Paisley Road Public School Newsletter
MARCH
2014
Andre w C reighto n, Pri nci pal
Jane Bi bby , Vic e P ri nci pal
Dear Parents/Guardians,
On behalf of the school staff, I would like to thank you for your
support, throughout the year, in helping us create a strong and
positive learning environment. Checking of agendas on a regular
basis, reading with your child(ren), attending school events, and
communicating with classroom teachers are all important aspects
of fostering your child(ren)’s academic and social growth. Please
do not hesitate to contact us with any questions or suggestions
you may have, as we welcome your input. Thank you for your
support!
Contents
Principals Message
pg. 1
Math at Home
pg. 2
Mental Health
pg. 2
Petite Blanche
pg. 3
Mabels Labels
pg. 3
Technology Open House
pg. 3
Inserts:
The New Ontario Curriculum
Public Health
Digital Open House Flyer
I would like to thank Food and Friends, the group that supports
our nutrition program, for initiating the Live Free Day that we will
be celebrating on February 28th. We will also be participating in
our Paisley Road celebration assembly on the 28 th, during which
our students and staff will celebrate learning and sharing that
occurred on our school-wide Tribes day.
I would also like to thank our wonderful School Council for their
on-going support! We have recently received, through School
Council, a number of djembe drums that our students are enjoying
playing! We look forward to sharing these wonderful instruments
with you in the near future.
I hope that you have a safe and enjoyable March Break with
family and friends!
Best wishes,
Upcoming Events
*GCVI Presentation JK-2
*Beach Day March 6th
*Kindergarten Space Party
March 4th and 5th
*March Break March 7-14
*School Council Meeting
March 18th, 6;30 p.m.
Mr. Creighton
Page 2 of 5
School Newsletter
Math Games to Play at Home
Do you read with your child every night? Is it a positive experience that creates a love of reading between you and your
child?
Do you play a fun math game with your child every night? Is it a positive experience that creates a love of math between
you and your child?
Does your child bring home a library book from school? Does your child bring home a math game from school?
Did you answer these questions differently? Do you view reading differently than math? Are you looking for a way to
make practicing math skills at home more fun and exciting for your child? There are lots of online computer games and
apps that make practicing math skills more engaging for your child.
Beginning this month, and from now until June we will be including some math games in our newsletter that you can play at
home with your children. Math continues to be a focus at our school and within our board and we hope it will be a focus
for you at home as well.
1. Go to https://www.prodigygame.com/Canada/ for a free online Math game that supports Mental Math abilities
and builds confidence with problem solving questions.
2.
“Race to 10, 50 or 100” Roll the dice and add up each turn. First one to 10, 50 or 100 wins.
3.
Multiply the numbers for older students.
4.
“Guess my number” Place a sticky note on your child’s back and have them guess the number by asking only yes/no
questions (Is it bigger than 500, is it odd/even, etc.)
5.
Play dominos, cribbage or yahtzee
Send us an email with your favourite math game, so that we can share the word with all our families and send a message to
our students, that learning math happens every day all around us.
Talking About Mental Health!
Let me introduce myself. I am Dr. Lynn Woodford, Psychologist, the Mental Health and Addiction Lead with the Upper
Grand District School Board and I like to talk about Mental Health! It is an exciting time in our schools and
communities where we can all make a difference in our children and youth’s mental well being, as well as understanding
and supporting mental health concerns.
Mental well-being and mental health concerns are closely linked to academic and social outcomes. Students who
experience mental health and/or addiction concerns often struggle academically and may not be able to demonstrate
their full academic potential unless provided with appropriate understanding and support. At Upper Grand District
School Board we are talking about mental health, promoting positive mental health and supporting students with mental
health concerns.
As part of Ontario’s plan to enhance children’s mental health and wellness (“Open Minds, Healthy Minds”), the Upper
Grand District School Board has developed its own Mental Health and Addiction Strategy. I am thrilled to be the lead
on this project.
The UGDSB Mental Health and Addiction Strategy guides the schools to promote awareness of mental health needs,
supports and services; to build capacity among students, staff and parents; and to collaborate with community
partners to provide support for students and their families. We are promoting positive mental health, creating a
culture of caring and empathy regarding mental health and addictions, and enabling all to collaborate with community
partners in a coordinated, responsive and effective manner. Students need support and guidance from caring adults in
their families, at schools and in their communities. These include ongoing secure relationships with parents as well as
formal and informal relationships with teachers, mentors, coaches, peers, youth volunteers and community members.
Ensuring positive student mental health is a shared responsibility of students, parents, community partners and all
staff. The Upper Grand District School Board is working to de-stigmatize mental health issues and promote positive
mental health.
Each month I will be writing a column about mental health and well-being in the hope of providing parents with
information to increase awareness of mental health issues and promote well being in our children and youth and within
our schools, families and communities. I hope you find these columns interesting and useful.
