December, 2014
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DECEMBER, 2014 355 Annette Street, Toronto, Ontario M6P 1R3 Lorinda Mazza, Principal Dr. Jim Saraco Barbara Poplawski, Trustee, St. Cecilia Catholic Church Marisa Cicero, Olga Geryluk CSAC Co-Chairs) Victoria Purri, Vice-Principal Superintendent TCDSB, Ward 10 Father Joseph Tran, Pastor, Teresa Pavlin, CSAC Secretary Maria Fauceglia, Secretary 416-222-8282 ext. 2486 416-512-3410, 416 -241-7130 416-769-8163 Sandy Moutinho, CSAC Treasurer Lisa Grise, Carole Mills & Graziella Zampini, Clerk Typists Vice-Principal’s Message St. Cecilia’s C.S.A.C. November was a very busy month at St. Cecilia’s. Dear Parents, We were honoured to have His Eminence Thomas Here is what’s coming up over the next few months: Cardinal Carter join us on the Feast of St. Cecilia and th Overpopulation: Exploring the Challenges and Solutions for St. Cecilia’s preside over a mass dedicated to the100 Anniversary Oversubscription of St. Cecilia C.S. It was truly a wonderful opportuni- Dec 10th, 2014 CSAC Meeting – A large portion of our December parent ty to have the students, staff, alumni and community council meeting will be dedicated to the topic of “Overpopulation”, a discus- of St. Cecilia celebrate together with a shared sense sion that will be led by our Principal, Lori Mazza. If this topic interests you, of pride and communion. please plan on attending. Everyone is welcome. The intermediate volleyball teams played well and the EQAO Student Math Test Results girls’ team won the Divisional championship and rep- January 14th, 2015 CSAC Meeting – The topic of St. Cecilia student EQAO resented our school at the Regional meet. Well done! scores (large scale, standardized testing for grades 3 and 6), specifically related This past month the primary students played intramu- to math, will be addressed at the meeting. If you are interested in better under- ral soccer and we look forward to the boys and girls standing the results, how St. Cecilia ranks and strategies in place to facilitate improvement, please come to the meeting. primary soccer teams competing with other schools. Social Media Safety for Students and Parents We have now entered the season of Advent, which is On February 4th, 2015 CSAC, thanks to a successful PRO Grant application, is a time of expectant waiting and preparation for the sponsoring renowned expert Paul Davis to come and talk about social media celebration of the Nativity of our Lord, Jesus. The safety with St. Cecilia students and parents. During the day Paul will be ad- gradual lighting of the advent candles symbolizes our dressing the topic with students and in the evening there will be a session for hope and expectation of Our Saviour’s coming into parents. This is a very important issue - Paul will share a wealth of empower- ing information and valuable tips. Here is Paul’s website: http:// the world. The evergreen wreath represents the circle socialnetworkingsafety.net/sample-page/. Please plan to attend. of everlasting life. Advent is a season of prayer and awakens memories of goodness and opens the doors of hope. We wish to extend to all of you best wishes Wishing everyone a joyous and safe holiday season. of hope, joy, peace and love for the Christmas season Merry Christmas! and beyond. God Bless! Marisa Cicero & Olga Geryluk CSAC Co-chairs Office Hours: SCHOOL HOURS 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Go to www.saintcecilia100.ca (416) 393-5218 to comment and contribute to our school’s School Website: 100th Anniversary. http://stcecilia.tcdsb.org St. Cecilia Motto: Learning with Hearts, Hands and Minds - Growing in Harmony Page 2 Virtue of the Month: Charity C’est en revêtant le Christ que l’on peut le plus apporter de charité aux autres. Mère Teresa As we enter the season of Advent to prepare our hearts for the birth of Jesus, it is rather suitable that this month’s virtue is CHARITY. Many of us are already engaging in the mad rush to purchase gifts to put under the tree on the 25th, but let us be mindful of the fact that charity is not always about giving material things. Our quote for the month is “Where charity and love are, God is there”. As St. Thomas Aquinas described it “Charity is friendship first with God and secondly with all who belong to God." (2a2ae, 25,4). How can we practice charity and generosity in our community without necessarily giving materi- al things? This month at name of school we will be demonstrating charity by preparing Christmas baskets for families in need. Christmas Angel Programme As part of our commitment to nurturing our community through faith, hope and charity, and in conjunction with the St. Vincent de Paul Society, our school will help families in need celebrate Christmas this year. Families will be invited to donate items of new clothing, toys, food, and toiletries