SA Newsletter June 2019 Page 1 of 7

Newsletter – Issue #9 Principal Mr. B. S. Hehar Vice-Principal Ms. S. Pagely Vice-Principal Mr. R. Purewall

June 3, 2019

www.sikhacademy.ca Email – admin@sikhacademy.ca

Newton – 12895 85th Ave Surrey BC V3W 0K8 P-604.599.3828 F-604.599.3824 Fleetwood – 9115 160th St. Surrey BC V4N 2X7 P-604.496.4060 F-604.496.4061

Message from Administration: The month of May was jam packed full of fun and learning for all students and teachers. Students completed the second set of the school wide write to see the progress students have made in their writing abilities since the first assessment in October. The Drama Club put on their showing of the Lorax for the entire school and families, and displayed a tremendous amount of effort and commitment to their performance. Students also completed the Art Gallery Open House, showcasing their artistic abilities, the connections made to the artistic process, and integrating aspects of cultural awareness within their projects. We also integrated a school wide collaboration day, allowing all students within each grade to come together, learn, have fun, and get to know each other in an effort to strengthen our school community. The month of May also saw the school start to prepare for our Sports Day event, which is designed to further build our school community and teach students about the importance of physical activity, healthy competition, and positive sportsmanship skills. As we lead into the end of the month, all classes have special events planned to allow all students to sit back and reflect on the year they had at Sikh Academy, and the things they learned throughout the year. We encourage you to visit your child’s classroom in the final month, attend a field trip, or come out to Sports Day to help us celebrate the year we have had.

Finally, the month of June also allows us to celebrate key milestones for our Kindergarten and Grade 7 students, acknowledging the next steps they will be taking in their education. For these students, we can only hope that their time at Sikh Academy has prepared them for their journey ahead.

Important Dates June 7

th – Sports Day (held at Bear Creek Park)

June 12th

– Religious Assembly (Parkash Divas Shri Guru Arjan Dev Sahib Ji)

June 13th

– Kindergarten Graduation Celebration

June 15th

– Assessment Cut-Off

June 20th

– Grade 7 Graduation Celebration

June 25th

– Destination Imagination Day

June 27th

– Term 2/3 Summative Assessments

June 27th

– Last Day for Students (early dismissal)

June 28th

– Administrative Day (School Closed)

September 3rd

– School Re-Opens for 2019-20

SA Newsletter June 2019 Page 2 of 7

Summative Assessments All students will receive their Summative Assessments and Summative Self Assessments on Core Competencies on Thursday, June 27

th. The

Summative Assessments will highlight the progress made by students throughout the school year in the curriculum, with the curricular competencies, and within the development of their core competencies. We encourage you to review this with your child. With this Summative Assessment, families and students will see a summary of all learning standards/curricular competencies covered throughout the year for all subject areas. This will be broken apart as Term 1, 2 and 3. Students will also receive a standing, as per the proficiency scale on how they did in these subject areas in Term 2 and 3. For students in Grade 4-7, you will see the student’s proficiency scale standing in all subjects, except ELA, Math, Science and Social Studies, where they will receive a Letter Grade for their second and third term performance, and an overall Final Letter Grade to showcase their standing throughout the year. This will be the last year these letter grades will be issued for these subject areas. The Summative Assessment also includes the Summative Self-Assessment completed by students on the development of their Core Competencies throughout the school year. This is the final Self-Assessment, in addition to the ones completed in October and March of the school year. Students will bring home Portfolios at the end of the school year, which demonstrate their development in these Core Competencies throughout the year. We encourage families to take some time to review these with your child to evaluate areas of strength and areas that are in need of further development. Lastly, we would like all families to spend some time reading over and understanding the comments put together by teachers for the Summative Assessments for all students. Teachers spend a lot of time and effort putting these comments together for students/families to provide feedback that can be adapted at home. These comments provide in-depth feedback to parents and students in regards to what the students worked on throughout the term/year, and areas where the students have done well, along with areas where the students need to further develop their skills. Spending time reviewing these comments will allow you to provide support to your child over the Summer Break, so they are ready to go for the next school year. The comments provide concrete feedback and strategies that can be used for students to continue to work on over the summer to strengthen their skills. These comments are an invaluable tool for supporting students as they move ahead.

Father’s Day Father’s Day is set for Sunday, June 16

th We want to take this

time to thank all of the Father’s out there for all that you do for the sake of your child/children/family. We hope that all families have a wonderful Father’s Day together!

There are many events happening around the city that will allow families to celebrate Father’s Day together. Please visit the following sites for more information.

https://www.visitsurrey.com/whats-on/fathers-day

https://www.surrey.ca/culture-recreation/2893.aspx

https://vancouversbestplaces.com/vancouver-fathers-day-activities/

Happy Father’s Day!

