BRANT AVENUE PUBLIC SCHOOL
64 Brant Avenue, Guelph, Ontario N1E 1G2
519-824-2671
Fax: 519-824-6159
Mair Ann Gault, Principal
Marlene Doyle, Office Co-ordinator
OCTOBER 2015
PRINCIPAL’S MESSAGE
On September 24th, our school hosted a
lovely afternoon Open House Event. The
afternoon was very well attended with
approximately 170 adult visitors. Snacks
were provided by the Parent Reaching
Out Grant.
During the visit parents toured
classrooms, met their children’s teachers
and did some learning activities with their
children. Many of our community
partners including: our School Council,
Brant Neighbourhood Group, Guelph
Community Health Centre, The Running
and Reading Program, Public Health,
Canadian Mental Health Association,
and Dental Health set up booths in the
library that students and their parents
and guardians visited throughout the
morning.
The event was a huge
success. Congratulations to the families
who won gift certificates from the draw
that was held for all completed
Community Partner Passbook holders.
This month our School Community also
enjoyed the Annual Harvest Fest put on
by the Brant Neighbourhood Group.
Students and their families enjoyed an
evening of free crafts, music, corn on the
cob and harvest treats from our Brant
Community Garden and local farms. The
Brant Neighbourhood Group provides
many wonderful opportunities for our
community over the year. Keep an eye
out for their monthly newsletter for further
details.
I am so looking forward to the adventures
the rest of the year will bring as we work
together with our students, their families
and our community partners. What a
wonderful, warm and lovely community
we work and live in. I feel so blessed to
be a part of it.
Sincerely
Mair Ann Gault 
IMPORTANT – P.A. DAY/ HOLIDAY
Monday October 12th will be the
Thanksgiving Holiday and there will NO
SCHOOL. On Friday October 30th there
will be NO SCHOOL due to a PA day for
students. More information can be found
at www.ugdsb.on.ca
BEFORE AND AFTER SCHOOL
SUPERVISION
When your child arrives to school late,
please make sure that they check into
the main office for a late slip.
SCHOOL COUNCIL
Our next school council meeting will be
held on Thursday, October 27th starting
at 6:30 pm in the staffroom. Everyone is
welcome.
SPIRIT DAY
Please be advised that outside
supervision does not begin until 8:40 in
the morning. We request that children do
not arrive at school before that time, as
there are no teachers/staff watching
them and colder weather is coming.
Also, please remind your child(ren) to go
directly home or to their caregiver after
school. We want to ensure that your
students are safely on their way.
REMINDER
Before and after school our crossing
patrols put up traffic cones to remind
parents not to come into the parking
lot.
This is for the safety of our
students. Parents who drive into the lot
put our students and our patrols at risk.
If you are picking up your child(ren),
please ask them to meet you at the side
of the road in front of the school.
ABSENCES AND LATE ARRIVALS
It is very important that you phone the
school if your child is going to be late or
absent for any reason. (There is an
answering machine on twenty-four hours
a day so please use this system to keep
us informed). You can also call in
advance if you know of an upcoming
appointment or absence. We will contact
you when our attendance check
indicates that your child is absent and we
have not heard from you.
Thursday, October 29th will be Orange
and Black Day.
Students are
encouraged to wear orange and black
clothing to school. Please do not wear
costumes. Thank you.
NO DOGS ON SCHOOL PROPERTY
Please note that there are children who
have allergies to animal hair, and others
who have a fear of dogs. There is also a
possibility of a child being scratched or
nipped by a dog (perhaps excited by all
the children who enter and leave the
school at the end of the day). We have
also, unfortunately, had dog droppings
deposited on our school property. As
such, in order to prevent a potential
concern for students, please do not bring
you dog onto school property.
CHILD CUSTODY ORDERS
Unless otherwise directed by a court of
law, both natural parents usually have
full access to students and their records.
If for some reason these rights are
restricted, legal documentation must be
on file at the school.
