DeWitt Carter Public School

Dragon’s Digest

October 2016 “Responsibility” _______________________________________________________________________

Mr. T. Acaster – Principal Mr. W. Hahn – Superintendent

Mr. M. Herfst – Vice Principal Mr. D. Shaubel – School Board Trustee

Ms. M. Sager – Secretary School #905-834-7440

DeWitt Carter Public School Mission Statement

“Our mission is to support student learning in a safe environment where all students are motivated to learn and are willing to take risks so they can become positive contributors to our society.”

A Message From Mr. Acaster “Another Beautiful September!” I think we are getting spoiled. This has been yet another fantastic September. Who doesn’t love these warm temperatures and sunny days. It seems to keep smiles on everyone’s faces. Hopefully the weather person doesn’t change this on us to soon. We all love snow, but I think it can wait until December and January! With October upon us, the first thing I would like to share with you is our fantastic EQAO scores. We are all so proud of our students, mostly for their perseverance and determination to do well at school. Those are the character traits that are going to carry them to great places in life. Our fantastic staff have worked very hard for the past few years on building a Growth Mindset (see our home page on the DeWitt Carter website) an integral part of the way students (and ourselves) view their abilities. In addition, each teacher has been deeply involved in learning more about curriculum planning in mathematics and class structures to facilitate small group, guided Literacy instruction and feedback. The scores show the dividends that this hard work has paid. Our primary scores in order for Reading, Writing and Mathematics were 85, 88 and 79 and our corresponding junior scores were 95, 95 and 55. Way to go Dragons!! Our months go by very quickly here so I want to remind all students to be involved. There are many extra-curricular events, and other ways to make an impact here at school. Each of you matter. You are important and have a lot to give. If you ever need anything, please come talk to me at the office. The door is always open.

Attendance Matters

Reminder: Please remember to call the

school office to report any student absences

at (905)834-7440. The school office is

open from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. and there is

an answering machine available 24 hours a

day 7 days a week.

When leaving a message, please leave your

child’s name, grade, teacher and the reason

for their absence.

Please note that school starts at 9:00 a.m.

Students must report to the office for a

late slip in order to avoid an unnecessary

call home. In the interest of the safety of

our students your co-operation is greatly

appreciated.

Reminder: Friday, October 7th is a Professional

Day and there is no school for students.

Monday, October 10th is Thanksgiving

and there is no school.

Canteen Our Canteen is open every day during the

second nutrition break. We sell milk,

chocolate milk, ice cream and

baked chips for $1 each.

(Canteen items are nut free)

Any profit from the Canteen will

be used for student activities and trips.

School Council Meetings

We held our first meeting on Tuesday,

September 27th. Minutes of the meeting will

be posted on the school website, under the

School Council Tab.

If you are interested in being a part of the

School Council, or on one of the committees,

come out and join us. Our next meeting is

Tuesday, October 25th at 6:00 p.m.

Breakfast Club DeWitt Carter is very fortunate to have

such an amazing Breakfast Club for our

students providing them with healthy,

nutritional food to start their day. It takes

a lot of time and preparation to organize the

daily breakfast meal plans and this requires

many volunteers. If you are able to

volunteer to help with the Breakfast Club,

please contact the school at 905-834-7440.

We are also asking for donations of healthy

cereals (Shreddies, Cheerios, Bran Flakes,

Rice Krispies…..). Please send these items

into the school and hand them in at the main

office.

DeWitt Carter Fall Vendor Fair

Please join us on Saturday, October 15th

from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. for our second annual

DeWitt Carter Vendor Fair!

Shop in our gym where we

will be hosting over 20

vendors. Handcrafts,

Scentsy, Tupperware and

Aloette are just a few of the items that will

be available.

All proceeds will be used by School Council

for the benefit of the students.

Student of the Month

The following students received recognition

during our assembly on Friday, September 30th.

These students were recognized for their hard

work, class participation, school spirit and/or

demonstrating our monthly character trait –

Respect.

Character Trait “Respect”

Literacy Numeracy

Mrs. Laur Briar Thususka Makenna Rogers Jack Lilley

Mrs. Piazza Isaiah Parker Kyle Schoenhals Kylee Simpson

Mrs. Nicholls Drake Robillard Abigail Lumbers Chelsea Robichaud

Mrs. Meinzinger Chloe Bankert T. J. Jacques Rori Benner

Mr. Fraipont Dylan Haywood Anna Nuxoll Teagan Arsenault

Ms. Forand Zachary Robichaud

William Laur Noah Stenson

Mrs. Froude Gage Benner Julia Lacharity Kamron Moss

Ms. Kerr Max Latham Wood

Brianna Buchanan

Brior Viozzi

Mrs. Garcia Mary Jane Reece

Hailee Queffelec Emma Laur

Mr. Curran Emily Klonowski

Maxinia Poulsen Mylie McCulligh

Office Award Logan Marges

French Award Ashleigh Reczynski, Logan Dickie, Alyssa Young, Shiloh Slater, Delaney Talbot

A Notice from Public Health Please help stop the spread of infection.

