Internet Safety
Please check the “News” tab on our school’s website, www.beachycove.ca, for an important memo from the Newfoundland and Labrador English School District with respect to Internet safety in the schools under its jurisdiction.  As always, please let me know if you have any questions about this or any other matter related to our school.
 
School Attendance & Engagement
The chair of the board of trustees of the Newfoundland and Labrador English School District has written a letter to all parents and families about the topic of school attendance and engagement. This letter can be found under the “News” tab on our school’s website, www.beachycove.ca.
 
Relational Bullying
Bullying, especially among girls, is often cloaked in hurtful gestures, words and statements instead of pushing and shoving.  It is both subtle and insidious and sometimes appears as excluding others, spreading rumours, and name calling – all of which are often missed by adults. We can combat this by teaching our youth how to be kind, thoughtful, and caring as described in the article located at:
 
https://www.verywell.com/ways-to-prevent-relational-aggression-girls-460671
 
Please take some time to read this article and have a conversation with your children about how they handle situations like this.
 
World Cerebral Palsy Day
World Cerebral Palsy Day is being marked on Friday, October 6, 2017; however, as we are closed on that day due to a teacher professional development session, we will observe it on Thursday, October 5, 2017. 
 
CP is a complex, lifelong disability. It primarily affects movement, but people with CP may also have visual, learning, hearing, speech, epilepsy and intellectual impairments. It can be mild – a weakness in one hand – to severe – where people have little control over movements or speech and may need 24-hour assistance.
We invite all of our staff and learners to wear green on Thursday, October 5, 2017 to show awareness of CP and those who are living with it.

Basketball Program – BOYS
Hello Parents of grade three and four boys at BCE!

The Boys’ Pumas invite you to a basketball OPEN HOUSE for parents and boys at BCE gym on Monday October 2, 2017 from 6:30pm to 7:30pm. 
 

The BCE Boys’ PUMAs has been a parent volunteer run program for about six years. We are looking for parent volunteers to help run a successful program again this year. Please consider your capacity to assist one evening a week. See you at the Gym!!
 
School Council Election
We thank the following candidates who have offered themselves for election to our School Council. 
 
Todd Churchill lives with his wife Kimberly and two sons, Hunter (8) and Carter (6), both of whom currently attend Beachy Cove Elementary.  He is a registered professional engineer with a Bachelor of Civil Engineering and a Masters of Applied Science in Environmental Engineering.  Consistent with the ideals of his profession, Mr. Churchill believes in employing my professional skills to help strengthen his community through advocacy on social issues and through active fundraising and support of local children’s charities.
 
Calvin Hollett works as a project manager in a consulting engineering firm. He has two boys who are his world; one is seven and in grade two at Beachy Cove and the second is a little over one year old. Mr. Hollett is engaged in all aspects of his children’s lives especially when it comes to learning and education. He volunteered as a coach for the Portugal Cove-St. Philips minor soccer program in 2016 and he can be found at any activities in which his children are involved.
He is a hardworking, dedicated individual who is not afraid to express opinions while respecting the comments and opinions of others, allowing for meaningful debate and discussion to take place.
 
Fran Vokey is a parent of two children in grade one at L’école élémentaire Beachy Cove Elementary.  She has volunteered at the Learning Commons at Beachy Cove once a week since September 2016; she enjoys the time with the students and staff and she is grateful for the opportunity to contribute. She also volunteers at the YMCA where she teaches Yoga, Pilates and other fitness classes. Her education background is in arts and business. Before becoming a stay at home parent (or as she likes to call it, the home organizer) she worked at the Alumni Affairs Department at Memorial University as the Annual Fund Development Officer. In that role, she communicated with alumni, current students, and managed the annual fund-raising campaign. Her family appreciates BCE’s cultivation of community engagement and parent involvement and she welcomes the opportunity to participate in the school council at BCE.
 
Dean Kearney holds undergraduate degrees in Arts, Education, and a graduate degree in education.  An educator with fifteen years of experience, he is the proud father of a kindergarten student. He has served on school councils as teacher representative at various schools in rural and urban Newfoundland.  And, after completing the necessary training, Mr. Kearney will be a leader with our PCSP Beavers.

