Dear DG Families,

It’s going to be busy and exciting at DG, with both Family Fun Night and Sports Day happening this week!

These kinds of big events don’t just magically happen … they take major planning and organization, often by a few key people, who would love your help! (It’s not too late to sign up – check out the info in the PAC section, below)

Thank you to our staff for all of their work leading up to Sports Day (it’s Friday!)

AND

Thank you to our awesome DGPAC and parent volunteers who have been seriously hustling behind the scenes to get everything ready for Family Fun Night (Thursday from 5-8pm). 

We’re looking forward to seeing our DG Families at both of these events, later this week!

SPORTS DAY – THIS FRIDAY!

We are looking forward to Sports Day on Friday, and are hopeful that the weather will cooperate.

Our theme for Sports Day this year is “SUMMER OLYMPICS” and students will be assigned to one of 4 colour teams:  red, blue, green and yellow.

Students will be bringing home a Sports Day notice on Monday indicating their colour team (some students may have brought their notice home already, on Friday).   Students are encouraged to dress in their team colours on Sports Day.

As this is an outside day, students should come prepared for the weather (sunscreen, a hat, a jacket, dress in layers, etc…).

Students will be moving through the various Sports Day stations throughout the day, so they should also bring a water bottle they can keep with them outside for the day.   For this reason, please make sure your child’s water bottle is clearly labelled with their name.

Sports Day is a regular school day, in terms of the start and end of the day.   On Friday morning, students should arrive at the regular time and report to their line up areas, per usual.  We will not be doing the wheels parade this year, in order to have a less hectic/stressful start to the day and allow students more time at their stations and smoother transition times. There is not “early dismissal” on Sports Day, however, we aim to finish up between 2:30-2:40 pm so that there is time for clean-up.

Parents are welcome to come, watch and cheer for students on Sports Day.  We do ask that you please leave pets at home, however, as this will be a busy, noisy day.

Our PAC has organized special Panago lunch on Sports Day, previously ordered online as part of the Term 3 Special Lunch orders.  If you did not order Panago for your child, please ensure they bring their lunch on Sports Day.

All students will also require a quick, easy to eat recess snack on Sports Day, as well as a water bottle (labelled with your child’s name).

The Sports Day notice will include this information, and more, as well as the general schedule for the day.   Please be sure to read over it carefully.    There will also be a section for you to return to your child’s teacher regarding lunch time and dismissal, depending upon your family’s plans.

Please watch for the Sports Day notice coming home on Monday, from your child’s teacher.   Once you have seen the notice, if you still have questions, please contact your child’s teacher.

National Indigenous People’s Day – June 21

National Indigenous Peoples Day is celebrated every year on June 21.

What is National Indigenous Peoples Day?

June 21st is an opportunity for all people to honour, acknowledge, and celebrate the culture, traditions, and diversity of Indigenous peoples in Canada.

What are some things that we can do?

• We are all learners – explore in depth the true history of Indigenous peoples in Canada.
• Become familiar with barriers to success for Indigenous peoples – such as the Indian Act, Indian Residential School, and Inter-generational trauma.
• Support Indigenous owned businesses https://marketplacebc.ca/indigenous-owned/
• Learn about: UNDRIP (United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples)
• Read the TRC Calls to Action
• Consider reading this bestselling book by Bob Joseph: https://www.amazon.ca/Things-Know-About-Indian-Reconciliation/dp/0995266522
• Attend a celebratory event – see details below for two upcoming events, one in Tsawwassen and another in Surrey:

Tsawwassen First Nation – June 21 @ 4:00 pm – 8:00 pm

2024-2025 School Year

Will you be somewhere else next school year?  If you are moving and are not planning to return to Devon Gardens in the fall, please make sure that you let our office know.

Optional School Supplies Ordering through SchoolStart for 24/25

We are trying something new for school supplies for next year and are offering parents the opportunity to purchase quality standardized school supplies through School Start for the 2024/2025 school year.

