Our answering machine picks up messages 24

hours a day. Please report illnesses, lates,

or absences before 9am at

905-564-0578

P L E A S E R E M E M B E R … … .

amazing grand finale. Also, we collected an amazing 912 items for our Food Drive (thank you for your generos-ity) and the staff engaged in a holiday toy exchange. So, yes, there is magic and you can find it at our school. Our thoughts are now turning to the New Year. At this time, many of us are prompted to make resolutions to change our behaviour, increase our personal success or improve some aspect of our life or the world we live in. At school, the staff and I are resolved to continue supporting the students in their academic, social and emotional growth. We will continue to follow our mission statement and be a learning community working together to create a safe and inclusive environment where children develop the skills to be lifelong learners and reach their full potential.

On behalf of all of the staff at Meadowvale Village, I would like to wish you a Happy and Prosperous New Year.

Jane Marshall

890 Old Derry Road West, Mississauga, ON, L5W 1A1. Phone: 905-564-5735. Fax: 905-564-2875

Principal: Mrs. J. Marshall Vice-Principal: Ms S. Damaso Office Manager: Mrs. A. Malatesta

Superintendent: Mr J. deFreitas, North Field Office, (905) 451-286 School Trustee: Mr J. White (905) 890-1099

T h e r e ’ s n o s u c h t h i n g a s M a g i c !

Well, actually, yes there is! You can find it at Meadowvale Village.

WOW! So many fantastic things happened at MVPS during December. We had our magnificent

Kindergarten Concert where our Kindergarten students shared songs and nursery rhymes from

around the world, then there was our concert, „There‟s No Business Like Snow Business‟ with its

S t a f f C h a n g e Welcome to Ms. Jaskiran Hundal who

has assumed Mrs. Winder‟s classes

while she is on maternity leave.

Welcome, Ms. Hundal!

Thank you for being so generous and donating food for our food drive. Wow, we collected 912 food items! We collected canned goods, cookies, juice, cereal, noodles, beans, peanut butter, and ketchup. Your donations will feed many hungry

people.

Happy Holidays from Mrs. Vickery's Grade 3/4 class

We hope you all enjoyed the Kindergar-

ten and Winter Concerts. There really is

„..no business like snow business!‟

Snowflakes, hot chocolate, Jingle Bells

and Charlie Brown all made an appear-

ance. Many thanks to all the teachers

involved.

Inside this newsletter, you‟ll find out

what some of our students thought

about performing for you.

To ensure the safety of all in our community, we ask

that products containing nuts and nut-related items,

are not brought to school. Thank you for your coop-

eration with this.

PLEASE NOTE: Whenever you enter the building you MUST notify the office, sign-in and pick up a visitor

badge. At Meadowvale Village we try to provide continuity and a stable environment for ALL students to learn.

We asked the Kindergarten students what they thought about singing in

their concert …...

The weather in Ontario can be changeable and it is

essential that families monitor the radio stations and the

Board‟s website (if you have Twitter, follow the Board‟s

tweets) for information related to bus cancellations and

school closures. The Board may attempt to keep schools

open under adverse weather conditions but this does not

mean that students must be sent to school. It is a

parental responsibility to decide if conditions are safe for

their children to walk to and from school.

If buses are cancelled, schools will remain open for

students and staff. Parents who chose to drive their chil-

dren to school in the morning must be prepared to pick

them up at the end of the school day (no later than 3:40

p.m.)

If the message, “schools are closed” is given then due to

the severity of the weather, school and other Board work

sites are closed to staff and students.

Bus/School

Cancellations

Alex said, “It was

fun because I love

singing.”

Here are some websites that may help rein-force some concepts being taught at school: Primary: www.starfall.com Starfall.com is an excellent early literacy site. The Starfall reading program is de-signed to be fun, exciting, and to instill con-fidence in young children as they learn to read. The site teaches phonemic aware-ness, systemic phonics, vocabulary, fluency and comprehension. Junior: http://www.bitstripsforschools.com Bitstrips is actively used by many teachers. It allows students to create their own com-ics including original characters and those created by classmates. The site is pass-word protected and students must send their comics to the teacher before they can be shared with the rest of the class.

Gordon said, “I liked

singing the Humpty

Dumpty song.”

