St. Vincent de Paul School
665 Willowbank Trail Mississauga, Ontario L4W 3L6
Tel: (905) 848- 5397 Fax: (905) 848-0738
Principal: Mr. Tony McLoughlin
Secretary: Ms. Susan Ferenc
Trustee: Mr. Mario Pascucci (905) 302-3096
Fax: 905-890-0888
OfficeTelephone:
905-890-0708 ext. 21061
mario.pascucci@dpcdsb.org
www.TrusteePascucci.ca
Pastor: Fr. John Facey (905) 270-2301
Superintendent: Mr. C. Blanchard (905) 890-1221
DECEMBER 2011
Here at Last
Here comes the blessed day
when the promise made long ago
to Abraham and the believers
is fulfilled.
Here at last is the day
when God comes to save us.
The long-expected happiness
is knocking at our door.
The Son of man returns in glory
and leads us in triumph,
if we are watchful
and ready.
Teach me, Lord, the way.
Make me know the right path.
Your way, Lord,
is the way of truth.
You teach the humble
to walk in it,
and in your presence
ordinary people discover
what perfect joy really is.
DECEMBER VIRTUE OF THE MONTH: HOPE
A hopeful person is inspired and inspires others
A hopeful person is optimistic
A hopeful person is one who seeks good things from life
A hopeful person is one who seeks the good in the world
HOMEWORK IS IMPORTANT!!!
Homework is an
important part of the
learning process for it:
reinforces skills/concepts learned in class, allows time for
research skills to be developed, builds good study habits,
promotes self discipline, and gives parents an informal report
on how well their child is coping with the curriculum. Parents
can assist their child with homework by: providing a
consistent quiet place to work, offer to be an audience for oral
reading and editing written work. Homework done well
provides the link to the next day’s lessons. It is like building a
tower; each block has to fit to the one previous in order to
gain a solid structure.
St. Vincent de Paul Society
In keeping with our Catholic vision and the vision of St.
Vincent de Paul, we are having a Food and Clothing Drive to
support two specific needy families in our community. Please
help support the following families through your generosity.
The anticipated pick up day would be on December 21 in the
a.m.
Family #1-5 persons: Mother and Father
1 girl—aged 10 Clothes: Girls’ Pants 11, Shirts Girls 12-14,
Girls Shoes 4
1 boy-- aged 7 Clothes Boys’ 7, Shoes Boys 3
1 boy- aged 4, Clothes Boys’ 5, Shoes Boys 12 1/2
Family #2- 3 persons- Single Mother
1 boy- aged 6 Clothes Boys’ 6, shoes Boys 10
1girl- aged 7 Clothes Girls’ 8 , shoe Girls 13
Bus Cancellations / School Closure due to Weather
Please be advised that 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 am, and will be
announced on the following radio and television stations:
CKFM 99.9
CHUM 1050
CFTR 680
CFNY 102.1 CFTO
CBC
CJCL 590
CHFI 98.1
CFRB 1010
ENERGY FM93.1
CJEZ
EZ ROCK
CJBC (FR) 860 AM
1540 AM
Z103.5
CJMR/CHWO 1250
GLOBAL NEWS
THE WEATHER NETWORK
CITY PULSE 88.5 FM
NUMERACY FOCUS: “Nelson Math Website.”
Developing numeracy skills is the major school focus for all
children at St. Vincent de Paul. Teachers, students and
parents can visit this Nelson website for web links, and other
online support for the Nelson Mathematics Program: K-8:
http://mathk8.nelson.com/companion.html
Student Safety at St. Vincent de Paul
Student Safety is always a primary consideration for all
