Phone: (403) 500-2057 Fax: (403) 500-2257 13615 Deer Ridge Drive S.E. Calgary, Alberta Reason-Religion-Kindness T2J 6S7 The Don Bosco Newsletter September 2017 PLEASE NOTE OUR START AND DISMISSAL TIMES: STUDENT ENTRY 8:55 A.M./ DISMISSAL 3:20 P.M. BREAKFAST CLUB 8:40 8:55. Parents please check the September calendar: https://www.cssd.ab.ca/schools/donbosco/calendar/pages/ default.aspx CALGARY CATHOLIC SCHOOL DISTRICT
DON BOSCO SCHOOL HOURS AND BELL TIMES TIME JR HIGH ELEMENTARY KINDERGARTEN 8:55-9:00 Student Entry/ attendancance Student Entry/ attend- 9:00-9:46 Period 1 Class Begins Student Entry/ attendance 9:48-10:34 Period 2 10:34-10:39 Nutrition Break Recess Begins 10:36 10:39-11:25 Period 3 Recess Ends 10:51 Dismissal 11:35 11:27-12:13 Period 4 12:13 Elem 12:13 JH Lunch Dismissal Entry 12:40 12:33 On campus 12:53 Student Entry Student Entry 12:58-1:44 Period 5 Classes begin 1:46-2:32 Period 6 2:34-3:20 Period 7 3:20 Dismissal Dismissal Dismissal Pre-School Hours: AM 9:15 11:45 a.m. PM 12:45-3:15 p.m. Breakfast Club 8:40 a.m. 8:55 a.m. BREAKFAST CLUB 8:25 a.m. - 8:55 a.m. We are aware already of a number of students who have nut allergies. Prevention is of course the best approach for reducing the risk of severe reaction. Therefore, we are requesting your cooperation in refraining from sending food products containing nuts to school with your child. While school administrators and staff continually work towards an allergy-safe environment, zero risk cannot be reasonably guaranteed.
DON BOSCO SCHOOL PARKING AND DROP OFF ZONES Due to safety concerns for our students, our school parking lot is for Calgary Catholic School District Employees only. Please use Deerview Way and the Good Shepherd Lutheran Church parking lot for dropping off students and for parent parking. Students and Parents are to use the sidewalks and refrain from walking through the parking lot.
Counsellors Corner Welcome Back! As the new school counsellor at Don Bosco I look forward to getting to know the students and families within the school community. I have been a school counsellor with the Calgary Catholic School Board for 12 years where I have had the opportunity to work with both elementary and junior high students. In my role here at Don Bosco, I will work with individual students, classes, staff and parents. I will provide a comprehensive guidance and counselling program; offer educational and personal counselling to individual students, work with groups and develop proactive initiatives that support mental health. I look forward to working closely with school personnel, district programming and community agencies to assist students. I can work with students based upon student, parent or staff requests. You can contact me via email at jennifer.moynihan@cssd.ab.ca or call the school to speak with me directly. -Ms. Jennifer Moynihan School Council We will be holding elections at the September meeting. The positions that are available are as follows: Chairmen Vice chair Secretary Treasure There are also other positions available that are voluntary and they are: Santa store Food day coordinator Staff appreciation lunch coordinator Parish liaison Fundraising coordinator Hope to see as many people out as we can to make this year another great year. First meeting for this year will be on Wednesday Sept 20 st at 7:00pm Jason Atkinson Don Bosco School council Chair
RECEIVING TEXT MESSAGES FOR EMERGENCIES Don Bosco School is pleased to announce that we can now send announcements via SMS text messaging to your mobile phone. These text messages would be used only for emergencies (ie bus delays and cancellations, school closures). Regular notifications would continue to be sent by email. If you would like to receive emergency text messages, please do the following: Ensure that your cell numbers are listed on the back of the attached Demographic Confirmation form. If you do not have a phone landline, please ensure that your cell number is listed under BOTH home and cell phone areas. (Please note that at the beginning of the school year it does take a couple of weeks for changes on the Demographic Confirmation form to be entered into the student information computer system.) From your cell phone, text the word JOIN to the number 56360. If you do not register you will not receive text messages. If our messaging system finds a match for your cell number on our student information system, you will receive a confirmation message thanking you for joining school alerts. Create a contact on your phone with the name of the school and the phone number 56360. When you receive a text message from this number, you will know who the text message is from. If the subscribing number is not listed on the student information computer system, SchoolConnects sends a message that the request has not been processed, and the user must contact the school to have the telephone number added to the student information system. The user does not need to subscribe again. However, if you have not provided your cell number to the school, your number will not be added to the student information computer, and you will not receive text messages. If you wish to stop receiving text messages, then you must text Stop to 56360. At the end of every month, SchoolConnects sends out a reminder message to each subscriber, telling them how to cancel their subscription. If the user does nothing, they continue to receive text messages when sent by the school or district. If the person leaves the school district, their mobile phone number will be removed from the system, and they will no longer receive text messages, even if they have not unsubscribed. IMPORTANT: Once you register, if you change your cell number, you will need to re-register with the new number in order to continue receiving text messages. Text messages are the only way we are able to provide you with timely notifications about late buses. Quite often, by the time we find out that your bus is running late, it is too late for you to receive your email, and we are not able to call parents individually.
