Weekly Message - September 6th Important Dates: · September 9 – Welcome Back Assembly – Formal Uniform Day. · September 12 – Meet the Teacher/Welcome Back Picnic 5PM - 7PM · September 13 – Terry Fox Run (Wear your Canada clothing/ Wear red!) · September 16 – School Photos. Formal Uniform Day · September 19 – 6- 7 pm School Council in Learning Commons – All parents welcome. · September 23 – Fun Lunch Healthy Hunger Log In Fun Lunch FAQ.pdf (Orders are due Wednesday 18 Sept) · September 27th – Non-Instructional Day – No school for students · September 30th – National Truth and Reconciliation Day – School is closed · October 14th – Thanksgiving Day – School is closed Dear CAS Families, The start of another school year. Every September starts with it's fair share of chaos. We start school, and we start all of our fun after school activities and sports as well. We return to our places of worship after perhaps a summer vacation. Everything starts up. And while we are used to it all, it is still change. Some call the beginning of September a season of transitions. This chaos is necessary to develop calm and to appreciate calm. As one of my favourite authors, Dr. Jody Carrington says "we are all just walking each other home". Parents and educators, drop your shoulders and remember we will all be ok. Our children will all be ok. We were never meant to do any of this alone - which is why we are all here. This year, we welcomed more new students and more families to our school than ever before. For many, a transition to a different school can be really challenging. The memories of the last school and the old friends are fresh in our minds. New friendships don't occur instantly, new schools are unfamiliar and take getting used to. I would like to encourage all of our returning families and returning students to take a moment to say hello to the new student they pass by in the hall, sit beside in the classroom or stand beside at the bus stop or in the compound at the beginning or end of the day. Sometimes, it is just the quick hello, the warm smile, the welcome that makes all of the difference. To all of our new families - there are so many of you this year - welcome to Chris Akkerman School. The very best school in all of Calgary (sometimes I am a bit bias!). We are so glad you are here. We look forward to connecting with you on Thursday at our family picnic. We are hopeful you will get involved in school council. Welcome. We are glad you decided to join our amazing community! Dr. Bettesworth Proud Principal of Chris Akkerman School Family Picnic and Meet the Teacher Night – September 12 Please sign up for a time to meet your child’s teacher and learn all about the classroom routines, learning space and expectations. The conference booking is now open and available for booking. Your conference booking is found in your MyCBE account under conference booking. Your 25 minute session with the teacher will include several other families. This time is intended to learn about the classroom, learn what is happening in your child’s grade and learn a little bit about the teacher. There will not be time to discuss any celebrations or concerns you might have regarding your as there is not privacy nor is there time. Please consider making an appointment with your teacher if you need to urgently discuss your child’s learning needs. Thank you! Please note – Ms Costinak (Music) and Mme Kortmann (French) will both be located in the music room, will be presenting to families together, and will have shorter 15 minute sessions. Please do not leave your child unattended in the music room. The sessions will be short to accommodate more families. Every session will begin promptly at the specific start time. Teachers will close the door when they are beginning to ensure the group attending can both hear them and not be distracted by action int he hallway. If you are late for your session, please consider attending at a different time if there is space. Please either bring your own picnic or select from one of the food trucks that will be here. Join us outside the school for dinner and a chance to connect with friends and families from other classes. The doors will open at 5PM for our Kindergarten families and at 5:30 for all Gr 1 – 5 families. We look forward to meeting you on Thursday evening. The following food trucks will be available at CAS from 4:00 pm to 7:30 pm! Come and enjoy some delicious food and mingle with our friends and family or bring your own picnic to the school grounds. · UZo Ice-cream · Wonton Ninja · Peroghy Boys · Vasilis Greek Food Bus J Update: The driver of the Chris Akkerman J bus expressed concern regarding the “Eastbound Cornerbrook Way after Cornerbrook Gate NE at the mailboxes” stop. The stop is located on a narrow residential road with parent vehicles parked on both sides, leaving no room for the bus to pull over to the curb to allow students to safely load and unload. Following a safety audit, it was determined that the stop would be relocated to “Eastbound Cornerstone Boulevard NE after Cornergate Row NE at mailboxes”. This stop change will take effect on September 11, 2024. Parents, kindly do NOT park in bus parking. While I know the space is available, it prevents our drivers from doing their work and it puts our student’s safety at risk. To show your appreciation for our drivers and to demonstrate your understanding of the importance of student safety – kindly find a place to park that is away from the bus stop. Walking Fieldtrips The CBE encourages students and teachers to plan walking fieldtrips close to school within a 2 km radius of the school to maximize student learning opportunities. Teachers can inform parents by email and prepare students for such excursions, so they have comfortable footwear, weather-appropriate clothing and any other materials needed to make a successful trip. They may invite parents to join, but it isn't mandatory to meet ratios. If your child’s class is going on a walking fieldtrip, your teacher will send you an e-mail to let you know. You will receive this 48 hours before the event. Ever Active School Residency Chris Akkerman School has been selected for an Ever Active Schools Residency during the 2024 - 2025 school year! This organization will take data on how our families commute to school and how to improve their fitness and environmental impact in the process. This organization will work closely with Mr. Peniuk and our Grade 5 students/team during the year. Please fill out this important survey before September 16th! Here is the information for the survey link: Family Travel Survey This survey will help us understand how our students travel to and from school and identify any challenges they face. Grade 5s will be using the data from the survey to learn of ways to improve the commute to Chris Akkerman among many other things. Thank you for taking the time to fill in the survey. | 
