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St. John XXIII Newsletter May 2015

Spring Time Dress

We are all thrilled the cold weather has finally taken a turn and we are now into the spring months. Although students are starting to change their outerwear for the warmer days, please be mindful of the weather reports as many of the days are still chilly. Students should be appropriately garbed for cold mornings and warmer afternoons. Layers are a good idea at this time of year. Please also remember that wet shoes are a hazard in the classroom. Therefore if it is a rainy day, please send your child with an extra pair of indoor shoes. This will help to prevent slips and falls as well as help our diligent custodial staff to maintain a clean and safe environment for everyone. Your co-operation is greatly appreciated.

ST. JOHN XXIII BUGLE PRINCIPAL’S MESSAGE

Dear Parent(s)/Guardian(s),

As we enter the month of May we are reminded of how fortunate we are to have Catholic education. The first week of May is set aside as an opportunity for us to celebrate everything that makes our schools distinct and special. We applaud the hard work of all the educators and support staff, the partnership with our church, the support of you, the parents and the accomplishments of our students.

This month will be filled with many different activities and events. We invite you to celebrate the important home and school connection by attending our Family Math Night on May 6th. We also welcome the newest additions to the St. John XXIII family during our Welcome to kindergarten night on May 13th.

May is also Asian Heritage Month. Asian Canadian Heritage Month provides us with the opportunity to recognize Asian communities throughout Canada and their contributions in the areas of arts, music, education, science, business, health and other facets that enhance the success of our country.

May’s Virtue of the month is Compassion. “Jesus saw her weeping…his heart was touched, and he was deeply moved.” John 11:33 May God Bless! Pershia Nelson Fernanda Pires Principal Vice Principal

PRINCIPALS’ MESSAGE

What do you think of when February rolls around? Most of the world think of chocolates, flowers, and valentines which all have come to symbolize love. What would the month of February be without the celebration of Valentine’s Day? As a TCDSB school we will also be focusing on the virtue of love as expressed in the gospels. The golden rule “Love your neighbor as yourself” is a key tenet of our faith and the message we give all our students. If we all take this message to heart it will make our school and community a better place. We will be engaged in many activities this month which focus on this lesson. February is also African Heritage month. The students at St. John XXIII will be engaged in many events and activities which recognize and celebrate the contributions of those who come from the African Diaspora. We appreciated the ongoing support of the St. John XXIII community as we work in partnership to foster a love of learning in our students. May God Bless! Pershia Nelson Fernanda Pires Principal Vice Principal

“Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who

loves has been born of God and knows God.” 1 John 4:7

St. John XXIII

175 Grenoble Drive, Toronto, ON M3C 3E7

416-393-5348 Fax - 416-393-5164

Principal: Ms. P.Nelson

Vice Principal: Ms. F. Pires

Secretary: Ms. L. Freimanis

Superintendent: Mr. J. Shanahan

Trustee: Ms. A. Kennedy

Parish: Saint John XXIII

150 Gateway Blvd, Toronto, ON

M3C 3E2 (416) 429-4000

Parent Council: Mr. P. Lameira – Chair Ms. A. Cann – Co-chair

Ms. A – Palagaras – Treasurer

Ms. R. Malabago - Secretary

Enrolment: 415

Hours of Operation:

8:30 am – 4:00 pm Lunch Hour:

11:45 am – 12:45 pm Dismissal

3:30 pm

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St. John XXIII Newsletter May 2015

Quantum Kidz

Learn ● Play ● Empower

St. John XXIII Catholic School

is inviting all builders from ages 5 to 105

to attend a Fun Evening …

Family LEGO® Math Night

Come build with us at the school this coming

Wednesday, May 6th from 6:00 to 7:30!!!

Please RSVP to school office for attendance prior to May 1st

Family Name_________________________, # of students______, #

of adults______

DISCOVER THE MYSTERIES OF ANCIENT EGYPT AND MATH AS WE

PRESENT…

Nefertitis’ Notions

We are looking forward to exploring with you the math in the past with the

present!

www.quantumkidz1.com

Math Moment

GEOMETRY AND SPATIAL SENSE

• When talking with your child, identify things by their shape and size: “Please pass

me the rectangular placemat, the largest box out of the cupboard, the square-

shaped cracker and the circular plate.”

• Ask your child to look for two-dimensional shapes, such as circles, squares,

triangles and rectangles, on objects at home or outside. For example, help your child

find various shaped street signs and name the shapes that are on them.

• 3-D Hunt. Help your child look for three-dimensional objects: cubes, cones,

spheres (such as a ball), prisms (such as a box), pyramids and cylinders. Talk about how a pop can or a paper towel roll is like a cylinder.

