CHS: Inspiring girls to discover and pursue their personal exellence.

COVID-19 Vaccine Resources

The BCCDC and the provincial government have released resources related to vaccines for those aged 12 to 17. The following have been added to the COVID-19 Resources section of the My CHS Community Portal:

Keeping Your Daughter’s Immunizations Up-to-Date

The Vaccination Status Reporting Regulation supports the collection of immunization records of school-age children by Public Health so that all records are stored in one place, the provincial immunization registry. Parents are responsible for ensuring their K-12 children’s records are up-to-date and the “Vaccine Status Indicator” is a convenient tool to check your daughter’s vaccination status.

This year, the School was unable to host Vancouver Public Health vaccination clinics on campus and this may mean that some students missed a routine immunization. Parents are encouraged to speak to their family physician or to monitor health authority websites for news of “catch-up clinics”. See ImmunizationBC for details on clinics, routine immunizations, and details on vaccinations for school-aged children.

Reminder: Register for the Year End Family Event

Registration for the Year End Family Event on Friday, June 11 at 5:30 pm is open until Tuesday, June 8. Families are invited to a virtual cooking class from Nourish Cooking School to celebrate the School's year-end! Special guests Ena Harrop, Head of School, Michelle Douglas, Director, Senior School and Wendy Macken, Director, Junior School, will be joining us as Nourish demonstrates how to put together a Middle Eastern inspired sharing plate. The menu can be modified to be plant-based or gluten-free. There will be an opportunity to enjoy prepared meals together and connect with other families from your grade over Zoom after the cooking session.

Summaries of Surveys (Student and Parent)

The summaries of the recent surveys (regarding health and safety measures) for students and parents are available to families as communicated in the June 3, 2021 email. Thank you to those who participated. This information is important as we review the past year and look ahead.

Used Uniform Sale Donations

The CHS Parents’ Auxiliary is collecting used uniform donations until Friday, June 11. Students can drop donations off in the bins outside the Uniform Shop and the Junior School office. Parents can drop donations off at a bin outside the receiving area off Balaclava Street from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm. Please donate clean, gently used items. We accept everything from blazers, tunics, kilts, blouses, sweaters, and the PE uniform. All donations are greatly appreciated. Families will be invited to the Used Uniform Sale prior to the start of school in September (date TBD). The sale benefits the Winter Bazaar and our community partner KidSafe.

Uniform Shop Orders

Parents are asked to make Uniform Shop purchases through the online order form by Thursday, June 10 so orders can be ready for pick-up by Tuesday, June 15. Uniform Shop orders placed after June 10 will be ready for pick-up in late August. If you have any questions, please contact uniforms@croftonhouse.ca.

Census 2021 Reminder

The federal government census team has shared this message with school communities:

You may have heard that the 2021 Census is underway. It has been a challenging year for families, and the census might seem like another thing on your busy to-do list. However, I would like to encourage you to complete your census, if you haven’t already done so. Census data helps governments at all levels plan for schools, transportation, community centres, libraries and recreational activities. Data from the 2021 Census will be even more crucial, because it will help to evaluate the impact of the pandemic and to better plan for the future. You can quickly and easily complete your census questionnaire at www.census.gc.ca using the access code you received in the mail. If you need assistance, or would like to have a paper (or alternate format) questionnaire, please call the Census Help Line at 1-855-340-2021. Thank you for doing your part to help plan for a better future for all Canadians.

Congratulations to the Class of 2021! This week marks the start of a series of events, including outdoor education and special assemblies, to celebrate and recognize this unique graduating class. Thank you to our grads for their resilience and grace, and to all staff and committee members who are bringing together students as a class, connecting with families, and celebrating in meaningful ways.

Grads enjoyed their final Outdoor Education adventures in Vancouver and Squamish, with as much tradition as we could pack in, including bonding and memory making over two glorious sunny days of relaxing, socializing and...white water rafting! Check out the Vidigami gallery. Note: Students, staff and guides followed the COVID-19 safety protocols and procedures, including wearing masks where safe, for Canadian Outback Rafting in Squamish BC.

