From the Office – May 2021

Posted on May 19, 2021 by christucker

We’re at the mid point in the month of May and making our plans for the remainder of the year. That means high school teachers completing their last quad courses, and all teachers planning on what last units need to be finished over the next six weeks.

Parents, you’ve done an awesome job of helping us keep a healthy school this year and we appreciate it. Continue your diligence of having students stay home if they aren’t feeling well or showing symptoms we’re all looking out for this year. We continue to do our sanitizing practices at school, mask use and reminding students to keep their distance from other cohorts at school, and will continue to do so until the end of June.

We all know that spring weather and sunny days means for a hot school. Please keep in mind that our student handbook has always mentioned dressing with modesty and that teachers will remind students about that and if they have an issue with it. Remind your student to be thoughtful about their clothing selections and their choices on what to wear for school.

High school students have been looking at classes for next year, and we’re going to be juggling high school quad class schedules with semestered ones and K-8 three-term schedules. The school division asked for families to provide feedback this year on the quad scheduling and the positive responses have led to us planning it for next year again. I’m sure you’ll be surveyed again next year to confirm it’s the right direction for us to keep headed in and planning for.

Our school year ends at the end of June on Tuesday June 29 for staff. The last days for students is Monday, June 28^th. Final exams for grades 10-12 will take place on June 25^th or June 28^th.

A reminder that it’s a long weekend ahead of us and there will be a no-school day on June 7 as well.

We say farewell to our head caretaker, Bob Moate, this month as Bob is retiring at the end of May. Congratulations, Bob! We’ll miss your conversations and your care of our school but we’re happy for your next step in life. Stop in for a visit and we’ll talk to you soon, Bob.

We’re plugging ahead into spring and getting closer to our next goal of finishing the year with everyone here. Thanks again for doing your part to help us with that. I don’t think I can say that enough.

That’s all for now. For further information and updates from the students and classrooms, check out our school website at http://blogs.spiritsd.ca/hanley/. As always, Mr. Anderson and I would love to talk to you if you have time to send us a message or give us a call. We’ll talk to you soon.

From the Office – April 2021

Posted on April 21, 2021 by christucker

LOL this is one of those months where I seem to have jinxed my weather predictions no matter what I think is going to happen. I’m writing this at middle of April on a day when we had more snow flurries in the morning after a weekend that had almost plus twenty degrees and warm sun as well.

We have a last week of April ahead of us next week and another milestone this year that will be the end of the third quad. That mean final exams this week for Grades 11 and 12. That might not include your students, but it’s a big deal for us to get through another quarter of the year without a class having to stay away from school, especially at the end of the quad and the struggle of how to administer final exams.

Our next week therefore starts the last quarter of the year, and with it our push to get as many credits completed for high school students as we can and support them all through this year. Please continue to have those discussions with your students about planning for next year and what that looks like going forward. If I can help with that in some way, please let me know.

Our year normally ends with two months planned of field trips, special days and whatever learning can be packed into the last months, weeks, days, hours etc so that each class has a strong finish. We won’t have the field trips and the special days are looking differently, but what I can tell you is that the staff here is working to make this year as special as they can given where we’re at.

Please continue to do what you’re all doing to help keep these viruses out of the school. Again, I hope I’m not jinxing anything, but I know that a lot of our success for staying open and not having any classes close down, is due to your work with us. Keep up the work you’re doing with your students and also please keep them at home on those days that they show symptoms.

From the Office – March 2021

Posted on March 17, 2021 by christucker

This is a great month so far with the changes in weather we’ve been looking forward to. We always have some questions about how quickly the snow will melt and the water will drain through the school yard but with the sun and windy we’ve had it’s made good progress already. Thanks to BRP for the extra work scraping the snow by the building away from the school and for the drainage path they scraped for us as well!

That’s another reminder that we encourage elementary students to bring splash pants and some kind of boots to handle the wet yard and puddles until it dries up further. We’d like to keep as much of the mess outside the school as we can so caretakers can focus on the regular cleaning and sanitizing.

