Dear DG Families,
With Spring (hopefully) in the air (soon), and Earth Day just around the corner, this is a good time to remind ourselves of little steps we can all take to help the environment. Turning off the lights when leaving a room/the house, shutting off the tap while brushing teeth, walking/biking (rather than driving) for short trips, and bringing a water bottle from home rather than buying water in single use plastic all help. So can packing a “litterless lunch” for work/school.
A litterless lunch encourages reducing the waste that goes to the landfill. If we focus on HOW we pack our lunch for work or school, we can reduce garbage. Here are a few tips to try:
- pack food in reusable containers rather than using plastic wrap or a ziplock baggie
- choose items with less packaging where possible (eg. buying in bulk and dividing into individual portions at home, using reusable containers, vs. buying items that are already individually-portioned)
- pack a “real” (or reusable) fork/spoon rather than using disposable plastic cutlery (please help us cut down on this at school – we go through a ton of plastic spoons and forks supplying them to students who have forgotten to pack them in their lunch)
- use a refillable water bottle
- try reusable food-grade silicone bags and/or eco-friendly wraps (usually made with beeswax) in place of plastic baggies
Wear Your Earth Day Colours
To celebrate Earth Day, students are invited to wear blue/green/brown (or whatever colours remind them of “earth”!) on Friday.
Adult Crossing Guard Still Needed
Student Crossing Guard Schedule:
Thank you for your continued support of the crossing guard program at Devon Gardens. This important leadership role helps keep the students safe. If you know you are going to be away for an extended period because of a planned vacation, please encourage your child to find their own replacements and to let Ms. Grund know. All Crossing Guards have been provided the schedule.
Updated Crossing Guard Schedule
Reminder, please do not walk through the staff parking lot
In the mornings especially, there are still a number of students/families walking through the staff parking lot (walking/running between parked cars, blocking entry to the parking lot & parking spots, etc..). This is NOT SAFE. When approaching from the front side of the school, please walk up Downs Road, use the path across the front grass, or walk around the back of the school, by the gym.
Please don’t send your children to school when they are ill
Are you interested in hosting an international student?
The School District is looking for Host Families….
Student Learning Survey – Grades 4 and 7
The Provincial Student Learning Survey is unique in its scope, size and usefulness to schools. It gathers information from parents/guardians/caregivers, teachers, and students on topics related to school environment, safety, and achievement. The information is used for planning in individual schools and provides a district and provincial perspective.
Each year, the Student Learning Survey is administered at school to students in grades 4 and 7 (our grades 4 and 7 students will be completing the survey before the end of April). Parents/guardians/caregivers of students in these grades, as well as school staff, are also invited to complete the survey. The surveys contain standard questions for the Province – in addition, questions from the school and/or district that focus on local conditions or issues may be included. The survey can be completed electronically and can be accessed on the Internet at www.bced.gov.bc.ca/sat_survey/access.htm
Any computer with an Internet connection can be used, and access to the e-survey is simple and secure.
To complete the survey:
1. Go to any computer that has an up-to-date internet browser .
2. Go to www.bced.gov.bc.ca/sat_survey/access.htm
3. Under the section Direct Access – no logon number required select:
· District: the name of your child’s district (Delta)
· School: the name of your child’s school (Devon Gardens)
· Language: the language of your choice
4. Complete the survey by clicking on the appropriate circle to answer each question. Move to the next set of questions by clicking on the right arrow in the bottom right corner of the screen. Click on the left arrow to navigate backwards.
5. When you are finished the survey, you will get a message “Thank you for sharing your views”.
The e-survey site will be open until April 28th. If you have any questions, please contact the school at 604-581-6185.
Grade 7 Year End Fundraising Events
Dear Devon Gardens Parents and Guardians,
To help support end-of-year activities for the graduating grade 7 students of Devon Gardens Elementary, two fundraising events have been planned for April and May.
- Bottle Drive Fundraiser – Saturday, April 22 from 10am to 2pm. We are looking for volunteer help for this event. If you are able to support with your time, please sign up here – Volunteer Sign-up Sheet
- Growing Smiles Plant Fundraiser – For details on items and prices, please visit Devon Gardens Elementary (growingsmilesfundraising.com). Ordering closes Thursday, May 4 (midnight) and order pick-up will be at the school (lower parking lot) on Thursday, May 18 at 4:00pm. Orders can be placed and paid for through the link provided.
All proceeds from these events will go towards funding various end-of-year activities for the graduating grade 7 students. We encourage all parents to get involved and support these events in whatever way you can. Whether it’s by donating your bottles, purchasing plants, or volunteering your time to help with the events, every little bit helps. Let’s work together to make these fundraising events a success for our graduating grade 7 students.
Thank you in advance for your support,
Grade 7 Fundraising Committee Parents
Family Fun Night is scheduled for 5-8 PM on June 15th, 2023 and is an event the PAC puts on annually. With COVID, however, it hasn’t happened for 3 years so we are super excited it’s coming back! Not only is Family Fun Night a great time, but it’s an important fundraiser for the PAC (money raised by the PAC helps to enhance student experiences in a variety of ways: extra classroom funds for teachers, technology purchases, A/V equipment, PE and playground pals equipment, library purchases, and so much more!)
