Guardian Angels Catholic Elementary School
62 Heatherdale Dr., Brampton, Ontario L7A 2H4
Tel.: 905-595-0909 Fax.: 905-846-6932
Newsletter #2
October 2012
Principal: T. Waters
Vice Principal: T. Owens
Secretary: B. Waud
Asst. Secretary: C. Egan
School Website: http://w3.dpcdsb.org/GANGL
Parish: Guardian Angels (905) 970-9175
Pastor: Father J. Gogolewski
Trustee: Linda Zanella Brampton Wards 2,5,6 (905) 579-0126
School Council Chair: K. Italiano
Superintendent: C. Pitoscia
Superintendent: A. Tucciarone (905) 890-1221
Principal’s Message
I would like to take this opportunity to
thank all the families who helped
support our Thanksgiving Day Food
Drive. We were able to fill the back
of a pickup truck (and more) with non
perishable food items. We often take
many of our blessings for granted and
I feel truly grateful for the
opportunity to be part of the Guardian
Angels community. It is the combined
efforts of everyone – parish, staff,
students and parents – that make this
such a vibrant and caring learning
community. By working together we
move forward as lifelong learners
striving for excellence in our
personal, social, spiritual and
academic growth.
During the month of October, let us
thank God for the many blessings He
has bestowed upon us and ask Him to
continue to guide us on our journey.
Let us also be mindful of those less
fortunate and share what we can to
ease their plight.
Finally, I want to thank all parents
for attending our Annual Open House.
I was delighted to meet so many
families. As the term continues, our
student activities will begin as staff
work with your children on cross
country, volleyball and various other
clubs and activities. We look forward
to an exciting year!
To Light, To Guard, To Rule and Guide – Guardian Angels
Farewell
Mrs. Egan will be leaving us this Friday to take on
a new position at Father Francis McSpiritt School.
We would like to thank her for all her hard work
and support over the past 3 years. We wish her
the very best in her new role.
Terry Fox Walk
This year, to celebrate the Terry Fox Run, students, staff and parent volunteers participated in a community walk to
raise funds to support Cancer research. The event was a tremendous success. Weather cooperated, providing a
wonderful opportunity to enjoy an autumn walk around the school. This year the students were also entertained to a
tug of war match between the male and female teachers at the school. Congratulations to our female members who
easily defeated the males. Other activities this year included a staff student volleyball game, BINGO on the
announcements each day and a teacher potato sack race in the gym. All monies raised went to the Terry Fox
Foundation. Thank you to Mrs. McCannel for her dedication and support towards this worthwhile cause. She has
organized this event since 2004 and we have raised almost $13,000.
Our Virtue for October…EMPATHY
This month we will focus on the virtue of Empathy. 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. We understand
empathy to mean the ability to identify with and feel other people’s concerns. We believe that in a faith community we
are nothing without relationships. Relationships that grow in a spirit of communion – an understanding that we share
an identity based on bring created in the image and likeliness of God and being imbued with one Spirit. We are many
parts of one body. An Empathetic person believes that we all share on Spirit; that we are many parts of one body
because we are all created in the image and likeness of God.
Swim to Survive Program Continues..
Swim to Survive is a Lifesaving Society survival training program focused on providing Grade 3 students with basic
swimming skills in an attempt to eliminate drowning in Canada. The program will be held at the Cassie Campbell
Community Centre and will consist of 3 sessions, which include in-water and classroom lessons. There is no charge
for the program.
Traffic Safety
We remind you to follow the kiss and ride, directional and fire route/bussing route signs on our property.
Also, we ask you to follow the same rules and guidelines for walking children to school as we expect the children to
follow. Remember that children watch what we do more than they listen to what we say. Parking Enforcement
has been visiting schools throughout Peel Region and issuing tickets to vehicles that are in parking violations. It is
known that these have been issued around the premises. They are paying particular attention to cars parked in the fire
route/bus drop-off zone at the front of the school and cars are being ticketed even when someone is sitting in the
vehicle. Please remember the importance of abiding by the posted traffic signs at the school. The safety of our
children is worth our utmost attention to this.
To Light, To Guard, To Rule and Guide – Guardian Angels
Pizza Day/Milk/Lunch Lady
This year we will continue to have Pizza Days. Our next day is October 23
rd,
2012.
Lunch Lady will continue to take orders each month for students who would like to order meals.
Forms are available in the office.
The school does have a milk machine in the primary hallway. For a $1.25 students have the option of Milk, Chocolate
Milk, Orange Juice and Water.
