25 Mountainberry Rd, Brampton, ON L6R IJ3 Phone: (905) 789-1741 Fax: (905) 789-1958 “Achieving, Believing & Caring” Principal: K. Dolan Vice Principal: S. Chambers Secretary: P. Tomei (905) 789-1741 http://www.dpcdsb.org/FCTIP St. Marguerite D’Youville Parish (905) 792-7497 Pastor: R. Mignella Associates: Fr. B. Alphonsus/Fr. R. Tolentino http://dyouvilleparish.ca/contact/ Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board (905) 890-1221 Trustee: S. Xaviour Superintendent: L. Storey http://www.dpcdsb.org/ THE HOLY YEAR OF MERCY PRINCIPAL’S MESSAGE The staff of Father Clair Tipping bring greetings to students, and families and a sincere welcome back to all from what we hope was a most restful and enjoyable Christmas holiday. We wish you and your family a very happy and prosperous New Year in 2016! Thank you to the teachers and students who worked so hard to prepare for the Kindergarten and Primary Christmas Concerts. The concerts showcased the talents and enthusiasm of our students and was a wonderful reminder of what the Christmas season is all about. I would also like to thank all the students, their parents and the teachers who worked so hard to support our Helping Hands Food Drive that supported four families in our school community. Money that was collected through donations and our gift basket draw was used to purchase gift cards for our families. Our sincere thanks also goes out to Aspen Ridge Homes through donations received from Mr. and Mrs. Onorati who donated 4 large gift baskets and 4 gift cards valued at over $100 each! In addition our Catholic School Council donated $350.00! A big thank you also goes out to Mrs. Connor & Mrs. Sorochan (our staff coordinators), Mrs. Bowles, Mrs. Bastasin, Mrs. Williamson and our school staff. Thank you also to our community officer – Constable Eric Grant from the Peel Police as we delivered all of the food items collected to our families. Through your continued generosity and kindness our school has made a huge difference in the lives of these families. Thank you! Wishing you and your families the very best in 2016! K. Dolan Inside this Edition Term 1 Report Cards and Full Day Kindergarten Registration Extended French and Safe Schools Winter Weather Guidelines and Info. Valentine’s Dance-A-Thon Calendar Dates – January and February REMINDER OF MONDAY, JANUARY 18th - PA Day (No school for students) Page 2 Page 3 Page 3-4 Page 5 Page 5 Monday, January 18th is a PA day for staff involved in Assessment and Evaluation of student progress Achieving, Believing & Caring KINDERGARTEN REGISTRATION 2016-17 VIRTUE CORNER Father Clair Tipping will be offering our full day Kindergarten registration for Junior and Senior Kindergarten for the 2016-17 school year at Father Clair Tipping School on the following dates: Monday, January 25, 2016 - 7:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m. *Snow Date: Tuesday, January 26, 2016 - 7:00 p.m. 9:00 p.m. Wednesday, Thursday & Friday, January 27 – January 29, 2016: 9:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. For the month of January, our Virtue is Self-Control Full Day Kindergarten – Children must be at least 4 years of age by December 31, 2016. God wants us to do what we know and feel is right. A person with self-control: • is patient • knows how to wait his/her turn • can calm him/herself down and think before reacting to situations • knows how to avoid physical aggression (hitting, kicking, pushing, etc.) • can think things through Self-Control helps us to resist the temptation to do something that we will regret. It also helps us to resist the temptation to do something that will harm ourselves or others. Each time you exercise self-control you grow stronger in the Lord and invite peace to settle over your life as you avoid any guilt you may feel from having made a poor decision. REPORTING – TERM 1 Term 1 report cards will be sent home on Tuesday, February 2nd for grades 1-8. Interviews will be held during the evening of Thursday, February 4th. Interviews will also be held during the day on Friday, February 5th (PA Day). Please note there are no report cards for JK/SK at this time of year, however, parents may schedule an interview to discuss their child’s progress at a mutually agreed time with their child’s teacher. The report card interview is designed to complement the Ontario Report Card by enabling parents to communicate with teachers about their child’s progress and to discuss next steps for improvement. Parents