Waverley Elementaryhttp://waverley.vsb.bc.ca/Tel: (604) 713-4752

_________________________________________________________DECEMBER 2017 ~ Newsletter

Principal: Laura Rhead (lrhead@vsb.bc.ca) Vice Principal: Susan Dent PAC Chairperson: Khay SeeDirector of Instruction: Magdalena Kassis VSB Trustee: Judy Zaichkowsky

________________________________________________________________________________________________Messages from the Office:

We have a newly-elected trustee for the Killarney Family of Schools: Judy Zaichkowsky is now an elected member of the VSB. Read more about her, here: https://www.vsb.bc.ca/district-contacts/judy-zaichkowsky

Please make sure the office and your classroom teacher have your email address, in order to receive progress updates and information from the administration.

Please check the “lost and found” outside the library-- new items are added every day! Snacks, snacks, snacks… please remember to pack a recess snack for your child. It’s important to fuel

the brain! Your child’s safety is important to us—please obey traffic and parking signage outside our school.

Please do not make U-turns on our adjacent streets and slow down… thank you! Concerns? Ideas? Come and share them with PAC or Ms. Rhead in the office: lrhead@vsb.bc.ca

CALENDAR Information:Please check our school website regularly for all the updates. This site also includes our year-at-a-glance calendar for holidays and Professional Development Day information. Check it out, here: http://go.vsb.bc.ca/schools/waverley/Pages/default.aspx and bookmark it at home!

Important to note:-Pedestrian Safety Talks with Cst. Purewall- Dec. 6-Immunization Clinic for grade 6s and Ks- Dec. 12-Dance Performance – Dec. 19-Waverley Winter Concert: “December in our Town” mini musical for grades 4-7 - Dec. 21(pm)

-Last day before Winter Break – Dec. 22-Back to school! Happy New Year 2018 – Jan. 8-Student presentations on Cybersafety – Jan. 11-PAC meeting (cybersafety focus) – Jan.1

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Waverley Volleyball!What a season! Both the senior boys’ and girls’ volleyball teams have made us proud. With good sportsmanship and skill development, the teams had fun and represented Waverley well in the district volleyball games. Way to go, Wolverines! The teams go onto the City Championships, this week!

We want to THANK our amazing coaching staff for their dedication and support to all the athletes: Mr. Michael Dinh, Mr. Clark Nagata, Ms. Karen Appleton, and Mr. Neil Kishi! _________________________________________________________________________________________

Are you interested in helping with Waverley social media and our school website? Contact Laura Rhead at lrhead@vsb.bc.ca to help.

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Waverley Cares: We will be collecting for the food bank again thisseason, but with a few new ideas. Watch your email for

information about our “virtual food drive”, cash drive and other ways to give, at our school.

Personal Devices at school?

Help Waverley kids be thoughtful “Digital Citizens”!Waverley staff ask that students use personal devices (i.e. phones, tablets), as RESPONSIBLE, DIGITAL CITIZENS. We encourage students to use school and personal devices with teacher discretion. There are many learning opportunities provided via technology; however, we ask that students do not use personal devices at recess, lunch, or during unstructured times such as before and after school, without permission from Staff.We want to encourage genuine “facetime” :)Please talk with your child about their technology use and, in particular, social media usage. We look forward to including you in these ongoing conversations, especially at our upcoming PAC meeting on January 15th at 7pm.

Also in early January, we will have a presentation for students in grades 4-7 regarding digital devices, from SOLOS online.Click here for more information about Merlyn Horton and SOLOS online safety: http://bit.ly/2je59Vt

‘Screen time’ continues to be a challenge for all families and schools. Be aware of what your child does online and how you can support them.

The Canadian Pediatric Society research gives a great amount of detail about the benefits and drawbacks of our personal devices. Click here to read more: https://www.cps.ca/en/documents/position/screen-time-and- young-children.

Interested in more information? Check out this free event on Wednesday, Dec. 6th at John Oliver Secondary, for ages 10 and up:

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November Reflections:Thank you to all the student performers and presenters in last month’s Remembrance Day assembly. It was a special time of remembrance for all students and staff. We appreciated all the support from family members who attended our ceremony. On the left is a kindergarten reflection on the day, from Ms. Sokukawa’s class.

May we continue to remember those who fight for peace, equality, diversity and rights for all, at this time and at all times.

