Farewell!
Mrs. Saab will begin a leave of absence as of January
21 st . We are going to miss her contributions to the school, but we wish her well in her future endeavors.
Her planning time position will be filled shortly.
Christmas Wishes
On behalf of our teaching staff and administration we would like to extend a heartfelt thanks for all the wonderful wishes at Christmas time.
Awareness of Fragrances
Fragrances and scents are found in a wide range of products including perfume, aftershave, deodorant, soap air fresheners, fabric softeners, laundry detergents, facial tissues and candles.
Exposure fragrances to and other scented products may trigger adverse health reactions (e.g., asthma attack, anaphylactic reaction and shortness of breath) in individuals with asthma, allergies, migraines or chemical sensitivities. Other less serious but equally debilitating symptoms include headache, sore throat, runny nose, sinus congestion, wheezing, dizziness, anxiety, anger, nausea, fatigue, mental confusion and an inability to concentrate. In order to support those individuals with sensitivities to fragrances and scents, and to possibly prevent others from developing such sensitivities, we are asking for your cooperation in avoiding the use of spray perfumes and fragrances in the school. In particular, students should use roll-on deodorants after gym classes. Often spray deodorants are misused in the change rooms and hallways.
We would like to remind parents of the need to have a network of support to care for children especially in case of midday illness. As we go through this difficult time when everyone is anxious about the spread of germs please note that
Peel Health repeatedly recommends that the best practice to prevent the spread of viruses is:
 wash hands with soap and water thoroughly and often
 to cough or sneeze into a sleeve or tissue
 stay home if you are sick
When children become sick during the course of the school day, a plan needs to be in place to care for him/her. As with all medical issues, we continue to take direction from Peel Health on how to best respond to community illness.
Student Monitors
A very special thanks goes out to our lunchroom supervisors/student monitors who continue to serve us throughout the year. We are grateful for their dedication to our community. We are looking to include more parents/guardians on our Student
Monitor team. Please consider giving of your time to help us. Any support that you can offer would be greatly appreciated. Many hands make light work! If you are interested in helping, please call the office.
Immunization Records
Please be advised that there may be times when Peel
Public Health conducts a review of student immunization records. In that regard, please note that under Section 266 (2.1) of the Education Act , the
Medical Officer of Health is entitled to disclosure by the school principal, upon request, of the following: a) The pupil's name, address and telephone number b) The pupil's birth date c) The name, address and telephone number of the pupil's parent or guardian
Thank you for your support in ensuring that all immunization records are up to date with Peel Health.
Primary Christmas Concert
Congratulations to all our primary student angels who performed in the Christmas concert. The students reminded us all of the true joy of the season. Special thanks to all of the staff for their efforts in preparing the students. It was a wonderful experience for all who were involved.
Student Lateness
There has been a gradual increase in the number of students arriving just as the bell rings. Please note that classes begin at 8:30 sharp and students should arrive at school prior to that time in order to ensure that they are prepared to begin work on time. Please review the need to be punctual with your children. Once the last of the student lines have entered the building at the back, the doors are closed and locked. A child who is coming in late must report to the office for a late slip as part of the safe arrival program. Lateness is a disruption to the class and other students. Please try to impress upon your child the need to be on time.
Rough Play
While outside during recess students sometimes find themselves engaging in inappropriate activities that involve rough play. Pushing, shoving, tackling, play fighting and wrestling are all unacceptable activities that compromise student safety. Please reinforce with your children the inherent dangers of rough play even when the intent is fun.

Snowbank Safety
In the event of a substantial snowfall, Student
Transportation is concerned that students may be playing in the snowbanks and possibly creating an unsafe pick up and /or drop off for students. When the snowbanks are high, the appropriate location to wait for the bus would be where the area has been shoveled and a pathway exists. Parents are asked to discuss this safety rule. As well, bus drivers have been instructed to be cautious about where students are dropped off.
Parent Volunteers
We are very fortunate to have many beautiful decorations for the Christmas season. Such a display would not be possible without the help of our parent volunteer crew who put up the Christmas decorations and then came in and took them all down. In addition, many volunteers from the Parent Group worked with the student Sprit Group in our Christmas Café. The contribution of your time during such a busy season is greatly appreciated.
Your support of our Christmas Care Projects is also greatly appreciated. The community here has been very generous in making donations for those less fortunate. We are so lucky to have people who just jump in to help out in so many ways.
Snow Stays on the Ground
Every year about this time we need to remind students that throwing snowballs and/or kicking snow is prohibited on school property - before, during or after school hours. If students are caught throwing snow in any fashion, their behavior will be addressed by the staff on duty and by the office. Thanks to all for your cooperation.
Grandfriends
Our Grade 7 Youth Faith Ambassadors will be visiting the residents at the King Nursing Home. Students engage with the residents by playing cards and Bingo, making crafts and conversing in small groups.
Extended French
Any student who is eligible to attend a Dufferin-Peel
Catholic school and who is presently a Grade 4 student is eligible to enrol in the Extended French program for
Grade 5 in September 2014. Completed applications, containing all required documentation must be submitted by 3:00 p.m. Wednesday, February 12,
2014. A lottery will be held at a pre-determined and advertised date if, and only if, the number of applications received at the school exceeds the places available. An information night will be held at Holy
Family School on Tuesday, January 14, 2014 at 7:00 p.m.
