Upcoming Dates:

Sept. 30, 2023 - Flags will be half-masted at the end of the day Thurs, Sep 28 and raised on Mon, Oct 2, 2023 for National Day for Truth and Reconciliation – the day honours the children who never returned home and survivors of residential schools, as well as their families and communities. 
Thursday Oct. 5 - World Teacher Day
Monday, October 9 - Thanksgiving - Schools are CLOSED. 
Thursday October 12- School Picture Day. Individual pictures. Please note class photos will be taken November 16, 2023 
Thursday Oct. 19 School Council and School Enrichment Society AGM 6:30 pm 
Friday, October 20- Non- Instructional Day- No School for Students 

Reminders: 

• All cell phones need to be handed into the teacher at the beginning of the day and then handed back. Parents also need to know that they must let the teacher know that their child will be bringing a phone to school. 
• Please remember to pack utensils for lunches/ snacks. This helps students be prepared and reduces our environmental footprint. 
• We ask that Pokémon cards, trading cards and toys remain at home. 
• As the weather changes, please ensure your child has waterproof footwear for outside play and walking to Fish Creek and the pond. 
• Time Change: The October 19 School Council and School Enrichment Society AGM Meeting starts at 6:30 pm. 
• Our Weekly Update is posted on our website (a link on the home page and in our News Centre) 

Orange Shirt Day Assembly 

Thank you to the Grade 1 Students for sharing their learning about National Day for Truth and Reconciliation & Orange Shirt Day. The grade 1 students did an exceptional job of sharing their learning and helped us all to see the importance of Orange Shirt Day. 

School Trustee and MLA Visit last Monday 

We were pleased to welcome CBE Director, Martin Poirier, School Trustee Nancy Close and MLA Eric Bouchard to Dr. Freda Miller School on Monday September 22, 2023. Our guests got to experience what Leaning on the Land looks like, spoke with some students in Grade 3 about what they were learning in math and learned about programming that supports student wellness. 

While Mr. Poirier, Education Director, visits often and Nancy Close and Eric Bouchard said they would love to be invited back in the new year and MLA Eric Bouchard noted it was “a wonderful environment for learning”. 

School Council and SES (School Enrichment Society) Update

We are very grateful for parents who came out to the meeting. Thank you to the parents who were elected to executive positions this week: 

Chair: Janelle Pepin 
Vice Chair: Turab Hasan 
Secretary: Liz LeDrew 
Key Communicator: Saheedat Ajiboye 

Thursday October 19 is our AGM for our SES Meeting. We will elect some new executive members for the SES executive in October. 

Thank you to Allyne Marriott for serving as Chair of the School Council for 3 years. What a remarkable contribution to our school community! 

A parent group is organizing hot lunch days, watch for a flyer with a QR code that will be sent home next week. 

Fundraising information like the upcoming sale of Purdy’s chocolates and Growing Smiles plants are shared through school messenger. These messages only go out to parents who have subscribed to commercial messages. If you wish to receive information on SES fundraisers such as hot lunch days and fundraising events, please ensure you have subscribed to commercial messages. 

School council and SES meeting times have been moved later in the evening to provide parents with more time between work and home. Meetings are now from 6:30pm –8:00 pm. 

Birthday Book Reminder | July, August and Non-school day Birthdays 
For students celebrating a birthday, we at Dr. Freda Miller School invite students to donate a “birthday” book to our Learning Commons that we affectionately call “The Den”. Students bring a new book to school that their teacher will read in class on their birthday. We then add a special bookplate with the student’s name and the birthday that they are honoring. 
If your child has a birthday in July or August or during a break, they can bring in a book at any time to celebrate their special day. 

School Photo Day- Individual Photos 

Picture Day is on Thursday October 12, 2023. After Picture Day, parents can order pictures on mylifetouch.ca using your Portrait ID and Access Code, which can be found on your Picture Day order form that will be sent home after picture day. 
Use these tips to help your child get ready for a great-looking school portrait that you’ll treasure forever. 

Help your child pick out clothes and colors that look good on them. After all, your child is the star of the photo—not their shirt, so avoid slogans, logos, and big patterns. Small jewelry and accessories are fine but nothing too big or distracting. Make sure to check your flyer to see sample poses for your Picture Day. Some poses may show pants or skirts, so plan the complete outfit. 

Glasses are okay! Lifetouch photographers know all the tricks to reduce glare. 

Keep kids relaxed and ready to be themselves. Smiles can look fake if practiced ahead of time. Remember, smiles are like french fries—they are better when they are fresh. 

Don’t worry about “perfect”! That hair that always sticks up or a missing tooth shows your child just as they are right now—and you’ll enjoy looking back on that for years to come. 

If your child likes to wear a hat and you do not want your child to wear a hat for their photo, please have a conversation with them at home before picture day. We simply ask students to step into the frame as they are. 

If your child is absent for Picture Day, retakes are scheduled for November 16, 2023. 

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