Owen Online Newsletter: Owen Family Update

Hello Owen Families,

We hope you were able to get outdoors with the nice weather this weekend. Last Thursday marked the one year anniversary of the COVID-19 pandemic. We can't believe it's been one year of wearing masks, distancing, hand sanitizing and front line workers working non-stop to save lives and help us get access to food and supplies. Thank you!

Here is a short video reflecting on a year of COVID-19 in Canada.

We are on the road to recovery but still not out of the woods. Please continue to be diligent about our health and safety practices and following the COVID-19 Grey Zone Guide for Toronto Residents. For more resources on how to cope with mental health during COVID-19, please see below.

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Owen Trivia Night

Our Owen Online Trivia night is gaining momentum. On Tuesday March 16th from 8:00 pm - 9:30 pm, bring your own beverage and snacks to the virtual forum and participate with others for spectacular prizes (or perhaps just bragging rights!).

If you plan on attending, please send an email to jamie.parkes@tdsb.on.ca. You can also email Jamie if you have any questions.

A perfect way to meet and interact with parents, staff, and teachers of OWEN.

TRIVIA NIGHT LINK

Meeting ID: 973 0086 0920

PASSCODE: 533223

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Mental Health and Well-Being Resources During Covid-19

Connect directly with staff from TDSB Professional Support Services. Join them to explore ideas regarding your child or youth's mental health and well-being.

Need immediate help?

If you or someone you know is experiencing a mental health or substance use emergency, call 9-1-1 or go to the emergency room of your local hospital.
If you are not sure if it is an emergency, or just need to talk through the situation, consider reaching out to:

Telehealth Ontario at 1-866-797-0000
Kids Help Phone at 1-800-668-6868 or texting CONNECT to 686868
Mental Health TO
211 – community supports such as food banks, housing and more.
Toronto Public Health
Distress Centres of Greater Toronto
Assaulted Women’s Helpline 1-866-863-0511 or text #SAFE (#7233)
Black Youth Helpline
Indigenous Youth Helpline
Muslim Youth Helpline
What's Up Walk-In® | Mental Health Counselling
Lesbian Gay Bi Trans Youth Line

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Service NOW Daily Health Screening App

Thank you everyone for continuing to manage through the Service Now Daily Health Screening app. Although there are small glitches that parents are experiencing, it has made our process much quicker and more efficient.

Parents do need to continue to do the daily health self assessment either through the website or the phone/tablet app to confirm the state of health of your child. When it doesn't clear it usually means either of the following:

parents forgot to do the daily health screening that morning
one of the questions was checked as YES.
parents did the daily health screening but it didn't go through or wasn't complete

Some parents were able to have success with one child but not their sibling. I've created a video to hopefully outline the steps and help you troubleshoot the difficulties you are experiencing.

If you have not already uploaded your QR code please add it to

http://bit.ly/OwenQRCodeUpload

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What is Pi (π) Day?

Today, March 14 (03.14) marks National Pi Day. National Pi Day recognizes the mathematical constant π. Also known as pi, the first three and most recognized digits are 3.14. The day is celebrated by pi enthusiasts and pie lovers alike!

Try these fun Pi (π) Day Activities:

Cutting Pi

Pi Toss

Enjoy Pi Day with an apple pie, pizza pie or any other kind of pie you can think of! Happy Pi Day!

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Indoor Shoes

Please make sure your child has indoor shoes and outdoor/boots for recess. There is so much mud and dirt that is being brought into the school due to our muddy areas. Due to the cohorted zones, students have to keep in the areas assigned to maintain a distance from other cohorts.

Fortunately most of our school has floors and we see the amount of mud. Can you imagine the the hidden mud and dirt in the carpeted areas?

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Cutlery, Snacks & Water Bottles

Just a friendly reminder to have your child bring their water bottle and cutlery to school. We do not have enough cups or cutlery in the office and as a Platinum ECO school for environmental purposes we want to keep our waste to a minimum.

Our students are at the age where they are constantly growing and growth spurts happen when we don't expect it! At times, students require more fuel for the day. Please pack extra healthy snacks for morning and afternoon snacks. Snacks can include: pieces of fruit, carrot sticks, cucumber slices, cheese and crackers, cranraisins, yogurt, or little bag of cereal. Don't forget...all food must be NUT FREE. To also reduce the amount of mask removal in class, as the weather is getting warmer we are having students eat their snacks outside. Finger foods and foods that are more portable are more ideal and easier for your child to eat.

Here are some sites to help you and your child make some healthy snacks together. Just remember that all food brought to school must be NUT FREE.

TIP: Even as young as 4 yrs old, have your child involved in preparing their lunch bags. After school they can toss any garbage, recycling or compost. Then place cutlery and serviette in their lunch bags so it's ready to fill with food in the morning. They can rinse out and refill their water bottles and leave it in the fridge so it's nice and cold the next day. A few ice cubes in the morning can help keep it chilled.

We do have several water bottles available for sale. Please look for the email this week if you would like to purchase one through cash online. Water bottles will be sold for $8.00.

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Dress for Weather

Our Toronto weather has changed from icy fields to muddy fields all within a week. Please watch the weather with your child to determine what type of clothing they will need.

Most physical education classes as well as science walks, recess and any other outdoor education will continue with light rain. Please ensure students have the following:

waterproof boots
water resistant coat or jacket
gloves and hat for the cold days
umbrella if they wish to bring one.

Extra socks, pants and underwear kept at school will help prevent a parent trip to school or having your child sit in wet clothes for the rest of the day.

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Tools to Help Kids Get Organized, Focused, and Out the Door on Time

Here is a list of tools to help set kids up for success if they have trouble staying organized and focused.

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Moving out of Owen? (Including Grade 5 Grads)

If your child will be moving schools, please fill out the form below to help us know where to transfer your child's information. Please fill this out by the end of March so we can estimate the enrolment for next year.

This includes Grade 5 graduates who are moving onto Middle School.

http://bit.ly/MovingOutOfOwen

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Scratch Coding Session

On Saturday, March 20th at 8am, a championship First Lego League team from the United States is hosting a virtual interactive one-hour session teaching basic Scratch coding. Participants will be guided through the process of creating their own game while having fun in a laid back setting. The goals of the session are to give the participants a basic understanding of programming, to enable the participants to design and program a game of their choice in Scratch, and increase their interest in coding. All participants should have a laptop with access to Wi-Fi. Please email nextgenoutreach@gmail.com to register.