8 Parkway Ave, Brampton, Ontario L6X 2G4
Telephone: (905) 451-8501
Fax: (905) 451-7535
Principal’s Message
NEWSLETTER
January 2016
Principal
M. MacDonald
Secretary
A. Ashton
Superintendent
Miss. Brampton Central
L. Papaloni
Parish
St, Jerome Parish
Phone: 905-455-4260
Pastor
Fr. Jan Kolodynski
School Council Chair
S. Pio
School Council Vice Chair
L. Clayton
Trustee
D. D’Souza
Ward 5
Phone: 905-579-0126
Attendance Verification
Phone: 905-451-8501
Prayer for the New Year
God of this New Year,
We are walking into mystery.
We face the future not knowing
What the days and months will
bring or how we will respond.
Be with us as we journey.
Deepen our faith to see all of life
through your eyes.
Fill us with hope and an abiding
trust that you dwell in us
amongst all our joys and sorrows.
Thank you for the treasure
of our faith life.
Thank you for the gift of being
able to rise each day with the
assurance of your walking
through the day with us.
God of this New Year,
We praise You.
Amen
I would like to welcome back all of
our children to school and on behalf
of the staff, we would like to wish you
a Happy New Year! I hope that the
Christmas Season provided valuable
time to spend with family and to reflect on the greater gifts we receive
each day. I hope it was a restful and
enjoyable time for all of our families.
It is now beginning to look more like
winter. It is also time for the children
to begin focusing once again on their
learning and the practicing of good
work habits for this next stretch.
Thank you once again to our School
Council for organizing a wonderful
Christmas Luncheon for our children.
The leftovers were delivered by our
parent volunteers to “The Knights
Table” to be used for needy families.
Thank you to our visitors from the
North Pole for delivering candy
canes to our children. We hope they
have some much deserved rest now.
The temperature is very cold to begin
this new year. Within this newsletter
are reminders about our rules and
expectations regarding snow as well
as reminders about cold weather and
proper winter clothing. May God
continue to guide and support all of
us in the coming year.
M. MacDonald
P.A. Day
Monday, January 18th, 2016
Teachers will be preparing 1st term
report cards. There will be
no school for students.
School Operations
Communication Updates
Junior & Senior Kindergarten
Registration for 2016-17
Inclement Weather and School Closure
Registration for the 2016-17 school year will be held at all
Dufferin-Peel Catholic elementary schools on the following
dates:
Monday, January 25, 2016 - 7:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.*
*Snow Date: Tuesday, January 26 - 7:00 - 9:00 p.m.
Wednesday, Thursday & Friday,
January 27, 28 & 29, 2016
9:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m.
1:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m.
Full Day Kindergarten - Children must be 4
years old by Dec. 31, 2016
Parents/Guardians should bring the following documents when registering their child:
 proof of age
 original Catholic Baptismal Certificate of the Roman,
Greek or Ukrainian Rite, for parent (one) and child (if the
child has not been baptized, a letter of counselling with
the parish priest, to complete the process will be accepted)
 updated immunization records
 proof of Canadian citizenship or of Landed Immigrant
status
 proof of address ( 2 items—utility bill, bank or credit card
statement)
For more information, contact your local Catholic school
or call the Admissions Department at 905-890-0708 ext.
24500.
Dufferin-Peel hosts Parent Evening to
Support the Transition of Students with
Differing Abilities into Kindergarten
There will be an information session for parent(s)/guardian(s) of children with differing abilities including vision, speech, hearing, autism,
physical/medical and/or developmental delays
who are transitioning to Kindergarten in September, 2016. The information session will be held at
the Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board—
Catholic Education Centre, Room 301 on Tuesday,
January 12, 2016, from 7:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
Snow date is Wednesday, January 13, 2016 from
7:00 to 8:30 p.m. For more information about this
session, call 905-890-0708 ext. 24011. Parent(s)/Guardian(s) are also reminded to register
their child at our school office.
During the winter months inclement weather may cause
disruption of bus transportation and regular school operations. A decision to cancel school transportation and/or
to close schools is usually made by 6:00 a.m. and will be
announced on the following radio stations:
VIRGIN RADIO FM 99.9
CHUM AM 1050
CFTR AM 680
CFNY FM 102.1
CJCL AM 590
CHFI FM 98.1
CFRB AM 1010
EZ ROCK FM 97.3
CJBC (FR) AM 860
FM Z103.5
FM 93.1
AM 1540
AM 640
FM Q 107
CHIN FM 100.7
CITYPULSE
GLOBAL NEWS
CBC 99.1
We will be communicating one of four standard messages
to the radio stations. The four announcements and their effect on the transportation system are as follows: (Please
note that the highlighted text only will be communicated by
the radio stations).
1.
“DUFFERIN-PEEL
CATHOLIC
DISTRICT
SCHOOL BOARD BUSES SERVING ST. ANDREW,
ST. BENEDICT AND ST. PETER ELEMENTARY
SCHOOLS AND R.F. HALL SECONDARY SCHOOL
ARE CANCELLED FOR TODAY.”
2. “THE DUFFERIN-PEEL CATHOLIC DISTRICT
SCHOOL BOARD BUSES AND THE PEEL DISTRICT SCHOOL BOARD BUSES IN THE TOWN OF
CALEDON AND THE COUNTY OF DUFFERIN ARE
CANCELLED”. This means that all runs listed under announcement #l PLUS the following are cancelled.

