ST. BONAVENTURE NOVEMBER 2009 NEWSLETTER Principal: Mrs. S. Wolfe Vice-Principal: Mr. L. O’Neill Head Secretary: Mrs. G. Whitten Trustee: Mrs. L. Zanella Superintendent of Brampton West Family of Schools: Mr. G. Prajza Chair: Mrs. N. Carasco Parish Priest: Father Jan Gogolewski WHEN WE PRAY THE VOICE OF THE HEART MUST BE HEARD.” St. Bonaventure There is no trust more sacred than the one the world holds with children. There is no duty more important than ensuring that their rights are respected, that their welfare is protected, that their lives are free from fear and want and that they grow up in peace. Kofi A. Annan SCHOOL MASS On Thursday, October 7, 2009, the students and staff gathered in the school gym for our first school mass. It was celebrated by Father Jan. On Thursday, December 17 at 9:30 we will celebrate our Advent Mass in the school gym. At this mass the grade 8 students, who will be receiving the sacrament of Confirmation in April, will receive a wooden cross from Father Jan as a sign of their commitment. Father will recognize the grade 2 students who will be making their First Holy Communion in May. Parents and guardians are always welcome to join us. ST. BONAVENTURE STUDENTS “CRAM THE CRUISER” On October 5, St. Bonaventure Catholic Elementary School held their annual Open House and BBQ. As part of the festivities, families were encouraged to bring canned goods and non-perishable food items to “Cram the Cruiser”. The goal of the evening was to completely fill an OPP cruiser with these items. This event was a great success as the St. Bonaventure community crammed the cruiser and had numerous boxes of extra food. The OPP took all the food items to the Knight’s Table in Brampton. Thank you to all the families that supported this great event. IMPORTANT DATES FOR THE RECEPTION OF THE SACRAMENTS: First Reconciliation February 19, 2010 at 9:30 a.m. in the school gym. First Holy Communion May 16, 2010 at 3:00 p.m. at St. Jerome’s Parish. Confirmation April 27, 2010 at 7:00 p.m. at St. Leonard’s Parish. CHRISTMAS FOOD DRIVE Our Christmas food drive begins November 18 to Friday, December 4. These items will be given to the Peel Regional Police to be distributed to the Knight’s Table and other food banks. This event is being sponsored by Me to We. A free pizza lunch goes to the class who brings in the most non-perishable food items. CONFIRMATION There will be a meeting for parents of students in grade eight who will be receiving the Sacrament of Confirmation on November 22, 2009 after the 12 o’clock Mass at St. Edmund Campion Secondary School. GUARDIAN ANGELS BUILDING FUND The profits from the popcorn and pizza sales for the months of November and December will be donated to Guardian Angels Building Fund on behalf of the students and families of St. Bonaventure. The presentation will be at our Advent Mass. PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITY DAY Friday, December 4, 2009 is a PA day. It is a reporting day REPORTING ABSENCES In the interest of student safety, a call or a note to the school 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 ext. 2. STUDENT ARRIVAL AT SCHOOL - ON TIME 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 session. STUDENT SUPERVISION TIMES Please note that teachers are on supervision duty 15 minutes before the start of the school day and 15 minutes at the end of the day. For safety reasons we ask that you not drop your child off at the school prior to 8:30 a.m. and pick them up at 3:15 p.m. SCHOOL SAFETY FOR OUR STUDENTS Our Kiss and Ride programme is set up to assist in the safe arrival of students to our school. Parents are reminded that they are not to leave their car parked in this area. Our driveway is a fire route and it is illegal to park there. Therefore, we are requesting that you please do not park in the driveway. This is especially a problem in the morning, during the kindergarten dismissal time and at 3:15 p.m. If you need to park your car when dropping off or picking up your child please park in the parking lot. CROSSING GUARD We strongly encourage both our students and parents to cross at the intersection of Leagate and McCrimmon under the supervision of our crossing guard, Mrs. Smith. The crossing guard is on duty from 8:15 to 8:45 in the morning and in the afternoon from 3:15 to 3:45. PEDICULOSIS Although not a communicable disease, pediculosis (head lice) is a concern to parents and teachers. Each year it is common for outbreaks of pediculosis to occur. Unfortunately, in recent years, head lice have become increasingly common throughout North America. They are parasites, which have