ST. DAVID OF WALES
November 2012
Principal
B. Gillis
Secretary
D. Gibson
Trustee
Peter Ferreira
(416) 805-7110
Peter
Ferreira@dpcdsb.org
Superintendent
C. Saytar
905.890.1221
PARISH
St. Martin of Tours
1290 McBride Lane
Mississauga, ON
L5C 1M8
905.279-5742
SCHOOL HOURS
Grades 1-8
8:45 -11:45
12:45-3:15
Grades JK-SK
8:45-11:15 or
12:45-3:15
St. David of Wales
4200 Beacon Lane
Mississauga, ON
L5M 2N6
905.848-4200
WebSite
http://
www.dpcdsb.org/
DWALE
A Prayer of Peace
On this Memorial Day
Grant peace to the souls
of all those soldiers who died in war.
We remember the tears and grief of their families,
The pain of mothers, wives, husbands and children
Who lost precious loved ones.
To build a meaningful memorial to them,
We ask God to give us all the will
To work for peace around the world
So no more sons, daughters, husbands, wives, fathers, nor mothers
Are slaughtered by the guns and bombs of war.
We ask Mary, who held the lifeless body of her son
And was pierced by the sorrow of his suffering
and death,
To grant us the compassion and wisdom to affirm
life
And honor the dead through forgiveness and
peace making.
May God have mercy on the souls of the departed.
Grant them peace, O Lord.
May we have mercy on the living.
Grant us peace, O Lord.
In Your name we pray.
Amen.
PEEL REGIONAL POLICE COMMUNITY
PARTNER-SHIP
Please join me in welcoming Constable J.
Palumbo, our neighbourhood community
officer through the Region of Peel. He will
be stopping by the school on a regular basis
and visiting classrooms to speak with students about his role as a Police Officer. This
is an important community partnership that
gives students the opportunity to engage in
meaningful dialogue to foster a safe, caring,
healthy and inclusive school community.
OUR CATHOLIC SCHOOL COUNCIL
Becoming a member of our Catholic School Council is an
excellent opportunity for parents/guardians and guardians to become more involved in our school life. A sampling of past work includes:
 Organization of school fundraisers and special
events
 Purchase of resources and equipment for students,
the school and classrooms
 The ongoing dialogue with the Principal about our
school initiatives
The membership of council includes:
 Parents/guardians – who form the majority of council members
 Teaching and support staff representatives
 School Principal
SCHOOL COUNCIL MEETING
Our next School Council meeting will take place on
Tuesday, November 20, 2012 at 6:30 pm in the
school Library. All are welcome to attend! We are inviting you to come out and join us, to dialogue with other
parents/guardians and St. David of Wales Staff, to become informed about important academic information,
events occurring at your child’s school, and to help
council with our ongoing outreach efforts to connect
with families whose children attend St. David of Wales
School. Let’s build our community together!
Future dates for the 2012/2013 year are as follows:
December 11, 2012
February 5, 2013
April 2, 2013
May 28, 2013
Please join us for future evenings of sharing, planning
and community spirit!
FUNDRAISER – Mark Your
Calendar!
Our Much Music Video DanceA-Thon Fundraiser will be held
on Thursday, November 15,
2012. All money raised from
this event will go directly to supporting student activities such as sports equipment, additional resources for students, agendas, etc. Last year’s dance
-a-thon raised a little over $6,000 in support of our
school and its programs. We thank all students and
families for their efforts, and we look forward to the
upcoming dance!
PIZZA LUNCH WEDNESDAYS
Pizza lunch is currently underway
with the remaining Wednesdays:
Nov. 7, 14, 21 and 28
Dec. 5, 12 and 19
Thank you to all of the parents/guardians who are
supporting the ongoing efforts of School Council by
participating in our pizza days.
We will be sending out the pizza order forms for
January to March pizza dates in December. In order
to resume pizza lunches first week back in January
2013, we ask that parents/guardians return the orders by the due date.
Thank you to the volunteers who are assisting with
the co-ordination of our pizza lunch program, and
special thanks to our council members for purchasing
enough water bottles for pizza lunches to last until
end of December!
STUDENT COUNCIL
St. David of Wales is pleased to
announce that the 2012-2013
Student Council elections have
taken place and we have your
newly appointed executives.
Our Student Council is as follows:
Matteo S. - Prime Minister
Alessana C. and Benjamin P. - Deputy Prime Ministers
Kevin A. - Minister of Student Affairs
James T. - Minister of Social Justice
Joanna S. - Minister of Finance
Franka S. - Secretary
In October the Student Council organized and ran a
Pumpkin Decorating Event. The students had a great time
on Halloween viewing all the class pumpkins. Classes
were very creative. We are now turning our focus to the
Christmas Season, new spirit days, and social justice initiatives for the remainder of the year. Stay tuned for upcoming exciting events for all students at St. David of
Wales.
