Woodlawn School

February was a fun month - it included I Love to Read activities and our annual Winter Fun Day. It's so great to see students challenging each other to read, to see parents and community members come and read to our classes, and overall see students get excited to read. A huge thank you to our literacy support teachers, Mrs. Harder and Mrs. Friesen, for coordinating this month. Winter Fun Day was a chance to head outside and do some fun, winter-themed activities. Thank you to Mr. Adams, Mrs. Kroeker and Ms. Boese for organizing this event.

March brings Report Cards, Student Led Conferences, and of course, warmer weather! Student Led Conferences are happening on March 19 from 4:30-6:00 by appointment. Appointments are 15 minutes long and sign up is open on the Parent Portal. Please note that this is not a Parent-Teacher interview. This is a chance for you to come to school with your student and they will spend the 15 minutes showing you their work and learning. As several students and their families will be in the classroom for each appointment, teachers will not have time for in-depth meetings with parents. Should you wish to have a 1 on 1 conversation with your child's teacher, please reach out directly to arrange a separate time to meet.

Teachers are busy preparing report cards that will be available on the parent portal on March 20 at 4:30. Report cards are a valuable communication tool for parents to know how their children are progressing at school. Please take the time to read the report card.

Our community pancake breakfast will take place on Thursday, March 26 at 8:00. Everyone is invited to come and enjoy some delicious pancakes, juice and coffee. This event is free, however donations are graciously accepted. We hope to see you all there!

Vince Hiebert and Marla McEachern

Hanover School Division supports a collaborative approach to resolving concerns or complaints. If you or your child is having a problem with school, it is important that we work together to solve it as quickly and fairly as possible. We set positive examples for children when we solve our problems respectfully and cooperatively. We also work toward building good, strong relationships among home, school, and community.

The problem-solving steps listed below follow HSD Board policy and the recommended protocol of Manitoba Education.

1. The most important thing to do when you or your child is having a problem at school is to talk with the person who is most directly involved and most likely to be able to solve it with you. Speak with the teacher first.
2. Contact the school principal if talking to your child’s teacher does not sufficiently resolve your concern.
3. If you have talked to the school principal, but the issue has not been resolved over a period of time, contact the Superintendent’s Office.
4. If you disagree with the decision of the Superintendent’s Office, you can submit an appeal to the Board of Trustees.

CLICK HERE for further information.

March brings brighter days and often a little extra energy. As routines shift and Spring Break approaches, we are continuing to strengthen students’ self-regulation and flexible thinking skills.

At School

Using The Zones of Regulation, students are practicing:

• Noticing body clues

• Naming feelings

• Understanding that all feelings are okay

• Choosing tools to stay in control

In our school assembly we have focused on growth mindset and flexible thinking, managing disappointment, handling “no” or “not yet,” and coping with unexpected changes.

Supporting Regulation at Home

Here are practical ways to reinforce these skills:

• Preview changes in routine to reduce surprises.

• Validate first, problem-solve second. "I can see that’s frustrating."

• Offer two calm choices to support autonomy.

• Practice calming tools when calm (breathing, stretching, quiet breaks).

• Keep routines predictable, especially sleep and mornings.

• Model flexible thinking aloud. "That's not what I planned, but I can adjust."

• Notice recovery, not just behaviour. Praise when your child calms down or tries again.

Consistent, calm adult responses help children’s nervous systems settle so their thinking brain can come back online.

If you have questions about your child’s social-emotional growth, I am always happy to connect. Wishing you a steady and connected March.

Mrs. Mackie

We love to read every day here at Woodlawn, but we placed an extra emphasis on reading and writing during the month of February. We enjoyed guest readers such as parents, a firefighter and Pistons players. Corny Rempel from Mix 96 put on an entertaining school assembly.

Thanks to all our staff and parents who work hard to foster a love of reading and writing among our Woodlawn students!

