Arbour Lake School Weekly Message - January 12, 2024
Good afternoon ALS families,
I hope that everyone had a wonderful winter break, certainly the weather wasn’t the issue it has become this week. Our attendance rates were low today knowing that many families opted to keep their children home due to the cold temperatures. While we move into warmer temperatures next week, please do continue to ensure that students are dressed for the weather. Provided that temperatures remain above -20 degrees, students do go outdoors daily.
As we get back into the swing of things, this month is a busy one. Teachers are currently working on report cards that will become available to parents/guardians via PowerSchool on January 30th. Report cards are a formal documentation of student progress, however, nothing outlined in your child’s report card should come as a surprise to you. Communication between home and school is vital to student success. Teachers are expected to reach out to parents if they have noted any concerns or challenges regarding your child’s learning, therefore if your child is experiencing challenges in their classes, you should know this and be expecting to see this reflected in their report card. Additionally, if you have any concerns, at any time, I urge you to reach out to us, contact your child’s teacher or homeroom teacher. Second semester begins on January 31st and students in grades 7-9 will be moving into their semester two complementary courses.
We have continued to see an increase in student enrollment at Arbour Lake School. An unprecedented enrollment increase has been noted throughout the system. Normally once the September 30th count is in, the funding allocated to the school is set regardless of how many new students register during the course of the school year. With this year seeing such a high volume of increased enrolment across the city, additional funding has been allocated for semester 2 for those schools with a significant enrollment increase since September. If you will recall, in the spring of 2023 our projected enrollment for the 2023-2024 school year was 670 students. That is an 85% utilization rate which is considered relatively ideal by planning standards and the AB Government. It allows for some increased enrollment throughout the year and the official status of the school is “limited,” meaning that we do have some flexibility and space for additional enrollments. Of course, this is a very simplistic way of explaining school utilization rates and capacity, as there are many factors and formulas considered when determining both. In October we received our official funding for the year based on the September 30th count of 742 students. As of today however, our enrollment has increased to 766 with new students continuing to join us weekly. Unlike in previous years, because the increase in enrollment is system wide and so significant, some schools have been allocated additional funding. On Monday I was made aware that Arbour Lake School will be receiving some additional funding. Over the course of the week our administrative team has worked to prioritize our pressure points and identify our greatest areas of so as to ensure the allocation of these funds is as impactful as possible. Next Tuesday is School Council. This is a virtual meeting that will begin at 6:30PM. During this meeting I will detail our plan for these additional funds. I hope you’re able to join us using the following link: Click here to join the meeting. Finally, there is an important message below for all families with students originally designated to Tom Baines School but that were redirected to Arbour Lake School this year.
Monday is a non-instructional day and students do not have classes. I wish you all a great extended weekend with your children and I hope that you are able to stay indoors as we wait for this cold snap to end. Please feel free to reach out if you need anything at all.
Nancy Lisi, Principal
Announcements & Reminders:
TOM BAINES STUDENTS ONLY – REDESIGNATION FOR NEXT YEAR
If your child’s designated school was Tom Baines, but due to over enrollment at Tom Baines School they were redirected to Arbour Lake School, please know that your child is being re-designated back to Tom Banes School for the 2024-2025 school year. All Tom Baines students enrolled at Arbour Lake School this year, will return to Tome Baines next year for the 2024-2025 school year. Please email me if you have questions or concerns: nmlisi@cbe.ab.ca
Lost and Found
Please have your student check our Lost & Found if they have lost an article of clothing. Anything not claimed by Friday, January 19th will be donated to local charities.
NEEDED - Parent Volunteer Sign-Up for Fun Lunch - Thursdays
For parents who wish to volunteer, our Fun Lunch days need some support. If you have completed your police check and requirements for volunteering within CBE and are a quick learner in understanding systems of organization we would love to have you come join us on Thursdays at lunch to support Fun Lunch distribution. Please use the Sign-up Genius link below in order to do so:
Sign Up Here: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0B4CAEA628A3FDC34-46860288-funlunch/24158094#/
The Coyotes Canteen is open. All sales are CASH ONLY.
|
Canteen Items |
Price |
|
Cheez-It Crackers |
$2.00 |
|
Rice Crispy |
$1.00 |
|
Puff Wheat |
$1.50 |
|
SmartFood – Popcorn |
$1.50 |
|
Chips – Lay’s Oven Baked |
$1.00 |
|
Chocolate Cookie |
$1.00 |
|
SM Noodle Bowl (Beef/Chicken/Spicy/Veggie) |
$1.75 |
|
LG Noodle Bowl (Beef/Chicken) |
$2.50 |
|
Water |
$1.50 |
|
Juice (Apple, Orange, & Grapefruit) |
$1.50 |
Extra-curricular Activities Schedule - Updated
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MONDAY |
TUESDAY |
WEDNESDAY |
THURSDAY |
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LUNCH |
LUNCH |
LUNCH |
LUNCH |
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|
|
AFTERSCHOOL |
AFTERSCHOOL |
AFTERSCHOOL |
AFTERSCHOOL |
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Upcoming Events & Important Dates
Jan 15 Non-instructional Day – No Classes
Jan 16 Grade 9 Trip to Zoo
School Council Meeting @ 6:30pm - Virtual
Jan 17 Grade 7 Trip to Telus Spark (7.1, 7.2, 7.3, 7.4)
Jan 18 ImPACt – Lunch
Jan 23 Grade 9 Trip to Zoo
Jan 24 Grade 9 Trip to Zoo
Jan 29 Grade 9 Visit to Robert Thirsk HS
Jan 30 Report Cards – Go live in PS
Leadership 9 Carnival
Jan 31 Semester 2 Begins – Complementary Courses Change
Bell Let’s Talk Day
Feb 1 ImPACT
Feb 5 Grade 6 Ski Clinic – COP
Feb 6 Grade 7 Ski Clinic – COP
Feb 7 Grade 7 Ski Clinic – COP
Feb 12 Grade 6 & 9 Guest Speaker – Political Cartoonist
Feb 15-16 Teachers’ Convention – School Closed
Feb 19 Family Day – School Closed
Feb 20 School Council 6:30PM
Feb 26 Grade 6 Guest Speaker – Jennifer Wyness City Councillor
Feb 27 Lifetouch Team Photos
Feb 28 Pink Shirt Day
Feb 29 Open House – 6:30-8PM
Healthy Hunger Dates
Organized by our School Council, Arbour Lake School does offer “Fun Lunches” through Healthy Hunger. Parents can order lunch for their child in advance. It is delivered to the school on the noted date and distributed to students. If you’re interested in taking advantage of getting a break from making lunches occasionally this is a nice treat for parents and students. The link to sign up is below. Please scroll down and select “Arbour Lake Middle School” – there are two schools with similar names, this is the one that takes you to our staff selection.
https://healthyhunger.ca/parent-help
Jan 18 Subway
Jan 24 Tim Horton’s Snack
Jan 25 Pizza 73
Parent Volunteer Sign-Up for Fun Lunch - Thursdays
For parents who wish to volunteer, our Fun Lunch days need some support. If you have completed your police check and requirements for volunteering within CBE and are a quick learner in understanding systems of organization we would love to have you come join us on Thursdays at lunch to support Fun Lunch distribution. Please use the Sign-up Genius link below in order to do so:
Sign Up Here: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0B4CAEA628A3FDC34-46860288-funlunch/24158094#/
Arbour Lake School Social Media Accounts
Twitter: @ArbourLake_CBE Instagram: arbourlake_cbe