Maarvi said, “My favour-

ite part was singing the

Christmas songs.‟

Kirusan said, “I liked singing the Jack and Jill song. My

mom and dad liked the concert.”

Keera said, “My

mommy and

daddy liked the

concert.”

Jashmira said, “My

mom liked it. I liked the

Humpty Dumpty song.”

Priyand said, “I liked

singing. My mom and

dad said, “Great Job!””

Sureen said, “My

mom liked the

concert.”

Parinitha said, “ It was

fun to sing Insy Winsy

Spider.”

Jonah said, “I was happy singing in the concert.

My favourite song was Jingle Bells.”

Manya said, “ I liked singing

for my mom and dad.”

Tessa said, “ I felt kind of scared but I had a

lot of fun.”

Divya said, “ I liked it

when Mrs. Marshall

spoke to us.”

Aiden said, “I liked singing Jingle

Bells.”

Isha said, “It was fun! My favourite

song was Jingle Bells.”

Starting in January, Meadowvale Village will be participating in the Forest of Reading®, Canada's largest recreational reading program. This special reading program helps celebrate Canadian books, authors and illustrators. Students in kindergarten to grade 2 will be participating in the Blue Spruce program. They will be visiting the Library on a weekly basis in order to listen to and discuss the nominated Canadian picture books. Students in grades 3 to 5 will be invited to join the Silver Birch or Silver Birch Express reading clubs. Students who join one of these clubs will have an opportu-nity to read a variety of Canadian fiction and non-fiction. In the spring students who have partici-pated in these reading programs will have an op-portunity to vote for their favourite books, as will students across the province. The winning authors will then receive a prestigious Forest of Reading award, bestowed upon them by the Ontario Library Association. The Forest of Reading program is a wonderful way of promoting reading for enjoyment.

Thank you to the School Council for supporting this worthwhile program by purchasing the books. Without their support participation in this program would not be possible.

D A T E S F O R Y O U R D I A R Y

Please remember the following dates:

Monday, January 9, 2012 Welcome Back to School

Monday, January 16, 2012 Professional Development Day—Report Card Writing

Monday, January 23, 2012 Kindergarten Interviews begin

Monday, January 23, 2012 School Council Meeting at 7 p.m.

Monday, February 1, 2012 Canadian Cognitive Abilities testing begins for grade 4s

Peel board supports student success with ongoing

communication throughout the year

Continuing this year, there will be no school-wide par-ent/teacher interview day scheduled for the February reporting period—report cards will be sent home be-tween Feb. 6 and 10, 2012.

By this point in the school year, we have found that most parents are well aware of their child's progress based on the ongoing communication from the school. You will receive a letter with the February report card that indicates if your child is meeting expectations. Should your child‟s progress be of concern, the teacher will contact you to discuss ways to work together to fur-ther support his/her learning needs by March 1, 2012.

Our teachers are committed to providing parents with the information they need to support their child‟s suc-cess and will continue to communicate with parents throughout the school year. There is a progress report card and two report cards each year and they provide an overview of your child's progress over a period of time. The best way to see how your child is progress-ing in school is through the ongoing communication you receive. Some of the ways you may keep up-to-date about your child's progress include the following:

- talk to your child about school

- review your child's homework and agenda

- receive copies of marks your child has received on

assignments and tests

- ongoing communication with your child's teacher.

If you have questions, please contact Mrs. Marshall.

The grade one's will be going to the Courtney Park library in January. On the morning of Jan 19th, Mrs. Guidolin‟s and Miss.

Martin‟s classes will be going, and on the morning of Jan 26th, Miss Chang‟s and Mrs. Warfield‟s classes will go.

It is important for students to be dressed ap-

propriately for cold weather. Students spend

two fifteen minute breaks and one forty minute break

each day playing outdoors and some winter days can

be harsh. Boots, hats, mittens and a warm coat are

essential. Also, one of our clothing requirements is

indoor shoes. During the winter months this require-

ment is important as navigating wet stairs and hall-

ways is not only dangerous, but also unhealthy. We

thank you for your cooperation with this.

Many students will become anxious at the thought of writ-

ing a test. Anxiety about an upcoming test can affect a

child's behaviour, thoughts and actions. Here are some

ways you can help minimize anxiety at test time:

Organize & Prepare

Encourage your child not to leave assignments, studying

and homework to the last minute.

