​Bienvenue & Welcome back Lynx families, 

I am happy to welcome you all back to the school for the 2023-24 school year. Both Mme Laurelle and I have had an opportunity to meet all the new students, either in assembly or when visiting classrooms and we are both overjoyed to have the students back in the building. It was great seeing students connect and begin building relationships amongst themselves and their teachers. Building relationships and a positive school culture are cornerstones in creating a safe, welcoming school environment and it will be one of our foci this year. 

You, as parents/guardians of the students, are crucial to their success and the strength of the school and we welcome your involvement. There are many ways to be involved with G.P. Vanier: from staying connected to your child’s learning by monitoring PowerSchool and Google Classroom; having nightly conversations about what they learned in school today; volunteering on school field trips or class events; or joining parent council are just a few. Teachers will also be sending out monthly updates via email to parents that I encourage you to read. 

Mme. Laurelle and I have an open-door policy, so please do not hesitate to contact us if you have questions or we can be of assistance. That being stated, your first connection is your child’s teachers. We have an extraordinarily strong teaching staff here and I encourage you to reach out and introduce yourself to your child’s teaching team to begin building that relationship. 

To facilitate the connection, we are inviting all parents to a “Meet the Teacher” evening from 6:00 pm to 7:30 pm next Thursday, September 7th and it will be in person. I will be welcoming parents with an introduction presentation before students lead their parents/guardians around the school. We are also currently updating our school website, which is where you will find contact details for all our teachers. 

This year, we currently have been fluctuating with around 550 students enrolled in our numerous programs. This has led to an increase in staff which, on top of being a good thing, means that our parking lot is a full place and some of our staff are now forced to park in the visitor car parks or on the street. Parents, we are asking that if you need to drop off your child during peak times you avoid using the parking lot. The quietest place to drop off your child is along 32nd Ave below the school parking lot. They could then just walk back up the hill towards the school. 

Finally, I apologize for the bombardment of paperwork and information you will be receiving over the next few weeks. We will do our best to stagger this information to avoid overwhelming our community, however, if you want to reach out with any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us, either via email, phone or in person. 

I hope you all enjoy the long weekend, and we look forward to seeing students back on Tuesday, September 5th. 

Bonne fin de semaine, 

Chad Edmonds 

Principal Georges P. Vanier 

​Dear Lynx Families, 

​

Dear Lynx Families, 

Happy Friday! Our basketball teams kicked off the season this week, and this included hosting our first basketball games in over 2 years, when our senior girls team defeated TB Riley on Thursday. Thank you to all the families and students who came out and supported our players.  

There is only one week left until a group of our grade 9 students fly to Montreal to spend a week in Quebec and Ontario. For those students not attending, they will be attending school as normal. The grade 9 French students who are not attending the trip will be collapsed into one class and follow a modified schedule. 

Finally, I also wanted to share a message from Kalia, the grade 6 student running the fundraiser for the Turkey/Syria earthquake relief: 

Hello GP Vanier parents and students!  

I am thrilled to report that we have successfully raised $399.25 from the Turkey and Syria earthquake fundraiser! 

I would like to thank everyone for your generous donation, kind words, and participation. My special gratitude goes to my friends who have spent lots of time and efforts helping out the fundraising everyday during lunch time. I would also like to thank Principal Edmonds and all the teachers for their tremendous support. 

All the money will be donated to the Canadian Red Cross on behalf of GP Vanier. 

Thank you 

Kalia Xie 

Bonne weekend, 

Chad Edmonds – Principal G.P. Vanier 

LOONIES FOR LITERACY - CAMPAIGN  

Our school is participating in Loonies for Literacy again this year – to date we have raised $1,078.75 of our $1,000 goal.  Thank you so much for supporting this initiative.  We are currently the top fundraiser for this year’s event.  We would really appreciate it if you would continue to share our link with friends and family.  Every dollar raised will help us fill our library with new and exciting books and reading resources for all the students. 

Last year our school community raised $862.00.  These funds have allowed us to purchase popular new books students have requested.  We will continue to take student book requests to ensure we are providing titles that will keep them interested and engaged. 

We hope this will continue to promote a love of reading for our students here at GP Vanier.   

If you would like to donate, please click on the link below and share with friends and family you think would like to support this amazing initiative.  The campaign will run for from February 1 to April 23. 2023.  We have set our schools goal at $1,000 and would love to see the same community support to make this happen.  

https://educationmatters.akaraisin.com/looniesforliteracy2023/GeorgesPVanier 

Alternatively, supporters can text 30333 and in the message box type EDMATTERSGPV to donate $5 or $10.  The donation will be added to your monthly cellphone bill. You will receive a confirmation text asking if you want to donate $5 or $10.  Once you confirm an amount, you will receive an additional confirmation text and thank you for your support. 

