Welcome to Grade 4!

I hope you all enjoyed your summer. My family most certainly did! My name is Heather Hocevar and I am one of the Grade 4 teachers. I have been a teacher at SJA since September 2015 and this will be my third year teaching Grade 4. I currently reside in Georgetown with my husband Mark and two sons, Carter who will be 6 in October and Kase who is 3. I also have a fur baby named Gretz. He is a Mini Golden Doodle and is 8 years old!

A few pictures from our summer!

Blog/Agendas/Specialists

I will be teaching language, math and of course Units of Inquiry (UOI)! Our new room is room 14 (the Grade 5’s old room). I invite you to check out my blog on a daily basis at http://hhocevar.blogspot.ca. On my blog you will be able to see what your child did that day, homework, weekly spelling words, important dates, the Grade 4 schedule, and other items as well. My blog will be updated on a daily basis. Mrs. William-Jacobs will be teaching French, Mr. Oliver will be teaching music, and Mr. Beresford will be teaching Phys. Ed. Daily agendas will also be filled out by each student and are expected to be signed by parents/guardians on a nightly basis.

Uniform

Grade 4 is a big year as it the beginning of students Junior Primary Years Program (PYP) career! Everything is done independently this year, such as the Science Fair and Oral Presentations where the Grade 4’s write and memorize an informational speech. Another big change is the uniform. From September until Thanksgiving, students are able to wear the summer uniform, which consists of grey pants/shorts/skirts, navy sock, and the white polo t-shirt. From Thanksgiving until after Easter, students are required to wear the winter uniform, which consists of grey pants/skirts, navy blue socks/tights, a white button up shirt, a tie, a long sleeve sweater/sweater vest, and the blazer. Students must wear their blazer during assemblies, to and from class during transitions, and of course during field trips. Black dress shoes are also required, as is a house colour tie to wear on Fridays. Black shoes must be polishable! **All uniform pieces must be purchased through Alpa and Multiform Canada. Uniform violations will be sent home to students who do not have the proper uniform pieces.** Alpa can be reached at alpa@multiformcanada.ca.

Unit of Inquiry

Our first UOI is Oh Canada, where students will explore Canada. As part of our action, I am asking for students to bring in postcards from all over Canada. It can be one you got on a Canadian adventure, or if you have a friend or relative who lives in another part of Canada, ask them to send you one!! Our first novel study will be Anne of Green Gables, which ties in nicely to our UOI. On my blog, you can find a link to SJA’s Program of Inquiry, as well as a list of our Units of Inquiry.

  

Trips

In Grade 4, we hope to have some exciting trips and events. Last year we went to Medieval Times and Royal Botanical Gardens. We also had Scientists in the school for two workshops and Crock-A-Doodle come in for an art project. We hope to give ample notice for when trips/events may take place. Please keep in mind that hot lunch will not be provided during trips and that no reimbursements will be given for hot lunch. Reimbursements will also not be given if your child is absent on the day of the trip. Volunteers are more than welcome and we will do our best to

accommodate all volunteers.

Homework

Homework is given on a nightly basis and is expected to be completed by the following day, unless other wise noted. We do try to keep it to a minimal! I do understand that life does get in the way of homework being completed, but it should not become a habit. If homework is not completed, students will miss a recess or gym to get caught up.

Hot Lunch Program

Ms. Bancud is taking over the hot lunch program from Mrs. Smith. All hot lunch orders can be done online. Payments can be sent to the school via cash or cheque. I will send reminders about the final day that you can order lunch and when the payment is due.

Please see note from Ms. Bancud about the hot lunch program - HOT lunch program is back online and ready for you to place your order for the month of September. Please know that the website closes off end of day Aug 31^st and is unable to reopen for September ordering. Please ensure you get your orders in as soon as possible! We have some new options featured on our menu please keep your eye out for those! Lunch payments are due to homeroom teacher or reception no later than September 8th, 2017.

Below are the instructions for returning families:

*if you have a sibling joining SJA this year please keep in mind you can only use one email per child.

