Happy Sunday, Grizzly families!
I hope you are enjoying the long weekend with your family! Please read on for important information about the school and ways to support your child. Make sure that you do not send your child to school tomorrow. The first day back after the long weekend is Tuesday. TLC students should be in their formal uniform on Tuesday this week.
We have had several staffing changes of late. We welcomed back Ms. Hansen last Wednesday, which means that we are saying goodbye to Ms. St. Dennis. We thank Ms. St. Dennis for her support in the classroom and in the gym as a coach. We also said thank you and goodbye to Ms. Kat last week, who left her post as lunchroom supervisor for our Grade 6 students. This position will not be formally filled until next school year; in the meantime, we will have guest supervisors take the role. We have also confirmed that Mr. Erickson will be staying with us until the end of the school year as Mrs. Easton’s leave has been extended.
At this time of year administrators work diligently to prepare the budget and consider staffing for the upcoming school year. There are several ways that families can help this process. To start, if you are certain that your child will not be attending Annie Gale School, either because of a change of address or a transfer to another school, please let the school know as soon as possible. Alternatively, if you know of a family who will be joining our school next year and they haven’t let us know, please ask them to reach out to us. This helps us to determine the number of classes and staff members we will need for next year. Another way to help is to ensure that your school fees are paid. Each year thousands of dollars are left unpaid by parents and guardians, which affects how we plan for our future. Please take care of unpaid fees as soon as possible. We appreciate your support.
Connecting Home and School
Last week I started a series on Growth Mindset, which will continue for several weeks. A growth mindset views abilities and intelligence as things which can be developed through dedication, effort, and learning. Challenges are opportunities for growth and development, not reflections of inherent limitations. Those with a growth mindset are motivated to overcome obstacles, see failure as learning opportunities, and they embrace learning challenges. So where do parents and guardians fit in? They can help foster a growth mindset. Here are two ways:
#1 Teach Them [Teenagers] Words Like “Neuroplasticity”
Our teens may not realize it, but their brain is composed of 86 billion neurons. While it was once widely believed that the creation of neurons stopped shortly after birth, experts have now determined that the brain possesses the remarkable ability to modify, change and adapt to its environment throughout life. It can reorganize pathways, make new connections and, in some cases, create new neurons – called neuroplasticity, or brain plasticity.
What does that mean for our teens? According to Stanford University, it means that our teens’ ability to learn is not fixed. In other words, their ability to learn can be dramatically changed by effort.
One study showed that kids who read and learned about their brain and how it changes and grows in response to challenges were far more likely to persevere when they did fail because they didn’t view those failures as permanent. They learned that they held the power to control outcomes in their life based on the effort they were willing to put forth.
#2 Instill the Word “Yet” in Their Vocabulary
The next time your child comes to you and complains that they’re not good at soccer, that they’ll never understand their AP History homework or that it’s no use, they’ll never be able to play the piano well, tell them:
“You’re not good at soccer yet.”
“You don’t understand your AP History homework yet.”
“You’re not able to play the piano well yet.”
Encouraging your teen to integrate the word “yet” into their vocabulary will help remind them that with time, effort, and perhaps a heaping spoonful of tenacity, they can overcome anything and reach their goals.
Retrieved on April 19, 2025, from: Teach Your Teen to Have a Growth Mindset: Why it Matters and Powerful Strategies that Work - Raising Teens Today
Did you know?
NEW: As the weather gets better, many of our Grade 7-9 students take advantage of our open campus and leave to purchase lunch at a local establishment. This is a family decision, as we currently do not track those students. We keep the hallways open at lunch, provide things to do in the gym and through clubs, because we prefer that students stay at the school where they are safe and supervised. Those that leave at lunch risk not being back in time for Period 5, which starts at 12:41. We encourage our students to stay by providing activities and space for them in the school and we deter students from being late by using our late policy. The late policy gives students two warnings for lates at the beginning of the day and after lunch. On the third late, the student will be asked to serve a 20-minute detention and on the fourth late, the student will be asked to serve a 30-minute detention and will call home to inform their parents or guardians. At the fifth late in a month, we ask families to come into the school to work with us on improving attendance.
NEW: We have a few spots open in our TLC program in next year's Grade 6 classes. If you are interested in registering your child for this program or know someone who has a Grade 6 student who might be interested and they live in our catchment area, reach out to the school and we can help. This would be on a first come, first serve basis, as there are currently no students on the Grade 6 lottery wait list.
NEW: May’s School Council Meeting is Wednesday, May 21, at 6 p.m. This meeting will be held in person and online. Look at the end of this message for more information from School Council.
NEW: June’s School Council Meeting will be in-person only because it is the Annual General Meeting of the Council. Read the message at the end to learn about some of the roles that make up the council. If you are interested in filling a role, let us know. If you just want to join council as a “visitor”, you are certainly welcome! You will be surprised at what you will learn. Being a part of school council is informative and supports your child’s school.
UPDATE: Fun lunch is Thursday, April 24. A few more dates have been added to fun lunches for the remainder of the year. Log in to Healthyhunger.ca to participate.
Weekly Events: April 21-25
Monday, April 21 – NO SCHOOL – NON-INSTRUCTION DAY
Tuesday, April 22 - TLC students should be in their formal uniforms
2:45 – 3:45 | Grade 6 Badminton Practice
3:45 – 4:45 | Grade 8 Badminton Practice
Wednesday, April 23
2:45 – 3:45 | Grade 8 Badminton Practice
3:45 – 4:45 | Grade 7 Badminton Practice
Thursday, April 24 – FUN LUNCH
2:45 – 3:45 | Grade 9 Badminton Practice
3:45 – 4:45 | Grade 7 Badminton Practice
Friday, April 25 – EVEN A DAY
Sincerely,
Tammy Quiring
(proud) Principal
A Message from School Council
Hello Annie Gale Parents,
It’s almost time when the school year is ending, and we will be having elections for the executive positions on our school council and fundraising society PESA (PARENTS ENCOURAGING SUCCESS ASSOCIATION) at our AGM (Annual General Meeting) in June. All positions are available to be filled for the 2025-2026 school year. The description of all the roles is provided below, so if this is something that interests you, please send us an email at anniegalepesa@gmail.com or ruminakhan80@yahoo.ca or come join us at our next meeting. Please send us your request before May 21, 2025, so we can plan accordingly for multiple candidates interested in the same position.
Chair: It is expected that the school council chairperson will be a parent of a student attending the school. The chair should be someone who can work collaboratively and understands how to organize both programs and people. The chair should actively encourage others to be engaged in meaningful ways. They will chair all meetings of the school council and coordinate with the principal to establish meeting agendas. The chair will also be the official spokesperson of the school council, ensuring regular communication with the whole school community and making sure that the operating procedures are current and followed. They must prepare an annual report that summarizes the school council’s activities for the previous school year, including a financial statement relating to money, if any, handled by the school council.
Vice-Chair: On some school councils, the role of chair is shared, either through the creation of co-chairing positions or through the chair’s dependence on the vice-chair to undertake part of the work. Typically, the vice-chair's duties are, in the event of resignation, incapacity or leave of absence of the chair, to fulfill the chair’s responsibilities, and in the absence of the chair, supervise the affairs and preside at meetings of the school council.
Secretary: The school council secretary typically acts as a recorder at each meeting and ensures that the minutes are prepared to accurately reflect the directions and decisions agreed to at the meeting.
Treasurer: If the school council is handling money, through fundraising activities or donations, the treasurer keeps accurate records of all financial transactions and ensures that records are available upon request of the school board or school community.
Thank you,
Rumina Cruz
Chair (School Council/ PESA)
Annie Gale School