ST. TERESA OF AVILA
6675 MONTEVIDEO ROAD
MISSISSAUGA, ONTARIO
L5N 4E8
PHONE: (905)858-3462 FAX: (905) 858-1673
Website: http://www.dpcdsb.org/AVILA
March 2015 Newsletter
Prayer of Kindness
Principal
M. Sturge
Vice Principal
E. Del Grosso-Milek
Secretary
J. Sequeira
Superintendent
Mississauga North
Family of Schools
T. Cruz
(905) 890-1221
Pastor
St. John of the Cross
Fr. J. Kalluvila
Trustee Ward 9
E. O’Toole
(905) 812-5163
ST. JOHN OF THE
CROSS PARISH
6890 Glen Erin Drive
Miss., ON L5N 2E1
Tel: (905) 821-1331
Fax: (905) 858-8486
Email:
stjohnofx@rogers.com
Website:
www.saintjohnofthecross.com
MASS TIMES
Weekends:
Sat.: 5:00 p.m.
Sun.: 8:00 a.m., 10:00
a.m., 12:00 p.m., 4:00
p.m.
Weekdays: 9:00a.m.
PASTORAL TEAM
Fr. Joseph Kalluvila, O.Carm
Pastor
Fr. Abraham Kulanjiyil, O. Carm
Assoc. Pastor
John Cannon, Deacon
Kate Watkiss, Pastoral Associate
Dear God,
You have done such a marvelous job of creating us and the world around us.
You have placed this creation, including all the people we meet, in our care.
We come to you now asking for the grace and strength to keep a sense of
kindness. We hope that by recognizing and honoring this fruit of the Holy
Spirit, we can contribute to making our school a safer, more caring, more
inclusive community.
May kindness, the fruit of your Spirit, help us to feel the courage to act on
behalf of people around us who are in need.
We ask this in the name of Jesus, our brother, who lived to show us your way.
Amen
Virtue of Kindness
This month we celebrate the virtue of kindness. 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.
A kind




person…
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 ways to help those in need.
FAITH COMMUNITY
Our next mass will celebrate the season of Lent and
will be held on Friday, April 10th at 1:00 p.m. at the
school. Our mass is a reminder of the importance of
partnership between the church, home and school as
we all move along our faith journey. Please join us if
you are able.
Virtue Assembly
The February virtue assembly focused on this
month’s virtue of kindness. Thank you to all of the
parents/guardians and family members who were able
to attend and congratulations to our students who
received certificates for the virtue of respect.
Thank you to Mrs. Lotesto and Mrs. Ako-Adjei for
organizing the beautiful assembly and for the
dedicated participation of the students. Thank you to
Mr. Abraham for his audiovisual support. Our next
assembly will be on Friday, March 27th at 10:50 a.m.
Please join us if you are able.
Student Information
It is important that we have up to date records of your
address, phone numbers, and emergency contacts in
the event that the school must contact you regarding
your child. Please inform the office or your child’s
teacher if any information changes throughout the
year.
Student Absence and Arrival Time
We ask that parents continue to call to notify the
school if their child will be absent and/or late. Your
phone call to the school saves us time trying to
ensure your child is safe. Remember that you can call
the school twenty-four hours a day to report your
child’s absence at 905-858-3462- option 1. Upon
reaching the school answering service please leave
the following information: a) Date of absence
b)Student’s full name c) Grade level and teacher d)
Reason for absence e) Date of return.
Students who are late must report to the office
and sign in. School staff is on duty at 8:15 a.m.
in the morning until 8:30 a.m. There is no
supervision for students before 8:15 a.m. and
students should not be dropped off prior for
safety reasons. Students should arrive at 8:25
a.m. to line up and enter the school with the rest
of the class and avoid being late. Full Day
Kindergarten student will be taken inside at 8:15
a.m.The school bell rings at 8:30 a.m. If you arrive
after the bell rings, please bring your child to the
office and sign them in. Thank you for your
cooperation.
Parking Lot Safety/Kiss and Ride
As always, student safety is a priority at St. Teresa
of Avila School. Please continue to use the available
parking spaces or park in the designated areas on the
street when picking up or dropping off your child. As
indicated in a letter sent out earlier in September,
the Mississauga Parking Enforcement will issue
tickets for those who are illegally parked. The Kiss n
Ride should be constantly moving to prevent a back
log of traffic. Children should not be walking
across the parking lot unattended in front of cars
or buses and will be directed to use the walkway in
front of the school. Please do not leave your
vehicle unattended in the Kiss and Ride. Thank you
to everyone who are using the Kiss and Ride safely.
