SAC and News

Monday November 5th, 2018

SAC Meeting Minutes North Highlands Elementary

Present- Angela Currie-Simms, Elaine Rambeau, Fiona Chaisson, Heather Morrison, Melvina Smith and Naomi Stockley 

We welcomed Heather Morrison to our SAC. 

A new document came, School Advisory Council Q & A. Angela went over the document. 

Angela reviewed our SAC to make sure that we met qualifications for members and we did. 

We received $5064 for the SAC budget and it is governed by the school so it is in our school cash. It is $5000 and one dollar for every student who attends North Highlands. We have 64 students. 

The money is intended to be spent during this fiscal year, not meant to carry over. The SAC must agree and vote on how to spend the money. The principal is a non-voting member. 

The money can be spent:

1. To support our school improvement plan

2. To support policy development and implement 

3. To cover operational expenses up 20%

The school is going to ask for the Lions Club for money for outdoor play equipment. Elaine would like to make a motion that SAC decisions can be made over email- seconded by Fiona, all in favour. Motion passed

Next meeting will be in January. 

January 21st, 2019 SAC Meeting Minutes 

North Highlands Elementary

Present- Angela Currie-Simms, Fiona Chaisson, Melvina Smith, Elaine Rambeau and Naomi Stockley (absent-Heather Morrison)

We looked over the Supervision of Extracurricular Activities summary policy. We filled out the online survey to give our input. 

Events coming up:

African Dance

Reptile Man

Discovery Center

Marionettes

The student support grant money is going towards skiing, skating and bussing. 

Clare Johnson and Adrianne Fore- were artists recommended for possible murals in the school. 

It was approved to order magnetic 10 frames and red and yellow magnetic counters. 

“I know it” educational website is another thing being requested to purchase. 

Kevin Pitcher also has some request for gym equipment.

SAC Meeting April 29th, 2019 Meeting Minutes

Present-Heather Morrison, Fiona Chaisson, Angela Currie-Simms, Elaine Rambeau, Melvina Smith and Naomi Stockley

The school is still working on their school improvement goals- improvement in writing, improvement in number sense and improvement in attendance. Angela showed the school attendance visual chart for each grade with a monthly break down. The teachers are still collecting data for the different goals.

Angela went over the new Letter of Agreement document.  

North Highlands received the pre-primary program. Rhoda Muller is coming up to view the space. There’s possibly 12-14 kids registered. They will be hiring two early childhood educators. 

Events Coming Up:

Discovery Center

Ray’s Reptiles

Celtic Colours School Presentation

Marionettes

Swim to Survive

Choir will perform at the Manor in Neil’s Harbour

Trip to Pleasant Bay for Bluenose Run

$1602.80 was spent on Human Resources, Jennifer Morrison is working with kids. The SAC agreed to spend more money on human resources. 

$150 was approved to spend on the Volunteer Tea.

SAC- meeting minutes Monday, May 27th 2019

Present- Angela Currie-Simms, Fiona Chaisson, Elaine Rambeau, Melvina Smith, Naomi Stockley and Heather Morrison

Pre-Primary program for next year-8:20 am-2:00 pm will be the times and the students can come and go throughout the day. Ten children are registered for the program. 

Angela went over the Student Success Plan and School Annual Report. Angela went over the literacy goal, the math goal and the safe and inclusive environment goal. The literacy goal was met.

Writing-Overall, there was an improvement in writing. Angela showed us the graphs with the data. The teachers used writing samples and the same rubric to track student progress. 

Math- Number sense was assessed and the students did improve. The math goal was also met. 

Attendance-There was a goal to try to improve attendance. They are displaying graphs around the school to promote class attendance. Also, class rewards for the best attendance is being used as an incentive. 

The students had yoga during school time once a week for 16 weeks. This was done so that everyone had the opportunity to participate. 

Staffing stayed the same for next year, no cuts. 

Meeting Adjourned

SAC minutes  September 30th, 2019

Present- Angela Currie-Simms, Fiona Chaission, Melvina Smith, Elaine Vassallo, Naomi Stockley and Heather Morrison. 

