Dear Royal Oak School Families,

As we come to the close of another wonderful school year, I would like to take a moment to celebrate all that our students, staff, and families have accomplished together.

Our Kindergarten to Grade 4 students have had a year full of growth, discovery, and joy. It has been a pleasure to see our youngest learners build foundational skills in reading, writing, and mathematics, while also developing confidence, independence, and a love of learning.

As a school community, we have shared many special moments—Wonder Hours, spirit days, community walks, buddy time, assemblies, field trips, the Nature Play residency, Elev8 Lacrosse residency, and classroom celebrations. These experiences help our children feel connected, valued, and proud to be part of our school. It has been heartwarming to see students show kindness, make new friends, and support one another each day.

I would like to extend a sincere thank you to our incredible staff. Their dedication, creativity, and care make a lasting difference in the lives of our students. They go above and beyond to create safe, welcoming, and engaging classrooms where every child can succeed.

Thank you as well to our families for your ongoing support and partnership. Whether you helped with reading at home, attended school events, volunteered for field trips or other school events, or encouraged your child each day, your involvement is essential and deeply appreciated.

To our students, I am so proud of you. You have worked hard, tried new things, and grown in many ways this year. Each of you has helped make Royal Oak School a warm and happy place to learn.

As we look forward to the 2026-27 school year, we would like to share our staffing updates. (Please note that staffing changes can still occur throughout late August):

 

·         Kindergarten: Barb Hogan, Nicole Hutchings, Courtney Sticksl

·         Grade 1 Team: Laura Harrison, Chris Mercer, Heather Sigurdson, Gabrielle Gilbert-Murray, Grace Leung (new)

·         Grade 2 Team:  Kim Cook, Kristy Moore, Sabrina Libbey, Olha James, Kinsey Weber

·         Grade 3 Team: Shannon Daniels, Ramneet Kaur, Jackie Bates, Maddi McNeely, Connie Kazmaier (new)

·         Grade 4 Team: Breanne Gamache, Lindsay Johnson, Jodie Cheveldeoff, Monica Devereux, Laureen Plaxin, Laurie Yoon

·         Physical Education: Tania Clark (new)

·         Music: Ondrea Mann

·         CCT Teacher / Student Support: Sarah Argue

·         Office Staff: Judy Jackson, Leah Milne

·         Library Assistant: Shazia Azam

·         Educational Assistants: Naila Fahim, Inas Jabur, Shaista Kamran, Seonok Lee, Aiesha Rizwan, Azra Tauseef, Rakshanda Shahzad

·         Lunch Supervisors: Esther Zegers, Shelly Brighton, Hina Habib, Sidrah Khan, Karen Pringle, Rachel Borrelli, Shazia Azam, Prerna Sidhu

 

Reopening Information: 

·         Our school office will close on Tuesday, June 30th at 1:00pm.

·         The office reopens on Monday, August 24th at 9:00am.

·         Your child’s teacher will reach out to you on Thursday, August 28 via School Messenger email. They will introduce themselves and let you know where your child will meet them on the first day of school. 

·         Our first day of school will be Monday, August 31st.  School starts at 8:46am and ends at 3:13pm.

·         More updates will be posted to our school website at the end of August.

·         A reminder that our Friday dismissal time will continue to be 12:39pm.

·         If you have any general questions, please do not call the main office. Instead email the school’s general mailbox at RoyalOak@cbe.ab.ca. Please note that our email messages are not monitored during the summer months. We will respond to parent messages within the first few days back to school at the end of August. 

·         Our back-to-school information can be found on our website: https://royaloak.cbe.ab.ca/back-to-school

As summer begins, I encourage everyone to take time to relax, play, and spend time together. Reading stories, exploring the outdoors, playing games together, and enjoying new experiences are wonderful ways to keep learning over the summer in fun and meaningful ways.

On behalf of all of us at Royal Oak School, I wish you a safe, happy, and restful summer break.

Sincerely,

Michelle Ryskamp & Nadine Duque

Grateful Principal and Assistant Principal

Royal Oak School