Balmoral News Jan. 15-19 | Weather, Lottery, Dance Residency, Cafeteria Reopening, Open Houses, Fun Lunches, Bus Notifications

Good afternoon Balmoral families,

We hope all of our families had a restful winter break. We look forward to a productive and enjoyable 2024 with our students, staff, and families! A reminder that all students are required to have a set of indoor shoes at school, and take their outdoor shoes off when they enter the school. This keeps our hallways clean and tidy, and ensures students have appropriate footwear to participate in physical education activities. We recommend a pair of black running shoes as indoor shoes as these blend in with our school uniform and are comfortable for students to wear all day.

Cold Weather Days

When students arrive at school in the mornings, they are to go to their first class and be ready for learning at 7:55am. At times, there are late buses and this is tracked by the school office. School doors are opened at 7:40am each day.

For lunch time, if it is -20 degrees or colder, including the windchill, students will stay inside. Students will eat their lunches in their homerooms and be able to participate in indoor clubs and intramurals as available.

If a student comes to school on cold weather days, they will be following the process that the school is following. Thus, it is important to be dressed appropriately for the weather. If a student is not coming to school on any given day, parents must call the attendance line and report the absence.

Dressing for the Weather

As we look ahead, we are making plans for colder weather especially around extended periods of time outside like physical education classes and lunch break. We expect all of our students to dress appropriately for the weather with warm coats, hats, mitts, winter boots, scarves and snow pants. This will ensure that students are comfortable on days when they are expected to go out for fresh air and exercise.

We know that students will be outside during the course of the day, even if it is only from the bus to the door and dressing warmly is something that must be dealt with at home. Thank you for your support.

TLC Lottery opens January 15

The school office will begin accepting Expressions of Interest for 2024-25 starting January 15. The lottery process is for NEW students to the TLC program in all grades. Please note that all families must reside in our catchment area, otherwise we will not be able to accept them.

If you have any questions about the lottery or registration, please call the school office.

Off-campus Reminders for Grades 8 and 9 Students

Before winter break, we noticed an increasing number of grades 8 and 9 students returning late from their off-campus break at lunch time. As a reminder, students who go off-campus at lunch are expected to return on time and be ready for their afternoon classes by 12:35pm. Late students are asked to sign in at the office and get a late slip before going to class.

Starting this week, students will be given ONE warning if they are late returning from off-campus lunch. If a student is late a second time, they will lost their off-campus privileges for one week, and then longer if the issue persists. An administrator will contact parents if off-campus privileges are taken away, and the student will need to bring their own lunch to school.

Going off-campus at lunch time is an important opportunity for our students to learn responsible citizenship, organization, and time management skills. Please have a conversation with your Grade 8/9 child about this responsibility and privilege.

If you have any questions regarding the off-campus lunch policy, please contact kwgordon@cbe.ab.ca

SoundKreations Dance Residency

From January 22 to February 1, all Balmoral students will be participating in a SoundKreations dance residency. Expert instructors will be teaching students various dance steps for one week, followed by one week of students working on their own choreography.

Student Extra-Curricular Commitments

Students who sign up to participate in extra-curricular activities are expected to attend all practices and rehearsals. This includes athletic teams, school musical, jazz band, student council, art club, etc. Please ensure that your children have a pre-arranged ride home if they are participating in extra-curriculars after school.

Important Update: The Balmoral School Cafeteria is re-opening!

We are currently working on re-opening our school cafeteria (The Pickle Jar), and are aiming for a mid-February start. The cafeteria was closed during the Covid-19 pandemic and we are looking forward to re-opening it again this year. There are many procedures to follow for a successful re-opening, including re-stocking utensils and appliances, passing multiple inspections, and determining budget/menu.

In order to determine demands for food items and dietary needs, we are asking our families to provide some feedback. This will help us make decisions about menu planning, budgeting, and sustainability.

Please use this link to provide feedback. The survey will be open until January 15, 2024. https://forms.office.com/r/knxVgLqb0Q

Intent to Return to Balmoral School

We are now planning for next year and determining how many spaces we have available for the lottery. Please take a few minutes to fill out this survey below regarding whether your child will be returning to Balmoral School for the 2024-25 school year.
https://forms.office.com/r/U6S8LjwkMp

Grade 9 Students going to North Trail High School, Crescent Heights School, and James Fowler School

North Trail High School (NTHS), Crescent Heights High School (CHHS), and James Fowler High School are holding their Open Houses for incoming Grade 10 students this month. Please see the attached invitations for more information.

More information regarding high school registration, the transfer process, and deadlines will be shared as it becomes available. If you have any questions about high school, please email leobrien@cbe.ab.ca or esontko@cbe.ab.ca.

Healthy Hunger Fun Lunches

Most of our fun lunch dates are available for ordering on the Healthy Hunger website:
https://healthyhunger.ca/index.php

Please note that you must register your child each year on the website (ensure you know your child’s homeroom and teacher), and then you can place orders. The ordering deadline is always 5 days before the fun lunch date, so order early and don’t miss out!

Volunteers Needed for Fun Lunches

We need 3 parent volunteers on each fun lunch day to sort the lunches by homeroom and help deliver them to the students at the beginning of the lunch break. If you are able to help out, please use the links below to sign up:

School Bus Notifications

Please ensure you are signed up for the My Bus Monitor notification emails for the most up to date information. The link is below. You must enter your email address and select your child’s bus route (AM and PM) to receive email notifications about bus delays, etc.
https://www.myschoolbusmonitor.ca/ParentLoginNew.aspx

Important Dates

  • January 8 – Classes resume
  • January 15 – Non-instructional day (no school for students)
  • January 17 – Fun lunch for Grades 5/6
  • January 18 – Fun lunch for Grades 7/8/9
  • January 22 to Feb 1 – SoundKreations Dance Residency
  • January 30 – Report cards available for viewing through MyCBE

If you have any questions or concerns, please call the school office.

Regards,

Balmoral Administration