Book Fair!
Stomp, Chomp and Read! The Scholastic book fair will be taking place next week!
All students will have an opportunity to visit the fair and purchase books with their teachers. Parents and families are welcome to visit the fair during our family event which will take place on Thursday, January 17th before school from 7:45 to 8:45am. All families that visit the fair will have a chance to win $25 in books to take home, and $25 for your child’s classroom. All purchases benefit our school! Hope you can make it!
Wednesday, February 20th @6:00pm - Kids Have Stress Too Part 1
The TDSB is celebrating Tamil Heritage Month in January 2019 and the chosen theme for this year is “Remembrance. Resilience. Recognition.” If you or your family would like to share anything about their Tamil heritage via school announcement, class presentation, or items to put in our display case please let us know.
Ms. Lam and Ms. Kennedy's class - https://vimeo.com/304903449/dfc94c228a
Ms. Morris and Mr. Price's class - https://vimeo.com/306475025/49534fc201
Dear Musical Theatre Parents,
This is a friendly reminder that there is absolutely NO PARKING in the circular driveways at Owen PS. The front loop is for quick drop off and the back driveway is for buses only. Thanks to our amazing volunteers who keep our children safe each morning! The safety of Owen students is our first priority.
Dress for Weather!
Winter is here with lots of snow and wet grounds. Recess and lunch times are excellent opportunities for students to get fresh air and exercise outside.
Students are expected to be outside unless they are involved in an activity or have a doctor's note stating they need to stay indoors.
Please help your child prepare for the winter weather with a warm jacket, boots, mitts and hat. Indoor shoes are also required to change into during class to help keep our classrooms and school clean.
Extra curricular activities are offered by teachers outside instructional time to enhance students' learning and to create opportunities for leadership and community building. Student clubs and committees are offered throughout the year. This chart will be kept up to date of any new clubs/committees added throughout the year.
Trustee Update
Welcome Back and Happy New Year!
Holiday Concert DVD
Parent Speaker Series
Concert DVD's are now available for sale on our Cash Online system for $5. Cut of will be January 25th when our order will be processed.
Parent Speaker Series
We have several presentations available for parents to attend. Please register for the events you are interested in attending.
Thursday, January 17th @ 6:30pm - Understanding Resilience
http://bit.ly/PSSunderstandingresilience
Wednesday, January 23rd @ 6:00pm -Becoming a Reader Part 3
http://bit.ly/owenreadingseries
Monday, January 28th @ 6:00pm - Social Networking and Online Safety by Paul Davis - http://bit.ly/PaulDavis-Owen
Wednesday, February 20th @6:00pm - Kids Have Stress Too Part 1
Tamil Heritage Month – January 2019
The TDSB is celebrating Tamil Heritage Month in January 2019 and the chosen theme for this year is “Remembrance. Resilience. Recognition.” If you or your family would like to share anything about their Tamil heritage via school announcement, class presentation, or items to put in our display case please let us know.
OSAC Meeting - Tuesday, January 15th @ 6:30pm in the Library
New Lunch Programs Available!
Sign up available from next Monday on the OSAC website https://www.owenpublicschool.ca/after-school-winter2019/
Beginner knitting:
lunch program for grade 3-5 students
$120.00 + HST ($135.60)-price including yarn and needles
January 22-March 19 on Tuesdays ( no class on January 15)
Room 121
This class is for beginner and it is a great refresher
class. Children will learn all the basics: how to put stiches on the needle,
knit stich, purl stich, stocking stich, ribbing (1x1 & 2x2), and finish
project. Student will receive step by step instructions. Yarn and needles will
be provided. Children will have 4 projects to choose from.
Yoga for kids:
lunch program for grade 1-3 students
$105.00 + HST ($118.65)
January 25-March 22 on Fridays (no classes on January 18 and
February 15)
Room 123
This class centered around positivity and playfulness while
focusing on balance, relaxation and concentration through yoga poses. Using
creative, effective and playful methods making yoga fun and exciting for
children.