Schedule time for review and work on assignments each

day.

Establish a regular time of the day for homework, study-

ing etc.

Make the home a homework-friendly environment

where learning is regular routine.

Remove distractions like the television, stereo, tele-

phone when studying.

Tell your child to make sure tests and due dates are

marked in their agenda.

Practice

Encourage your child to think about what, when, where,

why and how when preparing/completing assign-

ments.

Develop practice tests and help them anticipate ques-

tions.

Review previous exercises.

When appropriate, encourage your child to pair up with

a friend to review information and brainstorm.

Build learning into family activities— suggest keeping a

journal, writing a report or a news article about fam-

ily events, outings or trips. Be in the know

Check out the curriculum for your child’s grade level

(available as PDF files at www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/

curriculum)

Ask your child’s teacher about major topics studied and

how these topics are structured— homework, as-

signments, exercises

Use your child’s agenda to communicate with their

teacher—ask questions, check for homework tips,

etc.

Help your child prepare for tests

Each year, the Peel District School Board

conducts a region-wide standardized test-

ing program with all grade four students. The

Canadian Cognitive Abilities Test (CCAT) will

be administered at Meadowvale Village be-

tween February 1 and February 14. This apti-

tude test predicts a student’s potential

learning of academic material. It answers

the question, “Can the student learn it?” It

measures reasoning abilities

and problem solving abilities

common to a number of

subject areas.

Hello Students and Parents of MVPS. This is the Prime

Minister’s report. I will be sharing what the Student

Parliament has been working on. In December, we

had great success with the Holiday Food Drive. We

collected exactly 912 items for the local food bank.

The Student Parliament has some great initiatives

beginning in January like the intramural hockey and

a Wear Green Day to show our support for the envi-

ronment. We have also been working on other

ideas and passing bills through the House of Com-

mons in hopes that they will become laws that will

benefit the school and community. Saqib

Don’t forget…

Register for French immersion and extended French by Jan. 27

Register children born in 2008 for kindergarten at MVPS on Feb. 6, 8, 9 & 10. More details to follow

Look for registration details in February 2012 for the free learning event taking place at Rick Hansen Secondary School, Mississauga on March 24. Attend and find out how to support your child‟s literacy development

Get Involved—learn what your child is doing online

Even if you are not familiar with the tools, there are things you can do to keep your child safe on the internet. Use

these tips to help control online activity in your home:

Use filtering software.

Supervise your child online—consider putting your computer in a common area like the kitchen or family room.

Limit the amount of time your child spends online, on school nights it could be one hour.

Explore the games your child plays to determine whether they are age appropriate.

Know your child's login information and email address and check their files regularly.

If possible, keep computer webcam stored separately and only allow usage with supervised permission.

Join and/or research social networking sites such as Facebook or MySpace.

It is important to talk to your child regularly about internet safety and the ways you will be monitoring online ac-

tivity in your home. Here are a few examples of ways you can discuss this with your child:

Discuss the difference between public and private information and what should and should not be shared on the

internet.

Reinforce the fact that not everyone is who they say they are on the internet—discuss the dangers of meeting indi-

viduals online.

Ensure your child does not open any unfamiliar emails or attachments.

Explain that if your child comes across something that makes him uncomfortable, he can discuss it with you with-

out getting disciplined or losing computer privileges.

Talk to your children about creating passwords that no one else can guess by incorporating numbers and upper

and lower case letters.

Explain that pictures should not be sent or posted online without adult permission.

It is important that parents stay connected to the online world by researching, asking questions and logging on.

For more information and access to online safety tools and activities, please visit www.protectchildren.ca

Plan to attend a presentation from Peel

Police at the school on March 1, 2012

on Internet Safety and Cyberbullying.

This „parents only‟ event will share in-

formation on how to use the computer

and internet safely.

More details in the New Year

Thoughts from Maya, Jerome and Jaskiran

On December 8, 2011, Meadowvale Village had an amazing December concert. Everyone that attended

had wonderful things to say about all the performances. I loved the Junior and primary choirs. They sang

beautifully. All the one, three and five performances were unique and creative. There were wonderful

props and costumes. I enjoyed the grade three‟s season-themed songs and poetry. It was a lot of fun and

exciting to perform but the snow business finale was the best. All those students with all those graceful

white plates “floating” the same way! All of these spectacular performances would not have been the same

without Ms. Mehta and Mrs. Cogan, all the teachers, Mrs. Damaso and Mrs. Marshall. I think that this

was one of Meadowvale‟s best concerts!

