Hello Jennie Elliott Families,
We had a fantastic time at last night’s Family Dance and loved seeing our students lighting up the dance floor while singing along to their favourite songs! So much time and care went into planning this wonderful event, with countless details thoughtfully arranged to ensure both students and parents enjoyed a fun evening together, and all of our students who could make it could be included.
We are incredibly grateful to the School Council organizing committee for their hard work in bringing it all together: Kate Van Hoevelaak, Johanna Felske, Heather Chapple, Dale Henshaw, and Eva Friedley.
Student-Led Conferences March 16-20
We warmly invite parents and guardians to attend our upcoming Student-Led Conferences. These conferences are an important part of our ongoing communication with families about student learning and achievement. Booking for these conferences opened on Monday through the MyCBE portal.
Student-Led Conferences provide a valuable opportunity for students to take an active role in sharing their learning, reflecting on their progress, and celebrating their accomplishments. With guidance from their teachers, students will walk you through examples of their work and discuss their goals for continued growth.
Your presence and support are an important part of this process. These conferences help strengthen the partnership between home and school and ensure that families stay informed and connected to their child’s learning journey.
We look forward to welcoming you and celebrating the learning taking place in our classrooms.
Parent Information Session – Language Development and Reading Skills K-2
The CBE Speech-Language Pathologists will be presenting a two-part series focusing on supporting language development and building reading skills:
- April 20th - Building Language Comprehension through Shared Reading
- May 4th - Identifying and Playing with Sounds at Home
The sessions are presented live, online via Microsoft Teams. Please click here to see further information and to register.
School Development Plan (SDP) Highlights
Each week, we will be highlighting the intentional fluency work occurring in our grade groups to help families understand the connection between our school development focus and student skill development. This week we are highlighting our Grade 1 students!
Grade 1 used and applied fluency routines in the math class through the use of structured word problem routines. Using the 3 reads strategy, problems are presented without numbers to give students the opportunity to determine the ‘story’ of the problem. Upon the first reading, students choral read as a group to allow them to hear and practice fluent reading while developing comprehension.
Students then discuss key elements of the problem, including who is involved, what is happening, and what the question is asking. The problem is read to help students identify important details and understand the context of the situation.
Once context is established, numbers are introduced to the problem on the second read to provide the opportunity to determine what the numbers represent within the problem. Students then read for a third time to apply familiar strategies such as number bonds and counting on to represent to solve the problem.
This approach supports students in developing reading fluency, comprehension, and mathematical reasoning, helping them interpret word problems more confidently and apply appropriate problem-solving strategies.
Outdoor Learning Field Trips at Weaselhead (April–June)
This spring, all classes will have the opportunity to participate in Outdoor Learning field trips at the neighboring Weaselhead Natural Area. These walking field trips will take place for all grades between April and June and are designed to connect students with the land through hands-on outdoor learning.
During these visits, students will explore and learn about the local ecosystem, including topics such as wetlands, rivers, local plants and animals, and the importance of caring for the land. Through guided exploration and observation, students will deepen their understanding of the natural environment while building curiosity and respect for the land around them.
A reminder that we are always looking for parent volunteers! You will require a current police clearance to attend. More details about specific dates and preparation for the trips will be shared by classroom teachers closer to the date of departure.
We are deeply grateful for the generosity and fundraising efforts of our school community. Initiatives such as the Casino, Jennie’s Night Out Gala, and our bottle recycling program help make these incredible opportunities possible, allowing our students to experience learning in meaningful ways that truly bring the curriculum to life.
CBE Decodable Digital Library – Supporting Beginning Readers
The CBE Decodable Digital Library is a collection of online books created for CBE students and families to support early reading at home and school. Decodable books are specially designed to help beginning readers practice reading words using the letter sounds they have already been taught, rather than guessing from pictures or memorizing words. As students learn new sounds, the books gradually include more words, helping build confidence, accuracy, and fluency. Decodable books are one important part of a balanced literacy program, alongside being read to and enjoying many different kinds of books. This digital library gives families easy access to supportive reading materials that help children learn to trust the print and grow as readers.
Congratulations Ms. Bignell!
Please join us in congratulating Ms. Bignell, who got married last weekend! We are so happy for her and wish her all the best in this exciting new chapter. Going forward, Ms. Bignell will now be Ms. Joa. Thank you for helping us celebrate this wonderful news with her!
Screenagers Movies: Last chance to view April 16
Before our license expires in May, we’re hosting one last showing of the Screenagers films - and this time we’ll screen both back-to-back!
- 6:00–7:00 PM – Screenagers: Elementary School Age Edition (Elementary Addition)
- 7:00–8:00 PM – Screenagers: The Next Chapter
Don’t miss this final chance to see these impactful films about kids, teens, and screen time. Mark your calendar for April 16!
School Council (JESC) Update
Please click here to see our School Council webpage that includes dates for the School Council meetings, the link to the meetings to attend online if you prefer, meeting agendas and meeting minutes.
Family Dance Night
Jennie Elliott School Council thanks you for attending our Family Dance Night on Thursday, March 12, 2026! Just under 550 people attended across both the Division 1 and Division 2 events! Special thanks to our incredible volunteers: Nadirah, Paris, Seth, Kristin, Aaron, Jeff, Megan, Hilary, David, Cheryl, Chrissy, Erin, Javan, Lindsay, Brian, and Andrea! We're also thankful to our school Principal Lucene Tahmazian, Assistant Principal Asha Hynes, Administrative Secretary Nikki Jung, School Secretary Leanne Vargo, and Facility Operator Heregene Galua, for their ongoing support of School Council community building events. All of our families really appreciate everything that came together to make Family Dance Night memorable.
We can't wait to see everyone back out on the dancefloor in 2027!
Upcoming Events
Click here to see the school’s website calendar
Mar 16-20 – Student-Led School Conferences
Mar 20 – Spring Equinox
Mar 20 - Non-instructional day for School Conferences (no school)
Mar 23-27 - Spring Break (no school)
Mar 30 - Classes resume
Mar 30 – Fun Lunch!
Apr 3 - Good Friday (no school)
Apr 7 – School Council Meeting