Yo! Yo! Yo! Students and family of Room 211, class of 2018-19!
September is here and it is time to get things rolling on an exciting new year at Churchill Alternative. There is a busy year ahead of us, and I am ready to start on our adventures in learning.
The summer was a fun one for me, as this was the first summer since I have had children where the month of July was not taken up with teaching summer school or taking courses. This meant two whole months of adventures with Jenny, Arlo, Otis and Oscar at parks, hiking, museums, climbing mountains, going in caves, swimming, kayaking, etc. Some of the highlights of the summer were days in Toronto at Ripleys, Wonderland, the Metro Zoo, and a Jays game, as well as time visiting family. The biggest highlights by far though were watching Arlo and Otis play on their football teams for their very first seasons, and helping Oscar (3.5 years) learn to ride his two wheel bike, learn to buckle his own seat belt, and swim on his own this summer.
I am looking forward to hearing about all the summer adventures from the students in the coming days. Along with summer stories, I am sending home some quick homework for students so that we can all get to know each other a bit more. They will have a paper bag to fill with 5 items that reflect their personality, interests, family, etc. Anything they want to share, but they will have to explain it a bit, and it has to fit in the bag (more or less). Please help your child fill their bag and bring it back in the first couple of days (it will take until Friday to have everyone share).
To get a quick run down of some important items to be aware of in the opening weeks of the school year please read the following, or check it all out on our class blog at www.alternativeschooladventure.blogspot.com, and contact me if you have any questions.
Our class blog is one of the most effective ways to stay informed with what is going on in our class (short of stopping in regularly). On it the students and I will post everything from important dates and assignments/handouts, to artwork and pieces of the student’s writing. I will try to send out reminders to check the blog when info has been posted, but you may just want to add it to your “favourites” folder and check from time to time. This will take the place of regular newsletters for the most part. Please let me know if you cannot access the site, or if you do not regularly have internet access and I can make alternate arrangements.
Class Meeting
We all know that education at Churchill relies heavily on the partnership between the school, the student, and the home so in order to start the year off on the same page, parents are strongly encouraged to attend the class meeting on Thursday, September 20th, 2018, in the morning. This is the same morning at the school wide Family Breakfast, and class meetings will be taking place in all rooms at this time. Our room is number 211, at the east end of the second floor hallway. You can get acquainted with our room and the way in which things will run over the course of this year. Items of discussion will be; volunteering in the classroom, field trips, guest speakers, curriculum topics, practice work for home, and general information. All parents are encouraged to attend this event as it is a great way to bring up ideas/concerns, and get to know the other families that are a part of our Room 211 community. I look forward to meeting you all.
Communication/Agendas
If you have information/questions that absolutely must be acted upon in a timely manner, I encourage you to send a note in with your child. They will see me at the start of the day and can share this with me directly. We will have our class agendas that we will use each day, and a note in there is a good place to contact me. Phone calls to the office are a second line of communication, but know that they will not call up to interrupt class unless it is an emergency, and this means I might not collect the message from the office until a break in the day, possibly even the end of the day, but I will get it. When it comes to emails I am generally able to respond to most within a couple of days. A mid morning email asking to have little Sally ready for an early pickup for the dentist will not be read in time to be of use.
Forms
Inevitably the first week or two will be a time to read, sign, and return countless forms. As repetitive as this seems it is a necessary administrative aspect of the start of school, and we need those forms to ensure that proper information is exchanged. Please return these ASAP so that we can get this out of the way and get on with the year.
Nut Restricted
Just a reminder that Churchill continues to be a “Nut Restricted” school, in an effort to create a safe environment for a number of seriously allergic members of our school community. More information is available through the office concerning the details of this policy, but basically the main item to be aware of are that students are asked to not bring food to school that contains nuts (especially peanut butter).
Volunteers and Volunteer Co-ordinator
Yes we still welcome (and need) volunteers in grade 4/5. It may not always be glamorous work, but it is always a valuable contribution that you make to our learning environment when you can find the time to join us in class. You are all encouraged to help out in class whenever possible. If you have a particular strength or area of expertise (or a great connection) let Ray know so we can make use of it. We are in need of one or two people who are willing to take charge of our volunteer and snack schedule on a month-by-month basis. If you are able to help us out with this please let me know right away so we can start to organize the school year.
We are also looking for a math- strong volunteer who would be able to work with a math group once a week.
