E - BULLETIN UPDATE #11

March 2017

Character Trait….Integrity

As we transition into spring, things continue to be busy and exciting at Cedarwood! In February, we celebrated the history, herit-age, and contributions of African Canadians, as part of African Heritage Month, similar to the process followed in January when we celebrated Tamil Heritage Month. The month ended with a powerful and informative assembly planned, organized, and performed by our Grade 7’s and our wonderful staff. In early March, we had our second elective day, and our students got to once again ex-perience a whole range of fun and exciting activities. Thankfully the weather cooperated and our students got to either ski, snow-board, tube, skate, play indoor beach volleyball, bowl, visit Variety Village, dance, cook, or create amazing artworks, as some the available options. We extend a huge thank you to our staff, under the leadership of Ms. Legault, Ms. Dimitriadis, and Ms. Mawhin-ney, for organizing these amazing opportunities for our students! Just before the March Break we held our annual Cederwood’s Got Talent show, planned and organized by our Student Leadership Council, and the event did not disappoint. Clearly we have incredibly talented students who can sing, dance, play instruments, and perform magic with the best of them! The students were also excited to see our creative and talented staff members having fun and participating by dancing and singing as well! We thank the Toronto Zoo for coming to Cedarwood last week with their Great Lakes Outreach Program to teach our students about the many threats the Great Lakes are facing from pollution to invasive species, and even global warming. The goal of the program is to encourage school communities to help “Keep our Great Lakes Great” while learning about local fish species that are at risk. We also participated in “Earth Hour” this past Friday afternoon by turning off non-essential lights and electronics in the school. This activity generated discussions with our students about the importance of conserving electricity and water at school and in our homes. We will continue to participate in Eco-awareness education and activities as the school year progresses, as we only have one Earth to live on and we all want our children to have a clean and safe planet to grow up on! Together our local efforts do make a difference! We have a few friendly reminders of things we would like parent support with. The first is a reminder that our school has a formal uniform policy and our students are expected to be in uniform each day. We ask that you please have a discussion with your child(ren) reminding them of this and that your children have enough clothing items that meet the policy guidelines so that they can be in uniform each day of the week. The second reminder is that we have a formal Nutrition Policy that outlines that food items of minimal nutritional value (e.g., cakes, doughnuts, Timbits, chips, pop, etc.) should not be sent to school for celebrations of any kind, including birthdays. Not only do we have students who have severe allergies to nuts and nut by-products, these items are often high in fats and sugar and we decided as a community that we would not be serving these items to children while they are at school. It puts us in an uncomfortable position when we have to say no to a child when they bring items to school that they have been asked not to bring. As always, we really appreciate the kindness and generosity of our community members and we thank you for sending recommended items to school during times of celebration. The details of both the Uniform Policy and our celebra-tion expectations can be found in the pages at the front of your child’s agenda.

399 Elson Street, Markham, ON L3S 4R8 (905) 294-5756

Principal: Paul Battler

Vice Principal: Araby Porter

Superintendent: Eric Khilji (905) 940-7800

Trustee: Juanita Nathan (905) 471–2553

School Website: http://www.cedarwood.ps.yrdsb.ca

School Email: cedarwood.ps@yrdsb.ca

Twitter: @CedarwoodPS

*Follow us on Twitter to see what is happening at Cedarwood*

Upcoming Highlights… March 29...Cooking Event with Chef Devan 5-8pm March 30...Integrity Assemblies- Primary (K—2/3) 8:30 am, Junior/Intermediate (3/4—8)) 10:15 am

PEDICULOSIS-HEAD LICE Please inspect your child’s hair and scalp for pediculosis.

Periodic inspections during the year will help prevent the spread of head lice.If head lice are found, do not send your child to school, until treated. Please report it to the office.

M A R C H

Message From Our Trustee: Juanita Nathan With spring approaching and the hours of daylight increasing, now is a good time to enjoy the outdoors and our natural environment. Did you know that our Board has five outdoor education centres, and students have opportunities to visit them and other out-door learning spaces throughout their schooling? This is part of our commitment to giv-ing students an opportunity to learn in and about the natural world. This learning sup-ports students in gaining a deeper appreciation for nature and the importance of environ-mental sustainability. “Modelling continuous environmental sustainability” is one of the goals outlined in our Board of Trustees’ Multi-Year Plan. We believe that we all have a role to play in reduc-ing waste and protecting our environment. Our students, staff members and families continue to show leadership when it comes to supporting student learning and initiatives to reduce our ecological footprint. Spending time outside as a family also provides a great opportunity to support and en-hance your child’s learning outside of school. Whether visiting a park or museum, read-ing with your child in your home language or asking questions about their day at school - know that there are many ways you can support their education and that you are mak-ing a difference. I hope you all have a happy and safe March Break and enjoy the warmer weather ahead.

Sunday

Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

1 Gr. 7 Swim to Survive-Back to back

2

J/I Choir

3 Winter Electives

4

5 6

Grade 8 Graduation Pictures Int. Band

7 Gr. 1’s Trip to The Ontario Science Centre Forest of Reading Library Lunchtime POWER OF ONE- Anti Bullying Presentation

8 Gr. 7 Swim to Survive-Back to back

9 Gr. 3 Scientist in the School J/I Choir

10

Cedarwood’s Got Talent: Primary 10:15 am-J/I 1-2pm Gr.8 distribu-tion of Valedic-torian forms

11

12 13

M

B

14

A

R

15

R

E

16

C

A

17

H

K

18

19 20

Int. Band

21 FOREST OF READING-Library Lunchtime

22

23

J/I Choir

24

Earth Hour at Cedarwood 1-2pm

25

27 28 FOREST OF READING-Library Lunchtime

29

COOKING EVENT WITH CHEF DEVON 5-8pm

30 INTEGRITY ASSEMBLIES Pri.-8;30am J/I-10:15am Makerspace Int. in the Library

31

On Wednesday, March 29th

from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00p.m.

