St. Joachim
435 Rutherford Rd North Brampton, ON L6V 3V9
Telephone: 905.453.4472
Fax: 905-453-8615
Principal:
A. Alonzi-Peever
Volume 1, Issue 7
A Lenten Prayer
Vice-Principal:
M. Di Nunzio
Head Secretary:
D. Brunetti
Secretary:
Y. McCutcheon
Superintendent:
A. Tucciarone
Trustee:
A. Da Silva
Pastor:
Fr. Edward Murphy
Associate Pastor:
Fr. Kim D’Souza
“Through A
Celebration Of Our
Faith All Who
Enter Our School
May Grow Together As A
Christian
Community”
Inside this issue:
GOOD AND GRACIOUS GOD,
You call Your people back to You this Lent.
May this sacred season renew our desire to live
fully the promises of our baptism and to love You
with a whole heart.
Through more frequent prayer, acts of charity, and
fasting, may we remember
that loving You and one another is the most important thing we can do. In confidence, we ask these
things through Jesus Christ, our Risen Lord and
Saviour.
Amen
THE SEASON OF LENT
The Lenten season began on February 22nd with Ash
Wednesday. The word Lent comes from the Latin word
for springtime. During spring, daylight hours increase,
trees begin to bud and flowers start to blossom. As nature literally “renews” itself, we too are asked to renew
our hearts and repair our relationships with God and
with each other.
Clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility,
meekness and patience. Bear with one another and, if
anyone has a complaint against another, forgive each
other...Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which
binds everything together in perfect harmony.
Colossians 3:12-14
-Cold Weather Guideline
-School Council
-Pizza Days
-Anaphylaxis Policy Reminder
-Windows
2
-Our Catholic Heritage
-Plan Ahead...
3
-Bus Safety
-Parent Reminders for Drop
Off and Kiss and Ride
-P.E.D.
-Lost and Found
4
-Class List for September
2012
-Shrove Tuesday
-Nadine Williams
-Lates and Absences
5
-Snow and Ice
-Breakfast Program
-School Closings and Bus
Cancellations
-Indoor Shoes
6
-Custody of Children
-EQAO
-Intermediate Basketball
-St. Joachim website
-March Break
7
-Student Safety
-Bullying Hurts...
-Dates to Remember
8
Virtue of the Month: KINDNESS
This month we celebrate the Virtue of
Kindness.
Let us pray for the Virtue of Kindness
so that everyone we meet will feel like
we are looking out for their good.
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

Page 2
March 2012
COLD WEATHER GUIDELINES
Pizza Days
The dates for Toonie
Pizza Days are listed
below for the remainder of the school
year. All of these
dates are on Tuesdays:
March 6 and 27
April 10 and 24
May 15 and 29
June 5 and 19
Students may purchase as many slices
as they wish, but they
must bring in their
toonies in the morning of the Monday
before at the latest
(no late orders will be
accepted). THERE
WILL BE NO
MONEY COLLECTED ON THE
PIZZA DAY.
SCHOOL
COUNCIL
The next meetings
of the School
Advisory Council
will be on :
April 25
and
May 30.
Meetings begin at
7:00 p.m.
All are invited to
attend.
The board policy recommends
that students go out for recess
unless it is below –25 degrees
Celsius with the wind factor included. Please ensure your children are appropriately dressed
for outdoor play with hats,
scarves, mittens, boots and
snow pants/snowsuit. On wet
and slushy days, students often
get wet, therefore it is helpful if
students have a change of clothing (e.g. sweat pants and shirt)
that can be left at school or in
their backpack as it is difficult for
parents to leave work to bring an
extra set of clothes.
Weather conditions are reviewed
daily and decisions around outdoor play and length of recesses
are determined. Students should
be prepared to go outside. It is
also imperative that all students
have a proper pair of running
shoes for Physical Education
classes. Running shoes with platforms or wheels are not safe.
Please ensure your child(ren)
have a proper pair of running
shoes left at school or in their
school bag on a daily basis.
HEALTH ALERT-ANAPHYLAXIS POLICY REMINDER
The staff at St. Joachim has been in serviced around the emergency procedures in dealing with an anaphylactic reaction. There are a number of
students in our school who have serious, and in some cases, life threatening allergies. Even the mere exposure to these products may cause
severe allergic reactions that could potentially result in death.
While these students may not be in your child’s class, or eat in the area
your child eats, we are most concerned with cross-contamination
which may occur if a child eats, for example, peanuts and then touches a
book, chair, desk etc that may be touched by the child with the allergy.
St. Joachim would appreciate the co-operation of the entire school community in NOT sending any lunches or snacks that contain peanut, nuts,
shellfish or any other life threatening allergens which could potentially
harm a child.
