January 23 Update

Hello Robina Baker Families!

It is great to be back. After being sick for 3 weeks, it feels like I have been gone for an eternity. I hope that you all had a fabulous Christmas Break. I am not sure if this past week was a whirlwind because I was catching up or if it was busier than usual. I hope you all caught my email regarding parking, ice and a few other items last Thursday. If not, please check your inbox.

Renovations

As many of you have seen and heard, we had a few renovations over the Christmas break. Our front entrance went under some "beautification" by Black Gold. The ceiling was raised a few inches, the lighting was made flush with the new brighter white ceiling. The walls were also painted and our trophy case was taken down. In the spot where the trophy case was, we will be having a large flat screen installed. This will give us the ability to feature scrolling announcements, photos and events. As well, a class set of frames will put arranged around the screen to feature student art work. Once we are up and running, each class will have a chance to featured. When the wall is finished, the Robina Baker bench will reside against the wall as a waiting spot. There are some other finishing touches that should be done around spring break.

Our down stairs classrooms received an upgrade and had all their bookshelves and counter tops replaced. Next on the list is the reading nook in Mrs. Suter's classroom will have the walls repaired and painted.

Last, but, certainly not least . . . and my personal favourite is the the kitchen renovation. The staff came back to a huge surprise from our PAC. A number of parents gave up to 5 days of their Christmas Break to redo our staff room. Beautiful new cupboards and counter top along with a meeting table were built and donated by Darryl Sawyer of CUBE Kitchens. Danielle Watt designed the new cupboards and along with Angela Bennett both ladies gave countless hours to get the project organized. A special thank you must also go out to Miss Betty who was around to help, open doors and be the go to person while the project was being done.

Thank you to the following families who donated time and/or money:

Houle Family, Bartoshewski Family, Dewar Family, Mirau Family, Watt Family, Dugas Family, Bennett Family, Stewart Family and Sandy Koroll. 

The following businesses also helped out with donations:

Dairy Queen, Home Hardware, A&W, Rona and Perfect Pizza Plus

Thank you BGRS for working with our parents and allowing this amazing project to happen. Without your support, this would not have been possible.

Check out the article and pictures on our news page on the website at this link. There is also a THANK YOU video on the page from our staff!

PAC / SOS meetings

We had a School Council / Fundraising Meeting on Tuesday to create a fundraising plan and to work through a number of items the group had questions about. Our chair, Colleen deVos, has unfortunately had to step down due to too many commitments and we will be holding elections at a general meeting in February. We will be having another meeting on Tuesday, January 27 at 7:00 pm to continue working on a fundraising plan for the remainder of the year. Mrs. Horrocks and Mrs. Chiesa are working hard to get refunds done for those that purchased WEM tickets. All parents are welcome to join us for our meeting on Tuesday!

The Annual Family Dance date has been set. Mark Thursday, March 5th from 6-8 pm in your calendars. The school council will send out more details shortly.

Assembly

Thank you for a wonderful performance from 1N and 3R on the theme of honesty this month. Your song contained a lot of important points.

Our Students of the Week this week are:

Picture coming soon!

Congratulations goes out to Matthew in 4F who won the weekly wrist band challenge draw. Don't forget to send your wrist bands from the LRC in with your child's name on the back to enter the draw. The draw box is located in the office.

Coming this week . . .

Skating is on again this week. Please make sure online permission forms are filled out. This time the permission forms are good for both January and February. Again, if you are able to volunteer to help tie skates or get on the ice with the students, that would be much appreciated. A special thank you goes out to the Merriott Athletic Foundation, who will be providing support out on the ice.

Our after Christmas lice check will be on Monday.

On Tuesday, we will be having the Jump Rope for Heart organizers out at 1:00 to do our kick off assembly. Watch for information packages to come home shortly after. As per all assemblies, all parents are welcome to come join us.

Indoor Soccer Intramurals are on for the grade 1s and 2s at the moment during the lunch hour on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday. Wednesday at lunch is an opportunity for all students to participate in the Merriott Fitness activity.

Report Cards will be handed out this Thursday, January 29. There will be a letter from the office inside the report card envelope explaining how the template works.

Friday is a PD day and NO SCHOOL for the students.

Since there is no school on Friday, there will be no Student of the Week or regular assembly this week.

