St. Stephen Catholic School
17 Colonel Bertram Rd., L6Z 4N8, Brampton
Telephone: (905) 840-3921 Fax: (905) 840-6454
School Website: http://www.dpcdsb.org/STEPH
March 2016 – Volume 7
“With Love, Compassion,
Honesty, & Respect”
Principal
A Lenten Prayer
S. Rea
Highlights:
Head Secretary

G. O’Handley
Superintendent
D. Finegan-Downey
Brampton North East
(905) 890-1221
Trustee
Darryl Brian D’Souza
(905) 890-1221
Ward 2, 5, & 6
Parish
St. Leonard
187 Conestoga Dr.
Brampton, Ontario
(905) 846-5385
Pastor
Gracious Savior,
You have given us this season of Lent
so that we might open ourselves more fully
to your saving grace and new life.
By our fasting, prayer and almsgiving,
may we realize anew that we rely on You in
all things.
Fr. John Nosan
School Council Chairs
D. Vieira De Santis
R. Linton
Follow Us on
Twitter!
@DPCDSBSchools
Your gift of grace makes all good things
possible,
including our desire to reject sin and return to
you.
Grant your people a spirit of reconciliation
this Lent
so that we may forgive one another as you
have forgiven us.
Amen
March Break
March 14th – 18th
No School for Students
Enjoy the week!








Key
Message
for
March
is…“Bullying Can Be Stopped”
Our Catholic Heritage
Catholic School Council
Catholic Education Week
Virtue Assembly
Sharks Corner
EQAO
Homework Help
Dates to Remember
Virtue of the Month: Kindness
OUR CATHOLIC SCHOOL HERITAGE
FAITH ACTIVITIES
How did the Ontario government solve separate school
financial inequity?
In 1990, the Supreme Court of Canada judged that the Canadian
Constitution’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms entities Francophone,
where numbers warrant, to their own school boards. French-language
district school boards and French-language Catholic district school
boards were created. Consequently, Ontario then had four systems.
Three of them – the English-language Catholic District school boards,
the French-language Catholic District school boards – possessed most
of the province’s corporate assessment and, therefore, ability to spend
much more than their counterparts on education. Faced with this
inequity and a court challenge it was convinced it would lose, the
government took the only logical and fair step. It abolished the power
of all school boards to tax and took over all education funding. Now
each pupil, no matter which type of school he or she attends, receives
the same per-pupil funding from the government. After 150 years of
sacrifice and hardship, Catholic school boards have achieved financial
equity.
ST. LEONARD PARISH MASS TIMES
Saturday:
Sunday:
5:00 pm
9:00 am
10:30 am
12:00 NOON
Sacramental Dates
Eucharistic Celebration – Saturday April 9, 2016 @ 10:00 am
Confirmation Practice – Wed. April 20, 2016 @ 10:00 am
Confirmation Day – Thursday April 21, 2016 @ 7:00 pm
What has been the history of Catholic education in the
Dufferin-Peel Region?
Catholic Schools were fundamental in the early development of our
region. With the support of local parishes, bishops and parents, Catholic
schools were formed as an expression of a world view differing from
other schools. In 1837 in Mono Township (Dufferin County), a school
was dedicated and housed at St. Cyprian Church. Later, a log churched
housed a local Catholic school at St. Patrick’s in Melanchthon
Township. In 1864, the first formal Catholic School was developed in
Melanchthon Township. In peel, Catholic schools were formed well
before confederation as an expression of the Catholic communities
developing in our region. A more detailed history of our Catholic
education in our region can be found in the book entitled Catholic
Education in Dufferin Peel – A Story Worth Telling.
What is the current number of Catholic Schools in Dufferin
Peel?
While Dufferin Peel continues to grow throughout the region, our
current population as of 2009 is 87,000 students and an additional
43,000 adult continuing education learners. Our board has 261,645
Roman Catholic electors and the board operates 145 schools, 23
secondary schools and 122 elementary schools. Three additional
secondary schools will be operational by 2010. Our board supports 38
Catholic parishes in our region. As an employer we have over 10,000
employees and Dufferin-Peel operates 1,406 buses per day in the region
to transport students to and from school.
