HYLAND HEIGHTS E.S. HAWK TALK
Principal, Mitch Zuk
SEPTEMBER 2014 NEWS
Attendance Line: 519 925 3745 ext100
* Press ‘0’ to connect directly with the office
Dear Parents & Guardians,
Greetings and welcome back! I hope all our families had a wonderful summer
holiday and vacation.
I am thrilled to be your school principal. I have spent the last two weeks
meeting parents and staff, setting up my office, reading documents from
Principal Heaslip and “experiencing” the great community of Shelburne and I
have enjoyed every minute of it. I have been a school administrator for the
past fourteen years, a VP for 2 years and a principal for 12 years. I look
forward to meeting all the students and their families over the course of the
next week. Please ensure you attend our Meet the Teacher Evening on
Thursday, September 18. I promise to do my best to meet everyone that
night!
Our school looks great. There is no doubt that our custodians have worked
very hard to clean the school and get it into sparkling shape. Rest assured
that your child’s classroom is welcoming and full of exciting invitations to
learn. On meet the Teacher night, be sure to have your child tour you around
their classroom and explain what features they are excited about. The
educators in our building have spent many hours over the course of the last
three weeks setting up learning areas so that children will be highly engaged
in purposeful and meaningful learning activities. Our office is also a very
welcoming place to be. Cheryl Hincks, our Office Co-ordinator not only has a
well-organized office, but the manner in which she carries out her
professional responsibilities is most pleasant and cheerful. We are very
fortunate to have such a dedicated Office Co-ordinator!There are many
aspects of Hyland heights that I am excited about being involved in; however,
I must admit that the work our staff did on Character Education is most
impressive.
There are many aspects of the 2014-15 school year that I want to share;
however, for now, watch for more news to follow about Character Education
at Hyland Heights!
As in the past few years, class organizations will remain tentative until the
third week of September. We ask for support in preparing your child for a
possible move and will do our best to make this transition a positive one.
Wishing everyone a happy and successful 2014-2015 year!!
Sincerely,
Mitch Zuk, principal
SEPT Dates to Remember
2
Welcome Back!!
10
Parent Council
@6pm in the Library
Picture Day
Meet the Teacher
& Parent Evening 
* Pizza Sales 5:30-6:00
*Meet & Greet
in classrooms 6:00-7:00
Terry Fox Run @ 2:00pm
18
18
24
1st PARENT COUNCIL
MEETING
WED. SEPT 10TH
@ 6PM in the library
MEET THE
TEACHER NIGHT
THURS. SEPT 18TH
PIZZA SALES 5:30-6:00
MEET & GREET 6:00-7:00
Ministry Mandated Days
Oct 13, Dec 22-Jan 2,
& Mar 16- 20
(no school for students)
PA Days for 2014-2015
• October 24
• November 21
• June 5
(no school for students)
Page 1 of 10
Grade 1-8 Students
Please remember to send $7
for your child’s agenda
tomorrow.
Thank- you!
Hyland Heights Elementary School
Website
Email
Fax
www.ugdsb.on.ca/hylandheights HylandHts.es@ugdsb.on.ca 519925-1241
Mail
Telephone
200 Fourth Ave.
519Shelburne, ON
925-3745
L0N 1S1
Reporting Absences: After reaching the school, press 100 to report an absence.
Reaching the Office: After reaching the school, press 0.
For School closures or bus cancellations, press 501.
Voice Mail: Use this to leave a voice message for any staff member.
Assignment
KA
KB
KC
1B
1C
1/2A
2/3B
3C
3/4A
4/5B
5A
6/7A
7B
8A
SPE1
Name
Jackie Hume
Lacey Batenchuk
Melissa
Niedzwiecki
Kathleen Ewen
Jeannette French
Krystal Battisel
Mary Lynne
Wagner
Cynthia Long
Ryan O’Gorman
John McIntyre
Marianne Millsap
Melody Mesesnel
Stefanie Koch
Stephanie
Batchelor
Lori Crean
Susan Richardson
Jamie Palmer
Shannon Mallany
Music Room
Seminar Room
Hub Room
Kinderpak
Seminar Room
H.H. Daycare
o:\office information\staff directory 2014-15.doc
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Room
#
137
140
143
155
154
304
302
207
204
208
202
211
210
217
209
150
142
115
402
142
501
Voice
Mail
437
429
417
428
414
420
406
427
410
402
439
425
421
437
408
423
419
431
233
Assignment
French/
Planning
Library/
Planning
Resource
Planning
Planning
CYC
Custodian
Educational
Assistants
Lunch
Supervisors
Office Staff
Principal
Name
Adam McLaren
Julie Bannon
Melissa
Davidson
Melissa Moylan
(.6)
Barb Rogers
Shannon Mallany
(afternoons)
Tara McCabe
(Mon., Tues., & Thurs.
mornings)
Christa
Wigglesworth
(Wed. aft. & Fri.
mornings)
Doug Galloway
Joanne Besley
Lori Ursu
Lana Pullen
Virginia
Broderick
Kit Stewart
Nancy
Nancekivell
Cheryl Hincks
Mitch Zuk
Room
#
212
116
117
(off.)
