Valet Service

PAC Newsletter

/ Ross Road PAC / Leave a comment

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New this Fall, Ross Road PAC is hosting a Grit for Parents session. This is being held at Ross Road Elementary on Oct 7 in the gym.

Registration is open to parents of all Schools in the Argyle Family of Schools (Ross Road, Lynn Valley, Boundary and Upper Lynn).

And $5 from each registration will go to Ross Road PAC.

GRIT FOR GROWN UPS: Brain-Health + Anxiety Management (for us and our kids)

MONDAY, OCTOBER 7 at Ross Road Elementary from 7:00-8:30pm

At Grit Vancouver, we are pretty passionate about raising kids with healthy, happy brains. However, we know that the missing component is sometimes ‘back-up’ for the tools we teach on the home front. Join us for a 1.5 hour workshop that explores Brain-Health + Anxiety Management for both ourselves and for our off-spring to ensure some life-long lessons around caring for our mental health.

The workshop will include mindful activities, ‘brain-trains’, yoga, chats about the science behind meditation, and practical tools to move forward with healthy brain maintenance.

We are honoured to be part of such a vibrant, caring community and would love to share some of the things we’ve uncovered along our journey.

PS: if your daughter is part of our Fall Grit program (either at Ross Road or elsewhere), please be our guest at a discounted price.

ask questions here 

ROSS ROAD SCHOOL VALET SERVICE

At Ross Road we are very fortunate to have a Valet Service available each morning. Here’s some information on how it works.

The Valet Service runs from 8:30 am to 8:45 am, Monday to Friday in order to help relieve the congestion in the drop-off zone (see map below) during the morning rush and to ensure the roads in front of the school are safe for pedestrians and drivers.

To help the valet service run smoothly, here are a few important points to remember:

  • Look for the volunteers in the safety vests and follow their directions.
  • Have your children ready to go (i.e. jackets on, backpacks with them, explain to them that you will not be getting out of the car)
  • There is NO PARKING in the drop-off zone.
  • All drivers must remain in their cars.
  • If you would like to walk your children to class, please park in the designated area on Ross Road or Kilkenny Road.

Your cooperation is greatly appreciated.

CALL FOR VOLUNTEERS:

  • This valuable service is run 100% by parent and student volunteers and so to keep it going throughout the year we need more parent volunteers to step forward.
  • The time commitment is small – it only involves volunteering for 20 minutes (from 8:25am to 8:45am) even just one day a week is a help.
  • If you can help out now or in the future, please contact Ed Lathioor at e.lathioor@gmail.com

volunteer

Kudos to Dana Samis for all her hard work in putting together the fall and winter after school programs.

Dana has spent hours helping our school by putting together a wide range of after school program offerings for our students. Thank you Dana!

 

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Friday Newsletter: Munch a Lunch Now Open! | Valet Volunteers needed

/ Ross Road PAC

munchlogo125x125Dear parents,

  • Food day ordering is now open for Session 1.  There will be 13 food days between October 10 and February 27 and this session includes Flying Wedge Pizza, Booster Juice Smoothies with Magic Lunch Box (MLB) Wraps, Pasta, and Mexican, Subway Sandwiches, Pinkberry Frozen Yogurt, Sushi, Magic Lunch Box homemade meals. Remember you can now choose small or large sizes for MLB meals!  If you want to take a break from making lunches, you must get your orders in by 6pm on Friday October 3.  (no exceptions)
    • Click here to go to the MunchaLunch website.
    • Or click here to find out more about the program. (including the link to register if you’re a new user
  • The Valet Service needs volunteers.  Do you benefit from this amazing service?  If so, would you please consider volunteering for just one morning a week?  The valet program is only as strong as the volunteers who show up to run it.  Currently, there are vacancies on Tuesday and Friday.  Please get in touch with Karen Johnson on 604-518-7430 to find out more.  Thank you!

 

Ross Road School Morning Valet Service

/ Ross Road PAC

The Valet Service runs from 8:30 am to 8:45 am, Monday to Friday in order to help relieve the congestion in the drop-off zone (see map below) during the morning rush and to ensure the roads in front of the school are safe for pedestrians and drivers.

To help the valet service run smoothly, here are a few important points to remember:

  • Look for the volunteers in the safety vests and follow their directions.
  • Have your children ready to go (i.e. jackets on, backpacks with them, explain to them that you will not be getting out of the car)
  • There is NO PARKING in the drop-off zone.
  • All drivers must remain in their cars.
  • If you would like to walk your children to class, please park in the designated area on Ross Road or Kilkenny Road.

