News From the Nest

• Wednesday, Oct. 14 - Early Dismissal at 2:08pm
• Thursday, Oct. 15 - Kinder A Hot Lunch
• Monday, Oct. 19 - Picture Re-Take Day (AM Only)
• Tuesday, Oct. 20 - Jersey Day
• Wednesday, Oct. 21 - Early Dismissal at 2:08pm
• Wednesday, Oct. 28 - Early Dismissal at 2:08pm
• Friday, Oct. 30 - Halloween at MHV (PM Only) (more info below)

• Friday, Nov. 6 - Remembrance Day Assembly
• November Break - November 9-13
• Tuesday, Nov. 17 - Parent Teacher Interviews, 4-7pm
• Thursday, Nov. 19 - Parent Teacher Interviews, 4-7pm

Hello all,

I am going to start without talking about the weather. Last week Mills Haven had their first German Language and Cultural Day. The 90 plus students who attend German every week got to celebrate Oktoberfest. It was an afternoon filled with games and excitement. Thank you to our German representatives on school council for putting on this excellent event together. Thanks as well go out to Frau Jampen and Frau McCarthy for getting the kids prepared for this day.

Since our last newsletter we also began weekly Smudges in our gym before school on Tuesday mornings. Everyone is welcome to attend. If you are interested, please let Mrs. Choo, our FNMI coordinator know, or keep reading to the end of this newsletter for more information. There is a link to a permission click form to fill out if you'd like your child to participate. It is a great way for our school community to deepen their understanding.

Hooray for Terry Fox! Mills Haven community raised $14,727.85 for the Terry Fox Foundation. Wow, an incredible amount once again. It amazes me year after year how well our school does. Thank you so much for your support in donations and to the volunteers who helped our Terry Fox Walk to be a success. A huge shout out to Ms. DaCosta who champions this effort every year, plus all the staff willing to take a pie in the face for a good cause.

I hope that everyone has a great week.

Mr. McKay

School fees for the 2026-2027 school year are now posted and can be found in your Parent Portal in PowerSchool.

Fees are due 30 days after they are posted. Please see here for more information regarding fees in EIPS and MHV.

If circumstances exist where you're unable to pay your fees, you can apply to have certain fees waived. To learn more about the fee waiver process please see here. Please note there is a deadline to apply to the school division for a fee waiver and no applications will be accepted after that deadline.

If you have any questions about fees or need help getting into your PowerSchool account, please give Mrs. Kimble, in the office a call at 780-467-5556.

This coming Monday is our picture re-take day. If your child was absent on picture day, they will be sent for a picture. If you would like your child to have a re-take, please send your teacher an email or write a note in your child's agenda book.

If your child is in the Kindergarten B class, you are welcome to bring your child in between 8:45am and 10:30am for a re-take.

If you have any questions about your picture order, please contact Edge Imaging directly at at 1-888-416-3343 or email at customercare@edgeimaging.ca

Thank you.

With Halloween just around the corner we wanted to remind families that we will be dressing up in the afternoon on Friday Oct. 30 and having a hallway parade to show off our costumes to the rest of the school. We ask that the costumes be simple enough for the kids to dress themselves at lunch and if there is any makeup to be done, that it be done before they come to school. Parents are welcome to join us for the costume parade which will start at approximately 1:30 p.m.

Please keep in mind as you are coming up with costume ideas that all weapons and face covering masks that are associated with many costumes stay at home and that the costume we choose be appropriate for an elementary setting.

The MHV School Council is the parent voice within the school community. Alberta school councils bring parents, the principal, staff and community members together to support and enhance student learning and to provide advice and input to the principal and school division. (It is separate from the incorporated fundraising society info below).