201
301
401
145
160
Voice
Mail
416
X230
227
X227
409
430
145
431
413
X231
440
X231
X229
422
404
0
X223
PA Days
The three Professional Development Days are crucial to supporting teachers in their professional learning.
These days always reflect the following qualities:
• Ministry of Education focus, ie., Math, Language, Bullying, Character Education, Special Education, etc.,
• involved teachers meeting amongst each other and sharing best practices,
• engagement in divisional and grade level team (in the educational setting it’s called Professional Learning
Communities) collaboration so as to address a specific instructional strategy,
• utilize UGDSB curriculum coaches, special education consultants and technology specialists.
Often generated from these opportunities to collaborate, teachers implement best practices that support our
School Improvement Plan (SIP). Each school has a SIP and it is based on the Board Improvement Plan (BIP).
To view the BIP, please go to http://www.ugdsb.on.ca/pic/educationupdates.aspx?id=17120 The Hyland Heights
SIP will be online in the near future; however, staff will be updating it during the October 24th PD day.
School Organizations
Schools have built class lists based on their tentative organizations. Changes may be necessary for your
child(ren)’s school in order that our Board remain compliant with Minitry parameters (see below). Any changes
will be implemented within the first few weeks of school. Principals do not have the option of changing the school
organization that is set by the District Staffing Committee of the Board. If changes affect your child(ren), you will
be informed by the school.
Ministry of Education Parameters





Full Day Kindergarten Class Size Average for the Board is 26 students
90% of the Board’s primary classes with 20 or fewer students
10% of the Board’s primary classes up to a maximum of 23 students
Grade 3/4 classes have a cap of 23 students
Junior/Intermediate Class Size Average for the Board is 25.2 students to 1 teacher
Meet the Teacher & Pizza Night on Thurs. Sept. 18th
Pizza Sales @ 5:30 (more info to come) & Meet the Teacher/Parent @ 6:00-7:00pm
Meet the Teacher/Parent night will take place on Thursday, September 18th, with a Pizza dinner
hosted by HHES School Council. This night provides a great opportunity for parents and teachers to
connect in person and for parents to visit their child’s classroom. We highly encourage everyone to
attend and look forward to a positive start to the year!
Volunteer Form and completion of Police Check
All volunteers must complete a volunteer agreement form & have a police check to volunteer in the school or
attend school trips. This must be completed each year. If you had a police check completed after this past
March break, you will not need a new one for this school year. Families living outside the town of Shelburne
need to apply at their nearest OPP station. A letter from school must be taken to the station. Please request this
letter from the office, as the OPP have updated the letter format and expectations for the volunteer. Police
Checks do take time to be processed and to assure student safety, exceptions will not be made.
IMPORTANT COMMUNICATION WITH THE OFFICE
Visiting the school & picking up your child
ALL VISITORS are expected to report to the office to sign in upon arrival, where they will be given a visitor tag to
wear. Before leaving the school, please remember to sign out and return your tag. This lets the school know who
is present in the building at all times. Students, as well as staff will know that you have checked in at the office.
When dropping off or picking up your child up during the school day, please come to the office and we will
contact your child’s classroom for you. This includes during recess times. Students are never to leave with adults
from the yard and yard supervisors are there for the safety of all children. Please report to the office and we will
locate your child for you.
Page 3 of 10
Student Absences
If your child is going to be late or absent from the school, please call the school attendance line before 8:15 a.m.
(519-925-3745, ext. 100). As part of our safe arrival program, we will contact all students who are absent from
the school and for whom we have not received a note or a message. Reporting your child’s absence early, helps
reduce the amount of time required to make phone calls and speeds up ensuring safety for our students.
Attendance is taken in the morning and again after second nutrition break. If your child’s absence is going to
exceed 14 consecutive days, please contact the office for special instructions. Always let the office know if your
child is going to be late or absent.