Monitoring Student Conduct on Buses As we begin a new school year, it s important to reflect on how students are expected to behave when on the bus traveling to and from school. The district s Student Conduct on Buses regulation contains protocols for students to follow while travelling on district provided transportation in order to ensure a safe and secure environment for riders and drivers. Adhering to these guidelines is an important way to foster a positive atmosphere on the buses for students and drivers. Please keep in mind: The driver is in full charge of the bus and the driver s directions must be obeyed. While on the bus, students must conduct themselves in a quiet and courteous manner, showing consideration for the comfort and safety of others. Scuffling, fighting, smoking and the use of inappropriate language on the bus are prohibited. Students must not distract the bus driver or move about the bus while it is in motion. Sitting on the bus seat facing forward is what provides protection to students if the bus has to stop quickly. Continued student violation of rules for conduct on school buses may lead to loss of riding privileges or further disciplinary action. Principals determine the consequences. It is also important that parents be aware of their own behavior around bus drivers, especially in front of children. Bus companies do not permit adults to board the bus for safety reasons. The bus driver does not necessarily know if the adult is a parent of a child on the bus or not, so they are trained to not allow adults on the bus. Parents should communicate any issue with a bus driver through the school principal or assistant principal. School staff are responsible for cultivating a positive relationship with the school bus drivers. If there are issues which would benefit from consultation with the district s Transportation department, the principal or assistant principal is invited to contact the transportation manager or other department staff. Please keep these guidelines in mind, as it will make for a pleasant, safe and secure environment in which to transport students to and from school. For more information, please see the Student Conduct on Buses regulation (code: EEAEC) available on the district website or consult your school principal.
BREAKFAST CLUB PLEASE NOTE THE BREAKFAST CLUB WILL NOT BE RUNNING FOR THE FIRST TWO WEEKS OF SCHOOL. WE WILL BE OPEN FOR BREAKFAST STARTING ON SEPTEMBER 18TH FROM 8:40 A.M. 8:55 A.M. We are pleased to once again offer The Breakfast Club to our students. With sponsorship from Breakfast Clubs of Canada we are able to provide nutritious breakfasts to students Monday through Friday. The Breakfast Club will open daily in the small gym at 8:40 a.m. and remain open until the first bell at 8:55 a.m. Students who choose to attend breakfast are asked to enter and exit the school using the front door. A menu for the week will be posted on our school website. All students of Don Bosco School are invited to attend and it is at no cost, however we cannot accommodate parents and siblings who do not attend Don Bosco. We look forward to sharing the most important meal of the day with your children. SCHOOL PICTURE DAY School Picture Day is October 2nd. Life Touch will be taking the photos. For pleasing portraits wear bright clothing, be well groomed and wear a big smile. TERRY FOX RUN Our Terry Fox Run will be held the afternoon of Wednesday, September 28,2017. Information regarding donations will be sent home in early September.