TA-we have a TA position that needs to be filled.

We are resending the letter regarding the secretary to Wendy King and Susan Kelley. 

We discussed the Terry Fox and Walk for the Cure, students will do both this year.

There is a provincial regional meeting for SAC in Port Hawkesbury for principals and Sac Chairs, November 4th, 2019

Flood- there was a huge flood damaging Karey’s Primary classroom, the resource room and library. A lot of stuff was destroyed. 

Soccer is starting next week.

Celtic Colours is Wednesday, October 16th. 

The 4/5  class is going to Youth in Motion at CBU on October 18th.

The swim to survive trips are going to happen again. 

Looking at having the Learning Centres for Education Week-the first part of April.

OHS- Lyle Donovan suggested that North Highlands gets a defibrillator. Naomi offered to get in touch with Norman MacDonald to see if the county has access to funding for this. 

SSP goals were discussed, the goals are improvement in writing-dictation and word study, improvement in number sense and to continue with improving attendance/growth mindset. 

SAC  October 2020

Present- Angela Currie-Simms, Fiona Chaission, Melvina Smith, Elaine Vassallo, and Heather Morrison. 

Bi-Laws were reviewed 

Attendance: Due to Covid 19 we are monitoring and tracking attendance but due to Provincial Regulations we are not sending home Attendance Notices.

COVID Planning - The school has an in depth Covid Plan in place should anything arise in our area.

Meetings- 

SSP- Literacy - Writing Everyday is  an everyday Best Practice and part of our Student Success Planning 

Numeracy goals- Students will be monitored and Cumulative Assessments will be given in November, January and April

I know it .com Renewal for January- Grades 2-5

Our secretarial position was granted to a Full time status and Corinne is now at NH 5 days a week. We are forever grateful

Meeting Adjourned -Online-

Next Meeting-

December 9th, 2020

North Highlands Elementary SAC Meeting Minutes  Wednesday, December 9th, 2020

Present- Fiona Chaisson, Naomi Stockley, Melvina Smith, Angela Currie-Simms, Heather Morrison and Elaine Rambeau

We discussed the CBC investigation about the SAC committees in the province. Our meeting minutes are kept up to date on the school’s website if people wish to view.

Discussion around the school’s ventilation system-The air vents had a deep cleaning over the summer and Angela was told that the system is functioning at 100 percent.

The hot lunch and breakfast program are going well. Volunteers have carts going around to every classroom. 

Brother from Freshmart donated all things needed for the Christmas dinner. James and Alisha McEvoy are donating individually wrapped cookies and Hot Chocolate for another day. Volunteers will come in to serve cookies and hot chocolate. 

Community use of school- application for PickleBall was put in and it was approved by Operations. (3:30-5:30) On Thursday starting in January. This is new as they permitted community use of the school during the pandemic. There will be a list of safety rules posted and they will use the washroom in the gym and it will be cleaned afterward. 

Report cards went home and the parent-teacher was done through phone calls.

Our SSP (Student Success Plans) are being kept on a schedule but a bit more lenient with Covid. The cumulative assessments for each unit (made by the Centre) in math will be used for data collection. Also, the school writing goal will continue.

The board hired TAs without the TA course, people with a CCA or LPN background. We now have a couple of casual TAs. The board also hired people with Bachelor’s degrees to substitute...waiting for certification from the Department of Education before they can start. This is an agreement with the Centre for Education, the Teacher’s Union and the Department of Education for North of Smokey. There was an interview process and they will be trained.  

The Iknowit.com website got renewed and Jessica MacKinnon was paid with SAC funds to fill in 25% when Karey had reading recovery meetings. 

There was a virtual African Dancing/Drumming presentation for each class.

Also, The Grade 4/5 class had a presentation with a writer virtually. 

The next meeting will be the last Monday in January.

