Tuesday, September 2 – First Day of Classes
Tuesday, September 2 – First Day Tea sponsored by Riverside School Council (before school)
Friday, September 5 – 3rd Annual Welcome Back BBQ
Thursday, September 25 – Photo Day
Athletics - See updates on our Athletics Page
Welcome back to all members of our Riverside School community! I hope your summer was full of fun and laughter. We are all very excited to reconnect with you all over the coming days and hearing about your adventures.
As an administration team, Ms. Yu and I wanted to put together a package of information to help support a great year of learning for all students, and ensuring continued strong partnership between school and home.
Lost and Found
Our Lost and Found area (just inside the bridge doors) fills up with alarming regularity. It is easiest for us to return items to forgetful students if they are clearly labelled with a student’s full name (or at least first name and initial).
We clear out our Lost and Found on a monthly basis. Uniform items that are unlabeled enter our ‘loaner’ circulation, while all other items are donated to a local emergency shelter.
When issues arise
Ms. Yu and I handle many concerns from students and their caregivers each school year. Some are easily solved, and others less so; but one commonality much of the time is that adults avoid reaching out to us until a problem has festered for some time and reached a point where the student is experiencing significant distress.
While we appreciate families’ desire to teach their children independent problem-solving skills, we also encourage you to let us know if there are any problems ongoing (whether ‘us’ is the homeroom teacher, or the two of us). We do not need to take action unless specifically requested, and more information being shared between home and school is always welcome.
We also suggest that families be very aware of any barriers students may place ‘in the way’ of resolving an issue, such as “don’t tell the school”. We know, as parents ourselves, that we must balance respecting wishes and making decisions for children, however, we know that students are often concerned that they will be in trouble or cause problems for us if you contact us. Let us reassure you that is simply not the case – we are all here to solve problems and want to help ensure as wonderful experience as possible for all Riverside students!
Single stall restrooms
Riverside School does have a small number of single stall restrooms on the upper floor of our school. All students are welcome to use these restrooms as access is not limited. These restrooms, used by only one student at a time, are meant to support students meeting their needs if they are uncomfortable or unable to use the larger boys and girls restrooms throughout the school. We encourage students to use these restrooms as needed, however, we also thank those who can use the larger restrooms for doing so to ensure access for others who cannot.
Upcoming School Council/Parent Society casino fundraiser
Each year, Alberta schools are provided funds from AGLC from the typical operations of casinos in the province. School communities are required to provide volunteers to staff casinos on specific evenings. The next ‘casino night’ for Riverside School will be on October 28 and 29 of this year.
AGLC requires volunteers to complete a security check, accessible through this link: Casino Security Check. Riverside students benefit so much from these funds – it is truly one of the most impactful acts of service that members of our school community can engage in.
If you have any questions about this, I encourage you to contact our Parent Society by email.
Thank you for your continued support! We are all looking forward to meeting our new Riverside families and reconnecting with returning families.
Steve Radder, Principal
Riverside School