Planning for children with special needs
On Wednesday, January 22, 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 special needs which affect their learning, such as vision, hearing, physical, developmental or autism, who are entering
Junior, Senior or Full-Day Kindergarten in September
2014. The meeting will be held at the Catholic
Education Centre from 7:00 p.m. – 8:30 p.m. For more information about this session, call 905-890-0708.
Hockey
Thanks to the parents, students and staff for supporting our Intermediate Hockey teams once again. The team members include, Connor M., Tyler S.,
Aaron B., Tomas Z., Joseph B., Antonio A., Michael H.,
Justin B., Jordon D., James W., Nicholas F., Joseph Q.,
Devon P., Daniel A., Nicholas G. and Anthony M.
Special thanks to our coaches, Mrs. Mangiapane and
Mr. D’Agostino.
Term One Report Cards
Term 1 report cards will be sent home on Tuesday,
February 4 th . Parent/student/teacher interviews will be scheduled for the evening of Thursday, February
6 th . Parents will receive interview scheduling forms.
There will not be report cards for Junior or Senior
Kindergarten students at this time of year. However, interviews will be available for the parents of our
Kindergarten students.
Student Illness
Students who are ill should be kept home where they are most comfortable and can get better sooner. A child who is too ill to go out for recess is too ill to be at school. Your cooperation to keep your child home when he/she is ill is appreciated. We do not have the facilities to care for sick children at school and we are concerned for the health of others who may unnecessarily be exposed to the spread of viruses and other illnesses.

Bar Soap and Salt Donations
Again this year, the grade 8’s will be travelling to Dr.
Simone’s warehouse at the end of January to pack containers, that will be sent to several developing countries in the world. We are collecting bar soap and table salt to send with the grade 8’s. Please support
Soap and Salt campaign for Hope. All items should be sent to the school no later than, January 23. Thank you.
Fifth Disease-Please Inform the School
Fifth disease has the potential to put staff, volunteers and other parents, who may be pregnant, at risk. As a school we are asking, if your child shows symptoms of fifth disease please bring him/her to your family physician to obtain an actual diagnosis. Symptoms may include: mild usually non febrile infection, a
“slapped cheeks” rash on the face followed by a fine lace like rash on the trunk and extremities, rash may be more pronounced during exercise, stress or environmental changes (e.g. temperature and exposure to sunlight). In exceptional cases, the rash can take up to 5 weeks to disappear entirely. In the event that your child is diagnosed with fifth disease, could you please inform the school.
Athletic Council
This year we continue to expand the leadership opportunities for our students with our Athletic
Council. We would like to thank the student-members of our Athletic Council who are organizing Intramural sport activities (currently basketball for our grade 6 students) and those who are organizing our House system. We are grateful to the staff who are working with these students.
Spectators at Tournaments and Games
Please note that our teams represent our school at a number of games and tournaments and those team members are supervised by the coaching staff. Only those players participating at these events should be in attendance. Students are not excused from their responsibility to attend school for the purpose of supporting friends at these events.
Junior Girl’s Basketball Team
Congratulations to all the girls who tried out for the team! Those representing the school at the Bolton
Tournament on February 12 will be Laura P., Julianna
Q., Emma O., Samantha T., Isabella Z., Mia C., Natalie C.,
Sara R., Tristan W. and Maya C. Thank you to the dedicated coaches, Mrs. Filippo and Mrs. DeAngelis.
Junior Boy’s Basketball Team
The boy’s team has now been selected and they are preparing for the Bolton
Basketball tournament to be held on
Friday, February 12. Congratulations to the following students who will represent the school, Saulius M., Joshua T., Xavier D.,
Gerik G., William V., Tino V., Nicholas S., Jorge
B., Christian X. and Julian I. Special thanks to coaches
Mr. MacNeil and Mr. Pusztai.
Youth Faith Ambassadors
We would like to recognize the leadership of our students who are involved in events which actively demonstrates their faith in action. These Grade 7 & 8 students prepared for Christmas by distributing
Advent Wreaths to the classrooms and providing a blessing for each. They meet regulary under the guidance of Mrs. D’Amico, Mme. LaRosa, Mme. Filippo and Mme. Attard. Currently, they are organizing the
Soap and Table Salt donations for Dr. Simone’s warehouse.
Library
Book Fair: Thank you once again to the school community for the wonderful support given to the book fair. We thank the parent volunteers who offered their time to help out and the students for their support through purchases made. All proceeds will go towards purchasing new resources for our library.
Forest of Reading: The library will be running the
Forest of Reading Programs again this year. Mrs. Condotta will be reading 10 newly published picture books to grades 1, 2 and 3 as part of the Blue Spruce
Program. Silver Birch Express and Silver Birch Reading
Programs will be offered to grades 3, 4, 5 and 6 students. Red Maple will be available for our intermediates. Students are encouraged to sign up with Mrs. Condotta and start reading. Feel free to check out nominated titles at www.accessola.org
. The Forest of Reading Program provides students with a wonderful opportunity to become involved in reading good quality Canadian literature. Thank you to the Parent Council for their support in helping to purchase books for the program.
Tumble Book Library: - Online database of picture books, read-along chapter books and so much more available at home or school.
Check out our school website for more details.