as they begin to shape their upcoming provincial budget. You can complete a brief online survey at https://www.alberta.ca/budget-consultations.aspx. This is an excellent opportunity for your voice to be heard!

The week of January 18-25 is the Week of Prayer For Christian Unity. I will leave you with a thought from Pope Francis: “…unity is achieved by journeying, to recall that when we journey together, that is, when we encounter each other… when we pray together and collaborate together in proclaiming the Gospel and in the service of others, we are already united.” (Papal Audience, 10/11/2016)

Many blessings as you begin the journey of a new year!

Sincerely, Joan Carr

Putting the Word of God into Practice – A Reflection

In Archbishop Richard Smith’s Pastoral Letter: Living in the Word of God: A Call to the Clergy and the Lay Faithful of the Archdiocese of Edmonton, His Grace asks us to consider what it means to follow Jesus. Here, the question can be answered rather simply. It is a matter of listening and doing; an authentic disciple of Jesus Christ is one who first listens to his Word and then puts it into practice. Throughout the history of the Church, the Christian response to God’s love revealed in Christ has been threefold: worship, witness and service. Worship “In all of Scripture, the words of Jesus likely most familiar to Catholics ears are these: “Do this in memory of me.” Spoken by the Lord at the Last Supper, these words have always been understood by the Church as his command to repeat in his memory what he did with his disciples the night prior to his crucifixion. This is why we gather for Sunday mass, the sacrament of the Eucharist, and why the Church insists that doing so is a sacred obligation. At mass, enabled by the Holy Spirit we offer our lives to God the Father, through Jesus his Son, as an act of joyful praise and heartfelt thanksgiving for God’s saving love” (Archbishop Richard Smith). From our awareness of this wondrous gift that is the Eucharist, and of the Lord’s command that is celebrated in his memory: Do we consciously make the Eucharist the heart of our lives? Witness “Saint John writes these beautiful words at the beginning of his first letter: ‘We declare to you what was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked at and touched with our hands, concerning the word of life— this life was revealed, and we have seen it and testify to it, and declare to you the eternal life that was with the Father and was revealed to us — we declare to you what we have seen and heard so that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. We are writing these things so that our joy may be complete’ (1 John 1:1-4). Here St. John is expressing what we know from experience to be true. When we have encountered Jesus Christ and been transformed by his mercy and love, we naturally want to tell others about it and invite them to be one with us in a community of joy” (Archbishop Richard Smith). We give witness by making known to others what God has done for the world in Jesus Christ, and for each of us in our own individual lives. The most effective way we can put the Word of God into practice is by the way we live our lives: What message do we communicate to others by our way of living, patterns of thought and speech, and modes of behavior? Service “On the night of the Last Supper, after Jesus washed the feet of his disciples, he taught that by this action he was giving us an example to follow, and then spoke this command: ‘I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another’ (John 13:34-35). Putting the Word of God into practice means serving our brothers and sisters in love. To love as Jesus loved means that we make sacrifices daily for the good of the other” (Archbishop Richard Smith). We serve others by using God’s gifts according to his purpose and in keeping with our identity as disciples of Jesus Christ. We consider: What use do I make of time? Do I set aside time for prayer, for Sunday mass, for the enjoyment of family? Am I able to dedicate some time to volunteer in the parish, our schools, hospitals or charitable organizations? The call to give of ourselves relates not just to the direct support of our parishes and Catholic organizations, it pertains also to the embrace of our baptismal call to be missionary disciples. Each of us is sent into the world in service so that it be transformed with the power of the Gospel of our Lord. ~Sandra Talarico, Religious Education Consultant

The Wondrous Gift of Epiphany

During the Christmas season we celebrate with our families and friends with the giving and receiving of various gifts. Perhaps the greatest gift we receive, as Christians, takes place during Epiphany, when our Lord makes his first public appearance.

Throughout the ages, Christians have celebrated Christmas, including the twelve days between Christmas and Epiphany, which falls on January 6. The season begins with the Nativity of our Lord, and ends with the celebration of His baptism, and His manifestation ("Epiphany") as Messiah of Israel and Son of God. This extraordinary gift calls for us to open our hearts and minds to God through His son, Jesus, who came to us as man, to live and suffer in the same way His lay people would.

Another one of the extraordinary gifts we receive is our ability to praise and worship the Father through the Holy Spirit, as a result of the Baptism of Jesus by John the Baptist. Knowing Jesus is the Body of Christ, we, through our Baptism, enter the Body of Christ as members of our faith community. Through this union, we are able to share in the cleansing of sins, and essentially, our re-birth.