We are asking for everyone’s patience and
cooperation to ensure that all of our students arrive
and leave school safely.
Storage and Administration of Medication
Parents are responsible for ensuring that all
medication and forms are updated annually for any
student who requires medication to be administered
at school. If your child requires medication please
have the necessary forms completed and return
them, along with any medication, to the office as soon
as possible. Forms are available at the school office.
Medical Alert-Anaphylactic shock- Nut
Allergies
Please be aware that there are students in our school
with a severe life-threatening food allergy
(anaphylaxis) to NUTs and PEANUTs. This is a
medical condition that causes a severe reaction to
certain allergens and can result in death within
minutes. Although this may or may not affect your
child’s class directly, please send lunches and snacks
to school with your children that are free from
peanuts or nut products. We ask that you do not send
in food products for the whole class to celebrate
birthdays or social occasions. A donation of a book or
game to the classroom is a safe alternative to food
products and will be enjoyed so much longer by the
children. Please feel free to contact your child’s
teacher if you have any concerns or questions. We
thank you for your co-operation and attention to this
health watch.
CONFIDENTIALITY
Confidentiality of Student & Staff Personal
Information
We now live in an age where most parents/guardians
and many students have cell phones and other
Personal Electronic Equipment (PEDs) that have
photo, recording and videotaping features. The
temptation to take photos, video-tape friends,
teachers at school and other events is high,
especially when parent/family members are unable to
attend the event. The accessibility of these advanced
technologies make it, easy and immediate.
The concerns that schools have, is how can the
school, maintain and protect the confidentiality of
our students and staff when acts that seem so
innocent can potentially have serious/harmful
consequences. If photos, video clips are placed on
Facebook pages, YouTube and other websites, control
is lost on who can view it. In addition, written consent
from the participants must be secured to post such
information. Dufferin-Peel Catholic School Board
adheres to strict policies and guidelines on
maintaining the confidentiality of students and staff.
At the beginning of each year, parents/guardians sign
forms granting/disallowing photos of their child(ren)
to be taken for school use (i.e., in classrooms, hallway
bulletin boards and assembly video presentations).
Schools should not post personal information on their
web-sites. Personal information is defined in Section
2 of the MFIPPAct, as 'recorded information about
an identifiable individual'. Personal information should
only be posted where in-formed consents have been
obtained from all affected individuals or from
persons who are legally authorized to consent on
their behalf.
Informed consent requires that the person
consenting understands the exact nature of the
information for which con-sent is sought, the
potential consequences of signing the consent form,
and be given the right to revoke the consent at any
time. As such, we require parents/guardians/students
to respect and adhere to Dufferin Peel’s policy on
Confidentiality of Student & Staff Information.
Custody of Children
On rare occasions, we are faced with difficult
situations in which non-custodial parents arrive at
school asking to visit their child or to take their child
home after school. We are best able to serve and
protect students when we are made aware of legal
custody arrangements, visitation rights and other
special instructions. If legal custody matters affect
your family, please ensure that our office and
classroom teachers are aware of any custodial
arrangements that may affect your child during
school hours.
Pediculosis
It is important to bring your attention to a problem
that occurs in most schools. Head lice are parasites
which have been common among human beings for
centuries. They are not in any way connected to
uncleanliness. If a case is found in our school, we shall
inform parents of the students in that classroom. If
your children do become infested, we will be asking
you to keep them out of school until after they have
been treated with the correct shampoo and their hair
is entirely clear of both lice and nits (eggs). We ask
that you check your own children regularly. If we all
cooperate in these procedures, we may not entirely
escape outbreaks, but we will be able to bring them
under control quickly.
Winter Weather
During the winter season, many parents are
concerned about school policy on outdoor recess. It is
generally accepted that when the wind chill factor
drops below -25°C, students should not go outside
for recess. Dufferin-Peel C.D.S.B. Policy uses a wind
chill factor of -20° C as a determining factor for
modified recess. We ask that students come dressed
appropriately with hats, gloves, mittens etc. Where
possible, please put identification on your child’s
belongings. Please note that all students should have
indoor shoes during the winter months so that the
classrooms are kept as clean and dry as possible.
