October 2, 2019

Quinson Elementary251 Ogilvie St. South, Prince George, BC

www.quin.sd57.bc.ca 250-562-1161

Principal: Robin WarnerVice-Principal: Kristy Greenfield

Dear Parents,

Fall is coming and going fast. We have had at least 3 frosts already in the last week; if you have a child/children in need of warm clothing/footwear for the season, please talk to our Ab Ed workers, as we have a small Clothes Closet you can choose from. No need to be cold when you can be comfortable.

This month has started off quickly with Scholastic Book Fair; Open House and Ice Cream Social tomorrow night, October 3rd, at 6:30 pm. Please see Mrs. Emsley’s Library news for more information. In addition, please put October 8th on your calendar, as this is School Photo Day!

October 22 and 23 are both early dismissal days at 1:37pm for Parent/Teacher meetings.

Parents and guardians, you are always welcome here. For the safety of all in the building, we ask that you always enter in the front door and always sign in and out at the office.

October ends here at Quinson with Spooky Town on October 31, a delightfully frightful new program of fun and games! Go to the end of the newsletter for more information, and here’s to a great October!

Robin Warner

Principal

Important DatesOctober 3- Scholastic Book Fair

Open House & Ice Cream Social @6:30pm

October 8 - School PhotosPhotographer will be here in the morning

October 10 – Cross Country Race at Rainbow ParkVolleyball Game: Quinson vs. BlackburnAt Quinson

October 14 Thanksgiving School is NOT in Session

October 21 – PAC Meeting6:30pm in the library

October 22,23 – Parent/Teacher MeetingEarly Dismissal 1:37pm

October 25 – Pro D DayNID – School is NOT in Session

October 31 - HalloweenCome dressed in your Halloween costume (no clowns) but please, appropriate costumes and leave any play weapons/accessories at home.

November 11 – Remembrance DaySchool is not in session

November 19 Math Fair Sponsored by UNBC (a very active full house, so sorry, no room for spectators!We will be able to give you a great report afterwards!)

November 20 White HatterMulti award winning presentationabout Internet SafetyGrades 6, 7 9:30-11:00 Heritage(walking)Grades 8-12 12:30-2:30 D.P. ToddParents 7:00-9:00 D.P. Todd

November 29 – Pro D Day

Quinson Cross CountryCongratulations to all of our Cross Country runners from Gr. 3-7 that participated in the Cross Country Race at Heritage Elementary School on September 24 th!Please encourage your child to participate in this fun sport! We are set to participate in another race at Rainbow Park on October 10th. Please come out to cheer us on! Special thanks to Hunter, Harley, Leavitt, Michael, Keale, Hawk, Nicole, Saraya, Graham, Jack, Isla, Quinton, Dawson, Ruth, Riley, Romeo, Evyn, Greyson, Keisha and Blake for all their hard work during practices!Thank you also to our Cross Country coaches: Dian Monahan, Janice Walberg, Rachel Green, and Sara Heppner

Attendance and Appointments

Please remember to contact the school or your child’s teacher with planned absences, appointments and early pick-ups. You can do this by phone, or by direct e-mail to the classroom teacher and Ms. Hall. This will save us and you the time it takes to get your child ready and may reduce your child’s anxiety about not knowing when you are arriving. If your child will be absent or late, please call the school at (250) 562-1161. This helps the school ensure the safety of our students. If your child does not arrive at school and we have not been informed of an absence, we will call home to ensure the child is safe. If children become sick at school, they are to inform their teacher, who will inform the office. If it is advisable for the child to be sent home, the parents (or emergency contact) will be phoned and are expected to arrange for their child to be picked up promptly. We have neither the facilities nor the personnel to care for sick children at school. Parents are asked to keep children home from school until they are fully recovered from their illness (24-48 hours after last incidence of fever, vomiting or diarrhea). This prevents the spread of viruses and other communicable diseases. Students should return when they are prepared and able to actively participate in all classroom activities and go outside during breaks. Good health is necessary for effective learning.Home-School CommunicationOnce a month, newsletters are prepared with current information pertaining to events at the school. Newsletters will be posted on our website at (www.quin.sd57.bc.ca) for your convenience. Please send an email to Ms. C. Hall (chhall@sd57.bc.ca) with your email address so you can be added to our mailing list. Please remember to add your email at the beginning of each year and to update the office if you change your email as all returned emails will be deleted. If you do not have email, a hard copy will be available at the end of each month, upon request, at the office. Student Cultural Fees

For the 2019-2020 school year, the combined fee for planners and cultural performances is $20. Please return payment with the green form sent home with your child to ensure accuracy when recording payments. Cheques are not accepted.

