The Sifton Times

• December 5 P.D. Day (no school for students)
• December 8 K to 5 going to the holiday train - students need boots, a winter coat, a toque or hood, and mittens for the walk - we will eat lunch before we leave.
• December 16 Parent Council
• December 17 French Immersion Winter Concert
• December 17 Kindergarten / maternelle Winter Concert
• December 18 English Winter Concert
• December 19 Last Day of Classes
• December 22 - January 2 Christmas Break
• January 5 Back to school

M/W Maternelle (Mme Kendall)

No Fridays in December

T/TH Kindergarten / Maternelle (Mrs. Skoglund & Mme Kendall)

December 12

November 28, 2025

Dear Parents and Guardians:

Subject: November Updates

As we wrap up the month of November, I would like to thank everyone for their support of students upon return from labour action. Re-establishing routines and getting back into our learning cycles and extra-curricular activities is a process and we appreciate the cooperation of all of our stakeholders to make this as smooth as possible.

The BRSD Board of Trustees has approved an amendment to the 2025–26 school year calendar. Semester 2 will now begin on Monday, February 2, 2026. All other days in the calendar remain the same. You can find the updated calendar linked HERE.

We are in the final stages of completing our 2024–25 Annual Education Results Report (AERR). Thank you to everyone who participated by providing feedback during the annual Alberta Education Assurance (AEA) survey in February and March 2025. Once approved by the Board of Trustees (mid-December), the final AERR will be posted on our website. Stay tuned!

Many volleyball teams across the division are participating in final tournaments as the season wraps up. Junior high girls regionals were held in Tofield. BRSD JH girls teams proudly represented BRSD, with ÉCCHS capturing the gold medal, New Norway earning silver, and Tofield rounding out the podium with bronze. In JH boys volleyball, Bawlf claimed first place and Bashaw earned the bronze. Well done to all teams on their hard work and sportsmanship!

A special thank you to Sedgewick Central High Public School for hosting Girls 2A Provincials this weekend, November 27–29. Matches will be held at both Killam Public School and CHSPS. Best of luck to our Sedgewick girls as they compete as the host team, as well as to the New Norway boys heading to the 1A Provincials in Calgary and the Bashaw girls competing at the 1A Provincials in Manning—we’re cheering for you! Congratulations to all staff, coaches, parents, players and volunteers for your support during this season!

I would also like to thank all of our school councils for the important work they do. Thank you to the parents who volunteer to take on roles on the school council executive and to those who generously donate their time to supporting school functions, fundraisers and other activities that make our schools such great places for students. You are appreciated!

I hope that you all have a wonderful few weeks leading up to our Christmas Break and that you enjoy the variety of Christmas activities that will be happening at each of our schools.

Sincerely,

Natasha Wilm
Superintendent of Schools

Please Remember to complete the School Verification form on SchoolEngage . Here parents can confirm contact numbers and ensure information for students is up to date and accurate.

In September students at Sifton fundraised for the Terry Fox fund. The top 12 fundraisers had an opportunity on Friday, November 14 to pie either Mrs. Barclay, Mr. Heidt, Mr. Kennedy or Mrs. McLennan.

As we prepare for the winter break, we want to share how grateful we are for each of you. Together we have worked to establish routines of showing up to school and creating a school community for everyone.

We know the winter season is busy, and we appreciate your efforts to avoid taking extra days off around the winter break. Our teachers will be teaching and our students will be learning right up until our last on December 19 and the first day back on January 5.

Every school day matters. When students are healthy and able to attend, it gives them the chance to keep learning, connect with friends, and grow both socially and academically. Your support makes such a difference in helping children feel connected and prepared.

Thank you to everyone that helped make our annual Scholastic Book Fair a smashing success! The book fair enabled us to add new books to our school library and classroom libraries.

A great big THANK YOU to Parent Council for helping us renew our Tumblebooks subscription. Last year students read over 3000 books in Tumblebooks.

All staff and students have access to our Tumblebooks subscription. It has access to over 1900 e-books in various languages. Please click on the Tumblebooks logo to get started at home. You may also access Tumblebooks through the app available on the apple store and google play store.

Due to copyright laws we can not post the school's username and password in this newsletter. Mrs. Grant will be sending home bookmarks with the login information. Also you can check with your child's classroom teacher (many have posted it in their google classrooms).

December is Respect Month at Sifton. We will be having discussions throughout the month of December at school.

You can support us at home by having discussions with your family about the importance of respectfulness. Here is our monthly tic tac toe of activities to try this month with your family!

The next parent Council meeting is Tuesday, December 16 at 7:00pm. All parents/guardians of students attending Sifton are welcome to attend. We will meet in the Library Learning Commons.

Hot Lunch is available to order for students in Grades 1 - 5.

If you have ordered hot lunch and you child is absent, their lunch will be donated unless you contact the school by 12:00pm to make other arrangements. Unfortunately we cannot offer refunds. Thank you for your understanding.

Ordering for January will be open from December 15 to 25. After that no more orders can be submitted.

January Hot Lunch:

January 9 Fat Burger

January 16 Boston Pizza

January 23 Booster Juice

Please place your ordering using our online payment system: https://www.studentquickpay.com/brsd/

Thank you for your support!

Be Their Safety Net - Supporting kids as they traverse the landscape of technology and relationships

Wednesday January 21/26

7:00 – 8:30 PM

Sifton School Learning Commons

Sifton parents/guardians are invited to attend a FREE presentation by ACAA (the Association of Communities Against Abuse) in which we will explore what we know about kids and the ways they use

the internet, describe the importance of ongoing conversations about navigating digital and online

spaces, and identify resources for more information and support.

If you’d like to attend, please register in advance using the link below, though drop-ins are also

welcome.

Be Their Safety Net - Parent/Guardian Registration

Tuesday February 10/26

7:00 – 8:30 PM

Sifton School Learning Commons

Sifton parents/guardians are invited to attend a FREE presentation by ACAA (the Association of Communities Against Abuse) in which we will discuss having conversations about consent with our kids

and learn more about setting a solid foundation for empathy, boundaries and healthy relationships.

If you’d like to attend, please register in advance using the link below, though drop-ins are also welcome.

You want me to say what?! Parent/Guardian Registration

Parent Council has partnered with the Camrose Bottle Depot to make supporting the school easy!

Simply drop off your bottles at the Bottle Depot and request the refund be directed to the Sifton school account.

Please donate and invest in the school’s future – one bottle at a time!

Camrose Composite Playhouse will be performing the musical "Annie" this year, with performances on January 9 and 10. Tickets are available online or at box office.

The Camrose Spirals skipping club came to Sifton on November 21 to do a skipping show. It was an incredible demonstration of all kinds of skipping skills, and students had a blast!

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.Please see the campaign for the call here at https://mailchi.mp/89a2392a6336/elite-program-for-black-youth-2026-summer-camp-opportunity-10138983. Watch and share an exciting video spotlight article with commentary from Black youth summer campers!: VIDEO.

Join the Canadian Parents for French in Jasper as we partner with Association Canadienne-française de l'Alberta Regionale de Jasper (ACFA-Jasper) to bring you a wonderful experience for our French Family Fun Weekend and Cabane à sucre 2026 celebrations on March 6th, 7th and 8th, 2026!

Why should you go? This is an opportunity for your child(ren) to use and practice French outside of school and for parents to connect with other families of similar interest while learning more about FSL.

Click on the picture to learn more.