Mustang Memo - November 24, 2023
Today we ended off our busy week with a special Earth Rangers assembly. As the lucky recipients of a free assembly, our grades 2-5 students learned about how to be ecologically responsible citizens as well as some interesting facts about animals. We even had a visit from a real toucan and iguana!
Other exciting events that took place this week included the start of our first ever Dungeons & Dragons club, the Cute Things Club start up, and our first gymnastics club meeting!
Next week we'll see Games Club, Propagation Fascination, and Daebak Dance Clubs get rolling. While the colder weather is less fun, having some great lunch time activities helps to keep everyone's spirits up!
Have a great weekend!
Helene Hewitt & Jay Robertson
Principal & Assistant Principal
You belong here!
Table of Contents
Week At a Glance
Action
- 12 Days of Christmas Food Drive for Strathcona County Food Bank
- Fee Waiver Application Deadline - Dec. 15
Opportunity
- Counsellor's Corner
- Oilers Ticket Opportunity
Information
- Parents Make the Difference
WEEK AT A GLANCE
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ACTION
12 Days of Christmas Food Drive for the Food Bank
Last year we began a tradition of helping those in need through our 12 Days of Christmas Food Drive for the Strathcona Food Bank. We collected 2076 pounds of food for Sherwood Park families in need!
We want to do it again this year! How does it work?
Each day, we invite DCE families to send items to go in the donation boxes under our Christmas tree. Each day there will be a new item. Families can participate as much or as little as they want. For example, perhaps you happen to have a can of soup in your cupboard and a box of Bear Paws. You could participate by sending those two items to school on each of those days and stop there. Maybe you are able to be extra generous and you buy a Costco flat of juice boxes to send in on one day or you want to buy one of each item to send all twelve days. Or maybe you have modest means but can afford to send in one pudding cup. All donations are valued and welcome!
Each day on the announcements, we'll sing a line from the 12 Days of Christmas indicating the item to bring each day. We'll get kids to help us with the singing! Students will drop the items off at our big tree and we will watch the donations grow until December 20 when the Strathcona Food Bank will come to collect it all up! Our items will help to create snack packages for elementary aged students in Strathcona County!
Let's see if we can match, or even surpass last year's 2076 pound donation! Let's go, Mustangs!
Here is the list of items that they would like:
- Day 1:Low sugar cold cereals
- Day 2: Granola bars
- Day 3: Fruit snacks - no sugar
- Day 4: Apple sauce - no sugar
- Day 5: Cracker packs
- Day 6: Bear paws
- Day 7: Sugar free juice boxes
- Day 8: Pudding Cups
- Day 9: Plain cheerios
- Day 10: Ready-to-serve soups
- Day 11: Toilet paper
- Day 12: Pasta sauce
Fee Waiver Application Deadline
If circumstances exist where you’re unable to pay school or transportation fees, you can apply to have fees waived by submitting an Application for a Waiver of Fees. The application deadline is Dec. 15, 2023. If you’re new to the Division, the deadline is the latter of Dec. 15, 2023, or 45 days after registration.
To access your fee information, simply log in to the PowerSchool Parent Portal and go to “Student Fees.” There you can view your fees and pay them online using Visa, MasterCard or debit card—when available from your financial institution. All fees are due within 30 days of being posted.
Don’t forget to also log in to the PowerSchool Parent Portal regularly throughout the year. Fees are often added to your child’s account to cover the cost of various school activities such as field trips, class projects, extracurricular activities and more.
For more information about school fees, waivers and payment deadlines, visit www.eips.ca/schools/fees and Davidson Creek Elementary School Fees.
OPPORTUNITY
Counselor's Corner: Co-Parenting During the Holidays
The holidays can be a challenging time for all families, with the pressures of scheduling, hosting, navigating family conflicts & creating Christmas magic all piling up at once. The added pressures of co-parenting after separation or divorce, can make this time especially stressful for some families. Below are some resources you may find helpful in your supporting you to co-parent this holiday season and beyond.
- Top Tips for Co-Parenting During the Holidays
- Co-Parenting Apps
Useful apps you can use to help make co-parenting easier
- https://www.appclose.com/
- https://coparenter.com/
- https://www.ourfamilywizard.com/
- Family Mediation – Government of Alberta→ Click here for more information
Families coping with challenges such as divorce, separation, child custody and access can meet with a mediator to talk about these issues. The goal is to reach a mutual agreement that focuses on the child and avoids going to court. Family mediation is confidential and informal.
- Parenting After Separation Course→ Click here for more information
This course is for parents or guardians who are separating or getting a divorce. Sometimes the course is required, or one can voluntarily take the course. The course work book (available online) provides guidance and a template for creating a parenting plan.
Upcoming Parent/Caregiver Trainings for December
Parenting Strategies for Positive Mental Health (for parents/caregivers of children in grades K-6)
Click here to register to attend this FREE online webinar from Alberta Health Services
Part 1:
Wednesday, December 6
12:00 – 1:00 pm
Part 2:
Wednesday, December 13
12:00 – 1:00 pm
Mrs. Bashaw and Ms. Mitchell
DCE Counselling Team
Oilers Tickets
Once again we have the opportunity to purchase Oilers tickets at a discount using the QR code on this poster. Last year was such a huge success that we ended up getting a visit from Hunter the Oiler mascot. Your child will also be coming home with this flyer today or early next week. Go, Oilers, go!
INFORMATION
Parents make the difference
Here is this week's article with helpful tips for families:
Retelling can improve your child’s reading comprehension
You’ve just finished reading a story with your child. One of the best ways to check for understanding is to ask your child to retell the story.
Retelling a story requires your child to think about the details and decide what’s really important.
Give your child these three rules for retelling a story:
- Tell what’s important.
- Tell it in a way that makes sense.
- Don’t tell too much.
Your child should be able to tell you what happens at the beginning, the middle and the end of the story. If your child doesn’t remember certain details, go back and look at that part of the story again. Revisiting parts of the story demonstrates that sometimes it’s necessary to read things more than once to gain a thorough understanding.
Reprinted with permission from the November 2023 issue of Parents make the difference!® (Elementary School Edition) newsletter. Copyright © 2023 The Parent Institute®, a division of PaperClip Media, Inc. Source: B. Taylor and J. Ysseldyke, Effective Instruction for Struggling Readers: K-6, Teachers College Press.