The Grad Committee captains Sheyda, Sydney, and Nancy, Grade 12, presented a cheque to the Cinderella Project Society for their fundraising efforts over the school year. The students raised more than $1500 to support this charity that breaks cycles of poverty by encouraging vulnerable youth to stay in school and complete their high school education. They work to encourage and recognize outstanding young people from across the Lower Mainland who reach the milestone of graduation despite overwhelming adversity.

Want to learn a new musical instrument? Grade 11 Physics students went a step further and built their very own, including strings, winds, and a set of bagpipes!


The Crofton House Junior School presented an original musical review, Backstage Drama—written and directed by Junior School teachers Ms Taylor and Ms Hare—to much delight and toe-tapping. Congratulations to all of the Grade 7 student performers and supporters as well as the backstage crew from the Senior School. Learn more about how drama is “backstage” in the Junior School curriculum and check out photos from the production on Vidigami.

After the tragic news about the undocumented remains of 215 Indigenous children discovered at the site of a former residential school in Kamloops, students spent time honouring those who suffered trauma and harm at residential schools, their families and the communities who are in mourning. An ancient Japanese legend promises that anyone who folds 1000 origami cranes will be granted a wish. An important figure within First Nations cultures, Raven is known for teaching lessons through his trickster ways and bringing light to a world of darkness. Grade 6 students have been hanging garlands of ravens in the courtyard, including 215 orange ravens, along with messages of empathy and wishes for reconciliation.


In the absence of regular track meets this year, the Junior School hosted the Falcon Festival, a track and field event for Grade 3 to 7 students. With events from high jump to hurdles, and shot put to sprints, there was plenty of action and even more smiles. Check out the highlight gallery on Vidigami.


Our 2021 Writer in Residence, poet Georgia Heard, has spent some time with Grade 6 and 7 students coaching them to use figurative, expressive language to share “Heart Maps” and poetry. “Our job as writers is to polish things that people might see as ordinary,” said Ms Heard. “It’s our job as writers to make them extraordinary.”

Athlete Profile: Natalie, Deputy Head Girl, Grade 12 – Basketball, Field Hockey, Cross Country, Track & Field

For our final athlete profile of this school year, we’re sharing graduating student Natalie’s thoughts and experiences as a CHS athlete. The theme of this series has been about what sport gives us besides competition (in a year without competition), and on that note, we’re excited to share Natalie’s athleticism, mindset, and community involvement with you.

We asked what she loves most about sport:

“I first joined as a way to burn energy but since then I found it’s a really great place to spend time with friends—I’ve met my closest friends through playing sports and I like that it’s a nice outlet at the end of the school day. It’s time to decompress a bit.”

Natalie also used sport in a unique way towards completing her Grade 12 Capstone Project:

“At the beginning of quarantine last year, I went on daily runs, and my runs kept getting longer. I started with 10Ks and that turned into the occasional 15k or 16k here and there. And then that turned into averaging 80km/week of running and I really loved it. So when Ms Hannigan asked us to look at a Capstone project, I chose that as my passion project. I got my friend Molly on board, and we came up with a goal and how we would achieve it, and then we did it. We’d done half marathons before but never anything this big. We followed the Boston Marathon training plan and we set a goal time for ourselves: 3h30. We did 3h22! We trained for 15 weeks and on May 1, we ran our marathon. Teachers and classmates came to cheer us on and it was so unexpected and exciting!

“On the side, we did a shoe drive to get footwear to kids who need it. We collected shoes from the Junior School and Senior School, and even called around different shoe stores and we ended up finding 400 pairs of shoes to donate. I didn’t expect any of this at the beginning of quarantine. We met our goals, and had a really fun time.”

And we wanted to know what was the most challenging:

“Time management can be really challenging; not over-committing myself. It got to a point where some of my coaches were saying, ‘you have to learn how to take rest days, cut back, not do things.’ I hadn’t clued in that taking rest days was good for your muscles. That’s how you improve. But I felt that if I missed out on practice time, I wouldn’t be as good and I’d miss out on playing time.”

