ST. TERESA OF AVILA
6675 MONTEVIDEO ROAD
MISSISSAUGA, ONTARIO
L5N 4E8
PHONE: (905)858-3462
FAX: (905) 858-1673
November 2014 Newsletter
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
In Flanders Fields
In Flanders Fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.
We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie, In Flanders fields.
Take up our quarrel with the foe; To you from failing hands we throw
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies
Grow. In Flanders Fields.
John McRae
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 Parents and Guardians,
October has been a very busy month at St. Teresa of Avila School. Thank you
to everyone for your interest, support and involvement in your child’s school.
Our Halloween dance was a wonderful success and enjoyed by students and
staff.
On November 11th, we honour our fallen soldiers, grandparents and relatives
who gave their lives. We will be reflecting with all of our students on this theme
leading up to our Remembrance Day celebration at 10:50 a.m. in our gym on
November 11th. We extend an invitation out to you and hope you can attend.
Finally we should remember that this month we celebrate the virtue of
“Conscience”. We will teach the students that a conscience is the voice of God
within us that will guide us when we make all of our decisions. We will be
teaching our students that when we listen to his voice, God helps us to be good
people.
This month let us remember.
M.Sturge
Principal
FAITH COMMUNITY
We celebrated our opening Feast Day mass with
Father Felix. It was a beautiful mass with our school
choir sharing their gift of song. Our next mass will be
on December 2nd at 7:00 p.m. at St. John of the Cross
church. Please join us to celebrate the Advent Season.
Virtue Assembly
This month’s assembly was held on Friday October
24th. 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 empathy. Thank you to
Mrs. Beckett and Mrs. Tintinalli for organizing the
assembly.
Angel Tree
During Advent, it is traditional for Christians to
prepare for the coming of Christ by sharing with those
less fortunate in our community It is with this spirit
that we will have an ‘Angel Tree’ again this year. On a
tree, located in front of the office, will be tags
identifying the age and sex of a child. If you are able,
please choose a tag. Permission forms allowing your
child to take a tag will be sent home in advance. A
paper angel will be given out where your child can put
his/her first name on to be placed on the tree. Our
hope is to have all of the tags replaced with angels.
More detailed information will be sent home.
G.O.T.C.H.A.
We have been catching our students showing acts of
kindness. Our board is filled with G.O.T.CH.A.
certificate’s for this month. Way to go St. Teresa of
Avila students.
Eden Community Food Bank
Again this year we will be asking
for your support on behalf of the
Eden Community Food Bank. We
will be participating in “Toonie
Tuesday” which will be held on
November 18, 2014. Funds raised
go directly to supporting local families in need. The
donations collected in western Mississauga will stay
here helping to feed hungry families in our
neighbourhood. They provide food relief and advocacy
support for up to 500 families at their two locations
every month.
Newsletters from the Eden Community Food Bank can
be viewed on their website: www.edenfoodbank.org
Breakfast Club
We would like to take this opportunity to thank all of
our volunteers who have shared their gift of time to
ensure that our Breakfast Club is open to our students
from Monday to Friday. However, we are short of
volunteers for Wednesday and in order to continue we
will need volunteers for that day. Please consider
helping out if you are able and you have a current
Criminal Reference Check. Forms are available at the
office and the CRC is free of charge.
Remembrance Day
On Friday, November 11th, our students will come
together in the gym to commemorate Remembrance
Day by honouring Canadian veterans and peacekeepers.
The aim of our Catholic school community is to become
more peaceful and to engage in peacekeeping activities
that demonstrates respect and concern for others.
Please join us at 10:50 a.m. as we gather to honour
those who dedicated their lives to ensure others are
able to live a life that values freedom. Thank you to
Mr. Abraham for organizing this event.
Operation Christmas Child
This year, the St. Teresa of Avila School Social
Justice Club is participating in Operation Christmas
Child. Participation in this program allows some less
fortunate children around the world to experience at
Christmas by receiving a shoebox full of gifts. We
hope families at St. Teresa of Avila are able to join
in supporting this worthwhile cause.
Toonie for Terry Fox Walk
Thank you for your generous donations to this worthy
cause. We have raised a total of $997.08 for this
event!! Congratulations!!
Progress Reports & Interviews
First term progress report cards will be going home on
Tuesday, November 11th. If requested by parents or
teachers, interviews will take place on the evening of
Thursday, November 13th or at a pre-arranged time
that is convenient for the teacher and parent.
However, you are encouraged to contact your
child(ren)’s teacher at any time if you have questions
or concerns about student progress.
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. 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. Please
continue to call on each day that your child is absent.
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
Allergies
Alert-Anaphylactic
shock-
Nut
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 informed 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:
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!
SCHOOL EVENTS & NEWS
PALS
Our Child and Youth Worker in collaboration with our
Peel Public Health Nurse will be forming a PALS
(Playground Activity Leaders in Schools) program to
support our students. PALS leaders will receive
training with The PALS program provides leadership
opportunities for the Grade 4,5 and 6 student leaders
as they interact with students in the Primary grades
and plan and lead fun and safe activities on the
playground.
