Hot Lunch, Fees, Survey Gift Card Winners, & School Council AGM

What’s Inside the September 22, 2023 Wayfinder Edition…?

• Hot Lunch program info 
• Fees are up in the Parent Portal
• School Council AGM & Fundraising Society meeting link
• A Staff Farewell and a Welcome
• September Survey - Tim Hortons gift card winners
• Celebrating Our Diversity - many languages at ALH
• Artist in Residence coming to A.L. Horton Elementary
• Orange Shirt Day/National Truth & Reconciliation Week activities 
• Read-In Week activities 

CHECK OUT YOUR PARENT PORTAL ACCOUNT

Parents and caregivers can now view online on the Parent Portal the following:

• School fees, including noon supervision and field trips.
• The school has uploaded all field trip fees in September instead of as each individual field trip arises. Seeing the overall amount due may be helpful for parents/caregivers when budgeting. Families requesting fee installment payments can contact the office at 780-632-3113. 
• Hot lunch options to purchase for October.
• Dairy Queen, Chins, and hot dog days.

DID YOU KNOW…?

• Pediculosis (head lice) are common among school age children. Please see information from Alberta Health about checking family members and treating this common condition. The school sends information sheets home to families when individuals notify the school office about a case of head lice. This information is confidential at school. Often parents will advise friends to check children if they have been playing together and lice have been detected.

• Field Trip and other key Permission Click forms sometimes go to parents’ junk mail folders. Please check your email from time to time for important forms to sign online. 

SCHOOL COUNCIL & FUNDRAISING SOCIETY- ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING (AGM)

When:  Monday, September 25 at 6:30 PM 

Where: Library learning commons or online. Please see your email for the meeting link.

Who:  All parents and caregivers are invited

Why: Annual General Meeting and elections

How to prepare: All meeting agendas and minutes can be viewed on the Parent Page

     of the school website.

Time commitment:

• School Council - Monthly meetings (45 min); dates & times TBD
• Friends of A.L. Horton Elementary School Society - Monthly meetings (1 hour)
• Elected directors may oversee parent/caregiver volunteers leading fundraisers during the year
• Most work is done by volunteers. Ideas come from the society directors.

The Friends of A.L. Horton Fundraising Society needs your help fundraising to replace our playgrounds. Come hear the latest metal analysis results for our equipment, updates on funds raised during the past two years, and next steps!

CELEBRATIONS & CHANGES

• Welcome to Mrs. Ionetz who is currently working in the LINKS 1 classroom and will join the Kindergarten team later this fall.
• Farewell to Miss Konieczny (“Miss K”) who has accepted a new MHCB (Mental Health Capacity Building) Coach position in the Sherwood Park area. We wish her good luck on her next journey. We hope to have a new coach shortly after Thanksgiving.
• Congratulations to the following parents whose names were drawn from the 102 September surveys returned. They each won a Tim Hortons gift card for a yummy beverage.
• Ashley Hayduk
• Brandy Motiuk
• Julie Killeen
• Elaine Cartier
• Brittanie Van Giersbergen

• Merci/Graçias/Dyakuyu/Thank you to eight of our families who participated in a group photo to celebrate the diversity of languages spoken by children and parents/caregivers at A.L. Horton School!
• We highlighted French, Spanish, Ukrainian, English aided by a communication device, Russian, Cantonese, Swahili, Arabic, Czech, and Punjabi, which are just half of the many languages our families and students speak!

• Theatre Prospero artists are coming to our school in January 2024!
• We are delighted to host three artists during the cold winter months as we explore movement, music, set design, dance, acting, and leadership. Our themes for creating a unique student-led show with all classes include hockey, dance, languages, appreciating diversity, and stories. A performance for families at the end of January will allow students to showcase their collaborative and creative efforts. Stay tuned!
• A $15 000 grant from the Alberta Foundation for the Arts - Artists in Education and $5000 from the school hot lunch program is making this experience possible for our students. (Thank you for supporting our school hot dog and community restaurants hot lunch program!)

EVENTS AROUND THE SCHOOL

First Nations, Métis, and Inuit lead teacher Ms. Morgana Larsen is inviting students to observe National Truth & Reconciliation week with the following activities:

• Self-identified students are helping to design the library learning commons loft to be a safe, welcoming space for indigenous students and families 
• All classrooms are adopting a tree in the schoolyard and will decorate it orange for awareness that Every Child Matters on Orange Shirt Day, September 29.
• Students are invited to wear an orange shirt on Friday, September 29.

The first week of October is Read-In Week when we celebrate stories and texts. Guest readers will be visiting classrooms and Mrs. Busenius & Ms. Rice will be reading books on the daily video announcements. Mrs. Shell has invited students to take a photo of themselves reading for a display outside the library learning commons.

The Terry Fox Walk is happening today! Thank you to all families for working on pledges towards our school goal of $2000 raised. Gratitude to Mrs. Kuhn & Mrs. Miller for organizing the walk and some treats for everyone back at the school. 

OUR STORY - STAY CONNECTED!

Check out photos, archives of this school newsletter, student artwork, learning information, and key events on our social media platforms:

Twitter - @ALHortonSchool

Instagram - alhortonelementary 

Facebook - @alhortonschool 

School website - www.alhorton.ca 

Fundraising society’s Facebook - Friends of A.L. Horton School Society

EVENTS IN SEPTEMBER 2023

22 - Terry Fox Walk at 1 PM

25 - School Council Annual General Meeting 6:30 PM in library; Fundraising meeting follows (join us online:

29 - Gr 3-6 Ukrainian language & Culture students to Viter show

29 - Celebrating National Truth & Reconciliation Day/Orange Shirt Day; Every Child Matters!

EVENTS IN OCTOBER 2023

4 - Early dismissal at 2 PM

6 - No School; Staff professional learning off site

9 - No School; Thanksgiving Day

10 - Photo Day 1 (Kindergarten B, Grades 1 - 6)

11 - Photo Day 2 (Kindergarten A only)

11 - Lunch with Your Child Day @ 12:20 to 12:50 PM

12 - Bus evacuation practice K-6

13 - Kinder bus evacuation

25 - Parent/Teacher Conferences 4:00 - 7:00 PM

26 - Parent/Teacher Conferences 4:00 - 7:00 PM

31 - Halloween activities; parade in the morning in the gym

~Connecting to foster the minds and hearts of leaders~

Mrs. Keri Busenius             &                  Ms. Amy Rice

Principal                                                  Assistant Principal