Buenas tardes familias! Good afternoon everybody! Feliz Halloween! Happy Halloween!

We have got a very busy week coming up at A.E. Cross School. On Tuesday, October 31, we will be celebrating Halloween at the school. We recognize that many students will choose to wear costumes to celebrate the day. Please see the costume guidelines below:

• No weapons or depictions of violence, drugs or alcohol
• Be identifiable and no face coverings (no masks allowed)
• Don’t dress as anything offensive to other cultures, genders, heritage or religions
• Costumes must be school appropriate

Should students arrive at school in a costume that does not abide by the above guidelines, they will be asked to remove their costume and change clothes.

Last week during our RTI Block, the entire school community learned about the significance of the holiday el Dia de Muertos which is celebrated on November 2. 

On Friday, November 3, our band program will participate in a feeder school concert at Ernest Manning High School beginning at 6:30 pm. We are so excited to hear the band perform for an audience. It gives me great joy walking to the west side of the building before school and at lunchtime and hear all of our wonderful musicians rehearsing for their upcoming performances. Thank you to our amazing band director Mr. Rattan for working with our band students.

Please see below for the latest edition of the Colts' Community Chronicle. We hope that you have a wonderful week.

Sincerely,

Randy Lewis
Principal, A.E. Cross School

---

Important Dates

Tuesday, October 31 Halloween, Healthy Hunger Treat Day
Thursday, November 2 El Dia de Muertos Day of the Dead
Friday, November 3 Feeder School Band Concert – Ernest Manning High School
Wednesday, November 8 Remembrance Day Ceremony
Thursday, November 9 Non-Instructional Day
Friday, November 10 to Tuesday, November 14 Fall Break – No School

Colt's Athletics

For all Athletic information visit A.E. Cross School Athletics page.

Team Fees

Please check your MyCBE account for updated team fees. They should be added back to your account this week. In order for the school to pay for referees and other team needs, we need the player fees paid.

We want all of our students to have the opportunity to play sports for AEC no matter the situation at home. If you are unable to pay the fees due to budgetary restrictions, please email jarichards@cbe.ab.ca.

A.E. Cross Badminton Champion

We are pleased to recognize A.E. Cross student-athlete Diyaa Bhagchandani who won a Badminton Alberta Provincial tournament held in Edmonton from October 20 to October 22. Congratulations Diyaa on your accomplishment! We look forward to having Diyaa compete for the Colts’ badminton team in the new year!

Basketball Spectator Expectations 

We remind spectators that while at the school watching games, there are no in and out privileges and CBE code of conduct for students still applies. We all wish to enjoy watching our student athletes compete in a respectful and safe environment. We have also come to a decision as a basketball division (Bishop Pinkham, AE Cross, Griffith Woods, Mount Royal, Vincent Massey, and West Ridge Schools) that any student wishing to be a spectator at away games must be accompanied by a parent/guardian for the duration of the game.

Clubs

Art Club

For students that are part of the A.E. Cross School Art Club, please note that the meeting scheduled for Tuesday, October 31 is CANCELLED.

Chess Club

If you have any spare chess sets that you would be willing to donate to the school's chess club, that would be immensely helpful! The chess club meets on Mondays at lunchtime in Room 30.

Lego Club

If you have any spare Lego that you would be willing to donate, the school's new Lego club would be extremely appreciative! The first meeting of the Lego Club will be on Wednesday, November 1 at lunchtime in the Learning Commons.

Halloween Activity Day

During the afternoon of October 31, we look forward to students participating in a Halloween activity day. The afternoon will begin with an all-school pep rally followed by a variety of activities including pumpkin carving, autumn arts and crafts and a dance in the main gym. We look forward to bringing the entire school community together to celebrate Halloween. We recognize that students will be wearing costumes on Tuesday. We want to ensure that student’s safety is prioritized so the following guidelines are in place for Halloween costumes:

• No weapons or depictions of violence, drugs or alcohol
• Be identifiable and no face coverings (no masks allowed)
• Don’t dress as anything offensive to other cultures, genders, heritage or religions
• Costumes must be school appropriate

Should students arrive in a costume that violates the above guidelines, they will be asked to remove their costume.

Healthy Hunger

Families can set up their orders through the Healthy Hunger website. Please ensure that when ordering lunch for your student you pick your student's homeroom teacher.