During the winter months, inclement weather may
cause disruption of bus transportation and regular
school operations. A decision to cancel transportation
and/or close schools is usually made by 7:00 a.m. and
will be announced on the Board website and the
following radio stations:
CKFM – 99.9 FM
CHIN – 100.7 FM, 1540 AM
CHUM – 1050 AM
CJCL – 590 AM
CFTR - 680 AM
CHFI – 98.1 FM
JACKFM – 92.5 FM
CBC – 740 AM
CIAO – 530 AM
CFNY – 102.1 FM
CFRB – 1010 AM
DC103FM
CHAY – 93 FM
Q107 – 107.1 FM
CJMR – 1250 AM
TALK640 – 640 AM
CHEZ ZP7.3
CJBC (Fr.) 86
Front Door Monitor System
For visitors and parents to our school, in order to
assist you better:
 Please stand facing the camera and ring the
bell once.
 Please wait for a response….remember,
schools are busy places!

For the safety of our students, we ask that
you always state the reason for your visit.
We also ask for your patience and understanding if it
is during prayers and announcements and if our
secretary is away from her desk for photocopying
etc. For students arriving between 8:00 a.m. & 8:15
a.m. for the Breakfast Club, please ring the bell once
and wait for a response: Thank you for your
cooperation and support!
Flu Season
To reduce or prevent the spread of the flu, it is
important to use certain measures such as washing
hands, cough and sneeze etiquette, eating
nutritiously, getting plenty of sleep and staying home
when ill. Custodial staff help prevent the spread of
disease through protocols such as: cleaning hard
surfaces, washrooms being cleaned and disinfected,
paper is stocked, and soap dispensers are
checked/and filled. Hand sanitizers are also placed in
the office, library and various classrooms throughout
the school.
SEVERE WEATHER & EMERGENCY EVACUATION
In rare circumstances, our students and staff may
need to evacuate the building as a result of an
emergency in the building or in the nearby community.
Our evacuation site is West Credit Secondary
School, located at 6235 Montevideo Road in
Mississauga. Board regulations and safety precautions
require this contingency plan. Should an evacuation be
necessary, you will be notified as soon as possible and
your child will be held at West Secondary School
until we make direct contact with a parent/guardian.
SCHOOL EVENTS & NEWS
100 Days of Reading
Tuesday February 10th was the 100th day of school!
Anticipation built from the very first day of school as
classrooms count each day they attend school, one by
one, until they reach the 100th day. Then it's time to
celebrate! We had a fun day where the children
experienced the number 100 through many different
activities. The 100th day of school varied from class
to class. It was a great way to celebrate reading as
well as the various mathematical concepts that were
taught using the number 100 including counting,
sorting, measuring, sequencing, graphing, and
classifying
Live Free Campaign
Live Free Campaign is a program encouraging our
community to encourage eating a healthy breakfast
to support our Breakfast Program. We are pleased to
announce that we have collected $367.50 from our
campaign to support our school Breakfast Club. Thank
you to Mrs. Ventura-Roma and for all of your
contributions.
School-wide Visual Arts Activity
All students from FDK through Grade 8 created an
art activity based on the book “Crazy Hair Day” by
Bernard Saltzman. We hope you enjoyed the
personalized ultimate crazy hair styles that were on
display during Parent/Teacher interview evening.
Mission Milk bags
We are asking for your help again this year. We will
be collecting milk bags in the front foyer of our
school. These bags will eventually be woven into mats.
The mats are being shipped to Sierra Leone on a
continuous basis by Canadian Food for Children, along
with other supplies, and will be used in the Ebola
clinics to provide something comfortable for patients
to lie on. Please see the link below for this inspiring
video.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NhyhNrEMfY
A&feature=share
Diversity Conference
On Thursday February 19th five grade 7 students
were selected to participate in the annual “We Are
One” conference which was held at Merciful
Redeemer Parish. The purpose of the conference was
to provide the students with a unique opportunity to
share ideas and thoughts with community members
and neighbouring schools about the diverse and unique
world that we live in. It also emphasized and
encouraged us to embrace our lives living in an
inclusive community. We had a wonderful experience
which included a guest speaker who was a member of
the Ojibway community, a poetry slam presented by
students from St. Joan of Arc Secondary School and
information sessions, presented by students from our
secondary schools. The students left the conference
filled with a sense of inspiration and hopefully they
will continue to live their lives with the knowledge
that “we are one”. Thanks to Sarah P., Natalia E.,
Jonathan D., Jason P., and Ethan P. for attending and
Mrs. Ambrose- Leroux for attending with the
students.
