Principal’s Message:

Last week, I was honoured to host the first-ever, “Pastries with the Principal.” It was an incredibly eye-opening time, as we learned about the “CyberWorld” and how to best guide our children while they navigate the digital world. As technology continues to play an increasingly important role in our children’s lives, it is crucial that parents understand and educate themselves on the various technology tools and apps that their children use. This knowledge not only ensures their child’s safety online but also helps to foster positive and responsible technology use.

In today’s digital world, children have access to a wide range of technology and apps that can both educate and entertain them. However, it is also important to be aware of potential dangers such as cyberbullying, exposure to inappropriate content, and other online risks. Not only does this knowledge help ensure their child’s safety online, but it also helps promote responsible technology use and aligns with our school’s values and mission to educate students in a Christ-centered environment. During our presentation, the speaker hit on MANY different apps and sites, and I wanted to highlight three specific ones for you. Two of them, you may have heard before, the third, you may not have.

* TikTok: TikTok is a social media app that allows users to create and share short videos with others. While the app can be used for creative expression and entertainment, it is important for parents to be aware that TikTok also has its potential risks, such as exposure to inappropriate content, cyberbullying, and privacy concerns. It is important for parents to set clear guidelines and monitor their child’s use of TikTok.

** Snapchat: Snapchat is a social media app that allows users to send photos and videos that disappear after they have been viewed. While the ephemeral nature of the app can be appealing, it can also be used to engage in risky behavior, such as sharing explicit or inappropriate content. In addition, Snapchat’s location-sharing features can also raise privacy and safety concerns.

*** Chatroulette: Chatroulette is a video chat app that connects users randomly with other people from around the world. While the app can be used for social interaction, it is important for parents to be aware that it also has the potential for exposure to explicit or inappropriate content, cyberbullying, and online predators. It is not recommended for children under the age of 18 to use Chatroulette.

I know it is easy to be fearful about technology, although rather than play “whack a mole” trying to ban or shield our kids away from everything, it is so much more important to be with our children, be present in what they are doing, and keep limits and balance in their technology use.

I encourage all parents to take the time to familiarize themselves with the technology and apps that their children use and to have open and honest conversations about internet safety. This will help to ensure that your child is using technology in a safe and responsible manner.

If you are interested in hearing a pre-recording of the presentation, please feel free to email me and ask. While it is not the exact same presentation or presenter that was meant for CCS, it still has some very pertinent information for our parent body.

We will see you all after our Teachers Convention!

Announcements

Parking Lot Safety

Over the last while, we have been having some issues in the parking lot, which have caused some concerns with student safety as they exit the building at the end of the day. Please read below about how to navigate our lot. Also, please make sure that:

• You are only parking in designated parking spots
• You are only driving in/out through the correct entry/exit ways
• You are not driving in the bus lanes (only the two dedicated parent lanes)
• You are not driving in or through our ditches

Our parking lot was not designed for the amount and type of traffic that we experience, so we all need to cooperate to ensure the safety of our students. These are the key procedures:

• Always enter through the south driveway and exit through the north driveway
• Drive slowly and be particularly alert during recess and noon hour when the students are outside.
• Do not drive through or park in the “BUS LANE” (the area between the school and the first row of cars) between 8:25-8:40 and 3:00-3:20 as this is when the buses are present or due to arrive.
• If you want to park and walk your child to school, please park on the far west side of the parking lot (by the basketball court). Walk toward the auditorium and then up the crosswalk.
• The middle of the parking lot is where vehicles drive through to drop off students. Students should exit vehicles quickly and make their way to school (NOT between the cars).
• Students or adults should NEVER walk between buses.
• Yield to buses when they are arriving or leaving.
• Take extra care when backing out of a parking stall as students are not always paying attention.

Drop Off Reminder

Just a reminder that students should NOT be dropped off for school before 8:15 am. Teachers are not in their classrooms until that time for supervision needs. School begins at 8:35 am and the warning bell rings at 8:30 am. 8:15 am gives our students 20 minutes before their day begins.

Movie Night – TONIGHT!!!!

We are looking forward to having many of you join us for the movie night tonight featuring Hoodwinked!

Please bring your own blanket or bean bag chair or other soft seating for the event.

NO lawn chairs or folding chairs will be permitted as they may damage the gymnasium floors.

