Raptor Report

Betty Gilbert Middle School Newsletter October 6th, 2017

26845 27 Ave, Aldergrove, BC V4W 3E6 Tel: 604 856 8178 Fax: 604 856 - 7831

Fall is upon us and yet the weather has been quite good. Very little rain has kept students burning energy at lunch and teachers have kept them working hard in the classroom. In my roaming around the school I see so many great learning activities and work by students. Focused, determined and diligent, in their effort to produce quality work and do the best they can. Each year our school sets goals for the year. In the past Betty Gilbert has had a lone Literacy Goal in the form of a question, however, this year we had added a second goal:

As our students transition through school and utilize personal and common reading strategies and language, is there an increase in the individual’s literacy?

To improve the Social and Emotional climate for our students through comprehensive programming supporting our Raptor Traits – Kindness, Respect, Responsibility, Empathy and Integrity.

As we move through the first few months we will be assessing every students reading level as part of our first goal. We have also started regular assemblies supporting our Raptor Traits. We hope that you’ve heard of this and encourage students to use these traits to help develop strong character attributes in your child that everyone can be proud of. There are quite a few things happening in the school over the next month or so. Please check your e-mail regularly to ensure you don’t miss anything. If you know someone who is not receiving these e-mails please have them contact the school to update our records. Two items of note would be the Foundation Skills Assessment (FSA) and the Middle Year Development Instrument (MDI) that grade 7 students will be asked to complete. The MDI is a questionnaire for students to assess the Social Wellbeing and can give us good data to help find ways to support students, while the FSA is a snapshot assessment to find out how our students are doing compared to expected curriculum outcomes. Parents of grade 7 students should note that all students are expected to write the FSA. Students may only be exempted due to very specific criteria that school administration must use. If you have any questions please contact the school. October 18th & 19th will be Parent Teacher conferences. We sent a notice home giving contact information for parents to connect with their child’s teacher. Please contact them as soon as possible. Our Exploration Teachers will be available in the gym from 2:30 -3:30pm on Thursday, October 19th if you would like to drop in and meet them and get more information about the Exploration course they teach.

Mr. Bako

Betty Gilbert had a very successful Terry Fox Run this year. The students raised a total of $507.85! A shout out to Mme. Elsner’s class who raised the most money with $121.05, and Ms. Nedelec’s class came in 2nd with $77.80.

From the PAC, During the Meet the Teacher night at Betty Gilbert there was a free family BBQ held for our school community. This was organized and run by parents who could not have done this without the amazing help of others - before, during and after the event. Thank you to the Aldergrove Basketball Club grade 9/10 team who without question jumped right in to volunteer when asked late last week, doing the heavy lifting, cooking your meal and serving with a smile. As well, a big Thank You to the parents who volunteered, working hard throughout the evening and for those who continually came up asking how they could help. Let's not forget our wonderful Ernie as well who was there with sweet treats and helped us along. Thank you everyone! Thank you as well to the following businesses who made this happen by giving grocery gift cards, free product or product discounts. The next time you are shopping, think of them, as they stepped up to help when asked with only a couple of days notice. Dr. Voyra - Dentist - Aldergrove Bonnetti's Meats - Langley Bunsmaster - Langley Save On Foods - Aldergrove A & W Restaurant - Aldergrove Superstore - Abbotsford Costco - Abbotsford DQ - Aldergrove Turkey's Party Makers - Surrey

Upcoming Dates October

9th – Thanksgiving – no school

13th – Interim Reports home

13th – School Spirit Day – Crazy Hat Day!

18th & 19th – Parent Teacher interviews – early

dismissal 1:55 pm (see below)

19th – Shakeout BC (Earthquake awareness)

20th – Pro-d – no school

20th – Babysitting course at BGMS

23rd – Collaboration Day – Early dismissal – 1:40 pm

30th – Report Card prep half day (11:30

dismissal)

31st – School Spirit Day – Costume Day!

November

9th – Remembrance Day Assembly (Time TBA)

10th – No School (Calendar Variation)

13th – Remembrance Day – No School

21st - Collaboration Day – Early dismissal – 1:40 pm

Homework Club Reminder to parents that our Homework Club is up and running. This is a drop-in program afterschool Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays until 3:55 each day. Please connect with your child’s teacher if you would like to have your child attend. This is a great way for any student to stay ahead of their homework. Great work habits always get results.

Absences Please remember if your child will be absent to phone the office and leave a message. Your assistance is greatly appreciated. ADHD Workshop for Parents and Youth - For Your Newsletters Ted Leavitt from Langley Youth and Family Services with speak about his experience with ADHD and will offer powerful insights into understanding and supporting children and youth who have ADHD. Flyer with registration details attached.

When: Wednesday, October 25th 6 - 8:00 pm Where: Yorkson Creek Middle School

October Trait of the Month is:

RESPECT

Red Cross Babysitting Course Once again we are bringing a babysitting course to the school to help students be more prepared for the responsibility of taking care younger children. What a great way to earn a few dollars too. We try to have these courses on non-instructional days during regular school hours to help parents too. Where: Betty Gilbert Middle School When: Oct.20, 2017, 8:30-3:30 Who: Grade 6+ Cost: $60 + GST online registration http://www.firstaidhero.com/babysitting-vancouver.html Registration coming in the fall.

Sports Report: (September)

Cross Country and Grade 8 volleyball are already underway this year. A big thanks to Ms. Johnson, Mr. White, Ms. Shalaby, Mr. Josephson, and Ms. Courtney for helping us off to a strong start to the 2017-18 season at BGMS.

The Grade 8 Boys Volleyball team opened the season with a 3 sets to 1 win over Yorkson Creek Middle School and continue their season with a game against Langley Christian on September 28.

The Grade 8 Girls team has already played two games, beating DW Poppy 3 sets to 0. In their other game they fell to Walnut Grove 3 sets to 0 but showed improvement in each of the sets. Next up for them is a game against Brookswood Secondary.

Grade 8 Cross Country races are already done their second week and BGMS has seen strong showings from several runners include a 2nd place finish in the Grade 8 boys event in week 1. In just a few weeks, our 3 runners will be representing Betty Gilbert at the Fraser Valley Championships.

Grade 6/7 Cross Country is also in full swing, with a strong team of 5 runners competing in their first race of the season on September 26. The runners represented BGMS well and we are still awaiting the results from their races.

Volleyball will begin in the next couple of weeks for Grades 6 and 7. We will be running separate teams for each grade and gender. Listen for announcements regarding first practices in the next few weeks. All players are welcome, regardless of previous experience and skill level!

Mr. Kilvert Athletic Director

Communication with the School In our very busy daily lives it is difficult keeping up with all the events and tasks each week and especially keeping up with the events and calendar of our school. We try very hard to keep everyone informed. Information comes home in various ways:

School newsletter (e-mailed)

School website – updated regularly (Newsletters etc.)

Sign board outside East end of school

PAC Meetings – First Thursday of the month – 7pm Library

Foyer monitors scrolling bulletins to students daily Please check these regularly for information. On occasion, dates and times do change. If you are still are not sure please give the office a call and we will be happy to let you know.