Principal: Ms. Jillian Lewis - Head Teacher: Ms. Jennifer Delvecchio - Admin Assistant: Mrs. Giannina Rakic March 2020 Tiger Times Brentwood Park Elementary 1455 Delta Ave, Burnaby, BC 604-296-9003 [email protected]http://brentwood.sd41.bc.ca Online Safety Helping kids stay safe while online is something many families and school personnel are concerned about. It can be difficult to stay up to date with new technology and how to best protect our children. To assist parents in understanding and dealing with some of the challenges we encounter while living in this digital world, we have gathered some resources below. As well, the Brentwood Parent Advisory Council, in partnership with Brentwood Preschool, is sponsoring a parent education night with Dr. Deborah Macnamara on May 13, 2020 entitled Raising Children in a Digital World. We look forward to having you attend this free session. More information will be coming out soon. Please see the information flyer in this newsletter. The Canadian Centre for Child Protection offers information about the ever-changing online interests of children, the potential risks they face, and proactive strategies to help keep your child/adolescent safe while online. For Parents: ProtectKidsOnline.ca regularly gleans information from Cybertip.ca to help parents stay informed about age-specific interests of young people, the risks they face online and proactive strategies for helping to make their child’s online experiences safer. For Kids: Zoe & Molly Online is an interactive series that gives 8 to 10-year old’s an opportunity to have some fun exploring what it means to be safe while playing games online. All the components of the Zoe & Molly Online program, including comics, an interactive game, and online safety quiz, provide an engaging learning experience for children. 5 Key Tips for Digital Parenting (source: Digital Citizenship – Guide for Parents) Here are five key tips to guiding your kids to safe and responsible digital lives: Don’t be scared You hear a lot of scary stuff about kids and the internet, but the fact is that most kids do just fine. Think of the internet as being like a swimming pool: the best way to keep your kids safe there is to teach them how to stay safe. Talk to your kids. Don’t wait until things have already gone wrong to talk to your kids about online issues and don’t just have one “big talk.” What your kids need from you is guidance, so they’re prepared to deal with problems before they happen, support from you when things do go wrong, and for you to reinforce these messages by continuing to talk to them as they get older and are more able to make decisions for themselves. The Digital Citizenship for Parents has lots of tips on how to talk about all of the major online issues. If you have older kids and haven’t talked to them about the internet yet, don’t worry: it’s never too late to start! Be a part of your kids’ media lives. What your kids are watching, playing, reading, listening to is a big part of the person they’re turning into, and their online lives can be just as important to them as the “real world.” Younger kids are usually glad when their parents show an interest in the things they like, so get them to show you how their new favourite game works or why they’re so excited about joining a new social network. You can also use media to talk about sensitive issues: kids m ay be more comfortable talking about sexting or bullying when you’re discussing a character in a TV show than someone they know. Be the person your kids come to when they have problems online. A lot of the time, kids don’t want to go to their parents when things go wrong because they’re afraid they’ll get in trouble. When your kids start going online make sure they know clear procedures on what to do if things go wrong, like if they can’t figure out a game or they accidentally access something unpleasant. If they’re in the habit of coming to you about the little things, they’ll be a lot more likely to talk to you about the big ones. Set rules and communicate values. The internet may seem like the Wild West sometimes, but the rules you set still affect how kids behave online. What’s most important is that your rules are a way of getting across the values you want your kids to live by. That way they’ll keep living by them even when they’re grown up and out on their own.