Special note of thanks: The diverse Waverley community came together for dessert treats, music and a festive atmosphere on November 30th. We appreciate the time that Rosa Santos, Dora Kwok and all the PAC executive and volunteers took to make it such a special evening! Thank you to all who attended—what a warm and inviting feeling there was in our gym! We look forward to the next PAC event.

Thank you, PAC for attending our CSL Information Night!

For two inspiring hours on November 20th, Waverley staff presented and engaged parents in conversations about the new reporting methods and focus on student progress, not product. We plan to meet again as staff and PAC, later in the spring, to receive feedback and have further discussion about these new ways of assessing for and thinking about, learning.

VSB SCHOOL DISTRICT NEWSFrom our last newsletter:

What’s New with “Communicating Student Learning” This Year? The changing face of report cards…Many Vancouver Public Schools, along with schools throughout British Columbia, are moving from a model of ‘reporting to parents’ on a regular and pre-determined schedule to ‘communicating student learning (CSL) with parents’ on an on-going basis throughout the school year.

This year, a team of teachers at Waverley (10 classes) will be participating in a district-initiated pilot project along with other Vancouver schools and their teachers. These teacher teams will work with the school district to provide parents with timely and responsive communications of student learning throughout the school year. Children in these classes will receive five communications from teachers within a school year:

a written progress report at the end of January a written summative report at the end of June a minimum of three ongoing communications of student learning

in various subject areas.

The written reports will include descriptive comments and a summary of student progress in relation to the learning standards from the BC Curriculum. Detailed information about these changes will be sent home to parents/guardians if your child’s teacher is involved in this pilot project. Watch for a letter coming home to participating classrooms’ families, next week.For more information, visit the Ministry of Education’s Redesigned Curriculum pages, or the VSB’s information about Communicating Student Learning in Vancouver.

“Report Cards” are seeing some changes this year…

In June 2017, you saw a new report template for students to self-assess based on the new curriculum’s Core Competencies. This year, some divisions will participate in a new method andtimeline for Communicating Student Learning. The VSB is piloting TWO terms instead of three,

but still including 5 communications with families about student progress. Talk with your child’s teacher about the Core Competencies and/or regarding the reporting timeline for your child’s class, this year.

Come into the office anytime with your questions—it’s time for us all to focus on FORMATIVE assessment and helping kids understand what they are learning and why; time to help guide them to ask questions and set goals about where they are going next with their learning.

IMPORTANT- NEW for VSB:To Report Your Child’s Absence –Please Call 604-713-5159 (Ext. 91 for Waverley)before 9:00am

__________________________________________________________________________________________REGISTRATION INFORMATION:

Kindergarten registration for children born in 2013, begins on November 1st:

All Kindergarten applicants are required to submit an application to their English catchment elementary school. This includes families who wish to apply for choice programs (French Immersion, Montessori, etc.) and/or a cross boundary placement.The priority registration period for Kindergarten opens on Wednesday November 1st and closes at 4 pm on Wednesday January 31st. Students who submit an application within this priority period will be accommodated before late applicants.

In the event there are more in-catchment applicants than the school can accommodate the following process will be used to prioritize enrolment:Kindergarten Applications Received Between November 1 st and January 31 st

1. In-catchment Kindergarten applicants with siblings in attendance at the school (and who will be attending next year) will be placed first.

2. The names of all other in-catchment registrants will be entered into a random draw for the remaining Kindergarten spaces.

3. Students who cannot be accommodated will be placed on a waitlist in the order in which their name was drawn.

4. Between January 31st and the second Friday in June students on the ordered waitlist will be accommodated as space becomes available.

Kindergarten Registrations Received AFTER January 31 st In-catchment Kindergarten students who apply after January 31st will be accommodated if there is space. If there is no space their names will be added to the bottom of the existing waitlist.Note: There will be no priority given to registrants with siblings if they register after January 31st.

When registering your child please bring:1. Proof of residence in Vancouver 2. Child’s birth certificate & Care Card3. Immigration documentation (if applicable)4. Immunization records

If you wish to apply for a Choice program or cross-boundary, you must first apply to your English catchment elementary school. Applications for Choice programs and cross boundary placements will be accepted in early 2018.

For more information on kindergarten registration visit: http://www.vsb.bc.ca/kindergarten* Available Space includes physical capacity, resources, staffing, or educational programs available or planned for a school as defined by the district. (Policy Regulation JECC-R)

See you in the hallways,

Ms. Laura RheadPrincipal