St. Mary Catholic School Newsletter

Virtue for October: Gratitude

Things turn out best for people who make the best of the way things turn out.

Gratitude and attitude are not challenges; they are choices.

Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, and give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. Thessalonians 5:16-18

October 2019

ST. MARY CATHOLIC SCHOOL 20 Portugal Square, Toronto, Ontar io

Tel . 416 -393 -5205 Fax. 416 -393 -5781

Principal: L. Stamcoff

Secretary: D. Costa

Superintendent: John Shanahan Area 6 416-222-8282 ext. 5371

Trustee: Norm Di Pasquale 416-512-3409

Parish: St. Mary Church 130 Bathurst Street Toronto ON M5V 2R2 416-703-2326

Priest: Fr. Fernando Couto

Catholic Parent

Involvement www.tcdsb.org/cpic

Committee-CPIC

Virtue of the Month: Gratitude

Gratitude has been called the ‘parent’ of the virtues for from it, all the other virtues grow. Did you know that learning to be grateful has many proven benefits? Taking the time each day to be grateful for both the big things and not so big things in our life can lead to many benefits. Are things not so good? Walk into a hospital for a reminder of being grateful. Everyone in the St. Mary’s school community may also read and reflect upon the following Gratitude Prayer. If you like, you can even cut it out of this newsletter and post it in a place where you can easily refer to it. It can provide you a sense of God’s grace in your life when things are good or a calming perspective when things may not be going so well (which happens to everyone).

Gratitude Prayer

Thank-you Lord for all your gifts of love, Especially for those we often overlook.

Thank-you for friends - to increase our tolerance. Thank-you for joys and happiness - to strengthen our

faith in you. Thank-you for times when all goes well

- to teach us serenity. Thank-you for when things are rough

- to teach us patience. Thank-you for our successes

-to teach us confidence. Thank-you for our failures - to increase our humility.

Thank-you Lord for the 'ups' and 'downs' of life. Thank-you Lord for the very precious gift of life itself.

Help us continue to grow and to learn, to love and to be grateful.

Comfort us when we are disturbed; disturb us when we become too comfortable. Thank-you Lord for being by our side.

From the staff of St. Mary’s, everyone in the school community is wished a blessed Thanksgiving that is filled with a sense of gratefulness and hope.

L. Stamcoff Principal

School Photo Day October 22nd

Wear your best blue and white!

Halloween Dance-a-thon Fundraiser

Our Halloween Dance-a-thon is coming soon!

Letters and pledge forms will be sent home on October 4th

and our dance-a-thon will be held on Wednesday, October

31st. Students from kindergarten to grade 8 will participate

in a 30-90 minute session of dancing and fun with an ex-

perienced DJ. Students are invited to wear a costume for

the day.

We are accepting donations of prizes for this event.

Please contact the school if you are able to assist.

All funds generated from this event will be enjoyed by the

students in the form of Scientists in School visits, special

presentations and activities, and transportation for class

trips. We look forward to your participation.

The prize breakdown is as follows:

• Student Prize Winners (3 highest donations raised)

receive a gift card to the store of their choice. (1st

prize- $200.00, 2nd prize- $150.00, 3rd prize- $100.00)

• Pizza party for the top 3 classes

• Fabulous Early Bird Prizes-for pledge totals $25 &

over (group A prizes); $50 & over (group B prizes)

The collection period is from Oct 7th to November 1st. Stu-

dents who return pledge money by October 18th will be eli-

gible for the first round of Early Bird Prize draws. Students

who return pledge money by October 25th will be eligible for

the second round of Early Bird Prize draws.

Pizza Day/Casual Dress Day

Friday, October 25th

Last day to order:

Online: Wednesday, October 23rd

Cash: Thursday, October 24th by 10AM

Terry Fox Walk - 2019

Students from Kindergarten to grade 8 participated in our

annual Terry Fox Walk on Friday,

Sept. 27th, Kindergarten students

completed their walk around the

school yard and classes from

grade 1 to grade 8 walked to Trini-

ty Bellwoods Park. It was a great

day for a walk!

We are happy to announce that with all of your contribution,

the Terry Fox Foundation will receive $925.00. Well done!

We would like to thank our school organizing committee,

parents who joined us on the walk, our students for doing a

great job, and of course parents and students for their do-

nation support!

We appreciate the donations made and the effort shared

for this worthy cause. Thank you!!

