470 KITTY MURRAY LANE, ANCASTER, ONTARIO 2015

Inside this issue:

Ash Wednesday Page

2

September 2015

Registrations

Page

3

Catholic School

Council News

Page

4

Knights of

Columbus News

Page

6

ECO News

Update

Page

8

Celebrating Our Students—

Sportsmanship

Page

11

Ancaster Food

Drive

Page

14

IMMACULATE CONCEPTION CATHOLIC ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

470 KITTY MURRAY LANE, ANCASTER, ONTARIO

http://wwww.hwcdsb.ca/schools/imco/

Phone: 905 523-2463 Fax: 905 304-0484

Mrs. Brenda Hamilton—Principal Mr. M. Hucal —Superintendent

Mr. Dean Younger —Vice Principal Mrs. Carolyn Cornale—Trustee

Father Ian Duffy —Pastor, St. Ann Parish

Mr. Frank Ciancone —Principal, Bishop Tonnos Catholic Secondary School

“IMMACULATE CONCEPTION IS A PROUD FEEDER SCHOOL TO BISHOP TONNOS”

FEBRUARY

2015

VOLUME 6VOLUME 6VOLUME 6VOLUME 6

Remember to

subscribe to electronic

communication by

accessing our school

website and

registering your email

address.

When You Thought I Wasn’t Looking

This is how a child learns to love….

When you thought I wasn’t looking, I saw you hang my first painting On the refrigerator, and I wanted to paint another one. When you thought I wasn’t looking, I saw you feed a stray cat, And I thought it was good to be kind to animals. When you thought I wasn’t looking, I saw you make a favourite cake for me, And I knew that little things are special things. When you thought I wasn’t looking, I saw you say a prayer, And I believed there is a God who I could always talk to. When you thought I wasn’t looking, I felt you kiss me goodnight, And I felt loved. When you thought I wasn’t looking, I saw tears come from your eyes, And I learned that sometimes things hurt, but it’s alright to cry. When you thought I wasn’t looking, I saw you cared And I wanted to be everything I could be. When you thought I wasn’t looking, I looked and wanted to say thanks For all the things I saw when you thought I wasn’t looking.

From William Baush, A World of Stories

From the Principal’s Desk……From the Principal’s Desk……From the Principal’s Desk……From the Principal’s Desk……

We begin February in celebration of our students who have shown sportsmanship to one another in the previous month. We continue to fo-cus each month on an aspect of the Catholic School Graduate Expecta-tions as we continue to build a Catholic, Caring Community. We are the body of Christ and we work together to nurture the faith of our students in all that we do. This month also provides a rich opportunity to celebrate Black History Month and the many individuals who have made significant contributions in the area of diversity. Our Learning Commons has a wealth of re-sources to assist students in researching skills in this area. We look to the leadership of our Grade 7 students to enrich us with their knowledge and skills throughout the month.

First term provincial report cards will be distributed to all students in Kindergarten and Grades 1-8 on Tuesday February 10, 2015. Please use this time to dialogue with your child about their strengths and areas to work on for the next term. We will also recog-nize our students with perfect attendance with certificates of achievement since the progress reports were distributed. Thank you for all that you do to ensure that students are in attendance at school and arrive in a timely manner. This contributes greatly to student success.

There are several special days occurring in the month of February to remind parents about. February 4th— “Wear Yellow Day”, February 13th “Red, White and Pink Day” , February 20th “Sweater Day” February 27th— Wear “Pink” Day (Say No to Bullying initi-ative).

Our focus for the month is the virtue of “Empathy” which encourages students to use their eyes, ears, words and heart to experience the feelings of others and be sensitive to their needs. On February 27th our school will join together through the leadership of the Student Council to say “no” to bullying by wearing pink as a statement that we will not accept bullying of any kind in our school.

Page 2 IMMACULATE CONCEPTION CATHOLIC ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

Regina Mundi Knights of Columbus present their annual

FATHER/DAUGHTER VALENTINE DANCE

Friday, February 6th, 2015

from 6:30-9:30 p.m.

St. Thomas More Secondary School Cafeteria

1045 Upper Paradise Road, Hamilton

Tickets: $6.00 pp include refreshments, prizes

(Available at STM door on the night of the event)

Photos by Lifetouch studios for $5.00—all ages welcome!