Instead of bringing in food for birthdays or special occasions, we encourage parents to bring in non-edible treats such as stickers, erasers, pencils, and dollar store items. Students with anaphylactic allergies are encouraged to bring in their own treats for special occasions. We look forward to your understanding and co-operation in making our school safe
for all students.
WINDOWS
The portapak is in the process of receiving new windows. It is anticipated
that the work will take a few weeks. While work is being done in each class,
the class will be re-located within the school.
Volume 1, Issue 7
Page 3
OUR CATHOLIC SCHOOL HERITAGE
(SOME QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS FOR YOUR INFORMATION)
Continued from February’s Newsletter
5. Why did Catholics find the non-denominational religious education of the common
school unsatisfactory?
Catholics wanted separate schools where all the beliefs of the Catholic Church would be
taught, where the pupils would live their faith in a sacramental and community manner in proximity to the parish church and priest, and where religion would permeate the reading, literature
and history curriculum. Furthermore, as modern times arrived, the multiculturalism of the public
school’s student body necessitated the eradication of the teaching of Christianity.
6. What sacrifices did Catholics have to make to send their children to separate
schools?
Because the United Legislature of Canada East and Canada West roughly had consisted of
members advocating non-denominational common schools and half were in favour of them,
separate school legislation, for about fifteen years, contained three obstacles to their existence:
 Catholics could establish and support a separate school, but had to continue paying common school taxes. Thus, they paid tuition for their children in the separate school;
 The separate school had no permanence of existence. If the local common school board
hired a Catholic as one of its teachers, then the separate school ceased to exist. Separate
schools kept opening and closing in the early years;
 In the cities the separate school board required the permission of the common school
board to open a new or an additional separate school. Sometimes the permission was not
forthcoming.
 The legislation required twelve Catholic heads of family resident within a city, town or township common school section. The townships’ common school sections were so small that
often there were not twelve resident Catholic families.
7. Were these four obstacles removed?
Yes. The United Legislature of Canada East and Canada West in 1853, 1855 and 1863 removed all four hindrances. There was no more double taxation. It did not matter if there was a
Catholic teaching in the common school. The separate school board did not need the permission of the common school board to open a new or additional separate school. The number of
Catholic heads of family to establish a separate school was lowered from twelve to five. As a
result, the number of separate schools grew considerably.
PLAN AHEAD . . .
We are in the process of planning staffing and organizing classes for the 2012-2013 school
year. If you are planning on moving out of the St. Joachim area, or simply changing addresses
within our boundaries, please let the office know as soon as possible. Families with students
who live outside of the school area are reminded that they must apply through the Flex Boundary policy to the Principal for permission to attend the school in September 2012. The deadline
for Flex Boundary applications is March 30, 2012.
Page 4
March 2012
BUS SAFETY
Ensuring student safety on the bus is our number one goal at St. Joachim Catholic School.
Even if your child does not take a school bus daily, every child needs to know bus safety
rules for when they take the bus for school field trips, or trips to the church. Please go over
the following safety rules with your children:
 Listen to the bus drivers at all times, they are the adult on charge
 Go directly to your seat when you get on the bus and remain seated until the bus stops
at your intersection
 Never eat, drink, fight, horseplay, or swear on the bus
 Do not open or close windows
 Do not vandalize bus seats, or any property on the bus
 Respect private property while you are waiting for the busIf someone is misbehaving on
the bus, tell the bus driver
 If you get hurt on the bus or you see someone get hurt on the bus, let the bus drive
know right away and inform the school right away
PARENT REMINDERS FOR DROP OFF AND KISS AND RIDE
Thank you to the many parents who have been patient in the morning and evening in the Kiss
and Ride lanes. When everyone shows courtesy and patience, it provides a safe environment for all our students. We encourage parents to drop their children on Winterfold Street
and cross at the lights with the crossing guard, to ease some of the congestion in the Kiss
and Ride lanes. While there is a large volume of cars entering the Kiss and Ride Lanes, we
have noticed that between 8:45 a.m. to 8:50 a.m. the volume is much less. We encourage
parents to drop off their children during this time to help with some of the congestion that occurs at 9:00am. Just a reminder to parents not to PARK in the Kiss and Ride lanes as you
could get ticketed by the City of Brampton Parking Control. You must stay in your car.
Please ensure your child exits ONLY on the right hand side of the car nearest the sidewalk.
Do not Park in the bus lane. Thank you to everyone for their patience and understanding for
the safety of all students.
PED (Personal Electronic Devices)
According to the School Board’s General Administrative Procedures, the use of personal electronic devices is not permitted on school premises. Students should not be using these devices (i.e. cell phones, iPods, MP3 players, electronic games etc.) at school. We also ask that
parents serve as good role models by refraining from using these devices, especially cell
phones, on school grounds.
LOST AND FOUND
Please encourage your child to look through the lost and found boxes at the school to locate
lost mittens, hats, boots, shoes etc. Many items are misplaced throughout the year. Labeling
your child’s belongings helps with this process.