Other Student FeesOccasionally, teachers will require payments for other activities, such as field trips. Teachers will collect the fees for these events – please do not bring them to the office. Receipts will be issued only for fees over $20Safety ConcernJust a reminder that all students must use the sidewalks and crosswalks when crossing our busy streets, while we do have 2 crossing guards on Ospika Blvd., there is not always replacement coverage when they are away from work. Students are not permitted to cross through the staff parking lot as this is also a safety concern.Parking Lot ConcernsOur parking lot is for staff only. Please drop off and pick up students on, 2 nd Ave., Ogilvie Street, or in the alleyway behind the tennis courts. Students should not be in the parking lot at any time unless accompanied by an adult. Please have children use the sidewalks to enter the school grounds.Community Schools Corner (Mr Eberle)

Leadership (Mrs Westaway)Our Leadership retreat was on the last Pro D day on September 27, 2019 and was lots of fun. The following students attended:Tehya C Shamack C Eve ETristen M Simon L Lukacs MMaya M Abby P

Evyn SAyla M Hunter R

Jessica GClowie AWe did some hiking, kayaking, paddle boarding and crafts. Students also painted a sign that will be displayed by the office until November. Look out for Candygrams coming this month, as well as our Halloween spirit day fun!September 30, 2019 was Orange Shirt Day. This is a day to raise awareness for Residential School survivors. Students participated in the raffle for a Vancouver Canucks jersey. Each student that participated by wearing an orange shirt was entered into the raffle. Congratulations to McKenna M for winning the jersey!!On November 26, 2019, a few Leadership students will be participating in the Festival of Trees from 9:00am to 2:00 pm at the Civic Centre. On this day, students will look after the craft area. As this area gets many primary age students and lots of day care groups, this is a great opportunity for students to interact with younger children.

We started Volleyball last week with our first lunch practice. It is very exciting as we have had enough interest to have one Boys and Girls team each. We have room for a few more boys, please contact Mr. Eberle if interested. We are having three practices each week, one on Monday after school for both teams, a lunch practice for the Girls team on Tuesdays and a lunch practice for the Boys team on Thursdays.Our first game is on October 10 where we play against Blackburn Elementary School at Quinson at 2:00pm. Hope to see you come and cheer on our Volleyball team on that day!! Our Volleyball season ends on November 27, 2019 with a pizza lunch for our team on that day. There will also be a game where the students try their skills playing against the staff. Stay tuned for more information about that.The Art Club is for Grade 2-4 students. It is on Fridays after school. Here students will be doing some pencil drawing and painting using water colour or tempura. This runs for eight weeks until November 22, 2019. This is run by Mrs. Finke.Roller Derby is beginning on Thursdays after school on October 17 until December 5, 2019 at the Roller Dome. This is a fun opportunity as students participate with students from other schools in the area. This is the first group of the year and is for students that participated last year. Students begin with basic skills of roller skating and end with playing the game of Roller Derby against other schools. Let’s give a big cheer for Evie E, Spice H, Ava L, Abby P, and Evyn S!Another club that is beginning on October 21, 2019 and ending on December 16, 2019 is a Drumming Club. It is for students in Grades 5-7 and will be each week on Mondays after school. This will be facilitated by Patricia Lunden from the Aboriginal Education Department. Students will learn to play a hand drum and learn traditional aboriginal songs. A meeting will be on Oct 4, 2019 in Mr Eberle’s room for interested students. We can take a maximum of 15 students so if you are interested, they need permission slips and show up at the Oct 4 meeting!

Parent/Ab Ed Room Activities

Beading at Quinson!The Beading Club is Tuesdays after school in the Ab Ed Room for students in Grades 5-7. Students learn to bead using a bead loom. They are able to bead a pattern or bead one of their own design. This club runs for eight weeks and ends on November 12, 2019….it is so popular, it is full at this time! Also on Tuesdays, parents and care givers are invited to join Angela Sanderson from the Ab Ed Department learn how to make a beaded poppy for Remembrance Day, from 8:45 am until 9:55 am in the Ab Ed Room. Please, as parents, drop in and see what’s happening!

