Precious Blood Catholic School

P.B.S. Express!November-December 2016

Virtue for December - Charity

"It is more blessed to give than to receive.” (Acts 20:35)

Volume 7 Issue 2

Dear Parent(s)/Guardian(s),

We were delighted to see so many families participating in Parent/Teacher Interviews and our Student Led Learning Walk on Patterning and Algebra. Thank you for engaging in our community knowledge-building efforts and in taking the time to meet with your child’s teacher to discuss your child’s progress and develop a plan to support their learning. We know that Parent Engagement is a key factor in a child’s success at school!

December is the month where we celebrate the virtue of Charity and thank you for all your charitable support particularly in the Food Drive for 2016. As we continue our walk towards Christmas, we pray for world peace, love, forgiveness, good health and joy for all school communities and our families.

Christmas Prayer:Lord our God, we praise you for your Son, Jesus Christ.He is Emmanuel, the hope of the peoples, He is the wisdom that teaches and guides us, He is the Saviour of every nation.Lord God, let your blessing come upon us as we light the candles of this wreath. May the wreath and its light be a sign of Christ’s promise to bring us salvation. May he come quickly and not delay.We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.

We would like to wish all members of our community a safe, festive, and holy Christmas break. May God Bless you and your family with love, success and happiness as we prepare for Christmas. On behalf of all staff at Precious Blood Catholic School, we take this opportunity to wish all families a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

Peace and God Bless! M. Rossi Principal C.O. Gomes Vice-Principal

The following is a letter from the TCDSB addressed to the catholic school communities of Toronto regarding Project Parish.

Hello everyone: We are pleased to inform you that the Toronto Catholic District School Board is declaring Friday, May 5, 2017 as Parish Family Day. His Eminence Cardinal Thomas Collins will be in attendance at the first board meeting in January (Thursday, January 12th) for a spe-cial presentation of the Proclamation. The meeting is open to the public, and will be broadcast live via the board’s website at https://www.tcdsb.org/LiveAtTCDSB/Pages/De-fault.aspx.

A special Parish Family Day Celebration will be held at the Catholic Education Centre on Friday, May 5th, 2017 to showcase student work focusing on the many ways that our parishes and our parish priests contribute to our schools and communities.Students are invited to create a short video, or piece of original artwork, write a short story, poem or letter, or express themselves in any way artistically to highlight the relationship that the students have with the local parish and/or the priest/pastor at their church. Completed projects should be submitted via email to parish.project@tcdsb.org.Deadline for submissions Friday, April 7, 2017.

Please visit the website for criteria and other details. https://www.tcdsb.org/Board/NurturingOurCatholicCommunity/YearofthePar-ish/Pages/Parish-Family-Day-Celebration.aspx You are invited to view and share this short video clip in anticipa-tion of our board-wide Parish Family Day Celebration. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h-9COag552o

At the local level, all schools are asked to set aside the final day of Catholic Education Week as Parish Family Day. Remember to keep us informed about your local plans.This could be limited to a single school and a single parish, or could be a collaboration among the many schools within a parish family. The event could happen on Friday May 5th or on the weekend (May 6th-7th). Keep us informed about your plans so that we can share them via Twitter and through the Board’s website.

“Promote Your Parish” and let’s celebrate the many ways that our parishes and our parish priests contribute to our schools and com-munities.

Archdiocese of Toronto Cel-ebrates 175th Anniversary

December 17 kicks off year to cel-ebrate historic milestone TORONTO (December 15, 2016) De-cember 17 marks the 175th anniver-sary of the Archdiocese of Toronto, kicking off a year-long celebration of this historic milestone. Today the Archdiocese of Toronto is Canada's largest diocese, one of the most diverse faith communities in the world.

Originally part of the Diocese of Kingston, on December 17, 1841, Pope Gregory XVI formally created the Diocese of Toronto and named Michael Power its first bishop. Prior to his appointment, Bishop Power had served the church in Quebec.The Archdiocese of Toronto is planning numerous historical and spiritual activities to commemo-rate the 175th anniversary, includ-ing a large-scale celebration at St. Michael's Cathedral Basilica on May 30, 2017. In acknowledging this sig-nificant anniversary, the Archbishop of Toronto, Cardinal Thomas Collins, remarked:

"It is a tremendous blessing to com-memorate the 175th anniversary of the Archdiocese of Toronto. It is always a joy to express my gratitude to those, past and present, who have made incredible contributions to our city, province and country, inspired by their faith. Over the next year, we will honour the past, energize our present faith community and look forward to an exciting future."