A read aloud program greatly benefits student literacy, and for many years I have had volunteers drop give time to sit and listen to students read. Giving students this simple opportunity builds fluency, confidence, and overall literacy. I will speak about this more at the class meeting, but let me know if you are able to share some time with us to help out with this. We could use 2-4 people who could come in on a weekly, or bi weekly basis.
Field Fun
We will be sending home permission forms very shortly for our first field trips of the year. To compliment our Phys Ed program we are hoping to get in four dates in Sept/October when we will walk to Dovercourt, and McKellar Parks for field activities and games, including Ultimate Frisbee (best played on grass). Our plan is to leave after morning recess, and return before second break (10:40 – 12:40). Weather depending. When the forms come home, please let Ray know if you can come along for any of these dates, as we need several volunteers for the walk there and back. (We are planning to go on Thursdays)
Terry Fox Day
The Terry Fox Run is one of the most exciting, and memorable dates on the Churchill calendar. It is a great community event that families always enjoy participating in. Please look for forms and pledge sheets coming home. Help us reach our goal. This year we will hold our Terry Fox run on Thursday, September 27th at Dovercourt Park. Volunteers are needed for the walk over and setup. More information will be on the way.
Group Snack
As is the custom for many classes here at Churchill, the students of room 211 will be participating in a group snack program, which will be shared during the first nutrition break. The benefits to this are obvious in that you do not have to provide different snacks each day for your child, you just have to provide snack for the whole class once every 25 school days. However there are some concerns that must be considered with a program such as this. We will discuss diet restrictions in our class, but usually we have to consider that there are likely members of our class who are allergic to certain foods, or are vegetarian, etc. The following dietary concerns were shared in our first circle meeting:
Following the “Healthy Snack” policies that the school promotes the students in past years made up some guidelines to keep in mind when choosing snack for the class.
-low sugar items -healthy foods high in vitamins -variety -focus on fruits and vegetables
If a relatively “sweet” snack is being provided it should be combined with another item such as carrot sticks, fruit pieces, cheese and crackers, etc.
In the past we have had nearly one hundred percent participation in this program, but this does not mean that all must take part. If you would prefer to send your child with their own snack each day, and not have them take part in the sharing of snack simply let me know and I will make sure that your child’s name is not on the schedule. We will probably set a schedule from the second week of school, and try to arrange following months through the volunteer co-coordinators.
Shoes and Gym
Footwear that students use outside on the yard is not to be worn in the classroom, library, or gymnasium. This is particularly an issue during the wet and winter months, but it is a practice that we will try to get used to from the beginning of the year. Many of the students play in the sandy areas of the schoolyard at recess and lunch hour, and they carry in a considerable amount of sand, dirt, and stones on and in their shoes. They all have hooks, and shelf space in our classroom to keep their shoes, and many decide that they want to have separate “gym” shoes and indoor shoes. At no time are students to be walking without footwear in the school. Regarding “gym” shoes, they must be shoes that can be laced up, are not worn for everyday use outside, and have non- marking soles. This is standard practice for school gyms in order to provide a safe environment for participants. If students feel so inclined to change before and after gym they are welcome to (this will be the policy in middle school).
Scholastic
Our first Scholastic Book Club order forms should have gone home today, and are due at the end of next week. By participating in the Scholastic program students get fantastic deals on popular books and Scholastic donates books to the classroom. The general practice in our class is that two weeks is given between when the forms go home and when the last ones have to be handed in, and delivery usually takes two to four weeks after that date.
Wish list
Not everyone can make it in to volunteer for various reasons, but often I am asked if there is anything else that they can do for the class. Here are a few roles that need filling and items that we could benefit from. Let me know if you are able to take care of any of the following “wishes”.
Feed the Frogs - Purchase a dozen crickets from a pet store every week for our class pets.
Class visitors - The next best thing to a field trip is a guest to the classroom. If you are (or know) a musician, author, journalist, known athlete, work in an interesting profession, or have an expertise you would like to share with the class please let me know and we can arrange a visit.
Public Library Contact - Go online or in person to the Ottawa Public Library every few weeks and sign out/return books for class use based on the subjects being covered.
Laundry Service- We have towels, cloths, and a sofa cover that needs periodic washing.
Math Group Volunteer- Work with a group every week on math related activities.
Read Aloud Volunteers– Give students in the class a chance to read out loud.
Hand Sanitizer - Our class pump of hand sanitizer sits by the door and gets well used around recess and at other times during the day. Refills are needed two or three times a year.
Magazines - We have a dwindling supply of old magazines for projects. New ones to read, or older ones to cut up, would be appreciated.
Regards Ray Kalynuk
and the students of Room 211 