Maya

My sibling and parents all loved the poems, songs, raps and what our class did. After that they thought it

was over until the big surprise which was the S‟SNOW Business‟ song. They thought we were just going

to sing but when they saw the dancing snowflakes they jumped up from their seat to get a better view. And

loved it. They said it was beautiful and wanted to thank Mrs. Cogan and Mrs. Mehta. I loved the cookie.

Jerome

On December 8, 2011, Meadowvale Village Public School had an amazing Winter Concert. Grades 1, 3

and 5 performed. All the students were amazing. My favourite poem was performed by Miss. Walker‟s

class. It was called, “The Rat.” Our class performed two different poems. „Melanda made a snowman‟ and

an acrostic poem written by us, “Snow day‟. My favourite songs were performed by the choir. They were

called, “Mr. Grinch”, “Seven Feet of Snow”, “ Winter Fantasy”, and “On With the Snow.” As grades

performed they did pieces together, for example, the grade fives did snowflakes and the grade threes did

seasons. At the end of the concert, all the students gathered together for the finale. Each student had a pa-

per plate and all the paper plates looked like snowflakes falling. Without Mrs. Cogan and Mrs. Mehta I

don‟t think we could have performed. They put a lot of hard work into this concert. As parents were leav-

ing, the school council was selling holiday cookies. They were delicious. I had lots of fun at the Winter

Concert

Jaskiran

HEALTHY TREATS FOR ANY WEATHER:

There are many factors which influence our food choices: culture; allergies; individual preferences; family and traditions. Here is just one delicious treat you and your family may enjoy making together, which is also compliant with the new School Food and Beverage Policy: Crispy Chocolate Squares (approx. 20 squares) ¼ cup butter 50 mL 5 cups miniature marshmallows 1.25 L 1 tsp vanilla 5 mL ¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder 50 mL 4 cups rice crispy cereal 1 L 1 cup quick-cooking rolled oats 250 mL 1 ½ cups bran cereal (not flakes) 375 mL ¼ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips 50 mL 1. Line a 13 x 9 inch (3L) baking pan with tin foil or parchment paper, leaving a 2-inch (5 cm) overhang at each end. 2. In a large saucepan, melt butter over low heat. Add marshmallows and stir constantly until melted, about 10 minutes. Remove pan from

heat. Working quickly, stir in vanilla and cocoa powder until combined. Stir in rice cereal, oats, bran cereal and chocolate chips, mixing well after each addition.

3. Press mixture into prepared baking pan. Let cool until firm. Using overhangs as handles, remove from pan and place on a cutting board; cut into squares. Store in an airtight container for up to 2 days.

This recipe along with many others can be found at www.eatrightontario.ca/en/Resources.aspx and contain: no more than 5 grams of fat; no more than 2 grams of saturated fat; and at least 2 grams of fibre

The MVPS School Council would like to wish everyone a very happy and healthy Holiday Season and all the best in 2012.

Through many successful fundraising efforts and the generous support of the parents and families of our community, we were able to contribute to our school in a big way. With literacy being our main focus, we funded many initiatives including additional classroom resources, library programs, the At-Home Reading Program, and the Reading Resource Centre.

We also supported math, science, art, and music through the purchase of math and science ma-nipulatives and by funding special events and in-school presentations. Additionally, we were able to subsidize field trip costs, purchase equipment and supplies for our school clubs, and support healthy lifestyles through initiatives like Walking Wednesdays, Healthy Snack Days, Skating Day, and the funding of recess equipment.

Thank you to all the parents of MVPS for being so actively interested in and concerned for the suc-cess of our school. If you want to be on the Council email list, please send your email address to: laura.ziemba@paperchase.ca.

Save the date: on March 1, 2012 Peel Police will be making a presentation to the parents of our school about internet safety. More details to follow in the new year.

The newsletter draw will take place the morning of, January 20, 2012.

Yes, I have read the

newsletter. Please enter my

child‟s name for the MVPS

draw.

Parent/Guardian Signature: _________________________________

Student name: ___________________________________________

Teacher name:____________________________________________