Wednesday, February 1, 2017

Dear Parent(s)/Guardian(s),

Wow, the month of January seemed to just fly by. It feels I just sent out the January Newsletter and now I am sending

out the February letter. As always, lots of great activities going on at our school to make the St. Clement School

environment a positive one for students, staff and parents. Thank you to everyone within the St. Clement School

Catholic Community that consistently try to ensure that our school is a safe and inclusive environment for all.

The month of January was a very active month. With Ballroom Dancing practices for our Grade 6’s , Junior Indoor

Soccer Tournaments, the beginning of Hockey, Basketball and Swimming practices, there was the beginning of Chess and

Craft Club sessions, an Anti-Bullying Magic Show, School Mass, Mental Health and Well-Being presentations for our

students, excursions and presentations for individual classes, as well as the beginning of Kindergarten Registration for

2017/18, the month was filled with several activities. These activities contribute to the nourishing environment that we

are trying to foster for our students throughout the school year.

As mentioned in previous month’s Newsletters, we have been highlighting the importance of parental involvement in

your child’s learning. Although Teachers introduce the Curriculum and build a friendly, respectful learning environment

here at school, Parents can offer extra supports in an even more comfortable and supportive environment; home. I

have continued to keep the first 2 clips (see below) in all of our Newsletters, in case Parents have not already been able

to access these wonderful video clips. The first video clip below provides parents with resources and strategies towards

assisting your child in the area of Mathematics. There are different clips depending on the age of your child, as well as

resources to help support your child at home. The second clip focusses on the notion of a “Growth Mindset” towards

Mathematics, and the role parents can play in developing that with their children. I have added a third clip from Jo

Boaler. Jo is a fantastic speaker who presents a positive philosophy of how “everyone” can learn Math. Our school is

focusing on the following areas to assist our students in the subject of Mathematics throughout the year: Computation,

Collaboration, and the Growth Mindset that “mistakes are valuable”. I encourage everyone to watch these clips to

provide the extra support our students need, both at school and at home.

http://www.ontariodirectors.ca/parent_engagement-math/en/

https://www.mindsetkit.org/growth-mindset-parents

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3icoSeGqQtY

Sincerely,

S. Peters

Principal

St. Clement Catholic School

4319 Bloor St. West 416-393-5307

February Newsletter 2017

Principal: Stephen Peters Secretary:

Sobita Pereira

Clerk Typist:

Elena Simone

Pastor: Reverend

Msgr. Zimmer

Superintendent

D. Yack

School Trustee:

A. Andrachuk

CSPC. Co-Chairs: Katie Piccininni and Jenn Casuccio

Parish: St. Clement Catholic Church 409 Markland Woods Toronto, Ontario M6J 2P4 (416) 621-4060

The Year of the Parish February: Celebrating Canadian

African Heritage Month Virtue of the Month for February – Love

February 17th is a PA Day. Students are not to be at school on that day.

Parent/Teacher Interviews Are Scheduled For February 16th (evening) and

February 17th (morning) – Report Cards Go Home on February 14th

Next CSPC Meeting is Tuesday, February 21st at 7:00 PM

Next School Mass is Wednesday, March 1st (Ash Wednesday)

February Message from Trustee Ann Andrachuk.

There are many great activities in our schools and around the City this month,

especially with Family Day on Monday the 20th. It’s a great opportunity for all of

us to take a short break and spend some time with our loved ones.

Just a reminder that junior kindergarten registration began on January 18. If you

have a child, or know someone else who does, that’s entering kindergarten in

September please visit tcdsb.org to register.

As the City of Toronto comes closer to setting its 2017 budget, some changes that

could affect many childcare operators at TCDSB schools have been proposed. The

proposed changes would remove City rent subsidies for many of these childcare

providers and may lead directly to increased fees for users. These changes, and the

City of Toronto budget as a whole, will be held on February 15th. If you feel these changes may affect you more

information can be found on the City’s budget website at: http://toronto.ca/budget.

As always, remember to express your love and gratitude to those you cherish everyday by especially on the

Valentine’s Day.

