St. Edmunds Newsletter – October 2023
October has arrived and the cooler mornings, changing leaves, and shorter days remind us that Fall is upon us. This month our staff will be encouraging your children not only to celebrate Thanksgiving but also to reflect on the deeper meaning of gratitude and extending help to those in need. In addition to prayers of thanksgiving and prayers for those less fortunate, you can encourage your child to write thank-you notes and to make a donation to a local food bank or to create care packages with some essential items to give to a homeless shelter. By engaging in these activities as a family, you can teach your children the valuable lessons of compassion, empathy and the meaning of gratitude. It is a wonderful way to celebrate the holiday with a spirit of giving.
We are so grateful for everyone who took the time to connect with their child’s teacher at our Meet the Teacher Evening. If you were unable to attend, we hope you have had the opportunity to reach out to your teacher to gain further insights with school and classroom routines. It takes a team to lead your child(ren) through their educational journeys and we are thankful to be a part of an amazing community of dedicated professionals and families.
Communication Reminders:
Contact Information – It is important that our school records be kept up to date. If you have moved, or changed phone numbers or email addresses, please notify the school office. Additionally, if your child’s medical information has changed, please notify the school office.
When Parents Have Concerns – If at any time you have a concern regarding your child or an incident that happened, we ask that you please come and speak with your child’s teacher. The only way that concerns can be effectively resolved is through open communication between home and school, resulting in accurate information being shared, and an informed understanding of your concern.
Attendance (Absent or Late Days) – Thank you for all you do to bring your children on time for school. The school gate opens at 8:30 am and classes begin at 8:45 am. If your child is going to be late or absent for any reason, please call or email our school office at office@stedmunds.ca If we do not receive a call or email notification and your child is not at school, we will call to ensure his/her safe arrival.
Drop-off & Parking Reminders – Please obey all parking/drop-off zone signage. A reminder that the Fire Zone in front of the Church and Gym must be clear (no stopping or parking in this space). Also, there is no stopping between the crosswalk on 6th Street between Jones and the school yard gate.
Extra Curricular Programs:
Congratulations to our newly elected Student Council executive members: Kyara, Ben, Valentina and Mikayla! Let us pray for them and their efforts in this upcoming year. This leadership team is enthusiastic about planning a fun and memorable year. Bless this council with the ability to work as a team with the best interests of all the students in their plans and performing works of service to our community. We would also like to thank Ms. Salituro, Mr. Grossi and Ms. Lorezca for assisting all our candidates with their campaigns.
Congratulations as well to our volleyball and soccer teams who have had a great start to their seasons! Please see our school calendar for upcoming home and away games.
Prayers for Peace has started and takes place on Thursday afternoons (3:00-3:15) with Ms. Salituro in our church. We look forward to having more students join us this year to grow in their prayer practice and pray for others.
School Lunch Program
Thank you to Ms. Van Eck for setting up our hot lunch program and organizing our parent volunteers. A reminder that utensils are not provided for online orders. Children must bring utensils from home. Please ensure that your child brings a healthy recess snack and healthy lunch to school each day. Reusable water bottles should also be brought daily and should be labelled with your child’s name. In the interest of being stewards of the Earth as well as not having the ability to handle large amounts of food waste in our garbage, we will continue to ask students to bring all leftover food back home so that it can be put into the compost. Please send school lunches in reusable, labelled plastic (no glass) containers, helping to reduce the amount of waste going into the landfill.
For parents who are interested in ordering lunch, please see the Hot Lunch Link on our school website.
Thank you for supporting our school lunch program.
St. Edmund School Uniform
Thank you for all your help in ensuring that your children are ready each day with their school uniform. At morning assemblies we have discussed how our uniform is an outward sign that we are all part of a special community and a way to show school pride. A reminder that:
- All clothing items should be labelled with your child’s name.
- School sweaters are to be worn daily and should be in good condition.
