Imagine4im Principal – Stephanie Miller Head Teacher – Suzanne Windsor-Liscombe

Mission Statement

Confederation Park seeks to enhance the learning of students by offering a variety of opportunities within the performing and visual arts. It is our belief that the integration of the arts into all facets of education teaches students to recognize and appreciate diversity. Confederation Park acknowledges the importance of physical education and academic excellence. It is integral to any school that the curriculum is wholly valued and celebrated. Valuing differences, strengths, and places for further growth is encouraged as a means to develop personal success and empathy within the school population. The arts provide a visual, aural and physical venue in which to strengthen learning, promote success and to respect a multitude of perspectives. It is within this sphere that we are able to travel into the larger world and become a positive force within society.

Principal’s Message

Dear Parents,

Welcome to June and to our final month of this school year. We have continued to experience another busy

month at Confederation Park and have taken advantage of the recent sunny weather by having students

step outside and experience learning in the natural environment. Divisions 8 and 9 have continued their

weekly Nature School, Division 10 has led regular Nature walks, Garden Club has continued to run and teach

our younger learners about growing plants and vegetables, and other classes have ventured outside for P.E

and to participate in group activities such as drama by accessing our outside spaces.

Earlier this month students participated in our recent HighTouch HighTech sessions which had students take

part in many different scientific workshops such as “Water World", "Design Time", "Globs, Goo and Guts". We

also enjoyed our Elevate Ultimate Academy sessions which took place outside in the park when the weather

was cooperative and allowed students to develop their skills in coordination and team work. Many thanks to

our PAC whom subsidized these programs for our students. A fun time was had by all!

Division 6 Students during HighTouch HighTech Session – Building Structures

Confederation Park Elementary

Education Through The Arts

June 2019

4715 Pandora Street

Burnaby, B.C. V5C 2C2

T:(604) 296-9010

confederationpark.burnabyschools.ca

Principal: Helena Readman

Head Teacher: Bonnie Ishii

Trustee: Peter Cech

Secretary: Karen Hunter

As we move into our last month of this year, we look forward to some end-of-term celebratory activities and

events such as our Mural Unveiling on the afternoon of Monday, June 17th. We also have our grade 7

graduation Dinner and Dance, further end-of-year Community Gatherings and Sports Day coming up later

in the month. Please join us at these end-of-year celebrations as we reflect upon this past year and journey

into the summer months ahead. Hope to see you there!

Yours sincerely,

Helena Readman

‘The Most Beautiful Thing About Animals is…’ Oil Pastel Pictures – Division 8

Exemplary Arts Award

We are very proud to announce that Confederation Park Elementary recently received an Arts Exemplary

School award designated by the Arts Schools Network. This award was to recognize the outstanding work

that has been achieved in supporting the development and implementation of our arts programming. We

hope to travel to Florida to receive this award in person at the Arts Schools Network Conference in

October. Congratulations to our school!

Mural Unveiling

We are very proud to announce the unveiling of our Confederation Park Elementary School Mural. This

mural has been painted on ten large panels and includes artwork from all our students this year. Please join

us for a celebration in unveiling this wonderful piece of artwork to our community on Monday, June 17th at

1:30. This afternoon will include a Community Gathering in the gym at 1:30 followed by our unveiling

ceremony outside at approximately 2pm. We hope to have some special district guests unveil the mural

for us and have our band play alongside us with direction from Steve Denroche, our band teacher. We

hope to enjoy some games outside after the ceremony to add to the festivities until the end of the day

(weather permitting.) We look forward to seeing as many of you there as possible.

Pencil Sketches in the Local Environment – Divisions 8 & 9

Library News

As we near the end of another school year, here are a couple of reminders from our teacher-librarian,

Ms. Lynka.

Book Deadline

The week of May 27-30 will be the last week to borrow books. All library books will be due back by Thursday,

June 6th. Any students with overdue or missing books after that date will be given a notice with fines

attached to pay for the cost of replacing them. If the books are found and returned, NO fines will be

charged.

