Teacher Appreciation Luncheon

A posting submitted by Tammy:

On Thursday, May 21st we are hosting a lunch for the staff as a small thank you for a banner year. We have some of the best teachers, administration and support staff in the CBE. Unfortunately, it will be the last year at Haultain for some. This is an excellent opportunity for us to acknowledge our great staff with a sumptuous repast and wow them with some mouth watering family favourites.

If you would like to contribute food to this event please let me know with an email as to what you are bringing. Typically the food items range from beverages, salads, desserts, sandwiches, bun, fruit & veggie platters to meat dishes for the carnivores in attendance. Remember to label your dishes/utensils. You may pick them up in the staff room at the end of the day. Please ensure that all contributions are nut free and that they are dropped off before 11:30 am on the 21st. If cooking or baking is not your forte then perhaps you would consider set up or clean up duties. Set up begins at 11am and clean up commences at 1pm.

Please contact me at tammyjayne@gmail.com if you can help out.

This Sunday is Mother's Day!

This Sunday is the one day of the year that's been set aside to formally thank Moms for their tireless hard work and their endless love and affection. Whether they're working Moms, stay-at-home Moms, part-time or full-time, Moms are great - and worthy of a lot of praise.

There's an interesting read I found about the history of Mother's Day - I was surprised to learn that even the ancient Greeks took time out to devote to Mom.

So don't forget to treat Mom to a day off this Sunday. Make sure you tidy up. Help out around the house for the day. But most of all, start the day off right. Maybe take Mom out for a nice breakfast, or brunch.

Haultain Newsletter - May 2009

As per one of our Micro Surveys we are providing the Haultain Newsletter embedded in our blog and I will be sending it out to the email list shortly as well. As you will see when you read the newsletter there are many, many opportunities to click a link and ask to be emailed a copy of the newsletter directly from the school as well. So if you're not on the Council Email List and don't want to be (for whatever insane reason) then you can ask for it directly from the school.

If its too small to read simply click the grey box on the top right side of the document below and it will open in a large font in your browser.

Oprah takes anti-bully campaign to Alberta

By Jamie Hall, Edmonton Journal

A13-year-old Alberta boy was called a "hero" on The Oprah Winfrey Show on Wednesday for speaking out about his torment at the hands of bullies.

"Sometimes I just want to hit myself and ask myself:' Why me? Is it my fault?'"said Chase, who appeared on the hugely popular talk show along with his mother, Jackie.

It was Jackie who wrote to the show's producers, worried her son might harm himself after enduring years of verbal and physical abuse by his peers at St. Anthony School in Drayton Valley, about 140 kilometres southwest of Edmonton.

Click here to read the full story.

Kids have childhoods stolen by adult agendas

By Naomi Lakritz, Calgary Herald

A headline in Saturday's Herald about a new study really gave me pause. It read: "Grade 6 students admit hitting dates." Appalling, isn't it? Not the hitting part; that's only secondary to what's really wrong with this scenario. It's the dates. Grade 6 students are dating? They're 10 and 11 years old! What are their parents thinking? Or not thinking?

Click here to read the full article.