This is optional and orders will not be handled through the school, but rather with this company directly.

3 WAYS TO ORDER:

1. ONLINE: You can place your order online at www.schoolstart.ca.
   

   Our site is best compatible with Firefox or Chrome.

2. PHONE: You can call our customer service centre at 1-800-580-1868 to place your order over the phone.

3. EMAIL:   You can print and fill out the order form and return to our office via email to: info@schoolstart.ca.

HOME DELIVERY:

The supplies will be packaged and delivered directly to your house. If you have a P.O. Box, please use your street address (the address you would give 911 in an emergency).

Because the kit (s) are delivered to your home, you will have the ability to:

Pre-label your child’s supplies

Add supplies to your order for home use or for your child in another school

SCHOOL START CALL CENTRE IS AVAILABLE IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR NEED ANY ASSISTANCE WITH ORDERING: 1-800-580-1868 Email: info@schoolstart.ca

2024-25 School Supply Lists can also be found on our School Website

Please note we have both French and English listed separately.

https://dg.deltasd.bc.ca/school-supplies/


Families can purchase school supplies directly from School Start (per the information above), or use the same list to purchase your supplies wherever you like.   Remember, you don’t need to purchase the entire list of new items every year.  If your child already has supplies that are in good order from a previous year – please save money and the environment.  For example, you don’t need to purchase a new ruler, French-English dictionary, calculator, etc.. every year.   If the one(s) from last year are in good condition, use them again!

Can you Help Keep the School Garden Alive this Summer?

You may have seen the Western Red Cedar tree and the planter boxes on the front grass area of the school.  This area is well-used as an outdoor learning space during the school year and both the tree and the garden boxes require regular watering.   While school is in session, teachers and students take care of this.  During the summer, though, we need your help.   For the past three summers we have had families volunteer to water the garden boxes and cedar tree and we need to do the same, this summer.

As we’ve done for the past three summers, we will put together a schedule of volunteers to take turns doing the watering so that it’s a manageable task (many hands make light work).  You will have access to water and a hose at the school, and we will show you exactly what needs to be done before the end of the school year.

 If you are willing to help out with watering this summer (particularly if you live nearby!), please email Mme Hamilton at hhamilton@deltaschools.ca   And, if you’ve helped with this in previous summers, you’re now an expert, so we’d love to have you on the team again this year!  

French – Position Filled!

Kurtis Beaumont is the new DG School representative for Canadian Parents for French!  This is great news, as the position has been vacant for many months.

Canadian Parents for French is a nationwide, research-informed, volunteer organization that champions, creates and promotes opportunities for youth in Canada to learn and use French.   Canadian Parents for French:

• believes the ability to communicate in both official languages fosters creative, empathetic and open-minded citizens;
• believes that knowing both official languages opens the door to far-reaching opportunities and enhances Canada’s social and economic prosperity;
• informs and influences all levels of government and education stakeholders; and
• CPF provides youth and parents across the country with a variety of targeted activities.

Kurtis’ role is to represent Canadian Parents for French at Devon Gardens, and vice versa, acting as a liaison between CPF and the school.

Kurtis will share information, resources and opportunities from CPF with our school community and will, in turn, provide updates to CPF around what is happening at our school in terms of French language learning.

Un grps merci to Kurtis for taking on this important job!

For more information on CPF, please check out their website: https://cpf.ca/en/

Please also sign up to help on Sports Day!

Donations for Musical Cakes

We are also still accepting donations of baked goods to help support the musical cakes portion of the evening!

This is a very popular activity, so we need a large number of cakes, cookies, donuts, etc. to support this!

Please email the PAC (pacdevongardens@gmail.com) if you can bake or donate items!

Baked goods for donation are to be brought to the school the morning of June 13.

EXTENSION CORDS NEEDED on FFN

Do you have an extension cord (heavy duty, outdoor) that the PAC could borrow on Family Fun Night?   If yes, please email the PAC pacdevongardens@gmail.com

If you are lending your extension cord, please make sure it is clearly marked with your name, so we can get it back to you!

