Owen Online - Winter Break

Socks for the Homeless

Thanks to everyone who donated socks for our drive. We collected over 300 pairs of socks and were able to visit the Indie 88.1 radio station to deliver and meet the organizers of the event. Great work Owen and thanks for your school spirit and generosity!
http://www.socks4soulscanada.com/donate.html

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Common Sense Media Website
Here's a link to a website for holiday Tech tips, movie guides and important conversations to have with children about their online activities. https://www.commonsensemedia.org/

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Drop Off Loop

Lately there have been a number of cars parking in the front drop off loop which defeats the purpose of the drop off. If you must exit your vehicle for any amount of time please park legally on the street. 

We are all in a rush but the safety of our students is paramount. We've had a number of close calls so the parking authority has been informed and will randomly visit during peak hours. Please be courteous and careful in our drop off loop for the safety of all.

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St. Andrew’s Junior High 
Invites you to our

INFO NIGHTS

Families and students are invited for a visit and a peek into what St. Andrew’s is like. Each evening will have both an info session and a guided tour of the school.

Wednesday, January 10 – 6:30 to 8 pm

Grade 5 students and families

Thursday, January 11 – 6:30 to 8 pm

Grade 6 students and families

and High Performing Athletes (HPA) Info Night

(for gr. 6 to 8 students competing at the provincial and/or national level) 

This is an opportunity for you to come and see our:

·      displays and samples of student work

·      student demonstrations and performances

For updates about our school and the Junior High to Middle School transition, we invite you to follow our school blog.

Visit: standrewsjhs.ca   

·      In the right-hand column, enter your email address under “Follow Blog via Email”

·      You can also see relevant posts under News > Junior High to Middle School

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Early Dismissals

Please send a note or email office staff if your child will be signing out for an appointment as we are trying to minimize interruptions during instructional time. 

Any student who needs to be dismissed early must be picked up before 2:45 pm. 

To ensure the safety of all students, students will not be dismissed between 2:45 pm  - 3:15 pm as staff need to account for students taking the bus and going to daycare. This time is extremely important as students will miss instructional time and time to organize their agendas. 

Thanks for your cooperation. 

---

OSAC Meeting Times

Next OSAC Meeting: Tuesday, January 16th @ 8:45am in the staff room

OSAC Meetings have traditionally been in the evenings from 6:30pm to 8:00pm. We want to make the meetings as accessible as possible for parents so are trying an OSAC meeting in January at 8:45am after morning drop off. Hope to see you there!

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Milk Sales
We have established the milk ticket sales for the next couple months.

• December 13-20, delivered on December 21st
• January 19-31, delivered on February 1st

Questions or concerns about milk, please contact owenmilkprogram@outlook.com

Peanut Allergies

Please be mindful that we have students in the school with severe nut allergies.  Please ensure that all lunches and snacks are peanut free or have not be made in a facility that contains nuts.  Snacks that contain nuts will be brought to the office and can be picked up after school.

---

Junior Extended French (JEF) 

(Grade 4 Entry)

Applications to the Junior Extended French program may be submitted, on behalf of students in the English program, the year the child is in Grade 3 for entry in September of Grade 4. It is an entirely online process. All communication will be sent via the email address you provide. Please check your email regularly, including junk mail folders.

Please visit the application site www.tdsb.on.ca/pars

·     You will need your child’s date of birth and OEN. The OEN is a 9-digit number found on any report card from the TDSB.

·     For non-TDSB students, please select the “Non-TDSB Student” option and follow the steps to generate an identification number. You must then return to the PARS site and follow the application procedure with this number.

·     Please select Junior Extended French from the drop-down menu and complete the application process.

On-time applicants will be offered a placement online via the email address you have provided. You MUST take action to accept this placement by the deadline requested when you are offered a placement.

Offers of placement will be on-going through the weeks and months following the close of the application period. Please check your email regularly, including junk mail folders, and follow any instructions.

