Good afternoon Balmoral families,
Thank you to families who attended our Meet the Teacher evening last night. It was great to see so many familiar faces and meet our new families as well.
Student Phone Update
Since personal mobile devices are no longer permitted to be used inside the school, we are supporting students and families with an alternate solution during the day. There is now a student-only phone available for use in the student workspace in the main office. Students are welcome to come to the office anytime to use this phone and do not need to ask the office secretaries each time. Office staff can look up a parent’s phone number if a student does not remember it. Parents can still call the school office to relay messages to students and we can have the student call you back if needed.
Thank you for supporting us during this change, as we find ways to reduce screen time and stay connected with families.
Important – After School Care
Please note that Balmoral School is not able to offer after-school care services at this time. School ends at 2:30pm and all students must leave the school building by 2:45pm, unless they are supervised by a teacher (sports teams, clubs, etc.) If a student is participating on an athletic team, their siblings are not permitted to stay after school with them. Team athletes and coaches are busy focusing on practice and cannot supervise siblings as well.
Office staff are not responsible for supervising students after 2:45pm. If there is an emergency and you are running late on the odd occasion, please call the office and we will do our best to help you. Office hours end at 3:30pm on Monday-Thursday so if you need to pick up a child after a sports practice, please make sure you have pre-arranged a meeting spot. Coaches will make sure all students are picked up after practices and games and no students are left behind at school.
School Council Meeting and AGM – September 19
Our first school council meeting and AGM will be held on Thursday, September 19 at 6:30pm. This will be an IN-PERSON meeting at Balmoral School and ALL parents are welcome to attend! We are looking to fill the following positions on school council this year:
- Vice-Chair
- Fundraising Coordinator
- Casino Chair
If you have any questions about participating on school council or would like more information, please email balmoral@cbe.ab.ca and we will connect you with a council representative.
Student Voice Council (SVC)
Students interested in running for a leadership position on the SVC this year should see Ms. Boyd or Mr. Slade for an application form. A meeting was held Thursday at lunch for interested students. Application forms can also be picked up from the office. There are opportunities for 2 representatives per grade on the SVC, along with other positions. Elections will be held on October 1 through homerooms.
Speech Club and Musical
The speech club and school musical are starting up at school in the coming weeks. Announcements are made each morning about which clubs are meeting at lunch. Please remind your children to listen closely to announcements and attend the meetings on time. Teachers in charge of each activity are listed below if parents have any questions or want more information about the club.
Speech Club – Mr. Brewer – gjbrewer@cbe.ab.ca
Musical – Ms. Ontko – esontko@cbe.ab.ca
NEW Online Store for ordering Balmoral School Gear!
This year we are working with Sportfactor to set up an easy online ordering system for Balmoral School clothing. This clothing is OPTIONAL for students and is NOT considered to be the TLC uniform. Students are permitted to wear a Balmoral hoodie or sweatshirt on top of their TLC uniform if they wish.
Student store link: https://balmoral2024.itemorder.com/shop/sale/
The deadline to order from the online store is September 20, 2024. Items will be shipped to the school 4-5 weeks after the store closes and we will distribute to students.
The Pickle Jar
Students may purchase food Monday – Thursday during the lunch break. The cafeteria is CASH only, and most meals are $6. See the Cafeteria & Menu page.
CTF Courses
All students in Grades 6-9 have chosen their CTF courses for this year. Each student will take one CTF course in Term 1 (Sept-Jan) and another CTF course in Term 2 (Feb-June). Students in Grade 5 will rotate through 4 different CTF modules throughout the year.
Each CTF course has a different occupational area of focus, such as Foods, Construction, Design Studies, or Environmental Stewardship. Each CTF course has an associated fee of MAXIMUM $20 per course. This is to pay for the additional student supplies required to complete CTF projects, such as construction materials or ingredients for cooking.
Fees will be added to your MyCBE account in the coming weeks.
Terry Fox Run
On September 25, 2024 Balmoral school will be doing its annual Terry Fox run during the students Physical Education class. Students will do some prework to better understand the purpose of the Terry Fox run before that day in their humanities classes. We will not be accepting donations at the school! Below is our school specific link to donate if families wish to donate online. The online donation link will be open until the end of October.
Please reach out to Mr. Guenther at teguenther@cbe.ab.ca if you have any questions. Thank you for your support!
School Buses
Please ensure your child is registered for the bus they are riding – drivers will not let unregistered riders take the school bus. If you have questions about which bus your child should be taking, please call the school office.
This week we held our first Bus Character Circle, where teachers went over bus expectations with students, and helped problem-solve any issues that were occurring. Please note the following bus rules and review them with your children:
- No standing up during the bus ride
- No switching seats during the ride – stay in your assigned seat
- No eating or drinking on the bus – some bus drivers will allow small snacks as long as no garbage or mess is left behind
- No throwing anything
- No loud noises, swearing, disrespect to other cars on the road
- No distracting the driver in ANY WAY
Safety is paramount – students who are engaging in unsafe behaviour on buses will have consequences, beginning with verbal warnings and phone calls to parents, and possible suspensions from riding the school bus. The Bus Drivers are in charge on the bus – students must listen and take instructions from them.
Please ensure you are signed up for the My Bus Monitor notification emails for the most up to date information about bus delays, etc. 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
Contact information for CBE transportation is:
403-817-7433
School Forms Now Online
We are pleased to inform all parents that most school forms have transitioned online to your MYCBE account
The following forms can be found in your MYCBE account – scroll to the tab that says “online forms and school registration” in the menu field
- Student Demographic Forms
- Authorization Forms – Consents for CBE and Media
Please access your MYCBE account to complete these important forms before September 20, 2024.
For help in accessing your MYCBE account see our support page.
For new families to the CBE:
New families to the CBE and Balmoral School will need to create a MYCBE Account.
Follow the following instructions to retrieve your student CBE ID number in your SchoolEngage account.
You will need your email address on file at the school, as well as the student’s CBE ID. This can be found on the SchoolEngage student profile for families that registered their child using SchoolEngage.
For a visual guide on how to find the CBE ID within SchoolEngage, refer to SchoolEngage CBE Student ID
See our support page for instructions on signing up for a MyCBE account or accessing an existing account.
Your MyCBE account is used as long as your child remains at CBE from kindergarten to Grade 12, so please register with an email that will be active during this period.
If you require financial assistance, please apply online through MyCBE. Field trips or extracurricular athletic fees will be added to your account throughout the year.
Important Dates
- September 25 – Terry Fox Run (during PE class)
- September 26 – Orange Shirt Day at school
- September 27 – PD Day (no school for students)
- September 30 – National Day for Truth and Reconciliation (no school)
- October 14 – Thanksgiving Day (no school)
If you have any questions or concerns, please call the school office.
Regards,
Balmoral Administration