Pocock Pride
PRINCIPAL'S MESSAGE
The start-up at Philip Pocock,
although hectic, was very smooth. We
have registered many new students
and I appreciate all the extra effort on
the part of the staff, especially the
Guidance Department and the support
staff in welcoming and accommodating the new members of our community.
The school year started in the last week of August
with a PD day for the staff and an extremely wellattended Grade 9 Orientation and Barbeque. We are continuing the successful LinkCrew Program to help our new
students with their transition to our high school. Several
staff members and more than 60 senior students volunteered some of their summer to be trained in the program.
We credit this program with the increased participation
(especially among grade 9 and 10 students) in the many
clubs and teams that are available at Pocock . In fact,
a number of new extra-curricular groups have been
established to accommodate the enthusiasm. Junior Boys
Volleyball, Bantam Girls Volleyball, Film Appreciation Club,
French Club, Green Team, Caring Team, Photography
Club and Drama Club have all been added this year.
LinkCrew has been well received and we will continue
with it.
There have been a number of staff changes. Joe
Zammit, Department Head of Special Ed/Business/Com-
WHO TO CONTACT
Philip Pocock Catholic Secondary School
4555 Tomken Road, Mississauga, Ontario L4W 1J9
Telephone ................. 905-602-6172
http://w3.dpcdsb.org/POCOK
Elizabeth McGuire, Superintendent
905-890-1221
Mario Pascucci, Trustee Wards 1 & 3
Mario.Pascucci@dpcdsb.org
905-302-3096
Anna Abbruscato, Chair of the Board, Trustee Ward 4
Anna.Abbruscato@dpcdsb.org
905-890-1221
Principal
Henry Tyndorf
Vice-Principals
Sharon Bolger
Marija Burazin
A-K
L-Z
School Council Chair – Margaret Ramlogan
puters has been posted as Vice-Principal to Father Michael Goetz,
Charlene Fitzpatrick, ESL Teacher and long-time Pocock Staff
member retired, as did Susan Milner, department head of Social
Science. As a result, we welcome three new staff members: Julie
Dollin, Elvira Selimovic and Maggie Niewiada. In addition,
due to growth in our enrollment since last September, we have
added three staff members: Raisa Schnayder in Theology,
Andrew Amaral in English and Dermot McMahon in our
Alt Ed program. Diana Gotal and Angela Catapano have been
appointed as acting department heads in Social Science and
Special Ed/Business/Computers respectively.
There have been a number of issues that we have had to
address right from the first day of school.
The traffic conditions outside the school continue to be a problem. This issue is addressed in another article in this newsletter.
Throughout this year, we will look forward to improvements in
many ways: an expanded Student Success Initiative supporting
continued improvement in EQAO Grade 9 Math and OSSLT
results, enhanced individual success evidenced by improved credit
accumulation, progress on our Sacred Space initiative utilizing
bulletin boards, display cases and wall murals and ongoing development of our pastoral plan and retreat program.
As part of our continuing effort to ensure that Philip Pocock
continues to be a safe and inclusive learning community, we will
focus on issues of cyber-safety, appropriate interaction between
students, cyber-bullying and related issues. A new committee at
the school – Catholic Community, Culture and Caring – will be
working on various strategies to improve the school climate through
improved communication, education, raising awareness and
engaging parents.
This year will be one of consolidation of previous years’ goals
and of embarking on some new ones. I encourage every parent/
guardian to get on board with our Catholic School Learning Plan
by finding ways that you can participate, whether as a member of
School Council, a fan at a sporting event, an audience member at
a cultural event or supporting your son or daughter through direct
involvement in the education process. To quote a former DufferinPeel principal, the late Ed King – we challenge you to “Take a
risk. Get involved. Be committed.” The Philip Pocock
Catholic School community and your son or daughter will be the
beneficiaries.
Henry Tyndorf, BASc, MBA, BEd, OCT
Principal
NOVEMBER 2010
ISSUE 1
Newsletter Coordinator & Layout Person: E. Polin-De Luca
Editors: E. Polin-De Luca, S. Popowich, E. Selimovic
The Mathematics Department at Philip Pocock CSS would like to congratulate those students who achieved an average
of 80% or better in the mathematics course in which they are currently enrolled. Students’ names are posted on the
Honour Roll list which is updated on a monthly basis. The list may be found on the bulletin board located just outside the
Math office on the third floor.
