Dear Banff Trail School Families,
With the first major snowfall having now landed, there are a few ‘cold weather’ reminders that are worth sharing that are pertinent to Banff Trail School. Above all else, this is meant as an effort to maintain the safety and well-being of all students, when arriving and leaving the school, but also during the school day.
Roads and sidewalks: The roads and sidewalks have become more slick, which causes both vehicles and pedestrians to slip around the school. Vehicles need more time to stop, and I have seen vehicles sliding along the front of our school (including a couple collisions that we witnessed with the City of Calgary Passenger Loading sign directly in front of our main entrance). Please drive extra cautiously along the adjacent stretches of road, leaving plenty of time during pickup and/or dropoff; we have many little ones along our sidewalks during these busy times. I also want to reinforce what most families do, in terms of using the marked crosswalks; we want to model safe road crossing for all students, and avoid any potentially dangerous situations with the heavier traffic during these times. So you know, our Facility Operators do their best to remove snow from walkways in front of school entrances, and the CBE has contractors to clear snow from adjacent sidewalks as well, but with the cold and snow, ice will still be present to some extent.
On school grounds: I love the snow (but I can appreciate that others may not…). Many students also find it fun to play in the snow. As I reminded students this week, snow should not be thrown; use it instead to show your creativity in building interesting snow creations! When the weather, with windchill, is colder than -20 C, it becomes a Blue Day (une journée bleue). On Blue Days, we will not have our Patrols helping out in the morning, so please proceed carefully with your children to the school, where they will be welcomed into the building early through the grade 1 and interior compound/school field doors (as of about 7:43am). Recesses, both morning and lunch, are also held indoors on Blue Days. Having said this, when temperatures become ‘warmer’ than -20 C by either recess, students will go outside, so please ensure that you always dress your children ready to be outside; frostbite can set in quickly during our cold winter months, and we want them to develop a love for the many fun opportunities that exist in the outdoors, even when it is frigid!
Thank you for your part in keeping our students safe during the coming winter months; I encourage you to have another conversation with your child about safety on our streets and sidewalks, to continue developing an alert awareness of their surroundings, whether that be related to ice, people, or vehicles.
For your consideration:
Report Cards: The CBE has altered the date on which report cards will be visible, in response to the labour disruption. Report cards will now be visible on February 24th.
Residencies: We are very pleased to announce that we are now finalizing some residency learning experiences for the current school year; thank you to the many ways that donations and volunteering have combined to provide for these opportunities at no cost to our families. We have booked a January FitSet Ninja residency, a Folklofolie residency in February for Carnaval, a Lacrosse residency in May, and a Soccer residency in June. We will also continue to invite Knowledge Keeper Anita Crowshoe to work with staff and students, and we have a number of field trips in the works for a variety of grades.
Arriving late: A reminder that students should come to the main entrance doors when arriving late to school, especially as the weather turns. For example, if they come to the compound doors and no one is there to let them in, please remind them that they should go to the main entrance doors by the office. We understand that sometimes students must be late, and we appreciate limiting these occasions to rare instances, so that their academics and integration into class routines are not impacted.
Spirit/Theme Day: Thank you to the many people who participated in our most recent Theme Day this past Wednesday; it was great to the varied teams that students support and represent! Our final theme day of 2025 will be on the second last day of school before break—Thursday, December 18th, 2025. The theme for that day, as we have done for the past few years, will be Pyjama Day; we encourage all to come dressed in their most cozy pyjamas that day, ready for a warm send-off for Winter Break.
Upcoming Dates:
December 10: Photo Retakes Day
December 11: All Lost & Found Items donated to WINS
December 18: Theme Day—Pyjama Day
December 19: Last day of classes
December 20-January 4: Winter Break
January 5: School Resumes
January 7: School Council, 6:30pm
January 12-16: FitSet Ninja Residency
February 4: School Council, 6:30pm
Have a warm weekend,
Ryan Turner
Principal, Banff Trail School