TIFF Workshops
In December the Grade 4/5 classes were fortunate to visit the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) for workshops on video and set design. Here's a link to some of the work they did at TIFF.Ms. Lam and Ms. Kennedy's class - https://vimeo.com/304903449/dfc94c228a
Ms. Morris and Mr. Price's class - https://vimeo.com/306475025/49534fc201
Dear Musical Theatre Parents,
Thank you,
once again for your ongoing support of the Explore It! Musical
Theatre Program at Owen P.S. Performing Arts are a labour of love for all who
participate and the whole process has been so positive and inspiring for us and
we look forward to more of the same!
Please visit
this [secure] site for a full range of professional photos from the show,
courtesy of xrays photography.
They can be downloaded directly from the site to share with family and friends.
At the top of the page, there is also a link to download the video we shot on
performance day - please take a look and enjoy!
user: disney
pass: review
As always,
feel free to contact us with any comments or questions. Thank you.
Kind Regards,
Randy Dobson and Elizabeth Hamilton, Directors
Explore It! Inc.
Traffic Safety & Parking
This is a friendly reminder that there is absolutely NO PARKING in the circular driveways at Owen PS. The front loop is for quick drop off and the back driveway is for buses only. Thanks to our amazing volunteers who keep our children safe each morning! The safety of Owen students is our first priority.
ONLINE REPORTING
If we have a license plate and/or description of the driver we can lay charges for moving violations, if the complainant is willing to go to court and can identify the driver.
If the complainant is not willing to go to court, we will send a letter to the registered owner about traffic safety.
Dress for Weather!Winter is here with lots of snow and wet grounds. Recess and lunch times are excellent opportunities for students to get fresh air and exercise outside.
Students are expected to be outside unless they are involved in an activity or have a doctor's note stating they need to stay indoors.
Please help your child prepare for the winter weather with a warm jacket, boots, mitts and hat. Indoor shoes are also required to change into during class to help keep our classrooms and school clean.
School Clubs and Committees
Extra curricular activities are offered by teachers outside instructional time to enhance students' learning and to create opportunities for leadership and community building. Student clubs and committees are offered throughout the year. This chart will be kept up to date of any new clubs/committees added throughout the year.
Welcome Back and Happy New Year!
I hope everyone has had a restful and enjoyable break.
It’s been a busy start to my first term as your Ward 11 Trustee. It started with a full weekend of governance training at the Rotman School of Business at U of T, and my official swearing in on December 3rd. What followed was a very busy December spent visiting schools, meeting with staff, and attending many committee and Board meetings. Together with my new colleagues, I logged a lot of hours in learning sessions on a multitude of topics, giving all of us ample opportunity to get to know each other, and more importantly, to help to get us get acquainted with the inner workings of the TDSB so that we are better prepared for our new roles. It's been a steep learning curve with more to come, but I have also gotten a good sense of many of the challenges and successes in the diverse schools in Ward 11 and I look forward to what lies ahead in this fresh start of 2019!
As I figure out the best approach to these communications, I have tried to limit the amount of information contained to make it accessible and yet still informative. Your feedback is welcome and you may notice in the newsletters to come that I am tweaking my approach as I figure out "the sweet spot". For this first communication, what follows are a few announcements and important pieces of information including: my upcoming first community meeting, Provincial funding changes, PRO Grants, and Optional Attendence information. As well, at the bottom of this newsletter is a sign-up section so that my communications can be delivered directly to your inbox and you stay up to date!
COFFEE MORNING: JANUARY 23, 9:15-11:30am, Upstairs at Longo’s on Laird (including PIAC elections!)
I have decided to continue the tradition of Gerri’s coffee mornings and have already scheduled my first one for two weeks from now. Please join me for a morning of conversation and idea exchange. We will have some short updates on Board activities and meet some of our superintendents of Ward 11 schools, but the focus will really be on learning from each other and networking with fellow parents and constituents. At this particular meeting, we will also be electing our Parent Involvement Advisory Committee (PIAC) Representative and Alternate, as well as our French as A Second Language Advisory Committee (FSLAC) Representative and Alternate(s).
