FROM THE DESK OF THE PRINCIPAL
November is upon us which means the cold weather has arrived. Please ensure that your child(ren) are dressed for the weather as our students are outside for a total of 1 hour and 30 minutes with recesses (this total could increase if the classroom teacher takes the class outside for learning opportunities).
The creative playground and swing area will be closed to everyone from November 1 until the end of March. Also, please remember that Maryborough Public School will be open to students on bus cancellation days. This means that buses will not run; however, you will be able to bring your students to school. The school will run on a normal school day schedule. Students who are brought to school will need to be picked up by 3:30 pm. Please note that if the board closes all schools, then our school will also be closed.
Throughout the month, I will be using the phone out system to keep families up to date about activities, deadlines, and events at the school. If you are not receiving these calls or have changed your phone number please let us know at the office.
I have parents in our school looking for before and after school care, along with full day or possible nanny opportunities for child care. If you are aware of anyone who could help out our families please have them call me at the school so that I can pass on the information.
Thank you to our SCA for the work they have done fundraising this fall. We appreciate all the work that these volunteers put into the organization and carry out of the fundraiser. Also, thank you to the parents who purchased boxed meats, pizza, and pork chop dinners. Without your support the fundraiser could not be successful.
On November 17 Progress Reports will be going home to students in grades 1-6. Please take the time to read over this document with your child. The Progress Report will give you a good idea how your child is progressing at this time in the year, with some next steps if needed. Parent/Teacher interviews will be on November 24 and 25. Please keep an eye out for the sign up information.
Thank you for your continued support. If you have any questions, please contact me at the school.
Tracey Kuchma
Fundraising
Along with the fundraising being done by our SCA, please be reminded that the board also has the Upper Grand Learning Foundation as a fundraising option. The Upper Grand Learning Foundation is a non-profit organization which supports the Upper Grand District schools. Donations can be made to the Upper Grand Learning Foundation and receipts are given for donations of $20 or more. Please contact the school for forms and more information.
Food Drive for ChristmasWe will again be collecting non-perishable food items, baby items (not toys),
hats and mitts for the Food Bank to assist families in need especially
beforeChristmas. Donations can be brought into the school from Thursday,
December 1st, to Friday, December 16th. The items will be taken
to the food bank in the morning so it can be sorted.
Thank you for caring!
SCA News
The SCA is a group of parents that meets several times a year to represent the families of Maryborough Public School. We are updated about the school and the board policies by Mrs. Kuchma at these meetings, and it gives us a chance to ask questions and provide feedback about what is happening at the school. The SCA also coordinates all the fundraising and the members of the SCA designate where these raised funds will go. The SCA assists with the cost of buses for class trips and sporting events and has been working at completing another class set of chromebooks and a cart to keep them safe and easily transportable.
In the past, this group has fundraised for the playground and the walking the track. The SCA organizes and funds the Christmas dinner, Christmas craft day, and the February electives. Hot lunches and volunteers are also organized by a member of the SCA.
The bulk of our fundraising happens in the fall each year. We had a very successful meat fundraiser, and we have the upcoming pork chop dinner, as well as the MacMillan's and wreath fundraiser. In the spring, the SCA traditionally does a spring meat order and we host a chicken dinner as well. The SCA is exploring different options for a year end celebration and is considering hosting our own outdoor movie night. If anyone has a speaker system that might work for this, please contact the school.
Our formal meetings are held about every other month at the school and involve any parents that would like to attend, Mrs. Kuchma, and another representative from the school (Mrs. McIntosh joins us and is amazing atscheduling!). If there are events coming up, we will host informal meetings to complete planning (for example, planning for the pork chop dinner). All meetings are open to any parent who would like to attend and we are always open to volunteers and suggestions. The meetings often involve a lot of laughter, and are a great way to get to know some of the other families in the school.
Please join us! The biggest challenge we face as an SCA is getting parents out to the meetings - there is always a worry that it involves a high level of commitment, and it really doesn't have to. We love new faces, and we welcome all input.
Our next meeting is November 15 @ 7 PM in the Learning Commons. The meeting agenda includes planning for the Christmas lunch and Christmas crafts. We will also be finishing up any details about the fall and winter fundraising and will have updates on how much money has been raised to date. We also have so much fun, please join in :)
November 2016
Sunday / Monday / Tuesday / Wednesday / Thursday / Friday / Saturday30 / 31 Day 2
Happy Halloween
Orange and Black day! / 1 Day3
November / 2 Day 4
Sausage on a
Bun lunch / 3 Day 5 / 4 Day 1
Pizza Day
Wreath and McMillan orders due ! / 5
Clocks falls
back an
Hour!
6 / 7 Day 2
Gr. 6
Wanakita
Meeting
5:30 pm / 8 Day 3 / 9 Day 4
Chicken Nugget
Lunch
Picture Retake
day / 10 Day 5
Crazy Hair
Day / 11 Day 1
Pizza Day
Remembrance Day Assembly / 12
13 / 14 Day 2 / 15 Day 3
SCA meeting
7:00 PM / 16 Day 4
Pita Pit Lunch / 17 Day 5
Progress
Reports go
home to
Grades 1 to 6 / 18 Day 1
Pizza Day / 19
20 / 21 Day2 / 22 Day 3 / 23 Day 4
Taco
Salad Lunch / 24 Day 5
Parent
Interviews start
after school
Wreath and McMillians fundraising
Pickup. / 25
P.A Day
No school
Parent Interviews Day / 26
27 / 28 Day 1 / 29 Day 2 / 30 Day 3
Hot Dog
Lunch
Wear a Sports Jersey Day! / 1 Day 4
December / 2 Day 5
Pizza Day / 3
Monthly Environmental Activities to help celebrate our planet
November 25th is BUY NOTHING Day!
