September 2023 BVE Newsletter
Welcome back, BVE Students and Families! I hope the first days of school are treating you well and that you had a good summer.
As you might expect, there is lots going on in the weeks ahead. Please ensure that you are checking your child’s backpack each night, and check your email too, since many teachers will communicate that way.
From the School Office – Four Things that Need Your Attention:
- You may have heard that our agenda supplier, FirstClass, had a factory fire which has resulted in a delay in them shipping our BVE agendas. We have heard that we can expect the agendas by the end of the month. In the meantime, we have manually copied the Student Handbooks (the first 8 pages of the agenda). Please read the Student Handbook over with your child, as it has lots of important information about our school, our staff, and our school-wide expectations.
- School fees – please send a cheque or cash for $40 ($32 school supply and $8 agenda fee) if you are using the bulk school supplies. If your child is bringing their own school supplies, only the agenda fee is due. Though agendas are late, we have not yet confirmed any discount from the supplier. We can only take cash or cheque at this juncture, sorry no eTransfer yet.
- You will also have received copies of the contact and registration information we have for your child. Each year, this information needs to be verified by the students’ guardian(s) to confirm that we have accurate information on file. Please read over the verification form carefully, correcting anything that you wish changed right on the sheet. Sign, and return this to your child’s teacher.
- And lastly, a package has been sent home that asks for your permission for many things throughout the year, including in-town (walking) field trips, photo use in assemblies and newsletters, permission for your child to access food from the school food offerings, internet use permissions, and a few others. Please read the package carefully and sign as appropriate.
It has been wonderful to have your children back in the school this past week – their stories and smiles filled all the staff up with energy and excitement for the year ahead!
Sincerely,
Ariel McDowell
Principal, BVE
Upcoming Dates and Events:
| Date | Event Description |
|---|---|
| Monday, Sept. 11th | BVE Parent Advisory Meeting 6:30-7:30 |
| Tuesday, Sept. 12th | School Photos (Mountain West Studios) Retakes October 27th Cross Country Running team begins (Grades 4 and up, 2:45-approx. 3:30) Community Connections food drive 4-8pm (you will hear sirens – don’t worry!) |
| Friday, Sept. 15th | First Buddy Reading (older classes pair with younger classes) First school Fire Drill of the year (9:45am) |
| Thursday, Sept 21st | District Cross Country Running meet at BVE (volunteers needed) to set up & clean up, help along the route, cheer, or run with the students) |
| Friday, Sept. 22nd | Terry Fox School Run (8:40 Assembly to remember Terry’s legacy, followed by a neighbourhood run at around 9:00 am) volunteers appreciated! |
| Thursday, Sept. 28th | Cross Country Running meet at Arrow Heights Elementary |
| Friday, Sept. 29th | Orange Shirt Day – please try to send your child in an orange shirt if they have one. Some limited numbers of orange shirts may be available for sale – if so, I will send out more information by email soon. |
| Monday, Oct. 2nd | No School (in lieu of National Day of Truth and Reconciliation) |
| Thursday, Oct. 5th | Park Elementary Turkey Trot (Cross Country Running meet) |
| Weds & Thurs Oct. 25 & 26th | Early dismissal at 12:30 to allow time for Goal Setting Conferences with Students, Teachers and Guardians |
Indigenous Education
Indigenous Education in School District 19 seeks to improve success, deepen cultural connection, and increase the presence of Indigenous culture, languages and history for all students. It also aims to help teachers bring Indigenous knowledge into their teaching practice.
Indigenous Education in our District aligns with commitments to the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, the calls to action of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada, and the Draft Principles that Guide the Province of British Columbia’s Relationship with Indigenous People.
If your child has Indigenous ancestry, and you wish them to participate in Indigenous Education opportunities, please contact the office or your child’s teacher, and request a parent consent form and return to the school.
School News
Library News
Library book exchange starts up this week! Please ensure your child keeps their library book in a water proof bag inside their back pack so that books don’t get damaged. Also from the Library, watch for details about the November Scholastic Book Fair, November 16th!
Terry Fox Run
September 22nd is the Terry Fox School Run! Please send your child with a twonie donation if you can, for the Terry Fox Foundation. On the day of the run, we will have a brief assembly at 8:40, followed by the whole school completing a cross country run (two courses, approximately 1km and 2 km).
