June 2017

Catholic School News Principal’s Message,

Dear St. Pius X School Community, As the school year comes to an end, and we look forward to the slower pace of the summer months. We have an opportunity to reflect with a sense of gratitude for the many people who make St. Pius X School an exciting and welcoming place to be.

Our teaching, support staff and office staff, all of whom are dedicated to creating the best possible environment for nurturing and learning for each and every one of our students

Our custodial staff, who work hard to keep our school, clean and safe

Our crossing guard, and school bus drivers who ensure the safe arrival and departure of our students

Fr. Brian, who leads us in the development and celebration of our faith

Members of the Catholic School Parent Council, who volunteer their time and energy to provide fun, enriching activities for the students

All our parents who have supported the various school initiatives and their children’s academic growth

A dad is someone who would catch me when I fall or brushes my wounded knees. He is someone who would rescue when danger starts to call. He is just always there watching my steps. Thank you for your care, guidance and love daddy. Happy Fathers’ day.

The staff of St. Pius X Catholic School would like to extend our very best wishes to all Fathers. We Thank You for your patience, guidance and love.

P. Tari Principal

St. Pius X Catholic School

71 Jane Street

Toronto Ontario MS6 3V3

Tel: (416) 393-5237

Fax: (416) 397-6084

Principal: P. Tari Vice Principal: L. Goncalves Secretary: M. Maringola Superintendent: J. Wujeck (416) 222-8282 ext. 5371

Trustee: B.. Poplawski (416) 512-3410 Parish: St Pius Catholic Church 2305 Bloor St. West Rev. B. Shea (416) 767-1859

CSPC Chair: D. Hough CPIC (Parent Engagement--TCDSB) www.tcdsb.org/cpic OAPCE Toronto (Provincial Voice for Parents) www.tcdsb.org/oapce-toronto Hours of Operation: 9am-3:30pm Lunch Hour: 11:45-12:45

At the end of a busy week, Mr. Sarabia's class rewarded themselves with an impromptu excursion to High Park. The blooming cherry trees were spectacular making for some great photo

oppoutunities for all.

On Thursday, May 18th Mr. Sarabia's class had the privilege of volunteering a day to help out at the Daily Bread Food bank distribution center in Mimico. As a lead up to that, we wanted to make sure we didn't go empty handed! A food drive ensued and over 2000 pounds of donations were collected across all classes. Our DBFB guide indicated that was one of the most successful drives she has ever seen!! Congratulations to Mrs. Kloda's class and Mr. Micelli's class for your incredible donations. Get ready to enjoy ice cream in the park! R. Sarabia

Amazing Sleepovers!!

The two sleepovers in our gym held on Friday May 12 and Friday May 26 were a HUGE success. The students, staff and parents had an amazing time!! The students played music, danced, ate pizza, popcorn, enjoyed movies and had a great time sleeping in their sleeping bags. Everyone is looking forward to next year’s sleepovers!!!! P. Tari

On Tuesday, May 23, 2017 our school and the St. Pius X community participated in the “Great Scissor Event”. The hair collected will go to Angel Hair For Kids, and your generous contributions are also going to Camp Oochegeas, also known as Camp Ooch.serving over a thousand children with and affected by cancer each year, various programs now serve siblings, bereaved siblings and parents. The students and adults that participated were: D. McMohon, A. Mills, I.

Creedan, S. Finotti Do Nascimento, E. Pirog, N. Szagala, D. Edge, J. .Mania, Ms. Agres and her daughter, Officer Eric, Ms. Maringola and Mr. Tari. We would like to thank Marlene and Lori Lynn from The Colour Room, located on Jane Street for generously donating their time and expertise to make this event possible. Also a thank you to Ms. Colacelli and Ms. Bannon for organizing this event. C. Bannon