Susan Keough has two children at Beachy Cove, one in grade one and one in grade four.  Susan stopped working outside the home after her oldest child was born almost nine years ago.  Prior to that, she worked at DFO in Media Relations for eight years.  She really values being a part of the school community and interacting with the teachers, staff and students.  She enjoys her time volunteering in the school library.  She has also had the opportunity to co-coach several students in the metro league soccer.  Her favorite part is getting to know the children and seeing how they support each other.  She is also a volunteer with Team Broken Earth, an amazing organization founded by members of our Beachy Cove school community.  Susan would really enjoy becoming more involved in our school and helping where she can and she is thankful for the opportunity.
 

 
Hallowe’en
Before we know it, we will be head and ears into Hallowe’en festivities in our school and in our community.  Our classes will hold Hallowe’en parties during the last hour of the day on Tuesday, October 31, 2018.  As you and your child(ren) plan costumes and such, please remember that costumes and costume props (i.e., axes, guns, etc.) of a violent nature are not permitted.
 
While we appreciate the many kind gestures like treat bags, loot bags, cakes, and cupcakes that come our way on Hallowe’en, experience has taught us to say, “No, thanks!”.  If you wish, you can provide a snack for your own child(ren); however, we cannot accept containers of cakes, cupcakes, loot bags or other treats for the whole class due to the number and types of allergies we have in our school.  And, because of the sheer number of items we have seen in the past, we have found ourselves spending our afternoons distributing treats and contending with the massive cleanup that ensues.
 
Thank you for your cooperation in adhering to these expectations.

Parking Lot Volunteers
We are looking for a few volunteers to assist us on our parking lot during the morning drop-off.  We’re looking for adults to open up car doors for parents to facilitate efficient drop-offs in our “kiss n’ ride” lane.  If you have a few minutes to spare on weekday mornings, please let us know and we will get you set up to assist; even those who can do this for a morning or two a week would be warmly welcomed.
 
Thanksgiving Food Drive
We will hold our annual Thanksgiving Food Drive from October 2-5, 2017.   If you are in a position to donate a non-perishable food item to this worthwhile cause, please send it along to the school by your child at any time during this week.  Representatives from the Community Food Sharing Association will come to the school on Friday, October 6, 2017 to collect our donations.
 
Allergies
We have many learners with life threatening allergies to peanuts and tree nuts. Consequently, peanuts, tree nuts, and products containing them, including peanut butter, are banned schoolwide.
 
You should also be aware that soy butter products which have been formulated to have the same consistency and taste as peanut butter is also banned.  This is to avoid any potential for confusion and mistakes in consumption by our learners with allergies.
 
Another of our young learners has a life-threatening allergy to sesame seeds; however, while we don’t have a ban on sesame seeds and products containing them, we strongly encourage our families to bear this in mind when shopping for and packing lunches and snacks for school.
 
We have another learner who has a life-threatening allergy to kiwi fruit; however, it is not an airborne allergen.  Consequently, kiwi fruit, like sesame seeds and products that contain them, are not banned but we encourage caution when packing them. 
 
Courtesy Seats/Stops
We have now worked our way through all applications for courtesy seats and courtesy stops.  We were very pleased to accommodate all requests.  On your behalf, we acknowledge and thank Mrs. Penney for her commitment to ensuring that this process was completed in a timely fashion.  She worked tremendously hard over the first weeks of school to get this project completed successfully.
 
Twitter
Our school, and many of our teachers, have active Twitter accounts.  We use this to communicate short bursts of timely information.   Our main school account (@beachycoveelem) has 2014 followers which means that this system works well.
 
If you don’t have an account, you are encouraged you to get one and follow us so that you can stay informed.
 
E-mail
E-mail addresses for our staff can be found under the “Staff” tab on our website (www.beachycove.ca).  You are free to use this method to communicate with us; however, please be mindful that classroom and specialist teachers rarely get an opportunity throughout the day to check and reply to e-mail as they have teaching responsibilities.  Replies will typically be done prior to the start of class or after school.
 
In the interest of a good work-life balance, we encourage our teachers to stay away from e-mails at home during the evening.  That is not to say that you won’t get a reply in the evening, but there is no expectation that that our staff engage in e-mail replies from home.
 