IMPORTANT DATES:

Application process opens: Monday, January 8, 2018

Deadline for applications: Thursday, February 8, 2018

Please note:

·     while every effort will be made to place students in the school identified as their area JEF school, this is not always possible. In cases where the number of applications in a given area is greater than the number of spaces in the school, students may be redirected to schools with available space.

·     Placements are made based on the address you provide prior to the application deadline. If your address changes between the application deadline and the fall of the Grade 4 year, there is no guarantee of placement in your new area.

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Hello Everyone, During my Community Coffee meeting last week, there were lots of great questions regarding the Enhancing Equity Task Force Report and specialized programming at the TDSB. I would like to follow up on some of the questions below. Are specialty schools and programs, and the congregated gifted programs going to continue? Yes. What are the different paths high school students can take to achieve their graduation certificate? – Applied, General, Academic? This document from People For Education summarizes the different paths and offers tips to parents regarding high school course selection.  Can students identified as “gifted” enter the congregated high school program after grade 8? Yes. After students have the formal designation by a certified practitioner they will be placed into a congregated program – usually the “gifted” catchment area for their home address –provided that there is room and it is what the parent wishes. However, the process to approve and place these children requires an IPRC. This may take a few weeks in which a student may have to attend their home high school for the regular program. If anyone knows of a student refused admission to a congregated gifted program, please have them contact me at Gerri.Gershon@tdsb.on.ca. Was John Malloy Director of Education in Hamilton-Wentworth when the congregated gifted program was eliminated at that Board? There was no congregated gifted program in Hamilton-Wentworth when John was Director. If applied courses aren’t available at the grade 9 level, will teachers be prepared kids to assist students with a learning disability? There has been no determination yet about eliminating Grade 9 applied programs; however the Board is examining this issue. The Director has assured me that teachers and schools will be ready so that all students will be able to achieve success. It won’t be a sudden decision without staff preparation and adequate student supports.  What is the schedule for approval of the Enhancing Equity Report? Please click here, or on the image below to read all about the next steps.  Those looking to offer a delegation regarding this process can visit http://www.tdsb.on.ca/Leadership/Boardroom/Delegations for more information.  I would like to thank all the parents who have supported my coffee meetings. The questions that you ask and the topics you raise are of immeasurable importance to me in my role as Trustee. I hope that each of you have an enjoyable holiday with your family and friends. See you in 2018!

Newsletters - Quick Communicator

Dates

• Ward Forum - Tuesday January 23 7:00 PM
  Meet the Director of Education John Malloy at North Toronto Collegiate Institute
• Community Coffee - Monday February 26, 9:15 AM
• Ward Forum - April Date TBA on the Budget, 7:00 PM
• Community Coffee - April meeting cancelled
• Ward Forum - Tuesday May 22, 7:00 PM
• Community Coffee - Wednesday June 18, 9:15 AM

Below are several articles to keep you updated on education issues in our community and across Toronto.

if you wish to discuss any of the items, please email me at gerri.gershon@tdsb.on.ca

Gerri

We are fortunate to have Gerri Gershon as our Trustee.  To stay informed with Gerri, please sign up for her e-newsletter at www.tdsb.on.ca/gershon and read her Newsletters - Quick Communicator. Follow her on Twitter  @gerrigershon, for all sorts of useful information about education. For system wide news about the TDSB, visit www.tdsb.on.ca/TDSBupdate.

Owen Online - Dec. 18-22

Winter Concert

The lights, the songs, the dancing! What a performance! Congratulations to all our students and staff who put on such a great show. Special thanks to Mr. Albrecht, Ms. Coutts, and Mme. Balaban for organizing the event. Huge thanks to Mr. Reid our caretaker for performing the Christmas miracle on our gym this morning!

Thank you to all who attended and supported our school with the cookie sales!

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Socks for the Homeless

Our sock drive for the homeless continues until next Tuesday! We're hoping for 100 pairs of new socks - kept it up Owen!  http://www.socks4soulscanada.com/donate.html

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Drop Off Loop

Lately there have been a number of cars parking in the front drop off loop which defeats the purpose of the drop off. If you must exit your vehicle for any amount of time please park legally on the street. 