Any advice for students coming up behind you?

“Don’t worry about what other people think. Go to the try out. At the end of the day, what’s the worst thing that could happen? It probably won’t happen. So just put yourself out there and you’ll end up having a lot more fun and you never know what doors will open. There’s nothing stopping you, really.”

#BringItHome

Courage, Creativity, Citizenship

Dear Parents & Guardians,

What a year it has been! From our outdoor used uniform sale and Welcome Back collaborative chalk art in the courtyard, to the virtual Winter Bazaar, a speaker series focused on parenting during a pandemic, class parent gatherings and Family Night Series, we’ve had re-imagined events throughout the school year. Despite having to enjoy these events apart, each one has been incredibly successful and that speaks volumes about our community. During these difficult times, it has been clear that our desire to feel a part of this special community is stronger than ever, and our collective resilient spirit has shone through.

While our Crofton House community has navigated the challenges presented by COVID-19, we have continued to reach out to those in need beyond our ivy walls. Support for the PA Backpack Drive for children in need in Vancouver extended far beyond expectations this year and our re-imagined Service Together Program, a collaborative project with Senior School students, provided much needed support for various charities in our city. Coupled with our ongoing partnership with KidSafe we can be very proud of our collective efforts to support people in need during this particularly difficult year.

Stepping up to give of your time and talent this year has been especially important and CHS families have shown their support in myriad ways. Whether you attended a Zoom gathering or took the lead for one of our re-imagined events and programs, thank you for the generous donation of your time! You have truly enriched our community and hopefully had some fun along the way. A special shout out for our CHS PA Board members and Event Chairs whose dedication and creativity has been exemplary.

Whether the 2021-2022 school year allows us to gather in person again or not, know that our community will continue to be strong and connected.

Huge thanks to all of you and best wishes for a safe and joyful summer.

Kris Dattani
Chair, CHS Parents’ Auxiliary

Thank you!

Year End Family Event – Families are preparing to close the year and are looking forward to coming together at the Year End Family Event. Huge thank you to parent organizers Vanessa Munro and Vivien Cardey for their hard work in organizing this re-imagined event.

Backpack Drive Success – Thank you CHS Families! Once again the CHS community has stepped up in a very big way to donate to the PA’s Backpack Drive. A total of 332 students in need all over the lower mainland will receive backpacks filled with supplies for the coming school year. Huge thank you to CHS parent Sarah Tallentire who organized this special community event, leading the online program and exceeding the original goal—thank you to the entire team!

Service Together Delivers – This program brings the community together to help people in need. Like the other PA events, this program had to be completely re-imagined for safe distancing. Despite that, four Grade 11 Advisory classes were able to assemble and deliver 110 snack kits, 110 wellness kits, and 50 personal care kits to charities on the downtown eastside, along with handwritten notes of support. Parent volunteers Melanie Graham and Susanne Sherwood led the way— Our thanks go to them and the fabulous student leaders who did an amazing job!

Grandparents Day – There may be rules against large gatherings but that doesn’t stop us from showing our elders our love! Instead of a visit to CHS, 150 grandparents and significant elders around the world received handwritten and decorated cards from Junior Kindergarten to Grade 3 students. Thank you to volunteer parent Jennifer Johnston for organizing this special re-imagined event.

Staff Appreciation – To wrap up our Staff Appreciation program this year and to recognize the amazing work of our staff, “Break My Heart” hollow chocolate containers filled with lovely notes from students were presented to each staff member. A hammer, which was used to break open the heart, was included. Thanks to Mandi Gharlay and Jennifer Johnson for organizing this special recognition!

Plans for upcoming events continue to be developed to meet Stage 2 guidelines. Events will be added to the calendar and communicated as plans are finalized.

Log into the My CHS portal to access the full school calendar.

Whole School

June 11 - Year End Family Event

Junior School

June 16 - Grade 7 Final Assembly

Senior School

June 17
- Graduation Ceremony

         

Crofton House School  •  604 263 3255
Communications Department  •  communications@croftonhouse.ca
IT Department  •  support@croftonhouse.ca



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