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St. John XXIII Newsletter May 2015

Collection of Funds

At times the collection of funds are necessary for events such as pizza days or class trips. Parents are asked to send the required forms (with the teacher and student name) and money to the classroom teacher and not to the school office. Classroom teachers are not able to make change so please ensure that correct change accompanies the forms.

May 3-9th is

Children’s Mental Health

Awareness week

Nurse Cynthia During the months of January to April we have

been really fortunate to have Cynthia, a nursing student, visit many of our classes to give

presentations on health and wellness. This month she focused on Mental Health. Mental

health is becoming a much more important issue in elementary schools than it used to be. Children of all ages can experience and/or be

living with a wide range of mental health issues. Different classes in the school learned about

some of these issues, the signs and symptoms, and how to get help, as well as how to show

empathy or help others they know are experiencing mental health problems. Below are

some of the projects completed.

Depression

Have you ever woken up from a

bad sleep? Feeling so upset like

the world has given up on you? So

sad that you want to give up on

yourself? This feeling is called

depression. You feel like you want

to lock yourself up in a room

because you feel like you are

going to hurt someone. You are so

upset that every day is the same

routine. Waking up so unhappy

every single day, sitting down

staring at the wall because of a

bad memory like seeing a loved

one pass away. Afraid to step out

of your house because you think

people will hurt you, make fun of

you, or even bully you. When they

do that you are just going to want

to hurt them or do what they did to

you back but harder. Tears will

come out of your eyes like souls

coming out of your body. Thinking

if you hurt yourself, the pain will just

go away. So down, that you’re not

even going to take care of yourself.

This would be how depression

would feel like.

By Roxanne, grade 6

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St. John XXIII Newsletter May 2015

Health Talk with Cynithia Yu

A student nurse from Ryerson

University, Cynthia Yu came to

our school to teach us about

health. She talked about how

our bodies change as we

grow, mental health and body

image. She used PowerPoint

and different activities to

engage us. We also did an

assignment where we had to

make bookmarks about mental

health. If you wanted to ask her

a question, there was a

question box to put in your

questions. Cynthia gave really

cool pencils to us to keep. She

also brought in a guest to also

teach us about body image

and play some games with us

about it. Cynthia has really

done a lot for us. We wouldn’t

have known that much about

health if it wasn’t for her. Three

cheers for Cynthia!! We will

really miss her and hope that

she will achieve her dream of

becoming a nurse.

By Luwam

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St. John XXIII Newsletter May 2015

Bookmark

By Anastasia grade 7

Our Trip to the Science Centre Our grade one class went to the Ontario

Science centre on Monday, April 13. First, we played in the Kid Spark area. Then, we went to the classroom and learned about energy. My favourite activity was Blast Pad. I really liked

everything what I learned about it. I also learned about many types of energy:

muscular, gravitational, chemical (food), solar, heat, sound, light, and electricity. I

enjoyed our trip with my friends: Joannah, Rendell, and Niesha.'

By Joshua

Space Systems at the Science Centre On April 12, we went on an exciting, “out of the world” trip to the science center. We had a delightful time exploring space in

a realistic way, by just sitting down and observing our solar system. We learned

many facts that most of us never knew, like the number of moons Jupiter has: fifty one

moons. As we discovered our vast universe, we were able to observe and

explore the realistic stars, constellation, and planets up close. At the end, we had a blast as we headed back to school filled with fun space facts and a memorable breathtaking

experience. By Janielle Gr. 6

Writing about Earth Day

By Ms. Oleaz’s SK/1 Class

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St. John XXIII Newsletter May 2015

May is Speech, Language and

Hearing Awareness Month

Did you know that speech and language delays

are the most frequently reported problem in

children?

Early speech and language development has a

major impact on future academic success. For

example, research shows that a child’s

vocabulary when starting school is a prime

predictor of school success or failure. We also

know that early language skills are directly

related to later reading skills, and that children

with poor language development have difficulty

using language to learn math and science.

If you have a concern about your child’s

speech or language, your school Speech-

Language Pathologist (SLP) can help! Speak to

your child’s teacher or school principal to find

out more, or contact the Speech and

Language Department at 416-222-8282,

extension 2261.

Monthly Update from the Board May

2015

TCDSB Launches New Three-Year Pastoral Plan: Together with

One Voice—Harmonizing Our Faith Through Family, Parish and

School The celebration took place on April 22nd. Check out the

photos as well as the video of the event, including the presentation

by Cardinal Thomas Collins on the board’s website:

https://www.tcdsb.org/board/nurturingourcatholiccommunity/n

ews/2014-2015/pages/launch-of-new-pastoral-plan-2015-

2018.aspx

TCDSB Considering First Ever

Multi-Language Catholic Elementary School

The Toronto Catholic District School Board is exploring the

feasibility of opening its first ever multi-language Catholic

elementary school.

