Dear Parents and Armbrae Community Members:
This first week of April is a special moment among the faith traditions of Christianity, Islam, and Judaism – as Easter, Ramadan, and Passover will overlap this year. Muslims will be midway through their month-long observance of Ramadan, Christians are celebrating Holy Week leading up to Easter Sunday, and today, Jews begin to celebrate their liberation from bondage during the feast of Passover. Whatever your family’s traditions are, let’s all take time this weekend to reflect, enjoy fellowship with one another, and celebrate that we have the freedom to do so.
Strategic Plan Launch
Thank you to all those that came out to the strategic launch party last week! The weather threatened to cancel the proceedings again, but we managed to fill the place, review the highlights of Unleash Your Potential, enjoy some Freeman’s pizza, and spend important time enjoying each other’s company.
Armbrae Academy Podcast
To learn more about Unleash Your Potential, please check out Armbrae’s podcast on Spotify. During this exciting third season, Meaghan Jackson unpacks some of the major promises - found in the plan - with key members of our community. Here are summaries of this season’s four episodes so far:
- Episode 1: Steve Clarke discusses how the plan came into being, the Unleash your Potential theme, and our partnership with Future Design School.
- Episode 2: Augy Jones sits down with Meaghan to discuss inclusivity and privilege, and how Armbrae can move forward with its commitments to diversity and inclusion.
- Episode 3: Dr. Michael Ungar describes how his team’s partnership with Armbrae has yielded an exciting curriculum focusing on resilience, ruggedness, and resourcefulness - that is being used at schools across Canada.
- Episode 4: Ashley Matthews-Duffett and Jessica Barry discuss the strategy behind the diversity of programming available to our students, and the opportunities for them to thrive.
Of course, we would also encourage you to check out seasons 1 and 2 of our podcast series and to share it with friends and family. In the meantime, please enjoy the rest of this edition.
Cheers,
Steve.
Grandparents’ Day: Friday, May 5th, 2023
We are so excited to announce that we are hosting our Grandparents' Day celebration on Friday, May 5th from 10:00am-1:00pm! If you are unable to attend, we will be live streaming the assembly portion of the celebration. If you would like to participate, please RSVP here. If you have any questions, please reach out to Meaghan Jackson.
Important Upcoming Dates:
- Wednesday, April 5th: In-Person Parent Teacher Conferences (evening)
- Thursday, April 6th: In-Person Parent Teacher Conferences - No school for students
- Friday, April 7th: Good Friday- No School
- Monday, April 10th: Easter Monday- No School
- Friday, April 14th: IWK Casual Day
- Tuesday, April 18th: Study in the USA: EducationUSA & US Admissions Panel
- Friday, April 21st: Armbrae Open House
- Tuesday, May 2nd: What You Need to Know About Scholarships in Grade 11
- Friday, May 5th: Grandparents’ Day
- Thursday, May 11th: Understanding Student-Athlete Eligibility in USPORTS & NCAA
Division Updates
Lower School- Tara Burt
Mark your calendars! The Lower School Musical, The World’s Worst Fairy Godmother will take place on Friday, May 12th. More information will follow in the weeks ahead, but there will be an afternoon matinee and an evening performance!
Run Club will begin on Tuesday, April 11th. Please take the time to read the information from Mr. Jager HERE.
Middle School - Stephanie Sajatovich
To help the school day run smoother, students are asked to build charging their device into their evening routine as it is a safety issue when there are a number of cords around the classroom.
Summative Assessment Calendars & Exam Schedules will be released Thursday, April 13th.
Looking for Service Learning hours? Be sure to look at this week’s Auxiliary Programme newsletter below.
Upper School - Ally Read
We’re excited to bring you this year’s “Spring Learning Series for Parents,” covering a range of post-secondary related topics. Registration for all events on Eventbrite:
- Tuesday, April 18th (7:00-8:30pm): Study in the USA: EducationUSA & US Admissions Panel (Virtual)
- Tuesday, May 2nd (7:00-8:00pm): What You Need to Know About Scholarships in Grade 11 (Virtual)
- Thursday, May 11th (6:30-8:00pm): Understanding Student-Athlete Eligibility in USPORTS & NCAA (In-Person)
This year’s Upper School Exam Schedule will be provided to students on Thursday, April 13th.
Athletics - Susan Beazley
Athletic Highlights:
- The field hockey team is off to a great start winning 3 games against Citadel, Dartmouth High and Sacred Heart.
- Our badminton team played in the ACIS Badminton Tournament. Olivia Feng, and Molly and Hanson Wu won! Congratulations!
- The Metro Badminton Tournament was held this week and the student athletes did very well.
- Flag Football for students in grades 7-9 starts April 12th at SMU.
- Ultimate Frisbee practices will be found on the School Calendar
- Track and Field practices are on Monday and Wednesday.
Notes:
Please check the School Calendar for all practices and games. For more information, please contact Susan Beazley at 902-423-7920 ext 229 or email sbeazley@armbrae.ns.ca.
Auxiliary Programmes - Ashley Matthews-Duffett
amd@armbrae.ns.ca or 902-471-1993.
You will find all the information you need for Co-curricular programmes, CAS opportunities, camps and more:
APA Announcements
Save the Date! Monthly Meeting + Wine and Cheese
Join us for a glass of wine and mingle with parents before we start our monthly meeting. It will be held on Tuesday, April 18th in person (Oxford campus) at 6 pm. We hope to see many new and familiar faces!
Volunteer Opportunities- Sign-Up Genius
The APA is always looking for parent volunteers for events for our Tuck Shop and Teacher Treat Friday! Please take a look at our Sign-Up Genius page for all our current opportunities - there are plenty!
Tuck Shop
The next Tuck Shop will be held on Friday, April 14th during lunch. Parent volunteers will continue to sell school-safe treats and healthy options as an ongoing fundraiser for the work of the APA. Treats range from .50 to $2.50. The shop will continue to be cash only. Parent volunteers are needed between 11:15am-12:00pm on Fridays. If you are available, please check the Sign-up Genius link above to find available dates!