William G. Davis Jr. Public School 128 East Avenue Scarborough, Ontario M1C 2E4 416-396-6650

Ms. S. Ponka, Principal

http://schools.tdsb.on.ca/williamgdavis OCTOBER 2014

OCTOBER IS RESPONSIBILITY MONTH

Oct. 14 Acorn Cards Home/Kindergarten Farm Trip Oct. 17 Cross County Area Finals Oct. 21 Flag Football (22nd is rain date) Oct. 23-Oct 30 Spook-o-grams for Sale Oct. 27 Municipal Elections Held in Gym Oct 31 Spook-o-grams delivered to classrooms Nov. 4 Hillside Trip –Room 1 & 4 Nov. 5-Hilside Trip Room 2 Nov. 12 School Council Meeting 6:30 pm Nov. 11 Remembrance Day Assembly Nov. 13/14 Book Fair Nov. 13 Evening Parent Interviews Nov. 14 P.A. Day - Students Do Not Attend School Nov. 14 Morning Parent Interviews Nov. 19-21 Grade 6 to Kearney

Principal’s Message

We have had a wonderful start to the school year. Our Aussie X /Curriculum night was an opportunity for families to participate together and get involved in the learning. As part of the program we have received equipment so that we can continue to practice and enjoy the games we learned with our Aussie X partners. If you are interested in purchasing your own Footy or Netball equipment you can visit [email protected]

Our kindergarten class sizes required us to take part in a reorganization of staff and student students this fall. We were reduced by 1.0 teacher. The change has meant we have gone from 3 kindergarten classrooms to 2 larger groupings of Kindergarten-age students. Thank you for your support and understanding throughout this process. We had a beautiful day for our Terry Fox Run on Friday September 26th. Our school raised a total of $1697.00 for cancer research. Thank you for your generous donations. Special thanks to Angelina-Grade 1, for her professionalism on the day of her prize of “Principal for a Day.” 2 The Safety Patrollers have been busy working outside with our crossing guard Ms. Scantlebury. This group helps our students get to and from school safely every day. We are learning to get better at safety patrolling every shift.

The Safety Patrollers had a wonderful excursion to the Toronto Zoo on Thursday October 9th. We enjoyed spending the day with our Safety Patrol friends, had fun looking at the animals and exploring the exhibits. We would like to thank Ms. Wade and Ms. Tsombanakis for their supervision and the Toronto Police for the organization of this excursion. We look forward to many more opportunities and trips this year.

By: Cara and Tasa This year we are exciting about developing our partnership with the University of Toronto. Our plan is to develop a REMEMBRANCE DAY CHOIR pollination garden as a site for inquiry-based learning. We This year Ms. Wade and Ms. Henry are leading the choir. are in the initial stages of the plan. Choir is an amazing opportunity to be a leader in the Our teams are meeting, planning and developing our School Improvement Plan. Our plan includes Literacy, Math, school and express your vocal abilities. We hope that we Technology, Caring and Safe Schools, Special Education and can have many students come and sing with us and put on Student Transitions. More information regarding our school a wonderful performance. We will sing at the improvement plan will be available at our School Council Remembrance Day assembly to recognize all of the Meetings. soldiers that we lost in the wars. We hope that you will Grade 3 Students involved in writing the EQAO assessment come and hear all of the students singing. in the spring have received their individual results. School results are unpacked and considered in our School By: Caitie and Abby Improvement and Professional Development planning. Please find the four page health and wellness newsletter DAVIS SLO-PITCH TEAM attached to this document from our Caring and Safe Schools The William G. Davis Slo-Pitch team had a wonderful Committee. season this year. Their first game was against West Rouge. S. Ponka Sadly, their first few innings were downhill; they were down by seven runs. By the third inning, we picked up our game. CROSS COUNTRY Bilal and Matthew got great hits and runs along with Ben and Melina doing some great catches. By the end West The members of the Davis cross country team have been Rouge was victorious, winning by five runs. In the next training hard every day for the last month in preparation game, the dragons were looking for revenge. But this time it was a home game. We started off great with Richard hitting for our meets. All of our runners did an amazing job and a great hit and going to first and Kalen continuing his trend have made our school proud. At the Brock Gordon meet, by hitting a single. We continued the game holding our own we brought home 5th place for our Grade 1/2 girls, 4th but again they were victorious. Our third game was much place for our Grade 1/2 boys and a 1st place finish for better. We played against Iroquois. We had an amazing start by getting two runs in the first inning. Xavier was Ryan B. in grade 2. At our East Qualifier on October 9 we doing a great job of stopping the play and Jacob did a great had nearly 100 runners representing our school. William job at catching fouls. We ended the season with two wins B. (grade 1) placed 2nd, Brenae G. place 3rd (grade 1) and four losses. Thank you to our coach, Mr. Telenko and and Ryan B. placed 6th (grade 2). Congratulations to all of all of the fans who supported us. the runners for a great season! Good Luck to those runners By: Matthew and Bilal who have qualified for the Area Finals on October 17! BORDENBALL Thank you coaches: Ms. Hleuka, Ms. Penney, Ms The Borden ball team had a great season this year. Even Tanouye and Ms. Tsombanakis. though we did not come back with a banner, it was still a great experience. We all worked together and everyone SAFETY PATROL UPDATE showed great sportsmanship. Mr. Gibson and Mr. Anthony are very proud of the team and our effort. We lost the first and second game, but even though we knew we were going back to school we could not give up on our last game. We 3 tied our last game and everyone, even the parents and NEW and RETURNING VOLUNTEERS coaches went home with smiles. Congratulations to the team and we hope that we do better and better every year. Thank We have a number of parent and community volunteers you to the drivers and coaches from the whole team: Melina, working in our school and enriching the learning experience Mackenzie, Selah, Alysha, Andrea, Abby, Selena, Simran, for our students. If you are interested in volunteering in our Rebecca, Vaishali, Callista, Anisha and Katie. school, please come to the office and request the appropriate By: Melina and Mackenzie documentation. PARENT CONCERN PROTOCAL