All schools in the Town of Caledon and all school runs
that begin in the Town of Caledon.

Individual schools will be notified if this cancellation
affects their school.
3. “THE DUFFERIN-PEEL CATHOLIC DISTRICT
SCHOOL BOARD AND THE PEEL DISTRICT
SCHOOL BOARD BUSES ARE CANCELLED.”
This means that:
ALL Tr anspor tation ser vices pr ovided by the Duffer in-Peel Catholic District School Board and The Peel District School Board, including buses, vans and taxis have been cancelled for the entire day.
4. “THE SCHOOLS AND OFFICES OF BOTH THE
DUFFERIN-PEEL CATHOLIC DISTRICT SCHOOL
BOARD AND THE PEEL DISTRICT SCHOOL
BOARD ARE CLOSED.” T his means that:
ALL Duffer in-Peel Catholic District School Board and Peel
District School Board schools and offices are closed to all students and staff.
Virtue of the Month
Winter Reminders
January’s Virtue of the Month is:
Cold Weather Season
Affirmation:
I have self-control.
I know how to get things done on my own.
I have control over my feelings.
I make good decisions in the way I act and speak.
What is Self-Control / Decision Making?
Children will go outside for recesses and
for 40 minutes during the lunch hour.
Research indicates that fifteen minutes of
fresh air allows students to refocus on
their studies. On extremely cold days, we
may limit the amount of time that students spend outside. We obtain our information from
Environment Canada Weather Information and follow
Board Guidelines which are:
Self-Control / Decision Making is a set of behaviours that help you:
-25C or colder with wind chill, students are kept inside
 understand that the only thing in life which you can change and
-20C to -24C, amount of outdoor time will be reduced.
control is yourself
 keep in check all self-destructive, addictive, obsessive, compulsive,
irrational, and unacceptable behaviours
 keep your life in balance and focused by helping you cope with new
challenges that come your way
 keep your emotional responses in check or moderation
 accept personal responsibilities in life
 reflect on your inner desire to grow up into a responsible adult
Self-Control is restraint practiced over one’s own emotions, impulses,
or desires.
Why practice Self-Control/ Decision Making?
You need to practice Self-Control/Decision Making so that you can
have control over your life. It is important to develop strategies to help
you gain self-control so that you can motivate yourself to get things
done. This virtue also helps you practice something until you know
how to do it well or make it a part of the way you do things. Every
choice you make has consequences and you are responsible for those
choices, therefore you need to ensure that you are making the correct
decisions. Any decision that is made should be a reflection of your
Catholic values.
How do you practice Self-Control/Decision Making?
Self-Control/ Decision Making can be learned. You practice it by
pausing and thinking of the consequences that may result from your
behaviour or decision. When you feel that you are losing control, you
may want to take a deep breath and calmly state how you are feeling
or what is upsetting you. Strategies like self-talk are great to use.
When you get hit; you need to stop, think and evaluate before you hit
back. You may say to yourself:

If I hit him, he’ll hit me back and we’ll get into a fight.

I might get hurt or I might hurt him..

I might be sent to the office or be suspended.

I’m not going to let him get me in trouble.

