Win Ferguson Elementary

Student leaders from Win Ferguson Community School accepted a grant cheque in the amount of $16,000 from Jacquie Fenske, MLA for Fort Saskatchewan-Vegreville.  The Community Initiatives Program Project-Based Grant is funded by the Government of Alberta through the Alberta Lottery Fund. The grant money will be put toward Win Ferguson's Leader in Me initiative. Leader in Me teaches students leadership skills, responsibility, self-confidence, accountability, adaptability, problem solving and prepares them to become productive adults in our community. A big thank-you goes out to:

Honourable Heather Klimchuk - Minister of Culture

 Jacquie Fenske- MLA

Community Initiatives Program

Mrs. Letwin - Grant Writer

Back Row L-R click on picture for larger version

Heather Wall - EIPS Trustee, Lindsay Bettac, Treyc Davies, Calley Miscich, Kurt Yap

Front Row L-R

Claire Hudson, David Rubuliak, Parker Sawada, Sydnie Chaba, Eboni Maas, Movi Mutuwattha, Eric Poholka, Melanie Afaganis, Jacquie Fenske - MLA, Crystal Hudson - School Council Chair, Avery Hudson.

Season's Greetings!

This year, Win Ferguson School is pleased to announce that we will be hosting, once again, a Santa's Workshop. This will give students an opportunity to 'shop' for a Christmas gift for someone they love. We are asking that those students who wish to participate bring in a $1.00 donation on their assigned day. They will be able to choose from an assortment of gifts which were donated by our staff members. Gifts will be wrapped and brought home that day. All money collected will be donated to Fort Saskatchewan Families First.

Shopping times will be during lunch hour on:

• December 2: Grade 2 students
• December 3: Grade 5 students (ECS Students will shop during class time)
• December 4: Grade 1 students
• December 5: Grade 4 students (PALS students will shop during class time)
• December 9: Grade 3 students
• December 10: Grade 6 students
• December 11: any students who were away on their 'shopping' day

Win Ferguson has kicked off a food bank drive!

During this holiday season, students are asked to bring in food items from home to donate to our community's local food bank.  Students who bring in a non-perishable item to their classroom, will be able to put in one entry to win Freddy the Food Bank Bear for each item of food they bring!

The final day and draw will be December 18^th.  Food bank boxes will be set up in your child's classroom.  A draw entry tub will be located in the office.

There will be two Christmas concerts this year, at the Shell Theatre on Thursday, December 19th. Both concerts are shows, not dress rehearsals, Students are asked to dress in their Sunday Best for both performances.

• Matinee Performance @ 12:45 pm
• Evening Performance @ 6:00 pm

Ticket information and order form is here Christmas Concert Tickets 2013 and is due back to the school on Tuesday, December 10th.

The Matinee Performance will be at 12:45pm and students will arrive and leave by bus. Due to ensuring student safety and our time constraints in the afternoon, we will not be able to accommodate parents wanting to take their child from the Shell Theatre. Students will come back to the school to dismiss as on every other day. We thank you for your cooperation.
The Evening Performance will begin at 6:00 PM.
Students are expected to be at the theatre NO SOONER THAN 5:45pm to meet their teacher. Parents are asked to send ONE parent to drop off their child backstage in their designated area. A drop-off map will be sent home with your ordered tickets.
At the end of the Evening Performance, parents will be asked to remain in the theatre while students and teachers return to their designated areas. Parents will be asked to send ONE parent back to the designated drop-off for pick-up. Teachers will be crossing students’ names off a list before releasing them. This is to ensure everyone’s safety and may take a bit of time. We thank you in advance for your patience and for your cooperation, as we look for the best solution to picking up your children at the end of the concert.
Students are asked to dress in their “Sunday best” for BOTH performances. That includes shoes – not boots. We do not expect parents to purchase special clothing for the concert.
The Christmas Concert has RESERVED seating. All seats at the DOW are excellent. There is no charge for tickets. There will be a silver collection this year, hosted by School Council. All the monies collected will go to School Council.

Displayed on the stage will be ice block luminaries, which will be auctioned off by a silent aution.  There will be seperate luminaries available for the afternoon and evening concerts.  All monies collected will go to the music program.

We are all looking forward to seeing the students 'sing' and 'ring' in the Christmas Season!

The Christmas season is upon us and students are very excited to find out what Santa will be putting under the tree this year. We wish you the very best of the season during the upcoming Christmas Break. We hope that you have time to spend with family and friends in fellowship with one another during this time of year. From all of us, to all of you, have a very Merry Christmas and a prosperous and healthy Happy New Year.