Transcript
Principal: Ms. Jillian Lewis - Head Teacher: Ms. Jennifer Delvecchio - Admin Assistant: Mrs. Giannina Rakic
March 2020
Tiger Times
Brentwood Park Elementary 1455 Delta Ave, Burnaby, BC 604-296-9003
Online Safety Helping kids stay safe while online is something many families and school personnel are concerned about. It can be difficult to stay up to date with new technology and how to best protect our children. To assist parents in understanding and dealing with some of the challenges we encounter while living in this digital world, we have gathered some resources below. As well, the Brentwood Parent Advisory Council, in partnership with Brentwood Preschool, is sponsoring a parent education night with Dr. Deborah Macnamara on May 13, 2020 entitled Raising Children in a Digital World. We look forward to having you attend this free session. More information will be coming out soon. Please see the information flyer in this newsletter. The Canadian Centre for Child Protection offers information about the ever-changing online interests of children, the potential risks they face, and proactive strategies to help keep your child/adolescent safe while online. For Parents: ProtectKidsOnline.ca regularly gleans information from Cybertip.ca to help parents stay informed about age-specific interests of young people, the risks they face online and proactive strategies for helping to make their child’s online experiences safer. For Kids: Zoe & Molly Online is an interactive series that gives 8 to 10-year old’s an opportunity to have some fun exploring what it means to be safe while playing games online. All the components of the Zoe & Molly Online program, including comics, an interactive game, and online safety quiz, provide an engaging learning experience for children. 5 Key Tips for Digital Parenting (source: Digital Citizenship – Guide for Parents) Here are five key tips to guiding your kids to safe and responsible digital lives: Don’t be scared You hear a lot of scary stuff about kids and the internet, but the fact is that most kids do just fine. Think of the internet as being like a swimming pool: the best way to keep your kids safe there is to teach them how to stay safe. Talk to your kids. Don’t wait until things have already gone wrong to talk to your kids about online issues and don’t just have one “big talk.” What your kids need from you is guidance, so they’re prepared to deal with problems before they happen, support from you when things do go wrong, and for you to reinforce these messages by continuing to talk to them as they get older and are more able to make decisions for themselves. The Digital Citizenship for Parents has lots of tips on how to talk about all of the major online issues. If you have older kids and haven’t talked to them about the internet yet, don’t worry: it’s never too late to start! Be a part of your kids’ media lives. What your kids are watching, playing, reading, listening to is a big part of the person they’re turning into, and their online lives can be just as important to them as the “real world.” Younger kids are usually glad when their parents show an interest in the things they like, so get them to show you how their new favourite game works or why they’re so excited about joining a new social network. You can also use media to talk about sensitive issues: kids m ay be more comfortable talking about sexting or bullying when you’re discussing a character in a TV show than someone they know. Be the person your kids come to when they have problems online. A lot of the time, kids don’t want to go to their parents when things go wrong because they’re afraid they’ll get in trouble. When your kids start going online make sure they know clear procedures on what to do if things go wrong, like if they can’t figure out a game or they accidentally access something unpleasant. If they’re in the habit of coming to you about the little things, they’ll be a lot more likely to talk to you about the big ones. Set rules and communicate values. The internet may seem like the Wild West sometimes, but the rules you set still affect how kids behave online. What’s most important is that your rules are a way of getting across the values you want your kids to live by. That way they’ll keep living by them even when they’re grown up and out on their own.
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ATTENTION TO ALL BRENTWOOD PARK PARENTS!! Over the past 18 months our parent volunteers have dramatically declined. Spring Social is CANCELLED this year unless we have a lead volunteer and committee. We are down to offering only 9 hot lunches for next year, unless YOU step up. There were only 17 parents out of our 494 students that attended the PAC meeting on Wednesday February 26th. Show your commitment to your children and school. Let’s keep the spirit alive! PAC IS CONTINUOUSLY LOOKING FOR VOLUNTEERS!! PLEASE REACH OUT TO US AT: [email protected] (WE DON'T BITE!!) Up Coming Events: PAC Nominations for 2020-2021 PAC Executives Nominations for Brentwood’s PAC Executive will be held in April and voting will occur at the May PAC meeting. If you are interested in being a part of our hard-working and dedicated executive, please email us your intention or put your name forward at the April meeting. A description of all positions will be made available on the school website under the Parent Tab (PAC Corner). Staff Appreciation Luncheon Thursday May 22: Please save the date for the Staff Appreciation Lunch-eon. Every year Brentwood families provide a lunch buffet for the beloved staff. Be on the lookout for the volunteer sign-up after spring break. Families can help by providing food, helping to set-up, serve or clean up. This is a wonderful opportunity to show our appreciation for all the staff at Brentwood! Upcoming PAC meetings: No March meeting, April 21 and May 26. All the best, Brentwood Park PAC Executive
PAC CORNER
BOYS BASKETBALL Thank you to the Grade 6 & 7 students for coming out for the boys basketball team this year and making the season a memorable one. All of you practiced hard and hopefully had some fun along the way. A very big thank you to all of the parents for dropping their children off for early morning practices and driving the boys to the games. Thank you to Mr. Jung and Ms. Willis for being the boys team coach and manager.