Allergy Alert—Sabrina’s Law
We have a number of students at Guardian Angels with life-threatening allergies. Anaphylaxis is a severe reaction,
which can be caused by even very small quantities of the allergen. The most common allergens are food (for example
peanuts, nut products and by-products, sesame and shellfish) insect stings, medications and latex. We ask for the
cooperation of the entire school community by NOT sending any lunches, snacks or treats that contain peanuts,
peanut products or shellfish. At Guardian Angels we continue our ‘no outside food’ policy in order to protect these
students. Our students are not allowed to share lunches or snacks. Please do not send food products to be shared in
your child’s classroom (including doughnuts and/or timbits, which are not nut-free). If you would truly like your child to
share their special day with their classmates we suggest that you consider non-food items such as pencils or stickers.
Fire Drills
It is a policy in Dufferin-Peel CDSB that all schools conduct a “Lockdown Procedure” twice in a year. This will be
initiated should an emergency exist on school property or in the surrounding neighbourhood. Part of the process is to
practice the “Lockdown Procedures” as we practice Fire drills. The procedures that we will follow have been
recommended by the board. Students will be instructed when they hear the announcements “Initiate Lockdown
Procedure” followed by the repeated ringing of the school bell, all staff and students will follow the following actions:
Students are directed to move away from all windows and doors and to lie on the floor, if possible under desks.
Classroom doors and windows are secured. Students remain this way until the alert is cancelled.
Discuss these procedures with your child will help reassure the importance of these safety procedures.
In the unforeseen event that we should have an emergency in our school, we will evacuate to Worthington School.
Safety regulations require us to have this contingency plan in place. In such an event, your child will remain with
school until we contact you.
Student Illness During Recess
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 co-operation is appreciated in keeping your child home until
they have fully recovered from illness.
Head Injury Policy
When a student receives an injury to the head, it is Board Policy that we inform parents. We will attempt to reach you
even when it is a very minor injury. Please try not to be too alarmed should you receive a call.
Valuables
Please help us to protect your child’s valuables by keeping them at home. Staff cannot be responsible for any
valuables that your child brings to school. In order to avoid valuables being lost or misplaced students are reminded
to please keep them at home.
To Light, To Guard, To Rule and Guide – Guardian Angels
No Call Zone:
Between 2 and 3 o’clock each day our office receives numerous phone calls from parents with messages for their
children. With the lines tied up, these are often left as messages on our machine. In an effort to ensure that we do not
miss one of these messages and not get it to your child on time, we ask that you please ensure that arrangements are
made the night before and children know what they are to do after school. In addition, we encourage parents to send
lunches, notes and messages in the morning with their child(ren) in an effort to avoid interruptions at the classroom
level. That being stated, we understand that emergencies do happen and we will do our best to assist in these
situations. Thank you for your cooperation.
Late Arrival:
Now that we have completed our first month of school, we are noticing a rise in the number of students coming to
school late in the morning. Student arriving to school after this 9:00 am bell sound is considered late. Late students
must enter the school through the front doors and line up in front of the office door to receive an admit slip. Many
students who have received late admit slips already are only missing the bell by 2-3 minutes. By getting up even five
minutes earlier, these types of lates can be avoided.
Prayer, Opening Exercises
We begin every day at Guardian Angels with “O Canada” and a prayer led by our students. Every
class, from grade 1 to grade 8, will be given an opportunity to lead the school in opening exercises. Our daily prayer
helps to bring us together as a community of faith.
Sacramental Preparation
The Sacramental preparation of our students is central to their faith formation. At Guardian Angels our grade two and
grade eight teachers, with the support from Fr. Jan, spend a great deal of time preparing students for the sacraments
of Reconciliation, First Holy Communion and Confirmation.
Reconciliation & First Communion, Grade 2
Parent Meeting for Holy Communion and Reconciliation will be on December 2
St. Edmund Campion Secondary School.
nd
after the 12:00 Mass held at
Reconciliation
th
• April 18 , 2012 at Guardian Angels School - 9:30 a.m.
Holy Communion
th
• April 28 , 2013 at Our Lady of Fatima Parish – 3:00 p.m.
Confirmation Gr. 8
Parent Meeting for Confirmation will be on Sunday, December 9
Secondary School.
th,
2012 after the 12:00 Mass at St. Edmund Campion
Confirmation
th
• May 11 , 2013 at St. Edmund Campion Secondary School – 5:00 p.m.
To Light, To Guard, To Rule and Guide – Guardian Angels
Soccer (Mr. Buzdon, Ms. Persad)
Congratulations to the Intermediate Boys Soccer Team for winning the Brampton West soccer tournament last week.
Guardian Angels competed against fourteen other schools putting on a spectacular performance of skills and
determination. We are all proud of you.
Team Members include: Alexander, Bryan, Damian, Kaosisochukwu, Matthan, Jaden, Michael G, Teddy, Michael K,
James, Justin, Lloyd Jr, Joseph, Taejon, Daniel, Justin, Joshua, Jacob and Matthew V.
On September 25th the girls’ soccer team played in a tournament at the Creditview fields. The girls played with
excellent team work and effort, and faced some tough competition! Great work girls, you make Guardian Angels
proud! Thank you to all those who tried out, and to the team members. Keep on playing and improving your skills,
and we'll see you at try outs next year!