Future Absences? If you know that your child has an appointment and will be absent on a future date, please
inform the office and provide a note to your child’s teacher. We greatly appreciate your help in making sure we
know that your child is safely at school or at home.
Lates? *A reminder that adult yard supervision begins at 8:30 in the morning. To ensure safety as well as a
positive start to the day, we ask that students arrive between 8:30 and 8:45. When students are late they miss a
critical time of the day when students learn about their schedule for the day and morning lessons begin. When
students arrive late, this also causes interruptions for other students. We are asking for parental support in
ensuring your child arrives to school on time each day.
Bussing
If your child normally takes a bus and there will be a change in the routine, please let the office
know by 3:00 p.m. It is incredibly busy at the end of the day and difficult to ensure that students
receive messages or changes that come in after this time.
Parent Council News
The first Parent Council meeting takes place on Wednesday, September 10th @ 6pm. The
remainder of Parent Council meetings will generally take place on the first Thursday of each
month. Meetings take place in the library and all parents are welcome. Nominations &
elections for this year’s Council chair and members will take place at the first meeting. This
is a great way to get involved and learn more about what is happening in your child’s school
and education. Free babysitting is provided.
Milk Token Orders
Chocolate and white milk (250ml) are sold every day during both nutrition breaks. The cost of milk
for students is $1.00 in coins or .95 cents if students purchase a set of tokens. An order form to
purchase tokens is attached to this newsletter. Please note that milk orders are looked after by
volunteer parents, and may take up to a week to fill
No Parking Areas
Approximately 100 of our students ride busses each day. Busses arrive in the morning between
8:30am and 8:45am. To ensure safety for students and drivers, we do not allow parking in the bus
loading zone, located along the sidewalk at the front of school. Parking is also at a premium at
HHES. We ask that you refrain from parking in areas marked with diagonal yellow lines, especially
at the Kinderpac and front entrance of our school. This can block the departure of busses that need
a wide space to make their way around the corner. We appreciate your support & cooperation!
Parking is not permitted at the front of the school from
8:30am to 8:45am or 3:00pm to 3:30pm.
Page 4 of 10
Code of Conduct Expectations
Please note that the HHES Code of Conduct can be found in your child’s agenda. This outlines important
information about behaviour expectations that students and parents need to be aware of. We ask that you please
take some time to read through this as we begin another new school year.
Dress Code
In the HHES Code of Conduct you will find reference to our Dress Code. A few highlights include:
• No short shorts—we follow the finger tip rule. Shorts and skirts should be longer than the finger tip of
your ring finger when your arms are at your side.
• No underwear showing—pants/shorts should be pulled up and bra straps should not be visible. Spaghetti
straps are not permitted.
• No offensive slogans
Electronics & Cell Phone/Ipod Use
A reminder that students are not allowed to use cell phones or personal cameras at school.
Students are also not allowed to be making phonecalls or texting during school hours
(8:45-3:15). This includes recess time for students who remain on the yard. If your child carries a
cell phone for communication to and from school, it is to be kept in your child’s school bag, or out
of reach, and turned off during school hours. Students who do not follow these expectations will have their
device taken from them and parents will be asked to pick them up from school. To ensure the safety and
privacy of everyone, we ask for student and parent support in enforcing this expectation.
Lunch Declaration Form & Leaving property at lunchtime
Hyland Heights has two nutrition breaks. We ask that only Gr 7 & 8 students be given permission to leave
school property for lunch during the 2nd nutrition break. Parents are asked to complete a lunch declaration
form so the school has a clear understanding of where your child is expected to be during breaks. Lunch
arrangements must be arranged prior to school, as students will not be allowed to phone home during the day to
ask for permission.
Breakfast Program/Snack Program
We are pleased that we are able to continue hosting a breakfast program for HHES students again this year.
Special Appreciation goes to Tara Bernard-McCabe (CYC) and Kit Stewart who will be coordinating and hosting
the breakfast program. The breakfast program, sponsored by Food and Friends, is offered each morning from
8:15am to 8:45am. Students may come to the stage for a bowl of cereal and some fruit. Students who forgot a
snack for nutrition break may also choose to pick up a snack in the mrorning to take with them.
Student Accident insurance through Reliable Life – www.insuremykids.com
Parents/guardians are responsible for expenses related to student injuries on the school premises during school
activities. Accidents can and do happen and costs involved may not be covered by provincial health care or
employer insurance. Information will be sent home in the next week or two about Student Accident Insurance
offered by Reliable Life Insurance Co. Subscriptions are done directly through Reliable Life by mail or online. 1800-463-5437
Terry Fox National School Run
Each year across Canada, students run in memory of Terry Fox and to raise funds for cancer
research. This year’s event will take place on Thursday, September 24th and HHES students will
be running/walking around a set course for one hour in our own Marathon of Hope. Students are
encouraged to bring a ‘Twoonie for Terry” in support of this event.