To make literacy more equitable across the city, for every dollar raised by a school during this campaign, another dollar will be provided to a school in need through contributions from community partners like yourself. 

Learning to read opens up a new world of information, imagination, and communication; literacy is essential to developing self-esteem, an understanding of the world, and one’s place in it. Please join us in ensuring that no student falls behind.   

REMINDER: SCHOOL FEES 

All fees are payable online, via the MyCBE Parent PowerSchool account portal. 

• Athletics Fees: If your child has participated in an athletics team this year, there may be associated fees. These fees cover the cost of equipment and apparel, referee fees, tournament fees etc. The continuation of the athletics teams at GPV depends on the prompt payment of these fees to cover related costs. Please check your child's fee page to view any outstanding fees.   
• Optional Course Fees: Grade 7-9 students registered in optional course fees – Art, Construction, Fabrication, Fashion Studies and Foods all have fees associated with them.  These fees cover all the supplies used in each of the option courses.  
• Field Trip Fees: These fees will be applied to student fee accounts in advance of the field trip, and need to be paid in full prior to the event, unless you are negotiating a waiver with the third-party vendor (Camp Chief Hector - Outdoor School) 
• Noon Hour Activity Fee: This fee covers the cost of Noon Hour Clubs, games, intramurals, outdoor sports equipment, emergency lunches and first aid supplies. This fee is mandatory for all students; for grade 5/6 students the fee is paid as part of the Lunch Supervision Fee, for grade 7-9 students, the fee is applied to the child's fee account.  

GP VANIER YEARBOOK  

The 2022-2023 Yearbook is available for purchase.  The Yearbooks are $30.00 and will be available for purchase through your Parent Power School account until May 31, 2023.  The yearbooks will be delivered to the school in September of 2023.  Students going into grade 10 will have their yearbooks sent to them. 

Upcoming Dates 

April 17 – 22: Artist in Residence - Week 2 with Mat Mailandt 

April 19: Homeroom 811 to James Fowler 

April 21: Healthy Hunger orders for Panago Pizza due 

April 21 – 27: Grade 9 Eastern Canada Trip 

April 28: Outdoor Education Climbing Trip, Grade 7 

April 28: Healthy Hunger - Panago Pizza 

May 5: Non-Instructional Day (No school for students) 

May 8 – 11: Grade 9 to Camp Chief Hector 

May 15: Grade 6 FLA Part A & Grade 9 ELA Part A 

May 18: Grade 7 Band Festival 

May 22: Victoria Day (No School) ​

​Dear Lynx families, 

Welcome back from Spring break! I hope you all had a chance to relax and spend some time with friends and family. 

I would like to send a big thank you to our volunteers who worked Casino shifts March 24 & 25 and a special thank you to Dawna M. for organizing things. A successful public school relies on the input and support of its parent community, and this is another example of the fantastic support that we receive from ours. The money that is raised from events like this go a long way in supporting GP Vanier offer many different programs for our students. 

Basketball teams are in full swing, practices are being held in the mornings and after school, all in anticipation of the season which begins in a few weeks. Students and families are encouraged to come out and support our student athletes. I would just remind all that not only are our teams representing GP Vanier, but so are our spectators. For those who do attend, please show the players and officials the respect and recognition that they deserve. 

Just a final reminder that Monday April 10th is a PD day. Our teachers will be attending various conferences around the city, and I am proud to say that many of our teachers will be leading sessions and presenting the work that we do here at Vanier to their colleagues around the CBE. 

Joyeuses Pâques et bon weekend, 

Chad Edmonds – Principal GP Vanier 

Grade 9 Camp Chief Hector - May 8 - 11 

As we wrap up the grade 9's time at GPV, we will be heading off to YMCA Camp Chief Hector for an overnight trip. On this trip, we will be participating in outdoor activities like canoeing, hiking, outdoor challenge games, etc. Through this time together, we hope to explore the different concepts learned in school as well as social skills and teamwork. The total cost of this trip is $425; however, the YMCA is committed to supporting all students in attending. When we return from Spring Break, students will be coming home with forms as well as important dates such as a mandatory parent meeting scheduled for April 11th. This meeting will be Hybrid, so you can join us in person at the school or using this link with Microsoft Teams: Click here to join the meeting. 

Also, we will need adult volunteers so if you are interested in supervising the students alongside their teachers, please email Mr. Cheng (mscheng@cbe.ab.ca) for expectations and details. 

LOONIES FOR LITERACY - CAMPAIGN 

Our school is participating in Loonies for Literacy again this year – to date we have raised $1,016.25 of our $1,000 goal.  Thank you so much for supporting this initiative.  We are currently the top fundraiser for this year’s event.  We would really appreciate it if you would continue to share our link with friends and family.  Every dollar raised will help us fill our library with new and exciting books and reading resources for all the students. 