The gifts of the eastern Magi, allow us to remember that they offered what little they had (Gold, Frankincense, and Myrrh), and in return, Christ gave them Himself. This ‘exchange’ of gifts takes place for us whenever we celebrate the Eucharist, by the glorious power of the Holy Spirit!

Throughout the holy Christmas season, God fills us with joy and hope! By celebrating Epiphany and these wondrous gifts bestowed upon us by the Christ-child, may we, in-turn, use them to take a step closer to the Kingdom of God, in unity with His one, holy, Catholic and apostolic Church.

Susanna Kaup and Kathleen Nguyen Religious Education Consultants

Kindergarten Open House

There will be an Open House for Kindergarten, on January 31st at 6:30 p.m. If you know of anyone in our school area, friends, relatives, or neighbors who have children in this age group, please make them aware of our wonderful program. To be eligible for Kindergarten, your child must be five years old before March 1, 2019.

We are planning a Magic Show on February 22, 2018, for prospective Kindergarten students. Please contact the school for more information.

Staff Faith Development Day

On Tuesday, February 6, 2018, all staff members will be involved in a district-wide faith Development Day. There will be no instruction of students at school on that day.

By being involved in the education mission of the church, Catholic schools provide a hopeful response to the great mysteries of life in an increasingly complex world. This hope is for all people of the world, not just those of us who are Catholics. Faith Development Day provides us with the opportunity to become more deeply aware of the faith foundation of our lives and to enter into our life’s work with renewed conviction.

Family Dance

Our annual Family Dance will be held on Saturday, February 3rd, from 7:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. Proceeds from the Family Dance are used to fund lunch for Fun Day in June. More information to follow.

Sign of Hope / We Care Challenge

During our Demonstration of Learning, we raffled off “Best Seats in the House” for our Christmas concert, in support of the Sign of Hope “We Care” Challenge. We raised $721.50 from this raffle. The Grade 4 classes also led Candygram sales raised $1200 for the Sign of Hope “We Care” Challenge. Thank you to the Grade 4 teachers and their students for leading this festive activity. Thank you to all of our families for supporting the Sign of Hope Campaign, a very worthy cause.

Congratulations!

Congratulations to the following students who celebrated the Sacrament of Reconciliation at St. Charles Church:. May God bless them!

Layla R.

Emilia V.

Aimee V.

Student Arrival and Pick Up

Please ensure that your children do not arrive at school before 8:15 a.m., unless they are actively participating in before school activities such as running club, school patrolling, or broadcast.

Parents need to arrive promptly to pick up children at dismissal time, which is 3:03 p.m. on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday and at 12:00 noon on Thursdays. This is for safety purposes, as our staff have various professional commitments before and after school. Should you require before and after school care, please check our community bulletin board at the front entrance of the school for child care providers.

Traffic Safety Reminders

It is important for all drivers to be extra cautious when driving through the lay-by area and in front of

the school. Please refrain from making U-turns in front of the school, blocking crosswalks,

parking in no stopping zones, and from jay-walking. Please set a good example for our

students. We work cooperatively with Edmonton Police to resolve traffic issues and have asked

them to help enforce traffic safety at the school.

When dropping off your children at the lay-by, please pull up as far to the front of the lay-by, as you

can, to prevent traffic from backing up behind you onto the street. Please have your children ready

to exit the vehicle quickly, so that traffic can continue to move, and use your signal light to indicate to

cars behind you that you are pulling away from the curb. Thank you for helping us to keep lay-by

flowing smoothly.

Lay-by Volunteers

Thank you to our dedicated lay-by volunteers, Bernie and Amanda. We truly appreciate your service, especially on those very cold days!

We are still in need of lay-by volunteers. If you are able to offer your time, even one day a week, please contact the school office.

Playground Zones 30 km/h between 7:30am-9pm every day where playground zone signs are posted

Playground zone signs will soon be installed in all 425 playgrounds and play areas in the City of Edmonton. This includes 195 playgrounds adjacent to schools, 36 playgrounds already included within existing school zones, and 16 new schools. Existing school zones will become playground zones by year end. Once the signs are up, the 30 km/hr speed limits are in effect.

Hour of Code

Bishop Greschuk students participated in the largest educational event in history…the Hour of Code! We live in a world surrounded by technology. We know that whatever field our students choose to go into as adults, their ability to succeed will increasingly hinge on understanding how technology works. During the week of December 4-8, students at BG were among the millions of students worldwide who participated in coding activities at school. Coding not only exposes students to computer science, but also supports the development of literacy and numeracy skills, as well as, computational thinking and problem solving skills. Students were excited to work through the different coding activities and we were proud of the learning that happened over the week. A special thank you to our tech coach, Mrs. Dohn, for leading students through coding activities.