will receive a form in the near future that will allow you to indicate your preference for interview day and time. Every attempt will be made to ensure interview times for families with more than one child attending the school are scheduled close together. Parents/Guardians should bring the following documents when registering their child: proof of age of the child (birth certificate or passport) original Roman Catholic Baptismal Certificate (for child and/or parent/guardian) or Baptismal Certificate from an Eastern Church in full communion with the Holy See of Rome, the parent/guardian must bring their own baptismal certificate 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 (two of the following: Property tax bill, current utility bill, real estate document or Government of Canada issued forms) Kindergarten Registration Packages will be available to parents for pick-up starting on January 4th. This way, parents can take the information home and have time to fill out the forms and coordinate all necessary documents before coming in person to register on January 25th. DUFFERIN-PEEL HOSTS PARENT EVENING TO SUPPORT THE TRANSITION OF STUDENTS WITH DIFFERING ABILITIES INTO KINDERGARTEN On Tuesday, January12th, the Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board’s Special Education and Support Services Department will host a Kindergarten entry planning information session. This meeting is for parents and guardians of children with differing abilities which affect their learning, such as vision, hearing, speech, autism, physical/medical and/or developmental delays in their cognitive and/or motor areas, who are entering Kindergarten in September 2016. This meeting will be held at the Catholic Education Centre from 7:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. For more information about this session please call 905-890-0708 extension 24011. Achieving, Believing & Caring 2 WHAT: Parent Evening to Support the Transition of Students with Differing Abilities into Kindergarten WHEN: Tuesday, January 12, 2016 7:00 p.m. – 8:30 p.m. *Snow Date: January 13, 2016 WHERE: Catholic Education Centre – Room 301 40 Matheson Blvd. West Mississauga (Hurontario and Matheson) EXTENDED FRENCH INFORMATION MEETING Parents of grade 4 students interested in the Extended French program are invited to attend an information meeting. School: St. Jean Brebeuf in Brampton Address: 63 Glenforest Road Phone: 905-791-8529 Date: Thursday, January 14, 2016 Time: 7:00 p.m. 5. Students are only to be picked up from the school by an authorized adult. If we do not know who you are we will contact the custodial parent to verify the request. 6. If your regular routine of picking up your child has changed, you must indicate this in a note to your son/daughter’s classroom teacher. GROWING HEALTHY TOGETHER! FCT is part of the of Ministry of Education’s Healthy Living Initiative – promoting healthy foods and active living! Great websites to visit include: www.dieticians.ca/eatwell www.healthcanada.gc.ca/foodguide www.ontariogreenhouse.com Stay tuned for more information about our healthy school initiatives! PHOTOS FOR SK & GRADE 8 GRADUATION Photographers will be in on Friday, January 22nd to take graduation photos for our SK Kindergarten and Grade 8 Students. A letter will be sent out prior to this date with more information. SAFE SCHOOL PROCEDURES Creating a safe and caring school environment in which staff and students respect and trust each other is an important focus at our school. Lockdown, and fire-safety drills as well as safety and anti-bullying education programs with Peel Police are part of our ongoing procedures and programs undertaken each year with our students and staff. We appreciate your compliance with our school rules. To help create a safe environment, parents and visitors are reminded of the following safety guidelines: 1. Parents should ONLY enter the school through the front door using the buzzer system. All doors in the school are locked during the school day other than two doors used to access the washroom at recess. 2. All visitors including parents are to report to the office when they enter the school either to pick up their child or visit a staff member. Please do not go to your child’s classroom without going to the office first. 3. If you wish to speak with your child’s teacher, please call the school office to make an appointment. 