Book Club If a parent has a question or concern related to their child the first point of contact should be the child’s teacher. If the With the leadership of one of our Davis parents, Ms. Lo- concern is a school wide or community-based question or Cadotte, Primary and Junior Book Club has begun. The concern, you can consult principal, Shirley Ponka at 396- 6650. students meet every other Thursday at lunch in the library. The Primary students are starting with the book From the LUNCHROOM Catwings and the junior students are starting with James There are several children at Davis who have and the Giant Peach. The students are enthusiastic and allergies to peanuts and nut products. This includes look forward to their Book Club meeting. tree nuts and legumes such as chick peas. Allergic reactions to these food items may range from a rash to a severe reaction requiring the emergency use of an Epipen and hospitalization. We want our school to TERM 1 PROGRESS REPORT be as safe as possible for all our students. Please do not send any foods that contain or may contain nuts, We will be sending home progress reports on November 10 or chickpeas e.g. Humus. If staff is unsure of the which will give parents an indication of how your child is progressing thus far. This report is intended to be a safety of the food, your child will not be able to open “snapshot” of your child’s learning and a starting point for or consume it. Also, in the interest of safety, food discussion. All parents will be invited to an interview in may not be shared (in classrooms or at lunch/recess). November to gain more information on your child’s In addition, we ask parents to refrain from including progress. substitute peanut butter products in their child’s Parent interviews will be held the evening of Thursday, lunch/snack. November 13 and the morning of Friday, November 14. More information will go home shortly regarding Our lunchroom at Davis is litterless. This initiative is interviews. November 14 is a P.A. Students do not attend called “Boomerang Litterless Lunches”. This school. involves students being encouraged to bring all Many classrooms use the student agendas to facilitate communication between home and school. Some teachers their waste home. Parents/guardians are asked to use communication books or notes in the book bag. Parents send a lunch that includes no wrappers/containers need not wait until parent interview times to express a that are to be thrown away. question or concern. Please send your child’s teacher a note if you have any questions or concerns. We can work together Garbage bins will be removed from the activity room to ensure your child’s success at school. and students will take home extra food or other It is the responsibility of each student to make sure that they materials they have brought to school that would keep up with work while they are away. Please check the normally be thrown away. From the feedback of William G. Davis website at several parents from Davis, as well as those from http://schools.tdsb.on.ca/williamgdavis other schools who have implemented Boomerang Litterless Lunches, this has served not only as a good Fire Dills and LOCKDOWN PRACTICE lesson to students to conserve, but also has helped parents find out what their child is actually eating at In accordance with TDSB policy we have been practicing school! fire drills and lockdown procedures. During Lockdown practice, students are informed by PA message and the teacher gives instruction in age appropriate ways, that we Your cooperation in supporting our efforts to keep are practicing how to be safe if there were a danger in the our school safe, and a caring learning environment school. for all students is greatly appreciated. 4 The Technology Fundraising Committee is planning two WOW BUTTER upcoming fundraising events in addition to our weekly We are grateful to the parents/guardians of William popcorn sales. Proceeds will assist in paying for G Davis PS for the meticulous care and consideration computers for our students. Our current equipment is demonstrated in supporting our efforts to keep our rapidly aging and no longer adequately meets the needs school a safe environment for students with allergies. of our students. We have therefore undertaken these fundraising initiatives to ensure that our students are Recently, there has been discussion around the use of able to access basic technology. peanut substitutes. The substitute peanut butter product is being marketed to consumers as a safe For our first fundraising event, we will be selling “Spook- alternative for children to bring to schools in place of o-grams” from October 23rd to October 30th after school peanut butter. in the front foyer. Spook-o-grams are Halloween cut-outs with a fun message. Each one comes with a glow These products tend to look, taste, and smell very bracelet. For those students who do not celebrate much like peanut butter. While the product is nut Halloween; an autumn cut-out will be available for free, it mimics a known allergen that causes purchase and will also include a glow bracelet. Spook-o- anaphylaxis in some children to the degree that it is grams can be purchased by parents, a child’s friend, indistinguishable from the allergen. The Toronto teachers, family etc. and will be delivered to a student’s District School Board (TDSB) Nutrition Services and classroom on Friday, October 31st. The cost for the Anaphylaxis Canada suggests that the use of such Spook-o-gram is one dollar. If you would like to purchase product may create a false sense of security, Spook-o-grams without lining up after school an order confusion for staff monitoring products and anxiety envelope will be coming home soon. for the children who will see and smell products that look and smell like peanut butter. The second fundraising event will be a Read-a-thon held during the week of February 2-6, 2015. More details will While the TDSB does not have a specific policy be forthcoming. banning the use of such products, we ask that parents refrain from including these kinds of products in your SCHOOL COUNCIL child’s lunches or snacks. Our intent is to enable staff st to continue to work efficiently and diligently to The School Council met on October 1 and elected our new membership. We have 15 voting members and a new ensure our lunchrooms and building is free of executive. Welcome Co-Chairs Carolyn Dunn and Paul allergens. Jackson, Treasurer Julia Bronsteter and Secretary Tanja Williamson-Jones. Thank you to volunteers Kathy Cheong, As you know, the safety and well-being of our Kristy Doucette and Sara Tanouye who helped with the elections process. You do not need to be an elected member students is our first priority which is why our schools to attend our School Council meetings. Any parent/guardian have procedures in place to minimize risk of of a W. G. Davis student is welcome and may attend. anaphylaxis reactions in our students. We appreciate your cooperation in avoiding the use of these Meetings dates are: Wed. Nov. 12, 2014 products to assist in our continued efforts to create a Wed. Jan. 14, 2015 safe, caring and inclusive learning environment for Wed. Feb. 18, 2015 all students. Thurs. April 9, 2015 Tues. June 2, 2015