Thank you to everyone who attended the School Council AGM last night and a huge thank you to the parents who have volunteered to lead the MHV School Council this year:

Chair: Dani Ranson

Vice Chair: Lucie Martineau

Secretary: Marie-Catherine O'Neill

Communications Liaison: Robyn Romaniuk

All Parents and Guardians are invited to attend the monthly meetings at MHV. To contact the School Council, please email mhvschoolcouncil@gmail.com

Thank you so much to outgoing School Council members: Katrina Weiman, Kristine Sochatsky, and Steven Kotschorek. We value and appreciate your commitment to making Mills Haven a Great Place to Be!

The Enhancement Society is the separate incorporated parent organization that can fundraise and manage funds to support student opportunities, school enhancements, events and experiences. Its elected officers are governed by the Society’s own registered bylaws.

This committee is remaining mostly the same as the previous year, thank you so much to the parents who have volunteered to help in this capacity.

President: Courtney Provençal

Vice president: Krista Baum

Secretary: Sabrina Keeping

Treasurer: Dani Ranson

Communications: Robyn Romaniuk

Members at Large: Kendra Roemer, Katrina Weiman, Christine Sochatsky, Barb Corbett, Lucie Martineau

All Parents and Guardians are invited to attend the monthly meetings at MHV. To contact the School Enhancement Society, please email millshavenhotlunch@gmail.com

Thank you everyone, we look forward to a great year ahead!

Mills Haven Student and School Enhancement Society is excited to launch our online 50/50 fundraiser!

This initiative helps us support the amazing students and staff at Mills Haven Elementary.

With your participation, we can continue providing meaningful resources, enriching learning experiences, and school‑wide events that build connection and community. These funds help us offer opportunities that inspire students, strengthen school spirit, and enhance the learning environment throughout the year.

Get your tickets here!

The winner will be contacted directly to claim their prize.

Raffle Rules and Details:

AGLC License Number: 793790

Eligibility: Participants must reside in Alberta, be 18 years of age or older, and purchase tickets using a major credit card or Visa debit card with an Alberta billing address.

The Hot Lunch program is online at Healthy Hunger, and provides students a chance to order hot lunch throughout the month, with proceeds from each order going to the school for enhancements and initiatives at our school.

Please note the schedule and deadline for ordering:

• Tuesday - Grades 1-6 & Kinder KBH - Deadline to order is Thursday at 11:59 p.m.
• Thursday - Kinder KAH/KAS - Deadline to order is Saturday at 11:59 p.m

To create an account go to www.HealthyHunger.ca and click REGISTER YOUR STUDENT. After your account is created you will be able to add your student and view and order upcoming lunches.

Volunteers Needed
We’re looking for some awesome volunteers to help out with sorting and handing out lunches on Hot Lunch Days. It’s a fun way to meet other parents and see your kids during the day! You can sign up on Healthy Hunger when you place your order or email at mhvschoolcouncil@gmail.com for more information.

EIPS has outlined rules about the use of personal mobile devices for each grade level in Administrative Procedure 145: Use of Personal Mobile Devices. Processes outlined within this AP are based on direction provided by the provincial government through Ministerial Order 014/2024: Standards for the Use of Personal Mobile Devices and Social Media in Schools. This includes the use of various electronic devices, including smartwatches and Meta glasses.

MHV also has a Personal Mobile Device (PMD) Plan that provides additional details for our school.

We encourage families to review our PMD plan with their child to ensure students understand where and when they can and cannot access their personal mobile devices at school.

In 2026-27, Elk Island Public Schools (EIPS) is piloting a new reporting scale for communicating elementary student achievement. Most recently, kindergarten to Grade 6 student achievement has been reported using a five-point scale. This year, the Division is piloting a new three-point scale for kindergarten to Grade 2 and a four-point scale for grades 3 to 6. The goals of the pilot are to provide useful, clear communication to parents and caregivers about their child’s progress, and provide a clear, consistent framework for teachers to use for assessment of student learning.