4. If you are volunteering at our school you must first identify yourself to the secretary. Please sign in at the office and obtain and wear a visitor’s badge so our students and staff can identify you as an authorized visitor. WINTER WEATHER REMINDERS Appropriate Dress A reminder that students need to be dressed appropriately for the winter weather. Students should be wearing winter coats, boots, hats, snow pants, gloves and scarves. Our school policy is that recess is a part of the school day. If a student is too ill to go outside, they should probably not be at school on that day. If there are specific medical reasons which should exclude a child from going outside, please submit a doctor’s note to the office. This note should indicate the reason and the time period that permission to not go outside should be granted. We follow the guidelines provided by the Board when making decisions as to whether it is too cold for the students to go outdoors. Safe Play with Snow and Ice Father Clair Tipping has a strict rule forbidding the throwing of snowballs or ice. We are asking the students to Achieving, Believing & Caring 3 keep the snow on the ground. The students have been made aware of the importance of this rule in the preventing of injury to others. We encourage our students to use the snow that winter brings to us constructively by building snow people, sculptures, etc. Please assist us by reviewing with your child the dangers of throwing snowballs and the importance of preventing injury to other children. This will help to make our school yard a safe place for all our students during the winter months. Snow Hills As we progress through the winter months the snow hills pavement area may get larger. Many of the snow hills created from the removal of the snow around them become compacted, hard and slippery. The snow hills pose many safety risks when many students are playing on them and for this reason they have been asked to stay off the snow hills during all recesses. We are also asking about the dangers of rough play and shoving and pushing other students. Staff will continue to work with students in this regard at school. Thank you for your assistance. Indoor Footwear Students are expected to wear shoes in the school building at all times. Once students are at their classrooms, they are expected to remove their winter boots and replace them with indoor shoes. Please ensure that your child has indoor footwear to be worn in the school. Wet floors and hallways can result in possible slippery conditions, which may result in injuries. Please note that in the event of an emergency evacuation, students will not have the opportunity to put on shoes, boots, clothing articles, etc. Please ensure that your child has a pair of shoes at school, to keep their feet dry and warm during wet and/or snowy weather. WEATHER SCHOOL CLOSURE 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 stations: VIRGIN RADIO 99.9 CHUM 1050 CFTR 680 CFNY 102.1 CJCL 590 CHFI98.1 CJBC (FR) 860 AM EZ ROCK 97.3 93.1 FM CJMR/CHWO 1250 CFRB 1010 Z103.5 CJBC (FR) 860 AM FM/1540 AM CHIN 100.7 FOXY 88.5 FM CITYPULSE CBC GLOBAL NEWS CFTO THE WEATHER NETWORK The School Board will be communicating one of four standard messages to the radio stations. The four announcements and their effect on the transportation system are as follows: (Please note that the highlighted text only will be communicated by the radio stations): 1. “SCHOOL BOARD BUSES SERVING ST. ANDREW, ST. BENEDICT AND ST. PETER ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS AND R.F. HALL SECONDARY SCHOOL ARE CANCELLED FOR TODAY.” THIS IS NOT FOR FATHER CLAIR TIPPING SCHOOL. 2. “THE DUFFERIN-PEEL CATHOLIC DISTRICT SCHOOL BOARD BUSES AND THE PEEL DISTRICT SCHOOL BOARD BUSES IN THE TOWN OF CALEDON AND THE COUNTY OF DUFFERIN ARE CANCELLED”. This means that all runs listed under announcement #l PLUS the following are cancelled. All schools in the Town of Caledon and all school runs that begin in the Town of Caledon. Individual schools will be notified if this cancellation affects their school. THIS IS NOT FOR FATHER CLAIR TIPPING SCHOOL. 3. “THE DUFFERIN-PEEL CATHOLIC DISTRICT SCHOOL BOARD AND THE PEEL DISTRICT SCHOOL BOARD BUSES ARE CANCELLED.” This means that: ALL Transportation services provided by the Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board and The Peel District School Board, including buses, vans and taxis have been cancelled for the entire day. THIS IS FOR FATHER CLAIR TIPPING SCHOOL. 