Last year our school community raised $862.00.  These funds have allowed us to purchase popular new books students have requested.  We will continue to take student book requests to ensure we are providing titles that will keep them interested and engaged. 

We hope this will continue to promote a love of reading for our students here at GP Vanier.    

If you would like to donate, please click on the link below and share with friends and family you think would like to support this amazing initiative.  The campaign will run for from February 1 to April 23. 2023.  We have set our schools goal at $1,000 and would love to see the same community support to make this happen. 

https://educationmatters.akaraisin.com/looniesforliteracy2023/GeorgesPVanier 

Alternatively, supporters can text 30333 and in the message box type EDMATTERSGPV to donate $5 or $10.  The donation will be added to your monthly cellphone bill. You will receive a confirmation text back asking if you want to donate $5 or $10.  Once you confirm amount, you will receive an additional confirmation text and thank you for your support. 

 
To make literacy more equitable across the city, for every dollar raised by a school during this campaign, another dollar will be provided to a school in need through contributions from community partners like yourself. 

Learning to read opens up a new world of information, imagination, and communication; literacy is essential to developing self-esteem, an understanding of the world, and one’s place in it. Please join us in ensuring that no student falls behind. 

GP VANIER MERCHANDISE – ONLINE STORE 

Spring has sprung and so has Spirit wear store.  

Be sure to check out the link for Vanier's online merchandise store for all the great items available. 

The store will be open until April 28, 2023 

·         GPV Spirit Wear Store is open for spring orders until April 28, 2023 at 11:59PM 

·         Spirit Wear Store Link https://georgepvanierspring2023.itemorder.com/shop/home/ 

·         Orders are typically completed in 4-5 week after the store closes and delivered to the school 

·         All school store sales are custom made and cannot be returned 

·         If this order is meant as a gift please contact us and we will hold the order for parent pick up 

·         For more information of questions regarding the online spirit wear, please contact Sherri Nickle at sanickle@cbe.ab.ca 

REMINDER: SCHOOL FEES 

All fees are payable online, via the MyCBE Parent PowerSchool account portal. (see attached file for steps to create Parent account) 

• Athletics Fees: If your child has participated in an athletics team this year, there may be associated fees. These fees cover the cost of equipment and apparel, referee fees, tournament fees etc. The continuation of the athletics teams at GPV depends on the prompt payment of these fees to cover related costs. Please check your child's fee page to view any outstanding fees.   
• Optional Course Fees: Grade 7-9 students registered in optional course fees – Art, Construction, Fabrication, Fashion Studies and Foods all have fees associated with them.  These fees cover all the supplies used in each of the option courses.  
• Field Trip Fees: These fees will be applied to student fee accounts in advance of the field trip, and need to be paid in full prior to the event, unless you are negotiating a waiver with the third-party vendor (Camp Chief Hector - Outdoor School) 
• Noon Hour Activity Fee: This fee covers the cost of Noon Hour Clubs, games, intramurals, outdoor sports equipment, emergency lunches and first aid supplies. This fee is mandatory for all students; for grade 5/6 students the fee is paid as part of the Lunch Supervision Fee, for grade 7-9 students, the fee is applied to the child's fee account. A 

GP VANIER YEARBOOK  

The 2022-2023 Yearbook is available for purchase.  The Yearbooks are $30.00 and will be available for purchase through your Parent Power School account until May 31, 2023.  Attached are instructions on how to add the yearbook to your student’s fees.  The yearbooks will be delivered to the school in September of 2023.  Students going into grade 10 will have their yearbooks sent to them. 

Upcoming Dates 

April 7: Good Friday (no school for students) 

April 10: Languages Symposium/System Professional Day (no school for students) 

April 11: Grade 9 Camp Chief Hector MANDATORY Hybrid Parent Meeting at 5:30, Click here to join the meeting 

April 13: Grade 6 CPO Field Trip 

April 17 – 22: Artist in Residence - Week 2 with Mat Mailandt 

April 19: Homeroom 811 to James Fowler 

April 21: Healthy Hunger orders for Panago Pizza due 

April 21 – 27: Eastern Canada Trip 

April 28: Outdoor Education Climbing Trip, Grade 7 

April 28: Healthy Hunger - Panago Pizza ​

​Dear Lynx families, 

I want to start this update off by wishing all of our families a safe and restful Spring break. We will return to school on the 3rd of April.    

This week saw a successful Semaine de la Francophonie, where students were immersed with French food, language and culture. A big thank you to all the students who volunteered to dress up as Bonhomme during lunch hours, and to all those staff and students who assisted in the many lunch time activities that took place.  

