Hello Tom Baines Families,

 

We have had a successful and busy first two days back! It is absolutely wonderful to welcome all of our students into the building. It will be a year full of learning, adventure, new friends and success.

 

We know school start up is a busy time for parents. Your child’s teachers will regularly communicate with you and you will receive a bi-weekly email from the office about important upcoming dates and information. Please read below.

 

Dress Code – students are encouraged to dress for success. This means they need to wear appropriate clothing that allows them to participate in all activities. Students do not change for Phys Ed. Any students wearing clothing that is offensive or deemed as inappropriate will be asked to change. Thank you for your support with this. One difference is that students can now wear hats and caps. As long as these are worn respectfully, there won’t be any concerns. Bandanas, scarves, hoodies and larger type style of hats are not permitted to be worn.

 

Cell Phones – students cannot have cell phones in class. If they bring a cell phone they must leave it in their locker unless they have specific permission from a staff member to use it. If a student continuously brings their cell phone to class they will be asked to hand it into the office where it can be picked up at the end of the day. Chronic issues will be addressed with parents.

 

Parking – please do not enter the staff parking lot. This is for staff only. Students are also not permitted to walk through our parking lot. Let’s work together to keep everyone safe.

 

Fees – fees are now available online but at this time we ask you to not pay them. There will be a few complimentary course changes and fee adjustments that we hope to have resolved by mid-September. We will send out an email when we are ready to receive fee payments.

 

Food – we ask parents to not drop off restaurant food for their children during the school day. We do not accept deliveries from places like Skip The Dishes and Uber Eats. Students have three options for lunch: go off-campus (Grades 7-9 only), purchase from the cafeteria or bring their own food from home. A reminder that our cafeteria is not open on Fridays and students need to bring their own snack that day. There is no lunch break on Fridays. Students will eat lunch when they arrive home.

 

Classroom Changes – this is a complex issue and we are aware of that. At this time, we aren’t able to accommodate classroom changes. We are at capacity with large class sizes. Switches set off a chain reaction and the homeroom lists were made with great care and consideration. Meeting new people and forming new friendships is a wonderful part of school.

 

Belonging – our focus this year is building a Tom Baines community through belonging. We will be focusing on acceptance, kindness and inclusion. We will be using this vocabulary throughout the school and encourage you to discuss what belonging looks like often with your family. There is no tolerance for any bullying or racism at school. Students who use racist language, regardless of the situation, will receive a suspension from school.

 

School Council – reminder that our first meeting is on Monday, September 18 at 7:00 pm in the Learning Commons. This is our AGM meeting where we will confirm positions. We encourage everyone to attend.

Important Dates:

Monday, September 4 - No School

Friday, September 8 - Fire Drill Practice

Friday, September 15 - Terry Fox Run

 

Thank you for taking the time to review all of this information! We look forward to a successful year of working together. Have a wonderful long weekend.

 

Derek Siakaluk, Principal

Jen Bartlett, Assistant Principal