Round Hill School News

Greetings!

As many of you already know, I am retiring at the end of June. I have worked in the education field for 37 years, with 28 of those as an administrator in BRSD. Mrs. Keely Nelson will be the new principal next September. Mrs. Nelson has over a decade of diverse leadership experience, her career has taken her from teaching experiences across Alberta to international schools overseas, providing her with a global perspective on inclusive and effective pedagogy.

As a principal for the last four years at Killam School, Mrs. Nelson has led a dynamic school community with a focus on collaborative culture and instructional excellence. Her experience as an assistant principal here at Round Hill and as a BRSD Division Literacy Lead have contributed to her leadership journey.

Mrs. Nelson grew up on a honey farm, and is currently farming with her husband in Camrose County, experiences which provide her with a wide variety of agricultural experiences. She is excited to come back to Round Hill School!

It is going to be quite wet around the playground for the first bit of April. My hope is that it is all dry after Spring Break, but this may not happen. While we have talked with the students about staying out of the water, there are times when some students in grades K-6 come in from recess with wet socks and pants. It would be most helpful if you could send an extra pair of socks and shorts/pants/sweats in their backpack so they can change into dry clothes!

Kindergarten Registration is open NOW! If you have a child who turns 5 years old on or before December 31, 2025, your child is eligible to attend Kindergarten. In order for the school to plan for next year, it is important that these students are registered as soon as possible. Please contact Mrs. McManus in the school office if you have questions.

I would like to thank Mrs. Karmen Bowal, Mr. Josh Burnstad and Mr. Kyle Nahirniak for stepping up and coaching basketball this year. Please keep in mind that there will be a need for someone to step in and coach the junior boys’ team next year! Finally, I would like to thank Ms. Lindstrand for coordinating all the basketball and coaching badminton this year. Badminton season is still ongoing. The junior high students had their first playdowns on March 23rd at Tofield. Close to half of our junior high students are moving on to the zone playoffs in Sedgewick on April 9th. Congratulations to Annika, Aubrey, Lena, Adleigh, Chip, Dallas, Harlee, Bentley, Eberley, Ariana, Riley and Koba. Badminton season will wrap up with Regionals in Camrose on April 16th.

Lastly, Please remember that Parent/Teacher Interviews are Wednesday, April 15. Interviews will begin at 4:00 and end at 8:00.

If you have any questions or concerns you wish to talk to me about, I invite you to call me at the school.

Sincerely,

Brian Horbay

Principal

• March 27th - Friday
  - 🚫NO SCHOOL🚫
  
• March 30th - April 6th
  -🌷SPRING BREAK🌸 🚫NO SCHOOL🚫
  
• April 7th - Tuesday
  - First Day back after Spring/Easter Break
• April 9th - Thursday
  - 🏸Badminton Divisional Tournament in Sedgewick🏸
• April 13th - Monday
  -🍕Elk's Pizza🍕
  
• April 14th - Tuesday
  -🌭Hot Dog Day🌭 with Grade 3/4 providing treats.

• April 15th - Wednesday
  - Parent/Teacher interviews 4-8 p.m. in gym.
• April 16th - Thursday
  - 🏸Badminton Regionals in Camrose🏸
  
• April 20th - Monday
  - Parent Council Meeting @ 6:30 p.m. <--CANCELLED-- NEW DATE TBA
• April 21st - Tuesday
  - Hall Meal at Noon. Canadian Themed
• April 29th - Wednesday
  - Parent Society Hot Lunch
• May 1st - Friday
  - 🚫NO SCHOOL🚫
  
• May 5th-7th - Tuesday/Wednesday/Thursday
  -📖Book Fair📖
• May 6th - Wednesday
  -🏅REAL Awards Assembly🏅@ 2:50 in Gym
  Students will be presenting a play as well.

If your child will be going home a different way after school, please inform the office and/or their teacher in advance. While students may tell us they are going home with someone else, we require confirmation directly from their parent or guardian. If we do not receive this communication, your child will be sent home according to their usual routine.

As stated above by Mr. Horbay, as we get into the wetter season of spring, it would be a good idea to have your child(ren) have an extra change of socks and pants they can change into at school in the chance they get wet outside.

Badminton is in full swing!

Round Hill Jr. High students went to Tofield on Monday, March 23rd to compete in the County Tournament. We are now sending some students off to the Zones Tournament on Thursday, April 9th.

Grade 7 Girls Singles - Annika Holden and Aubrey Bergman
Grade 7 Girls Doubles - Lena Bowal/Adleigh Burnstad
Grade 7 Boys Doubles - Dallas Patrie/Chip Severson
Grade 8 Girls Doubles - Ariana Boettger/Eberley Jamandron

Grade 8 Mixed Doubles - Bentley Hovestad/Harlee Christenson

Grade 9 Mixed Doubles - Koba Severson/Riley Frinskie

Zones will be in Sedgewick on Thursday, April 9th, and Regionals take place the week after that on Thursday, April 16th in Camrose.

The hot breakfast is going well!