BOOK OF REMEMBRANCE
Our Book of Remembrance has been placed
on the altar. We will remember in prayer
each day the names of those who are in our
book of Remembrance.
YOUTH AMBASSADORS FOR CHRIST
Youth Ambassadors for Christ at St.
David of Wales will continue to increase their role in the life of our
school. This year our Youth Ambassadors will join together with the
Student Council in social justice initiatives. The Youth Ambassadors
were commissioned at the School
Opening Mass on October 4, as well
as at the Mississauga Youth Rally on
October 14, where they really got a treat in seeing the Haitian Dancers do their drumming and dance performance.
Our Youth Faith Ambassadors:
Kayla S.
Catherine V.
Andre S.
Precious C.
Cheska V.
Alessana C.
Matteo S.
Rocio E.
James T.
Joanna S.
David K.
Kathryn M.
Daniel M.
Amanda S.
Sonia D.
Maryah M.
Cassandra C.
P.E.D. POLICY
It is Board policy that all personal electronic
devises (PEDS) must be kept out of sight,
turned off and not used within the school premises or during school sanctioned activities such
as retreats, field trips, sports events etc. To
prevent the loss or damage of PED’s we encourage students to leave their PED’s at home.
SANTA CLAUS
On Friday, December 7, students from St.
David of Wales will have the opportunity
to take their picture with Santa Claus. More
information and order forms will be sent
home shortly.
REFERENCE CHECKS
In compliance with the recent Ministry directives and Board Policy regarding Criminal Reference Checks, all volunteers are
required to provide an original copy of their
Criminal Reference Check dated within 90
days of the activity date. If you are planning to volunteer on school trips, in the school or to drive
students to events you must have a Criminal Reference
Check. Please call to arrange a meeting with the Principal,
Mrs. Gillis, to pick up the necessary forms.
CANADIAN FOOD FOR
CHILDREN—Candy for Kids
The purpose of Canadian Food for Children is twofold.
The first is to alleviate hunger in children around the
world regardless of race religion or nationality. The second is to fit CFC into the global village. Dr. Simone oversees the warehouse located at 1258 Lakeshore Road East
in Mississauga. Containers of food are shipped overseas
to countries such as: Angelia, Bangladesh, Bolivia, Chile,
Ecuador, etc. Our candy drive will be held the first week
in November. Students are encouraged
to share their Halloween candies with
others. These candies will be shipped
in November to arrive at their destination by Christmas.
Thank You,
The Student Council
PEDICULOSIS
Although it may seem early in the school year, we would
like to bring to your attention a problem which occurs
from time to time in each school. The problem is infestation by head lice (Pediculosis). Unfortunately, in recent
years, head lice have be-come increasingly common
throughout North America. They
are parasites which have been common among human beings for centuries. They are not connected in
any way to dirt of neglect. Anyone
can be infested. In order to control
these pests, we shall follow these
procedures and request your full co
-operation. If cases are found in the
classroom we shall inform parents.
We would request that you check your own children and if
you find them to be infested, we would ask that you inform the school, and you contact the Peel Public Health
Department for treatment information. If your children do
become infested by head lice, we will ask you to keep
them out of the school until after they have been treated
with the correct shampoo and their hair is entirely clear of
both lice and nits (eggs). Students will not be permitted
to return to class until they have been checked by the
office. If we all co-operate in these procedures, we may
not entirely escape outbreaks, but we will be able to bring
them under control quickly. For additional information,
guidance and any questions please contact Peel Public
Health Department at (905) 799-7700. As well you may
find the following website useful www.headlice.org.
INDOOR/OUTDOOR SHOES
As we move into the fall season and a
change in weather, we ask that students bring a pair of indoor shoes that
can be worn inside the school and left
in their classroom. Due to safety reasons, students cannot participate in gym classes without
running shoes.
ST. JOSEPH SECONDARY SCHOOL
St. Joseph Secondary School will be holding the Grade Nine
Information Night on Tuesday, December 4, 2011 from 7:00
p.m.—9:00 p.m.
Evening Speakers & Events:
 Principal
 Chaplaincy Leader
 Student Council
 Athletic Council
 Building Tour
 Club/Team Displays & Demonstrations
Events begin promptly at 7:00 p.m. in the cafetorium. Please
arrive on time in order to participate in all the events of the
evening.
Students accompanied by parents/guardians are also welcome.
FAITH LIFE
Grade 2 First Communion/
First Reconciliation
First Reconciliation will be held
at St. Martin of Tours Parish on
Saturday, November 24 at 10:30
a.m. The celebration of the Sacrament of First Holy Communion
will be during masses between
April 21 & April 29.
