Relationships - Respect - Honesty - Responsibility - Perseverance

Volume 4 Issue 4 – February 17, 2016

Skeena Middle

School 3411 Munroe Street Terrace, B.C. V8G – 3C1 250-635-9136 (phone) 1-888-655-0523 (fax) Principal – Mr. Phillip Barron

(phillip.barron@cmsd.bc.ca)

Vice-Principal – Mr. Cory Killoran

(cory.killoran@cmsd.bc.ca)

Wednesday February 17 Grade 9 Parent Information Mtg. at Caledonia 7 pm

Friday February 19 “X” Block – 10:00 – 11:30

Wednesday February 24 Pink Shirt Day / Anti-Bullying Day

Wednesday February 24 PAC Meeting 7:00 pm School Library

Friday February 26 Dare to Dream Band Retreat

Saturday February 27 Dare to Dream Band Retreat

Wednesday March 2 Gr. 9 Course Selection for Caledonia

Thursday March 3 Gr. 9 Course Selection for Caledonia

Sunday March 6 Band Telethon

We are officially at the halfway mark of the school year. If we thought January felt as if things slowed down a bit,

then from now until the end of June is when we really pick up speed.

Report Cards were sent home with students on Friday, February 12. If for some reason, you did not receive a copy

of your child’s report card, please contact the office and we will provide you with another one. Along the same lines,

if you have any questions about your child’s progress, please contact your child’s teacher through the office here at

the school.

Mr. Barron, Mr. Killoran

Relationships - Respect - Honesty - Responsibility - Perseverance

Our next PAC meeting of the year will be on Wednesday, February 24 starting at 7:00 PM in our library. Our PAC group receives monthly updates from the school and helps coordinate and support school-wide activities for all of our students. P.A.C. STATEMENT: “Parents and school, talking and planning for the success and future of our children”

MORE SMS NEWS……. Thank you to our group of parents who volunteered

their time to help sort the hot lunch program forms and count the money.

X – Block – excitement is building for students and

staff as we have another “X-Block” coming up on Friday, February 19

th. Students in all grades chose

from a wide variety of activities including making cupcakes, bowling, creating Ukrainian Eggs, exercise stations and much more. This is our second “X-Block” of the year and plans are underway to organize one, possibly even two more prior to the end of the year.

Registration is underway for next year’s Hockey Academy program. Registrations can be processed online through Pacific Rim Hockey Academy and need to be completed prior to March 31.

Battle of the Books – This is a friendly and engaging reading competition allowing students to read from a selection of books and answer short questions in an effort to accumulate points. The team(s) with the most points wins! A variety of great prizes will be available to students!

Congratulations to January’s Wildcat winners: Jasmine Greene, Tristan Brown, Zac Bilash, Madison McCann, MacKenzie Walker, Shane Kennedy, Delsen Phillips, Nathan Euverman, Emily Parkes, Dakota Wilson, Sonia Mann, Brock Neid.

Our inaugural dodgeball tournament

is underway and many students are

participating in an effort to be crowned

the SMS Dodgeball Champions!

Satisfaction Survey

The Satisfaction Survey is an annual survey of

students in grades 4, 7, 10 and 12, their parents and

school staff administered since 2002 in British

Columbia public schools. The Survey was developed

with input from partner groups, experts in

educational measurement and special education, and

teachers of early grades. Each year feedback from

participants is considered in order to improve the

survey questions and features.

The survey is delivered online and it takes about 10

minutes to complete the Ministry questions. All

students in Grade 7 at Skeena Middle School will take

this on-line survey in March. All parents/guardians

will be sent an on-line access code to participate in

this survey.

The survey is available 24/7 over

a period of about three months,

January to mid-April.

The Yearbook Club continues to work on another great

yearbook for Skeena Middle School!

There are still a limited number of books, so buy yours

now to avoid disappointment. The yearbook will be full

of pictures of Grade 7, 8, and 9 student life at Skeena

and all the fun events that have taken place this year.

There are less than 100 copies left!

Relationships - Respect - Honesty - Responsibility - Perseverance

Skeena Middle School Music News February 2016

After School Band Rehearsals Grade 7 Concert Band every Monday 3:10-4:15pm

Grade 8-9 Concert Band every Thursday 3:10-4:15pm

These rehearsals are the only time our band classes get together to practice for Concerts like the Music Festival,

Telethon, Band Trip, local school concerts, etc. This is an important time to listen and learn from each other and

hear the awesome-ness of our band! With everyone at rehearsals, our band will be the best it can be!

