Hello

Fear less, hope more; eat less, chew more; whine less, breathe more; talk less, say more; love more, and all good things will be yours.

Swedish Proverb

2018 here we come. 



Celebrations

We are all back safely from our holiday. Hoping you all had fun with your family. 

I am carrying an ultrasound photo in my purse,. This a picture of a little blob we call, "Jellybean." We named it "Jellybean," as it is always jumping or waving and is never still, like a jumping jellybean. Our Grandbaby will arrive on June 22nd. Kelsey and Marc are very excited as are we. 



Staffing- Diploma week

Anne- 
High Level Monday- Meeting with Echo
Tuesday - Zama- Our students have gone home to Newfoundland as their grandmother is sick. Marc and I will do transition plans, organize materials and will visit a family.
Wednesday- Rainbow to deliver Diplomas
Thursday- Fort and La Crete
Friday- High Level



Instruction and Programming

Absences- Today we start using the atrieve system on your own to record your absences. Bonnie will resend the instructions for doing so. Please contact us if you are uncertain about any aspect of this switch. We will guide you through but only after you read the instructions. All staff is required to use this system. If you are out sick you need to enter that in atrieve. Today Bonnie and I will play with it some more and become experts. ha ha ha

 This is coming our way: 

As in previous years, the Ministry of Education will be conducting its annual stakeholder satisfaction telephone surveys to collect public and other stakeholder perceptions of Alberta’s education system.

The surveys gather responses from a random sample of parents, the general public, high school students, teachers, principals, superintendents and school board trustees in the province. The total number of completed surveys will be over 6,000, ensuring that survey results for each of the 10 respondent groups are statistically representative. The survey responses are completely confidential, and only aggregate data will be reported.

In addition to telephone surveys, this year Alberta Education is piloting online surveys of teachers and the public using the same survey instruments. This is being done to examine alternatives to the existing telephone survey methodology.

The purpose of the surveys is to determine stakeholders’ satisfaction with:

•    the overall quality of the education system;

•    the education system meeting the needs of students and supporting our society and the economy;

•    schools providing a safe, caring and inclusive environment for students;

•    preparation of students for lifelong learning, employment and active citizenship;

•    the education system having effective working relationships with partners and stakeholders;

•    leadership and continuous improvement of the education system;

•    knowledge, skills, abilities and other related attributes of recent high school graduates; and

•    facilities and equipment in the education system.

Speaking of surveys we will be asking our students and parents to complete a survey specific to our schools. This survey will roll out next week. last year we had great results from a small sample size. This year we would like great results from a larger sample size. More specifics coming soon.

Diplomas- you must make contact with your students who are writing diplomas to ensure they know their exam is two parts and that the first part is this week. If you are one of the teachers who does exam preparation for your students, thank you, we do not want to blindside these students. Testing is already an area of uncertainty for them, anything we can do to ease their minds and prepare them is a great investment and  It is what teachers do.

My Pass- that was a failure- We did not get kids on. The main reason is that it is painful! Not easy at all. Kids emails aren't working, the codes we are given don't work. Perhaps more important than my pass is that student use their student portal to access their marks. This is a much easier process and a very useful one in the short term.  We will look into My pass and see how we can streamline this and get at least our grads on. We may make this a counselor duty. 

Zama City School is NOT closed. Presently the kids have moved back to NFLD. Mike will be making decisions shortly concerning the staffing of the school. We have always said, Zama City School will look after itself. 

Budget- We are right on budget. Please let us know if you are in need of anything. We did want to replace chairs in some schools. If I have spoken to you about this please go online and find a few options.  

CRM- contacting students this week is integral. Getting students back to work is our priority. So, please make contact with your students. CRM meetings will take place the week of Jan 22- 26. 

Division Priorities Meetings in each location- Mr. McMann has set up a number of community consultations in which we are involved. We are putting together a three-year plan for the division. We will let you know the dates and times. 

Great Reads-

Danny Champion of the World by Roald Dahl



The Wealthy Barber Returns- David Chilton



Was there a book you'd like to recommend??? We are always seeking a good book. Please, note it in your reply to this blog.