Dear Thorncliffe Families,
This week we are looking forward to recognizing Pink Shirt Day. In response to a new Grade 9 student being bullied for wearing a pink shirt, two Nova Scotia high school students took a stand against bullying by distributing pink shirts to all the boys in their school to wear. This act of kindness has grown into a symbol against bullying in schools across the globe.
On Wednesday, Feb. 26, wear a pink shirt to help spread kindness and a sense of belonging!
Promoting inclusion is something that occurs in our schools every day. At Thorncliffe, we are going to be intentionally teaching about inclusion and creating a culture of caring in a few different ways. We encourage all students to wear pink on Wednesday and have planned a whole school photo. Ms. Amanda has planned a kindness tree whole school initiative where students can write kindness notes on pink leaf shaped papers and place them on a tree in our main hallway, and students can also collect a kindness note from the tree. Another way we will be working with staff and students is through some intentional teaching about how to interrupt bias through a Call In and Call Out school wide strategy. By giving staff and students words and phrases that help to address and respond to verbal incidents that are biased and harmful, we can increase understanding of how our words impact others and create compassionate and caring spaces for all members of our school community. Teachers will work with students to develop and practice age appropriate phrases to respectfully call out and call in, and to understand when each strategy is appropriate. Please see the link for more information about Calling Out vs. Calling In. https://edib.harvard.edu/files/dib/files/calling_in_and_calling_out_guide_v4.pdf
Warm Regards,
Calleigh and Nadine
Upcoming Important Days
- February is Black History Month
- February 26th – Pink Shirt Day
- February 27th – Healthy Hunger: Boston Pizza
- February 27th – 5:00pm Sir John A MacDonald Open House - see SJAM website for additional details
- February 28th – Non-Instruction Day: No School for Students
- Feb 28/March 1 – Start of Ramadan
- March 3-7th - Alien In-Line Residence
- March 5th – Fun Lunch: Cedar’s Deli
- March 5th – School Council Meeting - Online
- March 6th – Alien In-Line Family Skate Night
- March 13th – Switcheroo!
- March 20th – Grade 4/5 Assembly (Omanthi and Larson) 10:00am
- March 20th – Fun Lunch: Tim Horton’s
- March 20-21 – Parent-Teacher Conferences
- March 21-March 30th – Spring Break: No School for Students
- March 31st – First Day of School After Spring Break
- March 31-April 1st – Quest Theatre In Class Workshops
Report Cards – MyCBE
At the end of January, report cards will be available for families to view on your myCBE account. Printed report cards will not go home. If you require support setting up or accessing your myCBE account, please contact Ms. Freda in the main office or review the support documents on the CBE website: https://www.cbe.ab.ca/support/Pages/MyCBE-PowerSchool.aspx
February Kindness Month Initiative
February is the month of kindness. Let’s come together as a school community and make a difference to some of our families in need!
Every contribution can help our families experiencing hardships access food to feed their families. Make a donation below, which we will use to purchase grocery gift cards to provide to our families when emergencies arise. We will collect gifts until March 21, 2025.
https://www.educationmatters.ca/project-matters/thorncliffe-school-celebrating-kindness/
Kindergarten and Alternative Program Registration
On January 13th, 2025-2026 school year registration began for community and alternative programs. Please review the information at https://cbe.ab.ca/news-centre/Pages/Get-Ready-Get-Set-Kindergarten.aspx to learn about the process for registration. As always, feel free to contact the main office with any questions you still have about registration. Kindergarten registration is ongoing. Alternative Programs in lottery have completed the lottery process and will be notifying families that submitted an expression of interest in the coming days. Please note that registration is ongoing but new registrations will be placed at the end of the call-back list for programs in lottery.
School Council Updates
- Next meeting on Wednesday March 5th at 6:00pm (Online Meeting) Grade 4/5 Classes will share information about learning in their classrooms
- Seeking volunteers for the Secretary executive position, email thorncliffesc@gmail.com with any questions or to express interest
Polar Bear Club
- Will continue to be offered on any day where the temperature is –20 C or below with or without the windchill
- Only students that are dressed appropriately for the temperature will play outside
- Items are available for loan (coats, snowpants, boots, mittens, toques) for those students that do not have appropriate outdoor gear
- Parents that would not like their child to have the option to join polar bear club and would rather have their student stay inside on those days that are –20 C or colder, please email ceharder@cbe.ab.ca
- Children are able to go inside at any time to warm up
- If the temperature is deemed to be too cold for safety, all students will stay inside