A NEW YEAR’S PRAYER
God of this New Year, we are walking into mystery.
We face the future, not knowing what the days or
months will bring to us or how we will respond. Be
Love in us as journey. May we welcome all who
come our way.
Deepen our faith to see all of life through you eyes.
Fill us with hope and an abiding trust that you dwell
in us amidst all our joys and sorrows. Thank-you for
the treasure of or 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.
MESSAGE FROM THE PRINCIPAL
NEW! Get School-Wide Messages from
Mr. LaCute Through ‘Remind’!
For those parents already using ‘Remind’ one-way
communication from your child’s teacher, Mr.
LaCute is starting his own to send school-wide
messages! For those of you who are interested but
have never used it, it is very easy. Read on!...
To receive messages (1) via text, text @mrlacute to
(289) 271-0221. You can opt-out of messages at
anytime by replying, 'unsubscribe @mrlacute'. (2)
Or to receive messages via email, send an email to:
mrlacute@mail.remind.com. To unsubscribe, reply
with 'unsubscribe' in the subject line. We hope
many of you will sign up!
AMEN.
INSIDE DECEMBER’S ISSUE
Fundraising
Page 2
Math Night
Page 2
School Cancellations
Page 3
Extended French 2015-2016
Page 3
Battery Recycling
Page 4
National Ugly Sweater Day
Page 4
Reminder of the Jan. 19th and Feb. 6th P.A. Day
NEW! School Wide Remind APP for all. Please read
the next column for details on how to register. This
will replace the school’s Twitter account.
Please note that there is a scheduled PA Day on
Monday, January 19 and Friday, February 6. Staff
will be involved in Parent-Teacher-student
Interviews. There will be no school for students that
day.
Reminder of the Family Day Holiday
Just a reminder that the Family Day holiday is on
Monday, February 16, 2015. The school will be
closed on this date.
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1
NEW! School Council Fundraisers
(1)What is the FundScrip fundraising program?
(Sent home via hard copy and electronically last month)
Fundscrip is an innovative program that lets YOU earn
cash rebates for St. Andrew School based on things you
buy everyday like groceries, gas other
household items.
Every month you typically spend
hundreds of dollars for things like
food, gas, clothing, pharmacy,
restaurants, electronics, home
renovations, department stores, and
so on.All you have to do is pay for some or all of your
purchases using GIFT CARDS bought at face value from
FundScrip participating retailers (over 140 retail stores!)
and a percentage of every gift card purchased is
contributed to St. Andrew’s fundraising efforts!
So instead of paying with cash or a debit card, you use a
gift card that you purchased through our group. It costs
you nothing extra but you just earned money for our
school.
www.fundscript.com/school code:4CAR2P
(2) School Council Calendar Raffle
This year, we would like to introduce you to the St.
Andrew School Council Calendar Raffle. This is your
chance to win a prize every month that will benefit your
family, as a reward for your continued support!
Students brought home a 2015 calendar. Each calendar
has three tickets. Tickets cost $5.00 each, or three for
$12. At the end of every month there will be a draw
and the winner will receive a $100 gift card of their
choice. All tickets will be eligible for every draw for the
remainder of the school year, winning tickets will also
be placed back in the drum, so you have a chance to
win again next month.
Kindly return your cash or cheque made payable to St.
Andrew School. Tickets and calendars will be available
for the duration of the school year, we encourage
students to sell them to friends and family members as
well. Remember, the sooner you get your ticket in, the
more chances you will have to win!
St. Andrew Catholic School Council
Bus Cancellations and Possible
School Closing During Winter
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 and television stations:
VIRGIN RADIOFM99.9 CHUM AM1050
CFTR AM680 CFNY FM102.1
CJCL AM590 CHFI FM98.1
CFRB AM1010 EZ ROCK FM97.3CJBC AM860 FM Z103.5
FM93.1 FM Q107 CHIN FM100.7 AM1540 CBC99.1
CITYPULSE
GLOBAL NEWS CTV
www.stwdsts.ca is the transportation services website
designed to help parents find bus information and to
answer common transportation questions.
Is your
child’s bus late? A subscription service is now available
that will notify via e-mail when your child(ren)’s bus has
been cancelled or is delayed. The “Bus Delays” link
allows you to view a list of reported bus delays with an
estimate of how long each one is delayed. The
“Cancellations-Closures” link provides today’s report on
bus and taxi cancellations and school closures due to
inclement weather. This service is active from November
1 to March 31. At all other times this report is only
updated if inclement weather forces the cancellation of
school buses or the closure of schools. A further option is
to contact the school as bus cancellation information will be
recorded by 7:00 a.m. on our school’s answering machine.
Family Math Night Is
January 22nd- Save the Date!
Our teachers are busy organizing a ‘Family Math Night’
for you and your children! This hands-on fun-filled
event will take place on Thursday, January 22nd (6:30 -
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7:30 p.m). Please mark the date on your family
calendar. We’ll see you there!
