Monday, 16 December 2013

Staff changes

This week we will be saying goodbye to some special staff members and saying hello to some new ones. Ms. Power has been here since September teaching Language Arts and social studies to grade 8 and 9 students.  She has worked diligently with the literacy planning committee to create lessons that support all of our students.  We hope to see her back at MidSun substitute teaching.  Marta Pelletier will be here in January to take over the classes.  She will be available at Parent Teacher interviews to meet parents.

This week we also say goodbye to Lori White who works hand in hand with Scott Campbell in the band program.  She has been working with our band and band parents association since the school opened.  She headed up the bands fundraising arm and field trip support and has made it possible for many students to learn music who might not otherwise have had the chance.  She received a standing ovation at our Christmas concert in thanks for her outstanding dedication to our band program. She is retiring and hopes to travel South with her husband in the New Year.  We thank her for her years of service and hope she won't be a stranger.  We welcome Jennie Shipley as her replacement.  Jennie is no stranger to MidSun or our band program and has been working with Lori this fall for a smooth transition.

This is an exciting week at MidSun.  Wednesday we are asking students to share their Christmas Spirit by wearing Christmas sweaters, Santa hats and red clothing. 

Guinness World Record Certificate

Congratulations again to all the staff and students that participated in the "Carved Pumpkin" Challenge in October.



Thursday, 12 December 2013

Parent Teacher Interview Booking Opens December 16th!


This is a reminder to go online and book for our upcoming parent student teacher conferences using Conference Manager.  These are scheduled for Thursday December 19, 2013 from 5:30-8:00 PM and Friday December 20 from 9:00-12:00 PM. 
Teachers have been contacting parents of students that they believe need some extra support and booking appointments this week.

The site opens for booking by parents at 6:00 AM on Monday December 16, 2013. Each time slot is 5 minutes.  Core teachers recommend booking two consecutive sessions.  You may add any comments to let the teacher know if you have a particular concern you would like to talk about. Be sure to put travel time between interviews.

You are able to view marks and attendance records on HomeLogic on a consistent basis now.  Please check your child’s information prior to your appointment so you can have the most up to date information available to you as you discuss your concerns.  http://www.midsunschool.blogspot.ca/2013/12/midsun-homelogic-news-update.html    For more information about Home Logic, please go to http://schools.cbe.ab.ca/b691/parents.htm   and click on HomeLogic introduction for parents.    You can log in to HomeLogic by going to  https://sirswebapps.cbe.ab.ca/homelogic/ 

We hope that this will allow our teachers to be prepared for your interviews and make the time more productive for everyone.  Please call our office at 403-777-6430 if you have any concerns.

MidSun School
Parent-Teacher Conferences- December 19 & 20, 2013

The link for the Conference Manager is: https://midsun.schoolsoft.ca

Parent Account is required to use the Conference Manager. However, you only need to go through the registration process the first time you use the system. If you have never registered in the Conference Manager use the link above and click the “Register Now” button.

Can’t remember your password?
If you already have a Parent Account, click on the link above, select “Forgot your password” and enter the email address you used to register in the system. You will then receive an email containing instructions for resetting your password. If you do not receive an email, you might have entered an email address the system does not recognize. Please also add appointments@schoolsoft.ca to your address book in your computer mail.  This will override any spam filters that might be blocking the email. If the problem persists, please contact the office and ask them to access your Parent Account, confirm your email address and reset your password.

Step 1 - Conference Manager Opens to Parents – 6:00 AM December 16, 2013
If you used the Conference Manager in the past, your email and password are still in the system. You can simply access the Conference Manager using the link above.

Step 2 – Book your Parent-Teacher interviews
Select the teachers with whom you want to book interviews. You will see each teacher’s schedule. Select one session for a 5 minute interview or two consecutive sessions for a ten minute interview.  Be sure to leave travel time in between your interviews. After booking your appointments you can print off your schedule. You will also receive an email confirming your bookings. You can log into the system at any time to view your bookings, print, cancel or re-schedule appointments.

If you do not have Internet access, you are welcome to contact the office and we will schedule your conferences on your behalf.

We recommend adding
to your address book

Important Dates: 
December 16 – Start scheduling your interviews at 6:00 AM
December 19 – 5:30 - 8:00 PM Parent Teacher Interviews
December 20 – 9:00 – 12:00 PM Parent Teacher Interviews
If you have any questions or need assistance, please feel free to contact the school at 403-777-6430. Please let us know if you like this system! Special thanks to the School Council for purchasing the conference manager!


Monday, 2 December 2013

Book Club Info

The Mid Sun Book Club will meet Tuesday, December 10th during lunch break in Mr. Pratt’s room (2031). **Note this is a new day of the week and a new location**.
While eating our lunch, we will be talking about The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon.

Last month we discussed The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne. The students rated that book a 3.5 out of 5 stars. Set in Berlin in 1942 it is told through the eyes of a nine-year-old boy. The students found the narrator quite naïve for his age, showing the stark difference between a child in that era and a child in today’s media savvy world.

Next up is Gone by Michael Grant.  If you are looking for book recommendations for your reader this holiday, some titles we have really enjoyed include: All These Things I’ve Done by Gabrielle Zevin, Maze Runner by James Dashner, Uglies by Scott Westerfeld, and Divergent by Veronica Roth (coming out as a movie in 2014). Or check out this link for the top selling 50 books for teens http://www.chapters.indigo.ca/teens/top-50-books-for-teens/?langtype=4105.


Happy reading and remember we are always happy to have new members join us.  See Mrs. Bergh in the Library for more information.

Carnival - Dec 5 Information


Teachers begin to work on new report card slated for 2014/2015 school year

As parents know, we will be moving to a new report card format for the 2014/2015 school year.  On Friday, our teachers looked closely at the descriptors that will appear on the report card and began to organize their student learning outcomes to align with the new indicators (also called stems).  Over the course of the next 7 months, you will start to hear teachers referring to your child's learning using the outcomes or the stems that will appear on the next school year's report card.  This is part of our transition plan as we migrate to the new report card.  For this year, you will still see a percentage as the summative indicator of your child's achievement.  If you want more information on the new report card, Ms. Saretsky will be speaking about it and the process we are using to get there on January 15, 2014 at 7:00 PM at our School Council meeting.