CATHOLIC SCHOOL COUNCIL
Future Meeting Dates are:
Wed April 13th, 2016 @ 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Tues May 10th, 2016 @ 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
All meetings will be in the Staff Room
All are warmly welcomed to attend
Our Potluck Luncheon will be held on Wednesday
June 1st, 2016 at 11:45 am in the Library
BUS INFORMATION
SCHOOL PHOTOGRAPHS
Our School Roof Top photo is on May 2nd, 2016 @ 12:45
pm. Please join us.
VISITORS TO THE SCHOOL
Please remember that to other children, you are a stranger.
All school doors are locked at all times and a monitored entry
system is active at the front door of our school. Please enter
the school through the front doors and report to the office,
sign in, and pick up a visitor pass. Prior to leaving, sign out
and return your visitor’s pass. Any individuals wandering the
school without appropriate identification will be asked to
report to the office. Please help us to maintain a safe and
welcoming environment for your children.
Parents/guardians are also kindly asked to bid your
child(ren) farewell from beyond the playground. Only
students and staff are to be in the schoolyard. Again, this is
to ensure the safety of your child(ren). Your attention to this
is most appreciated.
Please be reminded that dogs are not permitted in the
schoolyard area at any time. The excitement of the children
or the bell ringing can frighten dogs. Also, some students are
afraid or allergic.
Transportation eligibility is determined by a student’s
home
address.
The
following
website,
www.businfo.stopr.ca is available to students,
parents/guardians, school administrators, secretaries
and school bus operators. Parents/guardians who are
eligible for transportation will be able to login to the
www.businfo.stopr.ca site and access details of their
child’s transportation arrangements.
BUS CANCELLATIONS & SCHOOL CLOSURES
During the winter months, inclement
weather may cause a disruption to bus transportation
and regular school operations. A decision to cancel
school transportation is usually made by 6:00 a.m. and
will be announced over local radio and television
networks. As the weather worsens, please take into
consideration that buses may be delayed in reaching
their stops. If buses are cancelled in the morning, they
do not run in the afternoon. If buses are cancelled, the
school remains open. On inclement days, please:

KISS & RIDE SAFETY
St. Stephen is proud of its Kiss and Ride Program. In order
for it to continue to run smoothly and safely for all our
students, everyone needs to follow the same procedure.
Please obey the following procedures when driving into the
school parking lot:
The entry, exit, cross walk and bus zone, on school
property, must never be blocked by cars. Ample space must
be left for buses to enter and exit the school property.
Please park in the parking spots at the school or on the street.
Do not park in any of the lanes in the front of the school
and please do not leave your car unattended.
We are always looking for parent volunteers to assist with
Kiss & Ride. If interested, please let us know at the Main
Office.


Listen to the radio and/or television for bus
cancellations and/or school closures (see below)
Check the GeoQuery website: www.stopr.ca,
Dufferin-Peel website: www.dpcdsb.org or call
(905) 890-1221
Parent inquiries call Student Transportation (905)
890-6000 or 1-800-668-1140
Wait no more than 15 minutes for a late bus. Contact
the school or the listed numbers above if your bus has
not arrived and wait for information regarding arrival.
VIRTUE ASSEMBLY
Catholic Education Week
Thank you to Mrs. Chaves and her students for our
Virtue Assembly. Congratulations to all our Virtue of
the Month recipients. We want to thank them for being
exemplary role models and for living out the virtues in
their daily lives. A special thank you to all the families
that joined us. Recognizing the Virtue of Respect…
Catholic Education Week – May 1 – 6, 2016
Catholic Education Week begins on a Sunday to
highlight the partnership that remains the foundation of
Catholic education between our Catholic schools and
local Catholic parishes. Throughout Catholic Education
Week, we ask you to reflect on the significance of
Catholic education’s presence and contribution in our
Church, and in our society.
This year, through the theme of “Opening the Doors of
Mercy”, we are mindful of those who are especially
vulnerable; the least, the lost and the lonely, and with
mercy, reconciliation and forgiveness, we welcome all
with loving and open arms.
During this week our families are invited to visit the
school and classrooms to witness a variety of school and
classroom activities. We will be sending out information
regarding our scheduled classroom activities.
During the month of March, we will focus on the virtue
of Kindness and we look forward to our next Virtue
Assembly on March 30th, 2016 @ 9:30 am that will be
organized by Mrs. Davis, Mrs. Minichiello and Mlle.
Commisso.
St. Stephen Variety Show
St. Stephen Catholic School is hosting a Variety Show on
Wednesday May 18th. Please join us for this Celebration
of the Arts. Our daytime performance will be at 1:00 pm
and evening performance at 7:00 pm. We look forward
to seeing our wonderful St. Stephen Community on this
night. We are asking all families to bring in a nonperishable food item so that we can collectively make a
donation to St. Leonard Parish.
