Every child shines!

March 2, 2011

The excitement continues to build as plans for our new school, Westview Elementary, are well under way! The new school will include 12 regular classrooms, 4 kindergarten / pre-kindergarten rooms, a full size gymnasium, library, special education and multi-purpose spaces. It will also include a Neighbourhood Learning Centre comprised of additional multi-purpose space, expanded physical education facilities to support wheelchair athletics and a community office. Plans for the new school will be unveiled at an open house at Grief Point Elementary as follows:

Grief Point Elementary School Tuesday, March 8, 2011

4:00 – 7:00 pm The full press release is available on our website at: http://www.sd47.bc.ca/school/gp/ We hope that you can make it!

Breaking News…….

Basketball Champions!

Our Boys’ and Girls’ basketball teams

successfully wrapped up their season

yesterday after school by capturing the

District Championships!

Congratulations to all our players and

coaches. More information will be in our

next newsletter.

Festival of the Performing Arts Congratulations to the many students who performed this year in the Festival of the Performing Arts. There are several students who participated in speech arts, recorders and percussion groups, violins, choir and band. We are very proud of everyone who represented Grief Point School so well! A more detailed breakdown of our Festival participants will come out in our next newsletter.

Report Cards Our second formal report card will go home on Wednesday, March 9th. Once you have had an opportunity to go over your child’s report card, please sign and date the front page and have your child return it in the envelope provided.

Student Recognition

The following students will be recognized at the assemblies on Friday, March 4th . We hope that parents, guardians and relatives will be able to come and help us celebrate their accomplishments and hear about the wonderful things that are going on at our school! Div. 1 – Gr. 7 (Mr. Oldfield) Jeremy Hopper Ricci Leitch Nicole Shigeoka Carolyn Smith Allahna Somji Tim Wriglesworth Div. 2 – Gr. 6/7 (Ms. Sullivan / Ms. Banks) Sawyer Dunlop Cole Forsythe Justin Johansen Christian Kolt Jayden Saban Div. 3 – Gr. 5/6 (Ms. Lundell) Zoe Crookshank Joshua Chernoff Katie Hopper Trent Sundberg Emily White Div. 4 – Gr. 5 (Mr. Brown) Eli Carson Alex Cartlidge Robbins Dayton Deglan Jaden Leggeat Joel Lewis Ethan Schmunk Div. 5 – Gr. 4/5 (Ms. Marshman / Ms. Whitehouse) Ally Carpendale Taylor Kinley Morgan Labree Willemijn Poelen Div. 6 – Gr. 3/4 (Ms. McKinty) Olivia Brunel Scott Henry Claire Mavin Sydney Stonehouse Div. 7 – Gr. 3 (Ms. Morris) Keagan Abbott Steve Carson Sidney Elliott Gabe Shipley

Div. 8 – Gr. 2/3 (Ms. Butula) Carter Alexander Elisa Fisk Hayden Krauss Tyler Leslie Alyiah Rachowski Div. 9 – Gr. 2 (Ms. Tait) Madeline Burt Lynneya Carlson Lily Chaisson Colin Guenard Cohen Mastrodonato Hannah Mazzelli Brooke Skorey Div. 10 – Gr. 1/2 (Ms. Bond/Ms. Christmann) Damion Kinneard Maddox Koivu Bobby Pontifex Cynthia Skorey Div. 11 – Gr. 1 (Ms. Adams) Brent Bombardir Jordan Doran Colton Ellis Carson Leitch Mason Windsor Div. 12 – Kg (Ms. Taylor) Peyton Mithmuangneua Braiden Swanson Div. 13 – Kg (Ms. McLean) Ranae Babcock Tanner Burt Adam Hopper Naomi Krowitz Derek Pearson

Recognition Assembly

Friday, March 4th

9:45 am – Primary

Divisions 13, 12, 11, 10, 9, 8, 7

10:45 am – Intermediate

Divisions 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1

Goal : To continue and maintain focus on environmental education, implementing ideas across the curriculum. Objective 1: To continue integrating environmental education into both the formal curriculum of classroom learning and the organizational and operating procedures of the school. Objective 2: To continue to implement new strategies for decreasing our school’s carbon footprint.

Book Fair

An ENORMOUS THANK YOU to

everyone for their hard work with another

successful Book Fair at Grief Point!

Julie Orlinis Theresa Gilham

Ann Robinson Cindy Butler

Nicole Guenard Tara Chernoff

Christine Mavin Suzannah Schreurs

Vita Yan Christien Kaaij

Debbie Tyler Krystal McDonald

Janette Agius Stormy Krowitz

Tania Hobson Tanis Thulin

Heather Banks

The funds raised help us purchase new

resources for our Library.

Ready Set Learn On Tuesday, April 12th, at 3:00 pm Grief Point will be holding our annual Ready Set Learn event at the school. This program is designed to help parents and guardians prepare their pre-school aged children for school. Here is a link to a website with more information: http://www.bced.gov.bc.ca/early_learning/rsl/2009/rsl_english09.pdf Please notify all of your friends and relatives who have pre-schoolers!

Parent Advisory Council (PAC)

PAC Meeting

Thursday, March 10th 6:30pm in our library.

Our PAC continues to be a very dedicated group that does a lot to enhance our students’ opportunities at school. If you have never been to one of our meetings I would encourage you to do so! All parents and guardians of Grief Point students are welcome. There are always a few good laughs, some bad coffee and some great conversation on all of the things that are going on at our school. If you would like more information please do not hesitate to contact Mr. Burt.

