GPMS January Newsletter - Gilbert Paterson Community School

GPMS JanuaryNewsletterHappy New Year: Parents. Students and StaffIt is hard to believe, as we enter a new year, that almost half of this school year has passed. Ithas been great to have the time after Christmas to relax and enjoy the break. Although we didnot have a white Christmas, the weather has been kind so far and hopefully will continue for awhile longer.We would like to give a warm welcome to Eric Dekens who has taken over as our LearningSupport teacher until the end of June. Mrs. Lorne will be working with individual students andsmall groups in order to enhance literacy and numeracy skills. Also a warm welcome to our newFNMI Liaison Mentor, Audra Foggin, who joins us after the new year.Upcoming January events: Monday, 16 January- the first parent council meeting of the New Year- 7:00 PM- all arewelcome Tuesday, 17 January- Canspell classroom spelling test. The student with the highest resultson this test will proceed to the Regional Canspell Bee.Friday, 20 January- Winter dance for all students- noon- 2:00 pmBasketball League and LSAA games continue. LSAA playoff week and championship games arescheduled for the middle of February. Times and dates of games are indicated on the webcalendar.We hope that everyone had a relaxing and enjoyable holiday and that you are all ready to beginthe second half of the school year.We wish you all the best in 2012.

Page 2Month: DecemberTeacher Week Student of the Week Citizen of the Month AcademicMr. Bardock 1 Justin Friesen Saige Young Pine Issac LogweMrs. Thaxter 1 Kylee Nemeth Garrett Hasegawa Matthew Loo2 Anna Jeong2 Dean Stewart3 Tanisha Carrier3 Parker Covey4 Zach Goett4 Allison WalkerMs. David 1 Hanna Janssens Brianna Hunt Kelsi ShearerMr. Lam 1 Jaylynn Young Pine Jordi Neudorf Brynna Murphy2 Jack-Henry Fox-Grey2 Dakota Johnson3 Quinn Buchanan3 Mirsada BerisaMr. Chorm 1 Shannon Morgan Kalee Brittner Colleen Barnes2 Joe Lee3 Cooper Brown4 Soleil LetourneauMme Joncas 1 Dharma Gray Madison Pollock Graeme GodwinMme Chambers 1 Samantha Lewin2 Daisy Graham2 Hannah von Chorus3 Jacob DuMontier3 Jack HalvorsonMrs. LorneMonths Tiger Award SASS Award Spic & Span AwardSeptember Mme Chambers Ms. David Ms. ThaxterOctober Mr. Bardock Ms. Thaxter Mr. ChormNovember Mr. Chorm Mr. Bardock Mme. JoncasDecember

January AthleticsBasketballOur rep, development and junior teams are busy practicing and playing. January is a very busymonth for basketball. Our rep teams are playing tournaments, exhibition and league games, ourdevelopment teams are involved in exhibition games and tournaments and our junior program isbusy developing their technical skills by working drills and scrimmaging. All and all our studentathletes are very busy. I want to thank all the staff, parents and students that commit themselvesto our athletic program. I am very proud of how we represent the school in our athletic events.BadmintonThe next sport we play in, after basketball,l is badminton. Badminton will begin following thebasketball season. More information will come in regards to badminton as we get closer to itbeginning.WebsitePlease check the Paterson website, under calendars, athletic calendar, to get all the updated informationin regards to practice, game and tournament times and locations. If you have any furtherquestions please contact your coaches or Mr. Kerr at the school.Grade 7 Student/Citizen of the Month RecipientsI am very proud to recognize the following students on their commitment to being great students atGilbert Paterson. Congratulations!!Student of the Month/Citizen of the Month 2011/12Student of the MonthClass Pattern September October November December7A Kristalyn Goth Hannah Shields Mark Ries Sydney Kerr7B Reice Groves Tessa Paskuski Jenna Hasley Taylor Callahan7C Gabby Pyska Hope Walters Daniel O’Connor Nick Gibb7DPrabhdeep Jonathan Kwan Hanna Middleton Emma TakahashiBhullar7E Tahj Nathaniel Jhanvi Mehta Samantha Orr Lauren Wesley7I Naomi Wall Lauren Reimer Fielding Toone Ava-Marie Hutton7J Echo Sulin Aidan Peacock Landon Zanewich Echo Sulin7L Micah Thiessen Micah Thiessen7K Richard Akpaloo Chase HolbertonCitizen of the Month (Sponsored by Classique Dance and Skate Wear)September 7A Mr. Brunner Hannah GibbOctober 7B Mrs. Gonsalvez Reagan OliverNovember 7C Ms. Litwin JR WikkerinkDecember 7D Ms. Thompson-Smolnicky Ashton SharpPage 3

Your voice matters.Alberta Education invites you to play an importantrole in your child’s education. By completing this survey, you are givingyour school, your school authority and your provincialgovernment important information to gauge the quality of educationyour child is receiving and make improvements where needed.When you fill out the attached Accountability Pillar survey, you’re addingyour voice to the future of education in your school and throughout Alberta.Results are used by schools, school authorities and government tosee what’s working and what needs to be improved. Thank you for yourparticipation. Thomas A. Lukaszuk Minister of Education MLA, Edmonton- Castle DownsYour voice is a priceless resource.If you have any questions, please contact:Keith Bowen, Alberta EducationE: Keith.Bowen@gov.ab.caT: (780) 422-4750(toll-free access within Alberta by dialing 310-0000first)Please return yourcompleted surveyin the enclosed,pre-paid envelope byFebruary 24, 2012.Governmentof Alberta EducationLethbridge SchoolThe yearbook purchase deadline is fast approaching.The cost of the yearbook is NOT covered in your school fees. If you want topurchase a yearbook for 2011-2012, the cost is $30.00.The order deadline andpayment must be received by Wednesday, January 26 th . In order to purchase ayearbook the school fees must be paid first.School Fees are Due!Basic School Fees are $110Yearbook which is optional is $30.Please pay your child’s fees as soon as possible been invoices will be sentout in the mail on January 15 th , 2012

A true picture of our success.Measuring the quality of your child’s educationWe want to know that our children are receiving a quality education in a great school. Grades are important,but there’s more to it. A great school helps every child to make the most of their talents and abilities,is caring and secure and allows parents to play a key role. It’s all about each student’s success. Whileit’s easy to agree on such goals, how do we measure our progress toward them? The Accountability Pillar isan innovative and straightforward way to measure our learning goals as schools, school authorities and as aprovincial government. School authorities receive a results report that is colour-coded and easy to read. Ata glance, it points out successes and areas of concern from both a local and provincial perspective. The resultsreport shows which measures have improved, remained consistent and which have declined. It allowseveryone — parents, teachers,school authorities, students and the province — to celebrate successes andrespond to challenges together. The Accountability Pillar looks at:• Survey results — every year betweenJanuary and March we survey students, their parents and teachers to see how they perceive the quality ofeducation they receive and take part in • Student learning indicators such as dropout rates, high schoolcompletion rates and the number of students eligible to receive Rutherford ScholarshipsStudent results from Provincial Achievement Tests and Diploma Exams Details about the AccountabilityPillar and how to obtain results are available online athttp://www.education.alberta.ca/accountabilityPage 5The Accountability Pillar looks at:• Survey results — every yearbetween January and March wesurvey students, their parents andteachers to see how they perceivethe quality of education they receiveand take part in• Student learning indicatorssuch as dropout rates, high schoolcompletion rates and the numberof students eligible to receiveRutherford Scholarships• Student results fromProvincial Achievement Testsand Diploma ExamsAlbertaGovernmentof AlbertaEducation