Blue Jay Bulletin

Dear James Mowat Elementary School Families,

It has been a fantastic startup at James Mowat Elementary, and it has brought us so much joy to see our students settling quickly into their classroom routines with big smiles and vibrant Blue Jay spirit.

As you may have noticed around our grounds, facility upgrades are continuing with trenching for electrical work taking place in front of the school. Fencing will remain for approximately two weeks for everyone's safety. The final piece of our modular construction arrived on Wednesday and construction efforts will continue over the next few months to get these exciting new spaces fully operational for our learning community.

Please remember that James Mowat Apparel orders close this coming Sunday if you would like some spirit wear. Additionally, we encourage all parents to mark their calendars for an informative Saffron Parent Presentation scheduled for Monday, September 14.

We extend our heartfelt gratitude to all our families for your ongoing partnership, trust, and active engagement in your child’s education. Thank you for being such a vital part of our James Mowat family, and we wish you a wonderful, relaxing final long weekend of the summer season!

Ms. Krista Porter and Mrs. Lana Romanowska

6 James Mowat Apparel Order Deadline

7 Labour Day Statutory Holiday - No school for students or staff

14 GOA Assessments Begin (Grades 1-5)

14 Parent Council Meeting 5 p.m.

14 Parent Presentation by Saffron - S.A.F.E.R Online 6:30pm

17 - Saffron Presentation on Internet Safety Grades 3-6

18 Little Elk Island Adventures (Track B Kindie)

18 Bus Evacuation Drill

21 Little Elk Island Adventures (Track A Kindie)

21-25 EIPS Truth and Reconciliation Week

23 James Mowat Terry Fox Run

28 School Photos for M/TH Kindie only

29 School Photos - whole school

29 James Mowat Orange Shirt Day

30 National Day for Truth and Reconciliation - school closed

October

2 Professional Learning Day - no school for students

Did you know you can sync the school calendar to your own calendar? Simply, visit https://www.jamesmowat.ca/about/calendar, click on “Subscribe to Calendar” and follow the instructions. Within seconds, your calendar will contain all James Mowat Elementary's important dates including holidays, school-closures days, planned activities and events, and it will remain synced with all the latest updates throughout the school year.

Wondering when and how to pay for school fees? School fee information for the 2026-27 school year will be posted on the PowerSchool Parent Portal in late September. All fees are due within 30 days of being posted. NOTE: Additional fees may be added throughout the year—for example, at the beginning of each semester, as your child takes part in various activities, or they may be adjusted by changes in selected optional courses in junior and senior high school. If you’re unable to pay your school fees, you can apply to have certain fees waived. The application deadline is Dec. 15, 2026.

For more information, visit the https://www.jamesmowat.ca/about/fees on the school website. Alternatively, contact Mrs.Jensen, Senior Administrative Assistant, at James Mowat Elementary at 780-992-1272.

Is your child riding the bus this year? If yes, download the My Ride, Bus Status and SchoolMessenger apps to stay in the know about your child’s bus stop location, route, pickup time and whether their bus is running on schedule.

Within our school community there are several students and staff who have a potentially life-threatening allergy (anaphylaxis) to foods, predominantly to peanuts and tree nuts (e.g. almond, cashew, hazelnut, pistachio).

We feel the best way to reduce the risk of accidental exposure to these students is to respectfully ask for the co-operation of the parents/guardians within this school community to avoid sending peanut butter or products with peanuts or tree nuts listed in the ingredients. This includes products like granola bars, energy bars, trail mix, Nutella and other spreads, cookies and home baking.

Your cooperation and understanding of this matter is appreciated.

Please communicate your child’s absence, leaving school early or arriving late directly to JMW.Attendance@eips.ca or click the STUDENT ATTENDANCE link on the homepage of the school website. These emails are both checked regularly by the school office staff. Please do not communicate this information to only the teacher. Situations occur when the homeroom teacher is away and your information will not be received by the office staff who are required to maintain an accurate record of attendance for students throughout the day.

To ensure the health and safety of our students, a Medication Management form must be completed and signed by a parent/guardian before any medication can be administered at school. All medication must be provided in it's original, clearly labeled container.

If your child has a medical condition requiring an inhaler, EpiPen, or other emergency medication, please notify the school office as soon as possible. Students with severe allergies should have an up-to-date Medical Emergency Plan on file, and any prescribed EpiPens should be provided to the school and checked regularly to ensure they have not expired.

Please note that medical forms must be renewed annually and updated whenever there is a change to your child's health information.

We are excited to provide our families with the opportunity to order James Mowat Elementary clothing! Show your James Mowat Pride! Clothing is provided through Enhance It Embroidery, a Fort Saskatchewan company, and 25% of sales will be put toward our playground project!

Orders will be accepted August 24 through September 6. There are assorted T-shirts, crewnecks, hoodies and hats available in youth and adult sizes.

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. James Mowat Elementary 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. James Mowat Elementary 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 780-992-1272.

Learn more about the changes

We are excited to welcome Saffron Centre to present to our caregivers and families! This presentation was developed by Saffron Community Educators with collaboration with the Northern Alberta Internet Child Exploitation Unit (ICE).

This training increases parents' awareness of the current online landscape, educating participants about trends and online harms that affect children and youth. App terms and conditions, risks of oversharing through posting and streaming, the rise of artificial intelligence in online exploitation, and more will be discussed. Parents will walk away with proactive strategies to help set healthy boundaries with their children online, foster open communication, and seek help where and when they may need it.

Topics Covered: Clear vs Dark web, Online privacy, Location settings, “Sharenting,” Artificial intelligence, Livestreaming, Discord, Roblox, Chat apps/features, Child sexual Abuse/Exploitation Material, Sextortion, Online Extremism, Grooming, Luring, Exposure to sexually explicit material, Proactive steps, Setting boundaries, Resources.

Date: Monday September 14, 2026

Time: 6:30 p.m.

Location: James Mowat School

Babysitting will be available.

The sheep are heading home soon!

It’s almost time to say farewell to Fort Saskatchewan’s beloved turf-trimming sheep. Join us for the Sheep Leaving Parade on Monday, September 7 and help send our woolly friends home for the season.

11:00 a.m.: Arrive

11:15 a.m.: Opening remarks and safety briefing

11:30 a.m.: Sheep Leaving Parade

Noon - 1:00 p.m.: Feed the sheep carrots

Fort Heritage Precinct, 10006 – 100 Avenue

Come for the parade, stay to feed the sheep! The City will provide enough carrots for everyone.

And don’t worry, they’ll be baaack next spring!

A night at the ballpark, two baseball movies and plenty of family fun!

Join us Saturday, September 12 at Legacy Park for a free outdoor movie night!

• Rookie of the Year | 5:30 p.m.
• A League of Their Own | 8:00 p.m.
• Activities | 4:00 - 8:00 p.m.

Bring the whole family, pack some snacks and grab your lawn chairs. Enjoy inflatables, face painting, raffle prizes and photo opportunities throughout the evening.

This popular event draws nearly 1,000 people, so arrive early to grab a great spot!

Support BGC Fort Saskatchewan while you're here. Pick up hot dogs, popcorn, candy and drinks, generously donated by North Central Co-op. Even better, Nutrien will match the total amount raised!

Two movies. One great night. Free family fun.

Legacy Park | 10005 102 Street

fortsask.ca/Movie