Grade 8 Confirmation
The Grade 8 Confirmation this year will be held at St.
Martin of Tours Parish on Friday, April 26 @ 7:00 p.m.
TEXTBOOK POLICY
Textbooks/Library books are the property of the school and are loaned out to
students with the expectation that they
will be re-turned in good condition.
The teachers keep records of each textbook that students are given. Cost will
be incurred by students if books are
lost or not returned in good condition.
COLD WEATHER
In colder weather we often
receive requests to allow
children to remain indoors
when students have a cold
or the flu. Please note that
we cannot comply, as we
have neither the facilities nor
the staff to supervise these
students. Please use discretion in keeping your child at
home to recover if they are ill. If your child is well
enough to attend school, they should be well enough
to go outside for a recess break.
The school program is comprised of both physical
and academic activities. Part of the physical activities
includes fifteen minutes recess, morning and afternoon and forty minutes at lunch. Unless the weather
is extremely cold (-25°C) or wet, recess will be outside. Students should come to school dressed accordingly. Research indicates that fresh air allows
students to refocus on their studies. On extremely
cold days, we limit the amount of time that students
spend out of doors. We obtain our information from
Environment Canada Weather Information and follow
board guidelines. As the weather gets colder, please
ensure that your child is dressed appropriately for
the colder weather, it is always a good idea to be
prepared.
.
Free OnLine Math Tutoring
Have a child in Grade 7 or 8 who doesn’t understand
how to add fractions? Or maybe your teenager is struggling with a geometry assignment? Extra help is now
available. Check out Homework Help, where certified
Ontario teachers are online 20 hours a week to provide
free math tutoring for the Grade 7 to 10 math students
in Dufferin-Peel. Students can log in Sunday to Thursday, 5:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m., for one-on-one confidential
help. There are interactive discussion rooms for each
grade where they can view to the current lesson, watch
tutors draw on the whiteboard — and then type their
own question for on-the-spot help. To access http://
HomeworkHelp.ilc.org, your child will receive a Board
access code, as well as help setting up an account from
their teacher at school. Other math resources on the
website include videos of teachers leading students
through the top 20 most commonly asked math problems, interactive math tutorials and highlights of best
sessions. And all students have a virtual locker, where
their work is saved in video format for viewing anytime.
Dufferin-Peel is one of 15 English-language school
boards offering Homework Help this school year funded
by the Ministry of Education. Studies show that students
who like math and have solid math skills are more likely
to succeed in school and later in life. Homework Help
began in 2007-08 at schools in the Hamilton- Wentworth Catholic District School Board and HamiltonWentworth District School Board. Across Ontario, about
150,000 students will now have access to the online
site. This website is another addition to the online resources available for Ontario’s teenagers. Sign in as a
guest and see for yourself.
Volunteers
We are looking for volunteers who have
some time to share during the week to
assist the students of St. David of Wales
in the following areas:
All Star Reading
Providing assistance with reading to students (1/2 hour
per stu-dent/session). Students are seen approximately
three times per week and ―coaches‖ focus on specific
strategies that are identified by the co-ordinator. Each
coach receives training prior to the program. We will
contact you with schedule details, including a training
time if you are volunteering as an All Star Reading
Coach.
Library
Providing assistance in the library to maintain the collection of books. If you can spare 1/2 hour or more per
week, please contact Mrs. Zoffranieri with your availability.
Thank you for your consideration!
Leaving At Lunchtime
Please be advised that ALL students
must have written permission from a
parent/guardian to leave the school at
lunch. Verbal permission (over the
phone) will not be accepted. A signed
and dated note with a parent/guardian signature is
required for each occurrence. The note must come to
the office and students are required to sign out and
to sign back in when they return for afternoon
classes.
Advent Mass
Please join us as we celebrate our
Advent mass together on December
6th at 1:00 p.m. The mass will be at
school. It is a wonderful opportunity
to give praise and glory to God as the
community of St. David of Wales. A special thank
you to Father Joyson and the parish team at St. Martin of Tours for their spiritual guidance and support!
Student Immunization from Peel Region of
Health
Wednesday, December 5th, 2012
 HPV Clinic for Gr. 8 Girls
 Hep B & Meningitis for all Gr. 7 students
Forms have been sent home. Please fill
in the forms and return them to the
school as soon as possible.
Ministry Parent Resource:
Supporting your Child’s Learning through Assessment, Evaluation and Reporting
This document, available in 22 languages, supports
parents in better understanding assessment and
evaluation practices as outlined in the Growing Success document. The following link can take you directly to the PDF version:
http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/parents/
reportCard.html
STUDENT SAFETY
Thank you to all who support our efforts to provide a safe learning environment for our students by cooperating with school policies related
to safety and security. All visitors
MUST report to the office, sign in and
receive a visitor or volunteer badge.