- Hemlines of tunics, skirts & dress shorts should not be more than 4 inches/10 cm above the knee.
- School dress shoes are all black, non-marking
- Hair should not be dyed or coloured in any way. Hair accessories that tie back long hair should be subdued in nature. (Plain black, blue or tartan pattern)
- Jewelry must be subdued in nature. Only stud earrings are permitted.
- Nails should be clear (no colour polish) and make-up is not to be worn.
Thank you for supporting our uniform policy and keeping our students looking their best.
Important Dates for the month of October:
Please remember to check the online calendar and emails for the latest info/changes.
Oct. 2 – Truth & Reconciliation Day (No School)
Oct. 4 – Whole School Mass led by Gr. 7
Oct. 9 – Thanksgiving (No School)
Oct. 10 – PAC meeting 7pm
Oct. 11 – Photo Day
Oct. 11 – Gr. 5 Class Mass
Oct. 13 – Living Rosary Prayer Service led by Gr. 4
Oct. 17 – PEC meeting 7 pm
Oct. 18 – CISVA-wide Earthquake Drill
Oct. 18 – Gr. 3 Class Mass
Oct. 20 – BC Provincial Professional Day (No School) – St. Ed’s Staff Retreat
Oct. 25 – Gr. 2 Class Mass
Oct. 26 – Kindergarten Hearing Screening
Oct. 27 – Learning Updates (Midterm Reports) sent home
Oct. 29 – Sacramental (Gr 2 & 7) Enrollment Mass at 11:00 a.m.
Oct. 31 – All Hallow’s Eve Dress Down Day
Individual Photo Day – Wednesday, Oct. 11
Mark your calendars! Artona Photography will be taking individual student photos on Wednesday, October 11th. All students are to wear their full school uniform on this day (school sweaters, hair accessories in school colours only). If your child misses the October 11th date, photo retake day is November 3rd.
Professional Day – No School on Friday, Oct. 20
St. Edmund’s Staff will be on retreat on Friday October 20th. There is no school for students on this day and the office will be closed.
Communicating Student Learning – Friday, Oct. 27
As a way of keeping you informed about the effort your child is making this term, teachers will be sending an interim report which will give you information about your child’s observable work habits and respectful interactions with peers and adults. Please use this report as a focus for discussion with your child about their attitude towards school, their strengths, and possible areas for improvement.
Formal Parent-Teacher Conferences are scheduled for Monday, December 8th, but know that you can always reach out to your child’s teacher if you have any questions. Please note there are no classes on this day. Stay tuned for an email informing you of when and how you can set your appointment for your conference.
Sacramental Preparation – Enrollment Mass – Sunday, Oct. 29
Our Grade 2 and 7 school and PREP children will commence their preparation for the sacraments of Reconciliation, First Holy Communion and Confirmation with a special enrollment mass that will be celebrated on Sunday October 29th at 11:00 am. We pray that the youth of our parish family will continue to be a witness to Christ and grow in faith with the gifts of the Spirit. Special thanks to Fr. Steny for his spiritual guidance and all our teachers for working alongside families in the children’s faith journey.
All Hallows Eve, All Saints Day, All Souls Day
With the approach of All Hallows Eve (Hallowe’en) on October 31st, All Saints’ Day on November 1st, and All Souls Day on November 2nd, it is important to recognize our faith heritage in a special way, while also recognizing the aspects of fun and school spirit.
As a Catholic school, we will be reminding the students of the origin of All Hallows Eve. Students are welcome to wear orange and black or dress in appropriate costumes. We will also be joining our STA high school friends in collecting candy donations and prayer messages for the Good Shepherd Ministry.
Please ensure that costumes are safe and appropriate for a Catholic elementary school. No full masks or “weapons” of any kind are permitted at school and no make-up resembling blood.
Be aware that your child will be in a costume all day – if this is a very special or elaborate costume, you may wish to consider something more “outside friendly” as students will still be outside for play, and may get dirty, or your child can wear orange and black!