Congratulations to the many, many students who get to these rehearsals on time and ready to play every week!

SMS Bands ROCK!

Dare to Dream Band Retreat February 26-27 Band students at Skeena will have the chance to work with visiting clinicians in class Feb. 22-26 as part of the

annual band retreat. The Band 7 students will participate in the annual Dare to Dream Band Retreat Fri. Feb. 26

and Sat. Feb. 27. Events include a Friday night concert by the Caledonia Band with special guests, massed band

rehearsals, pizza lunch, a dance and a final massed band concert on the Saturday evening at the R.E.M. Lee

Theatre. This is a fun opportunity for our students to learn new skills, make friends and great music! Permission

Forms were due Wed. Feb. 10. Please see Ms. B. to be part of the retreat! You don’t want to miss it!

22st Annual Band Telethon Sunday, March 6 4:00-8:00pm at the R.E.M. Lee Theatre This event will be broadcast live on Cable 10. Skeena Band students in grades 7, 8, 9 will perform and must be at

the R.E.M. Lee Theatre in uniform with their instrument and music by 3:20pm. Band students will be collecting

telethon pledges before the telethon which are due Wed. March 2nd. The band class that collects the most

pledges will have a pizza lunch! There is a five pound chocolate bar for the top pledging student!

Lots of prizes to win! Grand prize is two tickets to Vancouver with Hawkair!

Please note: Lost pledge tickets result in $25 fine; please return any unused pledge tickets.

51st Annual Pacific Northwest Music Festival April 14- 30, 2016 All of our Skeena Bands will perform in the festival at the R.E.M. Lee Theatre April 22-23. Performance times to be

announced. Please mark your calendars. Watch for more info coming soon!

SMS Band Tour 2016 We have almost 70 band students and volunteer chaperones touring to Victoria from May 31- June 5, 2016.

Students have received fundraising/payment updates for Victoria Tour 2016.

Parents please discuss these with your child. Final payment for the Victoria Band Trip is due May 2.

Please contact Ms. Brouwer with any questions. It is shaping up to be a stellar trip!

Thank you for supporting music at Skeena. See you at our next event!

Sincerely,

Susan Brouwer

SMS Band Director

Relationships - Respect - Honesty - Responsibility - Perseverance

Monthly Draw Slip – Win a Prize for Your Family! Win a Misty River Books Gift Certificate: After your family has read this newsletter, please sign and detach this entry form. “Our family” must include at least one parent/guardian who has read the newsletter. This ballot must be returned to the main office to be entered into the draw. One winning ballot will be drawn each month indicating the winning family for that month. This month’s draw will be held on Friday, March 4. Our family has read the newsletter corresponding to this draw:

Family Name: ______________________________________

Child(ren);s Name: ______________________________________

Parent/Guardian Signature: ______________________________________

- COMMENTS / QUESTIONS-

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What is Pink Shirt Day?

Pink Shirt Day is an annual event focused on working together to STAND UP against bullying by celebrating individual

differences and promoting positive relationships.

What is Bullying and What Can We Do?

Bullying is a relationship problem that involves a student or group of students repeatedly using power to cause distress

to another student. Bullying can be physical, verbal, social, or online. Bullying requires relationship solutions. Research

has shown that the majority of the time, bullying stops within 10 seconds when a bystander STANDS UP for a child who

is being bullied, instead of standing by. Please visit the website PREVNet.ca for more resources.

Pink Shirt Day: When is it?

Pink Shirt Day is Wednesday February 24.

What is the story behind Pink Shirt Day?

Pink Shirt Day began in 2007 with a grade 9 boy at Central Kings

Rural High School, in the small community of Cambridge Nova

Scotia. On his first day of school he was badly bullied for wearing a

pink polo shirt. When two grade twelve boys, Travis Price and

David Shephard, heard about the bullying they decided to take

action. They responded by emailing classmates asking them to wear

pink the next day. The two boys even purchased 50 pink shirts for

anyone who didn’t own one. The next day there were dozens of

students outfitted in pink creating a “sea of pink”. Pink Shirt Day is

all about STANDING TOGETHER to stop bullying.

Wear Pink on February 24

and STAND UP to bullying!