Future Healthy Hunger/Fun Lunch dates can be found below:

• November 23, 2023 – A & W
• December 14, 2023 – Mucho Burrito
• December 21, 2023 – Kernels Treat Day
• January 25, 2024 – Subway
• February 14, 2024 – Kernels Treat Day
• February 29, 2024 – A & W
• March 21, 2024 – Boston Pizza
• April 18, 2024 – Edo Japan
• May 1, 2024 – Kernels Treat Day
• May 16, 2024 – Mucho Burrito
• June 13, 2024 – Boston Pizza
• June 24, 2024 – Booster Juice Treat Day

Lunchtime Expectations

Please see our Lunchtime page.

2023 PAT Results

Alberta Education has provided A.E. Cross with student results from the Grade 6 Provincial Achievement Tests that were written in the spring of 2023. Current Grade 7 students will receive a print out of these results to take home this week in their homerooms.

Physical Education

Some Physical Education units are scheduled to be outside during the month of October. The Phys Ed team would greatly appreciate you reminding your student to bring an extra hoodie, sweatpants, a touque and gloves.

School Council

The next school council meeting is scheduled for Thursday, November 16 at 7:00 pm in the Learning Commons at A.E. Cross School.

Additional meeting dates will be at 7pm on Thursdays on the following dates. Watch your email for meeting invitations which will include agendas and meeting location (in person or virtual) the week prior to the meeting.

• November 16
• January 18
• February 22
• April 18
• May 16
• AGM – June 13

Thank you so much to all the volunteers!

School Forms

There are a variety of different forms that parents are asked to complete at the start of each school year. The completion of these forms has been moved online to SchoolEngage. The following forms can be completed via SchoolEngage:

• Demographic Verification Form
• Annual Authorization Form, which includes:
  • School District Use of Personal Information
  • Consent for CBE Use of Student Information
  • Consent for Use of Student Information by News Media and Outside Groups (Third Party)

SchoolEngage can be accessed through the following link: SchoolEngage

Should you need any of the above forms printed for you, please contact the main office.

Social Media Reminders

It is extremely important to monitor your childrens’ online presence. Make sure that they are not posting anything that might get them in trouble in the future. Here are a few tips for you to help you with your children and social media:

• Understand the apps.
• Understand that all social media is advertisement.
• Create a media plan.
• Have an honest conversation.
• Listen to your teen.
• Model positive social media behavior.
• Non-negotiable limits.

Spanish Bilingual Program

Overview of the Spanish Language Virtual Exchange Program

The virtual exchanges will run for a duration of 6 weeks each, dates are shown in the table below. Students from Alberta (Grade 9) will be matched with a partner in Spain or Mexico and will participate in one-to-one video conference meetings to support each other in their language and culture learning goals. Themes and topics for discussion will be provided to support the students in their conversations with each other.

The application deadline for the Mexico program is October 15, 2023 and the application deadline for the Spain program is January 15, 2024.

Let Sra. Hernández know that you are interested!

¡Es una oportunidad fabulosa!

Chinook Learning Services offers courses specifically designed for parents and caregivers of CBE Spanish Bilingual students. For Fall 2023, Chinook Learning Services is once again offering Spanish for Parents – Level 1 classes. This eight-week course will help parents of bilingual students learn or refresh their Spanish language skills, build their network of bilingual parents and support their children’s learning at home.

Please visit Chinook Learning Services for more information.

Student Pick-up and Drop-off

We have noticed that parents who are picking up and dropping off students are sometimes parking in our bus zone adjacent to the school on 33 Avenue. This is making it difficult for our school buses to pick up and drop off students. Please avoid parking in the bus zone so that our students are able to access their transportation safely. Thank you for your attention to this.

Volunteering at A.E. Cross

There will be activities done at A.E. Cross that require parent volunteers. In order to volunteer for events occurring at the school, parents must complete an Annual Volunteer Registration Form.

Child and Youth Well-Being Webinar Series

The Calgary Board of Education invites all parents and guardians to join us in an online series focusing on child and youth well-being. These sessions will be hosted in partnership with experts from Alberta Health Services and will explore topics such as vaping, brain development, mental health, and sexual health.

Click here to learn more:
Child and Youth Well-Being:
A Webinar Series for Parents and Guardians

CBE educators believe that parents and guardians 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.

Well-being is a precondition for learning. As our understanding of student well-being continues to evolve, it is important for those that support children and youth to stay up to date on the same information so everyone can support student success.

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.

Thank you for your time and consideration to join us.