In Case of Illness For the well-being and safety of all our students and staff, children who are ill should remain at home until they are well enough to participate in the regular school program, including recess. A good guideline when you are making the decision as to whether your child should come to school or not should be your own answer to the question, “Is my child well enough to go outside?” As there is no supervision indoors during our outdoor recess periods, students who need to stay in during normal winter weather should remain at home until they are well enough to participate in outdoor recess activities.

Phone Calls

It is very important that you make end of school arrangements with your child/ren before they leave for school in the morning. Our office continues to receive numerous phone calls at 3:00 p.m. asking for messages about pick up to be communicated to students. This is a very busy school and it is difficult to guarantee that these messages will be received. We thank you for understanding that we do not like to interrupt classes for messages; we value our students’ instructional time.

School Council Meeting

Our next School Council meeting is on January 15 at 7:00 PM All parents are welcome to attend.

Thank you to Mrs. Kamenka, for leading our Grade 6 students in a special snowman art project.

Our Christmas Concert was a tremendous success! Thank you to our teachers and especially Miss Prediger, our very talented music teacher, for their hard work in preparing the children to “Share the Warmth at Christmas”. We are very proud of our students for their enthusiasm and performances! A special thank you to the Drama 30 students from Archbishop O’Leary High School for helping usher on concert night and returning the next day to perform two Christmas plays for our students. Thank you also to Mrs. Carr for her artistic talents, creating the beautiful backdrop for the concert. The true meaning of Christmas was shared with all!

Christmas Concert

Bishop Greschuk Wishes All…

“Peace on Earth”

Borrow a Boot Program As a symbol of the peace we continuously strive for in our world, we shared with our students on December 11th, a pair of modern day combat boots, worn by a member of our Canadian military. As part of a special ceremony, held in France last April, Canadian students placed these boots on the Vimy War Memorial.

The National Vimy Memorial, (shown in this picture), was built to honor all the Canadian soldiers who fought and died in the battle of Vimy Ridge, in northern France, 100 years ago!

As we light the candle of PEACE, and in preparation for Christmas, let us remember all the military families, who make many sacrifices for our country, throughout the year.

May these boots be a reminder of all those who may be away from their families during this Christmas season. We, at Bishop Greschuk School, thank them for their service and wish them peace and joy!

A special thanks to Ms. Morrissette, our Gr. 5 teacher, for writing to Veterans Affairs Canada to the Borrow a Boot Program.

La Pizza

As part of their French studies, Grade 5 students enjoyed “La Pizza”, served by our resident chefs, Ms. Morrissette and Mrs. Allibhai.

Cardinal Leger Volleyball Tournament

We are very proud of our Volleyball teams who participated in the Cardinal Leger Volleyball Tournament in December, and represented Bishop Greschuk School so very well. A special thank you to our volleyball coaches, Miss Leblanc, Miss McIntosh and Mr. Sekulic for spending many hours after school, coaching and mentoring our volleyball players.

Alberta Education Accountability Pillar Information for parents:

As an annual check-up on the education system, the Accountability Pillar provides an opportunity for Alberta Education and school authorities to ensure that we are equipping students for success.

The Accountability Pillar uses a set of 16 indicators. Data on these indicators consists of surveys of students, parents and teachers on various aspects of education quality, student outcomes such as dropout and high school completion rates, and provincial assessments of student learning.

From January to the end of February, Alberta Education will be conducting the annual Accountability Pillar Survey.

In January, parents of students in grades 4, 7 and 10 will receive a survey from Alberta Education.

In February, students in grades 4, 7 and 10 and all teachers will be completing their surveys online at school.

All surveys are anonymous and ask questions about experiences with your school. In addition to English and French, the parent survey is available in Chinese, Punjabi, Arabic, Blackfoot, Dene, Cree, Korean, Spanish, Tagalog and Urdu.

Christmas Spirit

Thank you to the Ukrainian Catholic Brotherhood for their generous and thoughtful $500 donation to our school!

FEEDBACK FORM

Please take a few moments to return this sheet and have your child’s name entered to win a book. All sheets must be returned by January 22, 2018. Congratulations to Brandon, Savanna, Vanessa, Isabella and Isaac for winning the December newsletter draw! Yes, I/We have read the January School Newsletter.

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Student(s) name and grade (please print)

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