Our hope is to encourage students to excel and achieve more, and to live up to their potential.
After all, we firmly believe: “Sky is the Limit.”
For those students who would like some assistance in completing their assigned homework or clarification of concepts
taught in class, the Math Help Centre is located in Room 317. One mathematics teacher, in conjunction with senior students, provides assistance to students who attend. The Math Help Centre is open from 2:15 PM to 3:00PM, - Mondays
through Thursdays. Additional help is also available before school or by appointment. Please check the signs posted on
the third floor for more details, or ask your mathematics teacher.
The CEMC at the University of Waterloo develops and administers many internationally recognized math contests.
Please speak with your mathematics teacher for registration details. Dates for upcoming contests are as follows:
Sun Life Financial Canadian Open
Mathematics Challenge
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
Pascal Contest (Grade 9)
Cayley Contest (Grade 10)
Fermat Contest (Grade 11)
Thursday, February 24, 2011
Euclid Contest (Grade 12)
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Fryer Contest (Grade 9)
Galois Contest (Grade 10)
Hypatia Contest (Grade 11)
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Philip Pocock held its annual Academic Awards Ceremony on October 21, 2010.
This honoured the academic achievements of 2009-2010’s Grades 9, 10 and 11 students. Many parents attended and were delighted not only by the awards celebration
itself, but also by the vocal performances of Samantha Sebastian, Paulina Cias,
and pianist Jennifer Eng. The top students for each grade received additional awards:
Nianta D'Mello for Grade 9, Daniela Monachino for Grade 10 and Caroline Kwiatek for
Grade 11. In addition, the Joe Hugel award for Top Grade 10 student was also given
to Daniela Monachino. The entire
evening was a proud occasion for Pocock and was topped off by
a reception organized by our Hospitality class. We look forward to
next year’s Awards Ceremony and wish continued success to all of
our students.
Our minds, in learning.
Our last grade 9 retreat for the semester took place on October 15. Our Link Crew leaders helped the Chaplain to create
a day of fun, friendship, and faith formation. The students
especially loved the new location, Fogolar’s Country Club,
which provided fresh air and fabulous food.
For our grade 11 students, we invited an Ojibwa Elder, Anthony Templar, to teach our World Religions classes about
Aboriginal spirituality.
Our bodies, in service.
Between October 1 and 8, the entire school rallied behind the
cause of feeding the hungry. Our Thanksgiving food drive
collected non-perishable food items for the Mississauga Food
Bank. We are still waiting on the final count, but we expect
to beat last year’s total of 1000 pounds of food collected.
Our grade 12 students have begun their annual visits to the
Good Shepherd Centre – a men’s shelter in downtown Toronto. Our students learn about the problem of homelessness,
and spend a morning making beds, sorting food, and folding
laundry at the shelter.
Our souls, in prayer.
Our Thanksgiving liturgies took place October 7 and 8, in which the entire school gathered (one grade at a
time) for prayer, reflection, and to listen to a special guest speaker from the local food bank.
On Thursday, September 30th, staff and students of Philip
Pocock joined together to commemorate the 30th anniversary
of Terry Fox’s Marathon of Hope. The event included a schoolwide walk in honour of Terry Fox. “Toonies for Terry” were
collected from staff and students during the week leading up to
the walk. A big thank you to Ms. Gotal, Mr. Johnson, Mr.
Amaral, and Ms. Dollin for allowing us to dye their hair blue;
Mr. Radic and Mr. VanZutphen for getting their legs shaved;
Mr. Dabrowski and Mr. Sikic for getting their
head shaved, all in support of cancer research!
Pocock, thanks to your generosity, a donation
of $2000 was presented to the Terry Fox
Foundation on behalf of the staff and students
at Philip Pocock Secondary School!
Thank you, on behalf of Spirit Council, for
your generosity and support!
EXPERIENCING “LE CIRQUE DU SOLEIL” - FANTASTIQUE!
On Wednesday, October 6, 2010 over 120 students from Madame Donahue ’ s, Madame Ferrari ’ s and Madame
Polin-De Luca ’ s senior French classes attended the theatrical presentation of “ B anana Shpeel ” , a Cirque du
Soleil production. This show presented a new style of production from Cirque du Soleil, a performing company
founded by the Quebecois Laliberté, that featured a colourful combination of slapstick comedy, eclectic dance and
unique acrobatic acts. We were truly fortunate to be able to offer our students the opportunity of experiencing one
of the most amazing performances Cirque du Soleil has ever offered.