One of the events at Family Fun Night is a basket raffle. The fundraising committee is working hard to get donations from businesses in our community for these baskets (if you have a business and would like to donate something, or if you know someone/somewhere else who might, please contact the PAC at pacdevongardens@gmail.com)
Additionally, each classroom also creates a basket. How it works is that each class is given a theme, and throughout the month of May the students in the classroom bring in items for their basket. The themes range from things like “Summer Fun” to “Chocolate and Coffee” (and more!). The donated items can be anything that fits the theme. The PAC will collect the donations for the baskets throughout the month and then put the baskets together in early June in preparation for the Family Fun Night.
To keep things fun, the PAC also hosts a friendly competition whereby the Primary class and Intermediate class who bring in the most donations will each WIN an ice cream party for the end of the year!
Keep an eye out for your classroom theme and let the competition begin.
Yearbook Ordering – Don’t miss out!
The end of the school year is fast approaching and our annual Devon Gardens yearbook is being put together by two dedicated parent volunteers (Varinder Khaira and Carolyn Stanley).
Orders can be placed through https://devonpac.hotlunches.net/.
For assistance with setting up an account, please visit Account Set-up Instructions.
Ordering will be open until Sunday, May 7th. Cost is $21 per yearbook.
Yearbooks will be delivered and distributed before the last day of school in June.
What does the yearbook include?
- Staff Page
- Dedicated page for each class/division – includes individual student pictures
- Grade 7 write-ups and baby pictures
- Miscellaneous pictures from events throughout the school year
- Page of autographs
- Soft cover book with a total of 32 pages
Please note, yearbooks must be per-ordered. There will be no extras available for purchase later.
If you wish to have this keepsake please order before the deadline.
Questions? Send an email to pacdevongardens@gmail.com
Popcorn Helpers Needed
Our PAC is looking for helpers to pop popcorn for popcorn snack days and to help with selling them. If you are interested in helping out, please email pacdevongardens@gmail.com
Here are the details of the position:
- foodsafe certificate required (if you don’t have one, but are willing to get one, the PAC will cover the cost)
- popcorn will need to be popped and bagged prior to the snack day (this job takes about 3 hours)
- on the snack day, volunteers will need to come to the school to hand out popcorn and to count the monies collected
More than one person is needed for this job!
Fruit and Veggie Helpers Needed for Next Year
The PAC is also looking for volunteers for the Fruit and Veggie program next year, as the current parent coordinator has a student in grade 7, so will not be with us next year. In order to continue this program, new volunteers will be needed. Through the Fruit and Veggie program, students receive fresh BC fruits and vegetables, washed and ready to enjoy, approximately twice a month. Parent volunteers are needed to receive and sort the produce to be delivered to each classroom. If this is something you are interested in assisting with, please contact email pacdevongardens@gmail.com
This position could be shared between two or more people
PAC Fundraisers ongoing throughout the year
Return-it Express
PAC has created a school fundraising account. To participate, simply bring your containers to the depot in sealed, clear bags, and enter the registered phone number, 604-581-6185, into the Express kiosk. You will be prompted to select the number of bags you’re dropping off, the kiosk will automatically print the same number of sticker tags displaying our PACs unique Express account code. Tag each of your bags with a sticker tag and drop the bags off in the designated Express drop-off area to be counted. For a list of Return-it Express location visit https://www.return-it.ca/locations/express/
Cobs Bread Dough Raiser Program
This program enables us to raise money for our school throughout the year! Be sure to mention Devon Gardens Elementary (or code 7806) each time you make a purchase at COBS Bread Scott 72 Centre; they will donate 10% of your purchase back to our school.
Level Ground Trading
Level Ground is a BC business that works with fair trade coffee, tea, dried fruit and spice producers.
- Supporters enter the code devongardens in the ‘discount code’ field at the checkout.
- All products on our web store (com) qualify for the fundraiser. Orders must be $40 or more. These orders also qualify for free shipping to most addresses in Canada (there is a shipping fee on all orders shipped to NU/NT/YK). All orders are paid for through our web site and shipped directly to your supporters. No need to collect orders or distribute products to households.
- Your fundraising amount is 20% of total sales. So on a $100 order your school will receive $20.
Online Stay Safe & Babysitting Courses
Offered through First Aid Hero. When registering use promo/coupon code DGPAC and our PAC will earn $5 from each registration. For details, available course dates and online registration, please refer to this flyer:
Questions? Send an email to pacdevongardens@gmail.com
Thank you,
Your Devon Gardens PAC
Other Opportunities and Education for Families
Virtual Event: Understanding, Supporting and Connecting with Teens with Depression
Thursday, April 20th -Special Lunch Day (Cobbs)
Thursday, April 20th – Term 3 previews sent home electronically
Friday, April 21st – Wear Brown/Blue/Green for Earth Day
Saturday, April 22nd – Bottle Drive – lower parking lot (proceeds to support Grade 7 year end activities)
Monday, May 1st – Performance “Professor Wow”
Monday, May 1st – PAC Meeting 7:30pm
Other dates and events are listed on the school calendar on our website: https://dg.deltasd.bc.ca/events-calendar/