2018- 2019 Rooted In Christ: We Belong

Monthly Message: Dear Parents and Guardians,

Our staff and students are in the process of continuing work on improving

Mathematics Skills as reflected in our newly established School

Improvement Plan 2015-2018 which focusses on improving math skills.

To support students in developing higher level thinking and problem

solving skills in Mathematics. This year we are participating in a series of

Math UP workshops for staff. Our first professional development session

took place on Tuesday November 8, and along with the Math and Literacy

resource staff, our teachers began the very important co learning and co-

teaching lessons in Math.

On November 9 the family of St. Aidan school community gathered to

commemorate Remembrance Day and St. Aidan day of Peacemaking. The

month of December promises to be full of activities. December 2nd will

mark the beginning of the Advent season and Advent school mass on

December 21st, as well as, many Christmas activities will be taking place

within the classrooms. Our Christmas concert, with performances from our

JK to grade 3 students, will take place on the evening of Dec 14, 2017 at 7

pm. We will have a dress rehearsal in order to allow older siblings to view

the younger brothers and sisters performing. As a result we are asking that

only students who are performing attend the evening concert to allow for

adult family members to attend.

Merry Christmas from the Staff and Students of

St. Aidan Catholic School! “But the angel said to them, do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you

good news of great joy which will be for all the people; for today in the

city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is “Christ the

Lord”.

Luke 2:10-11

St. Aidan CATHOLIC SCHOOL

3521 Finch Ave. E.

Telephone: 416-393-5350 Fax: 416-393-5588

Mr. S. Lofranco

PRINCIPAL

Mr. K. Malcolm 416-222-8282 ext 2263

SUPERINTENDENT

Mr. M. Del Grande 416-512-3407

TRUSTEE

St. Aidan Catholic Church 416-494-2704

3501 Finch Ave. E.

PARISH

Father Steven

CSPC CHAIR

Ms. R. Bacchus

CPIC (PARENT ENGAGEMENT - TCDSB)

www.tcdsb.org/oapce-toronto

OAPCE TORONTO (PROVINCIAL VOICE FOR PARENTS)

298 9:00am-3:30pm 11:45-12:45

ENROLLMENTHOURS OF OPERATION LUNCH HOUR

NEW REGISTRANTS WELCOME

Apply online: soar.tcdsb.org

Call 416-393-5350 or the TCDSB Admissions Department at 416-222-8282, ext. 5320.

For general information about the Toronto Catholic District School Board, visit www.tcdsb.org

Stay in touch with the latest news throughout the school year: Follow @TCDSB on Twitter or Toronto Catholic DSB on Instagram

December 2018

2018- 2019 Rooted In Christ: We Belong

The last day of classes before the Christmas break will be Friday, December 21, 2018. Schools will reopen on

Monday, January 7th, 2019.

“

The Liturgical Season of Advent The word advent means "coming" or "arrival" and the liturgical season of Advent focuses on the "coming“ of Christ. Advent is the four week period before Christmas when we celebrate the first coming of Christ and anticipate his second Coming. Advent begins this year on December 3rd and marks the beginning of the Church’s liturgical year. The liturgical color for Advent is purple; except for the Third Week of Advent, often called Gaudete (Rejoice: Christ is Coming) Sunday, in which rose may be used. (The Season is somewhat penitential, similar to Lent.) The use of purple reflects the general themes of Advent: penitence (generally expressed more in terms of expectant hope for Christ’s arrival) and royalty (Christ as King of Kings).

Advent Prayer

Father in heaven, our hearts desire the warmth of your love

and our minds are searching for the light of your Word. Increase our longing for Christ our Saviour and give us the strength to grow in love,

that the dawn of his coming may find us rejoicing in his presence and welcoming the light of his truth.

We ask this in the name of Jesus the Lord.

WE Scare Hunger Campaign

SOOPAR Squad has some very exciting news to share with the rest of the school community! As you all know,

we were collecting non-perishable foods for the WE Scare Hunger campaign during the month of October.