Stay at home if you are sick and return when you

are well

Wash your hands with soap and water or use a

hand sanitizer

Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue or in your

sleeve

Keep your distance

Get a flu shot.

Please keep your child at home and away

from others if he or she has any of these

symptoms: Fever

Diarrhea

Vomiting

Rash

Frequent coughing or sneezing

Yellow or green discharge from the nose, ears, or

eyes

Sore throat

Labels for Education We would like to remind you that DeWitt

Carter’s Labels for Education Program is

continuing this year. If you use any of the

products listed below, please send the labels

in to the school. We have a collection

container outside the office and the labels

can be redeemed for points to use towards

purchasing educational products.

Campbell’s Soups

Ready to serve Soups

Soup at Hand

Campbell’s Easy Cooking Sauces

Pace Salsas

Habitant Soups

Goldfish Crackers

Chunky

School Council for 2016 – 2017 Cherie Buchanan - Chair

Christina Ryerse - Co-Chair

Tricia Dickie - Treasurer/Secretary

DeWitt Carter’s Website DeWitt Carter’s web page has lots of significant

material and up-to-date information. The monthly

newsletter and calendar are posted on this site.

Please take a minute and visit our website and feel

free to contact the school with any comments.

dewittcarter.dsbn.org

October is International Walk to

School Month Lace up your shoes or snap on those bike helmets for an

active trip to school. If you live far from school, park a

few blocks away and walk part of the trip. If you ride a bus

take part by walking to your bus stop.

Here’s a quick trivia question to have fun with at the dinner

table tonight. Walking and wheeling to school can improve:

A) Health

B) Happiness

C) Stress Level

D) Grades

E) Safety

F) All of the above

If you said F, you’re correct! Walking and wheeling to

school has many benefits and those are just a few.

(Source: activesaferoutes.ca)

Tips to remember when walking or biking: Look left, right and left again when crossing the street

Never run or dart out into the street or cross between

parked cars

Make eye contact with drivers before crossing in front

of them and watch out for cars that are turning or

backing up

It’s always best to walk on sidewalks or paths. If there

are no sidewalks, walk facing traffic as far to the left as

possible

Cross streets at corners, using traffic signals and

crosswalks

Watch out for cars coming out of driveways and alleys

If what you are doing has wheels, protect your brain –

always wear a helmet

When riding your bike, ride in the same direction as the

cars are driving

Tips from www.parachutecanada.org

YMCA of Niagara Youth Action YMCA Youth Action is returning to the DeWitt

Carter gymnasium on Thursday nights! Youth

Action is a free program for ages 9 – 14, where

youth can join the YMCA staff team from 6:00

p.m. to 8:00 p.m. for gym

games, sports, special

activities and more! The

YMCA staff will be here

beginning October 6th and the best part is that

Youth Action is totally free!

For more information, check out on Facebook or

Instagram, or e-mail

youthaction@niagara.ymca.ca See you there!

Cookie Dough Fundraiser

We will be running a delicious new fundraiser

this Fall! Our students will participate in a kick-

off assembly on the morning of November 1st

where they will learn all about the incentive

prizes for participating. This is a great

opportunity to obtain quality frozen baked

doughs in preparation for the upcoming holiday

season. The order forms

will come home that day and

the campaign will run until

November 15th. All the

money and order forms

need to be in by November

16th so that the orders can

be tallied. All orders will be

dropped off at the school on December 8th for

students to take home or for parents to pick up.

The profits for this campaign can be as much as

40% of sales totals, which is amazing. The

profits will be set aside to help offset the costs

of our year end trips in June. Please mark the

dates on your calendar and, as always, we truly

appreciate your participation.

Social Networking Safety

Our students are able to network with anyone in

the world through their tablets, laptops and

personal electronic devices. Do you know with

whom they are chatting? Do you know how to

check? Do you know which ones are even

permissible for children to navigate.

On October 19th at 7:00 p.m. we will be hosting

Canadian Social Network Awareness expert

Paul Davis. His messages educate and empower

children and us as parents.

Don’t miss this very important presentation.

Grade 8 students will be available to watch your

children during the presentation.

Grade 8 Students and Parents:

Mark your calendars! Starting High School is a huge step in a

student’s life.

While it’s definitely and exciting time, it also

brings with it many questions, such as “What’s

life in high school really like? What programs

and options are available to help me achieve my

goals?”

A great way to have your questions answered is

to attend an open house. Grade 8 students and

their families are invited to attend Port

Colborne High School’s Open House on Tuesday,

November 29th.

DeWitt Carter School Fall Vendor Fair

435 Fares Street, Port Colborne

Saturday, October 15, 2016

10 am-3 pm

Over 20 different vendors

DeWitt Carter Public School

PADDLE

AUCTION November 12th

1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.

435 Fares Street

Port Colborne, ON L3K 1X4

Snacks and Light Refreshments will be available for purchase

Paddles $2 each

Auctions start at $0.25! Bring your quarters!!!

All proceeds go the Grade 7 & 8 Quebec trip in February 2017

Wise Gals Lockets – Thirty One – Country Creations – Sweetlegs – Norwex – and many more vendors! Space is still available!!

Email: tdickie1972@gmail.com for more information