It’s a busy week again with the parent teacher student conferences on Wednesday night (5:00-7:30pm) and after school Thursday night (3:30-6:00pm) again by virtual means. A video call is preferred, but a voice call is also a wonderful chance to get parent, student and teacher together. What a great time to learn about how your students are doing and what wonderful learnings they’re involved in. Please keep in mind there is no school on Friday.

We’re about a month away from the end of the third quad. It will end a couple weeks after the Easter break and the final quad for the school will take us to June 29^th. Thank you to everyone who answered the digital survey regarding the block system and the quads we had in place this year. We’ll receive some direction from the school division about how to proceed with planning for next year soon.

We had our presentation from Saskatchewan Youth Apprenticeship program and about fifteen students in grades 10-12 took part. Please remind your student if they did have interest in starting the program to see me and I’ll register them this spring.

We don’t have a firm start date yet, but we’re still on the renovation list for the elementary washroom area this spring. It will be a big noisy job I’m sure and we’ll need to funnel the students to other washroom areas during the construction period. We’re not strangers to construction after the huge renos we worked through about 7 years ago, but I’m sure we’ll have a few growing pains to work through. I’ll appreciate the patience and cooperation of the staff and students through that time when it arrives.

If you’re like me, you’re looking forward to lessening restrictions, less cases to be reported, less need to wear masks and socially distance, and looking forward to a much simpler time. Even the hustle and bustle of the regular year and the busy hallways and classes and school teams and busy life outside is what I’m looking forward to us all experiencing again one day soon. That doesn’t necessarily sound simpler than what we have now, but I feel it is what’s needed for so many of us.

From the Office – Feb 2021

Posted on February 23, 2021 by christucker

I know this short spell of warm weather won’t last, but after the brutally cold snap we had before the break, I’ll take this in a heartbeat! I hope all our Hanley Composite School families had a restful and relaxing break. For many bus students who didn’t have transport during those cold weather days, I know many of you got some extra days of break. I know that we did have about ten Cold Cat lunch recesses outside and the students can hold their heads up high that went out at the minus 50 wind chills – pretty tough Cold Cats kids!

Our school and our school division are changing in a lot of ways from what we’ve known as traditional thoughts on access to learning this year. We’ve gotten used to being able to access school work online when we’re moved to a level three or level four on our Safe Schools Plan but there seems to be varying levels of understanding about other types of days. Parents, please be aware that on those cold weather days when buses don’t run, with learning being posted online, students have the ability to connect to their teacher(s) and access learning from home. With those extended days away and our compressed quads and classes, it became very important to the teachers to be able to move ahead on their lessons and expect students to log in and access those learning options. As we move forward this year and into the future that might become more and more an expectation. As the school division continues to project, Learning is Everywhere!

We have a staff PD day on March 8^th to make you aware of as it’s not a school day for students.

For those students planning on pursuing a trades career and looking to apprentice with a tradesperson, the Youth Apprenticeship Program is a simple program to complete for a step ahead of other apprentices. We’ve also helped send students in past summers to a Summer Youth internship in a trades area where they receive very good pay and up to 2 apprenticeship credits on their transcripts. See Mr. Tucker for further information for either program. We will have a presentation for it soon for those interested.

I know that the school division sent out an update to families about what’s going on with COVID updates and where we’re at. So far we haven’t had a case in the classrooms to deal with and as the letter explained, if we ever do we’ll be in contact with families as needed. Please continue to practice proper mask use and hand sanitizing as required and we’ll continue to work through this year together. Ironically, this month’s message last year at this time was sent out just before we all went home. I’m thankful for so many supportive families and the work you have all done along with the teachers and support staff to keep on with the learning in school through all of it. Again I’ll repeat that we’re doing it, together! Thank-you.

From the Office – January 2021

Posted on January 20, 2021 by christucker

I want to repeat a thank you to each family and student who has done their part to help us get to where we are this year. We have had some changes and new routines to adjust to and your ability to do all of those is admirable. I was thankful over the Christmas break and thought many times then and since then how I wanted to make sure that message from me to you is quite clear. The move of classes to home on January 14 was another example of how you all adjust this year.

