Equinox Newsletter – Vol. 2

equinox newsletter

SCHOOL NEWS – September’s Character Education trait is “Respect”. 

Parenting and Family Literacy Centre (PFLC) 

Parents/caregivers of children six years old or younger are invited to join us in the PFLC from Monday to Friday from 8:45am to 12:45pm in Area 15, on the first floor. This is a great program which helps to prepare your child for kindergarten. More information on our PFLC may be found at

http://www.tdsb.on.ca/earlyyears/preschoolyears/parentingandfamilyliteracy.aspx

Lunchroom Supervisors (LRS) Needed 

As the TDSB rolls out more Full Day Kindergarten programs in neighbouring schools, there is an increased need for LRSs in our school and those nearby. If you have extra time between 11:30am and 1pm, enjoy working with children and are looking for a part-time job, please visit www.tdsb.on.ca > Employment > Lunchroom Supervisor to apply.

Pediculosis (Lice) Awareness 

As part of our awareness and prevention program this is a reminder to parents/caregivers to discuss with your child measures everyone can take to prevent the acquisition of head lice. Keeping hair short, tied and/or away from others is important. Not sharing clothing, especially hats, and regular laundering of items is also helpful. This information is already part of our regular announcements, assemblies and class discussions in addition to our frequent checks throughout the year (when volunteers are always needed and allow us to check more often). The TDSB has recommended treatments that may be found at http://tdsbweb/ppf/uploads/files/live/100/384.doc. As always the prevention and treatment is only as effective as the implementation. If you require additional information or support, copies of the treatment sheet or know of a case, please contact the school office. Please leave your name and contact information with the school office if you can volunteer your time to help with these checks as the number and frequency depends on the number of volunteers. 

Have You Considered Volunteering on School Council? – Nominations Are Open! 

School councils play a vital role in the education system in Ontario. They provide a forum through which parents and other members of school communities can contribute to improving student achievement and school performance. The Principal and the Board of Education consult with each school’s council on matters that affect all our children (e.g., school improvement, organization, budget, safety). More information regarding school council is available from the Principal, a current council member or by visiting the Ontario Ministry of Education website: http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/general/elemsec/council/

Nominations are open for parents of current students and nomination forms were sent home last week with students. Extra forms may be downloaded from the above website or obtained from the school office. Nominations close at 4:00 p.m., on Friday September 19th. If an election is required, candidate information will be posted and communicated home and an election will be held at the school on Wednesday Sept. 24th. The next council meeting will be on October 8th.

Lunch Program 

Our lunch program has undergone some changes over the past year, all geared towards providing a more enjoyable and safe environment. Students are remaining in their seats unless with permission, given ample time to eat their lunch and transitioning outside in a much more orderly fashion. Please review with your child(ren) that they must eat lunch in our lunchroom unless you have given written permission to the school for them to leave to eat elsewhere. Students in Gr. 3 or below and leaving for lunch MUST be picked up and supervised by a responsible adult. Students with permission to leave for lunch are the responsibility of their parents/guardians and should not return to the school until close to 12:30 p.m. especially during inclement weather. Please also remember that our lunch program is only for students who are not able to go home or have an adult fetch them for lunch. If you are able to spend lunch with your child(ren), please do so. We are also pleased to announce that both white and chocolate milk will now be available to students that stay for lunch. Please review with your child(ren) your expectations around what milk to purchase and that it is only for themselves.

Allergy Awareness – Did You Know? 

We feel that all parents would like to be aware that there are children in our school with severe life-threatening food allergies. This condition is called anaphylaxis (ana-fill-axis). This is a medical condition that causes a severe reaction to specific foods or other materials, and can result in death within minutes. Although peanuts and peanut products are the most common foods to cause anaphylaxis, shellfish, fish, eggs, sulphites, milk, sesame seeds, soy or any other food can cause this dangerous condition. In recent years, anaphylaxis has increased dramatically among students. Although this may or may not affect your child’s class directly, we want to inform you so that you may choose to send foods to school with your child that are free from potential allergens.

Our school has a specific Anaphylaxis Action Plan and the Board has procedures for the prevention and management of anaphylactic reactions. Staff are trained each year in-house, and from Anaphylaxis Canada who also can provide presentations to students. Although we cannot be a completely nut or allergen free school, we are considered a very “allergy safe school”. Further information is available through Anaphylaxis Canada at www.anaphylaxis.ca or call (416) 785-5666.

If your child has health problems of any kind, please inform your child’s teacher or office staff immediately so that the necessary health protection steps may be taken. If your child has been prescribed an Epi-Pen, we encourage you to train them to carry it on their person and to obtain a medic-alert bracelet for them to wear. Thank you for your understanding and co-operation in ensuring we have the safest environment possible for all our students.

School Fees and Financial Support 

We DO NOT charge our families any fees for required materials or programs in our school. These costs are covered through the school budget or through the generous financial support of our school council and/or community partners. Non-required materials and excursions are the only exception where we ask parents/guardians to provide some of the costs. As always, if any of our families are experiencing financial challenges that may not allow their child(ren) to fully participate in school activities, please contact your child(ren)’s teacher or the school office and financial assistance will be provided. We want to ensure that students have an equal opportunity to fully participate in their school experience.

UPCOMING EVENTS 

Sept. 17 Curriculum Night, 6-7:30pm (Pizza/juice at 5:30pm – Children welcome!)

Sept. 19 School Council Nominations Due

Sept. 24 School Council Elections (if needed)

Oct. 02 Gr. 8 Transition Evening

Oct. 08 School Council Meetings

* School newsletters that contain any commercial-related information will be sent out in hardcopy until alternate arrangements are made based on pending direction and technical support provided by the board.