Moving forward together with a common goal and purpose:

It takes an entire team to respond to the needs of the whole child and at Chalmers we are so fortunate to have such a dynamic and committed group of educators. I'm proud to be a part of this school community. As I think about all of the wonderful learning experiences being provided for our students and the positive connections being reaffirmed through every morning check in, simple conversation, extra-curricular experience and teachable moment, it is evident that we have a lot to celebrate at Chalmers.

Although this list is not exhaustive, some of our spring student activities have included Knitting Club, Helping Hands Club, Mandela Club, The Chalmers Student Leadership Council, Bus Patrollers, Junior Floor Hockey Club and Primary Reading Club. Looking beneath the fun of being involved in these experiences, it is important to recognize the significant impact these opportunities may have on a child's perception of school. Educational research reinforces a direct correlation between a child's perceived connectedness at school to their overall well-being and achievement.

I know that I speak on behalf of our students and our parent community when I say, thank you, to the entire Cougar team.

I'm excited to carry our collective positive energy forward and I'm confident that the existing synergy in the building will only grow stronger as we look ahead to the final three months of the school year.

Jeff Johnson, Principal

Updates and upgrades: Moffat Creek and Chalmers unite!

First off, I would like to thank the Moffat Creek School Council for their very generous donation of $1000 to the Chalmers Street School Council. We will be using this money to support various technology upgrades that we believe will enhance the student learning experience at Chalmers.

Recently, our School Council voted unanimously to use School Council funds to purchase a new digital screen for our gymnasium. Not only will the screen support presentations during our monthly PAWS assemblies, celebrations and ceremonies, but it will also enable us to host community engagement events such as movie nights, Arts activities as well as other special occasions.

In addition, School Council will be purchasing a supplementary amount of Chromebooks to provide better access to technology in the classroom. We will also benefit from an upgrade to our media cart.

Value Village Clothing Drive & Art Cards Project

During the month of April, we will be engaging our school community in our Value Village Clothing Drive. To support our initiative, simply bring in gently used clothing and place these items in our collection bin located in the front foyer. At the end of the month, all clothing will be weighed and all proceeds generated will contribute to our fundraising initiatives at Chalmers. If you wish to donate bulk items, you are invited to drop-off these donations at the Value Village store location on Hespeler Rd. on Sunday, April 28th at 11am. Collection at the school will conclude on Friday, April 26th.

In other fundraising news, our Art Cards Project samples were received at the school and sent home with your child earlier in the week. Please see the information and link below to find out how to purchase your child's art card.

The Art Card Project: Ordering Details

Safe Schools Reminders:

Please remember that our school is maintained as a safe and secure site, and our doors are locked with access being granted through the office as well as by extended day staff. We kindly ask that you don’t wait to hold the door open for others or provide access to other members of the community. While we recognize that this is a common courtesy in many environments, we want to ensure that we know exactly who has been permitted into our school.

All visitors will continue to require permission from the office (and obtain a visitor badge) before entering the hallway. With the instructional day occurring from 9:20am-3:40pm, students arriving late or being dismissed early will receive assistance from a Chalmers staff member, and we ask that parents/guardians and visitors wait in the foyer. Students must be signed-in/out by a parent/guardian.

We continue to encourage the active participation of parents and community members who have a completed Vulnerable Sector Check with the Waterloo Regional Police. Once received, please submit your VSC to the main office.

Please refrain from using our parking lot:

Our parking lot is a very busy, small and unsupervised space. We encourage you to access the walking paths at either end of the school rather than cutting through the parking lot when walking with your children. As we strive to foster further independence in our students, it is important that we model the correct and safest way to arrive and depart from school. In addition, please refrain from parking in our lot. Parking on-site is only permitted to school and board staff and volunteers. We encourage you to pay careful attention to municipal parking regulations and signage when parking on the street.

Join over 80% of our families on School-Day!

Have you registered on School-Day.com? Be informed and stay connected to everything Chalmers. We will continue to send updates and our monthly Cougar Report through this digital platform. In addition to pizza sales being sold exclusively through School-Day, we will also be expanding its usage with field trips in the near future in our continued efforts to limit the cash flow at school.

WEFI: Did you know that you can make a donation to Chalmers online?

Donations to support student learning at Chalmers can be made online at anytime through the Waterloo Education Foundation Inc. These donations will support current initiatives at Chalmers, such as enhancing tech tools in the building, assisting us in supplementing our Nutrition for Learning program, reducing the cost of excursions for our students, and enabling special events to take place (e.g., guest speakers, parent engagement events).

Simply access our school website at Chalmers Street Public School and click on the “Donate Online!” button on the left. One time and monthly donation options are available. You are also able to include a “message” if you have a special request (e.g., “I would like my donation to be used to support Grade 6 camp; I want to contribute to Nutrition for Learning).

Just around the corner:

• Jump Rope for Heart Kick-off Assembly: Wednesday, April 24th @1pm
• Grade 6 Camp Information Night: Wednesday, April 24th
• Spring Walk to School Day (Spring into spring on April 25th): Thursday, April 25th
• Dance-A-Thon Presented by the Chalmers Leadership Council: Friday, April 26th
• Welcome to Kindergarten Night: Thursday, May 9th @6:15-7:15pm
• Indigenous Arts and Culture Night at Chalmers- Stay tuned for further details!

Around the community:

Camp Forward/Club Forward: Clubs and Camps at Forward Church