Week Ahead

February 12	Kindergarten Celebration of Learning (Monday/Wednesday) Grade 4 Art Felt Studios
February13	Kindergarten Celebration of Learning (Tuesday/Thursday) Grade 4 Art Felt Studios
February 14	Grade 1 Immunizations
February 15	Teachers’ Convention – No School for all students
February 16	Teachers’ Convention – No School for all students

Upcoming Important Dates

February 19	Family Day – No School for all students
February 21	Fun Lunch – Lunch Lady
February 27	Grade 2 Studio Bell Field Trip
February 28	Pink Shirt Day Grade 5 Be Brave Hitman Game Field Trip

Principal’s Message

“Love and kindness are never wasted. They always make a difference. They bless the one who receives them, and they bless you, the giver.”
~Barbara De Angelis

February is often considered heart month for many reasons. Some families celebrate Valentine’s Day on February 14, Random Acts of Kindness Week takes place during the week of February 11-14, the Heart and Stroke Foundation share heart health messages through activities such as Jump Rope for Heart and Pink Shirt Day, spreading its message of belonging and kindness is acknowledged on February 28.

At Sibylla Kiddle School, celebrating Heart month provides us the opportunity to continue to foster a culture of kindness. Classes have been engaging in various activities intended to encourage students to consider the ways that they can spread love and kindness to one another. As a school, we continue to build a community of learners where each child feels like they belong and are supported by their peers.

Next week, we are excited to attend our Kindergarten Celebrations of Learning, which will focus on how others can make a difference in our community through kindness. This is such an important message, which will be shared by our youngest learners. (As a friendly reminder, parents of kindergarten students are welcome to join us for this event).

"In the heart of February, love is the warmth that defrosts even the coldest days.” How will you and your family find this warmth as we continue into February?

Valentine’s Day

Celebrating the theme of friendship and kindness through the sharing of Valentine's cards at school is an important tradition for some families. Teachers will communicate with families about the way that they will acknowledge this day within their individual classrooms. Please note, families are asked not to send in food for sharing on this day.

Volunteer Applications Available Through School Engage

Starting on Friday, Feb. 9, parents, and guardians can register to volunteer online in the SchoolEngage tab of their MyCBE account. Once volunteers have created an account they can request and receive their volunteer letter required to obtain their police security clearance. Schools will continue to follow the process for generating letters.

There are no changes, at this time, to the ePIC application and payment process, currently outlined on the CBE Volunteer InSite page and managed by Calgary Police Service. Once volunteers have their police information check and vulnerable sector clearance document (PIC VS), it can be uploaded and shared directly with the school through the SchoolEngage account. Schools and volunteers can see their application status and if more information is required by the school to complete the process to volunteer.

New School Website

Sibylla Kiddle School will be moving to a new school website. We are anticipating this new site to be live in the next few weeks. Please watch for further communication from the school regarding our new site and how to access.

City of Calgary Storm Pond Safety

It has been an unusually warm winter which means there is even more reason to play outside. With the Family Day weekend approaching, we are reminding families and kids heading out for a skate to stay safe and stay off storm ponds, and reinforcing where they can find safe outdoor skating near them.

Storm ponds play an important role in your community, helping to provide protection from overland flooding while returning cleaner water back to the river. While they might look inviting to walk, skate or play on, recreational activities are not allowed on storm ponds because the ice is not safe. Storm ponds are not like regular ponds. They are part of your community’s stormwater system and are there to reduce community flooding and clean stormwater before it returns to our rivers.

Storm ponds have hidden hazards that can be dangerous to people and pets. Water levels are constantly changing as water moves between inlet and outlet pipes, resulting in unstable air gaps and quickly changing depths. Storm ponds also contain sediment and contaminants (e.g. bacteria, fertilizers, pesticides, vehicle fluids, road salt) that are collected as water travels through the community and can weaken the ice. This makes the ice on storm ponds unpredictable and potentially unstable even when it looks solid. Ice can appear thick in some areas, but other areas may have little, or no ice and snow can cover visible hazards.

Unfortunately, children and families may underestimate the dangers; we are continuing our efforts to improve that. We have improved signage at these sites, increased outreach activities and are working with community partners to help share this message and promote safe locations for skating. Please see the attached poster to share with your children about storm pond safety.