We’d like to thank all the classes for bringing in all the goods that have been donated to St. Francis Table. Our

goal was to collect 500 food items, and thanks to your help, we were able to reach our goal and even surpass it

with 525 items! Our glow-in-the-dark bracelet fundraiser was also a success, with proceeds going to the

Opportunity pillar in India.

Thank you, St. Aidan, for your support in helping SOOPAR Squad reach our goal, and helping to change the

world!

- Nikkel, Kiara, Ashlee, and Eve

2018- 2019 Rooted In Christ: We Belong

December Virtue: CHARITY

Student of the Month November: Peacemaking

December Virtue: CHARITY

As we enter the season of Advent to prepare our hearts for the birth of Jesus, it is fitting then that this month’s virtue is CHARITY. Our quote for the month is “Where charity and love are, God is there”. As St. Thomas Aquinas described it “Charity is friendship first with God and secondly with all who belong to God." How can we practice charity and generosity in our community without necessarily giving material things?

LI/1 Xabat Duong ELP/1 Eriny Borham

ELP/2 Abrielle Bolosan

01/1 Jayden Allen

01-02/1 Alex Lewis

02/1 Victor Tajeddine

03/1 Xavier Williams

03-04/1 Daniella Akobundu-

Festus

04/1 Rhea Alvaro

05-06/1 Tolulope Owoade

06/1 Aaron Magnaye

07/1 Daniel Soosaipillai

08/1 Vanig Maksian

2018- 2019 Rooted In Christ: We Belong

CHRISTMAS CONCERT:

Thursday, December 13th at 7:00 p.m.

Please join us for a celebration of Christmas, as we delight in the performances of the JK to Gr. 3, choir &

instrumental students of St. Aidan Catholic School. Please note that due to fire and safety regulations.

Seating is also limited so anyone without a seat will be limited to standing room only. We are sorry for any

inconvenience this may cause. In addition our CSPC will be having its Christmas raffle.

St. Vincent de Paul Christmas Hampers

Dear Parents/Guardians,

This Christmas, St. Aidan is collecting items and donating them to the St. Vincent de Paul Society Christmas hampers initiative. Each class will receive a box to put the donations in. St. Vincent de Paul is requesting the following items:

*Gift cards Rice, sauces, lentils Toothpaste, toothbrushes

Soap, shampoo, detergents, body wash Moisturizing cream, hand cream, face cream

Sugar, tea, coffee, cocoa

Pencils, erasers, crayons, markers, pens Plastic water bottles

School bags

Starting today, please bring your donations to support St. Vincent de Paul Society. The collections will be delivered on Friday, December 7, 2018.

Thank you and Merry Christmas,

Intermediate Volleyball The girls’ intermediate volley valley team played their very best. They displayed great sportsmanship. Great job

Girls! The intermediate boys volleyball team won in the divisional tournament and moved on to Regional on

Tuesday Nov 13th. Thanks to the parent volunteer drivers and to our coach, Ms. DeNobrega

2018- 2019 Rooted In Christ: We Belong

Appropriate Dress Code (Blue and White)

Students are to dress according to the TCDSB’s Appropriate Dress Code, which consists of the following:

a navy blue pant, kilt or short – pants must be worn around the waist and kilts/shorts must be knee-

length;

2018- 2019 Rooted In Christ: We Belong

a white collared polo-shirt, oxford dress shirt, or blouse, tucked in – with or without the school crest

a blue cardigan or pullover – with or without the school crest

Subject to the discretion of the principal to permit exceptions regarding compliance in appropriate

circumstances, every student in the school will comply with the dress code. All students are expected to dress in

clean, neat and practical clothing. On the occasion of a non-Appropriate Dress Code day, good sense is the

criterion for acceptable dress. We rely on parents’ able judgment to send their children to school dressed

appropriately for the activity.

