Page 1 Bankhead Bulldog Bulletin May 2016

Track and Field We will be beginning our track and

field practice May 16th with most

students from grades 1-6. Our

practices occur the last block on

Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.

Students will be given instruction in

discus, long and triple jump, running events, relays and

shot put. Hopefully our weather will cooperate as stu-

dents are excited to be outside to enjoy these physical

activities. Please remind your child of the importance

of having running shoes and appropriate clothing for

these days. Apple Bowl is also scheduled for June 7th,

with more information coming home shortly.

Spring Fling

5:00—8:00 pm

Friday, June 3rd

Our annual school carnival is June

3rd. Thank you to all the dedicated

individuals who have spent hours or-

ganizing this event. Please know we are still in desperate need of more

volunteers to run stations. Thank you

to the PAC for their ongoing support

of our school

goal of improv-

ing student en-

gagement in the

c l a s s r o o m .

Providing funds

for field trips and

technology cer-

tainly helps us

make a differ-

ence for stu-

dents.

Website: www.bhe.sd23.bc.ca

Principal: Mrs. Brenda Kirsch

Email: brenda.Kirsch@sd23.bc.ca

Phone: 250-870-5114

We are excited to have Bonnie Gratz, theater and film actor, play-

write and professional director joining us in the month of May.

Bonnie, our artist in residence, will be working with all students

from K-6 to create unique theatrical experiences that will be highly

engaging and rewarding for our students. Bonnie will help our stu-

dents adapt and create mini-plays to popular stories. We look for-

ward to working with Bonnie!

With the brighter weather upon us we will continue to do more

things with our students outdoors. Running club, rugby, track and

field and futsal are a few of our organized sporting opportunities at

the school. During lunch hours, we also have groups of grade 6

students leading games and activities under the direction of our

CEA supervisors such as parachute and side walk chalk. Please

encourage your children to wear running shoes or other appropri-

ate foot wear as we take more of our activities outdoors.

Please support our Gardom Lake fundraiser by attending the up-

coming Family Dance on May 6th. This event is being hosted by the

Grade 6 Gardom Lake Parent Committee. Congratulations to our

parent group for all their successful fundraising initiates this year!

Just a reminder that if you wish to request classroom placement for

your child in September 2016, please submit your request in writ-

ing to me by the end of May. As you prepare your request, please

keep in mind the need to specify learning needs and specific infor-

mation that can help us in our decision making. When creating

class placements we focus on social, emotional and academic

needs, class composition, and size to name our top criteria. We do

our very best to place children in the classroom that will best meet

their individual needs.

We have several exciting events coming up in May and June, with

many volunteer opportunities available such as the Apple Bowl, I-

Ride, class field trips, Spring Fling, and Play Day to name a few.

Thank you so much parents for supporting and volunteering your

valuable time with us on our various school activities, field trips and

school events. We look forward to seeing many of you in the

school this spring and greatly appreciate your time!!

Sincerely, Brenda Kirsch Reminder

Monday, May 23rd AND Tuesday, May 24th

school is NOT in session.

BANKHEAD ELEMENTARY

Page 2 Bankhead Bulldog Bulletin May 2016

Tick Season… Between March and June, ticks may be present on the scrub vegetation

and grass on rocky southern exposures. Enjoy normal outdoor activity, but

give due regard to protection from tick bites. Wear pants tucked into boots

when on outings or hikes in the country. Make daily examinations for ticks,

paying particular attention to the pubic region, the base of the skull and the

head. If you find a tick, a handy tip is to smother it in dish soap so that it los-

es its grip. Then slowly and gently remove it. Treat the wound with a disinfectant. If in doubt, please

see your doctor.

ELFF (Early Learning For Families) Night

We invited families of 3 and 4 year old children in our community to an information session on

April 14th. The evening was well attended, with approximately 100 people. A number of our

grade 6 students and student teachers assisted with running hands-on activities with the young

children. The session focused on numeracy and literacy and the importance of introducing con-

cepts in fun, meaningful and engaging ways to children in their early years. We want literacy

and math to be viewed positively by children and something they can all enjoy learning and be

successful with, both at home and in school. Many engaging activities were shared with families

to encourage and develop math and literacy with pre-school aged children. Children and par-

ents enjoyed the information and activities and we look forward to seeing many of them soon at

our upcoming Kindergarten Orientation, May 20th. Thank you to the teachers, ETAP student

teachers, students and families who attended.

Jump Rope For Heart

Please join us on May 27th at 12:00 as our entire school population

"skips" our way through the various jump rope stations. We will

be raising awareness and money for the Heart Association of Can-

ada. Donations can be sent to school with your children on this

date. More information will be sent home soon.

Do you have any used shoes kicking around? Please help us support poor children in Canada and third world countries.