If you don't know, we have started serving hot breakfast to one grade per morning prepared by the junior high students. Students have a choice of bagels and toast with peanut butter, jam, honey and margarine, as well as muffins and egg bakes. We are getting a dishwasher soon and will be able to use washable dishes as we look toward expanding the menu after the spring break.

The Grade 3 and 4 Students did self-portraits of themselves. Can you guess who is who?
Check for the answers further down in the newsletter.

Mrs. Judd helped spearhead the Annual Round Hill School March Madness of Books and after 4 fierce rounds we have our winner!

Rumple Buttercup won our tournament this year and was re-read to the school at our REAL Assembly on Wednesday.

Parent/Teacher interviews will be held on Wednesday April 15th in the gym from 4 pm to 8 pm.
No appointments needed, just drop in and there should be little wait to speak to the teachers about the progress of your children.

We are creating a Junior High Student Wellness Lounge at Round Hill School, a welcoming, supervised space where students can connect with peers, relax, and take short restorative breaks during the school day. The lounge will support student mental health and social-emotional development by providing comfortable seating, collaborative games such as air hockey, ping pong or foosball, board games for small groups, and music during designated times. These activities help students build positive relationships, practice communication and teamwork, and develop healthy ways to manage stress.

To help bring this space to life, we are inviting community members to support the project through donations of items such as couches or comfortable seating, board games, recreational tables, or other lounge-style furnishings that can help create a safe and welcoming environment for our junior high students. Please contact Ms. Taren Lindstrand at tlindstrand@brsd.ab.ca if you have an item you would like to donate. Sending her a message, with a picture of the item would be most helpful!

The next Parent Council Meeting is TBD. The April 20th meeting has been cancelled.

The Round Hill Parent Society, in partnership with the Round Hill Ag Society, is thrilled to announce a $7,500 grant from the Battle River Community Foundation. This generous funding will support our Student-Led Community Hall Lunches for the 2025-2026 calendar year.

These funds will go directly toward grocery costs, hall rentals, and additional educational courses for our students. A massive thank you to the Battle River Community Foundation and our incredible local community for making these monthly meals a reality!

This month's theme is food from the great white north, the one and only CANADA!
On Tuesday, April 21st at noon come on down to the Round Hill Community Hall and enjoy some classic Canadian cuisine prepared by our Jr. Highs!

Pre-K and Kindergarten Registration Now Open

Registration for Pre-K and Kindergarten for the upcoming school year is now open across the division. To find more info or to register please visit the following link:
https://www.brsd.ab.ca/families/registration

Success Starts Early is on Monday, May 11th from 1-3 p.m. This is where families and new kindergarten students will visit the school and meet their teacher. Students will also get to see their classroom and take a tour of the different areas of our school. We will have members of our BRSD office staff here to work with the students at sensory stations and to inform families of any support that your child could benefit from next year.

Get ready to dive into an ocean of books during our Book Fair from May 5-7 (Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday) in the gym from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.

The next REAL Awards will be Wednesday, May 6th.

Students will be presenting a play, and all are welcome to join.

Start time is approximately 2:50 pm

Here are March's Winners

Grade 5+6 hosted a bake sale to raise money for their ranch camp trip to Birch Bay in May. It was an incredible success!

The class also did a poster advertising contest and Aubree and Claire won! You can see their poster above. Congratulations to them.

You can now pre-order your 2025-2026 Round Hill School Memory Books directly from Smartphtography.ca Use the code RHmb_2526 to place your order.

This year's memory book will have a special tribute to Beckett in it.
You can save on shipping charges by placing your order before June 1st and have your memory book delivered directly to the school before June 25th. The cost for memory books is $13.50.

Here are the answers to the "Can You Guess Who?" self-portraits above.

Jill's Hair Hut in Round Hill is offering students of Round Hill School discounted Hair Cuts for only $12 from now until the end of June. Jill's Hair Hut is at 20 Township Rd, 484 W right here in Round Hill.

For appointments reach out to Jill at 780-226-6648.

This is a free, fun, and development-focused program designed to help boys build confidence, emotional awareness, and positive team culture. Please click the letter below for more info:

If you or a family you know would like to participate, fill out registration form here: Building Stronger Boys or please contact:

Nick Breugom, nick@changing-ways.ca, 780-672-2833

‎

Leduc rugby club LA Crude will be hosting free 'Try Rugby' Camps in March and April.

No experience is necessary and these are non-contact events.

Check out the info below.

Augustana is hosting an amazing learning opportunity this summer. The following is from the University of Alberta:

The Experiential Learning in Innovation, Technology, and Entrepreneurship (ELITE) Program for Black Youth and the Fred Otto DiscoverE Program are pleased to issue a call for Black elementary school and junior high school students (Grades 1 to 9) to participate in free immersive hands-on summer camps in STEM at the University of Alberta. New this year!: We are offering summer camps at Augustana Campus in regional/rural Camrose, Alberta, as part of our effort to engage with the Black community more broadly. Special thanks to Professor James Kariuki and Dean John Parkins for their support and engagement.

To learn more, please visit the following link. Please watch the attached VIDEO for more information.

Attached are resources that students and families might find helpful.

Check out the Camrose Family Resource Center website and the Programs listed for activities and programs hosted in and around the Camrose area.