November 2013 Newsletter

“Be leaders and learners every day, every where.”

For Upcoming

Events

Please make sure

you check the

CALENDAR on our

school web site for updated

information

Go to: clarkson.peelschools.org

Check out the links to My Class

Sites

Bus Information is

found at: http://businfo.stopr.ca

Safe Arrival

905-823-4470

Contact

Information

Superintendent:

W. Dowling

Phone: 905-569-9946

Trustee:

B. MacDonald

Phone: 905-593-3547

Principal:

J. Collins

Phone: 905-823-4470

Office Manager:

J. Dobson

905-823-4470

Inquiry Learning

We invite curiosity. We build background knowledge.

We find topics. We wonder.

Students are curious. Students learn about the curriculum

using texts, visuals, Internet and artifacts.

Students talk, write and draw about what they know. They wonder and ask questions.

P.A.L.S. The PALS are one

of the six student

leadership teams.

They help their

younger peers find

friends to play with

and activities to

engage in during

the recess breaks.

All of our student

leaders participate

in their school life

in a positive

manner by being

inclusive and

caring, and by

taking on

responsibilities.

Cross-Country 2013

The grade 4/5 Cross-Country team had a wonderful day at Jack Darling park, on October 25, 2013. Fourteen schools participated in all, bringing nearly 700 students to this Meet! Clark-

son athletes were a pleasure to supervise. Our students were all determined, responsible and enthusiastic. When children were not running, they were cheering on their teammates.

They all did their best, and completed each race. The grade fours ran 1.5km. The grade fives ran 2km.

Of special note is the fact that two of our grade four girls placed at the finish line! Cindy came in third and Sophia came in second out of nearly 100 grade four girls competing that

day. We were all so impressed. All of this was topped off with Brownie Day purchases back at Clarkson in the afternoon. Who could ask for more?

Parents and Caregivers please note the following information regarding the supervision of students on the creative playground: 1. Staff is on duty beginning at 8:45 am. At that time, the areas being supervised are the Kiss and Ride, Bus, and all hard top areas. 2. The creative playground is not supervised by school staff before or after school. 3. If your child is on the creative playground from 8:45 am-9:00 am and/or 3:30 pm-3:45 pm, please note that they WILL NOT BE SUPERVISED by the school staff. 4. Daycares (like Mini-Skool), must directly supervise their children before and after school.

After School Program PLASP Child Care Services operates an After School Program at this school. The After School Program begins once school is dismissed and goes until 6:00 p.m. Children participate in recrea-tional activities, are served a nutritious snack daily and have time for homework. Fee assistance is available.

Visit www.plasp.com and register your child online today.

Choose Action on Bullying Awareness and Prevention Week

The Peel District School Board will recognize Bullying Awareness and Prevention Week during the week of November 18 to 22.

Across the Peel board, schools use many programs and initiatives to

prevent bullying and to intervene when bullying happens. Though

the programs vary, their messages are consistent. Students are taught to:

define bullying identify forms of bullying

identify roles in bullying relationships, for example the person who bullies, the target, the bystander or the trusted advocate

determine how to safely “choose action” to prevent and intervene in bullying & harassment

demonstrate character attributes and be a leader to help maintain positive and safe school communities

Every school has a Climate for Learning and Working Team which is required to de-velop a Bullying Prevention and Intervention Plan as part of the School Success Plan.

Also, every employee who is involved in the care and service of students is obligated to report in writing to the school administration any action for which the principal

must consider suspension or expulsion. Bullying is an offence that must be consid-

ered for suspension.

Bullying Awareness and Prevention Week is one of the key items contained in Bill 13: The Accepting Schools Act, that came into effect on September 1, 2012. For more

information, visit: www.peelschools.org/aboutus/safeschools/bullying/ or www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/safeschools/prevention.html

Prevent the flu. It’s in your hands.

Hand washing is the most important way to prevent the spread of infection. Always wash your hands with soap and water when they are dirty.

Clean your hands before:

touching your eyes, nose or mouth

touching/preparing food or drinks

eating or drinking

caring for someone in your home who can easily get sick

(baby, elderly or someone who has an unhealthy immune system) first aid

Clean your hands after: touching pets or other animals

touching raw meat, particularly chicken

touching surfaces such as a railing or grocery cart

touching money

touching objects sick people have touched

touching blood or body fluids such as urine, vomit or feces

contact with those who have a cold, the flu, diarrhea or virus of any kind

changing diapers

wiping your own or a child’s nose

sneezing or coughing

using a facial tissue

using the washroom

removing gloves

cleaning

gardening

What to do when you cough or sneeze:

cover your mouth and nose with a tissue or your sleeve

put used tissues in the wastebasket

clean your hands with soap and water or a hand sanitizer

For more information call Peel Health at 905-799-7700 or visit

www.peelregion.ca/flu.

Council Update for November 2013

Upcoming Events

Dinner and a Movie Night: On November 14th we will be screening TWO first release movies, not

yet out on DVD. Turbo (rated “G”) and Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters (rated “PG”) will be play-

ing simultaneously to offer movie madness for all family members. Please look for forms sent home

on Fri. Oct. 25th. Very affordable movie passes and dinner can be pre-ordered for the night, and

there will be refreshments available the night of for purchase.