Reminder about School Calendar

Our calendar is updated daily. Are you having trouble keeping up with our school calendar? Did you know that you can click the Google Plus bottom at the bottom right hand side of the calendar on our website and it will ask you if you want to add it to your own. This will integrate your home calendar with the school calendar. You can change your view options so that you can view all calendars at once or just click on the single calendar you want to view. Here is what the clickable link looks like:

The link is found at the bottom of the school calendar which can be found here.

Looks like a jam packed four days! Have a great week!

January 16th Update

We are half way through January and another busy and productive week is in the books.  The weather this week finally warmed up and everyone was able to get outdoors for some fresh air and once again enjoy the playground with friends.  Here's hoping that the weather holds and that we are not thrown into the deep freeze too many more times before spring arrives.

A huge congratulations goes out to this week's Student of the Week recipients.  Continue the great work folks as you are indeed role models for the students around you!  With this month's character education assemblies, students are focusing on the topic of honesty and how it shows respect for themselves and others.

In terms of activities throughout the school this has been an exceptionally fun one!  This pastWednesday was definitely a radical day for the students and staff as everyone flashed back to the 80s.  The students did a fantastic job dressing up, as there was a ton of leg warmers, neon, and spiky hair throughout the school!  Our next school theme day is "Rainbow Day", scheduled forFebruary 18th.

This past week the school gym was transformed into a whirling, twirling center of activity as Drumfit classes have been taking place all week.  Judging from the thumping drumsticks, boisterous laughter and huge smiles the program has been a huge success with the kids.  Our Drumfit classes carry on through Wednesday next week.

As well, this week marked the start of the grade one and two intramural program.  With 85 players on six teams the indoor soccer action has been fast and furious.  With every team having the opportunity to play two games per period the lunch hour league has been both a fun and active time for the kids.  Indoor soccer carries on through next week, with skating sessions take over during the last week, January 26-29.

Finally a quick reminder to everyone that West Edmonton Mall water park tickets are still on sale for $10 each.  Please purchase your tickets and help the school raise funds for some much needed technology upgrades.

​Thank you and have a fantastic weekend!​

Mr. Henderson

January 9th Update

Here is the weekly latest and greatest...

It has been a chilly first week back from our holiday break but one filled with many pleasant surprises and lots of active learning.  In making our return to the school a huge thank you goes out to the Robina Baker Parent Council and the  many parent volunteers that took part in the staff room makeover during the Christmas break - it was a fantastic surprise that turned out beautifully and is very much appreciated by the staff.  The new, modern environment is most definitely an upgrade over the previous one!  

A huge congratulations goes out to this week's student of the week winners.  In reading through their certificates it is very apparent that we have truly great students in our school! 

With the start of the new month some new student initiatives have kicked off in an effort to keep the students active and engaged.  The grade four students now have the opportunity to home their spelling skills and join the Robina Baker Spelling Team.  The spelling team, coached by Mrs. Ferguson,  practices weekly every Monday and Friday, and will hold a couple "practice" spelling bees here at the school before venturing out to participate in the Black Gold Regional Spelling Bee next month in Leduc at Caledonia Park School.

The gym continues to be a hub of activity with the lunch time intramural program all set to resume with the grade one and two students taking part in a noon hour indoor soccer league. With close to 90 students participating the intramural games will definitely help keep them active versus hibernating during the cold winter months.  This past week the students were fortunate to have another session of kids yoga with Teacher Dawn and next week the excitement level in the gym is sure to raise the roof as everyone gets an opportunity to drum their way to fitness with the introduction of the Drumfit program.   The coaches from the Merriott Youth Athletic Foundation continue to visit the school weekly to promote healthy eating and activity, and the Wednesday Fitness for Fun program in the gym has now shifted gears and is now highlighting indoor ringette.  This past Wednesday close to 80 students came out at noon to try ringette, and it is expected that this number will continue to rise as more and more students experience the fun times in the gym.

Finally students and parents are reminded of a few upcoming important dates:  

The Robina Baker PAC (Parent Advisory Council) meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, January 13 beginning at 9:00AM at the school.  

Our next school spirit day is set for Wednesday, January 14th when students will be stepping back in time and celebrating 80s Day!  Break out the leg warmers and neon!  

The order deadline for February hot lunch orders is next Friday, January 16th.

The early purchase deadline for the RBES fundraiser at the WEM Waterpark is fast approaching.  Purchase your tickets for $10 up and until January 22nd, after that the price increases.  For further information check out the school Facebook page or website.

Thank you and have a great weekend!

Mr. Henderson