Precious Blood Parish Mass Schedule

Remembrance Day

This Remembrance Day, Precious Blood was privileged to have a very special guest who visited our school. Sergeant Mitchell Lee

spoke to the students over the public address system about what Remembrance Day meant to him. Three of the Grade Eight students were appointed to walk around the school and introduced him to all the students. The students were incredibly enthusiastic when they saw him and Sergeant Lee as well responded happily. At the eleventh hour, on the eleventh minute, we had a special cer-emony on the PA. The whole school stood silently for two minutes to commemorate the soldiers who fought for our country. A few of the Grade Eight students led the commemoration with a meaning-ful prayer, “The Last Post” and the lyrics of the song, “A Pittance of Time.”At the end, we listened to the inspirational speech delivered by our guest, Sergeant MitchellLee. All students and staff greatly appreci-ated Sergeant Lee for taking the time out of his day to spend time at Precious Blood. It was a speech that will be remembered by many.By Jenefar D. (Grade 8)

Famous People Players

On December 15, grades three, four, five and six went on a trip

to watch “Famous People Players.”

Famous People Players is a black light performance performed by people with disabilities.

The performance was Christmas themed,so you would expect snow, Christmas trees and of course Santa! It was also very creative of how they assembled these props and puppets to put on the show. The per-formers completely disappeared into the darkness, bringing the beautiful or silly prop characters to life.

They also selected the teachers and students to perform with the performers.

There were comical scenes, such as a silly puppet preforming “Santa Baby.” The performers left us with a powerful message about people who have disabilities that they can have jobs and careers too. We thoroughly enjoyed the experience!

- By Angeline Olivo (Grade 6)

Staff and students welcomed Mr. Dan McMahon, an Australian Catholic high

school principal, to Precious Blood on the day of Halloween. Mr. McMahon, who was in Toronto for a three day education

leaders’ conference, was able to visit the school and observe how a Toronto Catholic elementary school functions in an inner city set-ting. He is also a longtime friend of our grade six teach-er, Mr. Cosgrove.

(Mr. McMahon is principal at Shalom College, Bundaberg, Queensland.)

Annual Food Drive

In Advent, we are challenged to open our hearts to the poor and

vulnerable by embracing them as unique gifts of God’s creation. One of the ways that Precious Blood has been meeting this challenge is through the annual food drive.We wish to thank the families and friends of the school for very kindly donating many non-perishable items of food, which will be passed on to the needy families of the Precious Blood Parish. Also, a special word of thanks is to be attributed to the grade eight teachers and their students for the assistance that they gave in the organization of this year's annual food drive.

2017 Toronto Science FairStudents are invited to participate in the 2017 Toronto Science Fair. Stu-dents can submit inquiry-based learning projects, which are connected to the Ontario science and technology curricu-lum. If interested, please see Ms. Brown (Grade 3) and visit Toronto Science Fair website for the most up-to-date infor-mation. Check all the rules as well! www.torontosciencefair.ca

ATTENDANCE

Student Absence/LatenessParents/Guardians must call and leave a message on the answering machine (AUTO ATTENDANT, Press #1) Include your child’s name, teacher’s name, grade and a reason for absence. When a student arrives late for school, he

or she must report to the office before going to class.

Children who must leave before dismissal, must be signed out by parent/guard-ian at main office.

Celebration of the Advent Mass

On Wednesday, 30th Novem-ber, Precious Blood joined the

students and staff from St. Kevin’s and St. Catherine’s to celebrate the Advent Mass. Fr. Xavier De Pinto in his homily challenged the students and staff to prepare for Christmas with a time of prayer and reconciliation, similar to the season of Lent. A special thanks is attributed to Chico Nuguid for his talented con-tribution of music and singing for the school masses.

Friday, January 20th is a PA Day for Elementary Schools

No classes for elementary stu-dents on that day.

Christmas Pageant

Please remember in your prayers the soul of Elisabetta Polera, the mother of our Principal Ms. Rossi,

who died recently.