ASH WEDNESDAY LITURGY

We welcome parents to join us on Ash Wednesday (Wednesday February 18th at 1:30 pm) for our Liturgy and the distribution of ashes. This marks the beginning of Lent as we join together to journey for the next 40 days to turn away from sin and follow the path of the Gospel. Ashes will be dis-tributed to all in attendance.

WINTER WALK DAY Wednesday, February 4, 2015 is Winter Walk to School Day. Show your support for the Eco Team by wearing yellow clothing with your uniform bottom and walk to school. Bus students can wear yellow too. If you have to drive to school, park 1 km away from the school and WALK!!! A school-wide photo of our "yellow" students and staff will be taken to mark our support for Active Transportation in Ontario. Remember, it's Cool to Walk and Roll to School!

Welcome Mr. Hucal—New Appointment as

Superintendent of Education

Our school community welcomes and congratulates Mr. Morris Hucal as Superintendent of Education for

Immaculate Conception School. We look forward to his many visits to our school as he meets our staff and

students. An invitation will be extended to him to meet with our Catholic School Council at an upcoming meeting

in the next few months.


SEPTEMBER 2015 REGISTRATIONS

Registration for any students new to Junior Kindergarten or Kindergarten for September 2015 will take place beginning on February 2, 2015 by appointment. Students entering JK must be 4 years old before December 31, 2015. Stu-dents entering Kindergarten must be 5 years old before December 31, 2015.

Please call the school secretary, Mrs. Petrone to set up an appointment at 905 523-2463. The following items of information are required at the time of registration: • Baptismal certificate • Birth Certificate • Proof of residency (eg. hydro bill) • Immigration papers (if applicable) Please note that Immaculate Conception School offers the Full Day Early Learning Program for Junior Kindergarten and Kindergarten children . Parents may wish to read the information bro-chure which is available at the following email address to become more familiar with the program being provided. http://www.hwcdsb.ca/programs/fulldaykindergarten/

We look forward to serving the needs of our youngest students in the areas of faith, personal and social development, language, mathematics, science and technology, health and physical activi-ty and the arts. This is an exciting time for you and your child as we embark on this journey to-gether. Should you have any questions please contact Mrs. Hamilton, the Principal, at the number above.

FIRST TERM REPORT CARDS First term report cards will be sent home with all students from Kindergarten to Grade 8 on Tuesday

February 10th. Parents who wish to have an interview with their child’s teacher are requested to

please send a note to school so that arrangements can be made to accommodate the request.

Please remember to return page 3 of the report card so that it can be filed in your child’s OSR

(Ontario School Record Folder).

FAMILY DAY Just a reminder that Monday, February 16, 2015 is Family Day. There is

NO SCHOOL for students on this day. There are many exciting opportunities

offered in the city to build memories for your family. We hope you enjoy the

time with your children.

YOUR SCHOOL COUNCIL AT WORK


Pancake Tuesday Our annual tradition of cooking and serving pancakes to the students of Immacu-late Conception will take place on Tuesday, February 17th. If you would like to volunteer to help with this, please leave your contact information at the office with Mrs. Petrone. A current police check (with Vulnerable Sector Search) is required in order to volunteer for this event. Parents of children with docu-mented allergies will be contacted by the office for approval to participate.

Milk Kicks Program The Spring Milk Kicks Program begins April 1st. Deadline for Spring Milk Order sub-mission is February 287h. Order forms are available online on the school website or in the office. Late orders will commence the week FOLLOWING the late submis-sion as milk is ordered one week in advance.

Pizza Days Pizza Days are every Friday (Thursday if Friday is a PA Day). The cost is $2.00 per pepperoni slice. Orders for the month of March are due March 31st. For your con-venience, an additional order form for months April to June is now available online and in the office if you would like to order for the remainder of the term or for multiple months. Gluten free pizzas are also available. Please note – preferred method of pay-ment is cheque. However, if paying by cash, please submit EXACT amount as change is not always available. Remember to complete STUDENT NAME, TEACHER and

GRADE on each form as there have been an increasing number of blank order forms. In the event that these blank forms are submitted with cash, there is no way of knowing who they belong to.