Mat Mailandt worked with all our grade 6-9 students in various workshops to improve language competencies. This was done in both English and French. He will be returning in April for a second week. We are inviting our prospective and registered late immersion 7s to the school that week to join with Mat in some workshops as well.  

I have also attached the word art  our students created that reflected the talk that Leo Barbe gave to them a few weeks ago. I myself have referred back to it when speaking with students about how we can change the culture of Vanier. 

Bonne vacances, 

Chad Edmonds – Georges P. Vanier 

Grade 9 Camp Chief Hector - May 8 - 11 

As we wrap up the grade 9's time at GPV, we will be heading off to YMCA Camp Chief Hector for an overnight trip. On this trip, we will be participating in outdoor activities like canoeing, hiking, outdoor challenge games, etc. Through this time together, we hope to explore the different concepts learned in school as well as social skills and teamwork. The total cost of this trip is $425; however, the YMCA is committed to supporting all students in attending. When we return from Spring Break, students will be coming home with forms as well as important dates such as a mandatory parent meeting. Also, we will need adult volunteers so if you are interested in supervising the students alongside their teachers, please email Mr. Cheng (mscheng@cbe.ab.ca) for expectations and details. 

GP Vanier Online Spirit Wear 

Spring has sprung and so has Spirit wear store. 

Be sure to check out the the link for Vanier's online merchandise store for all the great items available. 

The store will be open from March 24 through April 28.  

·         GPV Spirit Wear Store is open for spring orders until April 28, 2023 at 11:59PM 

·         Spirit Wear Store Link https://georgepvanierspring2023.itemorder.com/shop/home/ 

·         Orders are typically completed in 4-5 week after the store closes and delivered to the school 

·         All school store sales are custom made and cannot be returned 

If this order is meant as a gift please contact us and we will hold the order for parent pick up.  For more information of questions regarding the online spirit wear, please contact Sherri Nickle at sanickle@cbe.ab.ca 

Understanding Anxiety 

The Calgary Board of Education is inviting all community members to join us for an inspiring evening of learning with experts in understanding anxiety. Anxiety is one of the most common mental health concerns affecting children and families across the lifespan. Parents and schools play an essential role in helping children manage their anxiety. This session will explore what anxiety and stress are, how to recognize it, and how to support resilience.  

On April 4, the CBE’s Well-Being team will host a free online session where parents will be able to join and learn from experts in the field of health promotion, ask questions and receive follow-up materials.   

You are invited to join us at the virtual session from 6:30 p.m. to 8:00 pm on Tuesday April 4th. 

Click HERE on Tuesday April 4th at 6:30pm to join the session  

Understanding Anxiety 

Child and Youth Well-Being Series for Families and Caregivers  
Tuesday, April 4, 2023 
6:30 to 8:00 p.m. 

CBE educators believe that parents and caregivers can inspire their kids to make healthy lifestyle choices and increase protective factors — in order to do so, they need the right tools and information. 
 
Since our understanding of student health and well-being is evolving, it is important for parents to stay up-to-date on the same information so everyone is supporting student success.  
 
This is the fourth session offered in a five-part Child and Youth Well-Being for Families and Caregivers learning series that is offered at no-cost to all Calgary Board of Education employees, families, and community members between December 2022 and May 2023.   

The intention of the series is to advance student well-being by raising family and caregiver’s understanding of a variety of health-related topics. Each session focuses on reducing risk factors and increasing protective factors.  

The last session will focus on Understanding Social Media (May 2, 2023). Communication about this last session will be distributed separately.  

You are a key partner in your child’s education and student well-being is critically linked to student achievement.  

Thank you for your time and consideration to join us. 

Loonies for Literacy 

Our school is participating in Loonies for Literacy again this year – to date we have raised $759.50 of our $1,000 goal.  Thank you so much for supporting this initiative.  We are currently the top fundraiser for this year’s event. 

The campaign ends April 1. We would really appreciate it if you would continue to share our link with friends and family so we can reach and maybe even exceed our goal! 

Last year our school community raised $862.00.  These funds have allowed us to purchase popular new books students have requested.  We will continue to take student book requests to ensure we are providing titles that will keep them interested and engaged. 

We hope this will continue to promote a love of reading for our students here at GP Vanier.    

If you would like to donate, please click on the link below and share with friends and family you think would like to support this amazing initiative.  The campaign will run for from February 1 to April 23. 2023.  We have set our schools goal at $1,000 and would love to see the same community support to make this happen. 

https://educationmatters.akaraisin.com/looniesforliteracy2023/GeorgesPVanier 

 
To make literacy more equitable across the city, for every dollar raised by a school during this campaign, another dollar will be provided to a school in need through contributions from community partners like yourself. 
Learning to read opens up a new world of information, imagination, and communication; literacy is essential to developing self-esteem, an understanding of the world, and one’s place in it. Please join us in ensuring that no student falls behind. 