"We are very proud of our Primary students of Grades 1, 2 & 3 who presented the Precious Blood Annual Christmas Musical 'A Sto-rybook Christmas'. Our children displayed amazing talent of the Arts : Drama, Singing and Dance. The costumes brought the show alive and filled us all with the Spirit of Christmas. The Nativity Scene reminded us of the true meaning of Christmas. The grand finale which brought the show to an end gave students and teachers a deep sense of community and fellowship. It was encouraging to see the long line up of parents and well wish-ers waiting patiently to enter the auditorium in support of our chil-dren. There is no greater symbol of appreciation than a community coming together for our precious little ones. Thank you once again; one and all for your continued support.Mrs. Soraine"

Student Led Learning WalkStudent Led Learning Walk

November 2016

Precious Blood students and teachers welcomed parents, grand-parents and friends of the school community to another learning opportunity during the Progres-sive Reporting period. Students led their families and other visitors around the school gym and engaged in meaningful learning conversations about the work displayed from JK to Grade Eight. On this occa-sion, the theme was Patterning and Algebra, which allowed students to explore patterns in the natural world and across the Social Studies and Science curriculums.

Kindergarten Registration BeginsJanuary 18, 2017 at 10:00 a.m.Apply online at soar.tcdsb.org

Imagine the PossibilitiesInfo: https://www.tcdsb.org/ProgramsServices/EarlyYears/Kinder-

garten/KindergartenRegistration/Pages/default.aspxFor information about French Immersion and Extended French: https://www.tcdsb.org/ProgramsServices/SchoolProgramsK12/

French/Pages/default.aspx

French Immersion and Extended FrenchThe Toronto Catholic District School Board offers French Immersion and Extended French programs at several TCDSB sites. The French Immersion

program is offered to students beginning in Junior Kindergarten. The Extend-ed French Program is offered to students beginning in grade 5.

Interested parents are encouraged to attend an information evening to learn more about the program. Please note dates, times and locations for sessions

planned for January through to March available on the French Immersion and Extended French sites. Information: (416) 222-8282 ext. 2540 or https://www.tcdsb.org/ProgramsServices/EarlyYears/KindergartenRegistration/

Pages/French-Immersion.aspx.

Lantern BlessingFather Xavier De Pinto, the pastor of Precious Blood Parish, very kindly joined the grade six students from Mr. Cosgrove’s class to celebrate the conclusion of the lantern project with a special lantern blessing and prayer. In his reflection, Father Xavier shared with the students a story about a mother lighting an oil lamp every night in the hope that her son would return.

School Leadership

In our school, many students exhibit the proper qualities

to be a leader. To hone these skills, Mrs. Hatch, Mrs. Monaco and Mr. Sedef have assembled a Leadership Team, comprising

the students of our grade seven and grade eight classes. Mem-

bers meet together every month after school to discuss different ways to be a better leader. The members who were a part of the team last year are given the op-portunity to commute to the CEC

(Catholic Education Centre) to participate in the E-CSLIT pro-gram, where students have the chance to socialize and compete with leaders from other schools. At every meeting, guest speakers are invited to talk with the stu-dents and motivate them. While it may not seem like the coolest thing to do after school, it is

honestly a very inspiring experi-ence that members can fondly

look back on in the future.

By Patricial K. and Fae L. (Grade 8 students)

Wishing you a Very Merry “Mindful” Christmas(TCDSB Mental Health)

Christmas is often a very busy time of year with much planning and activities. While it’s enjoyable, we may find ourselves rushing from one event to another without taking the time to enjoy each moment. We encourage you to consider the following tips so that you will en-joy a “mindful” Christmas.• Play Christmas songs each day• Eat mindfully – when eating your favorite holiday treat enjoy each bite by paying attention to the flavor and texture• When waiting in a shopping line be mindful of all that you are grate-ful for. This may help you feel calm and help to put things into per-spective• Go for a walk in nature and pay special attention to the sights, sounds, and smells• When decorating your Christmas tree take the time to enjoy the beauty of the moment• Most of all take a deep breath and enjoy the magic of Christmas!(Information obtained from www.pocketmindfulness.com)

Fostering The Family:The TCDSB Pastoral Plan 2015-18 “ Together With one Voice: Harmoniz-ing Our Faith Through Family, Parish, and School” 2016 focuses on the PARISHAs the Christmas season approaches let us take the time to focus our at-tention on the birth of Christ within our parish family• Pray together as a family• Attend mass as a family and consider participating i.e., offer to take up the gifts• Participate in parish activities

A Prayer for Christmas Morning

The day of joy returns, Father in Heaven, and crowns another year with peace and

good will. Help us rightly to remember the birth of Jesus, that we may share in the song of the angels, the gladness of the shepherds, and the worship of the wise men. Close the

doors of hate and open the doors of love over the world. Let kindness come with

every gift and good desires with every greet-ing. Deliver us from evil, by the blessing that Christ brings and teach us to be merry with clean hearts. May the Christmas morning make us happy to be thy children and the

Christmas evening bring us to our bed with grateful thoughts, forgiving and forgiven,

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