MARCH 2016
1325 Bodley Road
Mississauga ON,
L5J 3X1
Phone 905.822.4564
Fax 905.822.5622
Ward 2
Trustee
Sharon Hobin
905-301-1210
Sharon.Hobin
@dpcdsb.org
Superintendent
David Amaral
905-890-1221
Principal
Connie Gale
Lord Jesus Christ,
You gather your people during this
Holy Season of Lent,
and call us to repent.
As we return back to you once again,
open our hearts,
so that we might be transformed in your
image.
Remove any barriers that keep us from
you,
so that we may live fully the life we
received at Baptism.
Help us to love you more and to reach out
to others in friendship,
especially to those who need it most.
May the ashes that we receive on our
foreheads remind us of your call to
change.
Parish
May Your Spirit give us the courage and
strength, we need to be people of faith
By Your grace,
may we turn to you in our abundance, and
share your love with the world around us.
We ask this in Jesus’ name
Reverend Jerry
Amen.
Secretary
Debby Vieira
St. Christopher’s
Dunn & Reverend
Scott Young
Chair
Brian Skrepnek
Dear Parents,
March has come upon us very quickly. We have entered the
Lenten season, a very sacred time in our Catholic faith. It is
a time for reflection and sacrifice. We are called at this important time, to focus on others and reflect on how we can be
of service. This season is a reminder that as Catholics we
should do unto others as we would have them do unto us.
Classes will also be involved in special prayers and activities
during the Holy Week to enhance their understanding of the
Holy Season of Lent.
March Break is just around the corner! I hope you will take
time to enjoy the break and become rejuvenated and ready for
the last term. Whether you are travelling or staying local,
please be safe and have fun! Our stations of the cross assembly will take place on Thursday, March 24th @ 10:45.
I hope that parents will join us.
Thank you to all the parents who volunteer in the school to
make us a better school. A particular thank you to the School
Council and to St. Christopher’s Parish, who work very hard
in partnership with staff to educate our children. Remember
to, “Make your own Sunshine”.
Connie Gale
Principal
MARCH BREAK
INSIDE THIS ISSUE:
(905) 822-1171
School Council
Principal’s Message
School Council
2
Take Note
2
Living Our Faith
3
Transitions
3
Take Note
4
Upcoming Dates
4
A reminder the school will be closed March 14th –
18th for our mid-winter break. School will begin
again on Monday, March 21st. We would like to
wish everyone a relaxing and enjoyable holiday.
PAGE
2
School Council
The next St. Helen School Council meeting will be held
on Thursday, April 28 at 6:30 p.m. in the conference
room. Please come out and join us.
Speech Contest
The annual St. Helen School Public Speaking contest took place on Thursday, February 11th. There
were 12 student representatives from our Grades 48 classes who presented their speeches. Congratulations to all of the students who participated in the
speech contest: Samantha D., Doreen S., Rafaela
L., Michelle S., Alek C., Grace R., Carl C., Laszlo
C., Cassidy W., Carley D., and Brenna R.
Congratulations to our top finishers:
1st
Intermediate
Cassidy W.
Junior
Samantha D.
Cassidy and Samantha represented St. Helen at the
Family Public Speaking Competition on February
18th, 2016. Job well done!!
Valentine Cake Walk
A big thank you to the St. Helen School community
for all your Valentine cake donations. We received
61 beautiful cakes and raised over $600 for Share
Life. Thank you to Mrs. Vieira and the parent council for helping to organize such a wonderful event.
Take Note
A reminder from your Eco Team:
In an effort to be eco-friendly and be recertified as an
Eco-school, we are asking parents, guardians and students to please pack Eco-conscious lunches. Avoid
necessary wrapping and prepackaged items. Use reusable water bottles and containers for lunches. Every
Wednesday, students’ lunches will be checked to make
sure they are eco-friendly. The less waste, the better!
2016 Annual Offence Declaration
for Volunteers
Attached you’ll find a copy of the school’s 2016
Annual Offence Declaration for Volunteers. This
declaration saves parents from completing another
Criminal Reference Check, if done within the
year. If you have a Criminal Reference Check here
at the school, we’re asking you to please complete,
sign and submit this declaration to the office.
We're very thankful and appreciative of everyone’s
commitment and support to the students of
St. Helen!
If you're interested in helping at the school, and do
not have a Criminal Reference Check, we ar e
more than happy to give you the necessary forms to
be signed and completed. Criminal Reference
Checks are free of charge for volunteers. All volunteers, including those going on one day school
trips, must have a Criminal Reference Check completed by the Peel Police.
Graduation Pictures
Grade eight graduation pictures are
scheduled for
Friday, April 22nd.
MARCH
2016
NEWSLETTE R
PAGE
Living Our Faith
Virtue Corner
MARCH ~ KINDNESS
This month we will celebrate the virtue of KINDNESS.
A person with kindness…