activities and plans at St. Vincent de Paul School. Included in
this month’s newsletter is a sample of a Safety plan that is also
used with the Section 23 class to guide our responses, at the
school, in the event of inappropriate student behaviours. The
Section 23 classroom at St. Vincent de Paul School supports
the needs of students for whom the regular pattern of home
and school has been disrupted. Specific information regarding
students and the program are subject to Privacy legislation and
cannot be shared. Based on the general profile of students in
the classroom, the measures outlined in the Safety plan are
appropriately aligned to the students’ needs.
This setting is not a correctional facility. As has been shared in
communications over the last weeks, Dufferin-Peel does not
host any correctional/custodial Section 23 programs. The alert
processes and systems now in place at the school support
staff in responding effectively to the needs of all students in a
timely manner, so as to support the community as a whole in
being safe, caring, healthy and inclusive.
SPECIAL EDUCATION
Currently students who require additional
support are assisted by our Special
Education teacher and Educational
Resource Workers. Student programs are
supported in a variety of ways to develop
and/or enhance learning opportunities.
Periodically, students are presented at a
school TEAM meeting for further consultation and planning.
The following personnel may attend the Special Services
TEAM meeting: Psychology staff member, Speech and
Language Pathologist, Social Worker, and a Child and Youth
Worker. At these meetings, staff summarize their
observations, concerns and interventions and seek input
regarding next steps; strategies to try in the classroom;
additional services that might be offered; referral for further
assessment by one of the Special Service personnel or referral
to an outside agency for further consultation or assessment.
The benefit of the TEAM process is the joint consultation which
ensures that the best program is in place to meet the individual
needs of each student. Staff will contact parents prior to these
meetings and will report any recommendations to parents
pending the outcome of the meeting.
FRENCH IMMERSION INFORMATION MEETING
Senior Kindergarten parents/guardians, who wish to enroll their
child in the St. Pio of Pietrelcina Grade 1 French Immersion
class for September, 2012 are invited to attend an information
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meeting on: Thursday January 12 , 2012
7:00 p.m. Please note the meeting will take place at St.
Gertrude School ( located at 815 Ceremonial Drive,
Mississauga). The deadline for submission of Applications will
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be 2:00 p.m. Wednesday, February 8 , 2012.
Extended French Information and Registration
Information Meeting for Extended French Program will be take
place on January 19, 2012 at St. Thomas More School at
7:00 p.m. The deadline for completed applications is
Wednesday, February 9, 2011 at 3:00p.m.
LUNCH POLICY
We have a large number of students eating
lunch at school and often the children have to
be reminded of proper behaviour while eating.
We ask for the parents’ cooperation in
reinforcing with your children appropriate
behaviour at lunch.
The students are expected to:

