Upcoming Events

Sept. 11 - Token Sales

Lunch Program

Our lunch program will begin on September 12^th with Hot Dog Day. Tokens will be sold on the 11^th, here at the school.

Slips will be sent home with the students prior to this date. Parents are asked to fill out the form, with their child’s name and the amount of each item they wish to purchase, and return it in the re-sealable bag to the school on Thursday.

Suzanne Paton and Sherri Crockett have taken over as lunch program coordinators. Our sincere thanks on behalf of the students, staff and parents are extended to Valerie Herring MacBeath for the many years of leadership given to this program.

Meet The Staff Night

On Thursday, September 11 at 7:00 p.m. our annual Meet The Staff Night will be held in the Gymnasium.

Terry Fox Run

Once again, students at L.M. will be participating in this event. The event will be held on the 12^th. Rain date is the 15^th. Rather than ask students to get pledges, we ask that you simply send a loonie in with each child. This is in keeping with Terry’s wish that every Canadian contribute one dollar to the cause. Thank you for your support with this event.

School Pictures

Individual and class pictures for Grades 1-6 will be taken on September 24^th.

General Information

The School Office is open at 8:00 a.m. each morning for you to call when your children are unable to attend school.

If you are calling the school to make a change in regard to picking up students at the end of the day, it would be much appreciated if you could call prior to 2:00 p.m. as the end of the day can be a very hectic time in the office.

School Supply Fee

At this time a few student supply fees for this year are still outstanding. We would ask you to send the fee to the School within the next week. The fee for students in Grades 1 - 5 is $35. Thank you in advance for your cooperation with this.

Home and School News

The executive for the 2008-09 school year is as follows:
Tina Vessey - President
Roma Misener - Vice President
Lynn Jardine - Treasurer
Valerie Herring MacBeath - Secretary
Debra Lynn Trainor - Past President

Our first meeting will be held in October. More information to follow.

Message from the President

On behalf of the Home and School we all hope everyone had a great summer. We are all looking forward to the upcoming year. This year we will have five meetings with the first one being in October. I look forward to working with you and meeting our new grade one parents. If anyone has any questions or concerns please don't hesitate to contact me at anytime. More information will be sent home closer to the first meeting.

Thanks, Tina Vessey 

Thank You

* A huge thank you is extended to our summer reading volunteers who put a number of our books on tape for us. This is much appreciated and will benefit many of our students. Thank you!!

* Thank you to Christine MacDonald and family who maintained our front garden area over the summer. It looks great!

Volunteers Wanted

Do you have a talent you want to share? A few hours you want to fill? A desire to help out at your child’s school?

We are looking for parents, guardians, grandparents who are interested in running activities for our students after school. Can you play chess? Do you like to knit? Do you like Drama? If you have a talent you would like to share, please contact Ms. Adams in the office.

We would also appreciate volunteers to help out in our school library. Do you have a couple of hours to come in and help maintain the wonderful collection of books we have? If you can help out in this area, please contact Ms. Jollimore in the library.

Would you like to put some books on tape for us? We need readers, who can put novels on tape for use with our students. If you can help out, please contact Ms. Davidson in the office.

School Development Plan

We are continuing our work in the areas of writing and reading comprehension. The staff participated in a workshop on the 2^nd of September with Joanne Doherty and Karen Gaudet. The focus of the day was using the Continuum of Literacy Learning document provided by the Department, guided reading, and developing fluency to improve comprehension.

We will continue our work in these areas over the school year, with monthly after school sessions and P.D. Days. We are continuing our work with the 7 Keys to Comprehension. Handouts will be available Meet the Staff night for you on these, so you can assist your children at home. If you have any questions about our plan, please do not hesitate to contact Ms. Adams in the office.

No Child Without

Our school is involved in the Canadian Medic Alert Foundation's No Child Without program. There is no cost for students, who attend our school and are between the ages of 4 up to their 14th birthday, to join Medic Alert through this program. If your child has a medical condition, allergy or is required to take medication on a regular basis, then you should consider this program. A child's Medic Alert identification can alert school staff, friends, coaches and others about your child's medical condition should an emergency occur.

For further information, go to www.nochildwithout.ca

To register your child you will need a No Child Without brochure. Brochures are available in the office. If your child is already part of the No Child Without program and there have been changes to their medical condition, medications or emergency contact information, call Medic Alert at 1-800-668-1507 to update your child's file.

Library News
Parents we are looking for some more volunteers to help out at our Book Fairs during the school day. There are 2 Book Fairs scheduled for this school year, during the week of the Fall and Spring Parent-Teacher Conferences. If you are interested, please contact Ms. Jollimore or leave your name in the office.

There are still some Library books missing from last school year! Parents, if you have discovered some books at your home over the summer, please send them in with your child as soon as possible, no questions asked!

Phys Ed News

Golf Club
There will be an after school golf club for interested students in grades 5 and 6 starting Wednesday, Sept. 10. Students are reminded that permission slips are to be returned by this date, if they wish to participate in this activity.