For many students this was their first experience at the theatre, and they found this excursion to be a rich and
rewarding cultural experience. The actors were amazing. Their acrobatic, dance and comedic acts left many of
our students ‘ b ouche bée ’ . The theatre experience was preceded by a culinary experience at the original “ Le
Marché ” Restaurant, where students were delighted to savour traditional French and Swiss cuisine. One of our
students was even surprised with a Birthday treat Le Marché style. It was a day that was enjoyed by students and
teachers alike. Thank you to our Teacher supervisors Madame D. Donahue, Madame L. Ferrari, Madame E.
Polin-De Luca and Madame F. Tasciotti.
e fê te
Bonn
à t o i!
The ESL Department
has had a very busy and
exciting start to the
semester. We welcome
many new students
from around the world.
We would also like to
welcome Ms. Sarwan to
our department.
A special thank
you goes out to Ms.
Carola Cuadro, SWIS
worker, and Ms. Kuldeep
Danda, from Youth Connections for conducting a series of work shops on “ Resumé Writing ” and “ Youth
Hosts ” . We appreciate all of your efforts.
Miss Mckay's Grade 10 Visual Art students have has been developing their
drawing skills by creating an organic line montage, which celebrates the
beauty of the natural world. They have also been learning the essentials of
graphic design and will each be entering a poster in the Royal Canadian
Legion’s Poster Contest in honour of Remembrance
Day.
b
The Grade 11 Visual Art class created abstract
acrylic paintings, which incorporated real leaves
and weeds to practice working with composition,
organic shape, complimentary colours, organic line,
and texture.
The students are also
working on the same
Remembrance Day
poster contest and
are working to
create strong and
meaningful
combinations of words and images.
Both classes have been inventing
cartoon characters for a wall design.
Be sure to check out the
current display of artwork in
the atrium showcase as it will
soon be changed.
The Social Sciences Department would like to welcome back Ms. Radman as she steps in for
another semester to teach History, and welcome Ms. Stoneman as she puts her geography
skills to use!
The Department has been busy at work this semester! Grade
10 Civics classes, as well as other social sciences classes, had
the opportunity to participate in a student vote for the municipal
election. Imitating reality, Pocock’s students voted Hazel
McCallion as mayor once again!
Several trips have been planned for students in all grade levels
in a variety of Social Sciences subjects. Thus far, the Grade 10
History classes visited the Canadian Warplane Heritage
Museum, a living museum featuring the aircraft used by Canadians or Canada's Military from the beginning of World War II up
to the present. The museum strives to create an educational
experience that allows students to experience Canadian history.
Meanwhile, Grade 9 Geography students experienced Toronto through a guided walking tour
with Walk T.O. The tour focused on eco-sustainability, and students were able to visit “green”
buildings that included living walls and rooftop
gardens. The tour certainly reinforced
that everyone can do his/her part in
creating and sustaining a greener city,
and subsequently, a greener planet!
There are still several trips scheduled
throughout the semester including a
trip to the Centre for Addiction and
Mental health, the University of
Toronto, Medieval Times and the
Supreme Court of Ontario.
More information to come on these
trips in the next newsletter!
The Philip Pocock Cooperative Education department is off to a great start for the 2010/2011 school year.
Students are all placed and are now being exposed to real work experiences. Placements are varied and offer
worthwhile opportunities in such areas as: Teaching, Automotive Industry, Culinary Arts, Computer Technology,
Heating and Air Conditioning, Dog Grooming, and Early Childhood Education. Our department would like to
welcome the following businesses which are new to our program: Residence Inn Marriot, Addison Chev Old,
Home Hardware, Leisureworld, Clancy Boxing Academy, You Lucky Dog, Update Unisex, Auto Price Canada,
Markland Wood Golf Club, Immaculate Hair Salon, Prototech Auto Center and Applewood Veteranary Hospital.
This semester we have a number of students who will be registered for the Ontario Youth Apprenticeship Program
OYAP. The benefits of this include, post secondary funding for college and training, grants for tools and a head
start on accumulation of apprenticeship hours. OYAP students are eligible for College subsidies and grants worth
80% of their tuition fees. As well, all Coop students have received CPR and First Aid Level 1 certification
through Lifesaver 101.