Technology Fundraising Committee SCHOOL COUNCIL PIZZA 5 FUNDRAISERS Neither the school nor the TDSB is responsible for lost, Oct. 24, Nov.21, Dec.19, Jan. 16, Feb 20, damaged or stolen items brought to school. Parents are March 13, April 17, May 22 and June Play asked to discourage their children from bringing expensive Day items to school. Please label all of your child’s belongings so they can be easily identified and claimed by your child as If you have any questions or would like to volunteer, please often several children may be wearing the same popular contact parent volunteer Lori Bailey. clothing or have the same lunch bag. [email protected] If you have lost any items at school please check our lost and THINK BEFORE YOU CLICK found areas. For small or valuable items please check with the office staff. For larger items, clothing or lunch bags Help your child manage their online reputation. please check the bin outside the activity room doors. Please Take a few minutes to speak to your child note that the lost and found is regularly cleared out with about the importance of thinking about online behaviours so articles given to charity. Lunch bags with food in them are that they keep their personal information, and reputations discarded in short order to prevent an infestation of rodents safe. Let them know about how many kids think that what and bugs. This is only done after several reminders over the they put on the internet is “private” when it is absolutely not public address system. the case.

STUDENT SAFETY MINI WATERPOLO

Thank you for walking your child to school! If you must Shadow Water polo offers water polo for girls and boys age drive your child to school, please remember the student 7-14. drop off is for grade 1-6 only, cars cannot idle and wait for You’ll play water games, develop swimming skills and passengers, there is no parking in the staff parking lot or the participate in water polo competitions. For more driveway and never leave a child unattended in a car. information email [email protected] or go to Safety concerns have also been expressed regarding our www.shadowwaterpolo.org. neighbouring streets used for student drop off. Please do your part to set an example to your children as a good neighbour. Walking your child to school is the safest and TORONTO PUBLIC LIBRARY healthiest option. Our local Port Union Branch has some offerings that may be of interest to you and your family members.

SAFE ARRIVAL PROGRAMME KNITTING AND CROCHETING 416/396-6650 Learn knitting and crocheting on Saturdays from 9:30 to To ensure our Safe Arrival Program works 11:30 at the Port Union Library. Drop in any time between efficiently, we need the support of all of our September 13 and December 13, 2014. Volunteer parents and guardians. Our Safe Arrival Program operates on the principle of quickly determining why a child is instructors will be available to help you. absent. This program goes into play when a parent/guardian has not called to state why their child is not EBOOK AND ZINIO MAGAZINE TRAINING at school. Want to have one-on-one training on how to use EBooks and We would very much appreciate it if you would call the Zinio Magazines through the Toronto Public Library? night before and leave a message after school hours or each Please call Port Union Library 416/396-6405 to register for a morning between 7:15 a.m. and 8:45 a.m. and leave a voice Thursday 2 p.m. or 3 p.m. appointment to meet with a mail to report a student absence or to inform us that your trainer. child will be late. Please state your child’s name, state your child’s teacher’s name when reporting an absence and the MAP PASSES - FREE MUSEUM PASSES reason your child is absent. If the absence is for multiple days you may call on the first day with the date of return to Did you know that The Sun Life Financial Museum and avoid having to call daily. We appreciate the note you may Arts Pass (MAP) lets you and your family explore the best of have given the teacher regarding an extended absence but Toronto’s arts and cultural treasures for free. All you need request that you also call the office as the information does not always filter down to the office as quickly as needed. is a valid adult library card. Please go to the front counter at the Port Union Library to find out what is available.

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