St. Stephen has implemented a new Reading Program in
our Primary and Junior classes. Raz-Kids is an online
independent reading program with interactive leveled ebooks, downloadable books and activities to help
students improve their reading comprehension. Students
are able to access this program both at school and home.
Your support with this program is much appreciated.
Thank you to our Catholic School Council for funding
the program as they do many initiatives at St. Stephen.
Here’s what our students had to share…
“The presentation was very interesting. Now, we all know
that our parents should monitor us while we are on our
electronics & that we shouldn’t join any social media that we
are not old enough for.” ~Kristen K (Mrs. Chaves, grade 6)
Social Networking Safety
Presentation by Paul Davis
As part of our Parents Reaching Out Grant, Paul
Davis presented to our students and parents on
February 11th.
“I learned that it is simple for someone to find our personal
information. For example, a predator can find out with just
one picture, where you live, if you are on vacation, your age,
your birthday, your family members, etc. It is scary to know
the truth and now I definitely want to be safe on social
media.” ~Thomas L (Mrs. Chaves, grade 6)
From Mrs. Pritchard’s Grade 8 class…
Topics included:
Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Cyberbullying,
Handheld Devices, Texting, Xbox & PlayStation,
Legal Matters, and a Common Sense Approach to
dealing with the technology your children have.
“Mr. Davis thoroughly shared his expertise of accountable and
safe use of personal devices and social media such as
Instagram, Facebook and Twitter, and offered an abundance
of advice on how to make good choices when using social
media. He challenged students to use their moral compass and
become more aware of their digital trail, privatizing their
accounts, Canadian Human Rights Act and the consequences
of cyber-bullying. Student thoughts after the presentation:
“Really informative….I’m going to really think before I post
a text…”
Here’s what our students had to share…
“I really liked this presentation because I learned to not keep my
devices in my room. The part about making sure your parents know
what you are watching is good because I have a television that I can
watch YouTube on it and me and my brother always use it so if my
mom is cooking or if she is cleaning she can watch it. She has an
apple computer so when she is working she can also watch
what we are watching. I learned a lot in this presentation.”
~Amanda F (Mrs. Luciani, grade 4/5)
“I really liked the presentation because it really talked about the
key parts of being on the internet. I think that the students who were
there really learned something new and important. I learned that
creating a blog is the same and that nobody can find your
information. I also learned that YouTube had a policy that you had
to be a certain age to post videos. I really enjoyed Paul Davis coming
to our school and sharing his experience and ideas on how to be safe
on the internet!” ~Maya P (Mrs. Luciani, grade 4/5)
Paul Davis was wonderful and I like everything he said to us. I like
the way that he made me want to listen to him. I think he did a good
job explaining safety, and I have learned many things from his
presentation. It was so good he really grabbed my attention. I
learned that violent games like GTA5 and Call of Duty have an age
limit of 17+. I also learned to never click on links from YouTube. It
was a good presentation and I hope to see him again next year.
~Hannah R (Mrs. Luciani, grade 4/5)
“He explained it well…I feel more informed...”
“I feel a bit afraid with the invasion of privacy the networks
have…but I can make a more informed choice…”
“I am going home to change my personal devices with a more
protected password...”
SAFE, CARING, HEALTHY &
INCLUSIVE SCHOOLS
The key message for March is…“Bullying Can Be
Stopped”.
Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board’s
initiative to create safe, caring, healthy and inclusive school
communities is rooted in our Catholic identity, in particular,
our shared belief in the dignity of all persons created in God’s
image. Safe Schools Policies include Bullying Prevention and
a school wide Progressive Discipline approach.
BULLYING PREVENTION
INITIATIVES
At St. Stephen we have a variety of Bullying Prevention
Initiatives, including our Virtues Program, Positive Climate
Initiative, PALS, Circle of Friends, and other meaningful
school wide and classroom programs and activities.
Tips for Parents:
- review strategies with your child
- help your child practice speaking assertively
(role play)
VIRTUES INITIATIVE
A Catholic Faith Community is rooted in a set of common
beliefs which are inspired by the life and teachings of Jesus.
As a Catholic Community we are called to learn, to grow and
to become more like Jesus in the way we see and treat others.
Our Catholic faith plays an important role in helping us shape
schools that are safe, caring, healthy and inclusive.