FAMILY FUN NIGHT ACTIVITIES AND PRICE LIST

Please BRING CASH for wristband, raffle tickets and game purchases

• Wristbands (unlimited use of all bouncy castles) – $15
• Raffle tickets – $10 for 12 tickets
• Musical cakes – $2 for 3 tickets
• Lollipop tree – $1 per pull
• Face painting – by donation *suggested donation of $0.50.
• All proceeds go to the PAC

Concession (chips, candy, ring pops, drinks, freezies) – $1-$2

Food trucks – $ varies. Vendors may accept credit card as well as cash

Games, concession, raffle tickets, etc… are CASH ONLY.

 

Food Trucks / Concession Area:

Please bring your own blanket or lawn chairs to sit in while eating.

 

Thank you all for your continued support!  We look forward to seeing you all at the event!

DGPAC

 

 

Winning Classes – Most Donations!

Mme Sisson/Mme Inducil’s class, as well as Mrs. Willcox’s class, brought in the most donations for the Family Fun Night baskets!   These two classes have won the Ice Cream Treats!  Congratulations!

 

 

 

 

Kinder Books

Introducing the Kinder Books Loyalty Program for schools! This year-long fundraising program is designed to help schools earn credit towards purchasing books for their school library.

Here’s how it works: for every net book purchase made at Kinder Books, the school will earn 10% of the purchase amount towards a credit at our store. At the end of the fundraiser, we will notify the school of their credit amount. The school can then decide to use the credit at the beginning of the new school year or at the end of the calendar year.

The best part? This program applies to all book purchases at our store, including special orders for kids and books for adults. Plus, orders can be placed online at www.kinderbooks.ca, making it easy for grandparents or other family members who live out of town to participate. Simply mention your school’s name at checkout, and we’ll credit your school accordingly.

Online orders can be picked up at the store during business hours or shipped through Canada Post

 

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 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 “DevGardens24” and our PAC will earn $5.00 from each registration. For details, available course dates and online registration, please follow the link: www.FirstAidHero.com

Questions? Send an email to pacdevongardens@gmail.com

Are you interested in hosting an International Student?  Or, do you know of a family who might be?  Delta School District International Programs is currently recruiting homestay families for international students coming to Delta School District for September 2024. They will arrive from all over the world and have a strong desire to be in Delta.

The reimbursement for hosting will be increasing to $1,150 per month as of September 2024. Multiple students from different nationalities can be hosted in one home. The majority of students in the homestay program are from Germany, Japan, Spain, Italy, and Brazil. At the moment, more that 20 different countries are represented in the homestay program.

Many are looking for a family connection and being a part of a family during their stay in Delta. Their study periods range from 3 months to half a school year, to a full school year, to multiple years.

We have two 3-week summer programs where host parents welcome younger English learners into their home. It is a great way for students to see what school (and life) in Delta is like and for new homestay families to get a small sample of what hosting is like. Reimbursement for each 3-week program is $850 per student.

If you are interested in hosting, please reach out to homestay@godelta.ca. If you are not able to host but know of a family who can, please send them our way. There are referral bonuses available for referring families.

OTHER OPPORTUNITIES

Fraser Valley Library Summer Reading Club

Join Fraser Valley Regional Library’s Summer Reading Club – World of Curiosities! It’s free and there’s a club for everyone – kids, teens and adults! Join in-person or online at www.fvrl.ca and track your reading. You can read anything – novels, picture books, information books, graphic novels, audiobooks, e-books, websites – it all counts. Sign up starts June 21.

Friday, June 14th: Sports Day

Friday, June 14th: PAC special lunch day (Panago)

Wednesday, June 19th: PAC popcorn sale at recess

Friday, June 21st: Grade 7 leaving ceremony 9:15am

Tuesday, June 25th: Grade 7s to Central City Funpark

Wednesday, June 26th: Year End Assembly 9:15am

Thursday, June 27th: Last Day for Students, dismissal 10:15am