At Bankhead Elementary we have a thriving breakfast program that pro-

vides nutritious food for children who may not have an opportunity to eat breakfast in the morn-

ing. We are very proud of our staff and volunteers who create an extremely warm and caring atmos-

phere each morning which allows our students to have a healthy, positive start to their day. We are

also very thankful for the support of our sponsors "Food For Thought" who donate and deliver food to our school every week allowing our program to thrive. As part of our thanks to them we are support-

ing their cause of collecting used shoes for children in disadvantaged areas of the world. Shoes allow

children in impoverished nations to prevent disease and infection due to wearing footwear. If you

have used shoes that you wish to donate please drop by our school and drop them in our collection

box by the front office. Giving to others is a great message we can teach our children and a proud contribution by all of us to help others who are in dire need. Thank you for your support!!

Page 3 Bankhead Bulldog Bulletin May 2016

Next Year

In June, teaching staff will be forming a

tentative classroom organizational plan for

September. A great deal of time and

thought goes into the formation of class in-

structional groupings. This plan will be reas-

sessed during the first week of school when

our student enrolment is confirmed. Parents

occasionally wish to make special requests

for their child’s classroom placement.

If you wish to make a specific placement

request for your son/daughter, please for-

ward this to Mrs. Kirsch in writing by the end

of May. As you prepare your request,

please keep in mind that requests must be

related to your child’s specific learning

needs and style. Please understand that

due to the many placement factors and

the allowable class size and class composi-

tion guidelines we may not be able to ac-

commodate your request.

Parent Apple Bowl Volunteers Needed!!!

It is that time of year again and we are looking for parent volunteers

for our annual “Intermediate” Apple Bowl Track and Field Day. If

you would like to join us on our Apple Bowl Track and Field trip as a

volunteer, we could put you to good use. Each ‘Field’ station needs

helpers and so do the ‘Track’ events. For example: timers, starters,

lane officials, etc. If you can help, please contact the school and

leave your contact info with Mrs. Nanci. The Apple Bowl Intermedi-ate Track meet takes place all day, rain or shine on Tuesday, June

7th.

Note to volunteers:

If you have not already done so, please complete a criminal record

check form prior to volunteering (no charge). The forms are availa-

ble at the school office between 8:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. daily

Bike Safety

Please encourage your child to always wear their helmets when

riding bikes and scooters. To ensure that bikes and scooters are

safe, please lock them securely to the bike racks, located at the

front of the school. Please remind your child to walk their bikes

and scooters when on school grounds during school hours.

Hightouch Hightech Many of our primary classes were involved in exciting

hands-on science activities/experiments in the school,

brought to us by trained teachers from Hightouch

Hightech. Topics include, Sounds Fun & Power of

Light, Finally Fun Machines, What’s the Matter, Earth-

works, Smarty Plants, and Newton in a Nutshell,

which cover learning outcomes from our provincial

curriculum. Bringing the science to us allows stu-

dents to have an engaging "field trip" experience in

RUNNING CLUB IS BACK!

The running club is well underway.

It is a great way to get fit and have

fun! The running club will be hold-

ing practices on Mondays and

Wednesdays at lunch time. Stu-

dents are asked to wear appropri-

ate runners and gym strip. Thank you to our teacher

sponsors, Mrs. Witzke and Mrs. Mckenzie.

Page 4 Bankhead Bulldog Bulletin May 2016

Volunteer Lunch….

RSVP please Volunteers are one of the main ingredients of a successful school. Here at Bankhead we are blessed

with many volunteers who help our school be a great place for our students. If you have helped out

in this school year in one of the following ways: hot lunch, bottle drives, field trips, classroom helper,

reading programs, popcorn sellers, art helpers, book fair, Spring Fling, PAC executive members, Gar-

dom Lake volunteers, pumpkin carving, (you get the drift…..), then this invitation is for you! The staff

would like to invite you to school on Wednesday, June 1st at 11:00 a.m to give us a chance to say

“thank you” for all that you do here during the school year. We will have student entertainment

with a light lunch and refreshments for you. All we need you to do is return the cut off section at the

bottom of the notice that will be sent home next week to let us know you are coming and then show

up on the 1st at 11:00 a.m. Please RSVP by Friday, May 27th.

SPRING FAMILY DANCE!!! MAY 6TH 5:30 to 8:30 pm Join us in the Bankhead gym for an evening of MUSIC, DANCING, GREAT COSTUMES

and FUN!!! Dress up in your best 1960’s to 1980’s outfit! Cost is $2.00 per person. Snacks

and drinks will be available for purchase from 6 to 8:00 pm. Pizza available for $2.50. DJ and

MUSIC by Dr. Knox Rec Leadership Crew. All students MUST be accompanied by their

parent/guardian for the ENTIRE evening. All proceeds raised go to the grade 6’s for their

Gardom Lake 3 day field trip.

Page 5 Bankhead Bulldog Bulletin May 2016

Mother’s Day Tea—May 6th

Mrs. Trainor’s class

12:45 to 1:15 p.m.

Mrs. McKenzie’s class

1:30 to 2:00 p.m.