Eastern School District Scent Policy
Reminder to parents that L.M. Montgomery is a scent free building, as is all of the Eastern School District. Parents, please do not wear after shave or perfume when visiting the school. Students are asked not to wear perfume and to wear unscented deodorant. We have a number of students and staff who are highly sensitive to strong scents. Thank you in advance for your cooperation with this matter.

Bussing
We are still working on bus routes, and it may be a day or two until exact pick up and drop off times are finalized. Thank you for your understanding and cooperation with this matter.

We are asking parents to pick up students for special events such as birthdays, sleep-overs, etc..

Please check with the school before making new babysitting arrangements to see if there is room for your child to travel on another bus. Please remember that unless your child has a note saying that you are picking them up on a particular day, or this is a previous arrangement that the office is aware of, he/she will be sent home on their regular bus.

Safety
Parents will notice that in the interest of safety, a sign identifies a bus lane near the school parking lot. We suggest that all parents driving their children to school enter the top driveway and let their children out at the sidewalk to walk to the student entrance.

Visitors/Parents
All visitors, including parents are required to report to the office when entering the school, unless they are proceeding to the gym for a function, or to the classroom for a scheduled meeting with the teacher. We ask that you wait in the front lobby when picking up your child during the day. This will alleviate congestion and confusion in the hallways. It is very distracting for our students to have people waiting in the hallways while they are engaged in classroom activities. Thank you for your cooperation in this matter.

Ink Cartridge Collection
We are continuing our collection of used printer cartridges. However, we have changed the company that we are doing business with - we will be participating in the recycling project at Staples. The monies raised from this project will be used to purchase ink cartridges for our own printers here in the school. If you work in an office that discards their empty cartridges, or you have some at home you are not recycling you can donate them to this cause. There will be a box in the front lobby for drop off or you can drop them off at Staples, and indicate which school they are for. Thanks to those of you who have already dropped cartridges off.

Medication
The Eastern School District has a policy regarding the administration of medication. Teachers are not permitted to give students medication without specific written instructions from your physician. Forms for your physician to sign are available at the office.

Community Events

Speed Skate PEI will be holding registration at the Charlottetown Civic Centre on Saturday, Sept. 13, 2008 from 9:30 - 11:30 a.m. Open to both male and female skaters of all levels from: Learn to Skate, Learn to Speed Skate, Development, Recreational, and Competitive. Skaters who have participated in other ice sports are welcome to join. For more information on various programs and fees, please check their website: www.speedskatepei.caor 

e-mail vp@speedskatepei.ca

The Dunstaffnage Marshfield 4-H club will hold its 2008-2009 registration from 6:30-8:00 on September 22nd, at the Olde Dunstaffnage School Centre in Dunstaffnage. The 4-H program is open to youth between the ages of 9 & 21. 4-H members belong to a club, learn about specific projects, develop leadership skills, complete a communications project, and have a lot of fun. Some of the projects offered in the Dunstaffnage Marshfield club include: Crafts, Poultry, Rabbit, Dairy Calves, Foods, Photography, scrap-booking and Exploring 4-H other projects will be offered if leaders are available. For more information please call Fred or Karen VanderKloet at 368-2804.

Registration for Charlottetown Tigers Minor Basketball takes place on Saturday, September 20 from 9-12 and Wednesday, September 24 from 6-9 pm, at West Royalty Community Center. Age groups are available for boys and girls from grades 1-9 with play beginning on October 14. Costs are as follows: Gr. 1-2 is $50 for resident and $65 for non -resident. Gr. 3-6 is $70 for residents and $85 for non-residents. Gr. 7-9 is $80 for residents and $95 for non-residents. All registrations include a basketball and t-shirt.

"Know Farmers, Know Food!" Reserve Sunday, September 21st, 2008, for the 7th Annual PEI Open Farm Day. Plan a family day, pick a few of the participating farms to visit, and get ready to experience a day on the farm. Maps listing the participating farms will be available at Sobeys locations in September. For more information, contact Jennie Palmer by phone: 902-370-2137 or e-mail: peiopenfarmday2008@hotmail.com

Parents of Allergic Children Together (PACT)

PACT is a group for parents and caregivers of children with life-threatening allergies or anaphylaxis. We offer support through monthly meetings, video and print resources. If you have a child with life-threatening allergies, we can help.

E-mail Shellee Mann at pactpei@gmail.com for more information.

Literacy Bits

Establishing a Homework Routine

Homework is meant to develop independence and to reinforce skills that are being taught in the classroom.

* Provide an uncluttered area that is free of as many distractions as possible.

* Make sure that the tools needed are within easy reach, e.g., a dictionary, erasers, sharp pencils.

* Work out a regular time for homework that works for your child and your family’s schedule.

* Be supportive with the understanding that assigned homework should be work that your child can do independently.

* If needed, consider incentives for completing homework within a certain time.

* Contact your child’s teacher as soon as possible if there are homework issues.