Woodlawn School

It is hard to believe that November is already upon us!

As we move into November, we look forward to recognizing Remembrance Day and taking time to reflect on the importance of peace, gratitude, and respect. These moments provide meaningful opportunities for our students to learn about the sacrifices of others and the importance of caring for one another.

November also brings an important opportunity to connect with families about student learning. Parent-Teacher Conferences will take place on Thursday, November 19th. These conferences are intended for parents and teachers to meet without students present, allowing time for meaningful conversations about student progress, celebrations, and areas for continued growth. Term 1 report cards will be available through the parent portal on Friday, November 27th.

We would also like to extend a big thank you to the Bueckert family for installing our new playground equipment! We are incredibly grateful for their time, hard work, and generosity in helping make our playground an even better place for students to play, explore, and connect. It is wonderful to see our school community come together to support our students!

As the temperatures continue to drop, we also want to remind families to ensure students are dressed appropriately for the weather. Warm jackets, hats, mittens, and boots will help students stay comfortable as they enjoy outdoor recess and activities. Manitoba weather can be unpredictable, so please be sure to check the forecast and send students prepared for the day!

Thank you to our Woodlawn families for your continued support and partnership. We are grateful for the strong school community we are building together and look forward to another wonderful month of learning!

Amanda Dent

Can Self-Regulation Help With My Child’s Challenging Behaviours?

When children feel stressed, they can “flip their lid” — yelling, crying, or shutting down. These reactions often come from the brain’s stress response, not defiance or disrespect.

The Brain Under Stress

We can think of the brain as having three main parts:

• Blue Brain (Thinking Brain) – Helps us plan, listen, and make choices.

• Red Brain (Feeling Brain) – Handles emotions, relationships, and memories.

• Brown Brain (Survival Brain) – Reacts automatically with fight, flight, or freeze.

When stress takes over, the Feeling and Survival Brains go into overdrive, and the Thinking Brain goes offline. That’s when big emotions take charge.

Helping Children Reconnect

Self-regulation is about bringing the thinking and feeling parts of the brain back into balance.
Before kids can calm themselves, they need our help — this is called co-regulation.

You can support your child by:

• Staying calm and using a gentle tone

• Taking slow breaths together

• Offering space or quiet time

• Saying: “I can see you’re upset. Let’s take a moment.”

Learn More

Watch this quick video explaining why we “flip our lid”:
Why We Lose Control of Our Emotions (Dr. Dan Siegel)

Remember - challenging behaviour is often stress behaviour. When we respond with calm connection, we teach children how to find their own calm too.

We are thankful that the CFS Church across the street from Woodlawn has graciously let us use their parking lot for the past many years. We want to keep our relationship with them as a positive one and be good neighbors to them as well.

To help with this, we ask that if parking in the church parking lot, please park in the spots closest to Woodlawn School, leaving the spots closer to the church for those needing to access the church building. This will help us keep a positive relationship with our neighbors!

In order for prescription medication to be administered by staff, parents need to bring it in the original container/box with the label on. There are forms at the office for parents/guardians to fill out. We ask that as much as possible, all efforts are made to give medication at home instead of at school.

We are very happy to let you know that Woodlawn School will be participating in Community Christmas again this year. We are asking families who are able to send a new, unwrapped toy or a gift card between November 23 and November 27. These toys will be distributed in Christmas hampers to families in need in our community. The organizers at Community Christmas have asked that toy guns/violent toys not be collected.

We will also be collecting food for Southeast Helping Hands at the Parent-Teacher Conferences on November 19.

If you feel your family would benefit from a Christmas hamper this year, please register at https://steinbachcommunitychristmas.com/

Thank you in advance for helping us help the children in our community. Together we can make sure everyone has a wonderful Christmas!

Hearing screening will take place at Woodlawn School on November 4 and 5. The screening helps to identify children who may have educational difficulties due to undiagnosed permanent or long-term hearing impairment. Early identification is expected to result in earlier intervention and thus fewer and less severe associated difficulties.

All students in Kindergarten and grade 1, new students to Hanover School Division, and students whose teachers have suggested hearing screening will be screened. Children with known hearing impairments will not be screened. The students will be brought to the area where the screening is taking place by a staff member or a parent volunteer.

If after the screening it is determined that further testing with an audiologist is needed, parents/guardians will be contacted by the school.

If you have any questions about the screening please contact the school.

Hello Woodlawn Families,

Thank you so much for everyone who participated in the Niakwa Pizza fundraiser! We raised $4595.

Congrats to our winners

Cora Lanteigne ~ Keystone Cinema Gift Card

Piper Budey ~ Bowling Alley Gift Card

Winry Giesbrecht ~ Aquatic center Gift Card

Liam Reimer ~ Scooter

Mrs. Gandhi's Class ~ Pizza Party

Prizes will be given at pizza pick up happening on November 3rd from 3:30-5:30pm in the church parking lot across from the school. Any pizzas not picked up will be donated.

Our next two PAC meetings will be November 3rd and December 1st at 11:50am-12:50pm in the Woodlawn School Library. You do not have to join PAC to be able to attend a meeting! Whether you're curious, have ideas to share, or would simply like to listen, we would love to have you come join us.

And if you have any questions or concerns about PAC and are unable to attending a meeting, please email us at woodlawnelementarypac@gmail.com

Have an Nice November!

Ang Plett

Mark your calendars for picture retake day which is Thursday, November 19. You can sign up on the form that was emailed or call the school office at 204-326-6110 if you would like a picture retake for your child/children.

Kindergarten parents of students in KF2 and KM2: Please bring your child to school for 9:30 am on November 19 if they require a retake.

Please contact Edge Imaging at 1-866-707-3343 if you have any questions about picture orders.

Go to the drop down menu of Services where you can choose:

Bus Delay Bulletins where any bus that is late is posted with the approximate delay.

Thank you for checking these options before calling the Hanover School Division Transportation Department with your questions regarding bus delays. Any questions for transportation please call 204-320-2347.

We are enjoying a beautiful fall so far, but our weather could change at any time. Please make sure your kids are dressed appropriately for the change in temperature throughout the day. It never hurts to send an extra change of clothes, especially on those wet, sloppy days. It will save us a phone call to you.

Email: woodlawn@hsd.ca
Website: www.woodlawn.hsd.ca
Location: 411 Henry St, Steinbach, MB, Canada R5G 0R1
Phone: 204-326-6110
Twitter: @WoodlawnHSD