Counselling Corner

Introducing the Counsellor:Hi, my name is Ms. McElroy and I’m the School Counsellor at Quinson Elementary.

Students can receive support from the school counsellor in a variety of ways: in-class lessons, small groups, and individually. My work centers on building success for students at school through positive skill-building and emotional awareness.

I run groups that focus on social skills, coping with big emotions, and friendship skills. For older students, there are groups for stress-management and keeping positive mental health.

For individual services, guardians must sign a counselling consent form. If you have any question, please feel free to pop by after school to see Ms. Mac.

Quinson is a PEANUT AWARE SchoolPlease be sure to NOT send any peanut or nut products as we have an airbourne anaphalactic allergy which is life threatening. We need to work together to keep our children safe!

Student Verification FormsThese forms are crucial in ensuring that the school has the correct contact information for you and your emergency contacts. Therefore, it is VITAL to have these forms returned as soon as possible. Please carefully review the information on the form, revise it as necessary, and return the form, COMPLETE with parent signature, to school as soon as possible.Diversified Bussing

With the arrival of chilly mornings, please ensure that children are dressed for the weather. To help ensure a safe and comfortable ride for everyone, students are asked to keep all parts of the body inside the bus, and to follow the driver’s instructions the first time they are given. Seating plans are a routine bus procedure, just as in the classroom. Thank you for having your child(ren) to the designated stop five minutes before the bus, and supervising until the bus arrives.Quinson PAC

Quinson’s October Parent Advisory Council (PAC) meeting will be held on Monday, October 21st at 6:30pm in the school library.  Parents and caregivers of Quinson students are invited and encouraged to attend and join in the discussion of upcoming school events, as well as learning more about school and District news.  Unfortunately, due to unresolved insurance issues with the District, childminding will not be provided at this meeting. We do hope to offer it at future meetings, and will keep you posted.

2019-2020 PAC meetings will be held at 6:30 p.m. in the school library (unless otherwise posted) on the following dates: October 21, November 18, December 9, January 13, February 10, March 9, April 20, May 11 and June 8.   

Please follow our ‘Quinson PAC’ Facebook page for relevant school information and reminders. We can also be reached by email at QuinsonPAC@gmail.com. Thank you and welcome back! We’re looking forward to a good year.Library NewsBook Bags Students are given a labeled, large, clear plastic book bag. Books MUST go home in a bag, even if it’s just a grocery bag. Please make sure your child returns their library books inside the bag.

Number of BooksPrimary students can take out two books and Intermediates three books. After lunch is open book exchange time. If you have finished reading your books before your library return day you are welcome to take out new books. Students with overdue books will get a notice sent home in their planners.

Quinson Library Club had our first gathering mid-September and over twenty intermediate students joined the club. Library club members are guardians of the Library. Member’s assist in keeping our library organized, participate in book talks, take on leadership roles in school literacy events and maintain our student book recommendation bulletin board. Library club members will be assisting students during this year’s book fair at lunch.

Scholastic Book Fair Open Thursday at lunch for students and during our Welcome Back gathering.October 3rd 6:00 – 7:00pmWin a chance to receive a $25.00 Book Prize. Enter the draw in the Library.

I would like to acknowledge all of our members and parent volunteers who are helping out with the book fair this fall: Connor Div 11, Jessica Div 11, Abby Div 11, Kevin Div 9, Chloe Div 9, Keisha Div 11, Annie Div 11, Sophie Div 11, Shaia Div 11, Eve Div 11, Jackie Div 11, Kyra Div 9, Quinten Div 9, Skyla Div 9, Manolo Div 9, Hayden Div 9, Ayla Div 11, Khlan Div 11, Tehya Div 10, Maya Div 10, Clowie Div 10, Kaysea Div 10, Nicole Div 9, Ruth Div 9, Kash Div 9, Van Div 8, Mrs. Normand, Mrs. Summer, R. McCleod, Mrs. Nelson, Ms. McLane and Ms. Hinds.

Spooky Town on Halloween at Quinson

Division 10 and 11 are excited to announce Spooky Town! This year, the grade 6/7 students of Mr. Bowes and Ms. Nielson’s class are creating new and exciting stations for the community of Quinson to enjoy on Thursday, October 31st. There will be a variety of activities designed, set up and run by Division’s 10 and 11 that other classes will rotate through during the day. We can’t wait to see what the students create!