We are all in a rush but the safety of our students is paramount. We've had a number of close calls so the parking authority has been informed and will randomly visit during peak hours. Please be courteous and careful in our drop off loop for the safety of all.

---

St. Andrew’s Junior High 
Invites you to our

INFO NIGHTS

Families and students are invited for a visit and a peek into what St. Andrew’s is like. Each evening will have both an info session and a guided tour of the school.

Wednesday, January 10 – 6:30 to 8 pm

Grade 5 students and families

Thursday, January 11 – 6:30 to 8 pm

Grade 6 students and families

and High Performing Athletes (HPA) Info Night

(for gr. 6 to 8 students competing at the provincial and/or national level) 

This is an opportunity for you to come and see our:

·      displays and samples of student work

·      student demonstrations and performances

For updates about our school and the Junior High to Middle School transition, we invite you to follow our school blog.

Visit: standrewsjhs.ca   

·      In the right-hand column, enter your email address under “Follow Blog via Email”

·      You can also see relevant posts under News > Junior High to Middle School

---

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Early Dismissals

Please send a note or email office staff if your child will be signing out for an appointment as we are trying to minimize interruptions during instructional time. 

Any student who needs to be dismissed early must be picked up before 2:45 pm. 

To ensure the safety of all students, students will not be dismissed between 2:45 pm  - 3:15 pm as staff need to account for students taking the bus and going to daycare. This time is extremely important as students will miss instructional time and time to organize their agendas. 

Thanks for your cooperation. 

---

OSAC Meeting Times

Next OSAC Meeting: Tuesday, January 16th @ 8:45am in the staff room

OSAC Meetings have traditionally been in the evenings from 6:30pm to 8:00pm. We want to make the meetings as accessible as possible for parents so are trying an OSAC meeting in January at 8:45am after morning drop off. Hope to see you there!

---

Milk Sales
We have established the milk ticket sales for the next couple months.

• December 13-20, delivered on December 21st
• January 19-31, delivered on February 1st

Questions or concerns about milk, please contact owenmilkprogram@outlook.com

Peanut Allergies

Please be mindful that we have students in the school with severe nut allergies.  Please ensure that all lunches and snacks are peanut free or have not be made in a facility that contains nuts.  Snacks that contain nuts will be brought to the office and can be picked up after school.

---

Junior Extended French (JEF) 

(Grade 4 Entry)

Applications to the Junior Extended French program may be submitted, on behalf of students in the English program, the year the child is in Grade 3 for entry in September of Grade 4. It is an entirely online process. All communication will be sent via the email address you provide. Please check your email regularly, including junk mail folders.

Please visit the application site www.tdsb.on.ca/pars

·     You will need your child’s date of birth and OEN. The OEN is a 9-digit number found on any report card from the TDSB.

·     For non-TDSB students, please select the “Non-TDSB Student” option and follow the steps to generate an identification number. You must then return to the PARS site and follow the application procedure with this number.

·     Please select Junior Extended French from the drop-down menu and complete the application process.

On-time applicants will be offered a placement online via the email address you have provided. You MUST take action to accept this placement by the deadline requested when you are offered a placement.

Offers of placement will be on-going through the weeks and months following the close of the application period. Please check your email regularly, including junk mail folders, and follow any instructions.

IMPORTANT DATES:

Application process opens: Monday, January 8, 2018

Deadline for applications: Thursday, February 8, 2018

Please note:

·     while every effort will be made to place students in the school identified as their area JEF school, this is not always possible. In cases where the number of applications in a given area is greater than the number of spaces in the school, students may be redirected to schools with available space.

·     Placements are made based on the address you provide prior to the application deadline. If your address changes between the application deadline and the fall of the Grade 4 year, there is no guarantee of placement in your new area.

---

Hello Everyone,

I hope you will be able to join me at my next Community Coffee Get Together. As always, feel free to bring a friend - I look forward to seeing you all!