It is vital to teach our children to respect and take care of the environment.
Celebrate Buy Nothing Day on November 25th!
Buy Nothing Day is an awareness day highlighting society’s habit of buying too many things.
Founded by Vancouver artist Ted Dave, “The first Buy Nothing Day was organized in Canada in September 1992 as a day for society to examine the issue of over-consumption. In 1997, it was moved to ‘Black Friday’, which is one of the busiest shopping days in the United States.”
Repair, reduce, re-use, recycle – 4 R’s are best!
“It's time for a new kind of materialism, based on an economy of better, not more... that makes things which last and can be repaired many times before being recycled, allowing us to share better the surplus of stuff we already have, from furniture to tools, cars, fridges, clothes and food. ‘Repair, reduce, re-use, recycle’, could be the basis of a new economic model.”
Some great ideas for your family on Buy Nothing Day!
- Instead of shopping, enjoy a day in the great outdoors by walking trails or going to the park.
- Recycle school supplies such as binders, workbooks, pens and pencils instead of buying new.
- Donate clothes, books, toys and games your family does not need any more.
- Think of things you can make or do for people as gifts without spending any money.
“Either way, there’s no doubt that going without buying anything for an entire day is quite a challenge in the modern world, and will serve to make you think about what your life is really about.”
Special Class Placement in UGDSB
Students who require special education programs and services receive support through the classroom teacher and the special education resource teacher at their home schools. However, in some circumstances, students can be referred to a special education class placement where focused instruction in the area of need is provided. These classes have smaller numbers and can provide targeted instruction to meet student needs. In elementary there are four specialized class placements for the following exceptionalities: Learning Disability, Mild Intellectual Disability/Language-based Learning Disability, Developmental Disability (Intellectual Disability), and Intellectually Gifted. Students need to have a diagnosis of an exceptionality before they can be eligible for class placement, and parents and the school team should feel like the placement would best meet the student’s learning needs. Contact your school team if you would like to have more information on special class placement options.
Helping your child with difficult situations
Life is full of things that are hard to deal with. Sometimes children need help in dealing with these events. “Resiliency” is what helps adults and children to “bounce back” from the difficult events in life. The best way to help your child be more resilient is to model the skills for them. Here are some ideas that you can try:
- Starting at birth, respond to baby’s smiles and cooing by smiling and cooing back often.
- Comfort your child when he or she is upset. Hugs and a quiet voice can go a long way in calming a child.
- Teach your child to take deep breaths to calm down when they are upset and then talk when they are relaxed.
- Help your child to see another way of looking at things: “I know that you want to play with that toy. Tom waited for the toy and now it is his turn. He would be sad if you took it away.”
- Instead of making your child say “sorry”, talk about his or her feelings and the feelings of the other person involved in the event.
- At night when you put your child to bed ask them to think of one positive thing that happened to them that day. You could share something too.
- Point out your child’s strengths: “Hey you rode that bike by yourself!”
- Encourage your child to keep trying even if something is hard.
- Read positive, happy stories together.
- Give your child lots of time to play. Help them play with other children in a positive way.
If you would like more ideas and information on raising a resilient child go to
Board Wide Fundraising Initiative for Syrian Newcomers in our Community
We have been pleased to welcome almost 75 Syrian newcomer students into our Upper Grand schools since last January. We are hoping that you will consider helping us in a board wide fund raising initiative to raise funds to help Syrian newcomers settle into our schools and community. We have partnered with Orca Book Publishers to raise funds by selling their newly published book entitled, “Stepping Stones: A Refugee Family’s Journey” by Margriet Ruurs through our school and board websites. For every book that is sold through our board or school websites, Orca will donate $10 to our local settlement agencies to support Syrian refugees.
This unique picture book was inspired by the stone artwork of Syrian artist Mizar Ali Badr, who was discovered by chance by Canadian children’s author Margriet Ruurs. She was immediately captivated by the strong narrative quality of Mr. Badr’s art, and, using many of Mr. Badr’s already-created pieces, she set out to tell a story about the Syrian refugee crisis. Stepping Stones tells the story of Rama and her family, who are forced to flee their once peaceful village to escape the ravages of the civil war raging in their homeland. With only what they can carry on their backs, Rama and her family set out to walk to freedom. Mr. Badr’s stunning stone images illustrate the story. This book is a dual-language (English and Arabic) edition.
To order this book, please visit your school’s website or the board website and click on the buy button to place your order. Payment is made directly to Orca and the books are shipped directly to your address from their warehouse. Payment for the order will go through at the time of purchase and it will include shipping. Orca will keep track of how many books are sold in our board and will send us $10 for every book sold, which will then be donated to a local resettlement agency.
For more information contact Bonnie Talbot at or 519-824-4420.