Professional Celebrity

Chef Devan will provide Cedarwood families with a unique opportunity to participate in an interactive cooking session. Online registration will be limited to 60 families.

OUR MARCH ECO THEME IS… TURN OFF COMPUTERS AND MONITORS !

REMINDer...

Now that we have reached our half way point, please remember to check if your child’s feet have grown and replace indoor shoes accordingly.

Procedure #NP681.0, Prolonged Absences from School Parent(s)/guardian(s) shall: Understand that it is expected that their child attend school on all instructional days identified in the school year

calendar; Be responsible for the continuity of their child’s learning when they are absent from school; Complete the Notification of Expected Return to School or provide other written documentation to the school, in-

cluding their child’s return to school date, if their child will not be returning to school within the first 15 days of school or for any absence greater than 15 days during the school year;

Understand that their child will be removed from the register if they do not return to school on the expected re-turn date or if appropriate notification of revised dates is not received; and

Understand that if they do not complete the Notification of Expected Return to School and obtain the approval of the school principal for any vacation greater than 15 days during the school year, their child may be required to

Yard Supervision Times A reminder to all parents and guardians that supervision in the school yard begins at 7:45 am. Please do not leave your child unattended in the yard pr ior to that time as we cannot be responsible for their safety or wellbeing prior to 7:45 am. As well, do not leave your child in the office area or foyer prior to 7:45 am. School dismissal is at 2:30pm. Please ensure you pick up your child on time or consider our Before & After School Program or other supervi-sion options to ensure your child’s safety. If you have any questions, please contact the office at 905-294-575

Kindergarten Registration

If your child was born in the year 2014, it is

time to register for kindergarten!

Kindergarten registration has begun for the 201 7/1 8 school year. Registration forms are available on YRDSB’s website: www.yrdsb.edu.on.ca. Children who turn four or five years old during 2014 live within the school boundary and whose parents are public school tax supporters are eligible to register for Kindergarten. Documents required for registration include: ♦Proof of child's age (birth certificate/passport) ♦Proof of residency (for child and parent/guardian) ♦Citizenship and immigration status (for child and parent/guardian where applicable) ♦Direction of school support form Please note that all required documentation must be submitted and complete in order for your child to be enrolled. Please remind neighbour’s and friends!

Dear Parents/Guardians, Art & Math Art and math have a lot in common with each other. In fact you can see the math in art and the art in math! Patterns, shapes, geometry, symmetry, spatial reasoning, proportional reasoning, etc… are all a part of the arts (visual art, music and dance), as they are of mathemat-ics. Some of what you see your child doing in school in the arts, is also an engagement with mathematical ideas at the same time! By blending mathematics and the arts, students learn in ways that are intellectual, emotional and physical. Children learn in many different ways, and research tells us that participating in the arts is one way that is very engaging for all of us. A child stringing beads in a pattern on a string or creating a patterned bracelet is creating an understanding of patterning, although to them it may look simply like a pleasing design. When a child learns to play the piano, they are developing mathematical understanding of the relationships between scales, notes and chords. Symmetry can be seen in the symmetrical features of a butterfly or in a design when building. Children may notice patterns in wallpaper, tile tessellations on the floor or on a phone cover, rhythmic beats or repeated choreog-raphy in music videos or chords in a popular song. There is math everywhere! How might you and your child notice and name the mathematics in the arts (visual, music and dance) that you encounter? Making the links helps deepen the understanding of both! Interested in more? Search on the internet for “golden ratio” to see an example of mathematics at work in nature and art! Sincerely, Math Team @ Cedarwood

Cedarwood’s

The following students have demonstrated …

FAIRNESS for February, 2017

ABICHANDANI: Zaira, Dilani, Prisha BELANGER: Vivi, Ishwa M. CHEN: Sajivan, Danial, Thunisha, Aarani MAWHINNEY: Rizhan, Evan GANESHAN: Zala, Chesny, Shargira PARK: Aariz, Mathuran GREWAL: Tanya, Bavleen PAUL Veer, Belle BALA: Yasiywini, Abina KUTTY: Aashka, Thrisanth KASSABIAN: Shahithiyan, Othniel CHAN/SHAMA: Charston, Hebe COLABAWALLA: Shivajan, Ashmerra, Sujana SINGH: Sayana, Angelina PARSONS: Fizza, Sukhpreet NANA: Noah, Akhilan, Mithushaa, Ruqaiya, Heli, Maha, Nithujan A. IRANI: Nilavann, Nidhi KASSARDJIAN: Vrishath, Mahi MCDONALD: Farwa, Mysha, Christina, Jeremy HAMAWI: Sachu, Aayush, Janani SASAKI: Suhailah, Rehan, Ajay BHATT: Praveen, Ritik, Pirabeena, Tharjiha, Oviyah YEUNG: Ahalya, Nira HOBBS: Gopikan, Rabijan, Piravina, Trishanthine MURALI: Anosha, Lucky, Smit, Sean LAZAREVSKI: Joshua MALO: Gurmanajeet, Kyle, Ashka THOMPSON: Vaishnavi, Thibika, Suja HUNT: Fahad, Thanujann, Thamil, Tanuson, Tyler KARNAD-JANI: Aninthithai TAKAHASHI: Muhammad Ali JEAN-PHILIPPE: Abdullah, Vishal GULAMALI: Ashwin, Hassan, Isra DOMINGO: Abdullah BOYLE: Rikshana PANAKOS: Abinash, Birnavan, Sowriya, Abhiroop, Shambavi, Sunit, Tyler MARKUS: Eva