Catholic School Education provides us the opportunity to
integrate virtue formation into all areas of our life within the
context of our faith. St. Stephen Catholic School will again
focus our attention on the Catholic Virtues. This program is
designed to help us nurture virtue and character development
in the lives of our students. Each month the whole school will
focus on a different virtue. Classroom activities, school wide
activities and assemblies will all focus on a specific virtue each
month.
September – Faith
October – Empathy
November – Conscience
December – Hope
January – Self Control
This month we look at safe strategies students
can use when faced with a bullying situation.
Students learn how to deal with bullying using
the ‘3 Rs’ – Recognize bullying behavior;
Refuse to be bullied; Report bullying behavior.
There is no set formula that works for dealing
with every bullying situation. Students need to
learn a variety of strategies and the skill to
determine when and how to apply them safely.
Key strategies that will be addressed include:
avoiding, playing with others, staying calm,
ignoring, walking away, saying ‘stop’, being
assertive and telling an adult.
February - Respect
March - Kindness
April - Love
May - Acceptance
June - Fairness
- take time with your child to make a plan for
how you want them to deal with situations
LOST AND FOUND ITEMS
Thank you to our students and families who have been
collecting items from our Lost and Found Box. This is
a good place to start looking for missing items. We
regularly remind our students to check the box for any
items they may have lost. Please continue to remind
your child(ren) to check the Lost and Found Box
periodically.
Saidat…Train your Brain and you’re worth it…
SHARKS CORNER
Here’s what our students had to share…
"I liked how everyone was so positive! I loved the music and
how everybody danced to it. Hip hop is so amazing."
~Breanna L (Mrs. Spizzirri, Grade 3)
"I mostly liked everything. I liked when they talked about
school. They were very good at teaching us about education. I
like the dancing - it was awesome!" ~Mate D (Mrs. Spizzirri,
Grade 4)
“I thought the assembly was cool & very motivating. It helped
you understand that some things are hard in life, but you have
to take the challenge.” ~Quinn C (Mr. Jesus, Grade 5/6)
“The presentation was inspiring kids to keep on trying in
school, even if there are distractions, just keep trying no matter
what.” ~Luke R (Mr. Jesus, Grade 5/6)
On Thursday February 18th, the Junior Boys and Girls
Basketball Team visited St. Leonard Catholic School for a
tournament where they played against St. Leonard and St.
Agnes. Our beloved Sharks played their hearts out. They
represented St. Stephen extremely well with their effort,
sportsmanship and positive attitude from start to finish. We
look forward to seeing them all again next year. Thank you
to both Mrs. Serpe and Mr. Jesus for their dedication to our
students. God bless them both.
“The assembly was way more than amazing, it was stunning.
Saidat is an amazing singer. She was very enthusiastic. I
really enjoyed dancing with her. She made me realize that
everyone is worth it. Saidat made me laugh. I really enjoyed
it and can’t wait to dance Hip Hop with her.” ~Angelica A (Mr.
Jesus, Grade 5/6)
“I thought that it was inspiring and fun. It had good tips and
I would love to see her next year and she made an amazing
impression on me! She is exciting and full of energy and she
brings good vibes to the room! ~Tristen B (Mr. Jesus, Grade 5/6)
“I think the assembly was very fun, entertaining and
interesting. I learned a lot about how lucky we are to have
school and how it was harder for our teachers because they
didn’t have technology to work with. We also danced and got
to see my teacher play a game show.” ~Ethan M (Mr. Jesus,
Grade 5/6)
“Saidat made it very clear that we are worth it and she made
it fun. I loved that she brought in a DJ and played good and
fast music. I also liked how she explained it’s hard for us to
concentrate on our teacher. I loved all of her posters. I really
wish we did more dancing. Overall, I really liked the
presentation.” ~Amanda N (Mr. Jesus, Grade 5/6)
EQAO
Primary
HOMEWORK HELP
Division
Assessments
Mathematics
of
and
Reading,
Test
Administration
Dates May 25 – June 8
th
Junior
Division
Writing
and
th
, 2016
Visit DPCDSB on the web for Board and School
profiles: http://www.dpcdsb.org/EQAO
EQAO Assessments Reminder
The grade 3 and 6 EQAO assessments measure how well
students have met the expectations in the Ontario Curriculum.