Popcorn Day Popcorn Day is the last Thursday of every month. For February, it will be the 26th. Popcorn bags are available for purchase for $2.00 per bag. White cheddar, buttersalt, light caramel and dill pickle flavours are available.

We’d love to have you join us… The next council meeting will be , in the Learning Commons. Parents of stu-dents attending Immaculate Conception are welcome to attend.

Tisha Dayap-Berrio, Council Chair


Best BuddiesBest BuddiesBest BuddiesBest Buddies

Our January Winter Soup Fest was a great hit with all of the

students as they joined together at lunch to enjoy a bowl of

homemade chicken soup. We look forward to our February

event of designing Valentine cards and creating crafts

which will take place on Thursday February 12th at lunch

time in the Science Room.

We wish to welcome our newest members of “Best Bud-

dies” for 2014-2015:

Mina B., Emma D., Dylan P., Alexander X., Anthony R.D., Alyssa E., Shaelene B.,

Emilia K., Luca P., Elise F., Mehran S., Jalen E., Jessica Z., Marco C., Alyssa P.,

Jasmine S., Olivia S., Olivia A., Madison P., Damian B., Gabrielle A.K., Michael A.K.

Matia L., David H., Aleena A.B., Paulina C., Joshua A., Sarah M., Joshua J., Ben S.,

Sylvia K., Anna P.,

We are very excited to see our team of student ambassadors continue to grow to 50

students at this time.

T shirts for Best Buddies will be ordered very soon for our new members. Last year’s

returnees will be invited to wear their Best Buddies shirts for our March event when

our new shirts arrive. Stay tuned for further updates.

INTERNET SAFETY In this era, almost all children have opportunities to use the Internet on a daily basis. We are all concerned about keeping our children safe as they use the Internet. Our Board uses a WEB SENSE proxy server to filter out any inappropriate or adult-content materials that students might inadvertently “Google” as they work on research pro-jects. Students, however, spend a far greater amount of time on the Internet, MSN messenger and chat rooms at home. Listed below are excellent resources for parents that outline strategies for keeping your children safe. Websites include: www.protectkids.com; www.kids.getnetwise.org; and

www.safekids.com.

From Teresa Hartnett at the Diocesan Office of Family Ministry. PARENTING TIP OF THE MONTH PARENTING TIP OF THE MONTH PARENTING TIP OF THE MONTH PARENTING TIP OF THE MONTH Tip #75Tip #75Tip #75Tip #75 – Every child is a diamond in the rough, with value and dignity; a child of God. As parents we need to be generous in providing loving affirmation to our children, so they will grow to recognize their inner rich and vital gifs. A parent’s love teaches a child to know God’s love and to learn of their significance in the world. With love they will discover a mine full of gems within themselves. MARRIAGE TIP OF THE MONTH MARRIAGE TIP OF THE MONTH MARRIAGE TIP OF THE MONTH MARRIAGE TIP OF THE MONTH Tip #55Tip #55Tip #55Tip #55 – Men and women are sometimes said to be as different as night and day and yet, those two times of the day are united, blending into each other, each providing something to the world. As husbands and wives we bring unique qualities to our relationships, blending together to make our own special union of love. Seek-ing to understand, accepting and embracing our differences and rejoicing in moments of similarity serve to create a relationship that is both confident and loving.


Knights of Columbus—St. Ann Parish/Local 10009

We congratulate the following students in

their participation of the recent Knights of

Columbus Drug/Alcohol Awareness poster

contest. In addition, we wish to recognize

and celebrate the students who represented

our school in the Free Throw Event held at

Bishop Tonnos High School in January.

Some of our participants will now move on to

the next level of competition.

Free Throw Competition Participants: Aleena A., Rylan E.,

Advancing to the Next Level of Free Throw Competition: Joshua B., Jasmine S., Amber M., Deanna M., and Jonathan B.

Best of luck as you move on!

Poster Contest Participants: Caleb C., Nicholas L., Gabriel R., Sandro C., Noah B., Brooke J., Jessie D.,

Christopher X., and Alexander X.

WELL DONE ALL STARS!