Again, our Cold Cats club has a lot of names of K-7 students listed and I know we’ll have students who will consistently head outside no matter what the temperature is. The first day this year I had about 29 students out there, about double what I would have expected. I will continue to run this as an option to staying inside – please make your own wishes known to your elementary students and their teacher about if you’d like them to head outside. We don’t force students on the list outside if they want to remain indoors. That said if they intend on going out, please make sure they have warm clothes and understand they must wear them, including something to cover their mouth and nose as well.

Our January events always include talk about exams for grades 10-12 that will end the second quad and the current semester. Those exams will be in the last couple days of January and the 29^th will be a prep day for teachers to plan and prepare for the new semester, as well as a chance for the high school teachers to complete marking of exams and get report card comments and grades completed. Like first quad end, the “portal” will be close for about a week as they enter those evaluation marks and then we’ll open it up later in the first week of February.

We did stack the first semester with classes that could allow some grade 12s to finish early this year if they choose to. With COVID practices and other options available to them, there are a couple grade 12s who could be done after this month and be considered graduated. Great work everyone! We’re almost at that halfway point, and I know everyone can do it! For those students continuing with more credits, February 1 starts the new quad three. I’ve been sending emails about programs, scholarships and bursaries, and other career counselling details straight to the grade 12s who shared an email address. It’s great to hear about some students who are already accepted into a school and program for next year. We’re all very proud of you. There are programs like MyBlueprint that can help others with finding a direction to move in. Just ask at the office and we can get you started.

Speaking of February, the regular break week starts with Family Day on February 15^th this year. That feels early this year but I know we’ll take it whenever it’s here.

Many of you have arranged to pick up your Community Calendar for $10.00 and we say thank you for that. We were disappointed to hear that the Lindmark Company that has created that calendar and supplied that service for over 25 years to our community, is closing their business. We have decided that we will try to recreate something similar that we will continue to get advertising commitments for. It might not look exactly the same, but it will be a community calendar. Thank you again for your support each year, both to those of you who advertise, and to those who purchase them. The profits are spent by the School Community Council to support the school and the school goals each year.

From the Office – Dec 2020

Posted on December 16, 2020 by christucker

I wanted to take a moment to commend all the families for working together with the school this fall on so many new items and changes that we’ve all had to make part of our routines and expectations – not only for the students, but for the staff and bus drivers and parents.

It’s been a positive fall here in so many ways and the struggle that it is for everyone to miss the extras that we’ve simply become used to as persons involved in this school and in educating your children will not last forever. Please look for the positives and the joy that this season can provide, and let’s continue to be thankful for the good things we can enjoy either together or across distances with our loved ones and families and friends.

I want to thank families also for choosing to keep your student(s) at home when they start showing symptoms or are not feeling well this year. We’ve continued to stay open and have good practices in place that keep the cohorts apart while they’re here and masks on everyone as well. Our plan for a phase three was described to you earlier this fall and I’ll keep staying positive that we won’t need it.

Cold Cats started up this last week before the Christmas break. If you are interested in having your K-6 student have permission to be outside on the indoor recess day, please contact your child’s teacher and/or Mrs. Block at the office so that their name can be on the list. I did tell the grade 7s they can also be added to the list but I’ll need them to make their way over to the west end of the playground so I can supervise them as well. Warm outdoor clothing is a must including some sort of face covering. We normally have about 20 kids or less out there and I’m supervising them myself around the playground equipment and hill area. Call me if you have any questions.

End of semester and end of quad exams for grades 10-12 are scheduled the end of the last week in January. The last Friday in January will be the turn around day between semesters.

It’s a big adjustment this year to miss the school-wide Christmas lunch this year. Thank you for your continued support for those type of days we have as our customs – I hope we’ll be able to do something like that again soon. On another positive note, we quickly filled six hampers for the local Food Bank here last week and they were picked up to be distributed! What a wonderful program and we all thank them for their volunteerism to support families in our school area!