The draft achievement scales were developed based on teacher and administrator input, assessment research and reviews of best practices across Alberta, Canada and the world. However, it’s critical parents and caregivers feel confident about the reporting structure. Throughout the fall and winter, Division and school staff will share more information to introduce the new grade scales, collect initial feedback and answer questions through school council meetings, school interviews and school newsletters. The feedback collected will help EIPS revise the grading scales as needed, and opportunities for further feedback will be available later in the school year.

In 2026-27, Elk Island Public Schools (EIPS) is piloting a new mechanism for families to have live, direct access to student assessment information for grades 1 to 6. Through the PowerTeacher Pro dashboard in the PowerSchool Parent Portal, parents and caregivers will be able to log in to see assessment information as it’s entered, rather than waiting for a report card. With this change, elementary schools will also shift to two formal report cards for grades 1 to 6 for the school year, rather than three.

Elementary schools will roll out the new approach in two groups. Mills Haven Elementary School is part of phase 2 and live access to student assessment information will be available starting in Semester 2.

Throughout Semester 1, you’ll continue receiving information about your child’s progress through existing methods of communication—including school interviews, which will still be conducted in the fall and spring, or individual teacher communication.

This new approach does not replace any existing methods of communicating student learning with families. Live access to student assessment information through the Parent Portal is just an additional way EIPS schools will communicate student learning for the coming year.

Throughout the fall, parents and caregivers are encouraged to log in to the PowerSchool Parent Portal, to ensure the login process works smoothly and to get familiar with the platform if you haven’t used it in the past. If you have any issues logging into your account, reach out to the school office at 780-467-5556.

Learn more about the changes

Hi MHV families! I’m Kenzie Marchant, your School-Based Social Worker, and I’m so happy to be back for another amazing year!

My role is to support the social and emotional well-being of our students and families. I provide brief, school-based support to help kiddos navigate things like big feelings, friendships, coping skills, and changes or challenges at home or school. I’m also here to help families find and connect with community resources and supports when needed.

If you would like your child to be able to meet with me individually, signed parent/guardian consent is required. Please feel free to email me at kenzie.marchant@eips.ca and I’d be happy to send you the consent form.

I’m looking forward to another great year with our MHV families!

Tawâw!

My name is Sarah Choo and I am the First Nations, Métis and Inuit lead teacher for Mills Haven this year. This year, our school is using the Cree word tawâw as a guiding principle. Tawâw broadly means welcome, there is a place for you here. I will be working to ensure that Mills Haven has a place for First Nations, Métis and Inuit ways of knowing.

This year we are excited to continue offering regular smudging opportunities for students who would like to participate. Smudging is an important cultural practice for many First Nations and Métis people. It involves the burning of sage (most often used in Division schools), sweetgrass, willow fungus and/or other plant medicines gathered from Mother Earth. Smudge involves no open flame, and the creation of minimal smoke as only small amounts of medicine are used. Smudge does have a distinct odour but dissipates in a short time. Smudging can contribute to the positive mental health of both students and staff, and increase cultural understanding of Indigenous ways of knowing. Smudging at school will always be led by a staff member who has been given the teachings around smudging from an Elder or Knowledge Keeper.

When smudging, sacred plants are burned to cleanse the body, mind and spirit of any bad feelings, negative thoughts, or negative energy. Smudging allows people to remember, to connect and to be grounded in the present. Smudging is always voluntary and there are many ways to participate - by actively smudging or by standing nearby to observe. If consent for a student to smudge is granted, there is no obligation for the student to smudge on any given day; it is purely up to participants if they wish to smudge when offered. If consent is not granted, the child will not participate in smudging.

For those who are interested in participating and have provided consent, we will have smudging available before school on Tuesdays in the gym, starting on September 22, from 8:18 am-8:30 am. Students who wish to join and who have consent to do so can enter the school anytime between 8:18 am and the first bell to smudge before starting their school day. Families and siblings are welcome to join also!

Please find the consent form here: https://permission.click/vmivn82i8zhw/ca

We hope to see you there,

Sarah Choo