WINTER WEATHER REMINDERS

Students are reminded of the following expectations during our winter

weather conditions:

• Be dressed for outdoor play each day with hats, snow pants, boots,

gloves/mitts, etc. Students who wish to play on the field area must wear

boots and snow pants.

• Throwing snowballs, kicking snow, damaging other students’ snow structures are not permit-

ted at any time. Disregard for the rules will result in progressive discipline action.

• Indoor shoes must be worn in the school for safety reasons. Students are not permitted

to wear boots indoors or be without proper footwear in the event of an emergency evacua-

tion.

• All clothing should be labelled to return lost clothing to its rightful owner.

• Weather conditions are monitored as required and decisions made to keep students inside

when it is not suitable for outdoor play.

• Exit doors will have staff assigned on inclement weather days to permit students to enter

the building through their usual entry door. Students then proceed to their respective

classrooms prior to 9:00 am.

Trashless Tuesday Monthly Recognition

Congratulations to the students in class who are being recognized for their efforts to reduce trash by bringing

in recyclable containers. They earned a respectable 58.7% in our recent audit. Honourable mention goes to the students in Miss Cooper’s class with an average participation rate of 57%.

Look for our “Golden Lunchbox” award and certificate in the

trophy case in the main foyer!

Grade 8 Graduation Photos

Grade 8 Grad Photos will be taken on Thursday February 26th in the school gym. Gowns will be provided to the students to wear. Boys should be dressed in a white shirt and tie and girls should wear a white collared blouse for the pic-ture. More information has been sent home with Grade Eight students.

IMMACULATE CONCEPTION CATHOLIC ELEMENTARY SCHOOL Page 8

ECO News Update ECO News Update ECO News Update ECO News Update

We congratulate the following students who won the

lunch bags in the random classroom draws as a result of

our prizes for the Waste Free Lunch Challenge. Class-

room winners are listed below:

Jacob C., Patricia S., Helen B. Samantha K., Navaeh G., Jacob C., Patricia S., Helen B. Samantha K., Navaeh G., Jacob C., Patricia S., Helen B. Samantha K., Navaeh G., Jacob C., Patricia S., Helen B. Samantha K., Navaeh G.,

Savannah W., Jude G., Sophia B., Daniella V., Nathan T., Savannah W., Jude G., Sophia B., Daniella V., Nathan T., Savannah W., Jude G., Sophia B., Daniella V., Nathan T., Savannah W., Jude G., Sophia B., Daniella V., Nathan T.,

Anthony D., Layla F., Felisha W., Riley J., Noah L., Oliva Anthony D., Layla F., Felisha W., Riley J., Noah L., Oliva Anthony D., Layla F., Felisha W., Riley J., Noah L., Oliva Anthony D., Layla F., Felisha W., Riley J., Noah L., Oliva

D., Leandro E., Milan B., Anthony D., Darin O., Julia B., Milena K., Silas L., D., Leandro E., Milan B., Anthony D., Darin O., Julia B., Milena K., Silas L., D., Leandro E., Milan B., Anthony D., Darin O., Julia B., Milena K., Silas L., D., Leandro E., Milan B., Anthony D., Darin O., Julia B., Milena K., Silas L.,

Antonio F. Rylan E., Nic S., Austyn R., Jaron R., Antonio D., Gavin H., Luca Antonio F. Rylan E., Nic S., Austyn R., Jaron R., Antonio D., Gavin H., Luca Antonio F. Rylan E., Nic S., Austyn R., Jaron R., Antonio D., Gavin H., Luca Antonio F. Rylan E., Nic S., Austyn R., Jaron R., Antonio D., Gavin H., Luca

B., Amanda N., Tiana G., Ivana J., Garbriella B., Mia S., Adriana B., Alleena B., Amanda N., Tiana G., Ivana J., Garbriella B., Mia S., Adriana B., Alleena B., Amanda N., Tiana G., Ivana J., Garbriella B., Mia S., Adriana B., Alleena B., Amanda N., Tiana G., Ivana J., Garbriella B., Mia S., Adriana B., Alleena

A.B., A.B., A.B., A.B.,

ECO Team WinnersECO Team WinnersECO Team WinnersECO Team Winners

Maddy R., Erika V., Allison A., Dominic M., Olivia C., Ana T. S., Anthony Maddy R., Erika V., Allison A., Dominic M., Olivia C., Ana T. S., Anthony Maddy R., Erika V., Allison A., Dominic M., Olivia C., Ana T. S., Anthony Maddy R., Erika V., Allison A., Dominic M., Olivia C., Ana T. S., Anthony

B., Alex H., B., Alex H., B., Alex H., B., Alex H.,

Thank you to everyone who continues to support the ECO team initiatives Thank you to everyone who continues to support the ECO team initiatives Thank you to everyone who continues to support the ECO team initiatives Thank you to everyone who continues to support the ECO team initiatives

within our school. within our school. within our school. within our school.

