Salsa Residency

Grades 5-9 students will participate in the Salsa Residency taught by Marcos Ravelo for the week of Jan 29-Feb 2. Students will experience and learn many dance steps that incorporate salsa, bachata and merengue. K-4 will participate next week. 

https://www.havanacubandancestudio.com/

Complementary Courses

The Grade 6 & 7’s begin their Term 3 of Complementary Courses starting Wednesday January 31st.  Students will have multiple courses through the year that connect to Career and Technology Foundational Skills. 

Career and Technology Foundations (CTF) is an inquiry-based, hands-on, complementary program of study for Grades 5 through 9 that is based on 14 learning outcomes that are applicable to all 28 occupational areas.

CTF is organized within five clusters; Business, Communication, Resources, Technology, and Human Services, that align with the Career and Technology Studies (CTS) clusters.

CTF challenges or tasks that integrate at least two occupational areas, honor student diversity and provide students with an opportunity to experience meaningful, authentic exploration and interconnectedness of skills, knowledge and technologies associated with various occupational areas. Students engaging in CTF challenges explore interests, passions and skills, in a non-linear manner of alternating between the processes of planning, creating, appraising and communicating, while exploring careers, safety, and environmental stewardship and developing competencies to work independently and with others.

Report Cards/IPP’s

• Report Cards will be viewable to parents on your MyCBE account on Tuesday January 30th.
• If your child is on an IPP you will receive a copy of the IPP to sign and return the parent signature page

Kindergarten Report Cards

Kindergarten teachers will report progress to parents / legal guardians via January and June report cards.  

• In January, progress in ELAL and Math will be communicated to parents / legal guardians via the report card.  
• In June, progress in all discipline areas will be communicated to parents / legal guardians via the report card.  

Child and Youth Well-Being: A Webinar Series for Parents and Guardians 

Metal Health & Anxiety (Grade K-6) - February 8 6:30-8:00pm

Learn how to support elementary-aged children with stress and anxiety. Our partners from AHS will clarify the language around mental health and provide effective coaching strategies to help children grow more resilient. You'll also learn about the signs that indicate the need for professional assessment and support, as well as how to boost your own mental health.  Meeting Link HERE.

Away for the Day Cell Phone Policy

At GW we have an 'Away for the Day' policy.  All phones need to be turned off and out of sight during class time.  Phones can only be used in class with specific teacher permission in order to support a learning activity. The expectation is that cell phones will not be on their person during class time and movement between classes.  Grades 7 to 9 must keep their phones in their locker.  In grades 5 and 6, if students have a cell phone, they will be kept in a safe place at the discretion of their teacher. Smartwatches are considered the same as cell phones and can be worn but not used for communication during class time.  These expectations align with our school's Digital Citizenship Policy, for more information please refer to our website, https://school.cbe.ab.ca/school/griffithwoods/culture-environment/tech-tools/digital-citizenship/pages/default.aspx

Failure to follow these rules will result in the consequences below;

• The device is confiscated by the teacher for a set amount of time. 
• Should this continue to be an issue, the device will be sent to the office for the remainder of the day and parents will be contacted. 
• Students will be required to leave their phone at home or check it in at the office in the morning.  A contract is created in order to document and provide guidance on acceptable cell phone use at school. 

Extra Curricular Volleyball 

All CBE middle schools have set similar expectations for games that promote safety, respect, and a positive experience for all. They include: 

• All student spectators/athletes must be under the direct supervision of a designated adult for the duration of the games 
• There are no in an out privileges for spectators 
• Student spectators without parental supervision will be directed by the hosting school administration to leave the building 
• All spectators - students or adults - are expected to cheer and support players/coaches/referees/parents/guardians in a positive manner 
• Disrespectful behaviors will be addressed by school administration promptly and may result in spectators being directed to leave the game and the school building 
• Parents/guardians who bring younger children are responsible at all times for their direct supervision. Please ensure that they are not wandering the halls and playing on Phys Ed equipment in the gym/on stage 

These expectations have been reviewed with all of our students in school. Please review with your student(s) as well. We thank you in advance for your ongoing support. 

Casino Night Sign Up

Our casino’s raise a lot of money for our school that goes directly into supporting students and their learning.  We are looking for volunteers to sign up for our next Casino Night at the end of April:

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0B4FAEAD2EA7F5CF8-47275119-griffith

Kindergarten Registration

When you register for Kindergarten you can indicate a preference for morning or afternoon class.  We do try to honor as many requests as we can but if we have an overwhelming number of requests for morning we do a random draw of names for the available spaces. Registration for Kindergarten is open.  Please see here Kindergarten Registration Process for more information. Once registrations close, we are going to have a community engagement process for next year’s families to determine if we have full day Kindergarten with alternating days instead of half days. 

Registration at Griffith Woods for Next Year

• Currently Griffith Woods is at capacity, this means that we have a call back list of students who are currently attending our overflow schools which are Battalion for elementary (1-6) and Bishop Pinkham for Junior High (7-9).
• Please advise the office if there are any plans to move and/or change schools for next September by e-mailing griffithwoods@cbe.ab.ca 

Important Dates

Monday January 29 – Healthy Hunger – Golden Bell
Monday January 29 – Salsa Residency Begins
Tuesday January 30 – Report Cards Viewable to Parents
Wednesday January 31 – Term 3 Begins for Grade 6 and 7 Complementary Courses (Viewable in your MyCBE account)
Monday February 5 – Healthy Hunger – Mucho Burrito
Thursday and Friday February 15 & 16 – Teacher’s Convention (No School for Students)
Monday February 19 – Family Day (No School for Students)
Monday February 26 – Healthy Hunger – Noodle Box
Wednesday February 28 – Pink Shirt Day
Friday March 1 – K-9 Open House 1-3pm (more information sent out closer to the date)
Monday March 4 – Healthy Hunger – Tim Horton’s
Monday March 11 – Healthy Hunger – Wok Box
Monday March 18 – Healthy Hunger – A & W
Wednesday March 20 – Term 3 begins for Grade 5,8, and 9 Complementary Courses
Thursday March 21 – Parent-Teacher Conferences in the evening
Friday March 22 – Parent-Teacher Conferences (No School students)
March 25 - April 1  – Spring Break
Tuesday April 2 – Classes Resume