March 2016 ST. CHARLES GARNIER SCHOOL 4233 Central Parkway East, Mississauga, Ontario L4Z 1M7 (905) 275-0509 Mississauga East Family of Schools God our Father, Principal: M.J. Vowles Secretary: D. Giansante Catholic School Council Chair/Vice Chair: E. Gomes A. Costa Acting Custodians: J. Costa M. Bak Superintendent: T. Lariviere Trustee/Past Chairman: A. Abbruscato (905) 890-0708 Ext. 24239 (416) 459-0126 Sts. Peter and Paul Parish 4070 Central Parkway East Miss., ON L4Z 1T6 (905) 273-6630 Parish Pastor: Fr. Sol Paranas Associate Pastor: Fr. Charles Ogugbuaja You formed us from the dust of the earth and brought us to new life in Christ through the waters of Baptism. We ask you to change our hearts as we journey through these forty days of Lent. Help us to see Jesus in everyone we meet, and to serve him in all persons, especially the poor, the sick and the lonely. By your grace, may our prayers and sacrifices this Lent help us grow closer to each another and to you, as one family in Jesus. We make this prayer to you in His name. Amen The Virtue for the Month of March is… KINDNESS People of Kindness… As brothers and sisters who share one Holy Spirit, we are all valuable to God. We all deserve to be shown concern for our welfare and our feelings. We have all been given the Fruit of the Spirit called Kindness. God wants us to be kind to everyone we meet. God helps us to be kind to our family and friends because by being kind we are able to see God in everyone we meet. Let us help our children to remember that a kind person gives their time to help others, stands by their friends in time of need, shares with others, is polite, and cares about other people’s feelings. Secretary: M. Morta Visit our Website: http://www.dpcdsb.org/CGARN Principal’s Message MARK THE DATE Let Us Not Forget: Catholic School Council Meeting: Thur sday, Mar ch 3r d, 2016 at 6:30pm. Please join us, all are welcome. He was born in an obscured village, the child of a peasant woman. He grew up in another village where he worked in a carpenter shop until he was thirty. Then for three years he was an itinerant preacher. He never wrote a book. He never held an office. He never had a family or owned a home. He didn’t go to college. He never visited a big city. He never travelled two hundred kilometers from the place he was born. He did none of those things that usually accompany greatness. He had no credentials but himself. He was only thirty-three when the tide of public opinion turned against him. His friends ran away. One of them denied him. He was turned over to his enemies and went through the mockery of a trial. He was nailed to a cross between two thieves. While he was dying his executioners gambled for his garments, the only property he had on earth. When he was dead, he was laid in a borrowed grave through the pity of a friend. Nineteen centuries have come and gone and today he is the central figure of the human race. All the armies that ever marched, all the navies that ever sailed, all the parliaments that ever sat, all the kings that ever reigned, put together, have not affected the life of man on this earth as much as ...ONE SOLITARY LIFE PLANNING AHEAD—Class Placements In arriving at the decision for placement for your child for the upcoming year, every consideration is given to individual student needs. This decision is made in collaboration with all staff who have been directly involved in your child’s education this year. If you feel that there are specific needs which should be addressed in determining the placement of your child, please send the principal a letter to advise of your concerns. We ask for all submissions to be sent to the office no later than Friday, April 22nd. Your request will be considered at our grade promotion meetings. We remind you that it would not be appropriate to request one teacher over another as placements are subject to change. However, if there is other information regarding your child’s learning style, or other considerations of which we ought to be aware, please advise us of these facts in your letter. NO letter will be accepted after this date. Please join us for our Easter Mass to be held Thursday, March 31st at 1:30pm. We will be back at the chur ch for this mass. EASTER is early this year. Students will be off on Good Friday March 25th and Easter Monday March 28th . March Break this year runs from Monday, March 14th to Friday, March 18th inclusive. School is closed this week and we return to school Monday, March 21st. We hope everyone has a safe and relaxing break! INDOOR SHOES/CHANGE OF CLOTHES Please ensure that your child comes to school prepared to go outside for recess and lunch hour breaks. It is the expectation that each child comes dressed appropriately to go outside to enjoy the weather and get some fresh air and exercise. If your child is prone to getting wet during recess, please send a change of clothes, especially socks and sweat pants. Please ensure that your child brings a pair of indoor shoes to school. Please label the shoes for our primary students. Running shoes are preferred because they are safe and can also be used for gym. Slippers are not appropriate as they tend to have soft soles and no treat to protect children from slipping or from objects (pins, staples, etc.) Please ensure that the shoes have non-marking soles. We appreciate your continued support. SAFETY IN THE GYM Students are reminded that they must wear proper indoor shoes for gym and appropriate gym clothes. Jewelry must be removed when in gym class or during sports activities. Students are not allowed to wear their “outside” shoes in the gym. CYBERBULLYING Parents—please take time to become involved with your children as they are engaged in computer activities. Be sure the computer screen is visible to you. Remember your child is a minor and you are responsible for their actions. If you or your child have been receiving unsavory text messages, it is recommended parents call the police. You will want to monitor the messages your child sends to ensure they are appropriate. Reading And Writing With Your Child – K to Grade 6 Parent Guide This is an update of the Ontario Ministry of Education’s Helping Your Child with Reading and Writing: A Guide for Parents. Produced by the Literacy and Numeracy Secretariat in partnership with the Parent