Winter Walk to School “Wear Yellow” DayWinter Walk to School “Wear Yellow” DayWinter Walk to School “Wear Yellow” DayWinter Walk to School “Wear Yellow” Day

Page 9 IMMACULATE CONCEPTION CATHOLIC ELEMENTARY

STUDENT COUNCIL NEWS

Student Council are busy preparing for our Ash Wednesday Liturgy to be celebrat-

ed on Wednesday February 18th at 1:30 pm. They are also planning a “Name that

Love Song” contest for the classes to guess from February 9-13th over the P.A.

system. Student Council is also adver3sing and promo3ng “Wear Pink to Say No

to Bullying “ on February 27th via posters and announcement. The annual Ancaster Food Drive

will take place during the month of February . Pick up of food is scheduled for Friday February

20th. Dona3ons of non-perishable food items are greatly appreciated.

PRECIOUS MOMENTS BOUTIQUE The Hamilton-Wentworth Catholic School Board is once again collecting new and gently experienced First Holy Communion and Prom Dresses/Suits appropriate for First Holy Communion and Grade 8 Graduation. These events are marked with much excitement but also can pose a significant fi-nancial burden for many families in our community. Please bring any dona-

tions to your school as soon as possible. Kindly ensure clothing is clean and appropriate for the above occasions. Thank you for your continued support. For information, contact Rosanne

Sogan, community volunteer, at 905-560-4815.

SENIOR KINDERGARTEN FRENCH IMMERSION Forms were sent home with all students in Junior Kindergarten regarding the Board Senior Kinder-garten French Immersion program. If you did not get one and want one, please call the school of-fice. Our school feeds into St. Joseph Catholic Elementary School, 270 Locke Street South, 905-529-1002. Bus transporta"on is provided by the Board from the home school. Parent informa"on night

is scheduled for Wednesday February 11th at 7:00 pm.

Benefits of learning in French

- exceptional success in mathematical computation, superior creativity and problem-solving ability, a facility for learning other languages, a deeper understanding of their own and other cultures, a greater number of career opportunities, a lifelong ability to communicate with French-speakers, here in Canada and around the

globe, enriched travel experiences, especially to the many countries where French is spoken.

But we don’t speak French at home…

French immersion programs were designed for students who do not speak French at home.

Parents can help their children by:

- continuing to read to them and with them in English, listening to their child read in French and English, making French a part of their child's life, renting French music and movies, visiting the library for materials to borrow (French music CDs, magazines, DVDs, books on tape…), exploring French computer games and

Software, watching their child’s favourite movie in French by selecting the French soundtrack on the DVD.


CATHOLIC SCHOOL GRADUATE EXPECTATIONS

Institute for Catholic Education

EXPECTATIONS OF THE ONTARIO CATHOLIC SCHOOL GRADUATEEXPECTATIONS OF THE ONTARIO CATHOLIC SCHOOL GRADUATEEXPECTATIONS OF THE ONTARIO CATHOLIC SCHOOL GRADUATEEXPECTATIONS OF THE ONTARIO CATHOLIC SCHOOL GRADUATE

CATHOLICISM'S CORE UNDERSTANDING OF THE HUMAN CONDITIONCATHOLICISM'S CORE UNDERSTANDING OF THE HUMAN CONDITIONCATHOLICISM'S CORE UNDERSTANDING OF THE HUMAN CONDITIONCATHOLICISM'S CORE UNDERSTANDING OF THE HUMAN CONDITION

Distinctive expectations for graduates of Catholic schools are determined and shaped by the vision and destiny of the human person emerging from our faith tradition. This Christian anthropology or world view, reveals the dignity and value of the person. Our tradition tells us God creatively and lovingly calls each of us into the wonder of life, sustaining us by the power of the Holy Spirit, throughout the human Journey, into life eternal. We acknowledge that the journey includes moments of brokenness and sin. We recognize in the person of Jesus, the risen Christ, the human face of God sharing our life in order to heal us of our brokenness and liberate us from sin.

