Principal: C. Athaide
Secretary: C. Ross
St. Dominic School
Superintendent:
Phone: 905.278.9821
Tim Lariviere
905-890-1221
Chair/Trustee:
M. Pascucci
905 302 3096
905 890 0708 ext 20161
mario.pascucci@dpcdsb.org
www.TrusteePascucci.ca
Pastor: Fr. Philip Jones
The mission of the St.
Dominic School
Community is to promote
and foster Catholic
attitudes, values, and beliefs
in a supportive and caring
learning environment.
Together with dignity and
respect, we strive to inspire
life-long learning and
encourage students to
attain their full potential as
Christians.
V O L U M E
1 ,
I S S U E
A Thanksgiving
Prayer
God, Our Father,
We thank you for your
many blessings, this
beautiful country in
which we live, the family and friends that we
cherish,
the common language
of Faith, Love and Hope
that we have within our
family, parish and
school.
Help us to see you
through the people we
meet, guide us to take
the time to reflect and
give thanks for your
many blessings,
Attachments :
Math Newsletter
International Languages
Flyer
Monday, October 12,
2015—Thanksgiving Day
Please make sure you mark this
date in your calendars.
2
Fax: 905.278.1153
O C T O B E R
2 0 1 5
Principal’s message
I am looking forward to meeting many of you at our
O C T O B E R 2 0 1 5
60th Anniversary and Open
House. We will begin with
a liturgy in the gym at 6:00 p.m. followed by light refreshments. Families are invited to visit their children’s
classroom teachers. There will be a display in the library where families can view slide shows, old pictures and sign the guest registry.
The Terry Fox Walk on Friday, September
25th took place. Thank you to Mrs. Fong and Mr.
Messenger for organizing the 35th anniversary walk
to commemorate the Terry Fox’s inspirational Marathon of Hope. Thank you to the staff and students of
St. Dominic School for their participation. Your generosity was greatly appreciated. This year we raised
$426 for Cancer Research.
October is a month that reminds us to be
thankful for all our blessings. Thank you to all the families who have contributed to our Thanksgiving Food
Drive. I thank staff and parent council for their assistance with organizing the 60th Anniversary. Thank
you to all parents for helping their children at home
with school work. I thank all students for taking the
responsibility to complete all assignments on time and
with care. I thank all parents who have joined our
School Council and for giving of their time and energy
to make St. Dominic School the best it can be. Our
next School Council meeting is on Monday, October
19th at 6:30 p.m. in the Library. Parent engagement is essential to the life of the school! All parents
are welcome to attend.
On behalf of the staff of St. Dominic School,
we hope that you and your family have a wonderful
Thanksgiving holiday! May you make the most of the
opportunities of gathering with friends and family for
times of prayer and fellowship; these times present
us with the chance to strengthen the bonds that unite
us as a caring Catholic community!
God Bless,
Mrs. Athaide
Thank you to the St. Dominic team of teachers. This is the reason we have
such an exciting, vibrant school and that our students continue to excel.
You truly make a difference!
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2
Virtue of the Month –Empathy
There are days in our lives that we may see others come to school sad, afraid, frustrated, or even
angry. To live the virtue of empathy is to walk in another’s shoes, truly striving to understand
their situation and seeking ways to help them.
God has given us the ability to form connections with each other—to live together. Empathy
helps us to connect and live together in safe, caring, inclusive communities. An empathic person believes that we all share one Spirit; that we are many parts of one body because we are all
created in the image and likeness of God. We know that God has given us the virtue of empathy so that we can learn to appreciate, accept and care for one another.
St. Dominic School’s Virtue Logs
Celebrating the virtues is very important at
St. Dominic School. A virtue is a habit or
established capability to perform good actions according to a moral standard. In other
words, a virtue is a habit that shows people
and God that I am a good person.
The Lorusso Family knows how important
the virtues are and over the summer they
created our Virtue logs and religious
plagues. We would like to thank them for
their devotion and labour of love. Now these
beautiful items stand in our front entrance as
reminders of the virtues, ways in which Jesus lived his life and ways in which we can
strive to be more like Him.
Throughout the year we will use these logs
when we pray about the virtues. At St. Dominic School we will continue to make the
effort to treat other students and the adults in
our school according to the demands of these
virtues as we celebrate the progress of making our Catholic school—a place of safety,
caring and inclusivity for all.
School Council Update
Much appreciation is extended to the 2014-2015 School Council for all of their hard work and dedication towards the betterment of St. Dominic School community.