Ann

Good-Bye’s and Welcome’s

There were a few “good-bye’s” and a few “welcome’s” we had to perform over this past month. We first had to say good bye

to Ms. Jessica Spinelli. Ms. Spinelli has been teaching one of our Grade 2 classes during Ms. Dionne’s Maternity Leave. Her

genuine care and dedication to her students and their families was evident to all. We wish her all the best at her new school,

Blessed Pope Paul VI. We would like to welcome to St. Clement Mr. Vincent Zuccala. He will be taking over the Grade 2 class

until Ms. Dionne’s return. We would like to wish Mr. Zuccala a friendly welcome to the St. Clement School family. Prior to the

Christmas break, we had to say good bye to our night-time Custodian, Mr. Patrick Byrne. Patrick was only at St. Clement for a

short time, but we quickly grew to appreciate his helpfulness and friendly demeanor. In his place, we would like to welcome

Louie Theodoratis . We hope his stay here at St. Clement is a long and enjoyable one. Last, but not least. We would like to

welcome a brand new addition to the St. Clement Community. Mr. Daley and his wife celebrated the birth of their first child.

Her name is Chelsea. Both Mom and Dad are doing fantastic. Congratulations to them both!!!

Crossing Guard News

As a lot of you are aware, ‘Jose’ our Crossing Guard at ForestView-Mapledawn and Bloor, has been ill and has

been absent from his Crossing Guard duties since we have returned back to school in January. Unfortunately, his

absence may continue for the rest of the school year.

For the past month we have been in contact with 22 Division (the Police are the ones that hire the Crossing Guards

across the city), to inquire about a replacement for Jose. A few candidates were interviewed for the full-time position,

but unfortunately they were unable to pass the vetting process for such a position. However, we just found out that a

temporary replacement has been found. Until a full-time Crossing Guard is hired, ‘Helena’ will be at the intersection

(as of yesterday, January 31st ). She will be at the crossing area at 8:30 AM as well as 3:30 PM.

CSPCtivities

(February 2017)

February brings two really fun CSPC events! First, our ever-popular annual Movie Night is quickly

approaching on Friday, February 3rd. We hope that you’ve pre-registered and that we’ll see you there.

The children are almost through the voting process and will soon know which movies will be playing!

Next is the extremely popular Family Skate Night – a ton of fun for kids and parents alike! The event will

be taking place on Sunday, February 26th @ 6:15-8:15pm. A form will be coming home soon in your

child’s backpack with more information.

QSP pick-a-prize forms have now been sent home. Please be sure to return the forms by Monday,

February 6th.

As part of a grant by the Ministry of Education, CSPC will be hosting two parent information sessions by

Mindfulness Expert, Laurel Crossley. The first will discuss strategies for parents to reduce stress, worry

and anxiety, and will be held at the school on Tuesday, February 7th at 7:00pm. We encourage all

parents to attend this very important session. Information about the second session will be coming

home in March.

For those who are participating, don’t forget that this month’s Pizza Lunches are being held on Friday,

February 10th and Friday, February 24th. This month’s Subway Lunch will take place on Thursday, February

16th.

Finally, our February CSPC meeting will be held on Tuesday, February 21st at 7:00pm with lots of

interesting issues to discuss. Looking forward to seeing many of you there!

Sincerely……………Your CSPC Team

Jenn Casuccio & Katie Piccininni, Co-Chairs

Lisa Lippa, Treasurer

Didy Perugini, Secretary

St. Clement CSPC with funding from the Ministry of Education

is proud to present:

Special Presentations for Parents with…

Laurel Crossley, B.A. (Child Studies)

Speaker, Certified Child and Parent Educator,

Mindfulness Expert

www.LaurelCrossley.com

Parent Presentations:

- February 7th @ 7-9pm – Fun and interactive tips + strategies to help parents reduce

stress, worry & anxiety.

- April 4th @ 7-9pm – MORE tips and strategies to help children reduce stress, worry

& anxiety at home and school.