Drama Workshop: Let’s Create a Show In May, the Grade 1 and 2 classes had the opportunity to take part in a half-day drama workshop. The students had a lot of fun exploring basic drama skills and taking on roles in order to create and put on show called, “How the animals saved Little Red Riding Hood”. We thank the drama instructor, Silke Henke, for her enthusiasm and great energy. It was yet another successful event for our students. S. Fillier In honour of our Blessed Mother Mary, the Grade Two students in Mrs. Fatigati and Mrs. Chown's classes led our school community in praying the Holy Rosary together while meditating on the Mysteries of Light. M. Fatigati On Wednesday, May 24, the Grade 7 students from Mr. Zubac`s class travelled to Bishop Marrocco/Thomas Merton Catholic Secondary School and Regional Arts Centre to watch a dramatic performance of the novel The Outsiders. Celebrating its 50th anniversary this year, the novel tells the story of the Greasers and the Socials, two rival groups perpetually at odds with each other. It`s a timeless classic, filled with rich themes that came alive in BMTM`s performance. It was an enjoyable afternoon for the students. J. Zubac

The Integrated Classroom:

Making Cross Curricular Connections The grade one students in Room 210 have worked hard in Language learning about different media forms and created their own Earth Day posters. The students then extended this learning as part of their Religion program as they discussed ways to care for God's world. Through integrated learning approaches, the students continued to inquire in Science about the care and needs of living things on our planet. This then led to learning about the lifecycle of the monarch butterfly. During Holy Week, the students continued to inquire about the life of the monarch butterfly as a reminder of the life of Jesus and as a symbol of new life and transformation. The students extended this

learning in Social Studies as they worked diligently to map and create their own diagrams depicting the many stages of the butterfly's life. The various student work samples are just a small reflection of the strong work ethic, excellent skill and progress demonstrated in our classroom. Way to go boys and girls! Keep up the excellent work! G. Ruffolo

The grade one students in Room 210 just completed a novel study, "Junie B., First Grader (at last!)" by Barbara Park. In the final chapter of the novel the main character, Junie B. and her classmates participate in Showing-and-Telling in their classroom. As a way to celebrate our success with the novel, the students in Room 210 took part in a Show-and-Tell day of their own. Each student brought in a special item to share and wore a replica of Junie B.'s purple glasses as they presented their item to the class. The students very much enjoyed our novel study and the oral presentations were very well done. It was a lot of fun! Thank you to all the students in Room 210 for their hard work in making this school year a successful one in grade one. G. Ruffolo

Scientist in The Schools: In May, the Kindergarten classes participated in the Scientist in the School Workshop on Simple Machines. The students explored various simple machines such as: wheels and axles, inclined planes, wedges and pulleys. The students learned that simple machines make work easier to do. Thank you to all of the parents who volunteered their time to lead the various centers. It was a fun day for all involved. –Kindergarten Team

NEW YORK! NEW YORK! Late April our Grade 8’s spent four days in New York. Students visited the Empire State Building, the 911 Memorial, Times Square, Rockefeller Center/Fifth Ave., Grand Central Station, Tribeca, SoHo, Greenwich Village, Little Italy Chinatown and Central Park. In addition, students enjoyed a one-hour boat cruise in the New York City Harbour and saw the Brooklyn Bridge, Ellis Island, the Statue of Liberty and the Manhattan Skyline. Students also watched the New York Mets baseball team play the Atlanta Braves in Citi Field in Queen’s, watched an Opera at ‘The Met’, ate at some fine restaurants and saw many other sights. Evenings were especially fun for the children! All students had an amazing time and are to be congratulated for representing St. Pius X so beautifully while out of the country. M. Atkinson

WHAT THE CHILDREN ARE SAYING ABOUT NEW YORK … It was an unforgettable trip. Loved everything about it! Solidified friendships in my grade. Memorable nights in Room 213! Had a great time but very little

sleep. I had an amazing, super fun time! Loved getting wet in the rain. Absolutely loved Times Square! Enjoyed hotel room entertainment. Enjoyed baseball game! I had the most amazing, awesome, wonderful time in New York! Many great memories were made! I liked

the Opera. I just loved Central Park. I loved NYC!

