October 22nd, 2019

​Please see the following email, shared with families earlier this evening:

Good afternoon,

Just a few updates of events and activities taking place at school. First, students are bringing home their term one progress reports in the student agendas. These progress reports are not to be confused with the report cards. Report cards will go home at the end of each term. Term one report cards will go home in December. The progress report is a brief snapshot, meant to communicate areas of strength and areas of concern that students, teachers, and families can focus on throughout the year. Progress reports are meant to help you better know how your student is progressing towards these Grade 3 skills. Please note, the skills on the progress report are not expected to be mastered. Students have only been in school for a few weeks and behaviour, literacy, and numeracy are skills that we will work on continuously throughout the school year. This is just a source of information on what skills might need more practice. Please take a few minutes this evening to review the progress report with your student. Complete the questions at the bottom together as best you can and return the signed progress report in the student agendas tomorrow. We will be using them to guide our discussion at our upcoming three-way conferences. 

Second, students have been working very hard over the past few weeks. As a result we have met our October behavioural goal. Students have earned 30 points on our "Beat the Teacher" scoreboard. As such, tomorrow we will be having a classroom celebration to celebrate our success. Students have decided to have a Stuffed Animal Day. Students are invited to bring 1-2 stuffed animals to school. Students will be able to enjoy and share their stuffed animals throughout the day (ie. Soft Start, Classroom Meeting, etc.). During Independent Reading, students will be able to read to or read with their stuffed animals (practicing fluency). If students are unable to bring a stuffed animal of their own, there are extras that students will be able to borrow tomorrow. 

Third, a reminder that our three-way conferences begin tomorrow evening. Three-way conferences for Grades 1-6 students are scheduled for October 23rd and 24th. Parents/guardians should set up appointments online to meet with classroom teachers. Report cards for Grades 1-6 will be sent home at a later date (at the end of term 1 in early December). At Christina Gordon Public School we believe that early communication with parents/guardians and children to discuss the child's progress is vital, which is why these meetings are set up mid-term. In doing so, parents/guardians and students are able to have a discussion prior to the first term report card going home. This allows changes to be made where necessary to ensure the student's success. This is a more proactive approach than simply reacting to the report card. We believe there is much benefit in both the parent/guardian and student sitting down and having these discussions, which is why we have three-way conferences intended to involve all parents/guardians, students, and teachers, instead of a traditional parent-teacher interview. Please bring your student to these three-way conferences. While each conference is only 10 minutes long, with no grace period scheduled between scheduled appointments, please feel free to come early or stay after your scheduled appointment. There will be a number of activities and centres set up within the classroom so that students can lead their families through some of the features of our classroom and some of the activities we have been working on. To book an appointment for Grades 1-6 students, please go to the school website (http://christinagordon.fmpsdschools.ca/view.php?action=signin). If you have not already created an account, you will be asked to do so at that time. Please note, ECDP and Kindergarten three-way conferences will be held at a later date. 

Finally, the School Council is currently in need of two more executive members to work alongside our School Council chair, Alethea Austin. This is an important request that we are asking all families to consider. It is important that the School Council remains active and viable as it provides much needed parental input and advice to the school and school division administration. They are in need of the following:

• Vice Chair - typically the vice chair's duties are, in the event of resignation, incapacity, or leave of absence of the chair, to fulfill the chair's responsibilities, and in the absence of the chair, supervise the affairs and preside at meetings of the School Council
• Secretary - typically School Council secretary acts as a recorder at each meeting and ensures that the minutes are prepared accurately to reflect the directions agreed to at the meeting

If you are willing and able to let your name stand to fill either of these positions, please let Mr. Thorne know (richard.thorne@fmpsd.ab.ca) and he will pass your information along to the chair, Alethea. At Christina Gordon, in our first three years of operation, this School Council has been extremely important in advising us as to what Christina Gordon needs to be to meet the needs of our school community. We NEED this as we continue to grow. All parents/guardians are already members of our School Council and are always welcome to attend the monthly meetings. 

Thank you everyone. As always, please let me know if you have any questions or concerns in regards to any of the above, 

- Ashley Barrington, Grade 3 Teacher

Agenda
​- Progress Reports: Sign and Return (ASAP)
- Jr. Tech: Mondays, 3:15-4:15 pm
- Sr. Choir: Tuesdays, 3:15-4:15 pm
- Sign Language Club: Wednesdays, 3:15-4:15 pm 
- Hot Lunch Program: Tuesdays, Thursdays
- Stuffed Animal Classroom Reward Day: Wednesday, October 23rd
- Book Fair: October 21-24th 
​- Three-Way Conferences: October 23-24th (Schedule an appointment HERE)​
- October Book Orders: Due October 30th
- Family Halloween Dance: Wednesday, October 30th (5:30-7:00 pm)