Recognition Awards for

September

Congratulations to the following stu-

dents who received a certificate for

demonstrating hospitality, inclusion or other achieve-

ments during the month of September:

Shayana Hoyek, Eliana Yeung, Aleks Pazos, Madeleine

Augustine, Camila Ietswaard-Alverado, Jael Halili, Saman-

tha Colon, Piper Traer, Olya Ordine, Marco Pidlaoan, Jes-

se Nandlal, Angel Pena, Lincoln Kett, Kaitlyn Laxamana,

Scarlet Piedrasanta Gomez, Sidney Ohonsi, Athena Cotri-

na-DaBreo, Glory Egworefa, Hyab Simon, Mateo Costa-

Sousam Fiona Alsafi, Brianna Melo, Nathan Vargas, Lia

Hemon, Malachi Benjamin, Hanna Simon, Lucas Assing,

Bruno Santisteban Vieira, Lien Doan, Joshua Javier.

Congratulations!

Class News from Grade 1 & 1/2

Ms. De Melo’s Class

The month of September was an exciting month for our class! We are learning many new things. We are learning to work independently, in groups, and in pairs. We are learning about patterns, how to write a sentence, and all about communi-ties. We enjoyed our annual Terry Fox walk to Bellwoods Park. We are also really enjoying our fun STEM activities and looking forward to doing some more. Next month, we will learn all about Thanksgiving, the changes that happen in the fall, and Halloween.

Ms. Rendon’s Class

In September we welcomed back all the students! It was nice to see all of our friends and teachers after the summer break. Dur-ing the first month back, we learned the new routines of our class and are building new friendships with our classmates. At the end of the month we honoured Terry Fox by walking to Trinity Bellwoods park for our school walk-a-thon. We got to wear red shirts too. We all had a great start to the new school year and look forward to what else the year has to bring!

P.D. Day

Friday, Oct 11th

St. Mary School is Allergen Aware!

Please remember that all snacks and lunches for students must be nut free. We have several children in the school with life threatening aller-gies and we would like to ensure that they are not exposed to dangerous food items.

Snacks should not contain any type of nut product such as peanuts, almonds, cashews, peanut but-ter, Nutella, etc.

Also, please remind your child to not share his/her snack or lunch.

Let’s all do our part to keep our students safe.

TRUSTEES 2019 – 2020 Wards

1. Joseph Martino 2. Markus de Domenico 3. Ida Li Preti 4. Teresa Lubinski 5. Maria Rizzo, Chair 6. Frank D‘Amico 7. Michael Del Grande, Vice-Chair 8. Garry Tanuan 9. Norm Di Pasquale 10. Daniel Di Giorgio 11. Angela Kennedy 12. Nancy Crawford

Kathy Nguyen, Student Trustee Taylor Dallin, Student Trustee

Absenteeism

Please help us with our safe arrival program at school by informing the school of your child’s absence. You may call at any time and leave a message on the automated system. Please remember to provide: the name of your child, his/her grade and teacher, and the reason for the absence.

Call 416-393-5205 to report an absence.

Bussing & Alternate After-School Arrangements Please ensure that you contact the school office by 2:00pm daily to advise of any change in your child’s after school arrangements.

416-393-5205

CSPC - Catholic School Advisory Council

Our CSPC AGM was held on Wednesday, September 19th.

Elections were held that evening for the 2018/2019 CSPC

Council.

This year’s CSPC Executive:

Chair - Ania Goodall

Co-Chair - Sindy Brotto

Secretary - Josie Cristoforo

Treasurer - Shirley Rocha

Teacher Rep: Ms. FitzPatrick, Mr. Ferreira

Next CSPC Meeting: Wednesday, October 16th at 6:30

pm, St. Mary School - Staffroom. All parents are welcome.

cspc.stmary@tcdsb.org

Curriculum Night

Thursday, Oct. 10th. School opens at

6pm. The School Community gathers to-

gether in the gym at 6:30 for greetings

and introductions. 6:45 to 7:45 all are

welcome to go to their child’s class-

rooms. Courtesy of the school’s Parent

Council (CSPC), pizza slices will be pro-

vided free of charge for all in at-

tendance at 6:00pm in the

school hallway.

We look forward to seeing you

on October 10th.

Parking

Please do not park in

front of the school in the

morning from 8:00-8:30

am or in the afternoon

from 2:00-3:30 pm, as this

area is designated for our school buses.

