Upcoming Events

January 20…..Sun Peaks Consultation

February 6……School NOT in Session

February 7…………………...Pro D Day

February 10-13………...…Kindergarten ………………………………Registration

February 12………………PAC Meeting

February 17………………...Family Day

March 2 & 4……………...Snowshoeing

March 12……..Report Cards Go Home

March 16 - 20 ................. .Spring Break

April 10………………….....Good Friday

April 13…………….……Easter Monday

April 17…….............School IN Session

April 27…………………...…..Pro D Day

May 14………..School NOT in Session

May 15……………………….Pro D Day

May 18…….......................Victoria Day

May 22……………...School IN Session

June 25…………...Last Day of Classes

For a full list of events, visit the Events Calendar on our school website.

To receive email updates of events, click on “Subscribe” (located above SAT on the events calendar).

Newsletter

Sun Peaks Elementary School

Principal’s Message Welcome back to the new year! I hope that everyone had an

excellent break and thoroughly enjoyed the holiday season. As I

have said before, I really enjoy this next section of time at school

as it is such an amazing time for learning with the students. Over

the next few months we will be continuing to focus on literacy

and numeracy as our learning goals. For the February Profes-

sional Development Day, the intermediate teachers will be partic-

ipating in a workshop on developing “Powerful Understanding”

hosted by Adrienne Geer while the primary teachers will be

participating in a workshop on “How Can We Meaningfully Infuse

Social Emotional Learning”. Both workshops fit very well into our

school goals.

Over the next few months we will be taking the students on sev-

eral outings, both around the community as well as to Kamloops.

This will give the students the opportunity to take part in a variety

of both athletic and cultural activities. It is an excellent opportu-

nity for the students to see many activities that are available to

them in our community.

Christmas Hamper for Family We wanted to send a big thank you to all of

the families that donated to the Christmas

hamper we donated to a Kamloops family in

need of support during the holiday season.

They were so appreciative of the gigantic

hamper that was brought down to them. I

know the Sun Peaks Community really made

their Christmas a special one; which they

would not have had without our support.

Thank you all!

January 2020

Safe Kind Invested

Christmas Concert

Thank you to all the

parents, family and

friends who came to

see our students per-

form at the Christmas

concert. It was wonder-

ful to share the evening

with everyone. A huge

thank you to all of our

volunteers. We so

appreciate all of your

efforts.

SD73 Considering Sun Peaks Re-Configuration

School District No. 73 will hold a community consultation to obtain feedback on a proposed plan

to re-configure Sun Peaks Elementary School.

The district is considering a plan to fully integrate grades 8 and 9 into the school for the 2020-

2021 school year. The public consultation meeting is planned for Jan. 20, 2020, from 5 to 7 pm,

at the Hearthstone Lodge. For more information, please read the Sun Peaks Reconfiguration

memo, Dec. 12, 2019.

Questions, comments and feedback are welcome. Please forward any questions, comments

and feedback to facilityinput@sd73.bc.ca. Check below for answers, which will be posted as

feedback is received.

For additional information, please contact the office of the Superintendent of Schools,

at 250-374-0679.

2

Snowshoeing

Discover Sun Peaks Adventures has again graciously offered to

take our school snowshoeing the first week of March. Unfortunately

with the early spring last year we were unable to go, so we are very

excited to have this opportunity again. Please look out for the

permission slip which will be coming home in the next few days.

The older students will be cross-country skiing this winter. We are

excited to give them an opportunity to try a different winter sport.

Further information will be sent home regarding dates and times.

Cross-Country Skiing

PAC

The next PAC meeting

will be on Wednesday,

February 12, at 8:45 am,

at the Cahilty Creek

Kitchen & Taproom. All

parents and guardians of

Sun Peaks Elementary

students are invited to

attend.

Sun Peaks Elementary

PAC ski vests in action

“Parents are strongly

encouraged to register children for kindergarten on these dates”

Kindergarten Registration Feb 10 - 14, 2020

9:00 am to 12:00 pm and 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm

Kindergarten registration for the 2019/2020 school year for Neighbour-

hood Schools will be from Feb 10 - 14 from 9:00 am to 12:00 pm and

1:00 pm to 3:00 pm. Parents are strongly encouraged to register

children for kindergarten on these dates, but registration will continue

throughout the remainder of the school year. To be eligible for

attendance in kindergarten in September 2020, a student must be five

years of age by December 31, 2020 Please bring your child’s original

birth certificate, BC Services Card and proof of address with you when

registering as well as any legal documentation concerning custody

(if applicable).