On September 28th, 2015, acclamation of the School Council occurred for 2015-2016 School Council.
The following individuals were elected/appointed :
Chair: Der mot Coughlan Parish Rep.: Gabi Mandl
Secretary: J ennifer Mar cantonio Treasurer: Char maine DesRoche OAPCE Representative: Jacquie Pressey
Community Liaison: Laur a Romano Long and Tania Bianchi
Additional Members: J odee Rooney, J acqui Kuyper s and Cam Hyginus,
Teacher Rep: Mr s. White Non-Teacher Rep: Mr s. Ross
Our next meeting will take place on October 19th at 6:30 p.m. in the school library.
All School Council Meetings will be at 6:30 p.m. in the library on the following dates:
November 16, 2015 January 25, 2015 February 22, 2015 March 7, 2015 April 18, 2015 May 30, 2015. Babysitting
will be available. All parents are welcome!!
ST.
DOMINIC
VOLUME
1,
ISSUE
2
PAGE
The Rosary Apostolate Program
We are very fortunate to once again have the Rosary Apostolate Program at our school for all grades. Each month
students have the opportunity to share in learning and reciting the Rosary, as well as joining in special presentations
led by our Rosary Apostolate Team, such the crowning of Mary. The Rosary Apostolates will be at the school on the third
Thursday of the each month.
Thanksgiving Food Drive
Our Thanksgiving Food Drive will continue until Oct. 8. Please consider bringing a food item when you come to the 60
Anniversary/ Open House. All food will be donated to St. Dominic Parish for distribution to families within our community who
are in need. Thank you to the families who have already donated towards the Thanksgiving Food Drive.
The WITS Program
This year we will be continuing with the bullying and conflict resolution program called WITS. The WITS program includes
two components that are developmentally tailored for primary, junior and intermediate children. The primary program (for
students in Kindergarten to grade 3) focuses on the WITS acronym which stands for Walk away, Ignore, Talk it out and Seek
help and provides a common language that children and adults in their environment can use to talk about and respond to situations. The WITS LEADS program is aimed at the students in grades 4-8. The LEADS acronym stands for Look and listen,
Explore points of view, Act, Did it work? and Seek help. This program promotes leadership and social responsibility among
older children and encourages them to solve peer conflict situation using these five program solving steps.
Every month we will review strategies with students during our virtue assemblies and teachers will lead their class in activities
that will focus on these strategies.
Although the WITS program has been introduced at school, parents have an essential role to play at
home as well. Talking about WITS at home, teaches children to apply these strategies beyond the
school walls.
When parents help children process strategies to deal with conflicts, they:
 Empower their children to stand up for themselves
 Show they are available to help solve problems
 Teach their children the skills they need to solve problems before they escalate.
Dance-a-thon Fundraising Event
We will be hosting a Dance-a-thon on October 30, 2015. The host for this interactive dancing event will be from Presswood Entertainment. Students will be receiving pledge cards and are encouraged to get sponsors who are friends, relatives or neighbours.
Students are not to go door to door to obtain sponsors.
Students will be invited to come down to the gym for a scheduled time and to dance to various songs of their choice. Money
raised from this event will go towards school needs. Envelopes will go home on October 9th.
Halloween
All students from Kindergarten to Grade 8 are encouraged to wear Halloween costumes or the Halloween
colours of orange and black on Friday, October 30th. We kindly ask that students not wear masks and
please do not send make-up to school. Please remember items associated with violence are not permitted.
All costumes must be appropriate for school. A reminder that students will be participating in the Dance-athon that day so costumes should be comfortable and safe as they will be in the gym dancing as well as participating in outdoor recesses. Also please do not send in food items to share due to food allergies.
Halloween Safety



Plan your route in advance
Stay well lit
Stay away from cars and friendly strangers



Make sure to check your child’s candy before
it is eaten
Carry a flashlight
Child under 10 should be accompanied by a
parent
3
PAGE
Snack and Treats for Students
4
We are asking that all parents please refrain from bringing in editable snacks and treats to the classrooms to celebrate birthdays.
Several students in our school suffer from a severe food allergy to all nuts, peanuts and all nut products. There is also a
Ministry PPM where the purpose of this memorandum is to set out nutrition standards for food and beverages in publicly funded elementary schools in Ontario. For more information about the new PPM please visit, http://
www.edu.gov.on.ca/extra/eng/ppm/150.html. If you would still like to do something special for the classr oom, a
small non-editable gift for each student or perhaps a classroom gift, i.e. board game for inclement recess or a book, may
be a great alternative. Again, we thank you for your co-operation.
