Good Afternoon Hillhurst Families!

Today was a wonderful day! It was noisy, the building smelled of pumpkin guts, and all students were able to connect and celebrate during the costume parade. It was truly a great way close the week and the month of October. We would also like to introduce you to Mrs. Maryam Mirza, our new Administrative Secretary. You will find her to be a welcoming, experienced and helpful member of our Hillhurst Team!

For the update from Admin, there are a number of things I want to communicate with you, but please know that as new information and decisions arise, I will send additional emails when needed. Schools are still in the process of the re-entry process and are awaiting potential decisions from the Ministry of Education and the Calgary Board of Education.

Items and information that are NOT changing:

  • School bell times remain the same
  • Kindergarten Monday to Thursday - 8:45 - 11:59; No school on Fridays
  • Grades 1 - 6 Monday to Thursday - 8:45 - 3:17; Fridays 8:45 - 12:52
  • For safety and learning continuity, please ensure that your children arrive on time, and are picked up immediately at dismissal
  • Report Card dates (January 30 and June 25) remain the same

If your child will be late or absent, families must call the School Attendance Line 403 777- 6360 ext 1 and leave a message. This is the best place to communicate lates/absences as it is the first place to be checked each morning. PowerSchool attendance automatically sends out late and absence messages to families by 9:10. By law, each school must record students as present, absent, or late, every morning and afternoon.

School Calendar dates remain the same. Please subscribe to the virtual Hillhurst School Calendar (on our website) to have dates added directly to your digital calendar. CBE Fall Break is unchanged (no school for students November 10, 11 and 12).

Parent-Teacher Conferences will be on Thursday November 27 (evening) and Friday November 28 during the day. Each conference will be face to face in 15 minute blocks. You will be sent information shortly about when the conference booking system (your MyCBE account) will open.

Hillhurst School Council meetings will resume as scheduled - the next meeting is November 19 at 6:30 at the school, or online. A meeting link and agenda will be sent closer to that time.

Rescheduled or New Information

  • Alberta Education has extended the deadline for the first round of Individual Program Plans (IPP) to November 28. If your child has an IPP, your child's teacher will be sending you the document shorty after Fall Break.
  • Fall Picture Day with LifeTouch (individual and class photos) - Rescheduled to Monday November 17. Retake day will be December 11.
  • November Fun Lunch via Healthy Hunger will resume on November 19. Please order your Subway Lunch though your Health Hunger account if you haven't done so already
  • Previous field trips and busses are being re-booked
  • The fall CBE and Calgary Police Service lockdown practice will be re-booked
  • The 2 remaining Fire Drill practices will be re-booked and occur before December 18
  • More information will be sent to you as it becomes available

Learning Continuity

Please know that the learning, growth and development of your child is our absolute priority. Families may be wondering about what might be needed for their child to 'catch up' due to the 3 week absence from school. We want to re-assure you that nothing needs to be done on your part! The good news is that 'instructional minutes' (what is taught and for how long) have a level of flexibility at the Elementary level. This means that teachers will respond to both current student learning needs, as well as the curriculum that needs to be covered/revisited in a meaningful way throughout the course of the remainder of the school year, without adding undo pressure on students. This can be done by addressing specific learning outcomes through larger integrated concepts, projects and experiences. Working in this way allows teachers to personalize the learning and skills needed for each student through interdisciplinary studies, and allows students to practice, revisit, or advance based on what they need most. Please continue to read about ongoing learning through the weekly updates from your child's teacher. 

We will be in touch very soon. Beyond measure, we are so happy to be back with your children.

Sincerely,

Kristin and Shafali