...and we're back!

Hello everyone! Firstly, welcome all new students and parents to 5A! I am very excited for our upcoming year together! There have been some significant changes to our school since June. Our leader Mrs. Zimmerman has moved into the next phase of her life (retirement), while Mr. Scott has accepted the principal position at Laidlaw school. Congratulations to them both! While we will miss them, we are excited for them as they take on these new challenges and opportunities. Our warmest welcome to Mrs. Teresa Rogers (Principal) and Mrs. Andrea Loepp (Vice-Principal) who will be leading our school as we move forward.

Our front office has also seen some change. Mrs. Judy Kent has also chosen to retire (miss you Judy!). New to our office this year we warmly welcome Mrs. Brenda Phipps (Office Secretary) and Mrs. Brenda Boychuk (Assistant Secretary). My teacher partner, Mrs. Lowdon is expecting her first child any minute now, and will be on maternity leave for the upcoming year. Welcome to my new grade five partners Mrs. Stewart and Mrs. Finlay. Both are familiar names and faces to LM and I am sure they will love their transition into the middle-years!

LM (and the middle-years staff) welcomes our new grade six team, Mrs. Kim Corneillee and Mrs. Kate Elliot. We are excited to have you with us! We also send our best wishes to Mrs. Judy Doyle as she enters her retirement years. Looking at her pictures of Rome and Italy, I see that she is off to a pretty good start! And finally, best of luck to Mr. Volk, who has accepted a Vice-Principal position in the Western School Division.

Phew! I know there are a few more 'additions', but we will get to those soon enough. As for 5A, our classroom is almost ready for the upcoming year. Typically, teachers begin to 'come back' into their rooms to clean, plan and prepare a few weeks ahead of time. As well, our custodial staff has been working overtime waxing, painting and cleaning and our school looks fantastic!

Typically as a new year begins, I often receive questions from parents or inquiries regarding their children's learning and development. To best respond, I encourage parents to email me first at maalcock@pembinatrails.ca (notice the extra 'a' in the name). This is simply the fastest, most efficient way. You are more than welcome to leave a voicemail if you choose, either on my service or with the front office. I will return your call(s) as soon as possible.

To keep abreast of what is going on in the classroom, there are a few key ways to stay updated as a parent. Firstly, reading this blog is a good start. Secondly, students in 5A will be writing an agenda message EACH DAY. I expect parents to read and SIGN their child's agenda each night. This helps ensure that parents are aware of the 'day-to-day' work we are doing as well as any expectations (e.g. mental math due tomorrow!). Lastly, as a technology guy, I will be posting periodically the on-goings of 5A to our class Twitter account @5ANews. This is a relatively new endeavor (started last year), that I hope to continue building on.

Once the school year begins, 5A will be spending some time building relationships and getting to know one another. As well, parents can expect many hand-outs/info/forms sent home via students the first week or so. Please take the time to make sure all necessary forms are completed and sent back in due time - this will help all of us here to get off to a good start.

Before I wrap-up, I am thoughtful of a certain commercial that tends to air on the television this time of year for Staples (I believe). The scene depicts two parents singing "It's the most, wonderful time of the year" while shopping for new school supplies, while their kids stand arms-folded and long-faced- clearly they do not share their parents sentiment or joy! A terrific scene! Well, I am convinced that we are going to have a wonderful year together and am looking forward to the challenge.




I have included a Prezi Media presentation that I have created to help introduce everyone to their new teacher which I will walk through with the students on their first day. Take a look if it's something that interests you!


That's it for now. See everyone soon!
Mr. A