Volume 1, Issue 7
Page 5
CLASS LISTS FOR SEPTEMBER 2012
We will begin to work on next year’s classes after the March Break. If your children will be attending St. Joachim Catholic School next year and there is information that you think we need
to consider in making up classes, please put this in writing to the principal. Educational reasons will be factored into the decisions which will be made by teachers, resource staff and the
school administration. Letters must be signed and submitted to the Principal PRIOR to May 7th
2012. As always, class placements will be tentative until the end of the second week of September when our staffing is confirmed. Please make sure your children understand this process.
SHROVE TUESDAY
On Tuesday February 21st, St. Joachim gym was transformed into a
Bistro where each student enjoyed a delicious pancake and juice
prepared by our Grade 8 students. Rave reviews were heard in the
hallway by students after they left the gym. Thank you to our Grade
8 students who prepared and served the pancakes and to Mr.
Galea, Madame Thompson, Mrs. Russo, Mr. Redmond, Mr. Schultz
and Mrs. Napoli for facilitating the day!
NADINE WILLIAMS
On the morning of February 23rd, 2012 students from Kindergarten to Grade 8 listened to a
presentation by Nadine Williams. Nadine, a native of St. Mary Jamaica, credits her success
to the humble beginnings of reading under the kerosene lamplight to her family as a child coupled with being reared by witty grandparents, who spoke in parables all the time. Through her
stories, poetry and songs students heard the messages of following your dreams and passion.
LATES AND ABSENCES
School begins at 9:00 a.m. Please ensure your child is on time for school. If you are dropping
your child off after 9:00 a.m. please use the front of the school. Students must a get a late slip
to be admitted to class. When a child is late, he/she misses valuable teaching time and causes
a disruption to the lessons being started in the class. Developing excellent work habits and
time management skills can maximize a child’s learning potential. For students that are consistently late or absent, letters will be sent home and the attendance officer may be involved.
Thank you for those parents who are diligent in calling when your child is going to be absent or
late. Our secretary spends valuable hours trying to contact parents when a child is absent and
the parent has not contacted the school. Please continue to call and leave us a message
regarding your child’s absence. This will save us time in the office.
Page 6
March 2012
SNOW AND ICE
As snow and ice are a reality in the
winter months we want to ask parents to review with their children
that throwing snowballs and sliding
on ice are NOT allowed at school.
As much fun as snow and ice can
be, it can also be extremely dangerous when there are many people in
one area. Most student injuries happen during the winter months. In order for our school to be as safe as
possible, the school rule must be that
snow stays on the ground—no snowballs, kicking snow or any other activity with snow or ice that could be
harmful. The safety of all of our students is our number one priority.
BREAKFAST PROGRAM
Our Breakfast program is up and running. All students are welcome to join,
as we believe that missing breakfast can often lead to both physical and
academic difficulty throughout the day. There are many reasons why children do not eat breakfast, including our busy lifestyles. Some children are
just not ready to eat breakfast before leaving home. If you are finding it difficult to get your child to eat breakfast, the Breakfast Program may be the answer for you.
Our program is supported through the Breakfast for Kids organization. We
would also appreciate the support and welcome donations from our parents
or the community. We are asking students to bring a donation of $0.25 for
each breakfast, these donations help us purchase products to keep the program operational
The program runs from 8:20 a.m. to 8:35 a.m. Students are to enter the
school through the Kiss and Ride doors and proceed to the Staff room.
Children should not be dropped off before 8:20 a.m.
INDOOR SHOES
It is imperative
that all students
have a proper pair
of running shoes
for Physical Education
classes.
Running
shoes
with platforms or
wheels are not
safe. Please ensure your child
has a proper pair
of running shoes
left at school or in
their school bag
on a daily basis.
We require that each interested child have a permission form completed.
This does not mean that each child that is enrolled will be expected to participate every day; it simply means that when your child joins us, it is with
your permission and that we will be informed of any potentially harmful food
allergies. Your child is expected to demonstrate proper behaviour in this
program. Permission forms are available in the office.
If you are able to provide financial support, or direct us to possible supplier
contacts, please contact Mrs. Napoli or Mrs. Alonzi-Peever.
SCHOOL CLOSINGS AND BUS CANCELLATIONS
The season when inclement weather may cause delays or cancellations is
upon us. Please make the safest decision when deciding whether to send
your child to school on days when severe weather warnings are issued. If
buses are cancelled in the morning, they are also cancelled at the end of the
day. You must make other arrangements for your child to get home if you
chose to bring them to school. Please send a note with your child informing
the office about your travel arrangements at the end of the day.