This year, students at Pocock have the opportunity to participate in a wide variety of career based activities.
These included Take Our Kids to Work Day, and Halton Peel’s Apprenticeship Career Fair. On Wednesday,
November 3rd, all the grade 9 students across Canada spent the day at work job shadowing a parent, relative,
friend or volunteer host. This opportunity provides students with an appreciation for staying in school, getting a
High School Diploma and pursuing post-secondary studies. They also gain real work experiences and explore
career options in a practical way. On Thursday, October 28, a group of our students will be attending The Halton
Peel Apprenticeship Fair. This is a showcase for the trades, apprenticeships, and labour associations where
students can connect with employers and explore trade-related career options.
As an educational community, we recognize that almost 50% of our students enter the workplace after high school.
We, therefore, need to equip them with entry-level skills and work experience to be successful. The Cooperative
Education Department is working together with our business community to make sure that these students
successfully transition into the workplace. Please contact the Philip Pocock Cooperative Education Department
at 905-602-6172 for further details.
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If you are a Catholic ratepayer, we urge
you to check your property tax bill to
ensure that your support is
directed to your local Catholic school
board, in our case, the Dufferin-Peel
Catholic District School Board. If you
are a tenant, you can verify your support by contacting our Admissions Department at (905) 890-0708, ext. 24511,
24512, or 24519, or your local municipal office. By ensuring that you are accurately recorded as a Catholic school
supporter, you can help deliver a powerful message to the government about
the level of support for publicallyfunded Catholic education in Ontario.
In order to be eligible to vote for your
local Catholic school board trustee,
you must be registered as a separate
school supporter.
Our beautiful Pocock Pride Newsletter has been a labour
of love for Mrs. Polin-DeLuca. For every issue she has
spent untold hours soliciting articles, editing, designing,
doing the layout and shepherding the newsletter through
the production and printing process. We know that the
June issue is enjoyed by the majority of our parents because that issue goes home with the final report
card and many of those are mailed.
The sad thing is that only about 15% of the students
actually take a copy home of the Fall, Winter and Spring
issues. Although those issues also go out with the report
cards, for some reason very few copies actually make it
home and into the hands of the parents. Needless to
say, this is a concern. The newsletter is expensive to
produce.
A recent study by Dufferin-Peel showed that most parents
stated that the newsletter was their primary source of information about school activities.
So, in this era of tight budgets and ecological sustainability, we will continue to print and distribute the final June
issue of Pocock Pride. However, the Fall, Winter and
Spring issues will be posted on our school Web page. An
automated phone call will go home whenever a new issue
is posted.
The Pocock Alternative Education program
kicked off this new school year 2010-11 with a
mix of new and returning students. The theme
for this semester is social justice and community leadership. We have been busy taking the opportunity to get
out of the classroom and 'walk the talk' when it comes to
living our faith and being active leaders. We visited and
volunteered at Dr. Simone's Canadian Food for Children
warehouse in September. In early October, we
took an overnight trip
to Silvercreek Outdoor Education Centre where we experienced co-operative trust
games and camped under
the stars. We participated in
a workshop at the Friends of
Simon Wiesenthal Centre on October 12, 2010
where we learned about genocide and how to create global awareness. On October
25th, with our Chaplain Mr. Smalridge, we travelled to Teen Ranch for our religion retreat, went horseback riding and talked candidly about our Catholic faith.
