We would like to extend our heartfelt appreciation to all the families and friends who generously contributed to our 2024 Terry Fox Run campaign. Your support means the world to us and helps continue the fight for a cure. A special thank you goes out to Jason Legault, owner of Giant Tiger in Buckingham, for his company’s generous monetary and food donation.

We also want to recognize and thank our lead organizers, Liam Deamond and Tim Mitchell, for their exceptional work in planning such a well-organized and successful event for our school. The totals from the various homerooms are still being tallied, but we will share the final numbers soon.

Great work, B.E.S. Bisons! Your efforts make a big difference!

Good Morning BES Community,

This email is to inform you that under the Education Act, school boards must ensure that all students currently enrolled in their schools be re-registered on an annual basis each year.

To ensure we meet this requirement, the re-registration is completed online through your Mozaïk Parent Portal account (excluding K4 students, paper forms will be sent home today). This process is easy to complete and will only take you a few minutes to re-register your child(ren) for the 2022-2023 school year. 

Parents of students in Grade 6 transitioning to Hadley Junior High School will receive communication from HJHS regarding re-registration.

The re-registration process must completed even if your child is NOT (field indicated) returning to Buckingham Elementary School.

The deadline to complete the re-registration is April 3rd, 2022.

Should you have any problems creating your portal account or completing the re-registration, please contact the school. Thank you for taking the time to participate in this process.

Last week, our school celebrated both our Love, Acceptance & Belonging Spirit Week and Staff Appreciation Week. I wanted to reach out to our parent community and thank everyone for their support and generosity throughout these important events. I believe that the impact on our students’ learning was significant and will continue beyond last week. I believe our staff felt the appreciation and love from our community, and during another difficult year, that is especially important. From sharing positive messages, to learning about important heroes, to raising over $700 for the Breakfast Club of Canada, or spreading love within our larger community, so much was accomplished last week that everyone should be extremely proud of – I know I am. I wanted to share a few photos of the amazing things that were taking place last week at B.E.S.

A reminder that next week is the March Break in our school calendar (Feb. 28^th – March 4^th), and the school will be closed. Attached to this e-mail are some sessions planned by Connextions that are available to parents and students during the break this year if you might be interested.

I have to say once again that I am so very grateful to be a part of the diverse and loving community that surrounds B.E.S. – our hearts are full. Have a wonderful week everyone!

Bill Rosseel

Directeur/Principal

Ecole Primaire Buckingham Elementary School

As a school community, we have been through so much together since the start of this COVID-19 pandemic, and our students, parents & staff have shown incredible resilience and strength throughout this challenging time. We wanted to take the upcoming week to celebrate all things positive by exploring the themes of love, acceptance, diversity, and a sense of belonging – both in our classrooms and with whole school spirit activities! After the success and positive feedback from our Love, Acceptance & Empathy week last year, we wanted to revisit this concept with a renewed focus and appreciation this month, incorporating topics for Black History Month, pride, love, community and the importance of feeling that we belong – at home, in school, in our communities and beyond!

LOVE, ACCEPTANCE & BELONGING WEEK

Details for the upcoming week are outlined below, and there will be daily video announcements posted to our Facebook page and shown in homerooms each morning to highlight the themes, content and literature that accompany each day of the week. We encourage you to follow along at home and extend these discussions and celebrations with your families as well!

Monday, February 14^th – “All You Need Is Love” Day

• Students are encourages to wear red, pink, white or hearts!
• “Kindness Runs Through Our School” – homeroom teachers creating paper garlands with each student writing a positive message or act of kindness that will be added to the schoolwide garland installation running through our hallways
• Valentine’s Day activities and card distribution in classes

Tuesday, February 15^th – “Love Is Love” Day

• Students are encourages to wear the colours of the rainbow!
• Focus on pride and the diversity of families
• Candy fundraiser in the front foyer (details below)
• Templates distributed to all homerooms for students to begin creating their “puzzle pieces” for the schoolwide mural about all of our individual selves connecting to make this fantastic school community (activity runs throughout the week)

