Chief Tomat Elementary Community Connection

September 20, 2024

CTE Safety Patrollers

Thank you to Dan Glassock, our safety officer, who came to train our grade 5 leaders to be after school crossing guards. Starting next week, you will see our amaznig leaders at the cross walk. Please be sure to watch carefully and pay attention to their whistle and stop signs.

Storytime with Mrs. Adamson

My fanourite thing as principal is getting to be in classes, spending time with our amazing students and staff. This week I was able to go into many classes to read "What if everybody did that?" It lead to a great discussion about why we have rules and expectations. There are some things that everyone can't do (so no one should) - littering, throwing snowballs, and calling out in class. And there are some things that everyone should do - be kind and caring, follow the Golden Rule and taking care of the land.

Westbank First Nations Welcome Back BBQ

Our Westbank First Nations families were invited to attend a Back to School BBQ at WFN. Congratulations to Shale Hines who won the door prize. Limlemt to WFN for inviting our CTE team - Mrs. Adamson (principal), Mrs. Burge (Indigenous Advocate) and Mrs. Peters (Indigenous Advocate).

Orange Shirt Day

We will be honouring and recognizing Truth and Reconciliation Day on Friday, September 27. We encourage everyone to wear an orange shirt on that day. If you don't have an orange shirt, we will be making Orange Shirt Day pins.

CTE PAC Meeting - The next PAC meeting is Tuesday, September 24th at 6:00 in the library. We'd love to see you there!!

All parents and caregivers are welcome to attend!!

Picture Day -

Tuesday Sept. 24th

Students will be having their individual photos taken on Tuesday, Sept. 24th. Retakes have been scheduled for Monday, October 21st.

Together, we are a Masterpiece!

This week in our Wolverine Assembly, we talked about how every student matters. We are each unique, special, gifted and an important part of CTE! Mrs. Delorme's Kindergarten students wrote about how much better we are together!

Practical Strategies for Parenting ADHD

Wish you could just roll with the ADHD in your family? Need practical strategies to deal with the day to day parenting of a child with ADHD? Sign up today for this FREE learning series from BC Children's Hospital.

Parent-Teacher Conferences

Parent - Teacher Conferences are on Thursday and Friday, October 3rd and 4th. On both of these days, students will be dismissed at 12:30. If your child rides the school bus, they will be picked up from school at 12:30 and brought home.

On Monday, September 23rd, the online conference scheduler will open up, where you can choose a time that works best for you. Please use this link to register your child and choose a time.

Halloween Costume Rules

· Nothing gory, bloody, violent, or scary. Costumes must be school appropriate (we have preschool children here as well). Students will be asked to remove or cover up anything that is gory, bloody, violent, or scary.

· No Full-face masks/costumes. We must be able to see a student's face for safety reasons. Students will be asked to remove any full-face masks or costumes that hide their face as we need to recognize and know who everyone is.

· As per our Code of Conduct (cte.sd23.bc.ca), fake/toy weapons of any sort are not allowed at school. If brought to school, they will be stored in the office until a parent can pick them up.

September/October 2024

Please pay careful attention to the following important dates:

Tuesday, Sept. 24 - Student Photo day
Friday, Sept. 27 - Orange Shirt Day
Monday, Sept. 30 - National Day for Truth and Reconciliation - School is closed
Thursday and Friday, Oct. 3 and 4 - Parent Teacher Conferences - Dismissal at 12:30
Thurs. Oct. 3 - PAC Fall Market
Oct. 7 - Oct. 10 - Wheelchair Basketball for all students. Thank you PAC for your support
Friday, Oct. 11 - Administrative Day - No school for students
Monday, Oct. 14 - Thanksgiving - School's closed
Monday, Oct. 21 - Photo Retakes

Thank you to all families who supported our CTE PAC! The ice cream was delicious and I loved seeing everyone there!

Drive Slowly ! Working TOGETHER to keep our families safe!

For the safety of our students and school community, please make sure that you are driving slowly. The speed zone near all schools in BC is 30 km/hr.

Please note that the speed limit on school grounds (as shown) is 8 km/hr.

Many families have expressed concerns with the speed of vehicles on East Boundary. If you have a concern, please phone the West Kelowna RCMP Non-crisis line with a license plate number at 250-768-2880.

Calling All Crafters, Bakers, Creators, Entrepreneurs and Vendors to our Fall Market!

If you would like to apply to be a vendor at the CTE PAC Fall Market on October 3rd from 2-6pm, please fill out this form.

Afterschool Taekwon-Do at CTE

Central Okanagan Public Schools
Updated Restrictions for Cell Phones and Personal Digital Devices.

For the district's updated restriction for cell phone and personal digital devices, please click here. We ask that students leave their cell phones/electronic devices at home. If they are at school, they are to be kept in their backpack or safely at the office. Please contact Mrs. Adamson at jennifer.adamson@sd23.bc.ca if you have any questions.

The Central Okanagan Public Schools’ Financial Hardship Clause

Within Board Policy Regulation 425R – Student Fees (www.sd23.bc.ca), the Board of Education has indicated “that a student will not be excluded from any educational program due to financial hardship”. This clause in the Regulations provides for the private and confidential consideration of financial circumstances of individual students and families, while preserving the dignity of families which may be unable to pay. Please contact the school Principal if you are facing a financial hardship that may restrict the ability of your child to access a school program.