Ontario University Fair: This was held Septem‐
ber 24th, 25th, and 26th at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre. Many students and parents attended this annual event. Ontario College Fair: This was held on October 19th, at the Direct Energy Building at the Exhibi‐
tion. Many of our students attended this event. University Fair: Wednesday, November 3rd, 2010, Philip Pocock held our 2nd annual Univer‐
sity and College Fair. Thanks to all 24 Universities and 11 Colleges who made the evening a great success for all parents and students in the Mississauga East family of schools! University Applications: PIN numbers were distributed to University bound students on October 25th. Students may now begin to apply to University choices. University open houses are happening for the fall, and students are encouraged to begin making visits to their possible University choices for next year. Drop by Student Services or visit www.electronicinfo.ca for the dates and times of all open houses! Application deadline to OUAC this year: January 12th, 2011. College Applications: February 1st, 2011 is the last recommended date to submit applications. Febru‐
ary 1st is the first release of offers, and by May 2nd, appli‐
cants must confirm offers of admission to their chosen programs. Open houses for all programs are in progress now and throughout the fall. Check out ontariocol‐
leges.ca. for more information. Last day to drop a course: The last day students in grade 12 may drop a course without it showing on a transcript is November 26th, 2010. Scholarships: Students are reminded to visit the Schol‐
arship board in Student Services for new scholarships arriving daily! Grade 12 University Presentations: September 28th, during period 1, counselors met with all Grade 12 stu‐
dents who were potential University bound students to review the process of applying to a University in On‐
tario. Grade 11 Assembly: On November 3rd, counselors as‐
sembled all Grade 11 students for an information meet‐
ing with regard to course selection for next year and University and College applications. It is our hope that early knowledge about courses will make the transition to post‐ secondary education a smooth one for our students. Community Services Hours: Any potential graduates are reminded that 40 hours community service must be completed by April 1st, 2011. Please hand your hours to Ms. Metallo in Student Services as soon as they are com‐
pleted. Check the community service bulletin board, or the Pocock website, for more information. OSAP (Ontario Student Assistance Program): Informa‐
tion is expected to be available in early spring at the following website: http://osap.gov.on.ca/ Parent Teacher Interviews: Interviews will take place on Thursday, November 25th. Report cards were distrib‐
uted on November 19th in homeroom classes. Civics and Careers: November 9th is the end of the 1st half of Semester 1. November 10th is the start of the 2nd half of semester 1. New Report Cards – Explained The ministry of Education has mandated a number of changes to the Provincial Report Card in accordance with a new Assessment and Evaluation Policy. Those changes have been im‐
plemented by Dufferin‐Peel and are incorporated into this report card. Note the following changes:  The names of the Learning Skill have changed and more Learning Skills have been added.  Teachers’ comments have been limited to two and are to address: student strengths and next steps for improvement.  Subject teachers can request an interview with parents on the report card.  The average of the courses is not calculated or printed on the report card.  A code letter “I” instead of a mark may be used on the mid‐term report card for grade 9 and 10 courses to indicate that there is insufficient data to generate a mark.  Grades 11 and 12 can have a blank on the report card at midterm if there are insuffi‐
cient marks.  Median mark now refers to median for all sections of that course in the school.  Report cards must be signed by parents/guardians and returned to the homeroom teachers.  Parents may request an interview with the teachers on the portion of the report card that is signed and returned to the homeroom teacher More information regarding these changes can be found on the school web page at www.dpcdsb.org/POCOK or at the Ministry of Education Web site. Traffic Safety Concerns
Traffic in front of the school both on Tomken and on our driveway continues to be difficult, especially in the morning. The major concern is the safety our students and traffic flow. There are a number of things that drivers can do to help with the traffic flow: DO  Let the busses through. Busses have priority access to the front of the school.  Be considerate of others.  If you have to wait, pull into a parking space .  Be patient – creating grid lock and aggressive driving exacerbates the problem.  Drop students off in the Tomken Arena parking lot or go to the new road north and have them walk the rest of the way – a little exercise is a good thing. DON’T  Park or stand in the drive‐thru lane in front of the school.  Make u‐turns in the parking lot, this manoeuvre is unsafe and causes grid lock.  Stop on Tomken Road to drop off or pickup students (Police enforce the bylaw).  Block access for the special needs busses on the south side of the school. NEW TURNAROUND CIRCLE  Enter via the south entrance (at the stop light).  Turn right and drive down the south side of the school.  Turn in the new turning circle.  Drop off at the curb on the south side of the school.  Exit via the south entrance at the stop lights. Stop light interval has been increased to accommodate exiting traffic. REMEMBER The north entrance is 2‐way – two exit lanes and one entrance lane. November 24, 2010 ……………………. School Council Meeting @ 7:00 pm November 25, 2010 ……………………. Parent / Teacher Interviews December 17, 2010 …………………….. Last Day of Classes before Xmas January 3, 2011 …………………………….Back to School January 10, 2011 …………………………. Web Portal Opens for Registrations January, 13, 2011 ………………………... Grade 8 Information Night January 25‐31, 2011 ……………...……. Semester One Exams January 26, 2011 …………………………. School Council Meeting @ 7:00 pm February 2, 2011 ……………………...…. PD Day—Semester Turnaround February 3, 2011 ………………………… Semester 2 Begins February 4, 2011 ………………………… Option Sheets for 2011‐2012 Due