Cross Country Running Club
Students in Grade 4 through 7 can participate in this fun running club! Thank you to Ms. Hill, Ms. Tomm for organizing the Club. Practices will be Tuesdays after school (2:40-3:10), starting Tuesday, September 12th. District-wide running meets will be on Thursdays, starting with the BVE District run on September 21st. If your child is participating in the District-wide running meets, they will need you to drop them off and pick them up. More information is available in a permission slip going home with students who are interested.
School Drop off and Pick up
If you are dropping your child off at school by car, remember that only families with children in Cornerstones childcare, Kindergarten or Grade One may enter the BVE cul-de-sac for drop of AND pick up. cul-de-sac is extremely crowded, even with just these access rules, so please do not try to pull in and park if you don’t have a child in Kindergarten or Grade One.
Bikes and Scooters
The District purchased more bike racks this summer, and the BVE PAC purchased more bike racks for us two Springs ago, so there is plenty of room now for everyone’s wheels! Please encourage your child to lock up their bike.
Volunteer Opportunities
Your help is always appreciated to keep our school vibrant, community-oriented, and well-organized! Please call Meredith Biollo, our Secretary, to let her know what you would like to volunteer for. Someone will get back to you to confirm and give further information: (250) 837-3085
Here are some ways we would love your help this month:
- Sept 21st BVE District Running meet: Help to set up & clean up, cheer students along the running route, or run with students. Time commitment approximately 2:45 – 3:45 pm
- 22nd BVE School Terry Fox Run: Help to set up & clean up, cheer students along the running route, or run with students. Time commitment approximately 8:40-9:30am
- BVE Lost and Found: Help to sort and hang up items in the lost and found, check for student’s names on items, take photos and share them on PAC Facebook page. Time commitment: approximately one hour a week.
- BVE Breakfast preparation: Prepare breakfast plates for each classroom, includes cutting fruit and other breakfast items, toasting bagels, etc. Time commitment: approximately one hour a week
PAC News
The first BVE Parent Advisory Council meeting is tomorrow, Monday September 11th at 6:30 pm in the BVE Library. This first PAC meeting is when elections are held for the PAC executive positions.
Meetings are held monthly, usually on the first Monday of every month, unless there is a holiday or ProD day, in which case they move to the next available Monday. There is free child minding available, provided by Grade 6 and 7 students, and the meetings are just one hour long, 6:30-7:30. The PAC at BVE is wonderfully supportive of many BVE initiatives, and the PAC also holds some special events for BVE students to take part in. Last year, the PAC purchased outdoor equipment and contributed $200 to each classroom for special items or activities. They also organized and ran the BVE Harvest Festival, and much, much more. The PAC has a yearbook committee that for the past many years has put together a beautiful yearbook for each student FOR FREE, with the help of some local business donations. If you think you would like to add your energy and gifts to the BVE PAC, please come out to a meeting, or email bvepac@gmail.com
There are two ongoing fundraisers that the BVE PAC has available. One is Lovable Labels, which sells washer- and dryer-proof personalized labels to help make sure your children’s items make it home. The other fundraiser is Tru Earth eco-friendly household products.
1) Tru North Fundraiser. Please use this new link to access Tru Earth: tru-earth.sjv.io/BegbieViewElementary
2) Lovable Labels – These super-durable labels can help keep your child’s items out of the Lost and Found! 20% of sales go towards the BVE PAC for purchases of equipment and special events at our school.
Please attend the September PAC meeting if you are interested in volunteering, or contact the PAC at bvepac@gmail.com
Photo Day
Tuesday, September 12th is photo day! Your child will have their individual photo taken. These are used in the Yearbook, and families have the option to purchase photo packages. When you receive the photos, if you are not happy with them there will be an opportunity for retakes on October 27th . We are trying a new photography provider this year, Mountain West Studios.
Annual Community Connections Food Drive
Community Connections is rallying support for the 2023 Emergency Services Food Drive on Tuesday, September 12th from 4-8pm to support the Food Bank.
This event involves hundreds of volunteers, collecting non-perishable foods and cash donations for the food bank in a door-to-door campaign, with help from our emergency services. Let’s fill the food bank with food to support our neighbours!
