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FROM THE ADMINISTRATION Happy Holidays Everyone! On behalf of the staff at PMSS, I would like to extend the very best to all of our families as this special time of the year arrives. As is traditional in most schools in our district, the staff and students at PMSS have been very busy organizing a number of events that always make a school come alive during the festive season. The Ski and Snowboard Club is hitting the slopes, our Battle of the Books team is starting to take shape, a full slate of winter season sports teams are up and running, and special events are regular occurrences. Our leadership/LINK students are diligently working at organizing the annual ‘Winter Vacation Kick Off Assembly’ for the afternoon of Friday December 22. This is always an enjoyable event and features entertainment and friendly competition involving the student body. It also involves an adjusted schedule for the day, including the removal of the regular lunch break and an early dismissal (2pm). School culture always thrives in December. As we release this bulletin, first term report cards were released ELECTRONICALLY on December 8. While we followed the same process last June, this fall release of grades was a new experience for many. Like many other ways of doing things in our daily lives (i.e. banking), the electronic distribution of information is now commonplace. I encourage all parents and students to ensure they have created their MyClass accounts prior to the release of Term 2 marks in the Spring. Check our website if you need more information on how to do this. While ‘Life at High School’ proceeds as usual for the majority of our students, much is happening behind the scenes as we prepare to launch the new Grad Program for Grade 10 students next year, to be followed by the Grade 11 and 12 curriculum in 2019/20. Students will be fully briefed on these changes at their Welcome Back assemblies in early January including the phasing out of the English 12 provincial exam, the arrival of the new Provincial Numeracy and Literacy assessments, the disappearance of some previously required courses, and more. Parents are encouraged to stay up to date with these changes by attending our PAC meetings and/or connecting to the Ministry of Education website and searching under ‘Grad Program’. Feel free to contact us if you have any questions about this. In closing, please allow us to wish you and yours a happy and enjoyable holiday season. We look forward to seeing everyone in January 2018 and we remind all parents that our doors are always open, so come and visit. Happy Holidays Everyone. Mike Keenan Cheryl Schwarz Denis Drapeau mkeenan@sd42.ca cschwarz@sd42.ca ddrapeau@sd42.ca

Mike Keenan, Principal Cheryl Schwarz, Vice Principal mkeenan@sd42.ca cschwarz@sd42.ca

Winter Newsletter

19438 116B Avenue Pitt Meadows, BC V3Y 1G1

Telephone: (604) 465-7141 Fax: (604) 465-6274 www.pmss.ca

December 2017

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Transfer Phase 1 Students who wish to apply in Phase 1 must pick up a transfer form from the school records office to which they are currently registered, complete all required information (including obtaining a parent/guardian signature), and return it to Ms. Peck in the main office. For Grade 8 students Phase 1 requests must be in by April 6, 2018 to correct errors. Grade 9 to 12 transfer requests are due by Friday, March 2, 2018. This is the best chance to transfer schools is during Transfer Phase 1. Transfer Phase 2 (for grades 8 – 12 only) Students who were not successfully transferred in Transfer Phase 1 will be considered again in Transfer Phase 2, which occurs between April 9 to May 18, 2018. A second round of decisions will be made between principals, and students will be informed by May 25, 2018. Date/time stamps on the transfer forms will be considered. Transfer Phase 3 The third transfer window occurs between May 25, 2018 and August 31, 20108. A decision will be made between principals, and students will be informed of their transfer status by August 31, 2018. This timeline allows both the school and the student to play for the first day of classes. Only successful transfers will be contacted. Students wishing to transfer during Transfer Phase 3 should understand that the school’s staffing, class sizes and structures may prevent the transfer. Good common sense decisions will be made to balance the needs of the student and those of the school. The chance of a successful transfer in Phase 3 is less likely than in Phase 1 or Phase 2. Transfer after the first day of School: Students wishing to apply for a transfer after the first day of school should note that transfer may be considered under the following circumstances:

Where there is change of residence;

Where it can be demonstrated that it is not in the best interest of the student to return to his/her home school; or another school will be considered if space is available

Where the home circumstances have changed. The chance of a successful transfer at this stage is less likely than in Phases 1, 2 or 3.

eReport cards went live on Friday, December 8th. Both parents and students can access these online

reports. All parents should have received an email from MyClass providing information to access these online documents. If you did not sign the parent permission forms sent in September by the District Education Office, this would have affected students accessing their me.sd42.ca accounts. If you have concerns regarding the eReport Cards please contact myclass@sd42.ca. Should you have any questions regarding marks please contact teachers directly. All email addresses are on our school website pmss.sd42.ca.

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The MARAUDER FOOTBALL PROGRAM featured three teams this past season with the final game played in mid-November. Our Varsity boys lost a nail biter to SRT to end their season but the game was well-attended as a busload of fans joined many parents over at SRT to show the support we have for our program. While the Junior Varsity team started their season strong, they faded toward the end and failed to make the playoffs. Our Grade 8 team, however, went undefeated in league play until the playoffs and thus the future is looking positive for our program. Ten community coaches joined teaching Coach Bruno Chu in overseeing the three teams this past season and they look forward to seeing everyone again in the Spring for some off-season training.