This Christian vision of the human journey is best understood within the context of relationship. It is accomplished in community, in solidarity with brothers and sisters in the Church and beyond.

Catholic education views human life as an integration of body, mind, and spirit. Rooted in this vision. Catholic education fosters the search for knowledge as a lifelong spiritual and academic quest. The ex-pectations of Catholic graduates, therefore, are described not only in terms of knowledge and skills, but in terms of values, attitudes and actions.

Excerpts from This Moment of Promise

VISION OF THE LEARNER— A Responsible Citizen

THE GRADUATE IS EXPECTED TO :

(a) Acts morally and legally as a person formed in Catholic traditions.

(b) Accepts accountability for one’s own actions.

(c) Seeks and grants forgiveness.

(d) Promotes the sacredness of life.

(e) Witnesses Catholic social teaching by promoting equality, democracy, and solidarity for a just, peaceful

and compassionate society.

(f) Respects and affirms the diversity and interdependence of the world's peoples and cultures.

(g) Respects and understands the history, cultural heritage and pluralism of today's contemporary society.

(h) Exercises the rights and responsibilities of Canadian citizenship.

(i) Respects the environment and uses resources wisely.

(j) Contributes to the common good.


“IMMACULATE CONCEPTION SCHOOL CELEBRATES ...OUR STUDENTS ”

Each month we focus on one aspect of the Catholic School Graduate Expectations and rec-ognize students within each of our classrooms from Grades JK—Grade 8 who demonstrate an aspect of the expectations which speak to student leadership.

The focus for the month of January was an opportunity for our students to demonstrate “SPORTSMANSHIP”. A certificate of recognition will be awarded to them for their achievements. Congratulations on a job well done. We are very proud of each of you!

FDKA —Mrs. Carter’s and Mrs. MacLeod’s class—.Hanna Z., Lukas S.

FDKB—Mrs. Jacka’s and Mrs. Dempsey’s class— Jacob M., Elise D., Lucas K.

FDKC—Mrs. Myer’s and Mrs. Cino’s class— Owen D., Noah L., Mihai T., Gabby L., Danielle C.

FDKD—Mrs. Lenjosek’s and Mrs. Barnard’s class— Cassidy G., Jaiden D., Tyler H., Niko P.

Grade 1—Mrs. Sottile-Fortino’s class— Jamie K., Layla F., Daniel T.

Grade 1—Mrs. Tassone’s class— Brody S., Isabella M., Jude G., Ilaria M.

Grade 1 - Mrs. Filice’s class - John R., Max D.

Grade 1/2—Mrs. Shea’s class— Zoe H.

Grade 2—Mrs. Cooper’s class— Aidan T., Mattea G., Genevieve D.

Grade 2—Mrs. Kolaski’s class— Anthony B., Michael L.

Grade 2/3—Mrs. Wallace’s class— Jeffrey R.

Grade 3—Mrs. DeLuca’s class— Chiara G., Daniel G.

Grade 3—Mrs. Ciccarelli’s class— Jacob R., Favour B.

Grade 4— Mrs. Baktawar’s class— Olivia A., Jalen E., Jessica Z.

Grade 4—Mr. Duarte’s class— Jacob H., Elise F., Vanessa T., Gabe R.

Grade 5—Miss Tigani’s class— Sandro C., Jacob A., Emma D.

Grade 5/6—Mrs. Anderson’s class— Jack V., Dino M.

Grade 6—Miss Vuksan’s class— Ethan S., Benjamin S.

Grade 6/7 - Mr. D’Intino’s class— Olivia P., Mark F., Santino P., Matthew V.

Grade 7/8—Mr. Miller’s class— Cristian G., Jaylan S., James L.

Grade 8—Mr. Cheeranjie’s class— Ally S., Jamel O., Adrianne A.