Wednesday, February 16^th – “Love for our Community” Day

• Students are encourage to wear their B.E.S. gear!
• Candy fundraiser in the front foyer (details below)
• ‘100+ Things We Love About Our School!’ display being created – all students will receive a blue or white heart to write something they love about B.E.S.
• Homerooms will be writing letters/cards to be delivered to external partners who help make our school great (bus drivers, parent volunteers, outdoor supervisors, community organizers, etc.)
• Shhhhh… it’s a secret! During teacher presence time after school today, staff will be posting positive messages for students throughout the school to surprise them on Thursday morning

Thursday, February 17^th – Diversity Day

• Students are encouraged to wear something that makes you stand out or show your individuality to celebrate our diversity!
• This is our day to let everyone share who they are and celebrate it, and we will be continuing discussions about Black Canadian and Indigenous history & stories
• Students will each begin placing their individual puzzle pieces in the ‘I BElong Here’ mural in the centre stairwell of our school

Friday, February 18^th – “B.E. You” Day

• Students are encouraged to wear something that makes you feel comfortable and yourself!
• Pizza Day Fundraiser (details below)
• Students will finish placing their individual puzzle pieces in the ‘I BElong Here’ mural in our school
• There will be a schoolwide virtual assembly to conclude the week’s events and teachings
• After lunch, there will be outdoor activities & hot chocolate served to all classes to end our week
• Shhhhh… it’s a secret! Every member of our school community will be getting a new B.E.S. t-shirt with the slogan “I B.E.long here!” in celebration of this week and beyond. We hope they will arrive in time to end the week!

PEDAGOGICAL LINKS

Pedagogical materials, resources & literature has been purchased and will be available for teachers to use in classrooms related to these themes & topics throughout the week, and as the year continues (diverse family backgrounds, black history, celebrating diversity, etc.). Teachers will be running daily video announcements (available on our Facebook page) and doing school wide virtual book reads related to our themes every day of the spirit week.

FUNDRAISING & COMMUNITY ACTIVISM

Fundraising efforts for the week will be focused on supporting the Breakfast Club of Canada. This organization has played a huge role in feeding and supporting our students this year, ensuring that each class receives a full breakfast basket every morning that is available to all students so no child is hungry or wants for nourishment. This national program is also partnered locally with La Mie Chez Vous, a Buckingham organization and catering service that provides meals within the community and handles the weekly food preparations and deliveries for our school among others in the region. This week’s fundraising includes:

• The candy fundraiser taking place at lunch hours on Tuesday & Wednesday
  • All items priced between $1.00 – $2.00
  • All treats are nut-free and individually wrapped
• Pizza Day on February 18^th (all orders must be received by February 16^th)
• We are also accepting donations for this cause should any families wish to donate to a worthy charitable organization that supports our students and many others

All monies earned through fundraising efforts this week will go back to the Breakfast Club of Canada and support the efforts of La Mie Chez Vous in our community.

STAFF APPRECIATION WEEK

As a final note, I wanted to inform (or remind) families that the week of February 14^th-18^th is also Staff Appreciation Week in our province and the WQSB. While there will be lots going on within the school to recognize and celebrate the incredible efforts of our amazing staff team, I wanted to also encourage students and parents to make it known how much we appreciate our staff for everything they do this coming week!

We are very much looking forward to what is ahead, and the learning and celebrations that will be taking place in our school. Here’s to a wonderful week focused on love, acceptance, belonging & all things positive. Thank you as always for your support, B.E.S.!

Please see the note below from our Principal, Mr. Rosseel:

As we lead into the weekend, I am reflecting on our school community, and all of the efforts and cooperation required to run a school together, even under the best of circumstances. Despite ALL of the challenges faced by our staff, students and families, there has also been so much good taking place that I had to stop and reflect on the purpose of what we do, and the positive impact it can have with all of your support.

This week alone at B.E.S., we have had:

• 5 new students register or return to start classes at our school;
• Mr. Earwaker come and build snow sculptures with students from K4 – Grade 6;
• The “outdoor campground” setup for student use in our Nurturing Support Centre (complete with “stargazing”);
• The chance to finish building and shelving the entire collection in our new library which will be ready for consistent student use as of next week;
• Artist Jimmy Baptiste come begin the ELAN Culture in Schools mural project focused on Diversity & Belonging with our Cycle 3 students.