Parent Teacher Conference September 21 & 22, 2017 Please Note: Kindergarten Conferences have already been completed and will not be done at this time. Don Bosco Conference Manager We are once again pleased to be using the Don Bosco Conference Manager to schedule Parent -Teacher Conferences using the Internet. Step 1 - Conference Manager Opens to Parents Friday, September 15, 2017 @ 12:00 p.m. If you used the Conference Manager to schedule previous conferences, your email and password are still in the system. You can simply access the Parent Login Page by going directly to https://donbosco.schoolsoft.com/login.jsf?logout=true If you forgot your password: Go to https://donbosco.schoolsoft.com/login.jsf?logout=true and click on Forgot your password? If you have never registered in the Conference Manager: You can pre-register anytime by going to https://donbosco.schoolsoft.com/login.jsf? logout=true and clicking the Register Now button. Step 2 Book your Parent-Teacher Conferences Select the teachers with whom you want to book conferences. You will see each teacher s schedule. After booking your appointments you can print off your schedule. You will also receive an email containing the teacher name, time and location of the conference. You can log into the system at any time to view your bookings, print, cancel or re-schedule appointments. You have the option of submitting comments or questions to the teacher as part of the booking process. Step 3 Attend Parent-Teacher Conferences Important Dates: Friday, September 15, 2017 Start scheduling your conferences at 12:00 p.m. Thursday, September 21, 2017 Conference Manager closes at 4:00 p.m. Thursday, September 21, 2017-5:00 8:00 p.m. Parent Teacher Conferences Friday, September 22, 2017 9:00 11:30 & 1:00 3:00 p.m. Parent Teacher Conferences If you have any questions or need assistance, please feel free to contact the school at (403) 500-2057.
SCHOOL CONNECTS Dear Parents and Guardians, Don Bosco uses an Automated Notification Service called SchoolConnects provided through Synre- Voice Technologies Inc. SchoolConnects can quickly deliver a wide variety of messages by phone, email and SMS text to parents and our staff. It enhances communication within our school community and improves our emergency preparedness. We believe that good attendance is important to the academic success of students. We use School- Connects to notify you by phone and email whenever your child is absent from class. These phone calls are made to your home phone, cell phone and day phone in the morning and/or afternoon. We will also use SchoolConnects to send announcements and emergency messages as required. These messages may go out at any time. Please make sure your contact phone numbers and email addresses are up to date. Please email don.bosco@cssd.ab.ca if you have any current changes of phone or email. To avoid any phone calls or emails for attendance please report your child absent or late before 9:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. When you receive calls from the system, Call Display shows the phone number from the school or from the Calgary Catholic school district. When SchoolConnects reaches an answering machine, it plays the message twice in case the beginning is cut off. If you do not want SchoolConnects to call a particular phone # or send email messages to you, please notify your child s school by emailing don.bosco@cssd.ab.ca and we will take you off the distribution lists. Thank you,
English Language Learners and Diverse Learners The English Language Learning (ELL) and Diverse Learning (DL) department of Don Bosco would like to welcome you to the 2017-2018 school year. I would like to take this opportunity to introduce myself and to provide some information about our program and how I am here to help you and your child. My name is Donna MacLeod and I am the Diverse Learning/Coordinating Teacher (DLT/CT). I have over 30 years of experience with the Calgary Catholic Board and many of those as a DLT/CT. I will be working collaboratively with all teachers in supporting our diverse learners to help them succeed. The DL program works within an inclusive environment. A Diverse Learning Teacher is a teacher of students with diverse learning needs, who supports the homeroom teacher through collaboration to strengthen student success, and shared best practice. The role of this position is to teach students with diverse learning needs, to model effective instructional practice, to contribute to job embedded professional development and to help build the school s capacity to support student success. The ELL program provides support as needed for each student within an inclusive environment as well. Programs are designed with classroom teachers to best support each ELL student. Our ELL program is also available to offer support outside of school with programs such as In School Settlement Project, Catholic Family Services, Multicultural Support Workers, Intercultural Wellness Team, and Interpretation Services. I am looking forward to working with you, your child and your child s teacher. I welcome and encourage your input and questions. Please contact me at the school (403 500-2057) or email me at donna.macleod@cssd.ab.ca. Kind Regards, Donna MacLeod DLT/CT