4. “THE SCHOOLS AND OFFICES OF BOTH THE DUFFERIN-PEEL CATHOLIC DISTRICT SCHOOL BOARD AND THE PEEL DISTRICT SCHOOL BOARD ARE CLOSED.” This means that: ALL Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board and Peel District School Board schools and offices are closed to all students and staff. THIS IS FOR FATHER CLAIR TIPPING SCHOOL. If the Board closes schools, do not send children to school as the school will not be open. If busses are cancelled, then the school will be open, however parents will be responsible for the transportation of their children, to and from school. In the event that it is necessary to dismiss students early or close the school during the school day, the decision will usually be made before noon. Radio stations will carry the announcement of this decision. Occasionally, when a storm develops during the school day, carriers will request early closure to ensure home delivery of students. At that Achieving, Believing & Caring 4 time, parents with children in the school, will be notified. Please ensure that emergency contacts (i.e. neighbour, relative) are up to date. SCHOOL COUNCIL FUNDRAISER Dance-A-Thon Friday, February 12, 2016 FCT will be dancing up a storm once again on Valentine’s Day to raise funds for our school. More information will be sent home following our next Catholic School Council Meeting. Our Next Catholic School Council Meeting is on Wednesday, January 13, 2016 @ 7:00 pm in our school library. OUR GREEN GOBLINS SAY…HELP MAKE FCT A GREEN SCHOOL! Participate in our BOOMERANG LUNCHES! Help us to create an OUTDOOR GARDEN! Dear Parents, Our Green Goblins are a group of helpers in the school who want to make our school greener; think about students who want to have an earth day every day....It’s like that. We’re here to make our school greener and if you didn’t know, last year we again won GOLD! We are once again striving to win Platinum and make a big difference in our school. Last year we planted some trees and began our “outdoor garden/classroom” for students. We need your help to get involved and provide us with what we need. We are students here trying to make a difference in our school! Yes, as we were saying we want to continue to make a big difference and we cannot accomplish that without your support!! Some things we have been continuing to do to help our school community this year are boomerang lunches where students are expected to bring litter less lunches on given dates and half-light Wednesdays and Fridays where each classroom turns off half of their lights for the day starting in January. More information will follow soon! Thank you for your support! FCT Green Goblins VIRTUE AWARDS On Thursday, December 17th, 2015 students from Mrs. Rulli’s class presented to our school on the Virtue of Hope. Following their presentation, all of the students who received a certificate for demonstrating the Virtue of Hope within the school were recognized. Two virtues recipients in each classroom were also presented with a virtue’s medallion to signify their accomplishment. Congratulations goes out to all of the students who were recognized! Our next virtues assembly will take place on Friday, January 29th at 1:15 p.m. where our school community will recognize the virtue for January: Self-Control. The grade 4 students from Mrs. Di Federico’s and Mrs. Eaton’s classes will be leading the presentation. All parents/guardians are welcome to attend. Calendar Dates to Remember January 2016 Jan 4 First Day Back – Happy New Year! Kindergarten Registration packages available for pick-up Jan 8 Pizza Friday Jan 12 Parent evening to support Students with Differing Abilities entering Kindergarten 7:00 – 8:30 p.m. CEC Jan 13 School Council Meeting @ 7:00 pm Jan 14 Parent Information Night for Grade 5-8 Extended French @ St. Jean Brebeuf @ 7:00 pm Jan 15 Pizza Friday Jan 18 PA Day for Assessment & Evaluation Jan 22 SK and Grade 8 Graduation Photos Pizza Friday Jan 25 JK/SK Registration Evening (7-9 pm) Jan 27- 29 JK-SK Registration (9:00-3:00 pm) Jan 29 Pizza Friday Virtues Assembly @ 1:15 p.m. February 2016 Feb 2 Report Cards for Grades 1-8 sent home Feb 4 Report Card Interviews for Term 1 (3:00 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.) Feb 5 PA Day for students (Reporting Day) Feb 10 School Council Meeting – 7:00 pm Feb 12 Valentine Fundraiser Dance-A-Thon Pizza Friday Feb 15 Family Day – Provincial Holiday Feb 19 Pizza Friday *MARCH BREAK – March 14-18th, 2016* Visit our school Website @ Achieving, Believing & Caring 5 Achieving, Believing & Caring 6