Credit Meadows Elementary School

March News

Posted March 10, 2021

Principal’s Message

Happy Spring to our CMES families! It is so lovely to see the warmer weather upon us and the smell of Spring in the air! Please see some important March updates and information below.

Dianna Secord

Principal

School Screening

As you are aware, Public Health has changed the School Screening Tool. If your child has ONE symptom on the screening tool they MUST stay home until cleared by a doctor, had a negative Covid 19 test or have self-isolated for 10 days.  In addition, siblings need to stay home.  When you are calling into the office please clearly state why your child is not at school.  Mrs. Fry will be following up with all unknown absences.  Please know, in terms of Covid, the school is directed by Public Health and governed by their protocols to help keep everyone safe at school.

Spring Break

March Break has been moved and we will now have Spring Break from April 12-16 this year. We hope you are looking forward to this special week and will be able to take time to enjoy the outdoors and spend extra time together as a family!

In lieu of our original March Break, we will be having special school wide activities. Please see the list of spirit days and special activities below:

• Monday March 15: PJ Day (wear your favourite pajamas to school)
• Tuesday March 16: School Wide DPA Dance Party (Students will take part in a socially distanced outdoor dance party) & Rainbow Day (Wear as many colours as possible – and make it more fun by seeing who comes up with the most colourful outfit!)
• Wednesday March 17: St Patrick’s Day (Wear your favourite green shirt, pants, or even socks to celebrate St Patrick’s Day in style!)
• Thursday March 18: Jersey Day or School Spirit Wear (Wear your favourite jersey or school shirt)
• Friday March 19: Beach Day (wear your sun glasses and warm weather clothing for some beach fun!)

Drop Off/ Pick Up

A reminder that the front parking lot of the school is closed and is a walking area only. The lower parking lot is still open but has limited parking as we have a large staff at CMES, UGDSB Staff, and the YMCA Daycare Staff. See the maps on our website that indicate all the areas you can park if needed and safely walk. There are two large inlets on the right if heading towards Broadway after you pass CMES that can accommodate the parking of vehicles. Crossing guards are located at both sides of CMES and will assist students crossing the roadways safely.

Earth Day

March 27^th is Earth Hour

Join the global Movement! Celebrate Earth Hour on March 27th at 8:30pm.Earth Hour’s mission is uniting people to protect the planet by raising awareness of about climate change and encouraging positive action.“Earth Hour was famously started as a lights-off event in Sydney, Australia in 2007. Since then, it has grown to engage more than 172 countries and territories worldwide.”

Earth Hour is more than an event. It is a movement that has achieved massive environmental impact, including legislation changes by harnessing the power of the crowd.”

Ideas for your family to do for Earth Hour! Earth Hour belongs to you. Celebrate your commitment to the planet with your friends, family, community Earth Hour belongs to you. Celebrate your commitment to the planet with your friends, family, community or at work – in your own way.

A simple event can be just turning off all non-essential lights on March 27th from 8:30-9:30 pm. For one hour, focus on your commitment to our planet. To celebrate, you can:

• prepare a candle lit dinner with your family
• stargaze, or go camping in your backyard
• play board games, or charades

The possibilities are endless!

Quotes and information taken from: https://www.earthhour.org

A Message From Our Mental Health Lead: Talking About Mental Health

This month with the Umbrella Project we are focusing on mindfulness. So what is it? Mindfulness is simply being aware of what is happening in the moment. It is about noticing our own thoughts, feelings, sensations and the environment around us. Too often this information is missed as we rush through our days. When we can find the time, even a few minutes, to practice mindfulness we are able to tune into the present instead of looking back in the past or trying to imagine the future.

When we become more aware of our thoughts and feelings we are much better able to manage them. We have to know they are there to bring our focus to them! Also, practicing mindfulness can boost attention and concentration. Some studies have even shown that starting a mindfulness practice can increase brain activity in the area associated with positive emotions.

Mindfulness can be practiced by children, youth, young adults and adults. There are many different ways that you can bring some mindfulness into your everyday practice with your family.

Mindful Listening: Go into your backyard, onto your balcony or porch or go for a short outdoor walk. Focus on sounds. Listen to the everything you hear. If you notice your thoughts wandering, simply bring your mind back to the task of listening. You will be amazed at how many sounds are there that you would otherwise not have noticed!

Mindful Eating: Have family members take their first bites of food and really concentrate on the taste, textures, temperature and feeling of the food in your mouth. If your mind wanders, bring yourself back. Then share around the table what you each noticed. This can be playful and funny too! And always remember to be grateful for your ability to even have food as there are many families who do not always have easy access to foods.

Mindful Body Scan: Get comfortable and close your eyes. Notice your body. What do you feel? Travel from toes to tip of your head. Notice how your body feels on the surface it is on. Try to just notice without judgement or explanation. Gently bring yourself back to the scan if you wander. If possible, share what you discovered. Did anything surprise you?

Mindful Silence: This can be really fun but, surprisingly, not always that easy to accomplish! Try and get the whole family to agree to 1, 2, 3, 5 minutes (whatever works for you! Make it realistic). During that time no one is to speak, communicate, sing or make sounds. Simply go about your day to day without speaking. This can be very powerful and interesting. When you are finished your assigned time, share back what it was like.

Mindful Focus: Ring a bell or use an online sound for a bell, close your eyes and listen only to the sound. Focus on the sound until it is completely gone. You will be surprised how long it can last if we really focus our attention onto it!

Last thoughts:

Sitting in front of screens is the opposite for mindfulness in most cases, but sometimes the right app or use of technology can enhance and support our mindfulness activities.

You can try:

· Listening to calming music and noticing your body

· Anxiety Canada website has great activities and resources

· Stop, Think and Breathe app is a mindfulness app specifically to support kids

· GoZen on YouTube has some fun, free videos

· Headspace.com · https://www.connectedbreath.co (.co not .com)

Jenny Marino

Mental Health Lead for Upper Grand District School Board

Categories: News