Upcoming Dates 

April 3: Back to School 

April 6: Eastern Canada Trip MANDATORY Parent Meeting 5:00pm 

April 7: Good Friday (no school for students) 

April 10: Languages Symposium/System Professional Day (no school for students) 

April 13: Grade 6 CPO Field Trip 

April 17 – 22: Artist in Residence - Week 2 with Mat Mailandt 

April 19: Grade 8 student to James Fowler 

April 21 – 27: Eastern Canada Trip ​

​Dear Lynx families, 

Let me start out by sending a big thank you to School Council for providing the funds to host our guest speaker Leo Barbe this past Tuesday. This is another piece of our work here at Vanier to create a more connected, aware and healthy student body. His message included: 

• Every single day you make a choice 
• Powerful people own both choices: good and bad 
• People you hang-out with dictate your future 
• Visualize: what is the leader you want to become, imagine this with detail 
• Talk back to your ego: I can and I will 

I hope that your child(ren) spoke to you about it afterwards, if not please take a moment this weekend to ask them about it. Teachers are working with students over the next few weeks around his messages, and creating some word art that represents what we took out of the presentation and what we hope Vanier will become in future years. Once this is complete, I will share it in an upcoming weekly update. 

Next week is the start of La Semaine de la Francophonie and we will be having a raft of activities to recognize this. We kicked it off a little early last Monday with a Cabane à sucre visiting where students had a chance to eat maple taffy. It also gave homerooms a chance to decorate their doors in the spirit of various countries that are members of the Francophonie. 

Next week is also the start of Ramadan, and I would like to wish those families celebrating Ramadan Mubarak. If your child(ren) will be away from school on the 22nd, or later in April to celebrate Eid, please let the school know that we can adjust it in the attendance.  

Bonne fin de Semaine, 

Chad Edmonds – Principal GP Vanier 

School Planning Engagement for 2023-2024 

This is the time of year when we begin looking ahead to the next school year. Part of this process is engaging with our community for feedback to shape our School Development Plan (SDP) and budgetary process. We will discuss this process at the next School Council meeting this Tuesday. You can watch this short video that discusses school development planning and budgetary processes, which can be accessed here. 

We welcome and invite your feedback. The engagement survey is currently open and you can access the survey here. 

Semaine de la Francophonie/French Week 

Next week is a very exciting week for us! Students in our Leaderships classes and staff have been planning engaging and fun learning experiences with our upcoming Semaine de la Francophonie. This celebration of French culture will be infused throughout the day, every day of the week. There will be French themed food for sale in the cafeteria as well.  

Our Artist in Residence will feature Mat Mailandt is a professional actor and comedian, who is also fluent in French! You've probably seen him on TV in various commercials, notably as Todd in the current Leon's campaign. He's performed in hundreds of comedy shows all over the world with some of the best in biz including Colin Mochrie (Who's Line is it Anyway), Andrew Phung (Kim's Convenience) and Edi Patterson (The Righteous Gemstones.) He's also the co-host of Bites and Bits a deliciously cheeky podcast about food and comedy. “Comedy and youth are a perfect combination. Using the tenants of improv, sketch and stand-up comedy, students will develop communication skills, teamwork and problem solving techniques in a fun, safe environment.” 

Everyday activities: 

• French Trivia in Announcements 
• Selfies with Bonhomme  
• Friendship Bracelets (like ceinture fléchée) in Foods room 
• Hot Chocolate Sales $1.00 
• French Movies in the library 
• French Karaoke 
• Minute to Win It in Drama Room 
• Pétanque (Monday only) 
• Snowshoeing (Monday & Tuesday) 

Cafeteria Menu: 

• Monday: Simple Simon Pies 
• Tuesday: Croissant Sandwich 
• Wednesday: French Toast and Chicken Cordon Bleu 
• Thursday: Poutine 

GEM – Session  

It is GEM time again:) and we are getting ready for our last session at U of C. 

Our second GEM session will occur on March 18 th, 9:30am - 12pm. Please drop of your child at then parking lot outside of the Math Sciences Building at the University of Calgary. Math Sciences Building 612 Campus Pl NW, Calgary, AB T2N 4V8 

The drop off time is at 9:15. This is also the location for pick up at the end of the day. Mme Shah will be at this location. Please do not park at these drop-off zones. 

We hope all students involved enjoy the session! 

School Fees 

A friendly reminder that second semester school fees have been posted to your students Power School account. 

Your Power School account is an online portal that not only allows you to pay school fees but also to view your child’s report card, attendance and grades throughout the year.   

If you do not have a Power School account you can click on the link below and follow the steps to set one up.  

https://www.cbe.ab.ca/support/Pages/MyCBE-PowerSchool-Creating-Account.aspx 

If you are unable to access your PWS account, please call the school and we will assist you as best we can. 