Taking a glance at 2018, I am also looking forward to the Joint Ward Forum I am hosting on January 23rd, along with fellow Trustees Jennifer Arp (Ward 8) and Shelley Laskin (Ward 11). We will be joined by TDSB's Director of Education, Dr. John Malloy, who will be on hand to answer your questions. More details will be shared in the new year. 

In the meanwhile, I hope to see you all on December 14th!

Newsletters - Quick Communicator

Dates

• Ward Forum - Tuesday January 23 7:00 PM
  Meet the Director of Education John Malloy at North Toronto Collegiate Institute
• Community Coffee - Monday February 26, 9:15 AM
• Ward Forum - April Date TBA on the Budget, 7:00 PM
• Community Coffee - April meeting cancelled
• Ward Forum - Tuesday May 22, 7:00 PM
• Community Coffee - Wednesday June 18, 9:15 AM

Below are several articles to keep you updated on education issues in our community and across Toronto.

if you wish to discuss any of the items, please email me at gerri.gershon@tdsb.on.ca

Gerri

We are fortunate to have Gerri Gershon as our Trustee.  To stay informed with Gerri, please sign up for her e-newsletter at www.tdsb.on.ca/gershon and read her Newsletters - Quick Communicator. Follow her on Twitter  @gerrigershon, for all sorts of useful information about education. For system wide news about the TDSB, visit www.tdsb.on.ca/TDSBupdate.

Owen Online - Dec. 11-15

Winter Concert: ME TO WE Theme

DATE: Thursday, December 14th, 6:00pm

THEME: The theme of this year’s holiday concert celebrates the Me to We initiatives while celebrating the beauty of Canada during its winter season.

We will be selling cookies and water at the concert.

We are planning to have our Primary (Gr. 1-3) classes perform starting at 6pm with an intermission at 7:00-7:15pm, then the Junior classes (Gr. 4-6) perform at 7:15pm. Kindergarten classes are planning a spring performance that will be announced at a later date.

About Me to We:

https://www.metowe.com/about-us/

Beliefs (words for hands):

https://www.we.org/we-movement/our-beliefs/

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Socks for the Homeless

Beginning next Monday, we are hoping to decorate a tree outside the main office with sock donations for the homeless. Pick up for the socks will be Friday, December 22 so let's see how many pairs of new socks we can donate to a worthy cause!   http://www.socks4soulscanada.com/donate.html

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Holiday Hampers

We're one week into our holiday hampers and are almost there! We need your generous support in donating gift items and gift cards to families in need. Friday, December 15th is our last today to donate! 

Class (by Grade)	Family for Holiday Hamper
Kindergarten
Ms. Buchanan and Ms. Smyth	Family #64 – Mother, Girl (age 16), Boy (age 12), Boy (age 10), Girl (age 9)
Ms. Milbrant and Ms. Kruklis	Family #1 – Mother, Uncle, Boy (age 7), Girl (age 8), Girl (age 17), Boy (age 17)
Ms. Lee and Ms. Mungala	Family #4 – Mother, Dad, Boy (age 5), Boy (age 10), Girl (age 15),
Grade 1
Ms. Hood	Family#63 – Mother, Girl (age 14), Girl (age 7)
Ms. McRae	Family #66 – Grandmother, Girl (age 11), Boy (age 9)
Ms. Hartwell	Family #69 – Mother, Girl (age 11), Girl (age 9)
Ms. Mera	Family #70 – Mother, Girl (age 4), Boy (age 1)
Grade 2
Ms. Kiriazopoulos and Ms. Lam	Family #71 – Mother, Boy (age 11), Twin Boys (age 13)
Ms. Ching	Family #73 – Grandmother, Father, Girl (age 4)
Ms. Bourassa Wilson	Family #75 – Grandmother, Father, Girl (age 7), Boy (age 11)
Grade 3
Mr. Rebick	Family #74 – Mother, Boy (age 2.5)
Ms. Boddy	Family #67 – Mother, Boy (age 5)
Ms. Barbieri	Family #65 – Mother, Girl (age 11), Boy (age 8)
Ms. Vezina	Family #5 – Mother,  Father, Girl (age 6)
Mr. McArthur	Family #2 – Grandmother, Mother, Twin Boys (age 9)
Grade 4
Ms. Moreau	Family #3 – Mother, Boy (age 9), Girl (age 11), Boy (age 12), Girl (age 14), Girl (age 16)
Ms. Hall	Family #6 – Mother, Girl (age 9), Boy (age 6), Boy (age 4)
Ms. Morris and Mr. Alexandre	Family #72 – Mother, Girl (6 months), Boy (age 9), Boy (age 13), Boy (age 14)
Grade 5
Ms. Antoniou and Ms. Payne	Family #61 – Mother, Girl (age 11), Girl (age 8), Girl (age 6)
Mr. Price	Family #3 – Mother, Boy (age 9), Girl (age 11), Boy (age 12), Girl (age 14), Girl (age 16)
Grade 6
Ms. Ierullo and Ms. Kennedy	Family #68 – Mother, Father, Girl (age 15), Girl (age 13), Girl (age 9), Girl (age 7)
Ms. Balaban	Family #62 – Mother, Boy (age 14), Boy (age 11), Boy (age 8)