If you did not get your tickets before the deadline this past Sunday, you can still buy them at the door! Tickets are $10 but will NOT include pizza with your ticket as we needed to place the order on Monday. However, we will have extra pizza at the concession to purchase!

We hope to see you all there!!

Stable Table – Question of the Week

A huge congratulations to the Andresfamily who was randomly selected as the winner of Mr. Simmons’, “First Car Question” posted in last week’s Chronicle! A prize will go home today (check backpack)!

Please see below for this week’s question. Please talk amongst your family, and fill in this form for your chance to win next week!!

This week’s question is…In honor of my principal message: have a talk with your child(ren) about social media. What is one thing they said that surprised you?

Preschool Registration

Preschool registration will be open to the general public on Tuesday, February 14 at 10:00 am. All forms and documents will be available on our Preschool Registration page on our website. (Currently, the forms posted are for the 2022-2023 year, they will be updated on Tuesday).

Dress-Up Days!

On Thursday, February 23, students are encouraged to dress up as if they were 100 years old. We’ve had some great costumes over the past years and it’s always fun to see how our students age for the day!

Lego Club for Grades 1-3

Spring Program Request

We are now preparing for Beauty and the Beast Jr, which will be performed on March 22-23, 2023 at the MacLab Theatre here in Leduc.

We have started many projects but need some community assistance in preparing for the performance. Please help in the following ways.

1. Costumes – A few parents are already working on dresses and costumes. We need a few more individuals that would like to design costumes for our cast, including pieces for our feature number, “Be Our Guest.”
2. Construction and Painting – We have our Grade 8 parents working on sets, but we could always use more people to create, design, and build!
3. Props – We have need for a number of props for the play. There will be a list of a dozen or so items in the Chronicle each week that we are looking for. This list will be updated weekly so please take a minute each week to see if there are items you can help us out with. If you have any of the items listed below that we could use, we’d be grateful for your help.

• Metal milkmaid pails (2)
• Books that look old
• Book for Belle – ideally larger and blue (but could be painted)
• 5-arm Candelabra
• 2 pewter/metal beer mugs
• Tap dance canes (8)
• Large megaphone
• Champagne bucket
• 2 large white soup bowls with gold trim
• Lanterns
• Ornate dinner service tray
• Cottage bench
• Wooden vendor carts with wheels (perhaps a garden/flower cart?)
• Long white ladies’ gloves

Please email Nicole Dodds at [email protected] if have questions about items or are able to donate/lend.

Please email Mr. Ward at [email protected] if you want to join the Spring drama team!

Pastor’s Day – February 23

As members of the Christian community, pastors are very important to us here at Covenant.
Each year we have a special day when we welcome our pastors and church leaders to be part
of our Covenant community. This gives us a chance to acknowledge and show our appreciation
for all they do for us. Invitations have been created and one will be sent home with the youngest child in your family so you can invite your pastor, youth pastor, or church leader to join us! We will also be emailing invitations to all of the churches connected to Covenant. On February 23rd, they’ll come and worship with us, be a part of weekly Celebration, and will then be invited to stay after the assembly for a pastor’s brunch.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact the office at 780-986-8353.

Student-Led Conferences – February 23

We will be holding Student-Led Conferences in person this year on Thursday, February 23 from 4:30 pm until 7:30 pm in the student’s homeroom.

A student-led conference is a meeting with a student and his or her family and teachers during which the student shares his or her portfolio of work and discusses progress with family members. The student facilitates the meeting from start to finish. Student-led conferences can be implemented at all grade levels, K–9. Preparation for a conference creates an authentic purpose for good organizational and communication skills. The structure builds students’ sense of responsibility and accountability for their own learning, and it helps to hone their understanding of what it means to meet learning targets.

Successful student-led conferences require changes in the roles that teacher, student, and parent have played in traditional parent conferencing. Teachers become facilitators, students become leaders and parents become active listeners and questioners.

Teacher Role: To organize the conference environment and guarantee success. This includes guiding ‘portfolio’ collection and training students to walk through the folio with parents. The teacher would guide students on how to take their parents through the process.

Student Role: Through all stages of the student-led conference process; preparation, implementation, and evaluation, the student becomes the key participant. The student becomes responsible for working with the teacher to identify strengths, identify learning needs, and collect evidence to validate learning. In student-led conferencing, as students prepare to conference with their parents, they engage in a self-reflection process about their achievements and future goals.

