Posted: November 13, 2023

Families of Shortreed,

We hope you had a wonderful weekend and had a chance to take a moment to honour those who have served our country. If you celebrated Diwali on Sunday, we hope you had a fantastic day and evening… Happy Diwali!

Our signups for Student Inclusive Conferences will be out Tuesday afternoon/evening, so be sure to pick a timeslot that works for you. These will be emailed, and a reminder will be posted on social media.

If you were not satisfied with your school photos, retakes occur on Thursday, so please come prepared and let the teacher know that your child would like retakes. There have been times when the child has not let the teacher know and missed the retakes, so it is important that for our young students, parents/caregivers also let the teacher know.

And now… some important info on our Christmas Concerts!

• Due to our growth over the past few years, we have had to make some changes to ensure that there are more seats for parents and families to watch. This year, we will be having THREE performances.
  • Tuesday, December 19th at 1:00 pm
  • Wednesday, December 20th at 1:00 pm
  • Wednesday, December 20th at 6:20 pm.
• All students are expected to be at all concerts. If they cannot make it for a very important reason, the school must be notified by a note, email, or phone call beforehand.
• Students should wear “nicer than everyday” clothes for the concert.
• For the evening concert on December 20th:
  • K/1 students and their siblings must arrive at the school at 6:00 pm and go to their classroom. Parents of K/1 students will be seated first, and then if there is any extra room in the gym, other parents will be seated.
  • Grade 2-5 students who do not have siblings in K/1 need to arrive at the school at 6:45 and go to their classrooms. Around 6:50, there will be a 15-minute intermission, when all K/1 parents will exit the gym, pick up their kids and go home. The grade 2-5 parents will then be seated in the gym to watch their concert portion. Parents with children in both groups will remain in the gym for the entire performance.
• Please consider coming to one of the afternoon performances (if possible) and leaving room at the evening performance for parents who can only make that showtime. Parents who are not attending the evening show to watch still need to drop their children off at the school from 6:00-8:00 pm so all students are in attendance for the evening performance. Students will be supervised by their teachers for this entire time.

Friday Morning Dance sessions occur on the last and first Friday of each month. See below for more info.

We are focusing on more general items for this week’s “Good Things” section and will feature our divisions next week.

As always, we are honoured to work, learn, and play on the unceded ancestral territory of the Matsqui First Nation. This acknowledgment is also our commitment to learning. It was so important that we recognized National Indigenous Veteran’s Day last week (on November 8) and also at our Remembrance Day assembly. Students shared their learning over the PA and then shared a powerful poem during the assembly. We hope you take a moment to read the poem by Solomon Ratt here. 

Good Things to Talk About

Respect and Honour – We had our Remembrance Day Assembly on Thursday and our students did an incredible job of showing respect and honour throughout the assembly. They sat quietly and listened to the speakers, bowed their heads and quietly reflected during the moment of silence, and observed with keen eyes and full hearts as our wreath bearers took their time to carefully and respectfully lay the wreaths.

Grade 5 Remembrance Day Poetry Readers – We were so proud to see some of our grade 5 students show their courage to read out three important poems at our assembly. Helena and Avery read the poem by Solomon Ratt (linked above); Harleigh and Angad read “Why Wear a Poppy”; and Kieran and Jaida read “In Flanders Fields”. These poems are so important and we appreciate the readers who did a great job sharing them.

Shortreed Wreath Bearers – Two students from each class were selected to be wreath bearers for our assembly. They took this job very seriously, of which we are so thankful, and carefully walked up to place their classroom wreath on our board. After doing this, they bowed their heads for a moment to honour those who have served and currently serve our country.

Celebrating Peace With a Song – Mrs. Muller had so many of us with tears of joy in our eyes with the song she led at the end of our assembly. The grade 5 class sang a beautiful version of the song “One Day”… and then our hearts burst to see our entire school participate in the song’s chorus! Thank you to Mrs. Muller and the grade 5s for their efforts in leading this.

National Indigenous Veteran’s Day – As shared above, on Wednesday over the PA, 2 of our grade 5 students, Makinley and Amelia, shared their learning and reflections about National Indigenous Veterans Day. Our grade 5 students have been learning about some key Indigenous Veterans and learning more about why there is an additional day to honour and remember these Veterans. They completed projects that were on display outside the library for all our students to see.

Peace Is… During our assembly, we shared artwork and writing from a few of our primary classes about their ideas of peace. We loved reading and hearing their ideas about what reminds them of peace… and how simple and beautiful these things are. They wrote about moments with family, listening to waterfalls, playing and celebrating with friends, and drinking hot cocoa.

Poppy Artwork at Firehouse Cafe – If you walked by or entered the Firehouse Cafe (the old Milsean building), you would have seen some beautiful poppy artwork on the windows created by Shortreed students. We were thankful to connect and support Langley Meals on Wheels at the Firehouse Cafe.

UFV Teacher Candidates at Shortreed – Congrats to our three teacher candidates from UFV who successfully completed their short practicum. Ms. McLeod, Ms. Visscher, and Ms. Wust will be back in February to complete their long practicum, and we can’t wait to see them back!