Eat in their assigned lunch room

Remain seated while eating

Not to share food. This is a necessary precaution as
so many students now have food allergies.

Chat quietly to neighbours

Dispose of all garbage in the proper receptacle
before they leave the lunchroom.
Thankyou for going over the expectations with your children
and for supporting us in our efforts to make eating lunch at
school a pleasant experience for all. If children go out for
lunch, we require a dated and signed note and students
are not to come back early and eat in the playground.
Emergency Evacuation Plan
We have a detailed fire/emergency evacuation
policy. Students must wear shoes in the school
building at all times, as in the event of an alarm,
students will not be permitted to stop to put on
shoes, coats, hats,etc. Their safety is our first
priority. Please ensure that your child has an indoor pair of
shoes at school.
In the unforeseen event that our school has to evacuate for
emergency purposes. We will evacuate to John Cabot
Secondary. Our alternate exit is Westminister Church at
Rathburn and Tomken Rd. Safety regulations and Board Policy
requires us to have this contingency plan in place. In such an
event, your child will remain in the evacuation location until we
contact you.
Indoor shoes
To keep our hallways, classrooms
and gym clean and safe, please
ensure that your child has a pair of
shoes to wear inside the school.
Children may not wear outside
shoes and/or boots in their classrooms. Running shoes with
non-marking soles are required for participation in the physical
education program.
School Website
We are continually updating our school website to provide
information regarding our school. Each month we will post our
newsletter and other important calendar items. Please check
our website for important information. A HUGE thank you to
Ms. Ricardo who leads this difficult task. Our school website
is located at: http://www.dpcdsb.org/VPAUL. We are in the
process of starting an electronic newletter to a reduce paper
waste. Please continue to check our school website for
details.
SCHOOL YEAR & ALL SEASON SAFETY TIPS
- Tell your children to always tell you where they
are going and with whom.
- Tell your children to never go anywhere with
a stranger.
- Tell your children never to talk to strangers
or take anything from them.
- Teach your children what a safe stranger is,
in the event they need help i.e. a police officer, a fire fighter, a
teacher, etc.
- Develop a “ what if “ game to get children thinking about how
they would respond if they felt threatened or afraid
- Teach your children to TALK to you immediately when
someone does anything that makes them feel uncomfortable.
- Encourage your children to use a buddy system as an
alternative to walking alone
- Avoid having your child’s name clearly visible on any piece of
clothing or accessory. A srtanger may read their name and call
it out to your child, fooling your child into believing this person
knows them.
EQAO Letter
Please find attached an important letter that relates to EQAO
testing that takes place in June of 2012. While EQAO
assessments are administered for only grade 3 and grade 6
students, all students from JK – grade 8 are involved in ongoing assessements that involved core skill development to
higher level thinking. Your child’s teacher will give you more
details as the year progresses.
Advent Mass: December 1, 2011.
As a Catholic School Community, we continue to show our
faith in a variety of ways. This year the
children and their parents prepared for the
coming of Jesus through an Evening
Advent Mass at St. Patrick’s Church. This
evening liturgy involved St. Blessed Teresa
of Calcutta and St. Vincent de Paul. We
hope you continue to attend Mass to prepare
for the coming of Jesus.
Staying In During Recess
QSP MAGAZINES!!!!!
Thank you to the St. Vincent de Paul
School community for supporting
literacy
through
our
magazine
fundraiser. While the direct cash or
cheque
envelope
process
has
concluded, you can still continue to
support our schools by on-line orders.
Simply go to www.qsp.ca and follow the prompts. Our school
code is : 8388.
Before you know it, you will receive top selling magazines such
as : Chickadee, Sports Illustrated, Chatelaine, Ladies Fitness,
Reader’s Digest and Maclean’s.
Custody of Children
On rare occasions, we are faced with difficult situations in
which non-custodial parents arrive at school asking to visit their
child or take the child home after school. We are best able to
serve and protect students when we are made aware of legal
custody arrangements, visitation rights and other special
instructions. If legal custody matters affect your family, please
ensure that our office and classroom teachers are aware of
any custodial arrangements that may affect your child during
school hours.
THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!!
A huge thanks to the large majority of parents
who are using our Kiss and Ride program
properly. Parents are not to leave their cars
to take their children to the primary yard.
Staff are on duty on the pavement and in the
Kindergarten yard at 8:45 a.m. My staff are all
clearly instructed to wear yellow vests to identify
themselves as school supervisors. Never go directly to your
child’s classroom or school yard without reporting to the
office.
Under ordinary circumstances, if a child is
not well enough to go outside for recess
he/she is not well enough to be in school
and should be kept at home. We have no
facilities for children who are ill nor do
we have the proper supervision.
Junior Kindergarten and Senior Kindergarten Registration:
St. Vincent de Paul will offer a full day Junior and Senior
Kindergarten program for 2012-2013
Registration for Junior, Senior and Full-Day Kindergarten for
the 2012-13 school year, will take place at all Catholic
elementary schools in Mississauga, Brampton, Caledon,
Bolton and Orangeville on the following days:
Monday, February 6, 2012*
7:00-9:00 p.m.
*Snow Date: Tuesday, February 7, 2012 - 7:00-9:00 p.m.
Wednesday, Thursday & Friday, February 8, 9 & 10, 2012
9:00-11:00 a.m.
1:00-3:00 p.m.
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December 7
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December 8
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December 13
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December 14
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December 21
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December17
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December 22
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January 9
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January 10
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January 13
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January 16
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January 16
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January 31
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February 2
DATES TO REMEMBER
Junior Skating- last skating day
Subday
Grade 5’s to Silvercreek
Grade 6’s to Silvercreek
See Hear—Vision/Hearing Screening
Last day of classes before Christmas
Subday
We’re back!!!!!!!!!School Starts!!!!
School Ballroom begins!!!!
Tentative Ski Day #1
PA Day—no school for students
Reconciliation- 7pm at the Church
Report Cards go home
Parent Student Interview Night