Engagement Office. New to this edition are links to games and activities on TVOkids.com. STUDENT SAFETY IS ALWAYS IMPORTANT—Please review the following with your child Students are reminded of safe practices when walking to and from school. Please take a few minutes to view the following online resources: This colourful collection of websites is based on favourite TV shows, such as Clifford the Big Red Dog, Teletubbies, Reading Rainbow and Sesame Street. Kids will enjoy seeing their favourite characters online, playing games with them and learning early reading strategies. http://pbskids.org/ Walk in groups. Be on time so you are not walking to school or home alone. NEVER go with a stranger ANYWHERE. Don’t get in cars without your parent’s permission. Don’t approach an unfamiliar car. Go straight home. Be sure your parents ALWAYS know where you are. If someone asks you to do something that seems strange—don’t do it. Let your parents or an adult you trust know if something seems wrong or if something happens to you. PARKING LOT PROTOCOL We would like to thank parents who remember to use the Kiss ‘n Ride Area only for student pick up and drop off. It is a fire route, so if you leave your car unattended in this area, even for a moment to drop off a lunch or a student, you can be ticketed. Cars must be parked in parking spots. EQAO GRADE 3 AND 6 TESTING The EQAO Education Quality and Accountability Office) testing of our Grade 3 and 6 students will take place from May 25th through to June 8th. Please try to avoid scheduling any Doctor’s appointments or anything else that will take your child out of school during testing dates. Tests and materials cannot be given out to parents prior to or during the testing period. Previous media accounts revealed that some parents and children become anxious about this test. Please try to keep this testing in perspective for your child. PBS Kids 4Kids.org 4Kids.org is a team of educators, writers, technology specialists and students that produces weekly articles and links demonstrating how online learning can be a safe, fun and adventurous activity. www.4kids.org Sample virtual field trips Visit various places around the world, often with webcam access or through games, photos and videos. www.theteachersguide.com/virtualtours.html United Nations Cyberschoolbus Visit the UN’s information centre for both students and teachers. http://cyberschoolbus.un.org BASKETBALL Our Jr. Boys Basketball Team finished 1st Place in their division and our Jr. Girls Basketball Team finished 2nd place in their division. Both Teams went on to represent our school in the Family Tournament. Congratulations to both teams for doing such an amazing job! GO EAGLES GO! SACRAMENTAL / LITURGICAL SHROVE TUESDAY A GREAT BIG thank you goes out to our Grade 7/8 Class and Mrs. Sappong for cooking and serving delicious pancakes for all our students (K-8) and staff on Shrove Tuesday. Our children were smiling ear to ear as they enjoyed every last sticky bite. GRADE 2 FIRST COMMUNION & GRADE 8 CONFIRMATION are coming. Participating students must be registered through Sts. Peter & Paul Church. LET’S WASH OUR HANDS! Hand washing when done correctly is the single most effective way to prevent the spread of infectious diseases such as the flu. Please help us to reinforce the proper techniques with your child. 1. Wet our hands. 2. Soap our hands 3. Wash our hands 4. Rinse our hands 5. Dry our hands 6. Use paper towels to turn taps off THE BIG GULP SPEECHES On Thursday, March 24th students will be part of The Big Gulp. During The Big Gulp, students will be asked to have a re -usable bottle of water present with them at school so that they can take a “big gulp” with their friends and teachers. “Tasting the tap” is extremely important for not only is it easily accessible to everyone in the Region of Peel, but tap water is by far the least expensive way to buy your water. Tap water costs less than bottled water and other bottled beverages. On average, a can of pop or bottle of water costs at least $1.00. For the same cost, a reusable water bottle can be refilled about 4,500 times. PEDICULOSIS (Head Lice) A problem which seems to occur throughout the school year is Pediculosis, or Head Lice. Head lice are parasites which have been common among human beings for centuries. They are not connected in any way with uncleanliness. Anyone can become infested with them. Unfortunately, in recent years they have become quite common throughout North America. In order to control these pests we shall do the following and we request your full cooperation. If a case is found in a classroom, we will check the students and send a letter home asking that you please check your child(ren) as well. It is a wise precaution to check your child(ren) periodically and advise the school immediately should you detect head lice. Proper treatment may be obtained from your pharmacist or by contacting the Region of Peel Health Department. Thank you so much for assisting us with this very important issue, if you have any questions or concerns please do not hesitate to contact the school. This month our intermediate students participated in a speech contest. Our first place winner was Martina D. The second place winner was Matthew C. and our Runner-Up was Roxine G. Congratulations to all three of them! Both Martina and Matthew went on to represent our school at the Mary Matthews Public Speaking Contest at Sts. Peter and Paul Church on February 20th. They both did and excellent job in presenting their speeches to the wider audience. Congratulations are extended to Martina who won first place and now proceeds to the Regional levels of the Mary Matthews Public Speaking Contest. Best of luck in the new contest, Martina! Two of our students Paulina I. and Ivan F. competed in the Royal Canadian Legion Speech Competition on February 27th. Both represented our school very well. Ivan placed 2nd overall. Congratulations to both Paulina and Ivan for their accomplishments. GRADE 8 GRADUATION PICTURES A reminder that Grade Eight Graduation Pictures will be taken on Wednesday, April 6th, 2016. Further information from the photographer will be sent home closer to the date. Mark your calendars, Graduation will be held on Monday, June 27th, 2016 and begin with Mass at 7:00 p.m. at Sts. Peter & Paul Church.