Parent Role: Parents become partners in learning when students led a conference. The opportunity for parents to have one-to-one time with their child focused on learning and achievement is important to the conferencing process. The parent’s role is to listen.

Celebration

We hold weekly assemblies, which we call Celebration. We alternate between Wednesday and Thursday mornings each month so our kindergarten students are each able to join us every other month. We will hold Celebration on Thursdaysfor the month of February. All parents are welcome to join us each week!

Hot Lunch

We are excited to once again offer a weekly Hot Lunch Day! This year, Hot Lunches will be on Wednesdays. 

We are noticing that a number of our families are unintentionally placing more than one order for hot lunch day/student. If you are unsure if you have ordered a hot lunch or not, you can always check your email for a confirmation receipt. You can also check under the Completed Forms tab on your student’s PowerSchool account. All of your completed forms will be listed there and you can view them each by clicking on the small eye icon.

Please see the photo below for where to find this.

If you have any questions or concerns regarding Hot Lunch, you can reach our Hot Lunch Coordinator, Mrs. Hofstra, via email at: [email protected]

Lost & Found

We will post weekly pictures of our lost and found. If you see something that is your child’s, please have them stop by the table and pick it up or let the office know.

Athletics:

Basketball

Junior Boys – will have practices on Mondays after school until 5:00 pm. Games will be held on Tuesdays and a schedule was emailed home to parents.

Senior Girls – will have weekly practices on Tuesdays until 5:00 pm. They will have games on Thursdays.

Senior Boys – will have practices on Wednesdays after school until 5:00 pm. Games will be held on Thursdays.

Elementary Badminton

We have the opportunity to have a grade 5 and a grade 6 team participate in a badminton tournament coming up in the next few weeks! Teams have now been selected.

Grade 5 badminton team will practice for an hour after school today.

Grade 6 badminton team will practice at 7:45 on Wednesday mornings for the month of February.

A permission form and fee have been added to PowerSchool for those individuals who were selected for the teams.

LSCE News:

Fundraising Opportunities

Although we do a few special fundraising campaigns throughout the year, don’t forget about our ongoing fundraisers that you can take advantage of all year long.

Drop any of your Boston pizza receipts at the office for the school to receive 5% back on the total of your bill.

Purchase CO-OP gift cards from the office in $50, $100, and $500 denominations.

Save the Date

The LSCE has some exciting events happening in the new year so mark your calendars!

Saturday/Sunday, April 22/23, 2023 – 40th Anniversary Homecoming Weekend 

Saturday, June 10, 2023 – 3rd Annual CCS Golf Tournament  

Social Media

We’re on Instagram and Facebook! Come say hi and stay up-to-date on all the events and fundraising opportunities we have to offer. You can find us on Instagram with the username “fundraising.lsce”.

https://www.facebook.com/covenantchristianschoolfundraisingpage

Calendar:

February:

• 9-10 – ATA Teacher’s Convention – No School
• 20 – Family Day – No School
• 21 – PD Day – No School
• 22 – Pink Shirt Day
• 23 – Pastor’s Day
• 23 – 100s Day Dress Up Day

March:

• 13 – PD Day – No School
• 15 – School Trustee Visit
• 22-23 – Beauty & The Beast Performances
• 27 – April 3 – Spring Break – No School

Community Events:

Please click on the image below to learn more about community events in our area! Also found under our Parents menu on the website.

Odds & Ends:

Sign In/Out Form:

In an effort to reduce the amount of shared touched surfaces, we will be using a QR code that you will need to scan with your phone for signing in and out of the school. You can also use this link if you are in your vehicle and need to sign out a student but can’t scan the code. This means that students/parents/visitors can scan the QR code when entering or leaving the office/school to sign in or sign out on their own phone/device.

Parents will also be able to sign their kids out from their vehicle in the parking lot when they arrive to pick them up for appts. etc. please use the link above if you can’t scan the QR code. We do ask that parents pull into a spot (not bus lane) where you can contact the office to let them know you have arrived and we can make eye contact with you
from the staff/office door. Students must also stop by the office before leaving the school. At that point, once a connection is made, we are able to send students out to you.

Facebook Page:

Check out our Facebook page for more highlights of happenings at CCS by clicking here.

90s Dress Up Day!