Loonies for Literacy 

Our school is participating in Loonies for Literacy again this year – to date we have raised $662.00 of our $1,000 goal.  Thank you so much for supporting this initiative.  We are currently the top fundraiser for this year’s event. 

Please continue to share our link with friends and family so we can reach and maybe even exceed our goal! 

Last year our school community raised $862.00.  These funds  have allowed us to purchase popular new books students have requested.  We will continue to take student book requests to ensure we are providing titles that will keep them interested and engaged. 

We hope this will continue to promote a love of reading for our students here at GP Vanier.   

If you would like to donate, please click on the link below and share with friends and family you think would like to support this amazing initiative.  The campaign will run for from February 1 to April 23. 2023.  We have set our schools goal at $1,000 and would love to see the same community support to make this happen. 

https://educationmatters.akaraisin.com/looniesforliteracy2023/GeorgesPVanier 
To make literacy more equitable across the city, for every dollar raised by a school during this campaign, another dollar will be provided to a school in need through contributions from community partners like yourself. 
Learning to read opens up a new world of information, imagination, and communication; literacy is essential to developing self-esteem, an understanding of the world, and one’s place in it. Please join us in ensuring that no student falls behind. 

Upcoming Dates 

March 20 - 24: Semaine de la Francophonie/French Week 

March 20 - 24: Artist in Residence – Mat Maitlandt 

March 21: School Council Meeting: Click here to join the meeting 

March 21 & 22: Grade 9 Field Trip Journey 2050 

March 24 & 25: School Council Casino Fundraiser 

March 25 – April 2: SPRING BREAK 

April 3: Back to School 

April 6: Eastern Canada Trip MANDATORY Parent Meeting 5:00pm 

April 7: Good Friday (no school for students) 

April 10: Languages Symposium/System Professional Day (no school for students) 

April 13: Grade 6 CPO Field Trip ​

​Dear Lynx families, 

It was wonderful to see so many families here on Thursday evening for the in-person segment of our parent-teacher conferences.  Speaking with teachers it also sounds like they have full schedules today for the on-line portion.  We realize that families are busy and that we only have a limited time Thursday and Friday to meet with you, so if you did not get a chance to connect with your child(ren)’s teachers, Mme Laurelle or I, please email and we will do our best to accommodate meeting with you over the next few weeks. 

This past Wednesday was International Women’s Day and I want to recognize our leadership students for creating announcements and organizing a trivia contest for the week. 

A few reminders for this weekend, basketball tryouts start on Monday, please see the tryout schedule below.  Also, it is the start of daylight savings time, which means this Sunday morning we move our clocks ahead 1 hour. 

Here is hoping for a warmer week, 

Bonne fin de semaine, 

Chad Edmonds – Principal GP Vanier 

Healthy Hunger 

The grade 9 Eastern Canada Trip students are organizing a “hot lunch” fundraiser through Healthy Hunger. There will be four hot lunches; the first of which is Booster Juice! From Monday, March 6th – Wednesday, March 16th, pre-order your students’ Booster Juice lunch online at Healthy Hunger. Orders will be delivered during period 7 on Friday, March 24th. 

Simple registration on the website: Register Student - Georges P. Vanier - Booster Juice - Order - Pay 

Merci in advance for your support! If you have any questions or concerns, please contact Mme Holly Cosgrove hscosgrove@cbe.ab.ca 

North Hill Bottle Depot Account 

As we fundraise for our Grade 9 Celebration, we will continue to collect your refundables for recycling for donation in collaboration with the North Hill Bottle Depot. While we will have trailer here again from March 20 - 24, you can also take your refundables anytime to their location where we have an account set-up for Georges P. Vanier School. The location of North Hill Bottle Depot is: 336 41st Ave NE. 

Basketball Tryouts 

March 13: Senior Boys before school/Senior Girls after school 

March 14:  Senior Girls before school/Senior Boys after school 

March 15: Junior Boys before school/Junior Girls after school 

March 16: Junior Girls before school/Junior Boys after school 

Senior teams are grade 9 (with some 8s), Junior teams are grades 6-8 

Before school practices are 8-8:45 am with doors opening at 7:45 am.  After school practices will run from 3:45 until 4:45pm.  Players are expected to come changed and ready to go. 

Upcoming Dates 

March 13: Sugar Shack, On mange de la tire! 

March 14: Leo Barbe guest speaker 

March 15: MRU Music Field Trip Grade 7  

March 16: Healthy Hunger order due TODAY 

March 17: Climbing Trip ENVOE9 

March 20 - 24: Semaine de la Francophonie/French Week 

March 20 - 24: Artist in Residence – Mat Maitlandt 

March 21: Parent Council Meeting 

March 21 & 22: Grade 9 Field Trip Journey 2050 

March 24 & 25: School Council Casino Fundraiser 

March 25 – April 2: SPRING BREAK 

April 3: Back to School ​

​​Dear Lynx families,  

Welcome to March, and perhaps an end to the frigid temperatures. While this is a short month, with spring break scheduled for the end of the month, it is lining up to be a busy one. 