We ask of our students not only “Can you do better?” but also “Can you be better?” This challenge continues each month as we continue to strive for excellence in all that we do as a school family. The focus for the month of February will be “EMPATHY”.


Monthly Student Recognition

January 2015 “ SPORTSMANSHIP”

Recipients from JK—Grade 3

Recipients from Grades 4-8

Mandatory Uniform Policy Reminders for Parents and Students

Students are permitted to wear white or navy only under their uniform top. All tops must be crested if the top was not purchased from our supplier—McCarthy Uniforms. Purchased items must be compliant to the mandatory uniform policy which is available on the board website. The following items are not permitted: cargo pants, track pants (Gr. 1-8), kobe pants, uncrested tops, tops that do not have a collar. Upon arrival at school all students must remove their non uniform tops and wear only approved clothing items. Your cooperation in this regard is greatly appreciated.


Congratulations to the 50.9 % of the school community who have already registered for the School Cash Online. There is still time to register in order for your child’s class to win the ice cream party for the highest participation rate prorated for the class size. Our contest runs until Friday Feb#ruary 13th after which time we will tabulate the results of the class with the highest per#centage of registrations.

Yearbook 2014-2015

We are pleased once again to partner with Life Touch Photography to of-fer a souvenir yearbook to our families for this year at a cost of $19.00 per book. Special thanks to Mrs. Ieluzzi and Mrs. Fraser, two of our par-ents, who are coordinating the efforts to capture the memories of this year as editors of this wonderful book. Individual pictures of the stu-dents will be included along with student pictures of special events in-

cluding the , Snuggle Up and Read Day, May Crowning, Play Day, ECO events and celebra-tions, Pasta Dinner, Active recess celebrations and many more.

Details about order forms will be available after the March Break. The book will be made available to our school in September 2015.

EQAO Provincial Primary and Junior Assessments of Reading, Writing

and Mathematics

Once again students in Grades 3 and 6 will participate in the Provincial assessments of Reading, Writing and Mathematics through the Education, Quality and Accountability of Ontario offices. The dates for the assessments are from May 25th—June 5th, 2015. The specific dates for Grades 3 and 6 will be confirmed through a letter with parents following the March break. Please avoid scheduling holidays and appointments during

these times so as to provide opportunities for students to fully participate.

Jeans for TeensJeans for TeensJeans for TeensJeans for Teens

Thank you to the many families who have donated jeans for our drive sponsored by our Mission Club. To date we have collected over 100 pairs of jeans which will be donated to those in need. We congratu-

late Isabelle S. and Megan D. for their leadership in bringing this proposal forward as a school-wide project. Many individuals will be well served as a result of the many donations received to date. We are collecting until Friday February 13th. There is still time to donate!

ANCASTER FOOD DRIVE IS COMING!ANCASTER FOOD DRIVE IS COMING!ANCASTER FOOD DRIVE IS COMING!ANCASTER FOOD DRIVE IS COMING! Page 14 IMMACULATE CONCEPTION CATHOLIC ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

T H E F O O D D R I V E

H e l p u s c e l e b r a t e 2 2 y e a r s o f r a i s i n g f u n d s a n d f o o d f o r o u r l o c a l c o m m u n i t y W e h a v e r a i s e d 1 , 0 4 4 , 0 0 0 p o u n d s o f f o o d a n d o v e r $ 5 0 , 0 0 0 i n t h e 2 0 y e a r s w e h a v e b e e n r e c o r d i n g t o t a l s .

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

Door to door blitz of Ancaster homes to collect non-perishable food. Ini-tiated by the vision of the Ancaster Ministerial Association and with sup-port of all citizens, businesses, schools and community agencies.

All donations to be delivered to Hamilton’s major food agencies.

Neighbour to Neighbour The Salvation Army

Greater Hamilton Food Share St. Matthew’s House

Mission Services of Hamilton Wesley Urban Ministries

Good Shepherd Centre Ancaster Community Services & Information

Saturday Feb. 14, 2015 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. – distribute flyers

Friday Feb. 20, 2015 Donations pick up from Ancaster Schools

Saturday Feb. 21, 2015 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 - collect donations

St. John’s Anglican Church, Parish Hall, 37 Halson St

From there, 400+ volunteers will head out door to door throughout Ancaster.