Page 3 of 5
School Newsletter
Petite Blanche Arts Festival 2014
March Update
Mark your calendars! The Petite Blanche Arts Festival will be held on June 19th. Organized by School Council, this year’s event
will be another amazing evening of fun!
Silent Auction! Our silent auction team has started their search for donations. Do you have an item you would like to donate to
our silent auction? Do you own a business that would be interested in donating?
Please contact Charlene (rumble_mc@rogers.com) for more information.
Prize Drive! Throughout March, we will be holding a prize drive to gather prizes for our festival games. Only small prizes are
needed. For example: stamps, pencils, erasers, stickers. All month, students can bring prize donations to the school office.
Thank you!
Dance! Music! Art! Writing! Again this year, School Council has given every classroom an additional budget for arts instruction.
Teachers can use the funds to buy art supplies, fund field trips, or to bring local arts instructors into the classroom. We know
students will enjoy taking part in this special arts curriculum!
If you would like to be involved in the Petite Blanche Arts Festival, the planning committee meets on the first Tuesday of every
month in the school library at 6:30 p.m. Upcoming meeting date: March 4th. Contact Deanna (deanna@500monsters.com) or
Karyn (karynboscariol@gmail.com) for more information.
Support Our Fundraiser!
Paisley Road School Council is fundraising with Mabel's Labels, a company with all types of labels that are colourful,
indestructible, easy-to-use and fun! Every time you place an order from our Mabel’s Labels personalized fundraising website,
Paisley Road School Council earns funds. It’s simple!
Iron-Ons, Stickies, Bag Tags, Allergy Alert labels & more! Personalize your labels with names, nicknames, initials - whatever you
choose. Cool icons help even little ones identify their own belongings. Dishwasher, microwave, laundry & kid tested! Dispatched
within 24 hours!
Visit www.paisleyroadps.mabelslabels.com to place your order while helping our fundraiser! Or simply follow the link found on
our school website.
Technology Open House
The Upper Grand District School Board is hosting an open house featuring displays and brief workshops on how students
are using technology to learn. “Digital Saturday” takes place on March 22, 2014 from 9 am to 12:30 pm at King George
PS, 72 Lemon Street in Guelph.
Doors will open at 9:00am for displays. Brief workshops will start at 10:00am and be repeated until noon. The open house
will close at 12:30 pm.
Digital Saturday will be an opportunity to explore and learn about:
●
new technologies in the classroom like Chromebooks, UGCloud and iPads
●
assistive technologies to support all learners including Kurzweil and Read&Write for Google
●
online digital resources for assisting student learning such as UG2GO, UGCloud and Homework Help
●
parent engagement strategies for home use of technology
●
appropriate use of technology, digital citizenship and personal technologies in our classrooms
There will be a variety of short workshops repeated throughout the morning as well as displays highlighting the use of
technology as a student learning tool in the Upper Grand District School Board.
There will be lots of opportunities for interaction and co-learning. Older children (8 and up) may find the display tables
and workshops informative and engaging.
Childcare for children ages 3-7 is available during the event. Please pre-register for childcare online at:
http://bit.ly/digitalsaturday
We hope to see you there as partners in education!
Sunday
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
1
2
3
GCVI drama
presentation
grade K-2
4
Kindergarten
Space Party
5
Kindergarten
Space Party
Petite Blanche
mtg. 6:30-7:30
13
14
15
20
21
22
9
Time
change
10
11
Basketball
tournament
12
16
17
18
19
6
Beach Day
7
8
NO
SCHOOL
Popcorn sale
School Council
Mtg. 6:30
23
24
Kindergarten
tribes
25
Kindergarten
tribes
26
Grade 6 VIP
27
River Run Grade
5 and 6
Celebration
Assembly
Scientists in
School Ms
Pembleton
30
28
Tribes
Popcorn sale
31
www.paisleyroadps.mabelslabels.com
29
The World Next Door
a community celebration
Immigrant Services - Guelph Wellington and
community elders invite you to the first of our
FREE family friendly events to meet your
neighbours, celebrate our diverse community, build
family harmony and enjoy a community feast!
Saturday, March 29, 2014
11:00am - 3:00pm
Sir Isaac Brock PS
111 Colonial Drive, Guelph
Lunch served at
12:30pm - come
early so you
don’t miss out!
Bring out three generations and win a prize!
Participate in our community video
Add your ideas to our wish tree
activities prizes food games
entertainment
The World Next Door
Immigrant Services Guelph-Wellington, the Local Immigration Partnership and
community elders invite all families to a community celebration where you can
meet new neighbours, celebrate our diverse community, build family harmony
and enjoy a community feast! There are activities and games for the whole family
and performances from across the generations. Everyone is invited to participate
in our community video and add ideas to our community wish tree. You can also
win a prize if you bring out three or more generations!
The event runs on Saturday, March 29, 2014, 11:00am - 3:00pm at Sir Isaac Brock
PS, 111 Colonial Drive, Guelph. For more information or to get involved please
visit www.is-gw.ca/worldnextdoor, email info@is-gw.ca or call 519-836-2222.