Principal's Message - MayDear Parents You are cordially invited to attend our Volunteer Appreciation Celebration on Friday, May 1o from 9:15- 10:45 a.m. We appreciate your assistance in so many ways so this is an opportunity to say thank you. The new government funding formula will directly benefit kindergarten and primary children. For next year, we will have a slight decrease in our teaching entitlement which will affect Division II classes. The Support Staff staffing entitlement will slightly increase. We are anticipating an enrolment of 743 students (K-6). Our staffing entitlement is based on the amount of money that we receive for each student. We will continue to have 30 classrooms as we have had for several years and are planning for the following configuration:
Our class size in kindergarten will be 25:1 and therefore additional teacher and support staff support will be in place. There will be intentional planning to place additional teacher resources in the primary classrooms. As well, grade 5 classes will have additional support to reduce the class size (28:1). We will continue to have specialists in Music, French as a Second Language (grades 4-6), Library/Learning Commons and Physical Education (K- 3) to provide curriculum breadth and depth. We will continue to have specialists in ESL, Special Education (Resource Teacher) and class size specialists to work with individuals and small groups to meet student needs, to personalize learning for students, to reduce class size and to meet accountabilities. Specialists in ESL, Library/Learning Commons, and Resource will continue to have a dual role in shepherding their portfolio as well as working as a class size support teacher. We will have four part-time Educational Assistants who provide special support to students who have significant learning needs. (This is an increase in one Ed Assistant). We will be bidding fond farewell to our very dedicated primary grade teacher and former Vice Principal, Sharon McKenzie, who has decided to retire to White Rock, BC. We have all benefited from Sharon’s dedication and leadership in many endeavours, most notably environmental stewardship. We will miss her zest for life and teaching. We wish Sharon much joy and contentment as she eases into the beauty of West Coast living. Blessings to you, Sharon! I have appreciated your leadership as Vice Principal for the eight years you worked on the Admin Team.ou worked on the Admin Team. At the time of writing this newsletter, the teacher staffing process will soon begin. We know that Mrs. Michelle Mericle and Ms Goli Jalilian will remain on maternity/parental leaves. Mrs. Moreah Hodgins (grade 1 teacher 2011-2012) and Mrs. Sarah Simmons (grade 6 teacher- 2011-2012) will be returning in the Fall. Mrs. Schimpf (kindergarten) and Mrs. Bisson (grade 1) have decided to extend their parental leaves. Presently, we have seven teachers who have temporary or probationary teaching contracts with the CBE so unfortunately we don’t know yet if they will be able to remain with us or if they will be offered a position at another CBE school. Closer to the end of the school year we will be able to confirm who is able to remain on staff. For those teachers who have temporary teaching positions, this may occur during the summer months as well. For this school year and for the next two months, Mr. Dennis Christianson, has returned to teach every morning. This is good news as we benefit from his many talents and dedication. We will soon begin the task of assigning teachers to grades/classrooms. Input is gathered from teachers. All of the teachers who have continuous contracts will remain at Olympic Heights School and I am delighted to hear this. We do, however, have a few teachers who have requested a grade change. This is important in a teacher’s career so please expect some surprising changes from what has been the norm. Children are placed into classrooms after lengthy conversations with teachers. Parent input will also be gathered. It is your choice if you complete a Parent Input sheet. Many parents feel that it is important to express their opinions and share information for the teacher to consider. The information gives every parent the same opportunity to share insights and viewpoints. Parent input does NOT mean that parents choose the teacher or their child’s classmates. Parent input is considered ONE FACTOR in classroom placement but not the only factor. If you so wish, you can complete Parent Input sheet that is attached to this newsletter and return on or before Monday, May 13. We would like to begin the classroom placement process on Friday, May 18, if possible, if staffing confirmations are know at this time. Please attend our last School Council/Parents’ Association Meeting on Thursday, May 23 at 7:00 p.m. I may have staffing updates to share with you. I look forward to seeing you at the Volunteer Appreciation Celebration on Friday, May 10 and the upcoming school events. As I have done in past years, I will continue to keep you updated with special news bulletins as there are many things happening in the next two months. These will be sent to you via email (for those who have requested this) and via hard copies for those who prefer this. If you have any questions, please call. Sincerely Barbara Bannon |
2012-2013
Newsletters are in PDF format. You need