Pizza Days/Bake Sale Brownie Day: Pizza days have started on Tuesdays and we also ran our first

cupcake day in October. These have been great successes so far - thanks for your support! Can

you volunteer to help distribute pizza slices on Tuesdays from 11:30am – 12:00pm? If you can,

please leave a message in the main office. Please note we have scheduled the following dates

for upcoming Bake Sales: Fri. Feb. 14th, Fri. Apr. 11th and a Friday in June still to be determined.

Thank you to our volunteers!

Open House: Thanks to the staff and Principal Collins for making the school look so nice. Thanks to

Peggy Fessey, Kim Masellis, Tammy Dunkley and family, Jackie Joiner and Catherine Creally for

assisting. Thanks to Denise Mummery for her help setting up and cleaning up!

Pizza Day Tuesdays: Thank you to Effy and Zisi Konstantinou for organizing, ordering and serving

the delicious pizza to the students every Tuesday. Also, thank you to Reyhaneh Nikoonejad and

Marijana Galic for assisting with serving and delivering, and thanks to Judy Dobson for placing our

milk orders.

Bake Sale: Thank you to Effy Konstantinou for planning our first Brownie Bake Sale Day of the

year!

Thank you to all the families who contributed delicious goods to be enjoyed by the students.

Thank you Steph Phelan and Karen Hickerson who stepped in to help sell all the goodies.

Morning Kiss ‘N’ Ride: Thank you to Melissa Flanaghan for making sure our Kiss „N‟ Ride area is be-

ing run safely and efficiently every morning! We are still currently looking for a volunteer to assist

with our afternoon pick-up Kiss „N‟ Ride, if available please contact Principal Collins or the Office

Staff.

Movie Night: Thank you for the big effort put forth by the Movie Night Committee and helpers!

Effy Konstantinou, Kim Masellis, Jackie Joiner, Reyhaneh Nikoonejad, Crystal O‟Leary and Cath-

erine Creally.

Classroom Assistance: We‟d like to thank all the parents who have offered their time and support

inside the school‟s classrooms day-to-day.

QSP Magazine Sale: Thanks to Trity Dow for running another successful fundraiser for 2013, and to

all families who supported the school by selling (or buying!) magazine subscriptions.

Brief summary of items discussed at the October meeting of School Council

Treasurer Report: Council reviewed a draft budget for this school year – at this time there are still a

few items that are being considered and reviewed by Principal Collins. We will finalize the budget

(projected income, and projected expenses) for 2013/2014 at the next school council meeting.

Fundraising Report: This year Clarkson P.S. is working towards an exceptional fundraising goal to

fund new playground equipment for the students and community. Council has proposed some

new and exciting initiatives for the year – as well as bringing back previously successful efforts,

such as: QSP magazine sales, pizza and bake sales, Toronto Maple Leaf seats draw, Spring Flowers

etc.

Fundraising Plan and Calendar: Now that Council has approved its fundraising goals and plans

for the year, please see the plan on the parent bulletin board at the main entrance of the school

across from the office.

Council Members: This year we have 15 acclaimed voting members on our council along with

one vote from our two community representatives, then Principal Collins, and Mr. Deegan as our

Teacher Representative.

Our 2013-2014 council is as follows:

Catherine Creally Chair

Jackie Joiner Treasurer Monique Duquette Secretary

Nancy Dunn Co-Treasurer Silvia Hollo Co-Secretary

Laura Vesel Vice-Chair / Communications

Effy Konstantinou Fundraising Chair

Crystal O‟Leary Volunteer Coordinator Kim Masellis Community Representative

Peggy Fessey Community Representative

Reyhaneh Nikoonejad General Member

Trity Dow General Member

Laura Russell General Member Stephanie Phelan General Member

Dierdre Livingstone General Member

Keri Zubriski General Member

Derek and Shivana Bottjer General Members

Mark Your Calendars!

Going forward for the year Council will meet on the following dates:

March 4, 2014 at 6:30 pm

May 22, 2014 at 6:30 pm

Clarkson P.S. Parent Library

Clarkson P.S. has a unique collection of library books just for parents and caregivers of our stu-

dents. The library contains approximately 30 titles on a variety of topics that can assist all of us, as

we try to navigate some of the more complex issues of raising our children!

To borrow a book or resource from the Parent Library, visit the office Staff and ask to see the Par-

ent Library collection and make your selection. The borrowed material will then be scanned un-

der your child‟s library account. If you are unable to come in, simply review the book/resource list

and send your request to your child‟s teacher. As above, the selection will be scanned under

your child‟s account, and sent home with your child.

A two week lending period is offered with an option to renew your selection for longer. The same

standard for returns apply to the Parent Library as the Clarkson P.S. Children‟s Library: materials

must be returned in good condition and it is the responsibility of the borrower to replace materials

that are not returned due to damage or loss.

If you‟ve read a great book from our library please submit a review to be published in our news-

letters to help fellow caregivers with their selections.

If you have read a great book not in our library already, please give us the information and we

will work on obtaining it! We would also love any donations that can contribute to growing our

library and enforcing our community growth and development!

If you want to write a review of one of the books, please contact Laura Vesel at

laura_ves@outlook.com.

Attention Parents:

Next Council Meeting is November 28 at 6:30pm in the staffroom.

(We provide free babysitting!)

6:30pm – 7:30pm: Updates from Principal Collins and school staff; Questions and Answers

7:30pm – 8:30pm: Council members review fundraising, events and financials

Stay only as long as you are able. We hope to see you there!