Your cooperation is greatly appreciated.

CALL FOR VOLUNTEERS:

  • This valuable service is run 100% by parent and student volunteers and so to keep it going throughout the year we need more parent volunteers to step forward.
  • The time commitment is small – it only involves volunteering for 20 minutes (from 8:25am to 8:45am), one day a week for one month.
  • If you can help out now or in the future, please contact Nancy Barton at nancybinbc@hotmail.com or click here to fill out an online form. Thank you!

nancybinbc@hotmail.com

Friday Newsletter: Christmas Craft Fair | SnowPass | Young Actor’s Project | Valet Volunteers

/ Ross Road PAC

Dear parents,

  • Christmas Craft Fair:   This year’s Fair is shaping up to be awesome, but organizers still need your help.  Please don’t forget to volunteer your time, as well as making contributions to the class raffle baskets, bake sale, Holiday Show and Wrap Market, and mystery bags.  It may sound like a lot, but the results are worth it.  It’s a wonderful community-building event and a great fundraiser that directly benefits all our kids.  Click here to find out more, and contact the coordinators at rossroadcraftfair@gmail.com, to find out how you can help.
  • SnowPass:  Did you know that if you have a child in Grades 3 or 4, you can buy a pass for $29.95 that lets your child ski or ride three times at participating resorts all over Canada.  Click here for more details.
  • Young Actors Workshop:   Have your kids been talking to you about drama activities, masks and improv lately? If so, this is thanks to the fantastic work that Mike, Jody and Robert from the Young Actors’ Project (YAP) have done with all divisions.  At the AGM in May, the PAC voted to bring the YAP to Ross Road and the program went extremely well, with students  learning hands-on about drama, masks, focus and the power of body language. A big thank you to the instructors from YAP and to the Ross Road teachers who welcomed them into their classrooms!  Click here to find out more about YAP.
  • Valet:   A volunteer is still needed for Thursdays and new volunteers are needed for next year.  If you benefit from this service, perhaps you might consider giving up 25 minutes once a week for one month to help out.  Please contact Nancy Barton at nancybinbc@hotmail.com.

Have a great weekend,

Your PAC executive

Friday Newsletter: Card Project | Christmas Market | Valet | Library Update

/ Ross Road PAC

Dear parents,

  • Card Project:  Last year, we raised over $1000 from the Card Project!  This year, the sample cards will be sent out on NOVEMBER 8, and ordering will be open for 1 week only from NOVEMBER 8 to NOVEMBER 15.  A standard gift box costs $20 and contains 12 cards and envelopes, and the PAC receives $5 from each order.  Information about ordering will be included with the sample card.  For more information, and to see samples from last year, please click here.
  • Ross Road Christmas Market:  The Christmas Market coordinators are doing an amazing job putting together this very special event.  As well as all your old favourites, this year the team has also put together a Holiday Shop and Wrap Room, a Silent Auction, an Outdoor Cafe and free cookie decorating. For more information, including links to order dinner on the night, please click here.
  • Valet:  The program desperately needs an adult volunteer on Thursday mornings in November. We have one parent on duty and with the rainy weather starting there will be more people driving to school, which means  more traffic in the drop off zone.  If you are available to help on Thursday mornings from 8:25 to 8:45 please contact Nancy Barton at nancybinbc@hotmail.com.
  • Library update:  Did you know you can ‘adopt a shelf’ at the school library?  Or that there’s a student-generated list of recommended books by grade level on the bulletin board?  Or that money YOU raised through fundraising has purchased over 250 new books for the library and helped to provide the library with a digital projector and laptop.  Teacher librarian Mme. McAllister has put together a newsletter highlighting all the wonderful things that are happening at the Ross Road library.  Click here for more.

Finally, if you know of a parent that isn’t getting these emails, but would like to, please tell them that subscribing is as easy as going to the PAC website, and entering their email address on the right hand side.