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Lost & Found Clothing
Our sad and lonely Lost and Found bin is overflowing. This Wednesday we will be packing everything and donating all of it to our very successful clothing drive. Please come in and have a look if you are missing clothing items before Wednesday!

Our clothing collection will continue throughout the school year. Donations always welcome! The drop off is just inside the main doors, please let the office know if you are dropping something off.

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Parent Survey of Interest 2018 

Before and/or After-School Programs

Dear Parents and Guardians;

The purpose of this survey is to better understand your current before- and/or after-school child care arrangements as well as your needs for September 2018.

The information collected through this survey will help the Toronto District School Board identify:

• where new programs are needed or may need to be expanded to meet community needs and;
• what other child care options families are currently using.

Please note, completing this survey does not guarantee that a Before- and/or After-School Program will run at your child’s school.

If your school does not currently have a Before- and/or After-School Program, you will be informed prior to May 2018 whether or not your school has enough interest to start a new program. At that time the school will provide you with additional information.


If your school currently has a Before- and/or After-School Program we request that you please still complete this survey and return it to the school. If you require care for your child, please contact the onsite Child Care Program directly for further information about the program, wait lists and how to register.

For the survey, please see the Owen Online email from Stephen Miles or contact our office for a copy.

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St. Andrew’s Junior High 
Invites you to our

INFO NIGHTS

Families and students are invited for a visit and a peek into what St. Andrew’s is like. Each evening will have both an info session and a guided tour of the school.

Wednesday, January 10 – 6:30 to 8 pm

Grade 5 students and families

Thursday, January 11 – 6:30 to 8 pm

Grade 6 students and families

and High Performing Athletes (HPA) Info Night

(for gr. 6 to 8 students competing at the provincial and/or national level) 

This is an opportunity for you to come and see our:

·      displays and samples of student work

·      student demonstrations and performances

For updates about our school and the Junior High to Middle School transition, we invite you to follow our school blog.

Visit: standrewsjhs.ca   

·      In the right-hand column, enter your email address under “Follow Blog via Email”

·      You can also see relevant posts under News > Junior High to Middle School

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Mom’s Basketball/Volleyball

Interested in getting out and playing some ball with other moms?  Drop by with your sneakers and sweats on Wednesday December 13^th from 5:00 pm – 6:00 pm in the gym. If you have any questions contact paula.kuzic@tdsb.on.ca

Early Dismissals

Please send a note or email office staff if your child will be signing out for an appointment as we are trying to minimize interruptions during instructional time. 

Any student who needs to be dismissed early must be picked up before 2:45 pm. 

To ensure the safety of all students, students will not be dismissed between 2:45 pm  - 3:15 pm as staff need to account for students taking the bus and going to daycare. This time is extremely important as students will miss instructional time and time to organize their agendas. 