been common among human beings for centuries. They are not connected in any way to dirt or neglect. Anyone can be infested with them. When a case of lice is found at school, we inform parents of the infected classes by way of a special letter. In order to control these pests we shall follow the procedures outlined below. We request your full co-operation. If a case is found in the school, we will inform all parents. We then request that you check your own child’s head. If you find them to also be infested, please contact us so that we may advise you on the proper treatment for them. This information can also be obtained from a pharmacist or the regional Health Department. Even if cases are not reported from the school, it is a wise precaution to check your child’s head periodically. Encourage your children not to put on other people’s hats or scarves, even when playing. Inform them not to use other people’s combs or hairbrushes. If your child does become infested with head lice, we will ask you to keep them out of school until after they have been treated with the correct shampoo and their hair is clear of both lice and nits (eggs). Your cooperation is an important part of the efforts being made to control the spread of pediculosis in our school. SNACKS AT SCHOOL Students are given time to eat their snacks just prior to or just following each recess. In order to facilitate the timely co-ordination of snack time, we ask that students and parents remember to include snacks that can be eaten relatively tidy in a 10 minute or less time frame. We also strongly encourage healthy snacks and beverages to help promote healthy eating habits. Suggestions for healthy snacks: crackers and cheese granola bars cut up fruits or vegetables juice water yogurt Thank you for your support and co-operation. SCHOOL COUNCIL The first School Council meeting was held in the library on Tuesday, September 30, 2008 at 7:00 p.m. The new School Council for 2009-2010 was nominated and elected. Chair - N. Carasco Treasurer - J. Ferreira Secretary - D. Kicul Parish Representative - C. Charles Community Representative - M. Hussett Teacher Representative - M. Lyons Non-Teaching Representative - C. Adams The School Council will be meeting in the library at 7:00 p.m. on the following Wednesdays: January 13, 2010 February 10, 2010 March 10, 2010 April 21, 2010 May 19, 2010 Please mark these dates on your calendar and join us! ENVIRONMENTAL CLUB The St. Bonaventure Environmental Club has started up again this year. With new team members and some help from the City of Brampton, Mrs. Dunec, Mme. Burns and our young environmentalists planted daffodil bulbs in the garden beside our front entrance. Looking forward to seeing the beautiful blooms in spring! SPORTS AT ST. BONAVENTURE Knights of Columbus Soccer Challenge A competition was held at St. Bonaventure to determine who would represent the school at the Knights of Columbus Soccer Challenge. The following students won the school championship for their age group and were chosen to represent St. Bonaventure at the regional championship at St. Mary’s School on Wednesday, November 4: Kyle A., Jordan A., Sabrina D., Yavniel D., Claire D., and Nina M. A special congratulations to Jordan A. who won the regional championship. Cross Country Running: Our Cross Country team was amazing this year. The Board venue was held at Heartlake Conservation Park. Our runners did an amazing job braving the cold October rain and mud. A sparkling congratulations to Jahvon H.B. who placed 2nd in the boys grade 6 race. A special mention to Nicole T., Savanna H., Tyanna B., Claire D., Gashi K., Michael S., Cinthia M., Angel B., Jahvon H.B., and Parker O. The coaches would like to thank all our runners who participated. Your hard work and dedication was something to be proud of! Thank you to all the members of the Intermediate Boy’s Soccer team. They braved a rainy cold tournament, and played well as a team. The members were: Marcin O., Michael N., Travon R., Michael G., Peter P., Royce M., Michael S., Yavniel D., Jason K., Andrew F., Adam B., Jermaine P., Paulo R., Gashi K., and Darien L. The Intermediate Boys' and Girl’s Volleyball teams demonstrated sportsmanship and skill at the their tournaments. The boy’s coaches L. Gallant, M. Lyons and N. Arena and the girl’s coaches N. Poerba, M. Baltazar and M. Patel were proud of their efforts. The members of the boy’s team are: Stefen M., Royce M., Travon R.W., Michael.G., Michael S., Yavniel D., Jermaine P., Stephen R., Adam B., Alex B., Marcin O., Peter P. The members of the girl’s team are: Naomi A., Jhoanna B., Renee