If your child is eligible for Kindergarten Registration (must be five years of age on or before Dec. 31, 2026), our online registration is now available. Our new online registration process takes only a few minutes to complete. To begin, visit the HSD Kindergarten Registration page at https://hsd.ca/schools/student-registration/

If you do not have access to the Internet, please visit our school and we will assist you in completing the registration form on a school computer.

Please register by March 13. Registering early will assist our school in preparation and planning for the upcoming school year. Early registration also provides parents/guardians with the opportunity to participate in upcoming orientation activities.

If you have a friend or neighbor with a child entering kindergarten who may not receive this message, please encourage them to register their child before March 13.

Every year during the last week before Spring Break, we take some time to build community by having some extra fun. Regular classes still take place, but each day is designated to have something a little extra special!

Woodlawn School is happy to be hosting our annual community pancake breakfast on Thursday, March 26. Gym doors will open at 8:00am and all families are welcome to join us. Students whose families are unable to attend will be invited into the gym as they arrive at school, so that they can enjoy some yummy pancakes!

Families of the kindergarten students who are not attending on the 26th (KM2 and KF2) are welcome to attend the breakfast as well.

There is no cost for the breakfast, however donations are greatly appreciated to help us cover the cost of the event. If you would like to make a donation and would like a tax receipt, please write a cheque payable to Hanover School Division. To qualify for a tax receipt donations must be $25.00 or more.

We are purchasing the pancakes from Smitty's. If you or your child has food sensitives or allergies, you are free to bring or pack a breakfast for them to join in the gym.

To help us plan for this event, we will be sending out a survey soon! Please take the time to fill it out so we know how many pancakes to order!

Hello Woodlawn Families,

Thank you to all the volunteers for the Book Fair and Winter Fun Day. Your help is invaluable!

If you have any questions or concerns regarding PAC please feel free to contact us at woodlawnelementarypac@gmail.com. PAC meetings are a great way to talk to the Principal and stay informed about what is happening at Woodlawn.

Please join us at our meetings which are held on the first Tuesday of every month at 11:50am in the library.

Ang Plett

Your PAC Chair

Please check the lost and found for items that your child may be missing. Unfortunately, we are unable to hold these items indefinitely. Any unclaimed items in the lost and found after March 27 will be donated to the Steinbach MCC Thrift Store during Spring Break.

Our Scholastic Book Fair was a tremendous success! Thank you to all families, teachers, volunteers, and students who participated, supporting our school while enhancing home libraries.

Your investment in your reader helped our school to earn $4,400 Scholastic Dollars that can be redeemed for new books for our school and classroom libraries, as well as supplies and Education Resources to benefit our students. We can’t wait to hear all about the new stories you have added to your home libraries!

Thank you to all the families that donated a book to a classroom. We had over $560 worth of books donated.

A special THANK YOU to all our amazing volunteers that showed up to help with this event! Our Book Fair would not be such a success without you.

Thank you for participating in our Book Fair!

Happy reading!!

Mrs. S. Loewen

Library Support Specialist

Please note that OVER-THE-COUNTER MEDICATION is not to be sent to school in your child's backpack or lunch kits. All over-the-counter medication needs to be administered by a parent/guardian.

In order for PRESCRIPTION MEDICATION to be administered by staff, parents need to bring the ORIGINAL container/box with the label on. There are forms at the office for parent/guardians to fill out. Due to limited staffing availability, we ask that as much as possible, medication be administered at home by a parent or guardian.

When packing your student's lunches, please make sure they have the cutlery that they need to eat it.

We are also asking for parents help to have each student bring a refillable water bottle each day to school with them.

Staff or parent vehicles caught driving by a bus loading/unloading with lights flashing may be reported by the bus driver or receive a ticket directly from the RCMP who are monitoring drive-bys, including school bus loops. This is a very costly mistake - fines of approximately $672 are possible.

Please take note of the 30 km/h area school zone signs on streets around our school. The 30 km/h speed limit is in effect Monday to Friday from 8:00 to 5:00 pm during the school year.

Please do not use the driveway or parking lot at Woodlawn Terrace Condominiums as a holding spot while dropping off or picking up your children.

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