Based on a European-style international school model, the

new French Immersion School would provide opportunities for daily

instruction in two to three additional languages throughout the

student’s school week. In addition to French, the proposed languages

would be German, Spanish and Mandarin. Other languages will be

considered if there is sufficient interest from families.

In what is believed to be a first for any publicly funded

school board in Ontario, the new school will offer a strong academic

focus, and may also include an elementary International

Baccalaureate program option. The school would be located at 100

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St. John XXIII Newsletter May 2015

Fundy Bay Boulevard (former site of St. Maximilian Kolbe Catholic

School) in north Scarborough. Although school bus transportation

could not be provided to students from outside the area, the school

would be open to families living anywhere in the City of Toronto.

The Board is currently surveying parents to determine the

level of interest in such a specialty international school. Feedback is

being requested from those parents whose children are eligible to

enroll in a Catholic Full-Day Kindergarten in September 2015 or

September 2016, with registration limited to the first 75 students.

The online survey will be available at

www.tcdsb.org/LanguageSchoolSurvey

until May 15, 2015.

Catholic Education Week May 3-8, 2015

https://www.tcdsb.org/Board/NurturingOurCatholicCommunity

/CatholicEducationWeek/Pages/default.aspx

Woodbine Centre Festival of the Arts May 4-8

Parent Mass and Celebration with Cardinal Thomas

Collins, May 7th 7:00 p.m. at St. Conrad

Student Mass for Catholic Education Week, May 7th 10:00

a.m. at the Catholic Education Centre

Children’s Mental Health Awareness Week May 3-9, 2015

https://www.tcdsb.org/ProgramsServices/SpecialEducation/mhs/

News/mhw/Pages/Childrens-Mental-Health-Awareness-

Week.aspx

Engaging Spanish Speaking Parents

Conference and Celebration—May 2nd

At St. Jane Frances Catholic School

https://www.tcdsb.org/schools/stjanefrances/News/2014-

2015/Pages/Engaging-Spanish-Speaking-Parents-2015-

Celebration.aspx

Safe Kids Week – Spring Walk and Roll to School Day

May 4th to 10th, 2015 has been declared by the United

Nations as Global Road Safety Week with a focus on children as

vulnerable road users. Parachute Canada has an annual public

awareness campaign called Safe Kids Week, also taking place May

4th to 10th, with a cycling and road safety theme in communities

across Canada.

Spring Walk and Roll to School Day: On May 6th, families

will be encouraged to leave the car at home to promote an active,

healthy, environmentally-friendly, and safe trip to school. Schools

are encouraged to celebrate the day with stickers, raffle prizes (e.g.

bike lights, umbrellas, pedometers), a fun lap around the school

(especially if there are many bus students), wearing the colour green,

and potentially hosting a special assembly.

https://www.tcdsb.org/pages/safe-kids-week-spring-walk-and-

roll-to-school-day.aspx

Bike to School Week 2015

From May 25 to 29, let's get rolling! This year, students and teachers

across the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area celebrate the first-

ever joint Bike to School Week. Register your school’s activities to

support your EcoSchools and Healthy Schools programming, and to

win prizes and incentives!

Incentives are available for events taking place between Monday

May 11 and Saturday June 13, 2015.

http://www.bikemonth.ca/biketoschool

Respect for Life Week May 10-15, 2015

https://www.tcdsb.org/Board/NurturingOurCatholicCommunity

/Pages/Respect-for-Life-Week.aspx

May is Asian Heritage Month

https://www.tcdsb.org/FORCOMMUNITY/HeritageCelebration

/AsianCanadianHeritage/Pages/default.aspx

May is also Speech, Language and Hearing Month

https://www.tcdsb.org/ProgramsServices/SpecialEducation/Spee

ch/Speech,%20Language%20and%20Hearing%20Awareness%

20Month/Pages/default.aspx

Italian Canadian Contemporary Film Festival Junior

May 15-23, 2015

https://www.tcdsb.org/forstudents/opportunitiesforstudents/pag

es/italian-contemporary-film-festival-junior.aspx

Catholic School Advisory Council Appreciation Night

Presentations, celebration and Mass

May 20th at 5:30 p.m.

Catholic Education Centre, 80 Shepppard Avenue East

May 14 is World Catholic Education Day

http://www.ccsta.ca/en/events-en/wced

The Ontario Association of Parents in Catholic Education

76th Annual Conference, AGM & Gala Dinner

A full day conference for parents and our partners in publicly funded

Catholic Education in Ontario-- "Poor No More" Co-hosted by the

Renfrew County Catholic District School Board

May 29, 30, 2015

Details and registration information:

http://events.r20.constantcontact.com/register/event?oeidk=a07e

aj66alxc0914526&llr=57qgf7bab

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