Cabane à sucre school tour this past Tuesday was a great success! This is an exciting lead up to Semaine de la Francophonie/French Week from March 20 – 24. There were two performances, one in French and one in English. M. Andre had the students up singing, dancing and playing spoons. 

Basketball tryouts will begin March 13th. If your child is interested in trying out, please have them watch and listen for upcoming announcements at school. Once the practice schedule is finalized we will share this out with families as well. 

We have started a Math Club for our Grade 7 & 8 students during lunch hours on Wednesday. Our first meeting saw 35 students working on some math puzzles. Next week the students will be introduced to Quantum Tic-Tac-Toe! 

Finally, I have spent some much needed time this week connecting with many of the grade 9 students who are going on the Eastern Canada field trip in April. It is wonderful to get to speak with students about themselves, their goals, their aspirations and life outside Vanier. It really does reinforce my belief that we are laden with absolute superstars here at G.P. Vanier.  

During my conversations with students, I often ask students if there is anything I can do as Principal to support them or to make Vanier a better school. Whilst this is often met with an awkward silence, every now and then a student will bring up an idea that sparks a great conversation. Below there is a blurb from a Grade 7 student who wrote me a thoughtful, well put together email about her desire to make a difference after hearing about the recent earthquake in Turkey and Syria. This email led to further conversations about her project, what was behind her interest and what sparked it. In the end, it is hard to disagree with a student who just wants to support others and make the world a better place... 

Bonne fin de semaine, 

Chad Edmonds – Principal GP Vanier 

Coaches needed for basketball 

"We are looking for one more volunteer to take on the coaching role for our Senior Girls Basketball season. This year, the season runs from March 13th to May 28th.  There would be two practices every week, as well as two game nights per week. You would have a teacher from GPV attend all games and practices, who would be responsible for paperwork, communication, and organization of all events.  

If you are interested in helping GPV athletics, please reach out to Ms. Johnson at jdjohnson@cbe.ab.ca. Keep in mind that if you are volunteering, you must have a current criminal record check; you can call the main office to make sure it isn't expired." 

Gary Weinman Award 

This is an award open to our grade 9 students. It is a $500 award and two recipients can receive the award.  

Gary Weimann was an active parent at GP Vanier involved with the school at many levels, including Chair on the Parent Council for many years. A loving father and husband, Gary lived what he believed – giving of himself and his time to the communities he lived in – his family, his children’s school and their neighbourhood. This award was established to honour Gary and to inspire his ideals in the hearts and minds of today’s youth, who are tomorrow’s future. 

If you are interested in applying, click here for more information. We will be sharing this information with our grade 9 students here at school as well. 

Turkey/Syria fundraising effort 

Dear GPV parents and students, 
 
My name is Kalia, and I am a grade 7 student. I would like to inform everyone that my friends and I will be starting a fundraiser in the next few weeks. You’re probably wondering, what type of fundraiser, and why? 
 
I’m sure most of you have heard about the tragic earthquake that happened a few weeks ago in Turkey, Syria, and other countries. My friends and I feel really sad, and we know a couple people in our school from those places. We believe we need to do something about it. 
 
We are going to sell stickers, colouring sheets, bookmarks, and a lot more. Each item will be priced differently, and we are also accepting canned food, packs of bottled water, tents, or inflatable mattresses. 
 
We will be donating to World Vision and Red Cross. 
 
Everyone is welcome to contribute funds or necessities. I hope everyone can support us in helping those people in the cold winter in Turkey and Syria. 

Loonies for Literacy 

Thanks to all our families, we are currently sitting at $632.00, only $368 from our goal of $1000. Also, we have currently outraised every other school in Calgary! 

Upcoming Dates 

March 8: International Women’s Day 

March 9 & 10: Parent Teacher Conferences 

March 13: Sugar Shack, On mange de la tire! 

March 15: MRU Music Field Trip Grade 7  

March 17: Climbing Trip ENVOE9  

March 16: Healthy Hunger order due TODAY 

March 20 - 24: Semaine de la Francophonie/French Week 

March 20 - 24: Artist in Residence – Mat Maitlandt 

March 21 & 22: Grade 9 Field Trip Journey 2050 

March 24 & 25: School Council Casino Fundraiser 

March 25 – April 2: SPRING BREAK 

April 3: Back to School ​

​Hello Lynx families, 

Over the past few weeks teachers and students have brought to my attention several incidents where students were not treating each other with the proper respect. To be more specific, students were making inappropriate comments to and about others both in person and online. To be clear, we do not believe that language like this creates a safe, welcoming environment at Vanier and we will be dealing with it over the coming months. The staff and I have met numerous times over the last week in order to create a multi-targeted approach to address these issues.  

