ST. BONAVENTURE NOVEMBER 2015 Principal: A. Brown Vice-Principal: M. Miller Head Secretary: L. Pietrantuono Assistant Secretary: K. Leonard School Address: 35 McCrimmon Drive, Brampton L7A 2Z5 Remembrance Day Prayer Trustee: D. D’Souza Superintendent of Brampton West Family of Schools: S. Steer Parish Priest: Father Jan Gogolewski Parish: Guardian Angels Parish 904-970-9175 School Phone # 905-970-9069 Fax # 905-970-0814 Our assembly for the Virtue of Conscience will be held on November 30th at 1:00 p.m. Help me to understand why: There is war instead of peace, There is hatred instead of love, There is lying in place of the truth. Give me the courage, strength and wisdom To teach others the meaning of Peace love and truth, So that we can make this world A better place for all to live in harmony. AMEN The month of November includes three important days: ALL SAINTS DAY, ALL SOULS DAY AND REMEMBRANCE DAY These days serve to remind us to pray for our saints, deceased friends and relatives and those who fought for peace. On November 11th at 10:45 am the school will pr esent a meaningful Remembrance Day Liturgy for those who fought to help make our lives better . May God grant them eternal rest and peace. All parents and guardians are welcome to attend this liturgy on this very important day. May our fondest memories of our lost loved ones bring us peace. All students will provide a donation to wear a poppy during this time. VIRTUES PROGRAM In the month of November we celebrate the virtue of Conscience. A Person of Conscience… • Chooses to do the ‘right thing’ and feel good about it • Can see how his/her actions may hurt others • Admits his/her wrong-doing and feels badly • Says ‘sorry’ and tries to make up for mistakes • Keeps promises God has given us the ability to know the right and decent way to act and then to act that way. We trust that the common Spirit we share inspires us and guides us to make good decisions if we allow our conscience to be well-formed. PARISH UPDATES SACRAMENTAL PREPARATION INFORMATION MEETING DATES FOR PARENTS/GUARDIANS: For parents of students making First Holy Communion: Information meeting November 29th, 2015 following the 12:00 pm Mass at Guardian Angels Church. For parents of students receiving Confirmation: Information meeting December 6th, 2015 following the 12:00 pm Mass at Guardian Angels Church. SCHOOL COUNCIL We are happy to announce our Catholic School Council members for the 2015 2016 school year: Chair: M. Gill Co Chair: N. Carasco Secretary: C. Charles Treasurer: S. Ruggiero & D. Kicul Parish Representative: P.Conliffe– Layne Community Reps : N. Houjeily OAPCE Member: S. Lyn– Cook We look forward to an exciting school year! Presentations from Anaphylaxis Canada, Lice Squad and more! School access to Mabels Labels and Fundscrip Movie Nights! Fundraisers - November and May Catholic School Council will be running the Chocolate Fundraiser beginning on November 10th! We hope that all St. Bonaventure families will participate! School Council meetings will be held on Wednesday evening at 7:00 pm in the school library on the following dates. All are welcome! * November 4 * December 2 * February 3 * June 1 * March 2 * April 6 * May 4 REPORTING STUDENT ABSENCES In the interest of student safety, a call or a note to the office reporting student absences is required. Please let us know if you know that your child is going to be late or absent. Attendance calls can be made after school hours, seven days a week for your convenience. Our attendance number is (905) 970-9069 then press 1. STUDENT ARRIVAL AT SCHOOL ON TIME Please continue to encourage punctuality with yourchild(ren). The bell r ings in the mor ning at 8:45 am. Parents are asked to ensure that their child will be at school before the beginning of classes in the morning and afternoon. Students arriving after the entrance bell, lose valuable organizational time at the beginning of each day. COLD AND FLU SEASON UPON US As the flu season is now upon us, we ask that you remind your child to clean his/her hands with soap and water or alcohol based hand cleaner: after coughing or sneezing and before touching your face. If your child does not feel well and shows signs of a fever, kindly notify the school and keep them at home until well enough to attend. JUNIOR AND SENIOR KINDERGARTEN REGISTRATION FOR 2016-2017 Registration for Full Day Junior and Senior Kindergarten for the 2015 - 2016 school year, will take place boardwide on the following day: Monday, January 25 , 2016 7:00 - 9:00 pm Snow Date: Tuesday, January 26, 2016 7:00 - 9:00pm and then on Wednesday, Thursday & Friday, January 27, 28, 29, 2016 Between 9:00 - 11:00 am and 1:00 - 3:00 pm only. There will be an information session for parents/ guardians of children with special needs including vision, hearing, autism, physical/medical and/or developmental delays who are transitioning to Full Day Kindergarten in September 2015. The information session will be held at the Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board in Room 301 on January 12, 2016 from 7:00 pm 8:30 pm. Snow date: Wednesday, January 13, 2016. Parents/guardian are also reminded to register their child at our school office on the above dates. VOLUNTEERS NEEDED AT ST. BONAVENTURE We welcome all parents/guardians who are interested in volunteering their time to assist with our curriculum and student needs, to please visit the school office. You will be required to have an official Criminal Background Check completed. For mor e infor mation please call the office. We look forward to more community