Page 5 of 10
Life Threatening Allergies
Please note that HHES does not allow nuts in the school. Students and staff who are allergic to nuts
can experience anaphylactic shock by simply coming into contact with small particles of nuts or nut
residue. We also have students and staff in our building who have life threatening allergies to bee
stings, latex, tree nuts, fish, and shellfish. The symptoms of anaphylactic shock include: difficulty
breathing, swelling of the tongue and throat, unconsciousness. Please, do not bring these products
into the school. If your child has a life threatening medical condition, contact the office so we can establish a
Life Threatening Illness Management Plan. Please refer to the red coloured insert that is included in your first
day information package for more information and a handy reference to our Board policies regarding life
threatening allergies.
Student Data Sheets
In the near future, you will receive a copy of information we currently have on our database for your child,
including contact information and any special medical conditions of which we need to be aware. Please check
this information carefully to ensure accuracy. Many addresses have changed in our area recently and it's
imperative that we have your correct mailing address in our database. Please return this form ASAP.
Teachers will be following-up on a regular basis for the return of this very important document so the sooner you
return it to the school, the better, as any changes or new information will be entered in our system. It is
important that we have a daytime phone number where parents can be reached in case concerns arise with your
child during the school day. We also need two emergency contact numbers should we be unable to reach
you.
HHES FORMS TO RETURN
Please help to keep us informed and organized, by returning the paperwork below :
1.
Student Data Forms will be sent home shortly.
(please update information or confirm if there is no change (white paper)
2.
FOI - Consent to share personal information (yellow)
3.
Volunteer Agreement (pink) – updated Police Check also required
Please do not send this form in without a current police check.
4.
Lunch Declaration Form (green) – Gr 7&8 only
5.
Computer Use Form (blue)
6.
Newsletter Tear Off Form to receive newsletters electronically through Constant Contact
7.
Gr 1-8 Students are asked to please bring $7 to cover the cost of their 2013-2014 agenda.
8.
Milk Token form (purple)
9.
UG Cloud Permission Form (grades 3-8 only)
Learning? Thinking? Or Learning to Think? (a message from the UGDS Principal of Program)
Everyone sends their child to school to learn. Or do we? Do we send our children to school to become
programmed robots who simply regurgitate facts and formulas, or do we send them to school to learn to think?
Learning is not about committing ideas to memory. Learning is about exploring ideas and building on our
understanding of the world. Remember your two year old child who never stopped asking “why”? They were
learning to make sense of the world around them. Learning is about problem solving, generating ideas, analyzing
facts, critically evaluating decisions and asking questions to make sense of things. David Perkins in Smart
Schools (1992) says that “learning is a consequence of thinking”. Scores on a test (depending on the test) are
not evidence of learning.
I know as a parent, I often said to my children; “think about it”, “think for yourself, or “what do you think?” For
those of you with pre-teens and teens, I’m sure, like me, there were plenty of times you wished you knew what
they were thinking (well, maybe not all the time)!
As parents we need to model thinking and learning for our children. Instead of saying “I don’t know” or “because I
said so”, we need to share our perspectives, insights, ideas and misunderstandings with our children. We need
to share how we plan, organize, make a decision and seek clarity at home or at work. We need to share our
thinking with our children so they can develop their own ideas and learn how to think.
Page 6 of 10
When our children offer a differing opinion, we need to value what they have to say, instead of allowing it to
become a “because I said so” power struggle. We need to ask our children this simple question; “what makes
you say that?”, and listen – really listen. We need to have them explain and share their thinking with us. Even
when their ideas are very different from ours, we need to give them their voice, and then offer ours with an
explanation as to why we think that way.
Tonight when your children come home from school don’t ask them what they learned today or what they did.
Instead, ask them what made them think today. When they look at you as if you have two heads and have
completely lost it, ask them more questions. Push them to think. Together, we need to encourage them to
question what they see and read on the internet, we need to model for them how to make informed decisions,
and we need to prepare them for jobs not yet created.
Excited, interested energy is learning, because that’s when thinking occurs; that’s when children own their
learning, and that’s what going to school is all about.
Cheryl Van Ooteghem
Principal of Program
Our board has a wonderful resource for all of our students that can be accessed 24/7 from school or from home.