SA Newsletter June 2019 Page 3 of 7

Drama Club Play Students from Drama Club put on two showings of their play The Lorax at the end of May. The students practiced tirelessly with supporting teachers for nearly four months, leading up to the production. The students and teachers not only prepared for their roles, but they also supported each other. The play was a tremendous showcase of the talent of our students and supporting teachers. We would like to congratulate the following students for their efforts with the Drama Club:

Grade 3 Grade 4 Grade 5 Grade 6

Manjot Pandher (3A) Harneet Rana (3B) Sahij Sidhu (3A) Sahib Grewal (3A) Dhanvir Dhaliwal (3B) Japleen Ghuman (3A) Sehaj Sekhon (3C)

Gurreet Kaur (4A) Chandan Badhesa (4A)

Aikam Bhullar (5A) Shaan Gill (5A) Anmol Dhaliwal (5B) Japneet Dhaliwal (5B) Puneet Buttar (5B) Avneet Ghatorra (5A)

Jasleen Dhaliwal (6A) Arshmin Gill (6A) Jeya Cheema (6A) Arpita Dhot (6A) Hasman Hazuria (6A) Manreet Grewal (6B) Gursimran Heer (6A) Samreet Sandhu (6A) Navnoor Bahy (6C) Ashnoor Ghatorra (6A) Simrit Jassal (6C)

We would also like to extend our gratitude and appreciation for the efforts put forth by Ms. Cheng, Ms. L. Zamorano, Ms. T. Zamorano, and Ms. Wilkinson for their dedication and commitment to work with the Drama Club over the past few months to get them prepared. Thank you to the entire Drama Club team. Great work!

Religious Assembly Our next Religious Assembly is set for Wednesday, June 12

th and will be dedicated to Parkash Divas Arjan Dev

Sahib Ji. Students will have an opportunity to learn in their Religious classes and then celebrate with our extended assembly for all students. Students are able to wear traditional clothing for the assembly. Any families who are able to help support the Religious Assembly with sewa can contact the office to see how they can help. Helpers are needed on June 12

th at both schools.

*Please note the date of the Religious Assembly in June has been changed from June 15

th to Wednesday, June 12

th.

Kindergarten/Grade 7 Grad Events Kindergarten Graduation is set for Thursday, June 13

th from 10:30-12:30PM.

The event will be held at our Newton location for all Kindergarten students and families. We invite all Kindergarten families to come out and celebrate this milestone with our Kindergarten students and teachers. Grade 7 Grad Dinner is set for Thursday, June 20

th and will once again be held at

Taj Park Convention Centre. The event will be in the evening, and more information about ticket purchases and the schedule of the event will be provided to all Grade 7s in early June.

SA Newsletter June 2019 Page 4 of 7

Kindergarten Orientation (2018-19)

Students who are entering Kindergarten for the 2019-20 will have a brief orientation session on Friday, June 28

th from 11:00-12:00PM

at Newton. This is an opportunity to gain some valuable information about how to prepare for the start of KG. We invite all our new KG families to attend. There will be a second orientation day near the end of August or early September – the office will

contact KG families directly to inform them of the date and time of this second orientation. Please also note that Kindergarten students begin with a gradual entry week, during the first week of school in September 2019. Students in KG will start their days at the regular start time of 8:25, but will be dismissed by 12:00PM for the first week of school, before adopting the full-time schedule during the second week.

Sports Day 2019

SA is hosting its annual Sports Day on Friday, June 7th

. The event will once again be held at Bear Creek Park from 9:00-2:00PM. We remind all families that students must be dropped off at Bear Creek Park by 8:45AM, and picked up from the park by 2:00PM. Students who receive bus service will be picked up and dropped off at Bear Creek Park. For families of bus students, please be aware that these bus students will be dropped off at home earlier than normal, as buses will leave Bear Creek by 2:15PM. After feedback from families and teachers, we have once again included an option

for early dismissal for our Kindergarten students on Sports Day. Kindergarten students can be picked up at 12:00 noon, but must be signed out before they are to leave the field. All students will be divided into six colour teams, and will be starting at 1 of the 17 Sports Day stations. Students will rotate through the stations throughout the day. If you are unaware of your child’s team colour or starting station, please speak to your child’s teacher, or see the posters posted around the school. Families are reminded that all students should be wearing sunblock, and bring at least two bottles of water as they participate in physical activities throughout the day. Students will be able to order hot lunch from the school, and purchase snacks from the school concession stand. We also want to invite all families to come out and spend a fun afternoon with us. Dress in your child’s team colour, cheer them on, and show your school spirit. Further information about Sports Day will be sent home in the upcoming week, leading up to the event. The last Sports Day Team meeting is set for June 3

rd and June 6

th, after previous meetings on May 22 and May 28. These

meetings allow students to get to know their teammates and build team spirit. Sport Day teams are posted around the school, allowing all students and families to know their team colours and team members.