May Key Communiqué

An email bulletin for Key Communicators & School Council Chairs Please share the information you receive in these emails with your school councils and parent communities. System Meeting Follow-up: The PowerPoint presentation on the future Parent Portal that Cindy Seibel, Director of Information Technology Services, presented at the System Meeting on April 22nd is now online. You can find it here. If you are interested in becoming involved in the Parent Portal by providing input or potentially taking part in focus group research; or have questions regarding the presentation, you can email Cindy at cgseibel@cbe.ab.ca. Area Meetings: There are no more Area meetings scheduled for the 08/09 School Year. Thank you for attending this year's meetings and sharing the information with your parent communities. If you have input or suggestions for topics at future Area meetings, contact your Key Communicator Steering Committee member: Area I Pam Douglas Area II Karen Blank Area II Jennifer Andersen Koppe Area III Dawn Cruickshank Area III Clancy Foley Area IV Brad Sears Area IV Signy Morton Area IV Esther Halton Area V Nick Newton 2009/10 School Fee Information: The 2009/10 school fee levels have been approved by the Board of Trustees and are now available online here. Information regarding Waiver of Fees can be found at this address: http://www.cbe.ab.ca/parents/forms.asp. If you have any questions, please email me and I will seek to clarify the issue. WorldSkills Calgary 2009: WorldSkills Calgary will take place September 1 - 9, 2009. All Grade 9 and 10 students will attend. Here are the latest developments with WorldSkills Calgary 2009: Equipment Legacy: When WorldSkills is complete, equipment used during competitions will be donated to school districts around the province. The CBE will be sending in their application next week to receive as much of this "legacy equipment" as possible. Transportation: Several CBE employees took part in a WorldSkills transportation simulation from SAIT to the Stampede Grounds. The dry run went very smoothly and we are confident the transportation for the actual event will run very well. Attendance at WorldSkills: All schools who accommodate Grades 9 and 10 have received the dates students will visit the grounds. If you have a son or daughter in Grade 9 or 10 and you have not received the date your school will attend, you should ask your principal for this information In addition, the CBE's WorldSkills website is continually being updated as we receive more information regarding our schools and this exciting event. You can check it out here or visit the WorldSkills Calgary 2009 homepage at http://www.worldskills2009.com/ You may contact Marsha Levy at mlevy@cbe.ab.ca with any questions you may have that have not been addressed on these websites. H1N1 Flu Outbreak: The Calgary Board of Education is monitoring the flu situation very closely and has a plan in place should there be direction from Alberta Health Services to go beyond monitoring. Staff and student travel that has been approved will go ahead, except trips to Mexico. Parents are encouraged to check their school websites for a link to the latest information on this issue. Trustee-zine: The next issue of the Trustee-zine, the electronic newsletter from the Trustees' Office, will focus on student work and is scheduled to come out in mid-June. Resources: CAPSC: CAPSC is Calgary’s city-wide, public school parent association. CAPSC’s primary goal is to keep parents up to date and involved in their children’s education, and to help make individual school’s Parent Councils as effective as possible. CAPSC provides parents with resources, learning and sharing opportunities, and representation of parent concerns to the CBE and all levels of government. For more information or to subscribe to their newsletter, visit www.capsc.ca. School Council Development: School Council Development (SCD) provides workshops and resource materials to assist school councils. School Council Development provides the following services: Workshops for school councils anywhere in Alberta Toll Free School Council Consultation Line - 1-800-661-3470 Instructor training to deliver workshops to school councils Resource manual and materials for school council Board of Trustees: Check out this site for reports presented to the Board, Board decisions made and highlights of public Board meetings. Alberta Education School Council Resource Manual Key Communiqué Archives	Contact Information Katie Young, BPR Parent/School Communications Specialist Calgary Board of Education http://www.cbe.ab.ca/ Email: klyoung@cbe.ab.ca T (403) 294-8566 F (403) 294-8172 515 Macleod Tr. SE Calgary, AB T2G 2L9 We are always looking for ways to improve communication so if you have any suggestions or comments, please feel free to email them to me.

A Guide for worried parents

By JOANNE RICHARD, the Expositor

Spreading swine flu. The abduction of eight-year-old Tori Stafford. Soldiers dying in Afghanistan. Record-breaking unemployment and bankruptcy.

The big bad news, like a scary monster, slays its way into our children's psyche.

Menacing images and information confront children with unrelenting immediacy, detail and vividness, leaving some distressed, emotionally wounded and fearful.

"It's scary times out there for kids -- the issues are all so threatening," says Dr. Joanne Cantor.

"TV news is not appropriate for kids of any age -- or even adults! It's presented in the most sensational, traumatic and speculative way... and kids are really sensitive to the images of tragedy and distress."

For some children, fears can remain for years, says Cantor, a leading researcher on the impact of media on children. "These TV images are really powerful and can cause sleep disturbances and anxieties -- it's not good for them at all."

The multi-media news machine is insatiable, indiscriminate and unstoppable, so what's a parent to do?

Click here for the full story.