involvement in our school programs. STUDENT ATHLETICS The Dufferin-Peel School Board strongly encourages all students to purchase the optional student accident insurance. You can apply online at: www.insuremykids.com SCHOOL CHOIR St. Bonaventure’s Choir will be singing at the New Longos opening on Sandalwood and Mississauga Road. Students will be performing there on November 17th at 7:30 am. All parents and guardians are welcome to attend. Medical Alert! It is of the utmost importance to stress that we have a number of students in our school with severe life threatening reactions to nuts, peanuts, peanut butter, peanut oils and any peanut by-products. For some children, even the smell of nuts can bring on a severe attack. We need your cooperation! We do not want to put any child at risk. Do not send snacks of any sort for birthdays or special occasions, as we are not always sure that these products are allergen free. In our Catholic Community we have an obligation to be responsible for one another. We thank you for your attention to our health watch. Please note that St. Barbara School is enrolled in the Medic Alert “No Child Without” program. Medic Aler t pr ovides students with a custom engraved bracelet or necklaces with your child’s medical information, at no cost. For more information, please pick up a brochure in the school office. HOMEWORK HELP Free Online Math Tutoring Available Have a child in Grade 7 or 8 who doesn’t quite understand how to add fractions? Or maybe your teenager is struggling with a geometry assignment? Extra help is now available. Check out Homework Help, where certified Ontario teachers are online 20 hours a week to provide free math tutoring for the Grade 7 to 10 math students in the Dufferin Peel Catholic District School Board. Students can log in Sunday to Thursday, 5:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m., for one-on-one confidential help. There are interactive discussion rooms for each grade where they can view to the current lesson, watch tutors draw on the whiteboard — and then type their own question for on-the-spot help. To access http://HomeworkHelp.ilc.org, your child will receive a Board access code, as well as help setting up an account from their teacher at school. CROSS COUNTRY Mrs. Eby accompanied six students who competed in the Boards Finals Cross Country meet on Monday October 26th.A congratulations to the cross country coaches Mrs. Menzella, Mrs. Trueman and Mrs. Eby and all cross country participants for their hard work and perseverance. INTERMEDIATE VOLLEYBALL Intermediate volleyball teams are currently practicing and honing their skills for the Family mini tournaments. Their coaches, Mrs. Gallant and Mrs. MacDonald (boys) and Ms. Poerba and Mrs. Marques (girls) have high expectations this year based on the effort and dedication displayed by all team members. Good luck to all teams!! ROSARY APOSTOLATES Staff and Catholic School Council have worked to bring the Rosary Apostolate Program to St. Bonaventure. Monthly, each class has the opportunity to pray the rosary with dedicated Rosary Apostolates who guide the prayers. Their first session last month was met with enthusiasm by students from all grades. The remaining days for praying the rosary are November 5th, December 3rd, January 7th, February 4th, March 3rd, April 7th and May 5th. We thank the Rosary Apostolates for coming into our School and we are looking forward to our remaining dates. FLAG FOOTBALL Mr. Cassidy and Mr. Rawte would like to congratulate the flag football team on a tremendous tournament on Monday, November 2nd. After going undefeated to the finals, they gave St. Lucy their best game, falling just short to an impressive second place. Way to go Team! ELIGIBLE RIDERS AND COURTESY POLICY In accordance with Board Policy, permission for students to ride the bus using the Courtesy Rider Policy was granted in October. We have and will continue to monitor the availability of seats and make adjustments accordingly. Please note: if new students who are entitled to transportation register at the school, and the bus is loaded to capacity, then students that have accessed the bus through the Courtesy Rider Policy, may be removed. If you have any further questions please contact the School Office. If your child is eligible to ride the bus or has received courtesy seating and you are not having him/her use the bus both to and from school, privileges can be removed. Please inform the Office ASAP if you have decided to make alternate arrangements. Thank you for your patience and understanding. TRAFFIC SAFETY Our school driveway is a matter of great concern in regards to the safety of our students. Therefore, we are reminding you again to use the Kiss ‘n’ Ride lane to drop off or pick up your child. We clear the Kiss ‘N Ride usually in 10 minutes. Please be patient we are all BUSY but SAFETY comes first. The inside lane (closest to the school) is the only lane where cars can stop to drop off their children in the morning and pick up their children in the afternoon. Drivers should not be parking in this lane and leaving their vehicle to walk to the school to pick up or drop off their child(ren). The outside lane is a drive thru lane. This means that there should be no stopping and/or loading or unloading of students. If your child is not at the Kiss ‘N Ride area at dismissal time, please park in one of the spaces available in the parking lot or circle around once more. Please do not walk your children through the two Kiss ‘N Ride lanes. Take the time to walk around the Kiss ‘N Ride