SA Summer Hours SA will remain open throughout the summer for various events, summer camps, and administrative purposes. Our Newton and Fleetwood locations will operate from 9:00-3:00 from July 9

th to August 31

st. If parents need to meet Administration outside these times, please call or

email the school office and we can work with you to arrange a time that works best. These hours may adjust with the needs of the school.

SA Newsletter June 2019 Page 5 of 7

SA Summer Camps

Sikh Academy will be running Summer Camps all Summer long at our Newton location for SA students. These camps will run in two week intervals, starting July 8 to August 16

th. More information about these

camps and the programs offered will be sent home in a separate notice during mid-June. We are aiming to have the camps provide programing around

numeracy/literacy skill development, physical fitness/sports, and possibly Punjabi language development for students aged 5-13.

SA Yearbook The SA Yearbook will be published by mid-June, and order forms will be sent to all students. There will be a limited number of Yearbooks this year. Please order early to ensure you secure one as a keepsake and memory of the 2018-19 School Year. The Yearbook Cover was picked from multiple entries into your Yearbook Cover Contest for students. The Yearbook Cover Winner will be unveiled once the Yearbooks are handed out to students during the last week of school. Yearbooks are $20 each, and come with over 80 full colour pages of memories. Get yours while supplies last.

Returning School Resources/Library Books Throughout the school year, students have access to a variety of school resources to help them learn. It is expected that all textbooks are returned in good condition to the classroom teacher. It is also expected that all library books are returned and checked into the library. Students who do not return these, or other, resources provided by the school will be asked to pay a fee to cover the cost to replace these items. Year End Summative Assessments will not be issued for any students who owe fees for outstanding or damaged resources.

Outstanding Fees If your child has any outstanding fees for 2018-19, please come to the school office to pay them immediately. Any student with outstanding fees will not be provided their Year End Summative Assessments.

Late Fees Late Tuition Fees Please ensure all tuition fees are up to date and paid in the office. If you are paying the tuition fee on a monthly basis, you need to ensure that your monthly fee is paid by the 10

th of every month (January payment is paid in full

before January 10th

). Payments that come after this date will be charged a $25.00 late fee per each month the fee is late. To avoid the late fee penalty, please pay in advance of the 10

th or pay the full year’s tuition payment all

together.

SA Newsletter June 2019 Page 6 of 7

Late Bus Fees Please ensure all bus fees are up to date and paid in the office. If you are paying the bus fee on a monthly basis, you need to ensure that your monthly fee is paid by the 10

th of every month (January payment is paid in full before

January 10th

). Payments that come after this date will be charged a $25.00 late fee per each month the fee is late for one-way bus service and $50.00 for late fees for students taking round-trip bus service. To avoid the late fee penalty, please pay in advance of the 10

th or pay the full year’s bus service payment all together.

School Clubs

Please note all school clubs will wrap up on the week of June 10, 2019, and there will be no more meetings thereafter.

Thank You to all the teachers for volunteering their own time to run these programs throughout the school year. Your dedication

to provide students with additional learning opportunities is greatly appreciated.

Warmer Weather As the weather becomes warmer, we remind students to ensure you are bringing your water bottles to school, and regularly applying sun screen/sun block to prevent skin damage from the sun. We also encourage students to dress in lighter clothing (navy dress shorts/navy dress capris and the SA polo) to avoid heat exhaustion.

End of School Year The Last Day of School will be on Thursday, June 27

th. This will be a half day for all students, with students

dismissed at 12:00PM. We remind all parents and students that it is expected that all students take home their school supplies and all work on or before the last day of school. Please also check the Lost and Found for items that may have been misplaced throughout the year. Items not claimed will be donated.

SA PAC Sikh Academy acknowledges the importance of the Sikh Academy Parental community to be a part of student success. We invite ALL families to come and be a part of the school PAC to raise more opportunities of learning growth and potential for ALL students. The SA PAC (Parental Advisory Council) meeting dates are as follows: Future PAC Meeting Dates:

Newton: Fleetwood:

Friday, June 14th

at 2:30PM Friday, June 14th

at 2:00PM

PAC Meeting dates and times are subject to change, as per PAC Members requests.

SA Newsletter June 2019 Page 7 of 7

Summer Break SA closes for Summer Break on Thursday, June 27

th. We will re-open for the next school year on Tuesday,

September 3rd

2019. We want to thank all of our students, families and staff for a wonderful year. SA would like to wish that all students, families and staff members have a safe and enjoyable Summer Break full of great memories. We look forward to seeing you all again for the 2019-20 school year. Thank you again for your continued support.

Thank you SA for the great memories!

Punjabi Translation