SUMMARY: On Saturday February 21st volunteers will go door-to-door delivering flyers announcing the Food Drive. Media attention

will be organized for the following week.

On Friday February 20th, Food will be picked up at schools and from donors and the facility will be set up at 6 pm. High School students are welcome to come and pack donations at the Parish Hall. On Saturday February 23rd volunteers return door to door to collect donations. We collected 79,000 pounds of food + $8000 from the 2014 drive. The collection will take about 2 – 3 hours with most “routes” producing an overflowing trunk-load of food. Due to safety concerns, Youth un-

der the age of 14 are welcomed to help outside but not on the floor.

Two shifts: 9 – 12 and 12 – 3

Over 79,000 pounds of food was collected last year a record in our 19 years of running this food drive but volunteers are needed, especially to donate and collect food. We urgently need volunteers to load up the trucks on Monday Feb 23rd 8

a.m. when the food goes to the Food Banks. The need is great and together we can make this a successful effort.

Public to contact: Ancaster Community Services & Information 905-648-6675 or [email protected]. We are presently setting up a website. U TUBE -http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z5V4RkG5Zss or facebook

page https://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=305306929479492

MORE ECO CLUB NEWS

Thank you once again for everyone's support in reducing waste by bringing in trashless lunches and snacks as often as possible. Our efforts have been recognized during the Waste-Free Lunch Challenge. We were one of 10 schools in Ontario who received a set of 50 Thermos brand reusable lunch bags. Each classroom drew 2 winners and 8 winners were selected from the members of the Eco Team.

Congratulations to Mrs. Shea's Gr. 1/2 class who were the winners of the Gold-en Lunchbox for January. They averaged 66% participation on Trashless Tues-days for the month of January.

In February we are looking forward to Winter Walk Day on Wed. Feb. 4th. Students who walk or bus to school are allowed to wear a yellow top (uniform bottoms) to promote both healthy choices for ourselves and the environment. There will be an opportunity for students to do some winter walking around the school yard during lunch hour (weather permitting).

On Fri. Feb. 20th, we'll be turning down the school's temperature by two de-grees Celcius and we are encouraging staff and students to come dressed in a favourite cozy sweater (uniform bottoms). We have challenged St. Joachim school to see which community has the highest average participation for this National Sweater campaign. Heating accounts for 80% of residential energy use in Canada, and is a significant source of emissions. If all Canadians low-ered their thermostats by just 2 degrees Celsius this winter, it would reduce greenhouse gas emissions by about 4 megatons.

IMMACULATE CONCEPTION CATHOLIC ELEMENTARY SCHOOL Page 15

IMMACULATE CONCEPTION SCHOOL


In our efforts to encourage the reading of our monthly newsletters by par-ents we have a feature at the end of each newsletter. Please see the sec-tion below where we invite parents to complete and submit to your child’s teacher. The child/children in one family will receive lunch provided by The Lunch Lady.

To make it more convenient for parents to select the week they wish their child to have lunch, we have prepared vouchers to go home with each child to recognize that their family was selected. Simply attach the voucher to the order form and identify the week in which you wish to have the voucher

honoured. We hope that it encourages parents to read the newsletter and become more involved by being more informed in our school. Hard copies of the newsletter are available at the office should you require one.

FEBRUARY Newsletter Family Draw

Please enter our child’s/children's’ names in the monthly draw for having read the newsletter. Prizes will be awarded to the child/children in ONE family whose

names were randomly selected by the deadline of FRIDAY FEBRUARY 27, 2015. Prizes will be lunch provided by The Lunch Connection for the children in a family

whose names are drawn.

FAMILY NAME: __________________________________________

(please print)

CHILDRENS’ NAMES: _______________ Grade: ________________

________________ Grade: ________________

________________ Grade: ________________

CHECK OUT THIS FEATURE TO OUR NEWSLETTER!CHECK OUT THIS FEATURE TO OUR NEWSLETTER!CHECK OUT THIS FEATURE TO OUR NEWSLETTER!CHECK OUT THIS FEATURE TO OUR NEWSLETTER!

Documents

470 KITTY MURRAY LANE, ANCASTER, ONTARIO 2015