Student-Led Conferences Thank you so much to all of our parents/guardians who came out to our recent student-led conferences. It was wonderful to see so many of you come in and share in your child’s classroom and school successes. This is a special opportunity for children and they all enjoy showing what they have learned. Thanks for helping to make the conferences a success!

Class Photos Tuesday, March 29th

Traffic Reminders Aside from following all of the general traffic rules in school zones here are a few reminders to all of our parents and guardians who drive and drop their children off at school:

Please remember not to park in our “Kiss N Ride” Zone (the area along Quesnel St. ahead of the bus zone). This area is intended for parents to pull up, let their children off and continue on their way.

Please do not drop students off behind the staff parking lot.

As the weather continues to improve, please encourage your children to walk or bring their bikes to school.

Remember that all areas in front of our school are “Idle-Free Zones” so if you are waiting for your child, please turn off your engine.

A HUGE THANK YOU to our tremendous

team of volunteers who continue to help keep our students safe by volunteering their time to work as crossing guards. These individuals are an extremely important part of our school community and we appreciate all their efforts. If you are interested in volunteering to become a crossing guard, please contact Mr. Burt. Schedules are flexible and can be tailored to your needs!

Elementary School Registration

New students or In-district Transfers

Kindergarten to Grade 7 For the 2011-2012 School Year

DEADLINE March 31, 2010 Kindergarten students please bring proof of age. (Child must be 5 by December 31, 2011.) A birth certificate is preferred. The Ministry of Education stipulates that parents may defer the enrollment of their child for not more than one year. Register at your school of choice by March 31, 2011. After March 31, 2011, register centrally at the School Board Office.* Grade 1 to 7 students new to Powell River or students wishing to transfer to a school outside of their catchment area must register at their school of choice by March 31, 2011. After March 31, 2011, register centrally at the School Board Office.* All elementary students registering after March 31, 2011, will not be guaranteed enrolment in their home catchment area or at their school of choice, as registration is on a first-come, first-served basis. *The School Board Office is located at: 4351 Ontario Avenue, Powell River, BC V8A1V3

French Eco-Immersion Registration

The District Early French Eco-Immersion program

heads into its second year in Powell River in 2011-

2012.

Parents wishing to register their children in the

Kindergarten Immersion class should contact James

Thomson School (483-3191) prior to March 30 to

enrol their child. There is a possibility that some

grade ones may be able to enrol in the program also

and James Thomson School will take the names of

any new Grade one students whose parents are

interested in pursuing that option.

If you have further questions or require additional

information please call James Thomson School

directly.

Destination Imagination The annual Destination Imagination competition will be on Thursday, March 3rd, at Edgehill Elementary School. There are two teams from Mrs. Marshman’s grade 4/5 class representing Grief Point School. Parents are invited to attend. Good luck to our teams and a GIGANTIC THANK YOU to our volunteer coaches, Ms. Butler and Ms. Labree! Babysitter Course St. John Ambulance is offering “What Every Babysitter Should Know” on Saturday, March 19th. The cost of the course is $46+GST. If you would like to register, please contact St. John Ambulance at 604-483-2250.

Green Polka Dotted Lima Beans

BC Green Games Check out our BC Green Games entry at www.bcgreengames.ca. Videos are presented and the winners are determined by the number of votes they receive. Please vote for the Grief Point entry. We have a chance to win cash prizes to support green initiatives at our school.

Powell River Minor Baseball Registration

Boys and Girls Ages 5 - 18

Saturday, March 26th

10:00 – 2:00

Rec Complex – Lower foyer

Please bring:

Your child’s birth certificate

2 post dated cheques (1 for uniform deposit

of $30.00 to be refunded when uniform

gets handed back in and 1 for a volunteer

deposit of $30.00 to be refunded when you

have volunteered time to your child’s team.

Please a separate cheque or cash for the

registration fee.

The Lima Beans will be coming around to each classroom Friday mornings to turn the thermostats down a few degrees. Remember to wear your cozy sweater.

Powell River Farmers’ Institute presents:

Seedy Saturday March 12th

10:00 am – 3:00 pm

Arbutus Room

Recreation Complex

Seedy Saturday is a family-friendly event

promoting seed-saving, biodiversity and

sustainable living. For participants, it’s a

great day to celebrate spring with a

community seed swap, gardening

workshops, exhibitors, children’s activities

and refreshments.

Children under 12 are admitted free.

General Admission is $2 for the day.

Hip Hop Dance Class

Visit from Science World

By Ms. Romanica

We participated in International Stand up to

Bullying Day. Students took part in activities and

discussion to help them make a difference in our

continued efforts to stop bullying. On February

23rd, students wore pink to show their support.

Here are some tips for parents on the topic of

bullying:

What to Do If Your Child Is...

Being Bullied

Believe what they say, listen and try to

understand their feelings. Ask questions that

invite more information.

Involve children in community activities to help

them make friends.

Encourage assertiveness. Empower your child

to stand up for himself and practise strategies.

If the bullying is extreme or persists contact

the school to talk about the problem and get

support.

Witnessing Bullying

Talk to children about issues such as bullying

and listen to what they think/feel.

Help children plan what they will do if they see

someone being bullied.

Encourage your daughter to be a friend to the

target.

Get involved in working to prevent violence in

your school and community.

Bullying Others

Let children know, by your words and actions,

that bullying is not okay.

Hold your child accountable for negative or

hurtful behaviour, through him/her

understanding of the consequence of his/her

behaviour.

Teach children to act in ways that show they

respect themselves and others.

Be a positive role model.

Acknowledge what is happening and accept

help if needed.

Communication is important.

Create opportunities to talk with children.

Crazy Hair Day