Inappropriate attire includes:

short shorts/skirts, bare midriffs, halter tops, cut-off tops, low cut tops or tops that are buttoned too low,

shorts/pants and tops that do not meet, tank tops, spaghetti straps, sleeveless shirts that are

baggy/revealing;

hoodies/hats/caps/bandanas/gloves/sunglasses worn inside school

language and/or representations on attire that indicates gang affiliation (e.g., gang colours/bandanas),

that depicts violence, profanity, racial or gender discrimination or discrimination of any kind

whatsoever, or that otherwise demeans an identifiable individual or group;

clothing with objectionable slogans that promote attitudes and behaviours that contravene the “Guiding

Principles” of the St. Aidan Catholic School, the TCDSB and the Provincial Codes of Conduct;

oversized jewelry such as earrings or necklaces;

Make-up and/or body art/markings, fragrances and/or scented lotions, hair products, etc.

The TCDSB Policy concerning dress code for pupils can be found here: http://www.tcdsb.org/Board/Policies/Pages/SS07.aspx

CSPC News Our parent council continues to work on behalf of the St Aidan School community. They will be

having a Christmas raffle on the evening of Dec 13th. There are several Great prizes to be won. Please see list of

prizes attached. All proceeds will go to supporting school initiatives at St. Aidan School. Next Meeting

Wednesday Dec. 5 @ 6:630pm.

Our CSPC is middle stages of this year’s Chocolate fundraiser. Please support our CSPC and school by selling

chocolates.

Extended vacations-over the course of the school year we find that many students go on extended vacations

(outside of regularly scheduled holidays) and miss weeks or even months of instructional time. It is now a

requirement of the Ministry of Education that parents must inform the school in writing prior to the vacation. We

thank you in advance for helping us remain compliant with this regulation.

Latest Updates on Weather Related Cancellations or Closures To get the latest information about school bus transportation, see https://busplannerweb.torontoschoolbus.org/Cancellations.aspx

Parents are encouraged to subscribe to the transportation portal to get real time information about any transportation issues:

https://busplannerweb.torontoschoolbus.org/Subscriptions/Login.aspx

Information is also shared via Twitter. Follow @TCDSB.

For more information: https://www.tcdsb.org/forstudents/healthandsafety/pages/weather-related-safety-concerns.aspx

Angel Foundation for Learning Through the Loretto Fund and the Social Work Emergency Fund the Angel Foundation supports TCDSB students who are new

comers to Canada by helping to offset the costs for items such as school supplies, uniforms, field trips, groceries or other necessities to

2018- 2019 Rooted In Christ: We Belong

help them settle into school and life in Canada. You can help support families who have come to Canada in search of peace donations

to The Angel Foundation for Learning. To learn more about the work of the Foundation, visit

http://www.angelfoundationforlearning.org/

SAVE THE DATE!

Kindergarten Registration Begins January 16th at 10 a.m. Visit www.tcdsb.org for details.

Apply online starting January 16th at https://soar.tcdsb.org

The Catholic Register's popular children's drawing contest is back! The Catholic Register is conducting its eight annual children's Christmas drawing contest. The top entry in each of 3

categories will receive a $75 gift certificate for a day at the movies. The winning drawings will appear in The Register's

Christmas edition, Dec. 24. The contest is open to children in Grades 1 to 8. Entries must be original, in colour, drawn or painted on a page 8.5” x 11”

or larger and illustrate some aspect of the birth of Jesus as recorded in the Gospels. We want paintings or drawings that

depict the true meaning of Christmas so, please, no Santas or reindeer. https://www.catholicregister.org/ChristmasContest

PRESTO Cards for TCDSB Students Over the past few weeks the Toronto Catholic District School Board and the Toronto Student Transportation Group have been

working closely with the TTC on the logistics for providing complimentary PRESTO cards to all students ages 6 to 12 (child cards)

and 13 to 19 (youth cards). The purpose of this initiative is to help students smoothly make the transition away from TTC passes, and

tickets, to the PRESTO electronic fare card.

Please note that the TTC will stop selling tickets and tokens on August 3, 2019. The TTC is providing the PRESTO cards to school boards free of charge.

Watch for more information to come from your school soon.

2018- 2019 Rooted In Christ: We Belong

2018- 2019 Rooted In Christ: We Belong

Please keep this calendar for your records