PUBLIC SPEAKING Public speaking is considered by many to be a difficult and sometimes frightening experience. Overcoming the fear of speaking in front of an audience and learning the techniques for effectively communicating with a large group of people are valuable skills that are transferable to almost any type of employment or social situation. For several weeks, our senior students have been busy writing and preparing speeches as part of the Burnaby School District Public Speaking Contest. This year’s topic was “The Greatest Lesson I’ve Learned So Far” and we heard a very interesting array of themes and ideas from our young speechwriters. Congratulations to the school finalists: Sofia B.. Vaughn H. Special congratulations to Sofia and Vaughn who were chosen to represent Brentwood Park at the Zone Finals which were held at Capitol Hill Elementary School on Feb. 20th. We are very proud of your accomplishments. Vaughn H. has moved on the the District Finals on March 11th at Byrne Creek Secondary.
HEARTS 4 TRUTH
The student leadership council would like to say Thank You to all of the Brentwood Park Com-munity for supporting our Hearts for Truth campaign this year. We sold a total of 1380 hearts and were able to donate $880 to the Gord Downie and Chanie Wenjack fund. This campaign was our reconciliation reconcili”action”. This donation has been specifically been designated for clean water initiatives for our Indigenous peoples. This year we raised $150 more than last year and we are gearing up to aim for over $1000 next year!! Stay tuned for our final cam-paign of the year which will kick off after spring break. All proceeds will go towards a global cause to support an international need. More details will be revealed once the campaign starts... but what we can say is... save your coins! Your “change” WILL make a change.
CELEBRATING GRANDPARENTS On Friday, Febbruary 21st we welcomed over 100 grandparents and other family members to our school to celebrate Grandparents Day. They started the morning in classrooms working on a variety of activities and some of our visitors even went outside to play with their grandchildren at recess! To end the morning, families enjoyed light refreshments in the gymnasium and performances by some of Brentwood Park’s talented piano players. Thank you to Starbuck’s for providing coffee for our event. An extra special thank you to Ms. Lewis for capturing the memories of this wonderful day by taking beautiful photos of loved ones. We invite you to come to the bulletin board outside the library to check out the family portraits that were created at the event. If your family is on our portrait wall, please see Ms. Lewis for copies of your photographs. Thank you to everyone who participated and to all the staff and students who volunteered their time to make this year’s Grandparents Day such a success!
TRAFFIC SAFETY
Please note: To help improve the safety of students and families as they use the crosswalk on Delta Avenue, the City of Burnaby has installed new traffic signs. Vehicles travelling northbound on Delta Ave. are no longer permitted to make left turns into the drop-off zone for Brentwood Park Elementary School. Similarly, vehicles travelling southbound on Delta Ave. are no longer permitted to make left turns into the parking lot for Holy Cross Elementary School. As well, the City of Burnaby has installed flexible posts on Delta Ave. to prevent vehicles from passing on the right in the area of the crosswalk. Thank you for your attention to the new signage and while driving on the streets surrounding our school. Please join us as we try to make the community safe for everyone.
TERRY FOX RUN
Our 2019 Terry Fox School Run was a great success! We are proud to announce that Brentwood Park Elemen-tary has generously donated $4,974.50 for cancer re-search! The Terry Fox Foundation sends a big thank you to our school community for our generosity and support. 40 years later, Terry’s message of hope lives on and stronger than ever!
ELL REPORT CARD SURVEY If you are one of the families we sent a survey to about comparing ELL Primary and Intermediate report cards, could you please complete the online survey? I will take you less than 5 five minutes to complete. We appreciate your valuable feedback about how to improve progress reports for our English Language Learners. Thank you!
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COMMUNITY INFORMATION
The Burnaby School District is seeking applications for the casual, on-call positions of Crossing Guard and Student Supervisor. Successful applicants will have: Grade 12 education demonstrated ability and experience in working with children The ability to work throughout the District and be available for shifts every day school is in session is a definite asset. Please submit a resume and cover letter to: Grae Emerson, HR Advisor Burnaby School District 5325 Kincaid Street Burnaby BC V5G 1W2 [email protected] Only those applicants selected for interview will be contacted.