Late Students
We extend a big “Thumbs up!” to all of our learners and their families who arrive at school on time for the beginning of our instructional day.  Ensuring that we are at our desks, ready and organized for learning by 8:30am each morning is really an important life lesson that is reflective of promptness and respect for others as no one is interrupted by late arrivals.
 
Curriculum Night
Thank you to all of our parents and families who came out in such large number last week to meet our teachers and to learn about school and curricular routines.  We are together on this big journey of formal education and it is important that we establish and maintain strong connections through events like these.  Although the next formal opportunity to come in to the school is during parent-teacher interviews on November 30, 2017, please don’t wait until then with any questions you may have; please get in touch with us at any time and we’d be happy to dialogue with you about your child’s acheivements.
 
Recycling Blitzes
We accept recyclable beverage containers at our recycling shed every Tuesday morning during morning arrival.  Thank you so much for your anticipated support and cooperation.
 
If you are interested in volunteering with us on our parking lot from 8:10am-8:30am each morning, please let us know as soon as possible.
 
Upcoming Events
Please note the following dates for various events scheduled for this year.  We reserve the right to change these dates with advance notice to you.
Professional Development Day (no school) – Friday, October 6, 2017;
Thanksgiving Holiday – Monday, October 9, 2017
District close-out (no school) – Wednesday, October 18, 2017;
Remembrance Day Assembly (grade four) – Thursday, November 9, 2017;
Remembrance Day Holiday (no school) – Friday, November 10, 2017;
Remembrance Day Holiday (no school) – Monday, November 13, 2017 (yes, both days);
Term I Progress Reports Released – Monday, November 27, 2017;
Term I Parent-Teacher Interviews – Thursday, November 30, 2017 (closing at 11:00am);
Professional Development Day (no school) – Friday, December 1, 2018
Grade 3/4 Christmas Concert – Thursday, December 7, 2017 at 1:00pm;
School Closes for Christmas – Friday, December 22, 2017 at 12:30pm;
School Re-Opens following Christmas Break – Monday, January 8, 2018 at 8:30am;
KinderStart Parent Orientation – Tuesday, January 10, 2018 at 3:30pm;
Grade Four Immunizations – Thursday/Friday, January 11-12, 2018;
KinderStart # 1 (no school for K) – Friday, January 26, 2018;
Professional Development Day (no school) – Friday, February 9, 2018
Teacher Professional Development – Thursday, February 15, 2018;
Mid-Winter Break (no school) – Friday, February 16, 2018;
Mid-Winter Break (no school) – Monday, February 19, 2018 (yes, both days);
Education Week – February 18-24, 2018;
Skating Sessions (details to follow) – February 20-23, 2018;
KinderStart # 2 (no school for K) – Friday, February 23, 2018;
Term II Progress Reports Released – Monday, March 19, 2018;
Term II Parent-Teacher Interviews – Thursday, March 22, 2018 (closing at 11:00am);
KinderStart # 3 (no school for K) – Friday, March 23, 2018;
School Closes for Easter Vacation – Thursday, March 29, 2018 at 2:40pm;
School Re-Opens following Easter Break – Monday, April 9, 2018 at 8:30am;
Earth Day Assembly (grade three) – Friday, April 20, 2018 at 1:30pm;
KinderStart # 4 (no school for K) – Friday, April 27, 2018;
Art Day (details to follow) – Friday, April 27, 2018;
Spring Concert for grades 1/2 – Wednesday, May 9, 2018 at 1:00pm;
Kindergarten Spring Concert – Thursday, May 10, 2018 at 1:00pm;
Professional Development Day (no school) – Friday, May 18, 2018
Victoria Day (no school) – Monday, May 21, 2018;
KinderStart # 5 (no school for K) – Friday, May 25, 2018;
School Leaving Ceremony for Grade Four – Friday, June 1, 2018 at 1:00pm;
K-2 Sports Day – Tuesday, June 19, 2018;
3-4 Sports Day – Thursday, June 21, 2018;
Alternate Day for K-2 Sports Day – Friday, June 22, 2018
Alternate Day for 3-4 Sports Day – Monday, June 25, 2018;
School Closes for the Year – Thursday, June 28, 2018 at 12:30pm.