Your child’s
emotional and physical well-being is of
utmost concern to our school staff.
Please ensure that copies of any
Custody or Access orders affecting your
child are on file at the school office.
HEAD LICE
SHOES AND WEATHER
When a child at Brant Avenue has head
lice an information sheet will be sent
home with the children in his/her class.
We do not identify the child in the letter.
This is a good time to check your
child(ren) carefully for head lice. Many
children are in close contact with other
children over the summer and as a result
these pests spread easily. If you do find
head lice on your child, we request that
he or she be treated before the child
returns to school. Instructions for a
second treatment should be followed 7 to
10 days after the first treatment.
As the colder weather soon approaches,
we are reminding children to dress for the
weather. Students are required to have
an indoor and outdoor pair of shoes.
The indoor shoes should be comfortable
and appropriate for gym, so running
shoes are perfect.
VISITOR POLICY
All visitors/volunteers must report to the
school office upon arrival. Please use
the office counter clipboard to sign “IN”
and “OUT” of the school. Wear a visitor
badge while you are in the school away
from the office. When bringing a child
to/from school please wait for
students at the main office or in the
front foyer. For the safety of our
students DO NOT proceed to the
classroom to pick up or drop off a
child.
CHANGE OF PLANS
If you have a change in your child=s
regular plan for going home at the end of
the day, please let the office know before
1:55 pm (our second nutritional break) if
at all possible. It is very difficult to get a
message to your children at the end of
the day, when classes are preparing for
dismissal or getting on the bus (if this is
applicable). This is especially true if there
is more than one child involved. Thanks
for your help in this matter.
SAFETY ISSUES
As required in the Policy, we will be
teaching age-appropriate lessons to help
our students identify abuse and protect
themselves from abusive situations. The
goal is to provide children with the tools
they need to keep themselves safe. The
lessons cover a broad range of safety
issues including bullying, stranger
danger and abuse by a known and
trusted adult.
This will be taught over the course of the
year. For grades one, three and five, the
lessons will be team taught by our Child
and Youth Counselor and classroom
teachers. There is no formal program in
grades two, four and six, although the
safety concepts are reviewed by
classroom teachers informally.
We encourage you to discuss with your
child at home, the concepts taught in the
Child Abuse Prevention Curriculum.
For more information concerning the
Child Abuse Prevention Policy/Programs
please contact Mrs. Gault, Principal or
Mrs. Fonte, Child and Youth Counsellor.
CHILD AND YOUTH COUNSELLOR
Mrs. Fonte
Schedule for 2015 - 2016
Monday – Friday afternoons
PICTURE RETAKE DAY
Picture retake day is scheduled for
Wednesday, October 21st at 9:00 am.
Please be sure to have your proof
package with you to give to the
photographer that morning.
SCHOOL SAFETY COMMITMENT
The Upper Grand District School Board
is committed to providing safe learning
environments for all students, staff,
school visitors and community
members. When a student behaves
inappropriately, principals use
progressive discipline to help a student
take responsibility for their actions,
change their behaviour, and learn from
their mistakes.
When students' behaviour pose a
potential threat to safety or serious harm,
the Community Violence Threat Risk
Assessment Protocol (VTRA) helps
principals take further steps to protect
students' well-being.
More information is provided on the
UGDSB website.
Blue Jay Fever
Have you caught Blue Jay Fever yet, or
are you already thinking about the NHL
pre-season? Maybe you’re not a sports
enthusiast, and instead are busy taking
your children to dance, swimming or
music lessons. Whatever the case, why
not incorporate math into these
afterschool activities? Here are some
quick and easy connections to share with
your children on those early mornings,
after school or late night drives that
connect math to our everyday lives.
1. Batting average
This number tells fans how many times a
player gets a hit compared to the amount
of times he gets up to bat. Simple
division is used to figure out a batting
average. For each game divide the
number of hits the player gets by the
number of times he is at bat. The
answer should result in a decimal
answer. (For example: Bautista gets
up to bat 8 times, but he only hits 5
times. The equation would be 5 divided
by 8 giving a batting average of 0.625.)
