December 18, 2023

Principal’s Message

Heading into the holiday break, there is much anticipation for time to relax, recharge and connect with family and friends. A reminder to families that our final day of instruction before the break will be Friday December 22nd. On Friday, we’ll start the day with “Breakfast with Santa” at 8:30 in the Cafeteria. There will be music, food, and of course, an appearance from Santa! Students are encouraged to bring a cash donation or a non-perishable food item for the Food Bank. We’ll follow our regular Collaboration Day Bell Schedule for the rest of the day with classes beginning at 9:30 am.

December has been a busy month for our school with many initiatives, activities and events happening in and around our school. There is a music concert Tuesday night, the fall sport season has made way for basketball, and STUCO, Interact, and other school clubs have been busy with many initiatives to help others and build school spirit.

Here’s wishing all members of the school community a peaceful, safe, and joy-filled holiday.

Thanks for reading. Please feel free to reach out to me if you have questions, concerns, or even suggestions. tainge@deltaschools.ca

End of Year Message from Education and Child Care Minister Rachna Singh

Please click on the following link to read an end of year message from Minister Rachna Singh: https://www.bced.gov.bc.ca/bulletin/20231215/year-end-letter-to-parents-2023.pdf

Learning Updates

Student learning updates have now been uploaded to MyEd BC for your review. It will reflect student learning for Semester 1 – Interim, Full Year – Term 1 learning update.

This learning update reflects student progress since September until the early December­­. It is intended to inform about learning successes and guide improvement efforts where needed.

The information in this report is to provide a Term 1 update for Full year classes and interim update for Semester classes of current achievement and progress for your student. Please review this learning update and discuss progress and achievement with your student.

If you require more information or any clarification, please contact your student’s teacher directly via email.

The report can be viewed by:

Students Logging into MyEd:

https://www.myeducation.gov.bc.ca

Login ID is your MyEd Pupil Number (printed on your student ID card)

• If you have forgotten your password, use the ‘I forgot my password’ link (email will be sent to your Delta Learns Acct)

Parents Logging into MyEd:

https://www.deltasd.bc.ca/resources/myeducation-bc/

The learning update is accessible on the front page under the ‘Pages’ tab.

Contact the school office if you still are having addition login issues.

For further information on the new BC reporting order, please visit the Ministry of Education website at:

https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/education-training/k-12/administration/legislation-policy/public-schools/student-reporting

Career Programs

Mr. Martens is our Career Programs/Work Experience Coordinator and is available to support students with work experience and apprenticeship opportunities (Grade 10 – 12). He can be reached by email at smartens@deltaschools.ca for any inquiries.

Each month the district puts out a newsletter related to Career Programs, Work Experience and Apprenticeship opportunities. Please see this month’s newsletter from Career Programs:

https://deltalearns.ca/careers/newsletters/

Highlights in this edition: 

1. Parents as Career Coach –North Delta Secondary on Jan 17, 2024 at 7:00pm
2. BC Labour Market Outlook
3. UBC Geering Up Clubs

Please see the Career Program Facilitator at your school for more information!

Dry Grad

This year’s Dry Grad Committee is working hard to organize a memorable, fun, and inclusive celebration for our graduating grade 12s. The Dry Grad Committee shares information on the Facebook page and will begin sharing information on the Student Grad Instagram, too.

SDSS Dry Grad 2024 is the Facebook page. Please join and invite encourage other parents of a grad to join too. South Delta Grad Council 2024!  is the Student Grad Instagram account. Please get your child to join. These are two important ways to communicate what is happening around Dry Grad this year.

We would also like to collect all of the parent emails to ensure you get the important information regarding dry grad (ticket sales, volunteer opportunities, waivers, raffles, fundraising nights out, etc).
Please share an email address where the Dry Grad committee can reach you.

Dry Grad will take place on Friday, June 21 from 6-11pm at the Aria Banquet Hall.

Over the past few years, members of the school community have sponsored a grad to ensure that everyone can attend this special event. If you are interested in donating, you can etransfer $25 (or any amount that you would like to donate to: sdssdrygrad2024@gmail.com Please add the word SPONSOR in the message so we know that you are contributing to sponsor a grad.

Sun Devil Sports 

It’s been quite a fall with many successes on the court, on the field, and in the pool! Thanks to the Delta Optimist for the outstanding sports coverage!

SDSS Swim Team Dominates at Provincials

Solid Season for SDSS Grade 8 Girls Volleyball

SDSS field hockey finishes ninth at provincials

SDSS senior girls finish fourth at provincials

SDSS junior girls win provincial championship

SDSS girls win South Frasers, provincials next

SDSS boys’ soccer season ends at South Fraser Championships

PHOTOS: JV Sun Devils drop provincial final to Van College

JV Sun Devils to play for provincial title

Sun Devils season ends with quarterfinal loss

Sun Devils win Delta championship

Provincial Assessments – _Literacy 10/12 & Numeracy 10:

Literacy 10, Numeracy 10 & Literacy 12 are required components of the graduation program and students in grade 10 – 12 must write all three Provincial Assessments prior to graduation. These assessments focus on the demonstration and application of numeracy and literacy skills. Students will be excused from their scheduled classes for any assessments that they need to write. Below are the dates the assessments taking place this school year:

• Literacy 12 – Tuesday, November 2^nd
• Literacy 10 – Tuesday, January 16^th
• Numeracy 10 – Tuesday, April 16^th
• FRAL Oral Assessment – Tuesday, June 11^th

Specific assessment dates and times will be assigned and shared in an email to students and families closer to the assessment date.

A – Z of Vaping – Resources:

The Province of British Columbia recently launched another A-Z of Vaping social marketing campaign, that provides youth and their caregivers with information and resources related to the risks of vaping. This campaign concept was developed with input from youth and is currently running on most popular social media platforms. Posters, brochures and exterior signage have arrived from the Ministry for each of your schools.

Link: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/vaping/tools-for-schools

BC Lung Foundation: https://bclung.ca/how-we-can-help/vaping/vaping-prevention-toolkit

New 9-8-8 Mental Health Crisis and Suicide Prevention Helpline

The 9-8-8 Suicide Crisis Helpline is a new service available 24/7/365 to help Canadians when they need it most. The service, accessible via call or text to 9-8-8, offers trauma-informed and culturally affirming support to anyone who is thinking of suicide or who is worried about someone they know.

Important Dates

Dec 19             Music Concert, 6 pm

Dec 21             Grade 8 Breakfast

Dec 22             Breakfast with Santa; Last Day of Classes before Winter Break

Jan 8                Return to School

Jan 16              Literacy 10 Assessment – Grade 10 classes cancelled.

Jan 25              Early Dismissal 1:00 pm, Parent Teacher Conferences

Jan 31              Last Day of Semester 1

Feb 1               Start of Semester 2