*PARENTS FROM OTHER SCHOOLS WELCOME*

Please RVSP for Feb 7 by Feb 3 to trailsmoke@gmail.com

Building Healthy Minds in our school, homes and community!

School News

Report Cards - Parent/Teacher Interviews

On Tuesday, February 14th, First Term Report Cards will be sent home with students. These Reports are based on

assessments made by the Teachers from September up until now.

Parent/Teacher Interviews will be held on the evening of February 16th, as well as the morning of February 17th

(February 17th is also a PA Day for students). Although parents are always encouraged to communicate with

Teachers regarding the assessment process of their children, if you are satisfied with your son/daughter’s Report

there is also no obligation to seek an interview. Parent/Teacher Interview Forms were already sent home with your

son/daughter earlier this week.

Dear Parent(s)/Guardian(s),

The Scholastic Book Fair will once again be returning to St. Clement this February! Throughout the Book Fair you will

find hundreds of wonderful books with a wide assortment of titles appropriate for all reading levels. In addition, your

purchases allow product to go directly back to our school library! Please see the schedule below for your child’s

previewing and purchasing date/time.

Our Book Fair accepts cash or cheques (payable to St. Clement Catholic School)

Book Fair Dates:

Monday Feb. 13th – Thursday Feb. 16th ►Morning Hours: 9:10 a.m. – 11:45 a.m.

►Afternoon Hours: 12:50 p.m. – 3:15 p.m.

Thursday February 16th: 5:00 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.

Friday February 17th: 9:00 a.m. – 10:30 a.m.

Preview Days: Students will be visiting the library to browse and write ‘wish lists’ of books they express an interest in

buying. No purchases will be made at this time.

Purchase Days: Students will be visiting the library to make purchases at their assigned times.

If any parents are interested in volunteering their time to help in the successful running of

the Book Fair, please contact Linda Riverso at artuso@bell.net . We are looking for

volunteers in the AM and/or PM from Monday to Thursday.

Please enter our Family Event Draw to win $25 worth of books for both your child and your child’s classroom. Ballots

are included in the Sneak Peak Flyers distributed during your child’s Preview Day, and must be submitted by Thursday,

February 16th at 11:45 a.m. We look forward to seeing you during the Book Fair and thank you in advance for supporting

this very important fundraiser.

Happy reading!

K. Mullins-Sgro

Time Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday

Preview Day Preview Day Purchase Day Purchase Day

9:10-9:30 Marriott Tatangelo Marriott Ferreira

9:40-10:42 Classes in the library – Book Fair CLOSED

10:42-10:57 Recess – Book Fair CLOSED

10:57-11:25 MacDonald Sgro Tatangelo

11:25-11:45 Dulong Trchala Dulong Trchala

11:45-12:45 Lunch – Book Fair CLOSED

12:50-1:05 Punter Buffet Punter Buffet

1:05-1:20 Pasquariello Causi

1:20-1:35

1:35-1:50 Spinelli DiTomaso Spinelli

1:50-2:05 O’Neill Arduini O’Neill DiTomaso

2:10-2:25 Recess – Book Fair CLOSED

2:30-2:45 Ferreira Arduini Pasquariello

2:45-3:00 Causi Fallico Fallico Sgro

3:00-3:15 Harlow Papasodaro Papadosaro Harlow

3:15-3:30 Book Fair Wrap Up – Book Fair CLOSED

OLSAT – Gifted Testing (Grade 4 Students)

As part of the screening process, all Grade 4 students in the TCDSB will be administered a group test called the Otis-Lennon School

Ability Test, 8th Edition (OLSAT8). The test will be administered for our students at St. Clement on Friday, February 3rd. It is very

important that students are on time in the morning of that day. Please note that if the school buses are cancelled due to inclement

weather, the OLSAT8 testing will be rescheduled for the schools that are affected.

The results of this assessment will be available in the Spring. Please be aware that only a small percentage of students in the total

population will qualify for an identification of Giftedness and placement in the program. If your child meets the TCDSB criteria for

possible identification you will be contacted. If your child does not qualify and you would like to discuss his/her results, you are

asked to make an appointment with the Principal of the school.

