Norway families,
Thank you all for a wonderful school year. There were lots of goodbyes and some tears today as students and staff packed up their personal belongings and left their classrooms for the last time this school year. For the Grade 6 students, there were waves of memories and emotions all day as they remembered their time here at Norway and said goodbye to the staff and each other. While I know they are ready for Grade 7, a little piece of them will always be connected to Norway.
I would like to acknowledge you, the parents, guardians and caregivers, for your ongoing support of our students, and your involvement in the school community. Whether it was volunteering in a class or on a field trip, or helping out with the Fun Day, the Magic Show, or pizza lunches, we could not do half of what we do without this involvement. School Council in particular has played an important part in making Norway a great place to teach and to learn. The efforts and organizing, along with your generosity, have funded a number of things this school year including whiteboards for every teaching space, Dash robots for coding, and JungleSport. A big thank you to Norway Council co-chairs, Alison Dowler and Hailey Eisen. Their leadership and breadth of knowledge has brought many of you in to help out throughout the year. I look forward to the coming school year and having more of you involved in one way or another.
I want to extend a heartfelt thanks to the following staff members for their dedication and commitment to the students at Norway. Whether you were here for one year, or for 10 years, we all appreciate what you have done, and wish you the best.
Retiring:
- Diane Likopulos' received a 'clap-out' today on the occasion of her last day of teaching before she retires. There were many hugs from the many students who were in her Kindergarten class at some point in the past. As an ECE at Norway for 10 years, Diane leaves with a full heart and lots of memories.
Moving On:
- Josh Feinstein has accepted a Grade 4/5 position at a school close to where he lives. One of the Grade 6 teachers, Josh will be fondly remembered as a hard working coach, and a caring teacher.
- Kerry Bones is a long time Lunch Supervisor working in both the Kindergarten rooms, and in the school yard during lunch.
- April Fairley, who has been a Lunch Supervisor for the past couple of years, and has been helping out in the office the past few months as well.
LTOs or Contract Ending:
- We were fortunate to have Courtney Arthur fill in this school year for a teacher on maternity leave. Her remarkable connection to her students will not soon be forgotten by anyone in her class this year.
- Valerie Henry is well known to most students not only as a constant support in the school yard and in the classroom, but as a trusted coach and for taking the lead to honour and celebrate Indigenous days of significance, culture and ways of knowing.
Returning Soon:
- Oksana Rao, the ECE in Room 101, will be taking a year off of work as a part of a 4 over 5. She will be returning in September 2024.
2024-2025 School Year
The first day of school is Tuesday, September 2nd. The start and finish times for the school day remain the same at 8:45 and 3:15 for Grades 1-6 students, and 8:55 and 3:05 for KIndergarten students. I will be sharing more updates and information in late August including your child(ren)'s class placement, updated calendars and some of the plans we have to make your child's experience at Norway even better than this school year.
Adult Reading Buddy Program
Norway is launching an Adult Reading Buddy Program in the fall of the 2024 school year. We are looking for community members that might have 15 or 20 minutes at the beginning of the school day, maybe two times a week to read with a primary student. Some training will be provided on the goals and outcomes of the partnership. Our hopes are to have each partnership run for about 8 weeks to 12 weeks. If you are interested, please complete this short google form and the school will share more details later early on in the new school year. The requirements for the participation in the program, including completion of a Police Reference Check/Vulnerable Sector Screening, are outlined in the survey link.
I wish you all a wonderful summer full of time well spent with family and friends. We will see you when we return in September.