Page 6 Bankhead Bulldog Bulletin May 2016

Kindergarten Orientation Friday, May 20th

We look forward to seeing our future September

2016 Kindergarten students and parents on May

20th. If you are unsure of your session time

(morning/afternoon) please call the school @ 250-

870-5114. We look forward to welcoming our new-

est students in activities and an orientation to what

Kindergarten will have to offer.

The BHE Rugby team has been playing some very fun,

competitive rugby games against other schools in our district.

The team consists of grade 4, 5 & 6 girls

and boys playing together developing team

play, fun and fitness.

Special thanks to coaches Miss Given and

Mr. Boe

Our dedicated Destination Conservation team of grade 4 students registered Bankhead for the National Lights Out Day

on April 22nd. In advance of this day, students made announcements at lunch about the day, gave ideas on how to get

ready and helped set up the umbrellas in the courtyard so classes could work outside when it was dark inside. National

Lights Out is on Earth day and reminds us how we can each make a small change in our daily lives to reduce the impact

of humans on climate change. Some of the ways Bankhead students made a difference includ-

ed: hallway lights off, classroom lights out with the blinds open, reading outside, environmen-

tal art, writing and discussions about how we can conserve energy.

This all leads up to the Bike to School (& Work) Week, May 30—June 3rd. Bankhead Elemen-

tary is registered and the Destination Conservation team will be organizing and leading the

event. Watch for more details to come and get your bikes ready to roll! The more students

participate, the more chance to win prizes for themselves and for the school. If you are inter-

ested in setting up or participating in a Bicycle Train where students have confident adult

cyclists leading the way to school, please phone the school at 250-870-5114 or email Mrs. Gor-

don at carole.gordon@sd23.bc.ca

Grade 6 students attending the Regional Heritage Fair at the

Laurel Building!

Well done Mary, Cossette, Ian and Ayden! Mrs. Kirsch, Mrs. Mathison, and Terra cheered

them on!

The international program is looking for families to host international students attending mid-

dle and high school in our district. We have students coming from around 30 countries and love to enjoy liv-

ing with a Canadian family in Kelowna. Host family compensations will be $800 per month, starting Septem-

ber 2016.

For more information, please visit our website at: http://www.international.sd23.bc.ca/homestay/Pages/

default.aspx

Or contact Ana Vallejos at Ana.Vallejos@sd23.bc.ca, or our office at 250-470-3258.

Page 7 Bankhead Bulldog Bulletin May 2016

Our author visit with Margriet Ruurs was a huge success and students were busy reading her

books. If you didn’t get a chance, check out her website at www.margrietruurs.com. There are

colouring sheets and lots of information about her books.

The Battle of the Books teams competed with about 10 other schools to an-

swer questions about books they had read. Congratulations to all partici-

pants for a job well done. Our grade 6 team of Ian and Kailyn came in

third!

Doing a Spring Clean? Keep those books! Our annual book swap will take

place in June. Watch your student’s planner to find out when to send your

gently used, age appropriate books. Please do not send baby books.

We are gearing up for inventory and all student books will be due back to the library by Friday,

June 3. We do have a number of well overdue books, so please have a good look for them.

1. PAC Meeting May 16th at 6:30pm in the Library. Child minding is avail-

able. Snacks and coffee provided by Starbucks!

2. Hot Lunch volunteers are always needed on Pizza Wednesdays and

Fridays from10:30 am - 11:15 am. Thank you to all who continue to

show support. The more volunteers we have, the smoother delivery

goes.

3. Spring Hot Lunch Menu is now out and available on-line. Visit

www.bhebulldogs.hotlunches.net to order. Paper copies at the office.

4. Plant and Flower Fundraiser pick up May 3rd by 2:45 pm please.

5. Spring Fling is just around the corner—June 3rd! Corry Gates is our coor-

dinator. Please contact her at corryg8s@gmail.com.

Email address for the PAC is bankheadpac@gmail.com if you have any questions for them.

Dear SD23 Parents/Guardians/Teachers,

District Career Life Programs together with OKM PAC are excited to share a FREE PARENT EVENT for par-

ents of middle and secondary students.

PARENTS AS CAREER COACHES

May 12, 2016

Hollywood Rd. Education Services

6:00pm-9:00pm

Refreshments served

Registration Required…CLICK HERE… https://ereg.sd23.bc.ca

Parents are the single greatest influence on their child’s education and career decisions….this program

equips parents to better support their children in making informed and successful education and career

choices. This evening session helps parents understand the critical role they play in assisting their child

to recognize their interests & unique talents. The sessions also explore what employers consider to be

critical skills, qualities, and attitudes required in today's and tomorrow' labour market. When your chil-

dren are getting ready to transition from high school to post-secondary or into the workforce, this pro-

gram will help you and your child use career planning tools and explore opportunities that suit your

child's interests and skills. We look forward to seeing you there – if you have any questions you can con-

tact either Patti.Ostrikoff@sd23.bc.ca OR Fiona Sherwood fionasherwood@shaw.ca