Virtue of the Month Winners The St. Clement School community would like to recognize the following students for displaying wonderful examples of COURAGE

throughout the month of January: Congratulations to all our winners!

(Kindergarten) Nathalie Turski, Nathan Roith, David Di Cerbo, Isabela Kalaj, Milan Russo, Alissa Araujo (Grade 1) Gerard Aguilar,

Alessandra Ngai, Makayla Griffin, Jordan Ezard (Grade 2) Max O’Regan, Scarlett D’Silva, Kian Murphy, Pola Rydzy, Elizabeth

Yarun (Grade 3) Jean Pierre Hanna, Sofia Rebelo, Andreo Vukojevic, Matthew Potter, Andrea Yuzwin (Grade 4) Jayce Burton,

Natalie Hocevar, Agoston Harcos (Grade 5) Emily Miasik, Basil Droulias, Shannon Slocum, Alex Eveleigh (Grade 6) Scottie

Campbell, Brooke Koutsaris, Joshua Valvano (Grade 7) Angelica Raviele, Luca Marra (Grade 8) Kaitlyn Imbaquingo, Julian

Lukasik, Zachary Rodrigues, Julian Lukasik

The Virtue of the Month for February is Love

Classroom Birthday Celebrations

One of the wonderful events that occurs during the school year is when a student can celebrate a birthday with their peers at

school. A tradition attached to these celebrations has been the bringing of food into the class by a parent to help make the

celebration more special (ie. cakes, baked goods). However, with the growing number of students that have a wide range of

allergies to various foods in our schools, this tradition creates an unsafe environment for many of our students. For those parents

that would like to still enhance their child’s Birthday celebration at school, we encourage you to bring other items to school to

distribute to the other students in the class, rather than food (ie. Decorative pens, pencils, erasers). This assists us with keeping the

school environment safer for all of our students, as well as provide a more inclusive environment for all of the students to take part in

.

Deadlines For Money Requests

As many of you are well aware, our CSPC (Parent Council) runs several Fundraisers throughout the year, which raises money for

the students and the various activities we would like them to be engaged in. Some of these initiatives are the very popular “Pizza

Days” and/or “Subway Days”, or our Gingerbread Workshop. When families submit money for these events, it is the volunteer

parents that initiate the ordering, the collecting of the money from the teachers, as well as the counting of the money.

We at the school are very appreciative of the volunteer efforts of our CSPC, but we also know that these initiatives are very time

consuming, and in a lot of cases, time sensitive with the companies that are being booked with. We ask that parents respect the

Deadlines for submitting money, and understand that no money will be accepted by any teacher once that Deadline has come and

gone. We also ask that exact money be submitted for these initiatives (cheques are accepted). Any money submitted that is

above and beyond the asked amount for submission will be considered a donation to the school. Thank you for your

understanding and cooperation with this matter.

Cold Weather

With the cold weather months upon us now, it is very important that the students are dressed appropriately for the elements

outside. Please ensure that your child has all the clothes they need to be warm as they can be when they are outside for recess

time. If the weather becomes so cold that it is a health risk, students will remain inside for Indoor Recess. However, just because

the weather is cold does not mean the school will be exercising our Indoor Recess protocols. Families should expect that students

will be going outside when the weather is cold, therefore they need to be dressed appropriately.

Ballroom Dancing

Our Grade 6 students have been working hard throughout the month of January to perfect their Ballroom Dancing skills for their big

performance on February 8th. On that date they will have the opportunity to perform in front of their families. It has been obvious to

observe that the experience has been a rewarding one for all of the students involved. Ms. Alexandra Smith has been once again

the one in charge of getting our dancers prepared for the big day. She led our Grade 2’s and 3’s during their Ballroom Dancing

experience back in November and December. We look forward to seeing our Grade 6’s perform on February 8th.