We thank the parents , guardians and visitors who
are following this policy. Also, we continue to remind
the students that safety is our top priority. We encourage students to be extra careful in the school
yard and to always use appropriate entrances and
exits.
POPPIES
We will be selling poppies as a remembrance of all those who have
fought for our country and for those
that are still fighting for our country.
Please bring in loose change for
the Canadian Legion.
EXTENDED FRENCH INFORMATION MEETING
Grade 4 parent(s)/guardian(s), who wish to enroll
their child in a Grade 5 Extended French class for
September, 2013 are invited to attend an information meeting at:
St. Philip School
345 Fairview Rd W. Mississauga Ontario
January 16, 2013
7:00 PM
At the present time, the above mentioned school is
the designated centre for our area. Applications
will be accepted at that centre until 3:00 p.m.
Wednesday, February 6th, 2013.
P.A. Day Reminder
A friendly reminder that Friday November
16th, will be a P.A. Day for all students.
Teachers will be engaged in professional
development on this day, and there will be
no school for students.
Cross Country
All the coaches would like to thank the runners for their
participation in this year’s cross-country club. After numerous practices over the past several weeks 35 brave
and hearty students headed to Centennial Park to race
in the Mississauga South Family of Schools meet. All
the runners gave it their best and were able to complete
the grueling, somewhat soggy, course. Special mention
goes out to Matteo S. (gr. 8), Franka S. (gr. 7) and Anthony W. (gr. 7) whom all finished in the top 15 and will
be heading to the board-wide meet to be held on Thursday, November 8, 2012 at Centennial Park. Coaching
the team were: Mr. Howard, Mr. Ladouceur, Ms. Horbatiuk, Ms. Suraci and Ms. Wassef.
DOGS ON SCHOOL PROPERTY
For the safety of our students, parents
guardians and staff, please do not
bring dogs on school property
when you are picking up or dropping
off students. Several students have
severe allergies and animals may be
unpredictable when confronted by a
group of children. Thank you for helping to keep the
school environment safe for all!!!
Ontario EcoSchools
Ontario EcoSchools is an environmental education and certification
program for grades K-12 that helps
school communities develop both ecological literacy
and environmental practices to become environmentally responsible citizens and reduce our ecological
footprint. The key areas of achievement are: Teamwork & Leadership, Energy Conservation, Waste
Minimization, School Ground Greening, Curriculum
and Environmental Stewardship. This year St David
of Wales School will participate in becoming a certified EcoSchool through an annual certification process which assesses and recognizes accomplishments
awarding points in each of the six key areas. The
program will:
make a difference while developing active citizenship
skills and ecological literacy by responding to the
increasingly urgent issue of climate change
environmental learning and actions
through EcoSchools certification
work for environmental education in Ontario as well
as other Ministry policies
Ms. Horbatiuk, Mrs. Suraci and representatives from
the student council, under the direction of Mrs. Gallant, will be taking on this huge task as they lead the
community through our ecological journey! We look
forward to our new adventures! More information
will be forthcoming...
STUDENTS WATCHING
SPORTING EVENTS
Reminder that spectators are not allowed at after school games or practices. Staff are present to coach or
referee the games. No supervision is
provided for other spectators. Only
students who are accompanied by
their parent/guardian may stay. All other students will
be asked to leave.
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 please keep them
at home.
DATES TO REMEMBER
Thursday, November 1
Picture Retake Day
All Saint’s Day
Friday, November 2
All Soul’s Day
Saturday, November 3
5:00pm Rite of Enrollment (Confirmation)
Sunday, November 4
8:00—10:00—12:00—Rite of Enrollment (Confirmation)
Tuesday, November 6
Progress reports sent home
Thursday, November 8
Interview Evening as needed
Board Cross Country at Centennial Park
Friday, November 9
9:00
Remembrance day Liturgy and Virtue Assembly
All are welcome to attend
Wednesday, November 14
Mississauga South Youth Rally at Pope Paul
Cultural Centre
Thursday, November 15
Dance-A-Thon
Friday, November 16
P.A. Day (no school for students)
Tuesday, November 20
School Council Meeting @ 6:30 pm, All Parents/
Guardians welcome to attend
Saturday, November 24
10:30 a.m. Reconciliation—Gr. 2 at St. Martin of Tours
Wednesday, November 28
Parish /School Symposium
Parish Rep., B. Gillis and C. Zoffranieri
Wednesday, December 5
Peel Health Immunization
Thursday, December 6
1:00
Advent Mass at St. David of Wales
Friday, December 7
Santa Photos
Thursday, December 20
Christmas Concert JK—8
More information to follow