Visitors
Student Absences/Lates
Anyone entering the school must come to the office
right away. The school is a very busy place and we
have many visitors/parents dropping in for a variety of
reasons. To ensure we maintain the integrity of the
classroom program by avoiding interruptions, and for
the safety of our students, all visitors must come to the
office. We ask that you also convey this information to
older brothers and sisters of our students. This way we
know that anyone in the halls or in the school yard is
an authorized visitor. All students leaving the school
early will be released through the front office as they
must sign out. If your child arrives late we ask you to
NOT accompany them to class. Staff have been
asked to stop parents if they have not signed in at the
office.
Please use our 24 hour answering service to inform the school of late or
absent students. We must hear from a parent or guardian if a student
will be absent, arriving late or leaving early. Phone 905-278-9821
If a pattern of unexcused lateness or absents becomes apparent,
parents will be contacted by the school.
Pets At School
Sometimes parents take the opportunity to bring their pets
with them to school when dropping off or picking up students. We would like to remind parents, for safety reasons,
if you have brought a pet with you when meeting or dropping off your child we ask that you please wait off school
property, as dogs are not permitted on the school grounds.
DPCDSB is now on Twitter! For the latest board news and information, follow us @DPCDSBSchools.
St. Paul’s Open House
On November 3 at 7:00 pm, St. Paul will be holding an open house. Students and families are welcome to attend! For more information please visit the St. Paul’s website:
http://www.dpcdsb.org/PAULS#sthash.k4ZJ2v5s.dpuf
Criminal Reference Check
Anyone working in our school as a new employee or volunteer must have a Criminal Reference Check completed by Peel
Police. We rely on our volunteers especially for school trips and without volunteers many of the trips would not be possible.
CRC are free of charge for volunteers. Forms are available from the office. Please acquire your CRC as soon as possible.
Neighbourhood Police Unit
Every school year, all schools are assigned NPU officers (Neighbourhood Police Unit). This year our NPU officer is Constable
Jason Dennis. He has already been visible in the school. His role is to help promote positive relationships between the police
and our school community as well as playing a preventative role in our school. He will participate in some of our lockdown
drills and fire drills. The officer will also be invited to special assemblies and events where appropriate. Please welcome our
NPU officer to St. Dominic School.
Empty Seats/ Student Bussing
Stopr has processed many requests for courtesy seats. However please be advised that courtesy
seat bus privileges may be removed at any time as the result of increased seating requirements
for eligible transportation students. Transportation privileges, on this basis, are extended on a
temporary basis only, subject to seating availability for eligible students and that students taking advantage of this privilege must utilize existing bus stop locations only. Please be advised that students
who are given a courtesy seat it is only valid until the end of June. STOPR (Student Transportation of
Peel Region) deals with all bussing issues on behalf of the Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board.
Questions or Concerns?
905-890-6000
or
1-800-668-1140
Pupil Accommodation Review Policy Public Consultation
The Ministry of Education released the new Pupil Accommodation Review Guideline (PARG) in March 2015. This guideline sets
expectations for all school boards on managing and reviewing underutilized school space, including potential school closures, and
for the greater coordination and sharing of planning related information between school boards and other community partners.
The guideline requires all school boards in the province to develop or revise Pupil Accommodation Review Policies and to invite
public input into the policy before it is finalized.
A survey to collect feedback on the Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board’s draft amended Policy 6.51 Pupil A ccommodation Review will be available for review and comment on the Board’s website at www.dpcdsb.org until 4:30 pm on Friday, October 16, 2015. Supporting documents will also be available for reference and review. Please consider reviewing and providing
input on this policy.
Personal Electronic Devices on Board Premises and/or Board Sanctioned Events for Educational Purposes:
As stated in last month’s Newsletter, the Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board acknowledges the value of
the use of technology for learning. Students are permitted to register and use personal electronic devices (PEDs) on board premises and/or board sanctioned events for educational purposes,
under the direction of staff and only with parent/guardian permission (GF 066- Network User
Application and Agreement, completed at initial registration). Students may register their PED
for the purpose of connecting to the board wireless network. Students are required to adhere to the student
“Personal Electronic Device Used with WI-FI Network Student Agreement” and the “Network User Application and Agreement.” The student agreement GF 337 will need to be signed before students can use the WiFi
network. Please be advised that the Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board will not be responsible for
any cost incurred through the use of personal data plans.