Senior Girls Volleyball Team's highlight of the season was winning the Queen Margaret Tournament. First out of ten teams. Ms. Haras Coach Junior Girls Volleyball entered several tournaments this year. The girls worked hard. Coach Madame Shepherd Coach reflected on the positive experience at the Fall sports banquet. Grade 8 Girls Volleyball team was a competitive group. They reached the District Final. Mrs. Carlos and Mr. Fitzgerald were impressed with the team’s competitiveness. Grade 8/9 Boys Soccer Team went undefeated in league play. Mr. Mikés and Mr. Thirsk and the boys did a great job. Senior Boys Soccer Team started slowly in their league games. Their final two games against SRT and Carney were great efforts. The boys showed loss of character and heart. Mr. Oldridge Coach

Congratulations to the Cross Country Team for an outstanding season. All members of the team experienced growth and success towards their athletic endeavours this past fall. Coach Ivor Day is very proud of your commitment to the sport and your drive towards achieving your personal goals. Well done!

All the Fall sport athletes represented the school in a positive way.

Boys and Girls Basketball is in full swing now. The four Boys Teams have all participated in tournaments and most have started league games or will soon. Girls Basketball is off to a great start. Grade 8 Girls came in first place at the ABBY MIDDLE TOURNAMENT and are undefeated so far this season. The Junior Girls are undefeated in league play and had a great weekend of basketball in Victoria-winning 3 out of 5 games. The Senior Girls are currently 9 wins, 2 losses. They finished second is the 16 team Victoria Tournament. The senior girls' slogan this year is, MAKING IT RAIN. They have averaged 7-3 pointers per game so far this season. Please come out to the gym and support the girls - BRING YOUR UMBRELLAS!

We hope all the basketball teams have an enjoyable year. Thanks to all of the PMSS coaches.

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2018 Graduating Class

Lasagna Dinner April 12th We have 200 tickets for sale. Friends and family welcome! For tickets contact: Sue suewhite@telus.net or Bev flyhome5@hotmail.com We need silent auction donations to make this event a success. If anyone can donate items please contact Ultin ultin@telus.net

Sheri sheri5@telus.net or Teresa tjjk@shaw.ca

___________________________________ New Coupon Book Fundraiser

We will have these available to sell at the bottle drive. We can make $6/card and could raise up to $4500.00 for Dry Grad! ___________________________________ **We still need parent volunteers to help out with DRY GRAD. We require at least 2 parents to help organize. Please contact Sheri or Teresa if you can help! ___________________________________

Grad Hoodies They have arrived. Parents were at the school on Friday, December 15 to hand out. Contact Sheri if you need to arrange for pick up.

Grad T-shirts Almost all of the shirts have been picked up. If you do not have your t-shirt, contact Sheri.

Grad Student Meeting We discussed fundraising and asked for support from the Grads. Thanks to all those who signed up to help. We need Grad and Parent support for our upcoming events:

BOTTLE DRIVE *SATURDAY JANUARY 6TH*

Bottle Drive start time 10am at PMSS PARENT VOLUNTEERS/STUDENTS NEEDED!

GRADS: We need your write-ups for the yearbook! Deadline Friday January 26/18. Use this link to submit: https://goo.gl/forms/oZ29aMvvi7o

VI9nA2 Baby pictures and parent dedications are coming up next, stay tuned… ___________________________________________

All information/updates for Grad available on PMSS website, parent portal, emails and Facebook. If you are not on our email list, please contact Tracey dt1anderson@shaw.ca to have your name/email added.

Crazy Bread and Pizza Sale! Water, iced tea and chips also

available to purchase. All

proceeds to Dry Grad.

December 21st Lunch Time @

PMSS

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THINKING COMPETENCY The thinking competency encompasses the knowledge, skills and processes we associate with

intellectual development. It is through their competency as thinkers that students take subject-

specific concepts and content and transform them into a new understanding. Thinking competence

includes specific thinking skills as well as habits of mind, and awareness of thinking about

thinking.

For more information about the new curriculum, visit http://www.sd42.ca/new-curriculum.

Core Competencies: What are they and why are they in the new curriculum? The new curriculum centres around the following three core competency areas: communication,

personal and social, thinking. They are sets of intellectual, personal, and social and emotional

proficiencies that all students need to develop in order to engage in deep learning and life-long learning.

Competencies are evident in every area of learning and in every grade, and come into play when

students become actively engaged in their learning. During the school year, students will have an

opportunity to self-assess their proficiencies in these core competencies.

Sign your children up today for a $1,200 B.C. Training and Education Savings Grant

British Columbians are encouraged to sign up for a $1,200 grant for their children’s post-secondary education and training. To be eligible, the child applying must have been born in 2006 or later and must be at least six years of age when they apply. The child parents/guardians must both be residents of British Columbia. Signing up for the grant is as easy as stopping in at your local financial institution and following these simple steps:

1. Bring social insurance number (SIN) cards for both the child and the parent/guardian. 2. Sign the child up as the beneficiary of a Registered Education Savings Plan. 3. Complete the application at your financial institution. 4. No additional contributions are required.

Learn more at the Ministry of Education website: https://goo.gl/ep8bgJ

Senior Football players join Principal M. Keenan and Grandson on a visit to Harry Hooge Elementary to “COMMUNITY” the values of ‘hard work’.