The Rutherford Update

FREEZIE FRIDAYS ARE HERE!

Every Friday at 2:25 on the basketball court, the grade 7 class will sell Freezies for $2.00. All proceeds go to help support grade 7 farewell activities in June.

CLASS PLACEMENT 2026/2027

We are in the process of planning the next academic year. It is important that you trust the teachers and administration to build classes that suit the students’ both academic and social needs. We take a lot of care in doing classroom composition for each grade. We make up each class list in a way that maximizes the quality of teaching and learning conditions for all students. The classroom composition for each grade must reflect the acceptance of all individuals within an inclusive school as we attempt to provide appropriate educational programming to all children. If you have specific educational reasons why your child may be placed in a particular class, please contact the office in writing as soon as possible. Please do not consider this process complete if you have simply mentioned your request to the current teacher. We do consider these requests along with all other pertinent information provided by classroom teachers and support staff. Please note that your request will be considered but we do not guarantee that it will be honored. It does become, however, an important part of our planning process.

🌸 SPRING CELEBRATIONS AROUND THE WORLD

Spring is a meaningful time for many families and cultures. As the days get longer and nature begins to bloom, people around the world celebrate renewal, hope, and new beginnings in different ways.

Here are some of the celebrations that often take place in late March and April:

✝️ Christianity

• Easter – celebrates new life and hope.

✡️ Judaism

• Passover (Pesach) – remembers the journey to freedom and the importance of family, storytelling, and tradition.

☪️ Islam

• Ramadan – a time of fasting, kindness, reflection, and helping others. Dates vary each year.

🕉 Hinduism

• Spring New Year celebrations (such as Tamil New Year, Vishu, or Bengali New Year) – welcome a fresh start and gratitude for nature.

☬ Sikhism

• Vaisakhi – celebrates community, service, and standing up for others.

☸️ Buddhism

• Buddha’s Birthday or Buddhist New Year – celebrates peace, compassion, and mindfulness.

🌍 Other Cultural Celebrations

• Nowruz – Persian New Year, marking spring and renewal.
• Songkran & Thingyan – New Year water festivals in Southeast Asia.
• Earth Day (April 22) – a global day to care for our planet.

At Rutherford, we recognize that our families come from many backgrounds and belief systems. Learning about each other’s celebrations helps children feel seen and respected, build curiosity and empathy, and understand the world beyond themselves. If your family celebrates a spring tradition and would like to share it with us, we would love to learn from you. Thank you for helping us make our school community welcoming for everyone.

STUDENT LEARNING SURVEYS

The link to the parent survey is http://www.bced.gov.bc.ca/sat_survey/access.htm

Please take a minute to complete it if you can. Students have completed their surveys online in the coming days. These surveys act as a very useful tool in our planning process for next year.

ATHLETICS

Good luck to both basketball teams as they play their final games next week. Go Rams! Track and field season is here, and the kids will be out soon practicing daily. Our school meet is May 6th at the rotary bowl. Come cheer us on or maybe even volunteer.

ARE YOU MOVING?

We would ask that you let us know as soon as possible if your child (ren) will not be attending our school in the coming year. This information will help us organize our classes.

SAVE THE DATE

April 20th for the next PAC meeting.

LATE FRENCH IMMERSION REGISTRATION STILL OPEN

Do you know a family looking to get a grade 6 child into French Immersion? There are still spots available in our 2026/2027 class. If they would like to register or need more information, please have them contact Quarterway School

BE KIND, ALWAYS

We are working hard with your kids to teach and enforce the notion of just doing the right thing. Do things every day that are kind. Be nice and respect others. Respect the space in which we learn. Thank you all so much for continuing to help us with this at home.

ROAD HOCKEY IS BACK!

The popularity of road hockey is on the rise. If you have a wooden road stick at home, it is okay to send it to school with your child. There are safety rules in place for road hockey. Please help us by reminding your child: 1) no slapshots 2) sticks must stay low 3) no checking 4) have fun!

APRIL 6-10

Monday: No Classes

Tuesday:

Wednesday: DIV 3/4 To wildlife recovery centre

Bantam Girls' basketball vs. Syuwen'ct

Thursday: Bantam Boys' basketball @ Aspengrove

Friday: Freezie Friday!

PAC Fun Lunch