to our Christmas Angel Programme. Each class will be assigned one family to help. The deadline for sending in the items is Thursday, December 18th. St. Jude Prayer for Advent Lord Jesus, your power is infinite, your glory, everlasting. Quietly you come, as a tiny baby. Ready my heart for the miracle of your birth. Bring light to this dark world, waiting silently for your warmth in the coldness of the night. Waiting is itself your gift, animating my heart with anticipation. Bless me with needed patience and faithful disci- pline to prayerfully prepare to welcome and greet you. St. Jude, eternal hope, let your holiness flow into me. May Christmas joy and burning love take root in me and grow until they bloom on Christmas Day, to carry joy to the world and inspire hope to renew the face of the earth. Amen. Page 3 The St. Cecilia Catholic School’s Centenary Mass was a wonderful celebration. His Eminence, Thomas Cardinal Collins presided and blessed the 100th anniversary plaque that is to be placed at the entrance of the school. His inspirational message was full of hope and praise for students, families, teachers and Catholic Education. Many thanks to all the people who worked endlessly to make this event possible. A special thank you to Mr. Tuzi and the Centenary Committee for their tremendous efforts and dedication. Page 4 Bullying Awareness & Prevention November 17-21 was Bullying Awareness Week. The students engaged in whole school and classroom activities that were designated to raise awareness about bullying and the importance of nurturing a safe, positive, inclusive and accept- ing school climate. Members of the Safe School Team were invited to attend the annual ‘Bullying Awareness and Pre- vention Symposium’ where they participated enthusiastically in interactive presentations that promoted positive school climate and provided strategies for team-building. On November 21st Glee Club and Perseverance presented at our school’s anti-bullying assembly. Perseverance students worked together to dramatize scenarios of bullying incidents that happen in schools and came up with resolutions to the problem. Glee Club enthusiastically sang and danced to two inspirational songs, “Count on Me,” by Bruno Mars and “Put your hearts up,” by Ariana Grande, that both focused on how individuals can push themselves to be supportive and positive towards the people around them. Club members read stories and a poem to engage our school students to be more conscious of their interactions with each other. The Glee Club and Perseverance Club hope that this presentation will inspire students to be upstanders, not bullies, in every aspect of their lives. (Mrs. Kowalenko & Ms. Wallace) TCDSB 2014—2015 SCHOOL YEAR CALENDAR School Masses and Sacraments First Day of Classes September 2, 2014 Thanksgiving Day October 13, 2014 December 10 Advent Reconciliation Christmas Break Dec 22, 2014–Jan 2, 2015 December 11 @10:00am Advent Family Day February 16, 2015 January 16 @10:00am Courage Mid-Winter Break March 16–20, 2015 Good Friday April 3, 2015 February 18 @12:45pm Ash Wednesday Easter Monday April 6, 2015 March 10 @ 10:00 Lent Victoria Day May 18, 2015 March 25 Lenten Reconciliation Last day of classes June 25, 2015 April 9 @ 12:45pm Easter Mass PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITY DAYS Saturday, April 11 Confirmation Nov 14, 2014 Parent-Teacher Conferences April 24 @ 6:00pm Sacrament of Reconciliation Dec 5, 2014 Faith Day Jan 23, 2015 Assessment, Evaluation and Reporting Saturday, April 25 First Holy Communion Feb 13, 2015 Parent-Teacher Conferences May 22 @ 10:00am Caregivers June 5, 2015 Assessment, Evaluation and Reporting June 16 @ 6:30pm Graduation June 26, 2015 Provincial Education Priorities June 25 @ 10:00am End of Year Mass Intermediate Volleyball The Intermediate Girls Volleyball team did an amazing job at Divisionals, with a close 2 point win in the finals. They moved on to Regionals and we won a good two sets and had a third place overall standing in our region. We would like to thank Mr. Bor- dignon and Mr. Thirwall for being outstanding coaches and helping us to succeed! Congratulations to the team members: Magda K, Olivia R, Ana G, Sophie H, Caroline P, Pamela D, Hayley M, Brianna M, Melissa L, Alessia B, Olivia O, Tiana M, Em- meline B, Angel S, Betty S, and Candus C. You all played very well and did your best. Go Tigers!!! (by: Olivia and Ana) The Intermediate Boys Volleyball team competed at the Divisionals and displayed great sportsmanship and skill. Congratulations to the team members: Nikola , Yosef , Lucas, Connor, Liam, Jonah, Max, Carlos, Quintan, Sam, Phillip, and Dylan. Thank you to Mr. Thirwall and Mr. MacLeod for your all of your dedication to coaching this great group of boys! St. Cecilia Choir Sings at the Legislative Assembly! On Tuesday November 25th, the St.