Inclement Weather Reminders
Our winter season is here! At this time we would like to
remind all students to dress appropriately for the
season by wearing the proper winter attire which
should include hats, gloves/mitts, winter
coats and boots. When students are
dressed properly for the winter
conditions, they can go outside and enjoy
some fresh air and activity in comfort. There will be a
few times during the course of the year where a recess
may be shortened or held indoors due to extreme cold
temperatures. Our school board policy states that
although consideration should be given for keeping
students indoors during recesses when the wind chill
reaches –20 C, students are to be kept indoors during
recesses when the wind chill reaches –25 C. In the
colder weather, we receive numerous requests to allow
children to remain indoors when students have a cold,
the flu, etc. Please note that we cannot comply, as we
neither have the facilities nor the staff to supervise
these students. Moreover, the health officials indicate
that the fresh air is good for children….not harmful as
long as they are dressed appropriately.
Snowballs & Snow Forts
Now that the snow has arrived, it is of importance to
remind students that St. Andrew School has a strict rule
of forbidding the throwing of snowballs. Every student
has been made aware of the importance of this rule in
the preventing of injury to others. A
snowball that hits another student and
causes injury can be seen as a
weapon. Students have been informed
about the consequences for throwing
snowballs and that ignoring this rule
can result in suspension. We also want to avoid any
issues with students building snow forts. Mr. LaCute has
reminded students not to tunnel through snow and to
not build forts higher than waist high. We certainly
want students to enjoy the snow during recess time and
hope these very simple rules will help everyone.
buses may be delayed at times.
We ask that you please be
flexible in understanding that bus
runs may be delayed due to poor
weather conditions. We suggest
that you please check
www.stwdsts.ca for up-to-theminute bus delay information.
Extended French Open House for
Parents & Students in Grade 4
Grade 4 parent/guardians and their son/daughter, who
wish to learn more about
the Grade 5 Extended
French class at St. Andrew
School for September, 2015 are invited to attend an
Open House Night on Thurs., January 15 from 6:15-7
p.m. Classrooms will be open for you and your
son/daughter to visit and speak with the teachers as
well as current students speaking about the benefits of
the program. At the present time, St. Andrew School is
the school board’s designated Extended French center
for our area. We’ll be sharing registration information
as well as deadline dates from 7:00 - 7:15 p.m.
Refreshments will be available and some door prizes to
be won! We look forward to seeing you at our Extended
French Open House!
Full Day Kindergarten Planning
for September 2015
Registration for Full-Day Kindergarten for the
September 2015 will take place at St. Andrew School:
Monday, January 26, 2015
*7 p.m. - 9 p.m.*
Wednesday, January 28 , 2015
9 a.m. – 3 p.m.
Thursday, January 29, 2015
9 a.m. – 3 p.m.
Friday, January 30, 2015
9 a.m. – 3 p.m.
Snow Date:
Tuesday, January 27, 2015
7 p.m. - 9 p.m.
For more information about registration and the FullDay Kindergarten program, call 519-942-0262 or visit
www.dpcdsb.org. To register your child, you will need:
1. Proof of Birth Certificate or Passport
Bus Delays Due to the Weather
With winter weather fast approaching, it is possible that
2. Original Catholic baptismal certificate of the Roman,
Greek, or Ukrainian Rite, for one parent and child (if
child has not been baptized, a letter of counseling with
the parish priest).
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3. Updated immunization records.
4. Proof of Canadian citizenship or landed immigrant
status.
5. Real estate document, e.g., Purchase
Agreement/*Rental Agreement
*If the rental agreement is not a formal,
corporate-issued document, it must be
notarized.
**A driver’s license is not an accepted document
6. For schools in Caledon and Dufferin County,
emergency rural address numbers for identifying your
property.
For more information, call the Main Office at 942-0262.
At-Home Reflex Math and
Raz Kids Update
A reminder to all parents that
your son/daughter should be
continuing to incorporate both
Raz Kids (Grades 1-3) and Reflex
Math (Grades 2-7) into their
daily or weekly homework regime to help consolidate
the numeracy and literacy skills being learned in class.
Your child’s teacher has completed the process of
distributing passwords and using the Computer Lab with
students to remind students how to use the two ‘athome’ computer programs. Thank you again to our
School Council for supporting this school-wide initiative.
Good luck to all our students and great work everyone.
5th Annual Operation Smile at
St. Andrew
In December of 2010, the Grade 5 Extended French
students launched the first annual St. Andrew’s
Operation Smile. This year the Grade 5 and 6 Extended
French students continued this tradition.
Since 1982, in over 50 countries Operation Smile
medical volunteers have provided safe, effective and
free cleft lip and cleft palate repair surgery for the
approximate cost of only $240 per surgery. These lifechanging surgeries take as little as 45 minutes, and can
give a boy or girl with a facial deformity a lifetime of
smiles. Operation Smile not only provides surgery but
also is dedicated to raising awareness of this lifethreatening issue and providing lasting solutions that
will allow children to be healed, regardless of financial
standing, well into the future.