Each TDSB Ward has two PIAC Members, a Representative and an Alternate. They are parent advocates who provide information and advice on parent engagement to the TDSB; communicate with and support school councils; and undertake activities to help parents of pupils of the board support their children's learning at home and at school. According to the PIAC By-Laws, in order to serve for the two-year term, you must be a Toronto District School Board parent or guardian, as well as either reside in the ward and have a TDSB-enrolled child who resides in the ward, or have a child who is enrolled in a TDSB school in the ward. If you are interested, please read the information package on elections here. To learn about PIAC, check out their website here and consider attending their next meeting (Tuesday, Jan. 16th, 7pm, 5050 Yonge St) to get a sense of this committee.
Similarly, each TDSB Ward has an FSLAC representative and an alternate (and sometimes multiple alternates). FSLAC consults with and advises the Board on French as a Second Language matters and contributes to the work of trustees and staff. This partnership of trustees, staff and parents aims to foster excellence in FSL programs at the Board and covers all french programming -- Core, Extended and Immersion -- so is relevant to all TDSB families, not simply those whose children are enrolled in specialized french programming. The FSLAC is comprised of parent representatives and alternates elected by ward councils, a parent co-chair elected by FSLAC parent representatives, 3 trustees (one of whom happens to be me!) and designated TDSB staff. This is an exciting time to be involved in FSLAC as the French Review is underway and the TDSB is currently working on recommendations to come out of that review. Consider learning more about FSLAC by clicking here.
If you are interested in serving as a rep for PIAC or FSLAC, please let me know by e-mailing me at Rachel.ChernosLin@tdsb.on.ca.
UPDATE ON PROVINCIAL FUNDING CHANGES: EDUCATION PROGRAM OTHER (EPO FUNDING): Bad News...
In late December, the Provincial Government announced $25 million in cuts to Specialized Program Grants across the Province. The TDSB estimates that this will translate into grant cancellations for our board in the amount of $744,500. Staff are currently working hard to understand exactly how these cuts will impact the TDSB and this school year. A detailed report will be shared with Trustees at the January 23 meeting of the Finance, Business and Enrollment Committee and we will keep our consituents updated as we learn more. To read more about the provincial funding news, click here.
PRO GRANTS: Good news!
On the plus side, the Ministry of Education finally announced that it will go ahead and continue to fund the Parent Reaching Out Grants (PRO Grants). Successful applicants should expect to be notified this week. I hope that school councils will share feedback with each other and with me about the programs they run with these grants and I encourage everyone to share and publicize those events that can be opened up to other schools in our ward.
OPTIONAL ATTENDANCE
In the last few weeks I have had several inquiries about optional attendence. If your child is interested in applying to a school other than your home school, I encourage you to read all about the optional attendence procedure and take note of important dates and deadlines. More information can be found on the TDSB website or by clicking here: https://www.tdsb.on.ca/Find-your/School/Optional-Attendance
Finally, I want to leave you with some interesting reading -- a new feature from the TDSB called "trending@tdsb". Former Toronto Star education correspondent, Louise Brown, is busy uncovering innovative learning practices across the TDSB and recounting them for all of us to read and learn from. She will "take you inside schools across the Toronto District School Board to discover some of the exciting changes underway behind the classroom door. Fresh kinds of learning, new ways of teaching, reaching deeper into their communities, putting equity into action and all-round cool schools with stories to share." So far, no Don Valley West schools have been featured, so if you have a story to share... let me know! To read up on some inspirational stories from across our Board, check out what's trending@tdsb: https://www.tdsb.on.ca/about-us/innovation/trendingattdsb.
I hope to see many of you on the morning of Wednesday, January 23, 2019 at Longo's on Laird!
Yours truly,
Rachel Chernos Lin
.jpg)
.jpg)