Says nice things about others so they feel
good about themselves.
 Sticks up for people who are picked on or
need help.
 Refuses to join others who are insulting,, intimidating, mean or hurtful.
 Watches and looks for way to help those in
need.
God has given us the gifts of friends and companions to keep us company and to help us out along the
way.
Every person in our lives carries the Spirit of God and so every person is our brother or sister through
Jesus Christ. As brothers and sisters who share one
Holy Spirit, we are all valuable to God. We all deserve to be shown concern for our welfare and our
feelings. We have all been given the fruit of the
Spirit called kindness. Kindness can only be seen
through actions. It’s not enough to say I will be kind
or I am kind. We must show that we are kind by our
words and our actions. Through prayer and concentration, we can get better at showing kindness to
everyone we meet.
MARCH
2016
NEWSLETTE R
3
Take Note
Kiss ‘n’ Ride @ St. Helen
The driveway at the front of the school is set up as
our Kiss ’n’ Ride, allowing parents the opportunity
to drop off and pick up their children in a safe and
effective manner. To this end, the success of this
requires the mutual understanding and support of
all our parents to assure as smooth a transition as
possible to the start and end of each day.
Guidelines:

Follow the arrows on the driveway to the dropoff/pick-up area. Please do not use the Bus
Loading zone as this area is meant for buses or
emergency vehicles.

Pull up as far as you can, it allows more cars to
use the Kiss’n’Ride.

Do Not Park or Get out of Your Vehicle in
this area, even if only for a few seconds. Parents who wish to get out of the car are asked to
park in the designated visitor parking in the
front and at the side of the school.

Students are to exit the vehicle on the passenger side (right side)

Once your child has left the car, please exit
right away.
Please drive slowly and carefully in these lanes at
all times.
PAGE
4
Take Note
Take Note
Chess Club
Flu Season
The St. Helen Junior & Intermediate Chess team
will be going to St. Luke to compete in the Mississauga South Chess Tournament on Wednesday,
March 30th. We wish the following players the
best of luck:
We are heading into the flu season. Being parents
ourselves, we are only too aware of the work pressure you
experience when providing care at home for a child who is
ill. Nevertheless, aside from being the best course of action
for your child, keeping your sick child at home may also
serve to limit the spread of influenza in the community of
school children and staff. Below, you will find such advice
coming from the Health Department:
Junior: Antony T., Carl C., Jacob P., Kyle D., and
Reid R.
Intermediate: Zoe M., Joshua M.,
Carson D., Angelo A., and
Jonathan W.
• Stay home! Don’t drag yourself into work or school.
You’ll only infect your colleagues or classmates
• Stay away from people who are elderly, chronically
ill, or have respiratory problems
Go St. Helen Go!!!
Wet Clothing
Are You Moving
If you are planning a move, or have already moved,
please let us know. You are required to complete new
assessment forms even if you move within our school
boundaries. If you are moving to a new school we will
give you a Transfer Form to take with you to the new
school. If you are moving but would like your child to
remain at St. Helen, please submit your request in writing. We will be preparing classes for September 2016
and this information will be helpful in determining
class sizes. In the past we have had to reorganize our
classes in September due to unexpected transfers.
With the long, wet winter and the unpredictable temperatures, our schoolyard alternates from icy and
slippery to soggy and muddy, When conditions become dangerous or too wet we close the field to student use. On most days, however, the students have
access to the field and complete paved areas.
We have been encountering some issues, however,
with wet clothing. Often times, especially our older
students, are coming to school without boots and
snowpants. We ask for your assistance in ensuring
that all students come to school with appropriate attire for the weather, including boots, to ensure that
they are comfortable to learn when returning indoors.
Please also consider leaving a change of clothes (or
even just socks) in your child’s backpack.
UPCOMING DATES
March 1st - Dental Screening for all Grades0
March 14th - 18th MARCH BREAK - No School
March 2nd - Grade 8 Grad Trip to see Beauty & The Beast
March 24th - Stations of the Cross Presentation
March 4th - Monthly Assembly @ 10:45
March 25th - Good Friday (No School)
March 7th - Rosary Apostolate
March 28th - Easter Monday (No School)
March 7th - Dairy Education Presentation Kinder - Grade 2
March 30th - Easter mass at St. Helen @ 10:30
March 10th - Dairy Education Presentation Grade 2 - 8
March 30th - Chess Tournament
MARCH
2016
NEWSLETTE R