C., Sabrina D., Rachel D., Steffi J., Cinthia M., and Monica T. SCHOOL CHOIR Our newly formed choir for students in grades 4, 5 & 6 practices every Monday after school. A secondary student, Ryan Cassar, under the supervision of Mrs. Shakes and Mrs. Adam lead the choir in their first performance at our Remembrance Day Liturgy. They were amazing. Mrs. Stehle and Miss. LaRocca would like to thank the Intermediate Girl’s Soccer team. TAKE A WALK TO CHRISTMAS The primary students are inviting friends and family to an evening Sing-A-Long in the school gym on December 16 from 7:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m. Every class will sing a song. The students involved are grades JK - 3. We hope that you will join us. All players showed great sportsmanship and excellent skill! The team members were: Kayla C., Cinthia M., Ashana B., Naomi A., Emily A., Sabrina D., Johanna B., Amelia D., Cathy T., Sarah P., Angel B., Elyssa S., Abigail N., and our team captain Rachel D. CHRISTMAS CRAFTS On December 16 the Junior and Intermediate grades will be making Christmas crafts and singing Christmas carols. Parents are invited to join in these activities. STUDENT COUNCIL NEWS Just before Thanksgiving Student Council elections were held. The students from grades 6 to 8 cast their votes after listening to the candidates’ speeches. Congratulations to all the students who participated. The following students were elected to the “Executive”: ◊ Prime Minister - Martin Vuong ◊ Deputy Prime Minister - Lucas Krenn ◊ Minister of Comm. - Rachel DeSa ◊ Minister of Comm. - Joshua Xavier ◊ Minister of Finance - Melden Perera ◊ Secretary - Cinthia Maldonado ◊ Photographer/Media Specialist - Sabrina DaSilva CONGRATULATIONS The Halloween Dance-A-Thon was a huge success. With your support we raised $7184.44. Listed are the winners: $25 GIFT CARDS ST. BONAVENTURE SPORTS PACK Walmart Thiago - Mrs. Walker Angelica - Mrs. Stehle HMV Keaton - Mrs. Arena Theatre Rafael - Mr. Mowat INDIVIDUAL HONOURS Toys R Us Alejandro - Mrs. Arena Lexie - Ms. Poerba $205.00 Blockbuster Julia - Mrs. Gallant Jason - Mrs. Killman $184.00 Samuel - Mrs. Killman $110.00 CLASS WINNERS Krystal - Ms. LaRocca $107.00 3rd place - Ms. Baltazar $537.75 Sunday Party 2nd place - Mrs. Killman $753.08 Pizza Party 1st place - Ms. Poerba $1194.70 Mandarin Lunch DANCE-A-THON SUNDAE PARTY AND PIZZA PARTY will be held the week of December 7 - 11 (classroom teacher will choose the most convenient day). Dates to be decided by Mrs. Killman and Ms. Baltazar. Ms. Poerba will organize the Mandarin lunch for her class and the individual winner (Jason). GIVING TREE - From December 1 - 16 families and students will be encouraged to donate to the Giving Tree. The donations can be an unwrapped toy, books, games, colouring books, crayons, markers, hats, mittens, or scarves. CANDY-GRAMS - From December 1 - 11 the Student Council will be selling small candy canes for .25 cents or 5 for $1.00. The goal is to raise $400 for charity. On behalf of your Student Council Have a Very Merry Christmas! Brampton Northwest Connects in conjunction with Cassie Campbell Community Centre and the Ministry of Health Promotion want you to mark “December 4th 2009” on your calendars! Cassie Campbell Community Centre will be holding its first ever PA Day Program… “Create Bake and Shake!” Your child will enjoy a safe, fun filled day of age appropriate activities that include creative crafts, fun physical activity and Preparation of some yummy snacks. Register at Cassie Campbell Community Centre: Course Code: 318168 (5-6 yrs of age) $10.00 Course Code: 318169 (7-10 yrs of age) $10.00 Course Code: 318170 (11-13 yrs of age) $10:00 Extended Care 8:00am-9:00am & 4:00-6:00pm (all ages) $5:00 7 14 21 28 6 13 20 27 Sunday 29 22 30 23 7:00p.m. - 8:00p.m. Take a Walk to Christmas 16 A.M. Junior and Intermediate Christmas Craft. 9 A.M. Advent Liturgies by division in the gym. 2 Wednesday Thursday 31 24 9:30 Advent Mass 17 10 3:30 Interview Evening 3 DATES TO REMEMBER A.M. Advent Liturgies by division in the gym. 15 A.M. Photo with Santa 8 Grades 5 to 7 students going to the movies to see “Christmas Carol” 1 Report Cards go home. Tuesday 25 Merry Christmas and God Bless! Last Day of School. 18 A.M. Advent Liturgies by division in the gym. 11 Interviews continue PA DAY. 4 Friday November 24 7:00 p.m Intermediate parents information session on overnight trip November 30 Confessions (Gr. 3 - 8) November 18 to December 4 - Food Drive December 1 to 11 - Candy-Gram Sale December 1 to 16 - Giving Tree January 4, 2010 First day back to school Monday December 2009 26 19 12 5 Saturday