Enjoy your weekend,

Your PAC

Friday Newsletter: Dates | GM Minutes | Safety at drop-off | District info

/ Ross Road PAC / Leave a comment

Dear parents,

  • Dates:  The PAC calendar  has been updated with food days, PD days and early dismissal days.  Please be aware though that it may be subject to change!  If you want to import this calendar into your mobile device or another calendar service, here is the feed for  iCal  or, XML, or HTML.
  • GM Minutes:  Minutes from the last PAC GM can be found here
  • Drop-off Safety:  As winter closes in, please be extra-careful around drop-off time.   In particular, please be aware that if you are turning into Kilkenny Road, you need to watch out for bikes!  For bike-riders, please use extra caution near this intersection.  Finally, please spare a thought and be respectful towards the children and parents who volunteer for valet duty.  It’s not always fun standing out in the cold and rain, but they do it because it makes everyone’s morning safer.
  • Finally, a reminder that the school administration no longer sends out emails to parents.  All the information about school activities, staff and programs can be found on the Ross Road Elementary website. 

Have a great weekend.

 

Friday Newsletter: Meetings, Class Reps, Enviro Club & Valet

/ Ross Road PAC

Dear parents,

There’s a PAC General Meeting in the library next Wednesday, October 9.  All parents are encouraged to attend.  The meeting will start at 7pm and babysitting will be provided upon request.  (email Sarah Dennis at denniss@sutton.com if you need babysitting)

The following classes still need class reps….

  • Ms. Vicki Thomas – English 5/6
  • Mrs Denise Esterer – English 3
  • Mme Danae McKay/Mme Apameh Aryanpour – French 3

If your child is in one of these classes, please consider volunteering to become the class rep.

The valet service needs a few more volunteers….particularly on Thursdays.   As the weather gets worse, this job becomes more important.  The time commitment is tiny….just 20 minutes (from 8:25am to 8:45am) one day a week.  If you’d like to know more, please contact Nancy Barton at nancybinbc@hotmail.com

The Environment Club was recently awarded a $4,500 TD Friends of the Environment Grant to help achieve some amazing projects for the school.  Over the coming months, look out for a naturalized outdoor classroom, interpretive plant signs, an outdoor bulletin board and a weather station.  This year, the Environment Club (Grades 3-7) will be working on several lunchtime projects, including composting, water conservation and making crafts from recycled materials.  Many thanks to parent sponsors Gillian Gorton, Laurie Ainsworth, Layne Christensen and Jill Mackay, as well as principal Carla Orr and teachers Danae Mckay and Anne Zayonc for leading the club.

If you’d like to help out, the Club is looking for a volunteer carpenter or handyman for a one-off project, as well as a mosaic specialist, (or enthusiast) to create a mosaic with the children.  The club is always looking for lumber and gardeners, so if you’d like to help, please contact Gillian Gorton at thegortons@shaw.ca

New signs help establish a bike route to Ross Road

/ Ross Road PAC

Dear Ross Road parents,

Some of you may have noticed the new signage to control the flow of traffic down Kilkenny during the busy morning drop-off and afternoon pick-up times.

My daughter, Sadie, and I ride bikes to school almost every day, and we’re happy to see them.

The engineers at the department of transportation at the District of North Vancouver took an opportunity to install new “Do Not Turn” and “Bicycles Excepted” signs in early February.

The signs may have changed but nothing has practically changed for motor vehicles coming to the school.

  • Motor vehicles are prohibited from turning westbound onto Kilkenny from Hoskins and must get to the school by turning onto Bushnell from Ross Road.
  • What is different is that bicycles have been clearly and officially excepted from the turn restriction. This establishes Kilkenny as the preferred route for bicycles to get to and from Ross Road. See map below.
  • Drivers of motor vehicles should please note that while you cannot turn onto Kilkenny during the restricted times, Kilkenny remains a two-way street. You should be prepared to share the road with bicycles.
  • Bikes should come to a complete stop at the intersection of Bushnell and Kilkenny.
  • Parent volunteers with the Valet Service will stop motor vehicle traffic from making the turn so cyclists can safely cross Bushnell to the school grounds.

Sadie and I hope to see more bicycles joining us on the road, especially as the weather starts getting warmer. And drier.

If you need a little extra encouragement, you might find it in a new study [http://www.theatlanticcities.com/commute/2013/02/kids-who-walk-or-bike-school-concentrate-better-study-shows/4585/] released last year. It found children who walked or biked to school performed better on concentration tasks than kids who didn’t. The effects lasted for up to four hours after school began.

Thanks for driving safely, and for sharing the road.

– Blaine Kyllo
(Ross Road parent)

Ross-Road-bike-route-map