The East and West parking lots are

designated for staff/school board per-

sonnel parking only. Unfortunately,

there are no extra spaces for par-

ents/visitors.

We thank you for your co-operation.

News from the Board

Update on Negotiations with CUPE The Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) is involved in province-wide, central collective bargaining with the Council of Trustee Associations

and the provincial government.

At the Toronto Catholic District School Board (TCDSB), CUPE represents caretaking, maintenance and warehouse staff, office clerical and technical

staff, school based support staff including

Child and Youth Workers and Education Assistants, and secondary school supervisors as well as International Language Instructors.

The TCDSB has been advised that the members of the CUPE may begin job action as early as Monday, September 30, beginning with work-to-rule

sanctions.

The health and safety of students and staff is deeply important to us.

If there is any impact to regular school operations, parents will receive communications through the following methods:

• School Messenger (please ensure that your school has current and up to date telephone numbers and email addresses on file for your family)

• Twitter (follow @TCDSB) TCDSB website www.tcdsb.org 24-hour telephone information line 416-222-8282 ext. 2873 The Board wishes to assure parents and students that every effort will be made to ensure that all elementary and secondary schools, day care centres,

before- and after-school programs and nutrition programs will continue to remain open as long as it is safe to do so.

School bus transportation for eligible students will continue.

Parents are encouraged to contact their local school principal with any questions or issues of local concern.

Introducing the Secondary School Online Application for Registration

(SECSOAR.TCDSB.ORG) We are announcing some exciting news regarding the Secondary School Application Process for enrolment in September 2020. On Tuesday, October 15, 2019, the Toronto Catholic District School Board (TCDSB) will officially launch the new Secondary School Online Application website, SECSOAR.TCDSB.ORG. Some exciting features of the online application include:

easy tracking of the status of your child’s application, complete the Specialty Program Application along with your regular program application through one application, email notifications for offers of placement, accept/decline offers of placement you receive electronically.

Important note: a current email address on file with your elementary school is required in order to create your child’s application/account on October 15th, 2019. If you do not have an email address on file, please be sure to submit this information to your elementary school office before Tuesday, October 8th, 2019. For a full guide to completing the on line application, please visit the TCDBS website at www.tcdsb.org → Admissions & Placement Department page, to view the “Parent Guide to Completing the Secondary School Online Application” information guide.

PARENT OPPORTUNITIES & INFORMATION

Safe Schools Advisory Committee: Parent Reps Needed TCDSB Seeks 2 Parent Reps for Safe School Advisory Committee. Application deadline October 18, 2019. Click here for an applica-tion and more information.

TCDSB Environment Steering Committee

TCDSB is seeking 2 community/parent representatives for its Environment Steering Committee. All positions are voluntary and candidates must be parents who presently have children enrolled in TCDSB. Applications are available at: https://www.tcdsb.org/FORPARENTS/Documents/Parent-%20Community%20Member%20Application%20Form-2016-R.pdf Completed applications can be sent via email to communityrep@tcdsb.org Application deadline: OCTOBER 25, 2019 Toronto CPIC Annual Report 2018-2019 Click here to access the Toronto Catholic Parent Involvement Committee Annual Report for 2018-2019. CPIC Elections October 28 and 29, 2019 Nomination forms accepted until October 18, 2019 https://www.tcdsb.org/CPIC-Elections

News from the Board continued

STUDENT OPPORTUNITIES & INFORMATION Elementary Athletics October 16, 2019—Elementary Cross-Country Regionals (North and South) October 17, 2019— Elementary Cross-Country Regionals (East and West) October 22, 2019-- Elementary Cross-Country City Finals High School Open Houses for Grade 8 Students and Their Families High school information nights are being hosted at secondary schools around the City until October 16th. Click here for a complete schedule of dates, times and locations. TCDSB Newcomer Student Leadership Conference TCDSB will once again welcome newcomer students at the annual Newcomer Student Leadership Conference, which will be held this year on Wednesday, October 16. TCDSB schools are invited to extend an invitation to at least two newcomer students from grades 7 to 12 (maximum of 10) to attend this free event. Click here to complete online event registration on or before October 2, 2019.