Book Swap: Once again, we will hold a book swap in the library on Wednesday, June 12th. If your family

has any gently-used books to donate, please send them to school before Friday, June 7th. We are aiming

to have enough books for the whole school! Classes will visit the book swap and students will each get to

choose a book to keep.

BPL Summer Reading Program: Ms. Lynka will hand out information about the Burnaby Public Library's

summer reading program in the coming weeks. It's a great way to encourage reading once school's out

and prevent the "summer slump!"

It`s been a great year- thank you for your continued support of our school library program!

Creative Plant Designs - Division 7

Poultry in Motion

On May 24th we had a visit from Poultry in Motion – a mobile educational mini barn that came to

Confederation Park to share knowledge about chickens. Each class attended a session with the

educational presenter whom talked about their rearing practices of chickens and explained the difference

between Breeders, Chicks and Broilers. Students were very engaged in the presentation sessions and

asked many interesting and inquisitive questions in order to learn more about animal farm practices. Thank

you to Ms. Fischer for organizing this visit for our students!

Parent Coffee Morning

Thank you to those parents whom joined our Coffee Morning on May 21st. We discussed the recent

changes to the ways in which we are Communicating Student Learning and how we might look forward to

next year with feedback from our parents and staff. We look forward to continuing Parent Coffee Mornings

next school year and to engage in more thoughtful conversations in the future.

Pointillism Sunflower Paintings – Division 5

Dance Club/Festival

Ms. Ishii and Ms. Jaffer sponsored Dance Club on Wednesday lunchtimes this term and worked with

approximately 40 intermediate students to choreograph and rehearse a dance with a Bollywood theme.

Students worked on their dance number which was then performed at the District Dance Festival at

Burnaby Mountain Secondary School on the evening of Wednesday, May 15th. Students did a wonderful

job performing their dance at this district event. Congratulations to all those students whom participated!

Thank you also to those parents whom turned out to support the school.

Boomerang Club

Ms. Ishii and Ms. McKenna continue working with members of the Boomerang Club to explore ways of

sharing kindness and compassion. Recently this club has been supporting our school events. Students

have prepared buttons for our Mural Unveiling event, planned an inside activity lunchtime event for

primary students and organized Crazy Hair Day which took place on May 23rd. Well done to all these

members for their leadership and continued commitment to sharing their acts of kindness with others!

Book Genre Reviews – Division 2

Garden Club

Our parent sponsors, Rachel Yensen and Tammy Vigliotti, have continued working with our younger

students in Garden Club during Thursday lunchtimes. Our garden has grown a great deal during this lovely

sunny weather and we have already harvested some vegetables such as white radishes which students

have enjoyed tasting. Other vegetables being grown include carrots, sweet peas, onions and potatoes.

Many flowers are also growing in our garden bins and students are enjoying working in the soil to learn

about optimal conditions for plant growth. This continues to be a wonderful way to teach students about

the natural world and the growth cycle of plants. Thank you, Rachel and Tammy, for supporting our

students this term!

Textiles Club

Ms. Ishii and Ms. McKenna have continued to run Textiles Club this term during Friday lunchtimes. Students

have been exploring creative ways of using textiles to design and make artefacts. Some of the recent

artefacts have included finger-knitted scarves and pillows. Students continue to use a variety of tools and

materials including needles, thread, yarn, scissors, various fabrics and sewing machines.

Door Artwork – Division 2

Save the Dates

* Pro-d Day – Friday, June 10th (School closed)

* Early Dismissal – Friday, June 14th at 2:12PM

* Mural Unveiling Event – Monday, June 17th at 1:30pm

* Sports Day (K-5) – Friday, June 21st – Dismissal at 1:30PM

* Community Gatherings: Grade 7 Leaving Ceremony – June 25th 9:30; Year-End Celebration – June 26th

at 1:45

Planning for 2019-20

We are starting to plan for next year. Although classes are not finalized until the end of the first week of

September, initial planning is approaching. If your family is planning to move away for the next school

year, please advise the office as soon as possible.