2. Staying out of the penalty box
Which fraction is largest: 5/4, 4/3, 3/2 or
2/1? If the Leafs have a 5 on 4
advantage, and Phaneuf has to decide
whether to draw an opponent away from
the play, it's important for him to know
that 4/3 is a larger fraction than 5/4. Math
tells us that 4 skaters have a better
advantage over 3 than 5 skaters have
over 4.
3. Patterns in Music
Musical pieces often have repeating
choruses or bars, similar to patterns. In
mathematics, we look for patterns to
explain and predict the unknown. Music
uses similar strategies. When looking at
a musical piece, musicians look for notes
they recognize to find notes that are less
familiar. In this way, notes relate to each
other. Relationships are fundamental to
mathematics and create an interesting
link between music and math. Listen
carefully to the music next time. You’ll
definitely hear the patterns!
4. Swimmingly Mathematical
Speed of swim (measurement of
distance and time), surface area of palm
(area measurement of odd shape),
kicking angle of the legs (trigonometry,
angle), rhythm of the stroke (sequence,
counting, pattern sector), and breathing
(volume of air required, space
measurement) are all about the math!
5 The Science of Dance
There’s the symmetry (between arms
and legs, but also between bodies and
within a single body), counting, rhythm,
momentum, mass, connection,
sequence, and shape. Every area of
math can be expressed with the human
body.
Source: https://www.google.ca
Talking About Mental Health!
Welcome to the new school year! My
name is Dr. Lynn Woodford and I am the
Mental Health and Addiction Lead for the
school board. Every month I write a
column for school newsletters about
mental health and provide strategies and
resources for families.
Hope that the transition back to school
has been a positive one for you and your
family. If your child or youth is
experiencing any challenges with the
transition back to school, please talk to
your child or youth’s teacher or
administrator.
The UGDSB has many resources
available on its
website: http://www.ugdsb.on.ca/ for
parents and students to access. To
access these resources: click on the
Parent tab then click on the Mental
Health Tab. There is also a Student tab
with a Mental Health tab, which you can
share with your children and youth.
Once you are on site, you will find
information about local mental health
and addiction resources:
•
Canadian Mental Health Association
Waterloo Wellington Dufferin Branch
(CMHA WWD)
o To access Addictions, Mental
Health (including eating
disorders and first episode
psychosis) and Crisis Services
(Guelph/Wellington for
Children/Youth and
Guelph/Wellington/Dufferin for
Adults) contact:
 HERE247 at 1 844 437
3247 (1 844 HERE247)
 www.here247.ca
o Walk in Services on Tuesdays
for Children/Youth 1:30- 7:00
 485 Silvercreek Pkwy,
Guelph
o wwd.cmha.ca
•
Dufferin Child and Family Services
(Services for Children/Youth in
Dufferin County)
o To access Addictions, Mental
Health and Crisis Services
 519-941-1530
o Talk in Services on Tuesdays
1:00- 7:00
 655 Riddell Road,
Orangeville
o http://dcafs.on.ca/
There is an Access to Mental Health
Resources document that provides more
details about counselling and supports in
Guelph Wellington Dufferin.
There are also links to useful websites
with information for parents about mental
health and addictions such as:
•
Kids Help Phone (1 800 668
6868) www.KidsHelpPhone.ca
provides phone and web
counselling for youth under the
age of 20. Support is free, 24/7,
anonymous and confidential.
• The ABCs of Mental
Health http://www.hincksdellcrest.
org/ABC/Welcome
provides information related to different
mental health concerns, according to
developmental ages.
Hope these resources are helpful for you
and your families. Hope you have a
wonderful fall!
Dr. Lynn Woodford is the Mental Health
and Addiction Lead for Upper Grand
District School Board
ANAPHYLAXIS LIFE – THREATENING
ALLERGIES
We have children in our school with
potential life-threatening
(allergy/allergies) to treenuts, peanuts
and shellfish called anaphylaxis. This is
a medical condition that causes a severe
reaction to foods or other materials, and
can cause death within minutes.