BOARD & COMMITTEE MEETINGS OAPCE: Oct. 1 Student Achievement Committee: Oct. 2 Labour Relations Ad Hoc Committee: Oct. 3 By-Laws Ad Hoc Committee: Oct. 7 Governance and Policy Committee: Oct. 8 Corporate Services Committee: Oct. 10 SEAC: Oct. 16 Regular Board: Oct. 17 Click here to review information and agendas. To view minutes or video broadcasts from previous meetings, select the Past Meetings tab on the page. Policies Currently Under Review/Revision: Update to Trustee Code of Conduct Policy T.04 Update to Awards Funds and Scholarships Policy FF.01 Update to Catholic School Parent Councils Policy S.10 EVENTS AND INFORMATION

October is Hispanic Canadian Heritage Month October is also Principals’ Month Recognition Days: October 2, 2019 Custodial Workers’ Appreciation Day October 5, 2019 World Teachers’ Day October 25, 2019 Early Childhood Educators and Childcare Worker Appreciation Day

Walk to School Day: October 2, 2019- Walk to School Day is an opportunity for all of us—students, staff, families—to focus on

improved health and well-being, active lifestyles and building safer communities for everyone. Register your school for Walk to School Day and receive a Certificate of Participation from Canada Walks. Click here for more information.

Feast of Creation: An Ecumenical Gathering- Celebrate the Season of Creation with contemplative prayer and music. Friday, October 4 from 6:30 – 8 p.m. at St. Basil’s Church (50 St. Joseph Street, Toronto). Click here for more information on this and other upcoming events at The Mary Ward Centre.

World Mental Health Day- October 10, 2019

https://www.tcdsb.org/pages/world-mental-health-day.aspx

System-Wide PA Day- October 11, 2019

Thanksgiving- October 14, 2019

International Day for Eradication of Poverty- October 17, 2019 https://www.tcdsb.org/pages/international-day-for-

eradication-of-poverty.aspx

Inaugural Rosary Bowl - The Toronto Rosary Bowl will take place Saturday, October 19th from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Blessed Cardi-

nal Newman (100 Brimley Road South, Scarborough). Click here for more information about this family-friendly event.

Federal Election- October 21, 2019

School Bus Safety Week- October 20-25, 2019

School bus driver appreciation day October 22, 2019 https://www.tcdsb.org/pages/international-day-for-eradication-of-poverty.aspx

Mark Your Calendar! Special Services Information Fair- November 9, 2019 (watch for details www.tcdsb.org)

Picking up Your Child at 3pm Dismissal:

All picking up of students is done at the East Yard of the school only. Please do not come to the front entrance of the school to re-

trieve your child at 3pm. This is a ‘heavy traffic’ area for bus students to wait and then walk to their busses. This procedure includes

when plans change – i.e. child normally takes bus, but they have an appointment – parent is to tell child they will meet them in

EAST YARD at 3 pm. Parents are requested to write this info in child’s agenda too so child does not forget or get mixed up due to

the change in end of day dismissal routine. Your co-operation and understanding in this matter is appreciated.

School Safety Parents are kindly requested to not walk through the hallway of the school, as per TCDSB Policy. This policy is specifically to do with

the safety and security of the students, staff and school building. To see their children walk to their classrooms on the first floor only,

parents may stand at the entrance area of the school, just north-east of the school office. This area can be called the ‘intersection;’ it

is where three hallways meet: the east/west hallway and the hallway looking north. Your understanding and co-operation in this safety

policy is appreciated. Thank-You

Busses: Parents/Caregivers of students in grade 3 and younger: please ensure your child has a purple tag on knapsack– if you

change knapsacks– please place purple tag on new knapsack. If you need a new one– call the school office and we will provide a new

one. A child with a purple tag on their knapsack means the child must be greeted by a Parent/ Caregiver when getting off the bus.

The driver looks for this and if no one can be found, a child with a purple tag is to remain on the bus. The child will be brought back to

the school, the child’s home called and the parent/caregiver will have to come to the school to pick up their child. As well, for any bus

info, all parents are encouraged to access the TCDSB Transportation link provided below. Also, having in your cell phone the phone

# and the route # for the bus company is recommended for when your child comes to school in the morning and leaves from school at

the end of the school day. If you are unsure of the phone # and route #, please call the school and we will provide it for you.

https://intranet.tcdsb.org/News/Pages/New-Transportation-Portal.aspx

Bussing Info and Walking Safety

Busses continue to run and as we know, lateness can and will happen. Parents/caregivers are reminded to have the bus company

contact/phone # in their phone for updates when there is a problem. The phone # and route # can be obtained from calling the school

and placing this info in your phone will support your updating when you need it most.

