Ms. Kenney's December 5 Newsletter
Dear Swift Families,
Here we are, December – a busy and exciting month with so many festive activities taking place, a huge thank you to all those making them all happen!
Please be sure to stay up to date by reading the bi-weekly news and checking the school website! We keep the calendar as up to date as we can for school wide event!
We have a few kids who love biking to school. Please be sure to send a lock along with them so they can be locked up on the bike racks at the front of the school.
Parking 101
In recent days the parking choices that are being made in the cul-de-sacs around our school have been neither safe or following city bylaws. Please know that little eyes are watching our every move, and it is up to us to do better. We have encouraged frustrated neighbours to contact City Bylaw and encourage you to do the same if you see parking that is not appropriate. Please continue to be courteous to each other and our neighbours.
Also, there should be no parking in the pick-up and drop-off lane. The exception to this rule is some of our families whose children require mobility support when the accessible parking spots are full. If you are using the pick-up and drop-off lane the driver must NOT leave the vehicle.
There is more information and useful tips and tricks for smoother morning and after school parking at driving on the school website under Swift Parking 101. Please share this information with anyone who does pick-up and drop-off for your family.
December Festive Fridays!
Fridays in December are ‘Festive Fridays’ – everyone is invited to come to school in their favourite festive outfits – hats, headbands, tights, sweaters, anything (school appropriate!) is welcome! December 20th will be PJ Day – so the option is there for everyone to come in PJs after the concerts the day before!
Food Drive
Our Food Bank Bin is here! In the spirit of giving, we are collecting food items and money for the Archway Food Bank. You can check out the Archway Food Bank Website to find out what is most needed. Some of the items they list include canned soups, beans, pasta and sauce, tuna, cereal, diced tomatoes, chickpeas. This list is updated regularly.
We will also have a donation jar if you prefer to give cash. Donations to our Food Bank jar will not be issued a receipt. If you want a tax-deductible receipt, you can donate directly on the Food Bank website.
Our hope is that we can fill the first bin with items between now and December 19th when we will receive a fresh bin to fill up on the Christmas Concert Day. Let's keep up the Swift tradition of generosity.
PAC News – Christmas Fun Day, Night Market, Raffle
A HUGE thank you to all those who are working to make tomorrow’s Christmas Fun Day such a success this year! It is always a wonderful day of festive fun for all!
Tomorrow, is the PAC “Night Market” from 5:30pm – 8:30pm in the Gym. Come and shop with local vendors, enjoy some snacks and see the amazing raffle baskets in person. There will be a special “Night Market Exclusive Raffle” – 4 seats of your choice at the Christmas Concert and a parking spot! There will be one draw for the afternoon show and one for the evening show. Admission to the Market is a donation to the Food Bank.
Our Annual Raffle Basket fundraiser is underway. Check out these 7 amazing baskets: Snow Day Basket, Fraser Valley Farms Basket, Dear Reader Basket, Builder's Paradise Basket, Mystery Basket, Crockin' Around The Christmas Tree, Friendship Basket. Tickets are on sale on the Hot Lunch site (until December 18th) and will be available in person at the Night Market (December 6th) and Christmas Concerts (December 19th).
Learning Updates – December 13th
Learning Updates will go home next week. As always, these are a snapshot of the amazing successes your child has had so far this year. They will also share with you some areas of growth that we will continue to work on in the coming months.
If you have any questions or wonders, please reach out to your child’s teacher directly.
Concert – December 19th
We are excited to announce that our Christmas Concert will be on December 19th with 2 shows – 1:00pm and 6:00pm! We ask that you only attend one show, not both, and that if you’re available in the afternoon, you join us then. Please be courteous to one another by choosing only one show. Please limit the number of guests that attend, as our school grows, we must all be mindful of over crowding.
The doors will open at 12:30 for the afternoon show and we ask that families line up along the front of the school until the doors open.
When dropping off your child for the evening concert, please bring them to their classroom for no later than 5:45. The front doors will open at 5:30 for both drop off and seating in the gym. All students will enter their classroom through the inside hallway doors and be picked up at their inside door at the end of the show, around 7:15.
Parents enter and leave the gym via the main doors. The gym will be very full. Please be patient with each other.
Parking for the afternoon performance will be on the street only. If you can possibly walk to the performance, please do.
We appreciate your support of our Food Drive. A suggested “admission” to our Christmas Concert is ONE Non-Perishable Food Donation item or Cash Donation per person attending.
Lost and Found – So many lost things!
Our lost and found is filled with many wonderful items looking for their home! Please head over to the website and check out what is there. If something looks familiar, please follow the instructions on the website. This list was created a few weeks ago. Anything that hasn’t found its way home since then might be in the blue lost and found bin. The items on the website currently will be donated over the Winter Break.
Dates to Remember for December:
All dates are also posted on the school website calendar
6 – Festive Friday – wear your Festive best!
6 – Christmas Fun Day
6 – PAC Night Market – 5:30 – 8:30
9 – Indigenous Family Holiday Lunch
13 – Festive Friday – wear your Festive best!
13 – Learning Updates go home
19 – Christmas Concert – 1:00 & 6:00
20 – Spirit Day – PJ and Stuffy Day
20 – Last day of School before Winter Break
January 6 – First Day Back after Winter Break