It’s called UG2GO and includes Learn360 (educational video streaming), Student Link (a site children use at
school that gives them access to web sites that are kid friendly and relate directly to their current units of study),
Tumblebooks (a site that has hundreds of books children can click on and have read to them), Overdrive
(eBooks and audiobooks), and much more.
When students are at home they can go to this URL:
https://www.ugdsb.on.ca/ug2go
They will be prompted to enter the same Windows username and password that they use at school to get onto
the school network. Once they enter their Windows username/password they will enter the site and they can
then click on any of the resources and be taken directly to the individual resource without the need for any
additional passwords.
Please take a few minutes to explore the site with your child. It is an important tool that will aid them in their
education, and may make your life easier when it comes to homework and projects. We are excited that students
will be able to access information from anywhere and at anytime in this information age!
Page 7 of 10
HYLAND HEIGHTS DAILY SCHEDULE FOR 2014-2015
8:45




8:50
 “O Canada” begins
8:30 - 8:45
Students arrive at School
School Entry
School Day begins
(120-minute teaching block)
Attendance is taken immediately and sent to the office
10:45 - 11:05
 Nutritional Break
11:05 - 11:30
 Outdoor Recess
11:30 - 1:10
 Instructional Time
1:10 - 1:30
 Nutritional Break
1:30 - 1:55
 Outdoor Recess
1:55 - 3:15
 Attendance is taken immediately and sent to the office
3:15
 Dismissal
(100-minute teaching block)
(80-minute teaching block)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
A few notes from the office …
The Office Team
We would like to introduce you to the team that works in the office at Hyland Heights Elementary
School:
Mr. Mitch Zuk, Principal
Mrs. Cheryl Hincks, Office Co-ordinator
Mrs. Tara Bernard-McCabe, Child and Youth Worker
Ms. Christa Wigglesworth, Child and Youth Worker
Student Absences
If your child is going to be late or absent from the school, please call the school attendance line
before 8:45 a.m. (519-925-3745, ext. 100). As part of our safe arrival program, we will contact all
students who are absent from the school and for whom we have not received a note or a message.
If your child’s absence is going to exceed 14 consecutive days, please contact the office for special
instructions.
Always let the office know if you know your child is going to be late or absent.
Busses
If your child normally takes a bus and there will be a change in the routine, please let the office know by
3:00 p.m.
Page 8 of 10
Hyland Heights remains open on ‘no bus’ days. Students who do not take the bus to school are
expected to be at school as staff strives to continue to operate a regular program.
Allergy Alert
Please note that HHES is a nut-alert environment. Students and staff who are allergic to nuts can
experience anaphylactic shock by simply coming into contact with small particles of nuts or nut residue.
We also have students and staff in our building who are allergic to bee stings, latex, tree nuts, fish, and
shellfish. The symptoms of anaphylactic shock include: difficulty breathing, swelling of the tongue and
throat, unconsciousness. We ask that everyone refrain from bringing these products into the
school.
Please notify your child’s teacher directly if your child has a severe allergy. Thank you.
To view the Elementary School Calendar online, please go to:
http://www.ugdsb.on.ca/schools/article.aspx?id=2962
Page 9 of 10
CONSTANT CONTACT & ELECTRONIC NEWSLETTERS:
Constant Contact is a software program that allows us to send a mass email with a copy or link
to our monthly newsletter and other school updates. Beginning in October 2014, notification
that our school newsletter is available for viewing will be sent through Constant Contact
Newsletters will posted on our school website at http://www.ugdsb.on.ca/hylandheights/ on a
monthly basis. For those who do not have online access, your child will receive a paper copy of the
newsletter; however, you will have to indicate to us (see below)
If you prefer to receive a notifying email indicating our newsletter is ready to be viewed at our school
website, I will need you permission to include your email address in our Constant Contact software
program. Please complete the bottom tear off and send in with your child’s teacher:
____________________________________________________
Please select Response 1 or 2 and tear-off and return to your child’s teacher
Response 1:
To receive an email notifying you that the School Newsletter (or any other school information, ie., School
Council info, Board notices, etc.,) is ready to be accessed at the Board’s website, please complete the
following information and return it to your child’s teacher:
Email address: _____________________________________________________________
Child/ren’s Name: ___________________________________________________________
Teacher/s: ________________________________________________________________
Parent Signature: __________________________________________________
Response 2:
I do not have access to the internet and will require the newsletter to be sent home with my child.
Child/ren’s Name: ___________________________________________________________
Teacher/s: ________________________________________________________________
Parent Signature: __________________________________________________
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