Cross Country
Our students did very well at the Family meet. We are
proud of all of the students who took part in this
event. A number of students made it to the Board
finals and represented our school proudly. Way to go
team!!
School Council
All parents are invited to attend our next meeting on
November 5th at 6:30 p.m. in the library.
Eco-school News
Congratulations!! St. Teresa of Avila was awarded the
bronze certification last school year for our
contributions to the environment though our ECO
program. We were able to make environmentally
friendly choices during the school year, which included
participating in Waste Free Wednesdays and using our
recycling bins properly. To continue to be certified
and to hopefully move to silver certification, we need
the help of the entire school community! Let’s keep
our efforts going as we continue to be stewards of the
earth by treating God’s world with respect. The ECO
team has organized a waste reduction audit that
resulted in an overall waste reduction of 30%. The use
of juice boxes followed by yogurt containers and tubes
have resulted in a lot of waste. Here are some of the
things we need your help with:
Using reusable containers: To help with waste
reduction school-wide, please consider sending drinks
and yogurt in reusable containers.
Waste-Free Wednesdays: Please send your child with
reusable containers and utensils.
Walk to School Wednesdays: We are going to be
asking the students to participate in Walk to School
Wednesdays in order to cut down on the pollution that
is produced by cars. This will help eliminate the
chemicals that go into our air. Thanks for your help in
creating an Eco Friendly school environment.
St. Teresa of Avila ECO Team
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.
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
St. Teresa of Avila School welcomes French
Immersion!
The French Immersion Program at St. Elizabeth Seton
Elementary School was established as a Grades 1 to 4
program with St. Teresa of Avila Elementary School as
the sister site that would continue the program for
students in Grades 5 to 8. We are excited to welcome
the Grade 5 French Immersion Program and students
at St. Elizabeth Seton beginning September 8th,
2015. Administrators of St. Elizabeth Seton and St.
Teresa of Avila will be working closely together to
support a variety of transition activities. Please
contact the school office should you have any further
questions.
EXTENDED
MEETING
FRENCH
INFORMATION
Grade 4 parent(s)/guardian(s), who wish to enroll their
child in a Grade 5 Extended French class for
September, 2015 are invited to attend an information
meeting at: St. Therese of the Child Jesus at 6930
Forest Park Drive, Mississauga, L5N 6X7. It will be
held on January 15, 2015 at 7:00 p.m.
At the present time, the above mentioned school is the
designated centre for our area. Applications will be
accepted at that centre until 3:00 p.m. Tuesday,
February 17th, 2015.
Full-Day Kindergarten for 2015-16
Registration for Full-Day Kindergarten for the 201516 school year, will take place at St. Teresa of Avila
School on the following days:
Monday, January 26, 20157:00 p.m.-9:00 p.m.
*Snow Date: Tuesday, January 27, 2015 - 7:00 p.m. 9:00 p.m.
Wednesday, Thursday & Friday, January 28, 29,
30,
20159:00
a.m.
3:00
p.m.
The following documents must be brought to the
school when you register your child(ren):
-Proof of Age (Birth Certificate or Passport)
-Original Roman Catholic Baptismal Certificate (for
child and/or parent/guardian)
-Updated Immunization Records (Immunization Card,
Peel Health Form or Letter of Exemption)
-Proof
of
Canadian
Citizenship
(Birth
Certificate/Passport) or permanent resident status
-Proof of Home Address
Please be sure to bring complete documentation with
you when you register. Admissions are open to Catholic
children and children of Catholic parents.
Kindergarten students must be at least 4 years of age
by December 31, 2014.
For more information about registration and the
Full-Day Kindergarten program, call 905-858-3462
or visit www.dpcdsb.org
DPCDSB is now on Twitter! For
the latest board news and information, follow us
@DPCDSB Schools.
Please visit our St. Teresa Avila
website at:
http://www.dpcdsb.org/AVILA
Dates to Remember
November 1
All Saints Day
November 2
All Soul’s Day
November 3
Rising Stars presentations for
Grades 7 & 8
November 5
Pizza Lunch
School Council Meeting at 6:30
p.m.
November 6
See/Hear screening
November 11
Remembrance Day liturgy @ 10:
50 a.m.
Progress Reports sent home
November 12
Rosary Apostolate
November 13
Interview evening
November 14
Professional Development dayNo School for Students
November 18
RAID presentations for grade
6
November 19
Pizza Lunch
November 20
Grade 4 French Immersion
students from St. Elizabeth to
visit
November 27
Grade 8 Parent Information
Night at Mount Carmel
Secondary 6:00 p.m.-8:30 p.m.
November 28
Virtue Assembly at 2:10 p.m. –
Parents/Guardians/Family
Members welcome.