Step 1 Logon to website http://mydigitalmailroom.com/sja - if you forgot your password or email used please contact bsmith@stjudesacademy.com

Step 2 Across the top menu bar you will see several options, please scroll over MY ACCOUNT, Change grade and teacher to reflect new year. Select SAVE

Step 3 Across the top menu bar you will see several options, please scroll over MANAGE LUNCH, a drop-down menu will appear, select ADD NEW LUNCH FORM.

*Don’t forget to select payment method BEFORE ordering

Below are the instructions for new families:

**If you have more than one child you will need to use different email addresses for each child. Only one child can be registered and ordered for under a single email address.

Step 1 Go to website http://mydigitalmailroom.com/sja

·      Select register an account

·      Select grade

·      Select class

·      Select teacher

·      Enter in student information

·      Accept terms and conditions and select Register

Repeat for additional students.

Step 2 Across the top menu bar you will see several options, please scroll over MANAGE LUNCH, a drop-down menu will appear, select ADD NEW LUNCH FORM.

*Don’t forget to select payment method BEFORE ordering

A few other key items:

•   Orientation Night is Monday, August 28 from 5-7 PM. We will begin in the Grade 4 classroom (the Grade 5’s old classroom) from 5-6 and then move to the auditorium from 6-7.
•  All SJA families are required to purchase a key fob. This will allow you to enter the building at the side door between 7:30-9:00 AM and then again from 3:45-6:00 PM. The key fob is a $40 deposit and you can see speak to Dawn about ordering one. Those families who have already ordered one, you can pick them up on Orientation Night.
•  Please note that afternoon Kiss and Ride has been cancelled. The new dismissal procedures can be found in the SJA Parent and Student Handbook attached to this email. The new procedures will also be explained at the orientation evening next week. Morning Kiss and Ride is not affected.

• Daily early dismissal procedures have been cancelled. Parents will still be able to pick up their child/ren for appointments. Please notify you child’s teacher as these events occur.
• As stated in the email sent from Ashley at reception, microwaves will be used only for students in Grade 3 and up. The microwaves are intended to warm up food, so please refrain from sending meals that need to be cooked, such as frozen dinners. Please also ensure that you are sending everything your child may need for their lunch, such as condiments, utensils, and plates for microwavable meals if applicable. We will no longer be handing out plates, bowls, cutlery, and condiments, as they are strictly for those who order hot lunch.
• As for our birthday policy, as you will see in the Student Handbook to please refrain from sending in food related items. If you would like to send in something, a book with your child’s name can be added to the library or a loot bag with pencils, erasers, notebooks, etc. can be sent home with students.
• A kind reminder that we are a peanut and nut-free school. Please avoid sending in items which ‘may contain.’

August/September Dates

• ·      Thursday, August 31 is the last day to order September lunch
• ·      Wednesday, September 6 is the first day of school
• ·      Week of September 6-8 is Neophyte Week with Friday, September 8 being our first house color spirit day. Please dress in your house color: orange, blue, or green! All teachers should have a list of student houses, so if you are unsure of your child’s house, please ask!
• ·      Friday, September 8 is when September lunch payments are due

• The Parent Guild is excited to invite all families to the “SJA Back to School Kick Off” BBQ. This is a great opportunity to meet other families, socialize, and have fun!

When: September 16th from 11am-3pm.  

Where: St. Jude’s Academy

Price: $30 (includes food, drink, games, cupcakes, etc…)

• ·      Tuesday, September 26 will be our Terry Fox Run.
• ·      Wednesday, September 27 will be our first Casual Day. Students will be allowed to dress down if they have paid the $20 casual day fee.
• ·      Tuesday, September 26 and Wednesday, September 27 will be our first bake sale of the year and we are one of the grades who will be in charge of running it. Please bring in nut free and peanut free baked goods to the classroom. Please also avoid ‘may contain’ items.

A kind reminder to please take the time to carefully review each attachment that was sent with the welcome email and then sign and print off the last page of the SJA Parent/Student Handbook and return to me no later than Friday, September 15, 2017.

I apologize for the information overload! I look forward to seeing you all on Monday, August 28. If any questions arise in the meantime, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Enjoy the rest of your summer,

Mrs. Heather Hocevar :)