PAC NEWS

LOOKING TOWARDS NEXT YEAR

Thank you to all the parents who attended the recent PAC Annual General Meeting. The evening was very

productive with the review of the current year’s budget; discussion of the teacher’s Wish List for 2019/20;

setting of the new budget based on these accepted items; and the planning of new Fundraising

objectives.

Parents are very excited with the ways in which they will be able to contribute to the school and our

children’s learning experience in the upcoming year. Budget items include assistance for classroom

supplies and financial support for busses for class excursions; Artist in Residence programs, Sports programs

and the annual Pancake Breakfast to name a few.

Voting for the 2019/20 PAC Executive was held with the following individuals continue filling the positions for

another year: Jacquie Lane and Lydia Ashanti, Co-Chairs; Hetal Gandhi, Vice Chair; Chloe Perron,

Secretary; Stacey Murphy, Treasurer.

Returning as Committee Coordinators are Shaen Golden (Emergency Preparedness), Rachel Yensen

(Communications), Hetal Gandhi (Hotlunch-Munchalunch) and Mara Michielli (Fundraising).

An individual is also required as DPAC Representative and Hotlunch Onsite Coordinator. If you, or anyone

you know, is interested in this position, please contact chair@confedpac.ca

THE SHACK WILL BE BACK

Sports Day wouldn’t be complete without the parent run ‘Snack Shack’.

Open during the annual event, Friday, June 21st, the Shack will once again offer pizza as well as cold drinks

and snacks such as watermelon slices, chips, ice cream and baked goods.

A student favorite, the Snack Shack is always a highlight of the day so be sure to send some money with

your children so they can enjoy the fun.

More details to follow soon, stay tuned…

THANKS FOR THE MEMORIES!

The 2018/19 Memory Book has gone to print! With over 1,000 photos the book contains candid shots of

each class on field trips and in the classroom; photos of school events and assemblies; action shots of

teams and clubs; and special sections dedicated to Dance Play, Letters to Wanda and Voices of Nature.

Thanks to the fabulous team who work so hard to make this book a true keepsake for the students: the

design team of Yunuen Perez Vertti, Stan Tung, Tami Cline and Chloe Perron; our ‘official’ unofficial

photographer Derek Stevens who always tries to be everywhere; all of the 'back up' parent photographers

who step in whenever needed; and coordinator Gloria McKale who works behind the scenes to bring it all

together.

And a special thank you to all the parents and teachers who heeded the call for photos. This book can

only happen with your support.

If you missed the order deadline, there are a VERY limited number of extras available. Please

email memory-book@confedpac.ca if you would like to request a copy. It will be on a first come first

served basis.

Memory Books are scheduled to be distributed the afternoon of Tuesday, June 25th with time being set

aside for the students to sign each other’s copies.

Thank you again for all your support.

LAST PAC MEETING OF 2018/19

The last PAC meeting of the 2018/19 school year will be held on Wednesday, June 12th at 7:00 p.m. in the

school library.

Final acceptance of the 2019/20 budget will take place as well as an overview of the year and wrapping

up of any outstanding issues. A detailed Agenda will be forwarded prior to the meeting as well as the

minutes from the Annual General Meeting held in May.

Please plan to attend. Your input is invaluable.

Community Announcements

From May 13-17, Elevate Ultimate taught Ultimate Frisbee to all the classes at

Confederation! We had a ton of fun coaching your kids and they hope your kids had fun as well.

If your child enjoyed the frisbee unit and is interested in continuing with Elevate, we have

many Summer Camps nearby in Burnaby and at Hastings Community Centre. We hope to see you

this summer

Confederation Park Families are able to use a 10% discount code for summer camps:

ConfedFrisbee

https://elevateacademy.ca/summer-camp/

Community Announcements Cont’d.

Community Announcements Cont’d.