On behalf of the staff here at our school, thank-you for the support this fall, the understanding when something needs to be different than we’re all used to, and the belief that we are all doing the best we can with a difficult situation. We are all looking forward to a positive end of December and the year 2020 and I think we are also all looking forward to some changes and good news around the world in the new year. I will continue to use our PowerSchool email program to send out details to families over the break, including those about any COVID developments. I really hope that won’t be required and that the next email you find from us will be our next newsletter in January.

From the Office – Nov 2020

Posted on December 4, 2020 by christucker

It appears that November has welcomed us to winter early this year and the snow just might be here to stay. We sure got dumped on last week and the communities are all working to dig ourselves out of the snowdrifts. There’s a pile of it left in the school yard so the students are enjoying it at every level.

Speaking of playing in the snow, I’ll repeat some details I send to you each year at this time. Please remind your students to wear the proper warm clothes to school again this season, including snow pants for elementary students headed outside to slide around and play in the snow, as well as for any of our students being picked up by bus. Bus Drivers do have the authority to refuse students entry to the bus if they don’t have proper clothing for cold weather. In the case of a breakdown, all students should have proper clothing to ensure they are safe and warm on the bus while waiting for support to arrive. W

A change has been made on the policy of bussing in cold weather – a combined temperature and wind chill that drops to minus 40 degrees at 6am will cancel buses for the morning run. That announcement can be made at https://www.spiritsd.ca/buses/ In previous years that would cancel the trips for the day – the new practice will be that if the temperature improves then the bus will run in the afternoon. Classes will never be cancelled on those days – the school is required to remain open for those students who do make it to school, including those whose parents drive them in. Class work will continue and students can look for online work posted by their teachers to keep up on those days.

I’ll offer the Cold Cats program for students again this year for students in grades K-7. Again, remember that this is an option on the indoor recess days for students who still want to go outside for some fresh air and outdoor play. I’ll be supervising them on those days on the playground. They can go back in when they get cold or once they’ve had enough, but it’s sure a great option for many of them to get some fresh air and exercise, even though its that cold. Please ensure those students are prepared with warm clothing and accessories so they can enjoy the recess. Call or email the school to sign up your Cold Cat student to be on our list. We even have long sleeve Cold Cats shirts for sale for $10!

We’re closer to the end of November than we are to the start and so I’ll bring up December and our annual Christmas lunch and the Family Fun night – both are traditions we will have to cancel this year like so many other items. That said I know that the staff is working on a few in-school ideas that will be done instead in December and I thank them for their creativity during a continuing year of changes.

The media has a lot of details this last week about large schools moving to a “phase three” which includes cutting the attendance of students in school by half each day. We have a plan in place should that time come for Hanley School and we’ll follow the directions of the school division on the particulars of what our plan will need to take into consideration. Ours will prioritize the most vulnerable students in K-6 and our red zone students and keeping their programs moving ahead within the school building each day. It will also have intentions of scheduling some of the other students in grades 7 to 12 but will not include the majority from the junior high and high school that will instead move to an online format. The plan takes into consideration the possibility of older students who can watch over younger Dundurn School siblings as needed and allows many parents of elementary students to continue their careers and work situations. It does rely on many grade 8 to 11 students to be responsible during this time and focus on learning at home. No plan like these phases is perfect but this one does support our most vulnerable students and we would hope if it comes to that it’s only needed for a short time. If we get to that point this year, we’ll send out a formal announcement by email to each family.

The first round of evaluations is now over and that includes the first Quad classes completed for High School students. We are not sending home paper copies of report cards this year and I’ll again direct you to the PowerSchool Parent app that will give you access to all the details of those marks and comments on the progress your children are making this year. The portal is set to be open at the end of the day Tuesday so it can be viewed. Teachers are always reachable by email or phone calls at the school if you have questions or concerns on the details of the student progress reports.