Students have been able to engage in outdoor learning and play, take on leadership roles, express their creativity, ignite their spark for reading, receive all of the support they need to feel safe and be taken care of at school, and still engage in strong pedagogical learning in the classroom. All of this amidst rapid testing, COVID case and isolation management, high levels of absences, staffing changes, and everything else that goes into day-to-day school operations. Sometimes we need to stop, step back and take a look at the “bigger picture” when things become challenging. Although this has certainly been difficult for all of us, the return to school has also come with a positive reminder of our purpose here together.  I want to thank you as always for your support and cooperation. We are all on the same team working to make this school experience the best it can be for our students and your children. B.E.S. strong!

I’m very proud of what this community has accomplished this week (as always), and will be leaving today on a positive note. A reminder that Monday, February 7^th & Tuesday, February 8^th are WQSB PD days, so the school will be closed to students. We look forward to welcoming the students back on Wednesday, February 9^th!

As previously announced, schools will be shifting to virtual learning until Friday, January 14th, awaiting further news from the Ministry. Thursday, January 6^th has been set aside as a preparation day for school staff as we shift to virtual learning and distribute materials to families. The staff will be using this day to further develop their virtual learning plans for the coming weeks, and communicate the details to their homeroom families.

The first day of virtual learning for students will be on Friday, January 7th, and B.E.S. has a PD Day on Monday, January 10^th so no virtual learning for students will be taking place on that day. Virtual classes will resume on Tuesday, January 11th through to Friday, January 14th.

This year’s Holiday Spirit Project was a massive success! In addition to all of the kind and generous donations from members of our own school community, Buckingham was also selected to receive support from the WQSB Board Office Staff, and our Angel Tree was mirrored at the salon L’Espace Beauté Elle et Lui here in Buckingham, where clients donated so generously to our chosen families. Our school staff stayed late on our last day of school packing all of the boxes and wrapping all of the gifts for delivery. A HUGE thank you to everyone who contributed to this amazing initiative to give families in our school community a truly spectacular holiday!

To our amazing graduating class of 2020,

This was my first year joining the Buckingham Elementary School community, and what a year it has been! Right from the very beginning upon entering this school, it felt like joining a family. Whether at the assemblies, Friendship Breakfasts, holiday events, school yard or in the classrooms, I believe that the Grade 6 class, the leaders among the student body, have had a huge role to play in shaping the culture and tone of our school community. It is safe to say that this school has been very lucky to have you as their leaders this past year, myself included. As a new principal in the school, you made me feel welcome, taught me about your traditions & values, showed me all the things that the B.E.S. family has to be proud of, and most of all set the direction for your peers who all looked up to you as leaders.

The 2019-2020 school year has been unlike anything we have experienced in education. With the school closed for the majority of Term 3 due to a global pandemic, continuing your Grade 6 education in preparation for junior high school meant having to persevere through online learning platforms and Zoom meetings. The resilience required to make things work in our new reality was significant, and these events will certainly change the way we look at education moving into the years to come. This pandemic has impacted your final term at B.E.S., end-of-year trips & celebrations, and even your graduation ceremony. Yet still, you log onto Google Classrooms and Zooms with smiles on your faces and a spirit that embodies the “B.E.S. Strong” message. Our school community coming together to face this challenge and support one another through an unprecedented event is a true reminder of who we are, and what we can do if we work together.

I could not be more proud of the students and citizens you have all become, and feel confident knowing that we are sending our Grade 6 class off to Hadley ready to face whatever challenges they encounter. Regardless of what the configuration of school will be at the start of 2020-2021, I am certain that you will be able to succeed and thrive knowing what you have already achieved and overcome. As you transition to this next phase of your education, please remember the things you have learned and relationships you have built during your years at B.E.S. This place and these people will always be a part of who you are, and what shaped you into the strong, kind and wonderful humans we are sending off on this new adventure. It has been my honour to be a part of your final year at this school.

Our school mission: Strong Relationships Growing Healthy Minds to Go Beyond. I could not think of a group that embodies this message better. Now get out there and go beyond!

Congratulations class of 2020, you did it! You will be missed greatly, and will always be a part of this family.

Mr. Rosseel