December 10th, 2020
From the beginning of the year, the health and safety of our school community has been a primary focus for all our students, staff and families. Routines have been established in classrooms and throughout the school in an effort to keep everyone safe. Through this vigilance, students have enjoyed a very positive return to school and are benefitting from this hard work…the hard work demonstrated by each one of you, by each one of our cougar students, and by each one of our staff members.
We will continue to do our best to avoid disruptions in routines and safety practices that may pose unnecessary health and safety risks. As a result, we would like to remind all families and students that no items from the outside should be brought into the school that are not essential to your child’s well-being and the learning experience being provided at Chalmers.
Moving forward we will continue with the established practice of not engaging in food sharing. Please refrain from sending in treats or any other items that are intended to be given to the students in your child’s class. As it relates to WRDSB COVID-19 health and safety protocols, we are requesting that no gift exchanges take place between staff, students, and families.
It is important to note that our current initiative, The Ballantyne Project, does align with the necessary health and safety precautions as all items donated are being immediately isolated and are not accessed by students. We also feel quite strongly that our support for Cree Nation Deschambault Lake in Saskatchewan has created a purposeful and impactful learning opportunity as we strive to develop sound moral citizenship and intentionally practice The Lost Teachings as a school community (e.g., love, wisdom, respect, truth, humility, honesty and courage).
Thank you for modelling the importance of kindness, respect, and compassion. Thank you as well for being socially responsible with each interaction, and each time you are present on school property (e.g., wearing your mask, maintaining physical distance, and waiting in the appropriate entry/dismissal zones).
We encourage you to take a moment this morning to reflect on a recent campaign that is gaining momentum in the Waterloo Region: Finding Hope (@wellbeingWR #findinghopemovement).
Have a wonderful start to your Thursday!
Jeff Johnson, Principal