BVE Commemorates Orange Shirt Day September 29th , and Canada’s National Day for Truth and Reconciliation on September 30th
Leading up to, and on Friday September 29th, classes at BVE will be learning stories about Canada’s colonial past, and the harm caused to Indigenous families and communities. We will be learning together about how this history continues to impact Indigenous and non-Indigenous Canadians, and how knowing about the harms caused in the past can help us more toward a healthier understanding of who we are and who we want to be as a society. One of our school goals is to help implement the School District No. 19 policy on Truth and Reconciliation.
From 1874 to 1996, approximately 150,000 children from First Nations, Inuit, and Metis communities were sent to Residential Schools. It is known that over 3,000 children did not return home. With unmarked graves being discovered and records being examined, it is estimated that over 6,000 never saw their families again.
Phyllis (Jack) Webstad was 6 years old in 1973 and going away to a residential school for the first time. Her grandmother saved up and bought her a beautiful, shiny orange shirt to wear. Those who worked at the school stripped her of the bright-coloured gift and never gave it back. That shirt became a symbol of her trauma and heartbreak. She turned it into a symbol of healing. Orange Shirt Day began in 2013 on September 30. On September 29th, BVE will commemorate Orange Shirt Day with some school-wide activities, and we encourage students and staff to wear an orange shirt if they would like. In past years, the Indigenous Education Department has had a few orange shirts available for sale. If they are offered again this year, I will send out an email. If your child doesn’t have an orange shirt, don’t worry: we will be making little orange shirts out of felt at school, so this can be worn if your child would like.
In 2021, the day became known as the Day of Truth and Reconciliation. It is a day for many Canadians to learn and reflect on our shared history, in the hopes to begin healing. This year, the Day of Truth and Reconciliation falls on a Saturday, so Monday, October 2nd there will be no school. We hope that BVE families can learn together with your children, since most of us grew up not knowing this history.
Truth and Reconciliation resources to explore:
- Learn more about Orange Shirt Day, opens a new window
- Learn more about the Day of Truth and Reconciliation, opens a new window
- Podcasts: Residential schools, opens a new window
- Documentary: The Pass System, opens a new window
- Film: We Were Children, opens a new window
- Documentary Series: Elder in the making
(Information and links courtesy of the Halifax Library)
BVE Staff and Configuration:
Our BVE staff is a dedicated team! Please have a look in the display case at the front entry area, and you can see photos to help you put faces to names.
| Ms. Biollo | Secretary |
| Ms. Wegner | Library Clerk |
| Ms. Adam | Education Assistant/Student Supervision |
| Ms. Lucius | Education Assistant/Student Supervision |
| Ms. McNutt | Education Assistant |
| Ms. Mohr | Education Assistant |
| Ms. Pendergast | Education Assistant/Student Supervision |
| Ms. Waterhouse | Education Assistant |
| Ms. McKenzie | Strong Start Facilitator & Education Assistant |
| Ms. Cunningham | Custodian-in-charge |
| Ms. Pratico | Custodian |
| Mr. White | Custodian |
| Ms. McDowell | Principal |
| Ms. Rogers | Kindergarten Teacher |
| Ms. Evans & Ms. Kramer | Kindergarten and Grade 1 Teachers |
| Ms. Wilson | Librarian and Grade 1 Teacher |
| Ms. Schadinger | Grade 1 Teacher |
| Ms. Embury | Grade 2 Teacher |
| Ms. Uremovich | Grade 1/2 Teacher |
| Ms. Bafaro | Grade 5 (Tuesdays) Grade 1/2 (Wednesdays) and Grade 3/4 (Thursdays) Teacher |
| Ms. Bouvette | Learning Support and Grade 3 Teacher |
| Ms. Harrison | Grade 3 Teacher |
| Ms. Wall | Grade 3/4 Teacher |
| Ms. Hill | Grade 4 Teacher |
| Ms. Floyd | Grade 5 Teacher |
| Mr. Uremovich | Grade 5/6 Teacher |
| Ms. McLay | Grade 6/7 Teacher |
| Ms. Tomm | Grade 6/7 Teacher |
| Ms. Langlois | Grade 6/7 Teacher |
| Ms. Ausman | Band Teacher |
| Ms. Stiles | Learning Support Teacher |
| Ms. Ford | Learning Support Teacher |
| Ms. Fransoo | Learning Support Teacher |
| Ms. Lambert | Prep Teacher |
| Ms. Stewardson | Indigenous Student Advocate |
| Ms. Penner | Speech and Language Pathologist |
Stay connected!
Please visit our website begbieview.sd19.bc.ca