The Online Reporting Tool
The Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School board has
developed a new way to help nurture a safe, caring
and inclusive school environment. The Online
Reporting Tool is intended for students in grades 3 –
8 who become aware of bullying incidents and
negative behaviours. The student can simply ‘click’ on
the link found on our school’s website to fill out the
report. The report will then be directly emailed to
the principal and/or vice principal and will be dealt
with accordingly.
It is important to recognize that the Online
Reporting Tool is an alternate reporting option. It is
best practice to speak directly with a responsible
adult at home and/or in the school. We plan to have
this link on our website for the second week of
March.
UMCL Problem Solving Model
You may be noticing that your child(ren) are
completing their mathematic assignments according
to the UMCL model. This is a whole school initiative
and an effective way for your child (ren) to put more
thought when completing school work. The following is
a brief description of the UMCL process. Please
continue to use this language when working with your
child(ren).
U (Understand the question)

Highlight important words, restate the
problem, talk about the problem, what do I
need to know?
M (Make a plan)

Use concrete materials, draw diagrams, use
logical thinking, make an organized plan, list
success criteria
C (Carry Out the Plan)

Show work using pictures, numbers, words;
apply appropriate strategies, do the
calculations, collaborate with members of the
group, share your process
L (Look Back)

Explain why your answer is correct, identify
errors, verify the reasonableness, extend
your answer, explain how you can improve your
answer
Health and Wellness Committee
Great Lunches for Our Kids!
Every day, we are asking students and reminding
parents, to pack a healthy lunch for their
child/children. Working together so lunches will stay
healthy and enjoyed by students, St, Teresa of Avila
has introduced a simple way to achieve this. We call
our initiative, “TROPICAL TUESDAYS!”
Every TUESDAY, we would like to see every student
bring in a piece of fruit or vegetable. We ALL need to
eat MORE yummy vegetables and delicious fruits. We
need to remember to choose healthy foods from at
least 3 of the 4 food groups from Eating Well with
Canada’s Food Guide. (for more nutrition information,
please visit Eat Right Ontario at
eatrightontqareio.ca or call 1-877-510-5102) to ask
for a registered dietitian.
Packing healthy food may lead to:
Greater willingness to learn
Better ability to concentrate, and remember, and use
information
More positive relationships
Less Sickness
REMEMBER,…. ALWAYS work together with your
kids to help to choose their food. They are more
likely to eat it rather than throw it away.
REMEMBER,…. ALWAYS pack a fruit or vegetable
EVERY TUESDAY to take part in TROPICAL
TUESDAYS!
Dates to Remember
Thank you and continue packing healthy lunches.
Health and Wellness Committee
March 2
Ski Trip- Grade 7 & 8
March 3
Tropical Tuesday
Healthy Eating
Apple Banana Smoothie
March 4
Waste-free lunch
Recipe by Jim Wohlgemuth
March 5
Grade 5/6 Trip to Silvercreek
Outdoor Education Center
Grade 8 Graduation pictures
Ingredients
1 frozen bananas, peeled and chopped
1/2 cup orange juice
1 Gala apple, peeled, cored and chopped
1/4 cup milk
Directions
In a blender combine frozen banana, orange juice,
apple and milk. Blend until smooth. Pour into glasses
and serve.
Please visit our St. Teresa Avila
website at:
http://www.dpcdsb.org/AVILA
March 6
March 9
FDK Trip -Jack and the
Beanstalk Play at Meadowvale
Theatre
Ski Trip- Grade 7 & 8
March 10
Tropical Tuesday
March 11
Pizza Lunch
Waste-free Lunch
Rosary Apostolate
Family Chess Tournament at St.
Simon Stock
March 16-20
MARCH BREAK- no school
March 25
Pizza Day
Waste-free Wednesday
Metis Culture presentation to
grade 3
March 27
Virtue Assembly at 10:45 a.m,
Earth Hour
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