I don’t know what his problem is, but I’m going to avoid him.

I’ll choose to do the smart thing and walk away.
If it is warmer than -20 with the wind chill, students will
be expected to be outside during the entire recess period.
Dressing Warmly
The Snow and Cold Weather has Arrived!
It is important that your children come
to school dressed with sufficient clothing to be worn outside during recesses.
Warm clothes, snow pants, gloves, mitts, hats and
boots are needed for outdoor play. Having an extra
pair of mitts and socks is always appreciated for children that play in the snow. Place items in a bag with
your child’s name on it. We recommend labeling all
clothing items. This will prevent the overflow of items
in the “Lost & Found” box. All students must bring a
pair of indoor shoes. Dur ing a fir e alar m students
cannot stop to put on boots so it is critical for students
to wear shoes at all times.
Playing Safely with Snow
As a result of the winter months, we
continue to remind all students that
snow stays on the ground. As well, we
continually remind them that there is to
be no pushing of others on the snow hills that are created
when the pavement is plowed. Every student is made
aware of the importance of these rules in preventing injuries. Students are continually reminded with daily announcements and by classroom teachers and staff on yard
duty. We continue to stress our “hands off’ rule to ensure
the safety of every student. Students who continually
break these rules will be tracked at the office and parents
will be notified. Please take this opportunity to discuss
the dangers of rough play with your child. Thank you in
advance for your assistance in this matter.
Updates
Extended French Information Meeting
Grade 4 parents/guardians who wish to enroll their child
in a Grade 5 Extended French class for September, 2016
are invited to attend an information meeting at:
St. Monica Catholic School
60 Sterritt Drive, Brampton
Thursday, January 14, 2016 at 7:00 p.m.
School Council Meeting—Our next meeting will
take place on Monday, February 1st at 7 p.m.
St. Jerome Parish—Grade 2 Sacramental Dates
Dates to Remember
January
9 -10 Confirmation Enrolment at St. Jerome Parish
16-17 First Communion Enrolment at St. Jerome
18
P.A. Day—Report Card Preparation
25
Kindergarten Registration Evening—7-9 p.m.
28
Virtues Assembly—2:30 p.m.
27-29 Kindergarten Registration: 9-11 a.m. & 1-3 p.m.
February
First Reconciliation—Sat., Feb. 27th at 10 a.m.
1
School Council Meeting—7 p.m.
First Communion—To Be Determined
2
Rosary Apostolate visits classrooms
2
Report Cards go home
4
Parent/Teacher/Student Conferences—evening
5
P.A. Day—Parent/Teacher/Student Conferences
Library News
I want to thank all parents and students for taking excellent care of our
library books. We have had very few
lost or damaged books so far this
year. Thank you also to the parents
who have paid for lost books. This helps children learn
to be responsible for the property of others.
Our first book fair was a tremendous success. Thanks
to your generosity, I have been able to buy new books
for our library. We will be hosting a second fair at the
beginning of February. The book fair will be during the
week of February 1st to 4th. The students will be able
to buy books during the day or you are welcome to
come in the evening of Feb. 4th during Parent Teacher
Interviews.
Thank you for your great support of our school Library.
12
Grade 7/8 Class at NBA All Star event
15
Family Day
26
Virtues Assembly - 2:30 p.m.
27
First Reconciliation—Grade 2’s—10 a.m.
March
1
Rosary Apostolate visits classrooms
March break is from March 14th to 18th
Our Catholic School Heritage
5. Why did Catholics find the non-denominational religious education of the common school unsatisfactory?
Child Absence Procedure — IMPORTANT
If your child will be absent from school due to illness
or other event, it is your responsibility to call the
school to inform us. If we don’t hear from you, we
continue to call numbers on file to reach you. It can
be time consuming to do that for all absent children.
If you know of the absence the night before or before school begins, please call
the school number and leave a voice
message by pressing 1. Thank you for
your assistance with this procedure.
Catholics wanted separate
schools where all the beliefs of
the Catholic Church would be
taught, where the pupils would
live their faith in a sacramental
and community manner in proximity to the parish church and
priest, and where religion would permeate the reading, literature and history curriculum. Furthermore, as modern times
arrived, the multiculturalism of the public school’s student body
necessitated the eradication of the teaching of Christianity.