Anse-au-sable School and the Société des KELOWNA Pa Si Ecoles Francophones de Kelowna are each celebrating an anniversary-their 5th * and 10th, respectively! These are two ex- cellent opportunities to take a look at some of our efforts and successes over the past few years. We celebrated Halloween with a "real fright" in the new (haunted) gym storage area (empty at the time). Many of you will agree that it's better to take along a buddy into dark, unknown spaces! That evening, school families and newcomers alike got to know each other over "sticky black witches' soup," "spider cakes" and abundant laughter. In November, classes took regular turns attending physical education courses in the northern part of the city. Thanks to all of the volunteer drivers. The students are now ready to use the school physical education facilities. December was a busy month. The students in Mrs. Laporte's and Mr. Vézina's classes put on a song and dance extrava- ganza for the community. The celebration, organized by the Centre Culturel Francais de l'Okanagan, brought together some 200 members of the community, and the highlight of the evening was the children's show. The children and their teachers received a standing ovation after their presentation! During the afternoon, parents were also treated to the show SUMMERLAND We may have been quiet, but great things are happening at Trout Creek school. 2002 began with a book sale/welcome back party when our new PA.C President Miko McGrady was elected. Our Christmas potluck was a huge success as we enjoyed wonderful food and were treated to lovely entertain- ment by some of the student body. Thank-you to Anne-Marie Rouleau for her endless encouragement while working with each class to produce four fantastic plays for our Christmas concert. It was obvious the students were very excited to work on such interesting projects as they beamed with pride. Once again we were reminded of our boundless pool of talent. Even the kindergartens put on an enthusiastic show of singing! Corrine Legrand's grades 6,7,and 8 class initiated a fundraising project hoping to raise the money needed to build one well in India. Congratulations to the students as they raised much in- terest in their cause and succeeded in their goal!! As we move into 2003 we would like to send out a big welcome to our two new kindergarten teachers Mrs.Harriet Grandbois and Mr. Rene Tremblay. Kristen Johnson, APE Parent Students enjoyed creating their own gingerbread houses! __ by all of the students in the school-with ~ songs, dance, skits, shadow plays, etc.- more than one parent was surprised by ~ many of the talents on display! According ‘ _ to tradition, the APE and numerous parent j | volunteers hosted the famous Noon-hour ame Pyjama Reveillon for the entire school. This year, there was even a "vegetarian tourti¢re" on the menu! Another group of volunteers also got into the mix and helped each student to build a gingerbread house. On the last day of school, Santa Claus took a small detour to stop in for a visit. The beautiful white snows of January thrilled many-many of the snowmen even wore caps! The students donned skates to head to the arena. February will be a very busy month. First, we'll enjoy Breton crépes to celebrate Candlemas ("A la chandeleur, I'hiver finit ou prend vigueur" lit. At Candlemas, win- ter ends or extends). We're getting ready for a big family dance on Valentine's Day. Last year's attendees are already itching to get into the act. There will also be a show by Ben La Barouette and a workshop with Ben to prepare the next generation of Cirque du Soleil! On February 18, during the visit from our friends from Summerland, the school will hold official 5th and 10th anniver- sary ceremonies. The Science Fair is planned for the end of Febru- ary. Honestly, there's no time for sitting around here! After all, you only turn 5 and 10 once! Nicole Leblanc, APE President ROSE-DES-VENTS It is with great pride that our school is involved, for the second year in a row, in the Artist-in-residence program. The program is sponsored by the Artstarts agency and involves all Rose- des-Vents students. This year's theme highlights the history of francophonie in Canada.To ensure the success of this project, as of March we will have the pleasure of welcoming artist Joey Mallette, who will help the students to create their artwork- a huge painted-silk mural. The project consists of four major parts: 1) First, students will get together to identify what the se lected theme means to them 2) | Depending upon what the students have expressed, the artist-in-residence will produce a silk canvas approxi mately 100 square feet in size. 3) The canvas will then be cut into individual 1-ft. x 1-ft. squares on which each student will be invited to use silk painting techniques to express his or her artistic side. 4) — With the help of school parents, the silk squares will then be reassembled, one by one, to give the work its final form, i.e. a huge silk mural to be unveiled during the month of April. We expect the project to be a huge success! To see how this project evolves, or for any other information concerning our school, we invite you to visit our website at www.rosedesvents.org. Edith Fortin, APE President PAGE |4 INFO-PARENTS