St. Matthew Catholic
Elementary School
February 2016
280 Kingsbridge Garden Circle
Mississauga, ON
L5R 1L2
Tel: 905 890-6898
Fax: 905 890-7611
www.dpcdsb.org/MATHW
Principal
E. Plastina
~
Secretary
A Prayer for Our Families
Loving God,
You care for us and love us
unconditionally.
Teach us to do the same for the people in
our families.
We ask this, through our Lord Jesus Christ
in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God
forever and ever.
AMEN
N. Russo
~
Superintendent
L. Papaloni
A LENTEN REFLECTION:
~
Trustee
REVISITING AND RETURNING
A. Abbruscato
~
Parish Priest:
Fr. C. Macatangga
FAMILY DAY
MONDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2016
Virtue of the Month:
pathy
Respect
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latest board news and information.
This month we will celebrate the virtue
of respect.
As brothers and sisters who share one
Holy Spirit, we are all valuable to God.
We all deserve to be shown courtesy,
c on s id er at ion , s en si ti vi ty a nd
thoughtfulness, which are different ways
of saying respect.
Respect should come first and foremost
from ourselves. We have to respect our
selves and then we will be able to respect
others. We should also be able to expect
to be treated with respect by everyone we
meet – our brothers and sisters in Jesus.
God desires the whole of us, our entire
hearts–whatever they may hold of joy, brokenness, dreams, anxieties, hope. Lent invites us to tend to and restore our own
fragmented hearts to right relationship
with God and with all of creation. From
this place of whole-making, we can then
also practice deeper compassion. We can
more fully welcome those who are disheartened . As we enter this holy season of
Lent, let us reflect on the longing of our
own hearts and on God’s deepest desire for
the whole of us. Loving God, may we accompany you and may you hold us in your
heart this day and always.
Sr. Chris Koelhoffer
Please join us for our Ash Wednesday Liturgy
on Wednesday, February 10, 2016 at 1:30 pm
Confirmation Meetings for Grade 7 Students
Sunday, February 7, 14, 21, 28, 2016 at 11:15 a.m.—12:45 p.m.
CATHOLIC SCHOOL COUNCIL
The School Council has many exciting initiatives taking place during the month of February. School Council
members along with constables from Peel Police will be making pancakes for students and staff on Shrove
Tuesday. On Friday, February 19, families of St. Matthew School are invited to Family Skate Night and a
Mississauga Steelheads hockey game. A flyer with details and an order form will be coming home with students. Also, St. Matthew Bears Spirit Wear is now for sale. Samples and order forms are available in the
front foyer. Please join us at our next meeting on Wednesday, April 6, 2016.
COMMISSIONING MASS FOR YOUTH FAITH AMBASSADORS
On Tuesday, February 2nd, representative of our grade 6, 7 and 8 Youth Faith Ambassadors attended the
Mississauga Brampton Central Commissioning Mass at St. Francis Xavier Church. Following the Mass, the
students celebrated their faith together with the other youth faith ambassadors in our Family of Schools with
collaborative activities, prayers and songs. Our students were inspired to bring back some great ideas which
were shared with all our youth faith ambassadors. We look forward to witnessing our Faith Leaders in action
in our school, our homes, our church, and in our communities. Special thanks to Mrs.
DiFrancesco, Mme Vinelli and Mrs. D’Rosario for leading our students in faith.
DRESS FOR THE WEATHER
Now that colder weather is upon us, we respectfully remind you to ensure that your children
come to school dressed warmly to participate in recess activities. When weather conditions
are severe, we may reduce the outdoor playtime, or have indoor recess entirely. Fresh air and exercise are vital
components for successful learning, so we will endeavour to have children play outside whenever possible.
Help your children come to school appropriately dressed with scarves, hats and mittens on those really chilly
days! Snow pants must be worn if children wish to play in the snow. It is a good idea if students have extra
socks in their bag. For health reasons and to help keep the school safe and clean, we ask all students to have indoor shoes. Thank you for your support in this matter.
KISS ‘N RIDE
If you need to get out of your car to assist your children— then Kiss and Ride is not for you. Please
use the parking lot. Please also ensure that your child(ren) only exit the car from the passenger’s
side in the Kiss ‘N Ride. The safety of all children is our priority. Please ensure that you are following safety procedures and the directions of teachers on duty.