In
recent years, anaphylaxis has increased
dramatically among students.
Although this may not affect your child’s
class directly, we are letting you know so
that you may refrain from sending foods
to school that contain treenuts, peanuts
and shellfish. We aim to create an
allergy-safe environment at Brant
Avenue Public School
If your child is in a classroom with an
anaphylactic child, or your child has
anaphylaxis you will get more
information from the classroom teacher.
Our school has procedures in place for
the prevention and management of
anaphylactic reactions. If your child has
health concerns of any kind, please tell
the office know immediately and we will
take necessary health protection steps.
Thank you for your understanding in
ensuring an allergy safe environment for
all our students.
OCTOBER'S ENVIRONMENTAL
THEME: PROTECT OUR EARTH
This year we will challenge ourselves to
LIVE green every day, because one
small change one day at a time adds up
to a world of difference. The
environmental theme for September is
sustainability. ‘Sustainability’ means
protecting our Earth and using Earth's
natural resources carefully, like forests,
water, minerals, and fossil fuels.
Part of living in a sustainable way is
using, buying and eating only what you
really need. This saves resources and
cuts down on waste too. For example, do
you really need a new pencil case or
pencil crayons or a brand new eraser
every year, or do your old ones still work?
Do you throw your leftover lunch items in
the garbage at school, or do you take
them home and eat them for a snack
after school? Do you buy vintage clothing
or wear hand-me downs? Do you eat
meat every day, or do you eat vegetarian
at least once a week, like those who have
accepted the 'Meatless Monday Canada'
challenge.
To find out how carefully you use the
Earth's resources, Google the following
words: “zero footprint calculator” and
take the footprint calculator quiz. It will
tell you how many Earths we would need
to survive if everyone lived like you!
Slogan of the month: Sustainability –
choosing to live better with less!
Chromebooks
in your public library!
Upper Grand students can now get a
Chromebook to do assignments after school,
evenings and Saturdays
FREE STORM PLAYOFF TICKETS!!!!
Brant Avenue PS has been given
storm tickets on behalf of Bobby O’Briens
Irish Pub through the Guelph Storm
Adopt A School program.
For reading the newsletter you now have
a chance at winning tickets to an
upcoming game.
Please hand in the bottom half of this page to the office
confirming that you have read the newsletter. There will be a
draw in the month for your chance to win. So keep reading the
newsletters!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Tear off this section
Students Name: ____________________________
Teacher: __________________________________
INTERNET SAFETY
Dear Parents….
Over the past few years, the number of mobile apps
has grown exponentially with the significant rise
in smartphone and tablet usage. Most of the time that
your children spend on smartphones, tablets
and other Wi-Fi connecting devices involves using gaming,
social networking and instant messaging apps. Generally speaking, apps are simple and fun to
use but they, like websites, are public domains and therefore their use by children needs to be
monitored.
How to prevent problems..
*Teach your child how to use technology safely and encourage the use of strict privacy settings
on all social networking platforms to protect them from online predators.
*Set a good example for your child as kids pay attention to how you use and how often you use
Wi-Fi capable devices, blogs and social networking sites. Make sure to model the same behavior
you’ve set for your child.
*Balance the amount of time your child spends online with offline activities.
*Restrict your child’s use of adult search engines.
*Explore the online games your child plays to determine if they are age appropriate. Is the game
moderated? Is there a chat component? Are avatars used? Does it contain sexual or violent
material?
*Closely supervise what she/he uses the console for and the features offered by the games
she/he plays. Encourage games that offer the ability to block or restrict individuals who can play
with your child and allow you to mute other individuals from chatting with your child.
Please visit www.cybertip.ca for more information on how to keep your children safe!
Constable Attila Korga #47
VIP Co-ordinator
YCPU Guelph Police Service