November Updates

It is hard to believe that we are already into November!  The time has flown.  Please find below some important updates and reminder for families as the year progresses.

School Council:  Thank you to those who have responded to being a part of our School Council this year.  We are still short a few members to reach our constitutional numbers.  If you are intersted in participating, please call or email the school.  In the event that we are unable to reach our minimum, we will begin to hold informational meetings for those interested.  We will be able to conduct any official School Council business, but we can gather parent voice and ideas.  All meetings will be held virtually this year.

Student Safety:  Student safety is the paramount for the staff at SWL.  Our parking lot has been identified as an area of concern.  We are urging parents to only park in designated parking spots (preferably off school property or at the Rec Centre) and/or walk to pick your children up.  We have found that parents are stopping/parking in unsafe areas which creates a safety concern for staff and students who are leaving school property.  Additionally, our bus drivers have complained off cars blocking their way when trying to leave school property.  Your cooperation is greatly appreciated.  We have reached out to the City of Hamilton to assist with education and enforcement.

School Reorganization:  We were fortunate to not have any significant impacts made to our school organization this time around.  We did welcome back about 15 students, either new to the area or returning from Remote, during the past week.  We did have to shift a few students from class to class to make room for these students.

Drills:  We have conducted all three of our fall Fire Drills and are almost done our Secure Schools Drills.  We will be conducting our Lockdown Drill before the end of November.  More information can be found about Secure Schools on the HWDSB website.

Nutrition Program:  Our scaled back Nutrition Program has started up.  Thank you to our staff volunteers who were able to make this possible.  Snacks are made available each day for students should they need one.  This snack is a supplement to what families send with their child for lunch.  We are looking to expand the program and looking for volunteers.  If you are interested in assisting, please call the school office.

Visitors to School:  As you are aware, we are trying to limit the number of people in the building, especially as numbers rise across the city and province.  This is a reminder to send your child with everything they need for the day to avoid drop offs.   Your cooperation is appreciated.

Communication:  Covid restrictions and Public Health measures has changed how we do many things.  We are no longer sending paper notices home.  Most communication will continue to be virtual and/or phone calls.  Please be sure to subscribe to our website to get email notifications for when our website is updated.  A monthly community update will be provided (newsletter) and many important forms can be found in the Parent Portal.  If you have not already done so, please update your profile in Parent Portal.

New Hydration Station:  As all students are encouraged to have their own fillable water bottle (due to fountains being closed), we had a new hydration station installed on the second floor.  We now have 2 stations in the school where staff and students can refill their water bottles.

Progress Reports:  Progress Reports were recently sent home.  Please be sure to review with your child and set goals for the next term.  Please return the envelope for re-use next term.  More information regarding the November PA Day and parent/teacher interviews will be communicated in the near future.

Thank you again to everyone for all their efforts and support in following our new school routines.  We are off to a great start and looking forward to building on the successes this year.  If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to call me at the school.

Principal Moore