Dear Falkland Families;

I hope this newsletter finds you well, safe and healthy. Since Spring Break, these have been very unusual times. The staff at Falkland School miss each and every one of you dearly. Please access information about the BC's Restart Plan and information specific to schools reopening as one piece of the puzzle. You can access a recent message from our Public Health Officer, Bonnie Henry here , a letter for parents from Education Minister, Rob Fleming here , and updates on COVID-19 from the BC Centre for Disease Control here . This site enables you to look up specific information in our health region.

Click here to access our plan for student safety that was emailed home last week, Wednesday, May 27th. The Daily Health Check form can be found here . You can find more information about safety practices in the Guidelines for K-12 Settings.

Now that students are returning to school, emphasis on home learning opportunities will decrease. You may notice there are days in the week that teachers are inaccessible and that is because they are supporting students face to face with in class instruction. You may have also noticed morning announcements have stopped for now.

We have approximately 24 students returning to our school on a part time basis. With our return to school weekly plans it is important that you communicate with Mrs. Cull (scull@sd83.bc.ca) by the end of Wednesday each week if you would like your child to be added to our schedule or if you would like to make changes to the existing schedule. Thank you very much.

This newsletter will contain some important information about next year. Please have a read through and as usual, please contact Mrs. Cull at the office if you have any questions. Your opinions and input are important. Student enrollment is very high at this point. In fact we are over in one class and on the verge of getting a 6th division at our school. Please advise the office if you are moving or know of anyone new to the area with school aged children.

Lastly, I'd like to take this opportunity to thank our fabulous Falkland Staff team for their efforts in providing home learning opportunities for students at home. I have received so many positive comments from parents about the work of our staff during this time. We have asked a lot of our staff and the learning curve has been big. A big thank you to our parents as well. This has been an incredibly trying time for families supporting your child's learning remotely, many while working at the same time.

Mrs. Cull :)
2020 - 2021 School Calendar
Please click here to access the approved calendar for the 2020-2021 school year.
Bell Schedule
Due to the late start up in September (Tuesday, September 8) and early end in June (Thursday, June 24) we will not be able to meet the required amount of instructional time with the existing bell schedule. Next school year, all schools in SD83 need to add minutes in order to meet these requirements outlined in the School Act.

Grade 8 students have more instructional time required than students in grade k-7, therefore their bell schedule looks different. Next year, in order to better reflect a 60/40 split (consistent in the district) with mornings and afternoons, students in Division 1 at Falkland School will have a later dismissal time. While the 327 minutes of instructional time is for grade 8s, all students in Division 1 will follow the schedule in order to promote greater classroom community. The end of day bus schedule will accommodate this change.

If you have questions please contact Shelly Cull, Principal.
Classroom Configurations for 2020-2021
So far we have 18 students in kindergarten registered and 116 students total for next school year. If you have plans to move away over the summer, please contact me. If you know of anyone new moving to the area with school aged children, please contact me (scull@sd83.bc.ca). The more accurate our numbers are, the more secure we can be with staffing, classroom configurations and student placements, especially given the possibility of a 6th division.

If we have 5 divisions, our class configuration most likely looks like the following: k/1, 1/2, 3/4, 4/5/6, 6/7/8.

If we have 6 divisions, our our class configuration most likely looks like the following: k, 1/2, 2/3, 3/4, 5/6, 7/8

If you have thoughts or requests for your child's placement given those configurations, please contact me by email (scull@sd83.bc.ca). These class configurations can change with student movement in or out of the school.

When a grade is split into two different classrooms, the placement of students is a complex one and takes a lot of thought and careful consideration by staff. In our small school, we get to know our students well in a classroom setting. We consider academics as well as social emotional development. We consider placement of siblings and the number of years already with a teacher. Having said that, we are required to balance the student needs in each class and also work within the limits of the Collective Agreement concerning class size and composition. While your input is important as a parent, decisions regarding class placement rests with school staff.
Year End Report Cards
As announced late April, teachers will complete year end report cards for every subject area for every student registered. Please click here to review the notice emailed home. Continue to provide your child's teacher with evidence of your child's learning from home.
Information from PAC
Our next PAC meeting is Wednesday, June 10th at 2:30 through TEAMS (online platform). All parents are welcome. Please contact Adina Clements (250-463-5750) or Shelly Cull (250-833-2806 or 250-379-2320) to request an invite by Monday, June 8th.

President: Adina Clements
Vice President: Megan Jackson
Treasurer: Mami Peterman
Secretary: Rebecca McDougall
Directors: Yvonne Logan, Karoll Brosnan, Jodi Gillman, Megan Connell
DPAC rep: Kelly Stalker
Hot Lunch Coordinator: Trisha McLean
Thank you to our incredible parent group for their organization and coordination of our Hot Lunches and many other fundraisers throughout the year that benefit our school and students. It takes a tremendous amount of work to provide these opportunities to our families and students. Please know that if you have helped organize and or contributed to make these events and experiences a reality, we deeply appreciate the time and hard work you have invested in our school.
Yearbook Cover Page Contest
Click here to access our 2019-2020 Yearbook Order Form and Cover Page Contest entries. Orders and entries are due Friday, June 5th. All entries will be included in the Yearbook.

Be sure to check the criteria on the form before starting your Cover Page entry. Put your name on the back, not on the front and include the school year 2019-2020. Must be colourful, original and contain themes related to Falkland School.
80's Day - Friday, June 5th
Students are invited to participate in our next School Spirit Day - 80's Day. You can participate from home as well. Please email a picture to Mrs. Cull at scull@sd83.bc.ca on Friday or over the weekend and we will post them on our website on Monday, June 8th.
Kindergarten Orientation
If you are a parent of a new kindergarten student for the 2020-2021 school year, you and your child are invited to take part in a special kindergarten orientation planned for Thursday, June 11th. An email will be sent home with more details including a link to an online survey.
Long Range Facilities Plan
To access the most recent communication regarding the Long Range Facilities plan, please click here. For our area, the Board of Education passed the recommendation to included adding Option B-4 (K-4, 5-7 and 8-12) in the Armstrong Zone into the Long Range Facilities Plan Draft and deleting options B-1, B-2, and B-3. View the draft plan here .
FALKLAND SCHOOL  | 5756 TUKTAKAMIN ROAD, FALKLAND BC

250 - 379 - 2320| fal.sd83.bc.ca | fal@sd83.bc.ca