A) Parent Advisory Counsel
Food Day: Thursday, Jan. 12 & 26
Soup Day: Wednesday, Jan. 4 & 18
Next Meeting: Monday, Jan. 16
B) Welcome Back
We hope that you have had a great Christmas break. We are looking forward to an action packed Winter Term!!
C) Transportation Alerts
With the inclement weather at this time of year, we often find ourselves wondering if the busses will be running. In the event that you find yourself in this position, the first thing you should do is listen to our local radio station CKXR (Easy Rock) at 580AM or 98.1 FM. Should there be a problem, the School District Transportation department will inform the radio station first. Another possibility is to telephone the Transportation Department at
832-9415. If you get the answering machine, leave a message with your question and a return telephone number and someone will contact you as soon as possible.
D) Askews Gift Cards
Thanks to everyone who is already purchasing gift cards from the school. Should you shop at Askews, we will continue to sell them in 2012. The school makes a small profit on each card we sell. We now have $100 cards to make using them easier. You can get gift cards from the office any time. Thanks!
E) Snow and School
At Sorrento School snow is for “building and sliding”!! We will continue to promote this theme through-out the winter months.
We also have a strict “no snow throwing” rule. This rule applies to students walking to and from school and at bus stops. The rule is in place to keep our children safe and is the same rule at all schools in our School District.
We have limited sliding space so please do not send crazy carpets to school with your children. The school provides a limited number of these for student use.
Please do send your children to school with snow pants so that they will be allowed to slide.
Thank you for reinforcing these expectations.
F) Christmas Bake Sale
Thank you for your support of this event! We raised $510 for the classes to use for extras for the children. Judging by the overwhelming response to this event we will be doing it again next year!!
G) Christmas Concert
“Thank you” to all of you who attended our Christmas
Concerts. Also, a huge “Thank you” to our staff team who
took on the leadership of our concert again this year.
H) Soup Days
We will continue to have two soup days per month through this term. Due to Food safe regulations we are not able to provide bowls or spoons for students. Please be sure to send bowls and spoons along with your child on our soup days otherwise they will not be getting any of the great soup our soup day parent team provides. Thanks!!
I) To Booster Seat or not!!
Have you ever questioned which seat is right for your child? Have you questioned whether your child's current seat is providing a safe fit? You should. 90% of child seats are used incorrectly. Yours may be one of them.
Please remember that as the driver of a vehicle, you are legally responsible for properly restraining all children whom you are transporting. This applies to every-day driving as well as situations like car-pooling, after school play-dates, birthday parties and field trips.
Below are some general guidelines that you can follow when trying to decide what stage of seating a child is at. Please remember that the provincial laws are a minimum requirement. Children may remain harnessed past the weight of 40 pounds in a high-weight harnessed seat. They may also remain in a booster seat past their ninth birthday if the seatbelt is not yet fitting properly. Most children will require the use of a booster seat until they are 11 or 12.
When should my child remain in a 5 point harness?
Have you ever questioned which seat is right for your child? Have you questioned whether your child's current seat is providing a safe fit? You should. 90% of child seats are used incorrectly. Yours may be one of them.
Please remember that as the driver of a vehicle, you are legally responsible for properly restraining all children whom you are transporting. This applies to every-day driving as well as situations like car-pooling, after school play-dates, birthday parties and field trips.
Below are some general guidelines that you can follow when trying to decide what stage of seating a child is at. Please remember that the provincial laws are a minimum requirement. Children may remain harnessed past the weight of 40 pounds in a high-weight harnessed seat. They may also remain in a booster seat past their ninth birthday if the seatbelt is not yet fitting properly. Most children will require the use of a booster seat until they are 11 or 12.
When should my child remain in a 5 point harness?
· The child is under 18kg (40 pounds)
· The child regularly falls asleep in the vehicle
· The child squirms, leans, slouches or plays with the seatbelt
· The vehicle does not have shoulder belts
· The seatbelt does not fit properly with the use of a booster seat
· The child does not understand the importance of wearing a seatbelt properly at all times
When should my child use a booster seat?
· The child is able to sit properly for the duration of every vehicle trip
· The child understands the importance of a properly used seatbelt
· The child is over 18kg (40 pounds)
· The seating position is equipped with a lap/shoulder belt
· The child does not yet meet ALL requirements for using an adult belt without a booster seat (see below)
When can a child sit in the vehicle without a booster seat?
· The child is at least 9 years old, although most children require a booster seat until 11 or 12 years.
· The child has reached the height of 145cm (4'9")
· The seating position is equipped with a lap/shoulder belt
Providing that they can meet all criteria in the 6 step test...
· Does the child sit all the way back against the vehicle seat?
· Do the child's knees bend comfortably at the edge of the auto seat?
· Does the belt cross the shoulder between the neck and arm?
· Is the lap belt as low as possible, touching the thighs?
· Do the child's feet touch the vehicle floor?
· Can the child stay seated like this for the whole trip?
What is proper seatbelt fit anyway?
· The lap portion of the belt sits low on the bony hip area, snug across the pelvis. It is touching the top of the thighs and not riding up onto the soft abdomen.
· The shoulder portion of the belt touches the chest and crosses the centre of the shoulder. It is not riding up on the neck or slipping off the ball of the shoulder.
J)Family Literacy Week
Family Literacy Week is January 23 through to January 29. Please see attachments with this newsletter for more information.
K)Monthly Math Problem
We had 30 entries in our math problem draw. The winners of the Math problem of the month draw were Jessica Andreasen for the K-2 students and Emily Thitchner for the Grades 3- 5 students. Congratulations!!
Dates to Remember
Jan. 16 – PAC Meeting
Jan. 20 - PALS
Jan 27 – Cultural Event 1:15