Anti-Bullying Magic Show

On Monday, January 30th, we were entertained by Coby Elimelech and his Anti-Bullying Magic Show. He

performed two shows, one for our Kindergarten to Grade 3’s, then another show for our Grade 4 to Grade 8’s.

Coby’s show is the “Bully Me No More” school Magic Show, and has been regarded by many Teachers and

Principals around the GTA as a “powerful weapon in the fight against school bullying”. Colby did not disappoint.

Not only were students “wow’d” by his magic, but they were also informed with very effective anti-bullying strategies,

as well as advice as to what to do when you are faced with a difficult situation.

Craft Club

Our Craft Club had their first few dates in January for students interested in doing crafts. Ms. Campea runs the

club and she has provided the following information for students that might be interested. If your son/daughter has an

interest in “crafty creations”, perhaps this is the thing for them.

What – Craft Club Who – Grades 2-5 Where – Library When – Thursdays 12:05-12:45 Why – because we LOVE crafts!

Come join us…… Gr. 3/4 - Feb 2 Gr. 2 - Feb. 9 Gr. 3 - Feb 16 Gr. 4/5 - Feb 23

Chess

During the week of January 16th, the St. Clement Chess Club started up again with a great turnout from all divisions. The Club

had many new and familiar faces attending, with students ranging from grade 1 to 8, and included players new to the game as

well as seasoned veterans. The Primary Chess Club is held every Monday at lunch in Mr. Daley’s class (Portable #3), and the

Junior & Intermediate Clubs are hosted by Ms. Di Tomaso (Portable #4) during lunches on Wednesdays. From these Clubs,

interested students can try out for our various Chess teams and we hope to repeat the great success we’ve enjoyed over the

past several years.

That week also saw the start of weekly Chess Master Sessions that will run until the first week of March. These classes have

been generously funded by CSAC, and feature lessons from expert Chess Master Goran Milicevic, on Tuesday and Thursday

mornings. New students, of all skill ranges, are welcome to attend both their divisional club as well as the Chess Master

Sessions at any time. Any parents or students that are interested in more information or have questions should reach out to

Mr. Daley or Ms. Di Tomaso.

Athletics:

Indoor Soccer

Our Junior Boys and Girls (Grade 4, 5, and 6) Indoor Soccer Teams had their Tournaments on January 26th and 27th

respectfully, at St. Gregory Catholic School. Both teams did amazingly, with our Boys team winning their tournament, while the girls

team were Finalists in theirs. The Coaches (Mr. Harlow and Mr. Marriott for the girls and Ms. Ross and Mr. Fallico for the boys)

all agreed that the students represented themselves amazingly throughout their tournaments. Way to go St. Clement!!!!!!

Basketball

Our Intermediate Boys and Girls (Grade 7 and 8) Basketball teams continued to practice during the month of January, in

preparation for their tournaments in February. Our Coaches (Mr. Aruini, Mr. Punter, and Mr. O’Neill) have been working hard

getting the teams ready for their tournaments. The boys’ Tournament is on February 15th, while the girls’ Tournament is on

Feburary 16th (we still do not know where the location is as of yet). We wish both teams all the best as they prepare for their

respective tournament.

Hockey

Our school’s Hockey Team continued to practice throughout the month of January. Our coaches (Mr. Sgro, Mr.

Harlow and Mr. Punter) will be coordinating the Practices every Tuesday at 3:00 PM. These sessions have been

taking place at Etobicoke Centennial Arena. The tournaments for the team are set for March, with seeding

determined by the Tournament organizing committee. Good Luck team as they prepare for these exciting

tournaments.

Swimming

Practices for our school’s Swim Team began this past month as well. Practices will be on most Monday’s and

Wednesday’s, starting at 7:15 AM at Alderwood Pool. The practices are all leading towards the big swim Meet at the

Etobicoke Olympium during the weekend of April 29th and 30th. Those early morning practices demonstrate the

dedication our student-athletes have towards this event. Thank you to our Parent-Coach, Mr. Romeo Marra, as well

as to Ms. Ross for all of the time and effort they have put into the organization of this event and towards the team.