Happenings

  • October 31 (Thursday): Halloween Celebrations (More details to follow)
  • November 8 (Friday): Professional Development Day (No school for students)
  • November 8-13: No School - Fall Break
  • November 28 4-8pm: P/T Interviews at Branton School
  • November 29 (No school): P/T Interviews 9am-1pm on TEAM (Online)

Oki, Dādánast’áda, Âba wathtec, Tânisi, Taanishi, Bonjour, Hello

Learn more about Acknowledging the Land on CBE's website.

A Message from Mr. Picard, Principal

Dear Parents and Guardians, I hope this message finds you well. I want to take this opportunity to inform you about our upcoming Parent/Teacher Interviews, which will be held on November 28 (in-person) and November 29 (online). More details on how to book these appointments online will be shared later in November. That being said, please do not wait until the Parent/Teacher Interviews to communicate with your child’s teachers. The time allocated for interviews is limited, and we won't be able to meet with everyone on those two days.

If you have any questions or concerns, I encourage you to reach out to your child's teacher via email at any time. A heartfelt thank you to all the parents who participated in our October 21 School Council Meeting. Your involvement is essential, and we truly value the partnership between home and school. We need parents to stay actively engaged in their child's school life. I also want to extend my gratitude to all the parent volunteers who have supported us since the beginning of the school year—whether it's through organizing fun lunches, chaperoning at the zoo, helping with sports activities, or contributing to the School Council. Your contributions make a world of difference, and together, we are providing the best educational experience for our 684 students.

Thank you for your continued support.

Sebastien Picard, Principal

Athletics Updates for the Fall

Cross Country

We had over 200 athletes compete in at least one of three Cross Country Races this Fall and Branton took home 9 of the 11 possible pennants competing against the entire north half of the city! Thank you to all of the coaches, teachers and parents who helped with supervision, organization and cheered on our runners!

Basketball

We had over 150 students try out for all four teams and coaches kept over 50 for our teams. All teams are currently in first place or tied for first place in their divisions. Over the past two weekends, the teams travelled to MacKenzie Town for tournaments. All four teams qualified for the finals with three of them capturing the titles!

Wrestling

Wrestling is starting up this week with the informational meeting Thursday at noon in the gym. Practices start next Monday! Reminder that this is a NO CUT team which means, as long as you are showing up to practices, you are on the team! Please ensure that you filled out the Annual Athletic Authorization form and submitted it to the office at the beginning of the year. The wrestling box needs to be checked off in order for your student to be a part of the wrestling team. If you are unsure if you filled out the form, please fill it out again and send it with your student to the first wrestling team practice. Girls’ Practices: Monday 3:15-4:15pm and Thursday 7:30-8:30am Boys’ Practices: Tuesday 3:15pm-4:15pm and Friday 7:30-8:30am.

More information will be sent home once practices begin.

Jacket Racket is Back!

We will be starting to collect jackets in October and November until Nov. 18. Clean, gently used coats. No other clothing. Please drop off your coats in room 22 (Ms. Corning's office).

Jour du Souvenir Writing Contest

Do you want to be a part of the Remembrance Day Assembly this year?

Voici comment procéder

Enter a piece of writing in Francais (really looking for French, time to show off those skills) or English about Women's Impact, Contributions and Service in the Canadian Armed Forces. Could be a poem or short essay (under 2 minutes reading time).

Entries are due by October 30 to Ms. Walker.

Science Challenge Rules

Dear Students and Families,

We are excited to announce the details for our upcoming Science Challenge! Here’s how it will work:

1. Send an email before October 25 to sepicard@cbe.ab.ca to inform me, Mr. Picard, you will participate in the Science Challenge. You need to include on your email: Full name and your homeroom number

2. Build a car at home - You will need to build a car using only recycled materials. Get creative and use what you can find around your home! Parents and students can be involved in this challenge🙂

3. Balloon-Powered - Your car must be powered by a single inflated birthday balloon. Each car can only use 1 balloon to move.

