Hello Tom Baines Families,

Hard to believe we are entering December. Only a few more weeks before our break and we thank you for your support and commitment to ensuring your children are at school and focused on their learning. Please see important information below.

Important Dates:

Thursday, December 7 – Family Craft Night. We invite all students and their families to attend our Holiday Craft night from 6-8 pm. This is put on by our complementary teachers and will be a great way to kick off the holiday season, have some snacks and be together as a community. We ask that all families who attend bring an item for the community hampers (see below).

Friday, December 8 – Professional Learning Day. No school for students

Monday, December 11 – Winter Band Concert @ 7 pm at the Foothills Alliance Church

School Development Plan – we have completed our SDP for the 2023 – 2024 school year which outlines our goals and priorities for the year. It is posted on our website under the ‘About Us’ section. Please take a few minutes to review it.

Edgemont Christmas Hampers - Once again, the students and staff of Tom Baines will be supporting the Edgemont Community Christmas Hampers. We will be doing a collection drive from Dec. 4 to Dec. 13

Each grade is asked to bring specific items.

Grade 6 - Paper products (toilet paper, paper towels, dish clothes, kleenex). Collection bags will be in GREEN POD 

Grade 7 - Personal hygiene products (toothbrush/paste, shampoo, deodorant, feminine products, shaving cream and razors, etc.) Collection boxes will be in BURGUNDY POD

Grade 8 - Non-Perishable Food bank items - (pasta and sauce, powdered milk, peanut butter, canned meat/vegetables, soup, etc). Collection boxes will be in GOLD POD

Grade 9 - Household cleaning products (dish soap, Mr. Clean, comet, laundry detergent, hand soap, toilet bowl cleaner, etc). Collection boxes will be in BLUE POD

Thank you in advance for your support.

Traffic Safety - Like many schools, Tom Baines School faces high risk, temporary congestion during drop-off and pick-up times.  This creates traffic dangers, frustration for community members living near the school, a high concentration of emissions around the school and lost opportunities for students to get physical activity.  In recent years, we have seen a significant decline in the rates of walking to school and a marked increase in traffic volume in school zones.  Tom Baines was built in 1997 at a time when there was a significantly smaller student population and most students walked to school. 

School Commitment:

• School patrol volunteers (students who help students at the crosswalk to cross as a group, allowing cars to get through)
• Educate students about the importance of traffic safety

Parent Commitment:

• Allow for extra time in the mornings to get your student(s) to school on time
• Follow traffic rules when picking up and dropping off student(s)
• Discuss traffic safety with your child
• Model traffic safety

Student Commitment:

• Use the sidewalk and use traffic safety rules
• Listen to the volunteer patrols and wait for groups to cross together at the cross walk
• Encourage parents to follow traffic safety

Thank you for your commitment to making traffic safety a priority.  As we enter the winter season, a further increase in traffic will likely become a growing concern.  Please ensure that you allow yourselves extra time in getting to school.  Ideally, it is always a great idea to drop your child off two or three blocks away from the school.

Have a wonderful weekend.

Derek Siakaluk, Principal

Jen Bartlett, Assistant Principal