A safety reminder for all students and anyone walking on the sidewalk in front of the school: all are cautioned to walk by the fence

side of the sidewalk and not near the road. At the bus drop-off in the morning and after school when busses are lined up along road-

way – all are cautioned to walk on the sidewalk nearest the fence. Please avoid walking so close to the road (and busses) that are

parked. Doing so can better support the safety of our students and all members of the St. Mary’s community during high traffic vol-

ume at the start of and at the end of a school day. As we know. All schools experience traffic at the start and end of a school day.

Everyone – it is imperative that young and old alike have their ‘wits’ about them where vehicles are nearby – it is a basic lesson for

life and this includes crossing the street. Looking both ways and not running out on to the road remains a staple of street safety. Par-

ents/caregivers are requested to review this basic safety rule and to model it as well. Your child will thank-you!

Bus Transportation Information and Updates

Communications with parents regarding bus transportation for students is a priority. In order to stay informed,

parents are encouraged to register on the Toronto Student Transportation Group (TSTG) portal today by visiting

www.torontoschoolbus.org. The direct site to register for updates is https://can.busplannerweb.com/ This portal

provides TCDSB parents with online access to their children’s transportation information and up to the minute

email notifications regarding school bus cancellations or delays. If you have any issues signing up on the portal,

please contact support@torontoschoolbus.org and staff will assist you with the registration of your account.

AM Routes PM Routes

CAR0109–Attridge Transportation– 416-255-5199 CSW0407– Switzer Carty Transportation (Purple)- 905-361-1084

CSH0231–Sharp Transportation– 416-477-4809 PSC0852– Stock East Transportation (Red)- 416-754-4949

PSN0961–Stock North Transportation– 416-757-0565 CSH0231– Sharp Transportation (Yellow)- 416-4774809

PST0757–Stock West Transportation– 416-244-5341 CAR0109– Attridge Transportation (Green)- 416-255-5199

PFT0095– First Student– 416-444-7030 PSN0961– Stock North Transportation (Orange)- 416-757-0565

TCDSB transportation homepage also has delay-cancellation info:

Www.torontoschoolbus.org

Subscribe at: https://busplannerweb.torontoschoolbus.org/Default.aspx for all of your child’s transportation in-

formation.

A Thanksgiving Prayer

Father in Heaven, Creator of all and source of all goodness and love, please look kindly upon us

and receive our heartfelt gratitude in this time of giving thanks.

Thank you for all the graces and blessings. You have bestowed upon us, spiritual and temporal: our

faith and religious heritage. Our food and shelter, our health, the loves we have for one another, our

family and friends.

Dear Father, in Your infinite generosity, please grant us continued graces and

blessings throughout the coming year.

This we ask in the Name of Jesus, Your Son and our Brother. Amen.

Walking Through the School Parents/caregivers etc. are not allowed to walk through the school. This is TCDSB Policy. This Policy is for the safety and security of all stu-dents and staff of the school. Upon entry to the school, all visitors, including parents/caregivers, must report to the School Office and sign in, in a Visitor Binder. At that point, any visitor or par-ent must remain in the Office. Your reason for visiting the school will be dealt with accordingly. We do not want students or staff to get accus-tomed to seeing strangers walking, waiting or retrieving children in the hallways. Your under-standing and co-operation in this safety and se-curity matter is appreciated.

Parents/Caregivers in the School Yard

Parents are not allowed in the school yard throughout the school day from 8:15am to 3:00pm, including the ELP fenced in area. This is to do with safety and security. If adults were allowed in the school yard, we’d have no way of know-ing who was a parent and who was not. As well, we do not want any adult hurt by a wayward school yard ball or activity. Your compliance with this TCDSB Policy

is appreciated.

Church Corner

Weekly Mass:

Saturday at 5pm & Sunday at 11:30am

Sacrament of Holy Eucharist and Sacrament of Confirmation:

Catechism classes for grade 2’s and grade 7’s (and anyone else who needs to

complete the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist and/or Confirmation):

Catechism for both grades starts on: Oct. 20th at 10:00 am to 11:15 am

All classes occur at the Church.

Catechism classes on:

October 20– first meeting, further dates TBA

First Communion: Sunday, April 26 at 1:15 pm Mass at Church

Confirmation Rehearsal: Sunday, April 19 at 5:00pm at Church

Confirmation: Saturday, April 25 at 5pm Mass