4. Scoring - The challenge will be scored out of a maximum of 100 points:

  • 50 points for distance: You will earn 1 point per centimeter your car travels, up to a maximum of 50 cm.
  • 50 points for the artistic look of your car: We want to see creative designs using recycled materials!

5. Judging - I will be joined by two students or staff who are not participating in the challenge to help me judge the cars.

6. Dates - The challenge will take place on:

  • October 29 for Grade 6-7 students
  • October 30 for Grade 8-9 students

7. Winners - There will be one winner from Grade 6-7 and one winner from Grade 8-9. The prize for each winner will be a $25 Tim Hortons gift card. Good luck to all participants, and remember to be creative and have fun! Bonne chance à tous!

Halloween at Branton

Dress-up for the day (no weapons, no negative stereotype costumes like 'gangster' and masks need to be removed for class). Top 3 costumes per homeroom will compete in costume parade. 3 winners per grade will receive a prize.

  • Morning - Regular Classes
  • Afternoon - Costume parade, dance, movie, games room and quiet reading room

Thank you to Parent Council for sponsoring our dance!

Updates in Physical Education

So far this year, the physical education class has completed units on Ultimate Frisbee Games, Soccer, and Basketball. During this new rotation, classes will be switching between Fitness, Health, Small Gym Games, and Large Gym games. Some grade seven classes are also getting an introduction to Broomball outdoors. Fridays continue to be a day where students are able to have choice in what activity they participate in so that they can improve their skills related to a personal area of interest.

Belcanfran Student Exchange

Please see the Belcanfran reciprocal 11-week exchange program between Alberta and France/Belgium that promotes the French language development through a linguistic and cultural immersion within family and school setting.  Parent session will be held on Nov. 3 at Haysboro Community Centre. 

11 Week Exchange

  • For students 13 to 17 years old
  • Discover France or Belgium and attend a European French school
  • Experience a second language and its culture
  • Host your exchange partner from August to November 2025 and live with your European family from February to the end of April 2025.
  • Make new friends and add an international dimension to your family life and your school

Dates

French students are in Canada from mid-August to the beginning of November 2025 Canadian students are in Europe from the beginning of February to the end of April 2026.

Registration for 2025/2026 starts

September 1, 2024 and applications will be accepted until March 31, 2025. Please refer to the website for application and payment dates. www.belcanfran.com

Parents Information Meeting

Where - Haysboro Community Centre 1204 - 89 Ave SW

When - Sunday, Nov. 3/2024

Time - 1:30-3:30 pm

Cost

The cost of the exchange program is $4,900.00

The exchange cost includes:

  • Return International airfare from Alberta to European city
  • Departure taxes and transfers in European city
  • Parent / student orientation meetings in June 2025 and January 2026
  • Screening, selection, and matching of exchange partners
  • Hospitalization and repatriation insurance
  • Administrative fees
    • The exchange cost does not include:
      • Supplementary medical insurance
      • Flight cancellation insurance
      • Personal spending money / Passport fees
      • Travel to departure city
  • Payments
    • With Preliminary application $500 non-refundable The following payments are: $1,750.00 with final family application July 15 2022 $1,450.00 e-transfer Nov. 15, 2022 $1,200.00 e-transfer
  • Contact

Take Your Kids to Work Day

Take Our Kids to Work Day is Wednesday. Nov. 6, 2024. It involves students in Grade 9 spending the day in the workplace of a parent, relative, friend or volunteer host. This is not a CBE event. If you choose to take your student out of school to participate in this day, kindly please report the absence by leaving a message on the Attendance Line. 403-777-7440 Ext. 5000. Thank you in advance for your cooperation.

William Aberhart High School Open House

Cafeteria Menu

See our cafeteria and menu page.

Fun Lunches Are Coming

Fun Lunches are coming The third Fun Lunch is coming on November 21 (OPA!). Deadline to order is Saturday November 16. We will be looking for Volunteers. Please follow the link for Volunteers. You can place your order through Healthy Hunger Link Order Food. Upcoming dates for Fun Lunches are as follows: Dec. 17, 2024 - Ban Deadline to order is on Saturday, November 16 before midnight.

Eating Disorders An Introduction