North Highlands Elementary SAC Meeting Minutes

Virtual online meeting May 4th, 2021

Present- Angela Currie-Simms, Fiona Chaisson, Heather Morrison, Naomi Stockley, Elaine Rambeau and Melvina Smith

Playground/Outdoor space upgrades were discussed- Lewis - Director of Operations phoned regarding the playground. The school will be getting a bench, in the original plan, it’s seating with planters in between. Angela asked if the planters could be modified into little green houses so that they can grow vegetables outside. Louis agreed this could be done. 

Kenneth is finishing up the outdoor classroom, it will be complete with a chalkboard and sign. 

There will be a new playground structure for pre-primary to grade 5. The Home and School has also been looking at fundraising for playground improvements. They will have a better idea of what the goal is once we see what is installed/paid for by the province. 

Staffing- the school got word that there will be the same number of teachers. Mr. Pitcher and Mr. Ryan will be back but we are still waiting to hear about the music position. Also, Angela is still waiting to hear back from Student Services with regards to a possible Additional Resource support. A request was put in for more student support and it was endorsed by the people involved in Student Services, however, this decision will most likely be based on funding/cost. 

Community School Usage- There was both a walking group and a pickle ball group who appreciated using the school after hours. The school would have given extra time for community use, however, now with the lockdown, all activities are on hold. Heather said that the walking group was a success and enjoyed by participants. The walking group kindly made a donation to the school. 

SSP- The data wall is still up and continuing to be updated with school goals. 

Online Learning- So far the online learning seems to be going well. It can be very challenging but students, staff and families are working hard. There have been some very difficult and frustrating days, yesterday was difficult with technology glitches. 

Nelson PM Books Online resource- This was purchased at a cost of $10 per student. Teachers are learning how to use the resource, it should come in very handy, as it can be set to individual reading levels. 

School Supplies for next year- There was discussion about how the school is going to pay for the supplies. In the past we have fundraised, sold tickets on baskets, the Home and School contributed, etc. We cannot currently fundraise with the baskets. SAC discussed contributing towards the cost of the school supplies and everyone was in agreement. It was also mentioned reaching out to the Home and School to see if they could contribute some funds. When the school orders in bulk, they can get things for a reasonable cost. It also helps teachers get what they need and takes pressure off families. 

Active Healthy Living Grant- Mr. Pitcher requested a Gaga Pit which is a large structure (about 20 feet across) that is an activity that can be done outside. It is played similar to Dodgeball. The grant covered $2000 towards it. The issue is the large shipping cost to get it here. SAC agreed to chip in funds to cover the shipping cost. 

The next meeting will take place in June. Angela will contact the committee through email with a meeting date.

North Highlands SAC MEETING MINUTES

Virtual online meeting June 21st, 2021

Present- Angela Currie-Simms, Heather Morrison, Naomi Stockley, Elaine Rambeau and Melvina Smith

SSP- Student Support Plan was done by staff- we reported on successes and challenges throughout this school year, supports that worked and supports that are needed.

Melvina will be leaving us this year.

Patricia is 75% learning Support teacher next year and 25% backfill for Reading Recovery

Karey moved to grade 3/4

Grade primary is open and grade 1/2  for 2 months will be filled by a term teacher until Brittany comes back from parental leave.

We have received our TA allotment and are scheduling accordingly.

Waiting on Operations (Lloyd has been in contact twice) to install the chalkboard that Kenneth built.

The GAGA Pit arrived and will be installed this summer.

We are ordering School Supplies and have sent it in to get 2 other quotes from Purchasing before finalizing the order.

We are also ordering outdoor stencils and paint.

Home and School also fundraised for School Supplies.

SAC funds continue to be spent on Human Resources.

Students in grades 1 and 2 are showing 10- 14 month gap in learning through data collected in Canada through the Pandemic. Our data is showing growth with the MCI funding and SAC support Funding-

8 students have reached end of year levels in reading and many are on the cusp of end of year.