Catchment The catchment area for Sun Peaks Elementary is the municipality of

Sun Peaks. When you register your child for school, it is important that

you bring proof of residency. If you live outside of the catchment area,

you will need to register at your catchment school first and then have

your name placed on the waiting list for Sun Peaks Elementary. If your

catchment school is Heffley Creek Elementary, you may fill out your

registration papers at Sun Peaks. In the situation where you have a

child presently enrolled at Sun Peaks Elementary, the younger sibling

may be registered at Sun Peaks as well.

Please refer to School District No. 73 website for more information on

registration and policies, such as: Administrative Procedure 305

School Boundaries and Student Transfer Requests.

For more information, please contact Mr. Johnson or Mrs. Pinette in

the office at 250-578-7227.

3

Dress for Weather

As we have been

reminded with our last

cold spell, please

ensure that your child

has appropriate cloth-

ing and footwear for

outside. Gloves, toques

and snow pants

become a necessity at

this time of year. Also,

we really want to do

our best to keep the

classrooms dry, so we

ask all students to have

a pair of inside shoes

which will not go out-

side. All outside gear is

to come off before they

come into the class-

room. This helps us to

keep our school clean-

er and safer.

Walking to School As the weather starts to change it is important to review the dropping off and

picking up expectations at the school. As everyone is aware, our school is

located in a very unique location in our beautiful mountain resort. The main

drop off and pick up point is located at the Village Day Lodge, and students

are asked to walk up the magic carpet to get to school. This is part of the

culture of the school and is an excellent way for the students to burn off

energy in the morning and to get into class prepared to work and learn. As a

school, we are encouraging all students to walk up and not be dropped off on

Sundance Drive as it creates a traffic concern in the area and may pose a haz-

ard to our students. Each teacher will be talking with their class about this and

encouraging them all to take the platter lift. In order for this to be successful,

we ask that parents drop their children off at the day lodge with enough time

to spare to walk up. We appreciate your support in making this a success.

We do recognize that there can be extenuating circumstances why your child

may not be able to walk up. If so, please contact me and we can make

arrangements.

In addition, the drop off at the corner of Sundance Drive is strictly forbidden.

This includes the posted no parking area by the ski access way. Please see the

attached note from the Fire Chief.

4

Dear Parents,

The Sun Peaks Elementary School is located in a one of a kind

location. With this unique location come some rules and regula-

tions regarding the vehicle traffic around the school.

The Village Day Lodge is the year round drop-off and pick up

zone for all students. The healthy lifestyle ideology of the school

supports having the children walk or ski to and from the Village

Day Lodge.

1. The snow has arrived and the road into the school will be

closed (it becomes a ski run). At this point Sundance Drive,

above and below “the bend” in the road can be used, in

emergencies only, as a drop off and pick up location. If you

must use these locations, please turn off your engine as

soon as you have put your vehicle in park - even if only for a

minute or two. Idling is not permitted at any time.

2. For Safety reasons “the bend” on Sundance Drive is a no

stopping or parking area. Please see the highlighted area on

the attached map. The roadway has been clearly marked

with no parking signs and traffic tickets will be given out for

infractions. The only people permitted to park in the small,

plowed area by the entrance to the school are staff of the

Sun Peaks Resort Corporation, Sun Peaks Utilities or School

District staff.

The Sun Peaks Mountain Resort Municipality, Sun Peaks Resort

Corporation, School District 73 and the Sun Peaks Education

Society continue to work towards making our school the best

mountain educational experience in British Columbia. Your ef-

forts in respecting road safety and the residents that live near our

current school site is greatly appreciated.

Thank you in advance for your understanding and co-operation

Fire Chief

5

Winter Dropping Off and Picking up of Students at Sun Peaks Elementary School

Screenagers

SD73 hosted a documentary

movie called “Screenagers”. This

was an informative session on

how to support our children as

they grow up in the digital age.

More information can be found at

www.screenagersmovie.com.

The “Tech Talk Tuesdays” tab on

the webpage is a fantastic

resource and provides a host of

information on conversation start-

ers around tech with your children.

The Parent-Child Mother Goose program will be happening once again this winter at Heffley

Creek Elementary. This is a wonderful opportunity to: enjoy an hour of rhymes, songs and oral

stories with your young children, learn other ways to encourage language and social develop-

ment, meet other parents and families, and learn about

community resources. It is free to attend, but you do need to

register via www.eventbrite.ca

Thursdays, 9:30 am—10:30 am

January 16 - March 5, 2020

Hosted by Kamloops Early Language and Literacy Initiative

(KELLI) and School District No. 73. Sponsored by the

BC Ministry of Education, Ready, Set, Learn Initiative.

For more information, please call 250-376-4771.

Mother Goose

Sun Peaks Elementary

4040 Sundance Dr

Sun Peaks BC Phone: 250-587-7227

Fax: 250-377-2223

Safe Kind Invested