PEDs are to be used responsibly and should not interfere with learning; their use must comply with the Catholic Code of Conduct,
board policies and procedures. Staff will be ensuring that students are using their devices as digital citizens and respecting the
norms which have been established for the school. Any personal communications (i.e., phone calls, text messages, etc.) will continue to be directed through the main office. Failure to comply with these guidelines may result in a loss of PED privileges
and/or any other consequences deemed necessary by school administration.
The school principal may authorize limited acceptable uses of personal electronic devices during school-sanctioned activities for a
specific designated purpose outside of instructional spaces and/or in common areas.
Students are responsible for the safety and security of PEDs at all times and the Board assumes no responsibility for lost,
damaged or stolen devices.
St. Dominic ECO SCHOOL NEWS
Congratulations to St. Dominic School for Achieving GOLD status for the three year as a certified Eco School in
Ontario!
A big thank you goes out to our Eco Team “The Nature Defenders”, and all students, teachers, administrators and parents who
have continued to support us in all our endeavors! This year, we have some new and exciting initiatives that we are excited to start
up at St. Dominic’s.
Take a look at what’s coming up…….
October is WALK TO SCHOOL Month! So, par k the car at home and walk, r ide or r oll to school! This is a gr eat way to
reduce vehicle emissions that contribute to air pollution, which is a major cause of global warming. Walking is also a great form
of exercise and healthy living.
The Eco Team will kick off our WALK TO SCHOOL Campaign on Wednesday October 7th!
October is also when St. Dominic School participates in the Waste Free Challenge Week ( Oct. 19-23th). This is a great
opportunity to engage students in the waste minimization activities that St. Dominic’s continues throughout the school
year.
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6
St. Dominic School Staff List 2015-2016
L. Arduini
M. Andonov
K. Cipriano
B. Ross
L. Morgado
L. Hamid
D. Paterson
M. deSouza
C. Aherne
C, White
G. Nazar
D. Frigo
V. Czernkovich
FDK
FDK
DECE
DECE
DECE
Grade 1/2
Grade 1
Grade 2/3
Grade 2
Grade 3
Grade 3/4
Grade 4/5
Grade 5/6
J. Killey
Psychologist
J. Messenger Grade 6/7
T. Gomes -Romano Social Worker
B. Berce
Grade 7/8
D. Yuskoski Child and Youth Worker
P. Marentette SERT/ELL
C. Fong
SERC/SERT
C. Ross Secretary
C. Somers
Librarian/Planning
C. Athaide Principal
C. Rodrigues Planning
K. Harber
Educational Resource Worker
E. Lacampuenga Head Custodian
T. Tomi
Night Custodian
L. Novosel
Speech and Language Pathologist
Safety Issue
Port Credit Royal Canadian Legion Public Speaking Contest
January 29, 2016 is the last day for Public Speaking entries to be submitting to
the Port Credit branch. Students are responsible for submitting their entries.
February 7, 2016 is the Public speaking Competition. For more information
contact the legion office at 905 278-1705.
Parents please remember that students are
not to be in the school yard before 8:15 a.m.
because we have no teacher supervision until 8:15 a.m.
Raz-kids
We are lucky enough to have School Council support a wonderful online reading program called Raz-Kids this year! This is a program that we will be using from FDK to Grade 3 at school but you also have the opportunity to use it at home as well. Each primary
teacher will be sending home more information about this reading program and how to use it at home. If parents would also like to
receive Take Home Books for home reading, in addition to this electronic program, please let your classroom teacher know.
Mathies
Is a website that offers a number of fun, interactive virtual games. Theses games help students understand key mathematical concepts. Games continue to be developed by Ontario Ministry of Education Visit www.mathies.ca/games
Mathematics Homework Help
On-line assistance for Grades 7-10 students. Every student is eligible to register and use a free on-line tutoring service. Intermediate
teachers will be helping students to login to this useful tutoring site and more information will be sent home about this useful tool.
DATES TO REMEMBER
Oct 1
Oct. 5
Oct. 7
Oct.7
Oct 9
Oct. 9
Oct. 12
Oct 14
Oct. 19
Oct. 19
Oct 19
Oct 21
Oct 22
Oct. 23
Oct. 30
Nov.1
Nov. 2
Nov. 4
Nov. 17
Nov. 19
We Day
World Teacher Day
60th Anniversary and Open House
Walk to School Day Campaign begins
First Pizza Day
Pep rally for the Dance-a-thon at 9:00 a.m.