The Week Ahead

Tuesday – Signups for Student Inclusive Conferences sent out in the afternoon/evening; PAC Purdy’s Fundraiser is due.
Thursday – Photo Retakes (am)
Friday – Fire Drill after recess

Month at a Glance

Wednesday, Nov 22 – Orders due for PAC Plant Fundraiser
Friday, Nov 24 – PAC Dollar Sale, PAC Treat Day
Monday, Nov 27 – Student Inclusive Conferences start
Tues-Thurs, Nov 28-30 – Scholastic Book Fair
Wednesday, Nov 29 – Student Inclusive Conference Day (only students who have conferences attend for conference time only – please see email that was sent regarding this day) and evening.
Thursday, Nov 30 – Early Dismissal at 12:33 for Student Inclusive Conferences
Saturday, Dec 2 – Shortreed Winter Market (in the gym)
Thursday, Dec 7 – last day for Student Inclusive Conferences; pick up plant orders
Friday, Dec 8 – Santa Breakfast
Wednesday, Dec 13 – PAC Meeting 9am; PAC Hot Lunch
Thursday, Dec 14 – Lockdown Drill
Tuesday, Dec 19 – Afternoon Concert #1 – 1:00
Wednesday, Dec 20 – Afternoon Concert #2 – 1:00; Evening Concert 6:20/7:00
Thursday, Dec 21 – pyjama day, PAC free treat day; Shortreed carolling; last day of school before Winter Break

You can download a list of the important dates in the district for 2023-2024 by clicking here.

Information and Reminders 

• Our breakfast program will be up and running on Nov 6! Please register here.
• Friday Dance Sessions!  Does your grade 2-5 child love to move? Come to the gym at 7:45 on the last and first Fridays of the month to learn Bhangra, line dance, and other forms of dance!
  ” I dance to bring meaning, to bring possibility, and to bring inspiration to others. I dance because it makes me whole, so would you like to try some dance moves with me on Friday mornings!”

• Information About School Status During Inclement Weather

  Snow closures and power outages are an annual occurrence in Langley School District. So, where do you go to get information about the status of schools during periods of inclement weather? If you are able to access the internet via computer or smartphone, current information about Langley schools can be accessed on all school websites or www.sd35.bc.ca. Updates are also posted to X (formerly Twitter) @LangleySchools and Facebook at www.facebook.com/langleyschooldistrict. If you don’t have internet connectivity but your phone is working, call a relative or friend in an area that has not been affected by the storm and ask them to check the district website for you. Local radio stations are also informed of school status in Langley. Tune in to CKWX 1130AM, CKNW 980AM, Country Radio 107.1FM, Pulse 107.7 or CBC 690AM or 88.1FM for updates.

  Please note that Langley District schools are all considered ‘open’ until a decision to close is required. Decisions on school closures are usually made by 6:30am. As always, it is a parent’s decision whether to send their child to school based on safety and individual circumstances. If you feel it is unsafe for you or your child to travel to or attend an open school for any reason, please keep your child home and report an absence to the school.

• As the weather cools, if you are in need of boots and/or a coat, please check out our free Boot and Coat exchange near the office and gym.

• Attendance/Absence – If your child is going to be absent, arriving late, away or leaving early due to an appointment, please notify the school of your child’s absence by emailing SCEAttendance@sd35.bc.ca or calling 604-856-4167.

• Our school parking lot is closed between 8:15-9:00 and 2:00-2:45 (other than daycare, buses, and vehicles for people with a disability). The church across the street graciously allows us to use their parking lot for pick-up and drop-off so please park there or along 28th Ave. Do not park in the “no parking” (coned) areas along the yellow curbs. No u-turns.
• West Coast Recess – As we have done over the past few years, every day is an outside day at Shortreed. Unless there is a severe rainstorm (or snowstorm), we will be heading outside. Please make sure your child has a coat to wear outside. We have a good selection of coats in our FREE Coat Exchange near the office, so come by and check them out.
• Please bring inside shoes for your child. This helps to keep our school clean and dry. If you need some help with shoes, check out our FREE Shoe and Boot Exchange at the office.
• Not Feeling Well? If your child has cold or flu-like symptoms, please keep them home until they have improved and they are well enough to attend school. This will help keep our staff and students as healthy as possible.

PAC Info

Community Events and Information

Check out events and activities around Langley by clicking on the Community Bulletin Board here!

From Fraser Health:
Protect your children from respiratory illnesses this winter

Respiratory illnesses tend to increase as we spend more time indoors. Common colds, the flu and COVID-19 spread through tiny droplets as people who are sick breathe, talk, cough or sneeze. When other people touch these droplets and then their eyes, mouth or nose before washing their hands they may become sick.

There are a handful of steps both children and adults can take to protect themselves and limit the spread of respiratory illnesses:

• Wash your hands often with soap and water. Use alcohol-based sanitizer if soap and water is not available.
• Avoid touching your face, especially your eyes, mouth and nose.
• Cough and sneeze into your elbow.
• If you have symptoms, stay home and stay away from people at higher risk of serious illness
• To learn more about immunizations, click here.

Canadian University Men’s Rugby Championship
Trinity Western University is proud to be hosting the Canadian University Men’s Rugby Championship. Featuring the top 8 university men’s teams from across the country, the CUMRC is being held at the Willoughby Park Stadium from November 15th through 19th. Come watch future stars playing exciting, fast-paced rugby by buying your tickets here.