The assessments test what students know and how well they
apply their knowledge and skills in reading, writing and
mathematics. Students are required to read and respond to
passages, to write and to solve mathematical problems. The
results are reported in terms of achievement from levels 1– 4
with level 3 as the standard. The window for EQAO
assessments of all grade 3 and 6 students has been established
for May 25th to June 8th, 2016. Please keep this important time
frame in mind when you are planning family trips or
appointments. It is important that all grade 3 and 6 students
be in attendance for the assessments. For further details on our
school
results,
visit
the
Board
website
at:
http://www.dpcdsb.org/EQAO
St. Stephen Dates…
Grade 3 (May 30, 31, June 1, June 2 – make up day)
Grade 6 (June 2, 3, 6, June 7 – make up day)
1.
NELSON MATH WEBSITE
Teachers, students, and parents can visit this site for web
links and other online support for Nelson Mathematics
K-8 at www.nelson.com
Homework Help is a free service, offering live
one-on-one tutoring by certified Ontario
teachers. Tutors tailor teaching strategies to each
student, taking the time to understand the
specific challenges for each learner and gear the
sessions to meet the student’s needs.
Homework Help offers 24/7 math resources for
Ontario students in grades 7 to 10. HH resources
are diverse, covering the key skills learned in
grades 7 to 10. Resources are skill based, not
sorted by grade making them welcoming to
learners filling their gaps.
Parents can sign up for a free guest account.
Get resources and tools 24/7:



Math videos
Interactive exercises & activities
Scientific calculator…and more!
You can help your child with math.
Teachers are standing by:


Every Sunday to Thursday
5:30 pm to 9:30 pm ET
Register at ontario.ca/HomeworkHelpHH
tutors develop student understanding through:
 Scaffolding
 Direct instruction
 Guiding questions
 Demonstrating and Modeling
 Summarizing for consolidation
 Descriptive feedback
HH tutoring provides opportunities for:
 Reciprocal teaching: have students teach
each other the method they learned with
a HH tutor
Higher order questions: students can stretch
their understanding with the support of a
teacher coming alongside
Character Education & Anti-Bullying Assembly
Our student voices…
"Our assembly by D.O Gibson was inspiring and made us feel like we could achieve all of our goals. We were very fascinated by listening to
his story. We loved every minute of it!" ~Mrs. Larade’s Grade 4 class
“The D.O Gibson presentation was really motivational and inspiring!" ~Alison H (Ms. Fazzari, Grade 7)
"It was a fun presentation to learn about how you can stand up for yourself!" ~ Julie M (Ms. Fazzari, Grade 7)
Very informative & special as D.O told us his story of when he was a young boy and defied the odds." ~ Veronica S (Ms. Fazzari, Grade 7)
"Trendy and interactive!!!" ~ Kimberley C (Ms. Fazzari, Grade 7)
A special thank you to our Catholic School Council for supporting this presentation!
Tour for Humanity
DATES TO REMEMBER
March 2
March 9
March 30
Lenten Mass @ 9:30 am
Healthy Active Living Day
Virtue Assembly @ 9:30 am
April 6
April 13
April 18
April 21
April 27
Healthy Kids school-wide presentation
Jump Rope for Heart kick-off assembly
NED Show school-wide presentation
Confirmation Day
Virtue Assembly @ 1:30 pm
May 2
May 4
May 9 – 12
May 18
May 27
School Roof Top Photo @ 12:45 pm
Jump Rope for Heart Day
Intermediate Quebec Trip
Variety Show
Virtue Assembly @ 9:30 am
June 1
June 14
June 22
June 27
Catholic School Council Potluck Luncheon
Year End School Mass @ 9:30 am
Grade 8 Graduation
Virtue Assembly @ 1:30 pm
St. Stephen is now on Twitter!
Follow us @ststephDP
What a night at the Brampton Beast Game!
By: Mrs. McCallum’s Grade 3 Class…
On Friday, Feb. 12, 2016 our class had the pleasure of visiting
the Tour for Humanity bus. At first we weren’t sure what to
expect as we knew that the whole presentation was on the bus
and we weren’t sure what was inside. When we entered the bus
we were surprised to see that it was set up as a theater. It was
cool!! We all took a seat and discussed words like
discrimination, racism, and anti-Semitism. We also discussed
why it’s never a good idea to judge people by stereotypes or first
impressions. Then we talked about what makes a hero, and
discussed some of our modern day heroes, such as Terry Fox,
Mother Theresa, Martin Luther King, and Malala Yousafzai.
All in all it was a great discussion and cool location.