The first day back to school is Monday, January 6th, 2014.

In light of the recent bus accident in St. Albert, we continue to have parents driving through the bus lanes throughout the day. While it may be convenient, it is not safe for our students. Please be reminded that the bus lane is for busses only between the hours of 8AM and 4PM. (see the attached picture of our sign). The bus lane is not a drop-off or pick-up zone. Please note that you may be ticketed by bylaw or the RCMP if you travel or park in the bus lane between 8AM and 4PM. Keep our children safe!

The next Win Ferguson School Council Meeting will be Monday, January 20 at 6:45pm in the school gymnasium.  If you are new to the school this is a great way to get involved and meet parents. Please consider attending!

Our November Newsletter 2013 is now available!

There are many important events and special days at "The School that SHINES", this month. You can also click on the calendar on the website to view the latest up to date information! 

The Win Ferguson Chess Club is starting up! Students interested in learning to play chess or play a game will meet twice a week on Tuesdays & Thursdays at lunch time, in Mr. Klimaszewski's room. The first informational meetings are as follows:

• Grades 3 & 4: Tuesday, October 8
• Grades 5 & 6: Thursday, October 10

If you would like more information, please email Mr. Klimaszewski (tom.klimaszewski@eips.ca).

Litter Less Lunch Wednesdays!  Bring in a lunch each Wednesday that contains no garbage!  EPA members will be visiting each classroom and if your lunch has no litter in it, your name will be put in the weekly draw for prizes.  The class that has the most litter less lunches will be awarded the EPA trophy for the week!

EPA has adopted another endangered animal from the World Wildlife Federation!  The Lynx is the newest addition to the collection of animals adopted by EPA over the past recent years.  Look for our new friend on top of the environmentally-friendly EPA Christmas tree!  

 As we celebrate the start of a new school year, we also celebrate the beginning of The Leader in Me, at the School that SHINES!

What is The Leader in Me? Just click on our brochure for more information.Leader in Me Brochure

We are looking for sponsors or donations to support this great initiative.  If you are able to support us financially, please contact the school  office.

If you would like to know more about the Leader in Me initiative, please see the "Leader in Me" tab located in the Programs section of this website.

Videos about the Leader in Me can also be found in the programs section of this website.

Learn all about our wonderful Win Ferguson School Council and how you can get involved!

Check out the WFG School Council Brochure 2013-14! There is also information regarding the Leader in Me program at our school.

Win Ferguson Community School has a tradition of excellence in all of its programming. Our dedicated staff works diligently to ensure the needs of all students are met. This is a tradition we are extremely proud of. In addition to an exemplary staff and student body, we are fortunate to have a committed group of outstanding parents and community members who support our school programs and activities.

There are many wonderful and exciting learning opportunities that take place throughout the school year. From Opening Day to our Year-end Celebration, these activities promote lifelong learning in an environment that is both supported and nurtured by our learning community.

We believe the education of our students is best achieved by a team approach that includes the child, the home and the school. The development and maintenance of this partnership is truly vital. We look forward to working together in the best interests of each one of our students. We understand that our children are society's most precious resource.

We are very proud to be "The School that SHINES!"

Have a wonderful year!

Ralph Sorochan

Principal

Click on the following link for directions to our school: View Larger Map

Starting this Tuesday AFTERNOON, September 3, 2013, parents will NOT come into the school for regular pick-up and drop-off of students. Due to the increased number of students in our school, having parents come inside the school is no longer viable and is UNSAFE. Congestion at the front entrance during pick-up and drop-off times has become DANGEROUS for the many students we serve; especially those with special needs. We were also having challenges with many parents wandering the school without signing in at the office, despite repeated notices in newsletters and on our website.

Parents have been provided with the location of the exit door their child uses, this year. (click here for Entrance_exit map) Parents are to pick-up or drop-off their children outside their child's exit door. Families with more than one child can determine an outside pick-up/drop-off spot that is suitable for all of their children. Special needs students who require dropoff /pick-up support by an EA will be met or delivered outside their exit door.

Parents are not to enter the school for pick-up and drop-off.

The only exception to this process will be if parents are bringing their child in late (after 8:28 AM) or picking up their child early (prior to 3:12). If this is the case, parents are to come to the main office, using the front doors.

Parents who do not bring or pick-up their children at school are not affected by this new process.

As always, visitors/volunteers to the school MUST report to the office, signin and wear a nametag.

We thank you, in advance, for your cooperation with keeping our children safe and following this new process.