lanes. WINTER WEATHER REMINDERS Our winter season is fast approaching! Please assist us in encouraging your children to dress appropriately for the cold weather. We want our students to feel comfortable outdoors and not get chilled because of inappropriate winter dress. Except under unusual conditions, students will go outside during recess and lunch hour. The outdoor break allows for fresh air and exercise. Health officials indicate that the fresh air is good for children...not harmful, as long as students are dressed properly. Please listen to weather reports and ensure that children are dressed appropriately for the weather. During the winter months, inclement weather and/or poor road conditions may cause the disruption of bus transportation and regular school operations. In these cases, parents/guardians should develop alternate care/ transportation arrangements. A decision to cancel bus transportation and/or to close schools is made by 6:00 a.m. Decisions are based on several factors including precipitation, air temperature and road conditions. A decision to cancel bus transportation may be system wide (where all buses in Dufferin County and the Region of Peel are cancelled) or municipality spe- cific (where buses in one or more municipalities are cancelled). If buses are cancelled in the morning, they will not operate in the afternoon. Therefore students transported to school by parents require the same transportation home. Parents/guardians are asked to monitor the following radio/television stations after 6:00 a.m. to receive bus cancellation/school closure information: CKFM 99.9 CHUM 1050 CJCL 590 CHUMFM 104.5 CHFI 98.1 CFTR 680 CJBC (FR) 860 AM CFRB 1010 CFNY 102.1 CJEZ EZROCK97.3 FOXY 88.5 FM Z103.5 CJMR/CHOW 1250 93.1 FM CHIN 100.7 FM / 1540 AM CFTO Global HALLOWEEN DANCE On October 30th students in all grades attended the Halloween Dance at school. They wore their spookiest and scariest costumes and had a lot of fun dancing in the gym. The kindergarten students did their parade of costumes throughout the school and had a great time as well. Thanks to Ms. Poerba and her Grade 8 students for arranging and organizing such a “spooktacular” day! ECO SCHOOLS UPDATE Our ECO Programs focus on reducing energy, minimizing waste, designing school grounds and changing current behaviours and attitudes towards sustainability of our environment. Our goal this year, 2015 2016 is to receive gold certification. More information to come! Walk to School Wednesdays Litter-less Lunch Thursdays Lights out Lunch Fridays Sweater Day/Big Gulp Challenge ADVENT SEASON Our Advent Season will begin on the first Sunday of Advent, November 29th , 2015. We will celebrate the Advent Season with a Mass on Monday December 14th, 2015 @ 9:30 am at St. Bonaventure School. We hope you can join us! November 5 November 9 PHOTO WITH SANTA Once again this year Mr. & Mrs. Claus are coming to St. Bonaventure on Thursday, December 3rd, 2015 from 12:30 pm - 3:00 pm only, for students who would like to have their picture taken. Place your order and return it by Friday, November 27th November 11 November 12 November 15-21 November 17 November 18 November 18 DATES TO REMEMBER November 10 November 19 November 22 Bullying Prevention Corner - Student Well-Being The key message for November is… “Everyone Needs to Learn How to Live in Peace” The key message for November is that we need to learn how to resolve our conflicts safely and appropriately. It is okay to disagree about various things, but we must get our message across peacefully. Bullying has a few definitions: Bullying is: being mean to other s on pur pose to hur t them or their feelings. Bullying Behaviour: is intended to hur t, is r epeated and involves unequal power and control. Tips for parents: help your child learn to recognize early signs that they are becoming agitated or upset create a calming space or reflection area in your home encourage children to share their feelings about bullying behaviours that they may have experienced or witnessed talk with older children about intimidation, gossip, rumours, and cyber-bullying WHERE PINK DAY - MONDAY NOVEMBER 16TH !!! P.A.L.S. (PLAYGROUND ACTIVITY LEADERS) The we are our school in partnership with Peel Health. The aim of the schoolyard initiative called PALS (Playground Activity Leaders in Schools), allows students to lead others in fun activities during the lunch hour. Grade 5 and 6 students will be trained in the PALS and will provide a fun and safe environment for younger students to play cooperative games. So far the excitement level has been high and we are looking forward to seeing the positive impact this program has on the physical and social-emotional wellbeing of our students. November 25 November 29 November 29 December 3 December 6 December 9 December 14 December 18 St. Roch to visit Grade 8’s Dental Screening JK, SK, Grade 2 1:15 pm Chocolate Fundraiser Assembly 10:45 Remembrance Day Liturgy Picture Re-take Day Bullying Awareness Week Progress Reports go Home Choir @ Longos 7:30 a.m. Peel Region Immunization Gr. 7 & 8 Interview Night Santa Letters to g Home/ Return Nov. 27 Ms. Stehle’s Class to Silvercreek First Sunday of Advent First Holy Communion information meeting following 12:00 pm Mass at Guardian Angels Church Photo with Santa p.m. only Confirmation information meeting following 12:00 pm Mass at Guardian Angels Parish Hall Confessions (Grade 3 - 8) Advent Mass Christmas Concert Kindergarten - Grade 3 December 21st to January 3rd Christmas Break January 1st, 2016 Happy New Year! January 4, 2016 First day back from Break