Dear Parents & Guardians:

In this post you will find information for the following:

·         Important Dates

·         James Short Stuffies – Thank You!!

·         School Fundraisers: Deadline Today (Friday, Jan. 31)

·         Bottle Thrive Fundraiser for James Short School

·         Late French Immersion – Grade 7

·         2025-26 Student Registration & Kindergarten Open House

·         Download/Print Report Cards

·         Martinis and Masterpieces Volunteer Opportunities

Important Dates –

·         Jan 31 – Professional Development Day (No School)

·         Feb 6 – Kindergarten Parent Open House (6-7 p.m.)

·         Feb 10-12 – Nordic Skiing PE Residency

·         Feb 13-14 – Teacher's Convention (No School)

·         Feb 17 – Family Day (No School)

·         Feb 18-27 – Gymnastics Unit

·         Feb 26 – Fun Lunch

·         Feb 28 – Professional Development Day (No School)

James Short Stuffies – Thank you!!

James Short Memorial School was thrilled with the donation of stuffies for their annual literacy event, which took place last night at their school.

The generosity of our community meant that siblings who attended the event also received stuffies. The school mentioned several times, “You saved our event.  You have no idea what your generosity means to us”.

We also want to thank Cathryn for her time to organize the donation request at our school and to deliver them to James Short School.  Thank you everyone!

School Fundraisers – Deadline Today (Fri, Jan. 31)

Thank you to everyone who has already contributed to our two fundraising campaigns this school year: Birthday Books and the Annual Family Contribution campaign hosted by EducationMatters. Each year, EPPS (Society) covers around $250/student. We fundraise through events and bi-annual casino nights, but also rely on the annual family contribution and birthday book campaigns to cover what we’ve historically done for the school

To date, we have raised $2700 for our “birthday books” campaign. This annual campaign keeps the Learning Commons library circulation current with new books. Students get to participate in the fun tradition of selecting their book to be inscribed with their name, and they are the first to take their book home. This is $25/child due by the end of January.

To date, we have raised $7500 in our “Annual Family Contribution” campaign. Funds raised from this and our other initiatives are used for residencies, upgrades and events that go beyond what the school board provides. These are key enhancements for student experiences and development. It is a suggested amount of $80/child due by the end of January.

To make the process easy and allow for tax receipts, you can contribute online. If you’re not sure if you’ve already done this, check your email for receipts from EducationMatters. Please complete by end of January.

These funds cover the costs of our residencies including these ones already hosted this year: Elev8 Lacrosse, Celtic Fiddler: Kierah and our author writing residency continuing in January.

Please visit our Fundraisers & Donations webpage for more information.

Bottle Thrive Fundraiser for James Short

Our school is partnered with Skip-The-Depot to collect refundables from your home.

• Help support families in need at our sister school, James Short Memorial, which is located in the community of Penbrook Meadows, through our Parent Society’s ongoing bottle drive.
• Bottle donations are collected from your door throughout the school year and the dollars raised will be distributed to families by way of Superstore gift cards.
• You can schedule your bottle pick-ups by using the Skip-The-Depot app and connecting to our Elbow Park Parent Society in the list of donors. More instructions are available on our Fundraisers & Donations webpage.

Late French Immersion – Grade 7

The Open House for Elboya School will take place from 6:00-7:30 pm on Thursday, February 6, 2025. If you are interested in learning more about the Late Immersion French program, we encourage you to attend with your child. Student representatives, teachers, and administration will be available to answer your questions.

Their staff will be here to speak with our Grade 6 students on Jan. 22 about the program.

Kindergarten Registration & Open House

Kindergarten registration for the 2025 - 26 school year begins on January 13, 2025. Please tell your neighbours and friends who have Kindergarten aged children and live within our attendance area.

Kindergarten Parent/Guardian Open House for next-year Kindergarten parents (enrolling for September 2025): Thursday, February 6, 2025 (6:00-7:00 p.m.). We have an information flyer available for download here.

Download/Print Report Cards

On Monday, January 27, your child’s report card was made available to view in your MyCBE account. As we receive many requests from parents to print archived copies, we would like to suggest that you view it on your PC or laptop in order to download and print your own copy. They are only available to parents for download during the current school year.

The report card is one of the ways teachers communicate how your child is progressing in their learning. Teachers may also share learning progress through parent/teacher conferences, your child’s daily work and assignments, and other ongoing communication with you.  

Martinis and Masterpieces Volunteer Opportunities

A team is starting to come together to plan the 2025 Martinis & Masterpieces event for the spring (bi-annual fundraising featuring art residencies and student art auction, silent auction and gala-style event). Anyone who is interested in volunteering can contact melissa.sawatzky@live.ca for sub-committee sign-ups or to chat about how to get involved.