The goal that was set for the Grade 5 and 6 Extended
French students was to raise enough money for one
surgery ($240). Many students did extra chores, spoke
to family members about out undertaking and gave
their own money to help us accumulate donations. We
would like to thank and congratulate these students
and their families for such a generous and heartfelt
effort. We are proud to report that the students raised
an astonishing $940.90 which far surpasses our goal.
Since its inception four years ago St. Andrew students
have raised a remarkable $ 3703.40 which equates to
an amazing 15 surgeries. Clearly, this undertaking has
helped reinforce the true meaning of the Advent
season. If you wish to learn more you can find
additional information at:
http://www.operationsmile.org/
Many thanks,
Mr. McGee and Mme. Sellers
Batteries/Electronics
During this school year, we have
been collecting batteries and old
electronic devices, to help with
recycling and our Eco-initiative.
Please continue to drop off any
electronics and batteries to the
school. We have also provide an
attachment that talks about the battery recycling
initiative.
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Tuesday Pizza Lunch Update
Pizza days will continue to be on
Tuesdays throughout the school year.
A reminder that no bus day or schools
are cancelled on a Tuesday, then Pizza
Day would be on Wednesday.
2015 Pan Am Games
Right in our Back
Yard – Caledon East!
We have been asked to share
some exciting information about
the upcoming International Pan
Am Games from July 10-26.
Caledon Equestrian Park (just 20
minutes away!) will be the host sight for the horse
jumping and dressage events. Your family can watch a
preliminary equestrian event for about $30 a ticket. This
will be the only time such an international sporting
event of this magnitude (similar to the Olympics) comes
so close to Orangeville! A new series of tickets are being
released online on December 8th. Visit the official Pan
Am Games website at: www.toronto2015.org
Volunteers (16 yrs. or older) are still needed if you are
interested and can commit some time during the event.
How was the Catholic high
school issue resolved?
On Thursday, February 5 St.Andrew school
will be having its first “Ugly” sweater day. This is an Eco
friendly initiative that promotes using less heat. On this
day, the temperature of the school will be dropped by 2
degrees . Hope to see many different sweaters that
day!!
In 1984, Premier William Davis, edified by
the commitment to Catholic high schools of the
Catholic community and convinced of the injustice of
truncated separate schools, announced that the
government would be completing the separate school
system to the end of high school. The Supreme Court of
Canada unanimously responded to a court challenge
against the ensuing legislation by asserting that
separate schools before Confederation were operating
secondary school education with funding from taxes
and government grants and, therefore, section 93(1) of
the Canadian Constitution guaranteed the right of
separate school boards to administer from junior
kindergarten to the end of high school. After almost
sixty years of financial sacrifice by the Catholic
community, Catholic high schools once more became an
equal partner in Ontario’s publicly funded school
system.
Nut Allergy Alert!
Miracle on Bethlehem Street
NATIONAL UGLY SWEATER DAY
We have several students who have life
threatening allergies to nuts, sesame seeds
and/or peanuts. We are asking that you help us make
St. Andrew an allergy aware school by refraining from
sending your children with peanut butter or other
products containing nuts or nut oils (i.e., Nutella). If
these students come into contact with anything
containing nuts, nut oils or derivatives, it could be life
threatening. Some students have such a severe allergy
that only the smell of the allergen may cause a reaction.
On Tuesday December
16th, St. Andrew School
presented the play Miracle
on Bethlehem Street. The
play consisted of actors
from Grades 6,7 and 8 and
the choruses were our
Kindergarten to grade 5 classes. The production brought
the true meaning of Christmas to the stage as Benjamin
realized that by accepting Mary, Joseph and our Saviour
into his Inn the Christmas message was truly fulfilled.
The audiences cried and laughed as they enjoyed the
lines, and the incredible singing.
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Respect – February Virtue
During the month of February, our teachers and
students will be talking and learning about all aspects of
Respect. God wants us to treat all people with respect
they deserve. A respectful person:
• uses a positive tone of voice and body language
• avoids swearing, name-calling, put downs, and
inappropriate gestures
• says “Excuse me”, “Please”, “Pardon Me”
•February 25- Gr.7/8 Cross Country in pm
•February 25-Extended French Lottery (If needed)@6pm
Attachments:
 Battery Recycling
 eRemind Invite
DATES TO REMEMBER
PLEASE PLACE DATES ON FAMILY CALENDAR
• Jan 19-PA DAY
• Jan.22- Math night 6:30 to 7:30pm
•January 23- Gr.7/8 Cross Country in pm
• January 26- Kindergarten registration 7 to 9pm
•January 29- Gr.7/8 Cross Country in pm
•February 3- First Term Report Cards go home
•February 4- Speech Competition- Junior before
recess/Intermediates after morning recess.
•February 5-Interview Night /National Sweater Day
•February 6-PA DAY/Interviews during school
hours.
•February 9- Gr. 7/8 Cross Country in pm
•February 17- Extended French application due at 3pm
•February 17- Shrove Tuesday
•February 18- Wednesday liturgy 1:10
•February 19- Junior Basketball Tournament
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