The first step was a whole school assembly that was held on Monday. At the assembly, students were made aware that we know of the recent incidents and that they are not acceptable at Vanier. Teachers followed up after the assembly in homeroom groups to speak with their classes about microaggressions and the importance of empathy and treating each other with kindness and respect. We also spoke about the difference between “snitching” and “asking for help” (a good example to speak with students at home can be found here.)   Without students coming forward and asking for help, which we acknowledged can be scary and difficult, we are not finding out about many of these issues until it has become normalized or grown online.

One of the most important facets of a school is the culture that permeates its walls. In creating this culture many different factors play a role; one of the most critical being student voice. This bears repeating, I do believe that a large part of building a safe, welcoming, inclusive Vanier culture is dependent on our students being empowered to speak out and educate each other on these issues. 

We have a phenomenal group of students here at Vanier. Over the past few weeks, I have been speaking with many exemplary students, all of whom had been identified by their teachers as leaders (academic, athletic, artistic and behavioural) in the school. I will spend days speaking to more in the coming weeks. Our school is overflowing with students like this, and I want their voices to resonate throughout the halls. 

Our purpose as a school is to educate the next generation, not just in the fine arts, athletics or academia, but also in a more holistic manner. Learning both about and from each other is an essential part of public education and the diverse swath of Calgary (and the world) that is represented at Vanier makes this an ideal, almost unique, place for this to happen. The education of fellow students about the inappropriate nature of their comments, and what is acceptable, will be a focus at Vanier in the coming months, after which we hope we will see a dramatic drop in the number of incidences brought to our attention.  

Students have also been made aware of the Student Code of Conduct and the ramifications if they continue to make inappropriate comments, both during this time of learning and afterwards. 

Over the coming months we plan to continue these lessons and to have other speakers come in to address the students, both in small-targeted groups and as a larger student body.  I fully acknowledge that this is not a problem that will be solved with a few conversations and a few suspensions, it will be a longer journey full of mistakes, learning and difficult conversations, all of which I hope that the Vanier community is a part of.

I strongly believe parent input and support is essential in running a school and we would very much appreciate you speaking with your child(ren) over this Family Day long weekend about what you all hope Vanier looks like in the years to come, and how they can play a role in creating this. 

As always, my office, and Mme. Laurelle’s, are always open. 

Enjoy your long weekend and Family Day. 

Bonne longue fin de semaine, 

Chad Edmonds – Principal GP Vanier 

Pink Shirt Day 

Pink Shirt Day is February 22, 2023. Pink Shirt Day began in 2007 when a student in Nova Scotia was bullied for wearing a pink shirt to school. It has since been recognized annually worldwide as a day to stand against bullying. 

Pink Shirt Day encourages Albertans to be inclusive, welcoming and supportive with colleagues, clients, friends and family. Building healthy relationships is one of the best ways to prevent bullying and create safe environments. 

We will be recognizing Pink Shirt Day here at Vanier on the 22nd. Our Leadership classes are planning activities and messaging to be shared with students on the day.  

Staff Updates 

We would like to welcome back Ms. Yeo, and thank Mr. Khan for his commitment to our learning community and best wishes as he begins a new position. 

Elevate Aviation 

Elevate Aviation who is an all-female company, that helps girls/women get into aviation with courses, contacts and bursaries. Elevate Aviation is hosting a cross country tour this spring and coming to Calgary March 16th, for girls ages 12-18. The day starts at the Westjet Campus, includes lunch and after lunch the groups will then get the chance to go on tour of three different types of aviation sectors around the airfield. Best part it's free. You just must register on their website. It is cap at 60. https://elevateaviation.ca 

Loonies for Literacy 

Thank you Vanier families for your support for our Loonies for Literacy.  We have raised $104.00 of our $1,000 goal. 

Upcoming Dates 

February 16-17: Teacher’s Convention (no school for students) 

February 20: Family Holiday (no school for students) 

February 22: Pink Shirt Day 

February 24: Jr. Badminton Tournament 4:00 – 8:00 

February 28: School Council Special AGM and meeting 

March 1 & 2: Grade 6 Field Trip to Interpretive Centre 

March 3: Sr. Badminton Tournament 4:00 – 8:00 

March 9 & 10: Parent Teacher Conferences 

March 13: Sugar Shack  

March 15: MRU Music Field Trip Grade 7 (details to follow) 

March 17: Climbing Trip ENVOE9 (details to follow) 

March 20 - 24: Semaine de la Francophonie/French Week ​