Thanks for your cooperation. 

---

OSAC Meeting Times

Next OSAC Meeting: Tuesday, January 16th @ 8:45am in the staff room

OSAC Meetings have traditionally been in the evenings from 6:30pm to 8:00pm. We want to make the meetings as accessible as possible for parents so are trying an OSAC meeting in January at 8:45am after morning drop off. Hope to see you there!

---

Milk Sales
We have established the milk ticket sales for the next couple months.

• December 13-20, delivered on December 21st
• January 19-31, delivered on February 1st

Questions or concerns about milk, please contact owenmilkprogram@outlook.com

Peanut Allergies

Please be mindful that we have students in the school with severe nut allergies.  Please ensure that all lunches and snacks are peanut free or have not be made in a facility that contains nuts.  Snacks that contain nuts will be brought to the office and can be picked up after school.

---

Junior Extended French (JEF) 

(Grade 4 Entry)

Applications to the Junior Extended French program may be submitted, on behalf of students in the English program, the year the child is in Grade 3 for entry in September of Grade 4. It is an entirely online process. All communication will be sent via the email address you provide. Please check your email regularly, including junk mail folders.

Please visit the application site www.tdsb.on.ca/pars

·     You will need your child’s date of birth and OEN. The OEN is a 9-digit number found on any report card from the TDSB.

·     For non-TDSB students, please select the “Non-TDSB Student” option and follow the steps to generate an identification number. You must then return to the PARS site and follow the application procedure with this number.

·     Please select Junior Extended French from the drop-down menu and complete the application process.

On-time applicants will be offered a placement online via the email address you have provided. You MUST take action to accept this placement by the deadline requested when you are offered a placement.

Offers of placement will be on-going through the weeks and months following the close of the application period. Please check your email regularly, including junk mail folders, and follow any instructions.

IMPORTANT DATES:

Application process opens: Monday, January 8, 2018

Deadline for applications: Thursday, February 8, 2018

Please note:

·     while every effort will be made to place students in the school identified as their area JEF school, this is not always possible. In cases where the number of applications in a given area is greater than the number of spaces in the school, students may be redirected to schools with available space.

·     Placements are made based on the address you provide prior to the application deadline. If your address changes between the application deadline and the fall of the Grade 4 year, there is no guarantee of placement in your new area.

---

Hello Everyone,

I hope you will be able to join me at my next Community Coffee Get Together. As always, feel free to bring a friend - I look forward to seeing you all!

Taking a glance at 2018, I am also looking forward to the Joint Ward Forum I am hosting on January 23rd, along with fellow Trustees Jennifer Arp (Ward 8) and Shelley Laskin (Ward 11). We will be joined by TDSB's Director of Education, Dr. John Malloy, who will be on hand to answer your questions. More details will be shared in the new year. 

In the meanwhile, I hope to see you all on December 14th!

Newsletters - Quick Communicator

Dates

• Community Coffee - Thursday December 14, 9:15 am
• Ward Forum - Tuesday January 23 7:00 PM
  Meet the Director of Education John Malloy at North Toronto Collegiate Institute
• Community Coffee - Monday February 26, 9:15 AM
• Ward Forum - April Date TBA on the Budget, 7:00 PM
• Community Coffee - April meeting cancelled
• Ward Forum - Tuesday May 22, 7:00 PM
• Community Coffee - Wednesday June 18, 9:15 AM

Below are several articles to keep you updated on education issues in our community and across Toronto.

if you wish to discuss any of the items, please email me at gerri.gershon@tdsb.on.ca

Gerri

We are fortunate to have Gerri Gershon as our Trustee.  To stay informed with Gerri, please sign up for her e-newsletter at www.tdsb.on.ca/gershon and read her Newsletters - Quick Communicator. Follow her on Twitter  @gerrigershon, for all sorts of useful information about education. For system wide news about the TDSB, visit www.tdsb.on.ca/TDSBupdate.