PEEL PUBLIC HEALTH - IMMUNIZATION
Peel Public Health will be reviewing immunization records of all students at our school. Peel Public Health
must have proof that your child has been fully vaccinated (immunized) according to the Ontario immunization
schedule. If you receive a letter, please ensure that your child has received the required vaccine(s), then give the
date(s) your child received these vaccine dose(s) to Peel Public Health immediately to update your child’s record. For more information, please call Peel Public Health at 905-799-7700 or visit www.immunizePeel.ca.
Translation services are available.
ECO TEAM
Our St. Matthew Green Team continues to be hard at work this month. Our ECO Avengers have
been examining our school’s energy consumption on a weekly basis. Our waster managers maintain our garbage and recycling. On Wednesday, February 3, 2016, St. Matthew held our Walk to
School initiative where students helped reduce congestion and air-polluting emissions, were able to
get more physical activity and helped improve neighbourhood connections, all just by walking to
school. On Thursday, February 4, St. Matthew students and staff wore their warmest and coziest
sweaters while we turned down our heat, to learn about the importance of saving energy and inspire us to use less
heat all winter.
FEBRUARY 11 - MISSISSAUGA BRAMPTON CENTRAL SCIENCE OLYMPICS
T h e M i s s i s s a u g a Brampton Central Family of Schools will host the annual Science Olympic Competition for junior students at Pauline Vanier School between 8:45
a.m. and 2:30 p.m. This competition will provide students the opportunity to demonstrate their problem-solving skills through a series of Science and Technology challenges.
FEBRUARY 25 - M I S S I S S A U G A B R A M P T O N CENTRAL MATH MANIA
The Mississauga Brampton Central Family of Schools will host the annual Math Mania
Competition for Intermediate students at Our Lady of Peace School. This competition
will provide students the opportunity to demonstrate their problem-solving skills in a
Mathematics based forum.
BLACK HISTORY MONTH
During the month of February we will be carefully examining the Virtue of
Respect and Black History Month. These events give us the opportunity to
appreciate the gifts, talents and differences of our friends, neighbours and
classmates. God created us each with unique abilities. When we live in a way,
and make choices that respect the differences of others, we truly live as God
intended. It is not enough for us to learn to ‘tolerate’ differences, we must
learn to celebrate them and appreciate that we have all been created in God’s
own image. St. Matthew’s Youth Faith Ambassadors/ Diversity Team will be leading activities throughout the
month for all classes. Teachers will also be planning a number of activities to support Diversity, Respect and Black
History in Canada.
To kick off the month, on Friday, January 29, students in Grades 5 to 8 participated in a Black History Presentation by Loretta Penny. Grades 6 to 8 students will have the opportunity to learn about African music, arts and culture as they participate in 3 sessions with NJACKO BACKO, an African artist. Parents will be invited to a showcase on the morning of February 26, 2016. More information will follow.
UPCOMING EVENTS…
February 8
February 9
February 10
February 11
February 12
February 15
February 17
February 18-25
February 19
February 23
February 25
February 26
February 29
Steelheads Assembly
Chinese New Year
Shrove Tuesday– School Council & Peel Police prepare pancakes
for the school
Ash Wednesday Liturgy- 1:30 pm
MBC Science Olympics– Pauline Vanier School
Valentine’s Day Dance—Kindergarten to Grade 8
100th Day of School Celebration
Family Day– Schools are closed
National Flag Day
Grades 5 & 6 students go to Second City
WE ARE ONE WITH THE DRUM—Grade 6 to 8 students African music lessons
St. Matthew Skate Night and Steelheads Hockey Game
Intermediate Public Speaking Contest
MBC Math Mania Contest-Our Lady of Peace School
Njacko Backo Showcase- WE ARE ONE WITH THE DRUM am presentation for
school and parents
Leap Year Monday
RESPECT Virtue Liturgy
EXTENDED FRENCH
San Lorenzo is the designated centre for our area. Applications can be picked up at the main office. Applications will be accepted at San Lorenzo Ruiz until 3:00 p.m. February 16th, 2016
FRENCH IMMERSION
The French Immersion On-line Application System is now open for submissions. The site will remain open
until February 8th, 11:59 pm. All submissions, which meet eligibility criteria, are accepted. In the event that
the number of applications is greater than the number of spaces available at a French Immersion school, a
centralized, computer-generated lottery will be held at a date yet to be determined.
2015-16 SCHOOL YEAR CALENDAR:
ADDITIONAL PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITY DAY: MONDAY, APRIL 11, 2016
In the Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board, the designated additional Professional Activity Day has
been scheduled for Monday, April 11, 2016. Therefore, there will be no classes for either elementary or secondary students