Ms. Bedford
Ms. Schmalz
Volleyball and Cross Country
The Intermediate Volleyball Teams are preparing for their tournaments which begin in a few weeks. You will also
th
notice our Cross Country Team preparing for their Board Meet at Centennial Park in Etobicoke on October 30 .
Student Council
The intermediate students have elected class representatives to form this year’s Student Council. Each grade 7 and 8
class selected 2 representatives who met with Mr. Waters and Mr. Stone to select a chair, co-chair, treasurer and a
secretary. The group then met for a full afternoon planning session to brainstorm ideas and map out a tentative
schedule of events for all students this year. Stay tuned for an exciting year with many fun activities planned by the
Guardian Angels Student Council.
Parent Council 2012-2013
We are pleased to announce our 2012-2013 Catholic School Council team. We would like to welcome:
Parent Members: Mrs. Lamonica, Mrs. D'Alessandro, Mrs. Estevao, Mrs. Psaila, Mrs. Radman and Mrs. Caringi.
Principal: Mr. Waters
Vice Principal: Mrs. Owens
Council Chairperson: Mrs. Italiano
Teaching representative: Mrs. Graessar
Non-Teaching representative: Mrs. Palmieri
Parish Representative: Still required (if interested, please see Mr. Waters)
th
Our next meeting is November 20 at 7:00 p.m.
Junior/ Intermediate Homework Club (Mrs. Parris, Mr. Caputo, Mrs. Bedford, Ms. Gunia)
As in previous years at Guardian Angels, we are pleased to open a Homework Club every Tuesday and Wednesday,
for grades 4 to 8 students, from 12:20 to 1:00 p.m. Homework is an important aspect to school life. It enhances
learning and enables students to put into practice the concepts learned in class. Sometimes, as the school year
progresses, students may find that they need some extra time to revise for tests, work on projects, or even catch up on
missed work during an absence.
WE DAY
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Ms. Persad and Mr. Labuda led a group of Grade 8 students to We Day on September 28 . What an amazing day!
We Day is sponsored by the Free the Children organization. The students were educated about and are encouraged
to become involved in social justice issues. To learn more about We Day visit the Free the Children website.
To Light, To Guard, To Rule and Guide – Guardian Angels
Roots of Empathy
Mr. Bloom (CYW)
Guardian Angels School will be benefiting from a ground-breaking program that has been piloted in our school-board
for the past 5 years. Roots of Empathy is an evidence-based classroom program that has shown dramatic effect in
reducing levels of aggression among schoolchildren by raising social/emotional competence and increasing empathy.
The program reaches elementary schoolchildren from Kindergarten to Grade 8. In Canada, the program is delivered in
English and French and reaches rural, urban, and remote communities including Aboriginal communities. Roots of
Empathy are also delivered in New Zealand, the Seattle area of the United States, Isle of Man, the Republic of Ireland,
Northern Ireland and Scotland.
The heart of Roots of Empathy is the neighbourhood parent and infant who join the Instructor in the classroom for
Family Visits. A Roots of Empathy Instructor visits the classroom 27 times over the school year and for nine of these
visits (about every three weeks) the Roots of Empathy family joins the Instructor in the classroom - each Family Visit is
about 30 minutes long. This year the Roots of Empathy will run in Mrs. Bedford’s grade 6 class.
Oct 11
Peel Police Street proofing Presentations to grades 2 and 3
Oct 15
Grade 3 Swim to Survive Program (Group 3)
Oct 17
SNAP Program - Ms. Pimenta
Oct 17
Grade 3 Swim to Survive Program
Oct 18
CCCSC Meeting at St. FX Secondary School 6:30 p.m.
Oct 19
Grade 3 Swim to Survive Program
Oct 22
Grade 3 Swim to Survive Program
Oct 23
GA Hosting Intermediate Girls Volleyball Tournament
Oct 23
Pizza Day
Oct 24-26
Grade 8 Muskoka Trip
Oct 24
SNAP Program – Ms. Pimenta
Oct 26
Picture retakes
Oct 29
Grade 3 Swim to Survive Program
Oct 30
Board Cross Country Meet
Oct 31
SNAP Program – Ms. Pimenta
Oct 31
RCSAC Halloween Dance a thon
Nov 4
Daylight Savings Ends
Nov 6
Progress Reports sent home
Nov 8
Interview evening
Nov 9
Creature Quest Visit – Grade 4
Nov 15
Grade 5 Queen’s Park Trip
Nov 16
PA Day
To Light, To Guard, To Rule and Guide – Guardian Angels
Nov 22
Grade 6 RAID Program Begins (Peel Police anti drug program)
Nov 30
Santa Pictures
To Light, To Guard, To Rule and Guide – Guardian Angels