Volume 1, Issue 7
Page 7
CUSTODY OF CHILDREN
On rare occasions, we are faced
with difficult situations in which noncustodial parents arrive at our school
asking to visit with their child or take
their child home after school. We are
best able to serve and protect the
child when we are made aware of
legal custody arrangements, visitation rights and any other special instructions. If legal custody matters
affect your family, please ensure
that our office and classroom teachers are aware of custodial arrangements between parents that may
affect your child during school
hours. We require custodial parents
to provide legal documentation for
our files in order to ensure appropriate procedures are followed.
EQAO
EQAO for all grade three and grade six students will take place for this year
during the period starting Monday May 30th to Friday June 10th. We
kindly ask that parents refrain from booking appointments or holidays during
this time. Parents may visit the EQAO website at www.eqao.com for many
resources and useful information regarding EQAO, including sample tests
from last year. French Immersion grade 3 students will be writing the test in
English for reading and writing; and in French for Math.
ST. JOACHIM
WEBSITE
Please visit our
school website
at
www.dpcdsb.org
/JOACH
We have listed
upcoming
events, school
information,
school hours,
newsletters and
links to other
websites you
may find helpful.
INTERMEDIATE BASKETBALL
This year the Intermediate Girls Basketball Team was comprised of 11 very
energetic and cheerful grade 7 and 8 students, who worked hard to positively represent our school at the tournaments in which they participated.
Using their experience gained during the G-Zilla Invitational and working
hard as a team, the girls won their first game of the Mini Family Tournament.
The girls remained optimistic and played hard fought defensive games and
went home proud of their efforts. Coaches Mrs. Hodzic, Mrs. Napoli and Ms.
Di Nunzio would like to thank Alyssa, Carina, Cassandra, Christine, Diana,
Ericka, Kayleigh, Leah, Marley, Renee and Victoria for their dedication this
season.
Our intermediate boy's basketball team showed perseverance and determination in advancing to the final of our family of school's mini tournament. After losing our first game, the boys came back with three straight wins, including a last second victory against one of our school's biggest rivals to advance to the final. In the final our boys proved that a "never give up" attitude
flowed through their veins as they continued a relentless offensive and defensive attack, ultimately falling short of the victory. Coaches, Mr. Galea and
Mrs. Di Tosto would like to thank Jayson M, Joshua L, Patrick A., Hart E,
Sixto B, Michael S, and our grade 8's competing for the final time as a St.
Joachim Jaguar, Timi S, Damian S, Michael I, Tyrique W, and Jose M, for all
their hard work and effort over the past few months.
MARCH
BREAK
March Break
will take place
From Monday
March 14th to
Friday March
18th, 2011.
There will be
no school for
students that
week.
Volume 1, Issue 7
Page 8
STUDENT SAFETY
If a child is being picked up from school by someone other than a parent or guardian, there must
be written permission from the parent or guardian. Also all parents/visitors to the school must
report to the office. No one should be going directly to their child’s class or wondering through the
school. Remember you are a stranger to other students in the school.
Bullying Hurts..Inside and Out
Bullying behaviour ...
● involves unequal power and control
● is intended to cause distress
● is repeated
Bullying can be ...
● Physical: pushing, kicking,
pinching or hitting.
● Verbal: name calling, taunting,
gossiping, or making
threatening remarks.
● Social: excluding, harassing, making rude
gestures, or cyberbullying.
Tips for Parents:
● Let children know, by your words and actions,
that bullying is not okay.
● Be a child’s best role model.
● Teach children to act in ways that show they
respect
themselves and others.
● Talk to children about the issue of bullying
and listen to
what they think and feel.
● Get involved in working to prevent violence in
your
school and community.
● Contact your school to make sure they are
aware of
bullying incidents that occur and request support.
For more information, call the Region of Peel
– Public Health at 905-799-7700, or visit peelregion.ca/health
Helpful website: www.bullying.org
DATES TO REMEMBER
March
6- Pizza Day
9- Gr. 6 RAID Program
12-16 March Break
23- 9 a.m. Gr. 6 RAID Program
27- Pizza Day
30Gr. 6 RAID Program
Chess Tournament @ Pearson
April
1– Palm Sunday - Holy Week Begins
5 - Stations of the Cross p.m.
6—Good Friday
8—Easter Sunday
13-Gr. 6 RAID Program
20-Gr. 6 RAID Program
24-Pizza Day
25-7 p.m. School Council
27-Junior Basketball Mini @ St. Anthony
May
3-Welcome to Kindergarten (for students
new Kindergarten September 2012)
4-Jr. Basketball Family Tournament @ St.
Anthony
7-11: Catholic Education Week
8-Jr. Girls Board Basketball Tournament
9-1:30 p.m. Liturgy celebrating Blessed
Mother Mary
10–Jr. Boys Board Basketball
11-PA Day (No School)
15-Pizza Day
16-Hep. B. & Gr. 8 HPV
21-Victoria Day
29-Pizza Day
30-School Council