The Central Okanagan Public Schools’ Appeal Process

Policy 460 – Appeals states that “A student or a parent of a student who is entitled to an educational program in the Central Okanagan Public Schools may appeal a decision of an employee of the Board of Education which significantly affects the education, health, or safety of the student”. For a complete description of the Appeals Policy along with the recommended steps to follow in attempting to solve a problem, please refer to Policy 460 – Appeals that can be accessed from the Policies link under the Board of Education heading on the Central Okanagan Public Schools homepage at www.sd23.bc.ca.

Accident Insurance

Central Okanagan Public Schools does not insure expenses for student injuries that occur on school grounds or during school activities. Parents and guardians can voluntarily purchase private accident insurance. The Kids Plus Accident Insurance Program that was previously offered to our students was discontinued in 2019. The IA Financial Group now offers the Family Accident Reimbursement Plan (FARP) which is a voluntary plan that provides coverage for students and their families against accidental injury, unexpected medical expenses, and critical illness. To apply for the Family Accident Reimbursement Plan or to find out more, click HERE.

Please Be Nut Aware

A reminder to all of our CTE Community that we are an All-Nut Aware School. As we have students and staff with life threatening allergies to nut products, we ask that families are extremely vigilant in ensuring that nuts or food containing nut products are not sent to school. Thank you for being proactive in your decision on what your child can bring to school.

Biking to School

If your child rides to school on a bike, scooter, or skateboard, please have a conversation with them about traffic safety. Thank you for reminding them to walk (not ride) their bikes, scooters, or skateboards on school district property and for walking up and down the hill until they reach the road. While travelling to and from school, students must wear a helmet. Bikes should be secured with a good lock in our bike racks located at front of school. Thank you for your help in keeping our students safe.

Indoor Shoes

Thank you for sending your child to school with a pair of indoor running shoes. By changing into their indoor shoes as they enter their classroom, students can help ensure the cleanliness and safety of our school building. These shoes need to be ones that your child can independently put on and take off.

Volunteers

Parents, caregivers and families are always welcome at CTE. Many have expressed interest in volunteering at our school. All volunteers must have a criminal record check completed through our school district. The process is free and criminal record check forms are available at the school office. A successful criminal record check is valid for four years. Please note that criminal record checks that are offered for a fee on various websites are not accepted by the school district, and neither are criminal record checks done for other organizations. If you have had a previous criminal record check and want to see if it is still valid, or have any questions, you are encouraged to contact the school office.

Parent Advisory Council (PAC) - Get Involved with the CTE Community!

PAC is the acronym for the Parents' Advisory Council. Each parent/caregiver at Chief Tomat Elementary is a member of the CTE PAC. The PAC offers a great way for parents/caregivers to be involved with the school, their children, and the student body. The PAC helps the school with a variety of activities, volunteer opportunities and input.

There are a number of ways to connect with the PAC - including their Instagram page at https://www.instagram.com/chieftomatelementarypac/

We encourage everyone to attend monthly meetings to get up to date information on what is happening around the school and give input on how PAC funds are spent. Please check the school website and Weekly Community Connections Newsletters for meeting dates and times.

CTE School Calendar and Important Upcoming Dates

Upcoming Dates

Tuesday, Sept. 24 - Student Photo day
Monday, Sept. 30 - National Day for Truth and Reconciliation - School is closed
Thursday and Friday, Oct. 3 and 4 - Parent Teacher Conferences - Dismissal at 12:30
Oct. 7 - Oct. 10 - Wheelchair Basketball for all students. Thank you PAC for your support
Friday, Oct. 11 - Administrative Day - No school for students
Monday, Oct. 14 - Thanksgiving - School's closed
Monday, Nov. 21 - Student Photo retakes
Friday, Oct. 25 - Teacher Professional Day - No school for students
Friday, Nov. 1 - Cultural Performance - Metaphor Music 12:30 pm

Chief Tomat Elementary is fundraising with Mabel’s Labels! If you’re not familiar with Mabel’s Labels, they are personalized, durable, waterproof labels. They are great for everything from shoes, clothing tags, water bottles and backpacks. You can
customize them with your name and a design, and they are dishwasher, laundry and microwave safe. Added bonus: 20% of all sales are returned to CTE and go toward activities, events, and gear for your child!

Mabel’s Labels also offers clothing stamps, silicone bands for water bottles and medical alert labels. This is a great way to ensure your items don’t end up in the lost & found or mixed up. To reduce the spread of germs, we highly recommend labelling but they are also useful for everyday life.

To support our school, click here and select Chief Tomat Elementary. You can pick out whatever labels or product you want, and it will ship for free directly to your house!

Savings Tip: If you haven’t already joined, sign up to Mabel’s Labels mailing list and receive 20% off you next order. Unsubscribe at any time!

Thank you for supporting Chief Tomat Elementary!
Chief Tomat Elementary PAC & Students

*Please remember to enter Chief Tomat Elementary as the organization you are supporting so that we can earn money for our students.

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