Thanksgiving Day (no school)
Muskoka Trip Information Night for Grades 7&8 at 6:30 p.m.
Council Meeting at 6:30 p.m. in the library
Cross Country Meet
Waste Free Challenge Week begins
Shadow Day for the Grade 8 at St. Paul SS
Bus Safety Evacuation Practice
Visit to the Lakeview Library for a presentation
Dance-a –thon
All Saints’ Day
All Souls’ Day
Picture Retake Day
Progress Reports are sent home
Progress Interview Night for Families
PLASP
PLASP operates Before and After School
Programs for children up to 12 years of age,
and soon will be returning to at St. Dominic
School.
Want to know more? See the PLASP staff
at our school or call the PLASP head office
905-890-1711 or visit our website at
Health Information
Pediculosis
A problem which seems to occur at least once a year in most schools is pediculosis or head lice.
Head lice are parasites which have been common among human beings for centuries. They are not connected in any
way with dirt, neglect, and so on. Anyone can be infested with them. Unfortunately, in recent years, they have become quite common
throughout North America. In order to control these pests, we shall do the following and request your full co-operation.
If even one case is found in the school, we shall inform all parents of children in that class. We will be checking friends and classmates, and if necessary, we will call in the Health Unit. However, we would ask that you also check your own children and if you
find them to be infested, we ask you to let us know so that we can help you get the proper treatment and take the necessary precautionary measures.
Even if cases are not reported from the school, it is a wise precaution to check your children periodically.
If your children are infested, we will be asking you to keep them out of school until after they have been treated with the correct
shampoo and their heads are entirely clear of both lice and nits (eggs). If we all cooperate with these procedures, we may not entirely
escape outbreaks, but we will be able to bring them under control quickly.
Tips to Avoid the Flu
1. Avoid close contact.
Avoid close contact with people who are sick. When you are sick, keep your distance from others to protect them from getting sick.
2. Stay home when you are sick.
If possible, stay home from work, school, and errands when you are sick. You will help prevent others from catching your illness.
3. Cover your mouth and nose.
Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when coughing or sneezing. It may prevent those around you from getting sick.
4. Clean your hands.
Washing your hands often will help protect you from germs. If soap and water are not available, use an alcohol-based hand rub.
5. Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth.
Germs are often spread when a person touches something that is contaminated with germs and then touches his or her eyes, nose, or
mouth.
6. Practice other good health habits.
Information From Peel Health about Fifth Disease
What is Fifth
 Fifth Disease is a viral infection caused by parvovirus B19. It is a non-reportable infection.
Disease?
What are the
 A red rash on the face, making the cheeks look like they have been slapped is characteristic and is often
signs and symp- absent in adults. One to 4 days later, a red, lace-like rash appears, first on the arms and then on the rest of the
toms?
body. The rash may last weeks to months and fluctuate in intensity. A brief illness of fever, headache, muscle
aches and tiredness may occur 7-10 days before the rash. The time from exposure to first symptoms is 4 – 20
days with rash occurring 2-3 weeks after exposure
How is the dis-  The virus spreads the same way as a cold virus; on the hands of someone who has the infection, on someease spread?
thing that has been touched by someone who has the infection or in the air by sneezing. People cannot spread
the disease by the time the rash appears but do so before this time.
How common is  Fifth Disease commonly occurs in children, especially in the winter and spring seasons when the disease
Fifth Disease? is widespread in the community. By adulthood 50 – 80% of people have been infected with Fifth Disease and
will not get it again if exposed.
Is this a serious  Up to one quarter of infections produce no symptoms. The disease is mild for healthy children and most
disease?
adults. Adults with disease may have painful joints that can last for months. The infection may be more serious for children and adults with chronic forms of anemia or who are immunosuppressed. Infection in the first
20 weeks of pregnancy can cause severe anemia in the fetus. If you're in the first half of your pregnancy and
think you have Fifth Disease see your family doctor. Women in the first half of pregnancy should also see
their family Doctor if they have been in contact with someone diagnosed with Fifth Disease.
Can I prevent
Fifth Disease?

There is no treatment for Fifth Disease and no vaccine is available. Practice good personal hygiene. Frequent handwashing is the most effective way of preventing the spread of Fifth Disease and many other diseases. Cover your mouth when coughing or sneezing. Children with the rash may continue to attend school if
feeling well enough to take part in the activities since they are no longer able to spread Fifth Disease.