We would like to introduce our staff this year and welcome 

all of our new students to the school

Pre-Primary Lead ECE- The Joyful Julie MacKinnon

Pre-Primary ECE- The Cheerful Charlene Caines

The Charismatic Corinne Courtney-- Secretary

The Glorious Nicky Grover -- Custodian/Maintenance

The Legendary LLoyd- Custodian/Maintenance

The Lovely Linda Larade-- Cleaner and Supervisor

The Nice Nancy Vassallo- Fraser-- Cleaner

The Dynamic Debbie Burton

The Magical Marie Donovan- Teacher Assistant

The Talented Tena Rambeau

The Marvelous Meghan Dudley

The Positive Patricia Donovan-Morrison-- Resource

The Kind Karey Donovan-- Grade Primary & Reading Recovery

The Joyous Jessica MacKinnon-- 50% Grade Primary

The Beyond-Fabulous Brittany MacDonald-- Grade One/Two

The Vibrant Valerie Shouse-- Grade One/Two (November Onward)

The Marvelous Melvina Smith --Grade Two/Three

The Amazing Anne Marie MacLeod-Grade Four/Five and ELT

The Keen Kevin Pitcher--- Phys. Ed, Health and Tech Ed

The Caring Craig Ryan--- French and Science

The Jovial Jennifer Anderson- Music/Band and Social Studies

The Best Bruce Fraser- Bus Driver and Supervisor

The Extraordinary Elaine Rambeau-- Bus Driver

The Happy Kind Kathleen Murphy -- Bus Driver

And Me: Angela Currie-Simms- Principal

Together, along with you the parents/guardians and all of our Valuable Volunteers is how we create the best school experience for our Youth!! Thank you for all your trust and support through this Pandemic! 

REMINDER: OUR SCHOOL IS NUT AND SCENT FREE

Please do not send in hand sanitizer, our school has been provided sanitizer for our students. 

The school calendar has been sent home, please check it to make sure your child/children are prepared for the day. Gym clothes, pink/red/orange shirts. The calendar will be updated on our school website as well. The school website will have messages sent home and the calendar. It also provides meeting notes from our School Advisory Council. The website is https://sites.google.com/a/gnspes.ca/north-highlands/ 

PEBS: We will continue to use PEBS- Positive Effective Behaviour System- as our school wide belief system that puts an emphasis on rewarding students who display positive behaviors.

Student of the Week and our Friday Husky Hooray draw are both part of our PEBS. Along with major and minor behaviour yellow slips. If your child receives a yellow slip, a phone call will be made home and the slip should be signed and sent back.

Home and School Communication Folders: Please check your child/children’s school bag folder for any notes or forms to be signed.

Home and School Facebook CLOSED Group: There is a North Highlands Facebook Group that you can ask to join. When students have permission for photo release, teachers will post day to day activities or special events. It is also a tool to give information about what is happening at school. It is for information purposes only, it is not a communication tool between parents and staff!  

IF ANY CONTACT INFORMATION HAS CHANGED- PHONE NUMBER OR EMAIL- PLEASE SEND A NOTE TO YOUR CHILD’S TEACHER IN THE COMMUNICATION FOLDER!

We are hoping to have the Breakfast Program up and running, Monday, September 14th. A Volunteer sign up sheet has been sent home today as well. If you are new to volunteer, please send in a note, to get the proper paperwork forms.

Our milk program starts this week. Milk will be $.40 per carton.

Bussing- There is an Alternate Bussing Form (Dual Bussing) form that must be signed for students to travel to a babysitter after school. There is a new transportation policy and bus drivers are not to take students on their bus (from another bus) unless the dual bussing form has been approved.

Please send in a note if you need a copy of the form for your child to be permitted to travel on a different bus!

Our Terry Fox Walk will be on Wednesday, September 23rd, students are encouraged to bring a TOONIE  and walk for the cure! Social Distanced of course! 

Yours in education,

Angela Currie-Simms

Upcoming Dates for your Calendar 

Monday. September 14th- Spirit Day

Monday,September 21st- Pajama Day

                                                                                                                                                       Wednesday, September 23rd- Terry Fox Walk $2.00

Thursday, September 24th, Professional Development- 

No School for students

Monday, October 12th- Thanksgiving- No School

Friday, October, 23rd- No school for students

Thursday, November 19th- Teachers Only/No school for students

Thursday, December 3rd- Parent/Teacher- No school for students