The St. Pius X track and field team had a great season this year! We finished first at our divisional meet, with 51 team members qualifying for Regionals. At Regionals our school finished in tenth place, and had 12 team members qualify for the City meet. Special congratulations goes to our city medalists Davis S. who finished first in 1500m, both our Gr. 4 boys and Gr.3 girls relay teams who finished 6th, and Jacob N who placed 8th in high jump. Also, we had two students who participated in the Special Olympics: Ben B, and Stephanie J. (bronze in 60m). Special thanks goes to the coaches Mr. Vale, Ms. Agres, Ms. Brissette, Ms. Bannon, Ms. Careri, Ms. Chown, Ms. Karvonen, and Ms. Kloda for all of their time and effort, and a huge THANK YOU to all of the parent volunteers who joined us as supervisors and cheerleaders at our meets! E. Chown

Happy Birthday, Canada! On Tuesday, May 2nd, the Junior and Intermediate classes put on a great show to celebrate Canada's 150th birthday! Each class chose a song by a Canadian artist to perform. Also, four soloists, Maggie O, Caitlan K-O, Emily and Mijosee D, displayed their musical talents by singing a cappella. The MCs, Julia C, E. Guljas, Ricky R, and Caitlian. K-O, entertained the crowd with trivia in between the acts. Thank you to all the staff and students who worked to put on a beautiful concert. As well, thank you to the overwhelming number of family members and friends who attended this event. E. Oliveira

TEAM MAYA KIM

Sporting Life 10k: On Sunday May 14th, our St. Pius X Team Maya Kim participated in the Sporting Life 10K Run, in an effort to honour Maya’s inspiration and courage, and in support of Camp Ooch. Many members of the St. Pius community, including students, parents and teachers participated in this 10km run down Yonge Street, all proudly wearing their purple Team Maya Kim t-shirt. At the completion of the race we were greeted by Maya and other St. Pius X students who were handing out the finisher`s medals. Congratulations everyone on a great day for a great cause! G. Agres

Aussie X: G'Day Mate! At the beginning of May, the students at St. Pius participated in

the Aussie X program, learning new games (netball or footy) and also learning a little bit about Australian sports and culture. The students had a fantastic time doing their best and working as a team with our Aussie coaches Kelsey and Jake. Congrats St. Pius X! Goodonya Mate! G. Agres

Toronto Rugby: During the last week of May, the students welcomed the Toronto Inner-City Rugby Foundation into their phys ed classes! The Toronto Inner-City Rugby Foundation (TIRF) is a non-profit organization that provides certified youth rugby instructors to lead the students in introductory non-contact rookie rugby sessions. A great time was had by all! G. Agres

Mountsberg Conservation Park It rained, it poured! On Thursday, May 25th, 2017, Ms. Careri’s, Mr. Miceli’s and Ms. Stanevicius’ classes visited Mountsberg Conservation Area and enjoyed a very wet day of survival instincts and compass orientation. The day began with

students discussing carnivores, herbivores, and omnivores followed by identifying animals based on their skull skeletons. The students had the opportunity to hold a skull of a muskrat and a horse. As Mother Nature

continued to rain, the students were super troopers and went outside to see a bald eagle, a falcon, a barn owl and a golden eagle, all who were rescued. Did you know that a falcon can fly up to 300 km to kill its prey?!!? After lunch, students learned how to use a compass just in case their GPS, iPods or other electronic device runs out of battery while on a wilderness hike and all they have left to use to return back home is a compass!!! Despite the rain, the students enjoyed their day at Mountsberg and would go back in a heartbeat! X. Villa and Ms. Stanevicius

In May, our Grade 8 class participated in a Scientist in the School program to complement their Science unit on Water Systems. Students had the opportunity to work through 10 different Labs and were actively engaged in the program. The pictures say it all! M. Atkinson

Our Intermediate Girls Soccer team played in their Divisional Tournament at High Park the first day of June this year. The Girls tied for 2nd, losing in an exciting game against St. Cecilia, 1-0. All of the girls are to be congratulated for their sportsmanship and team efforts, not only at the tournament but throughout their season this year. The team members that represented our school so well and who have made all of us very proud are: Josie, Grace, Kate, Madie ,Julia Mijosee, Alexandra, Caitlan, Emma, Kendra, Evelyn, Molly, Avery, Lauren, and Emma. Congratulations to the team for their success! Go Girls!! M. Atkinson

TRUSTEES 2016 – 2017

Wards

1. Joseph Martino 5. Maria Rizzo 9. Jo-Ann Davis 2. Ann Andrachuk 6. Frank D’Amico, Vice-Chair 10. Barbara Poplawski 3. Sal Piccininni 7. Michael Del Grande 11. Angela Kennedy, Chair 4. Patrizia Bottoni 8. Garry Tanuan 12. Nancy Crawford Rhea Carlisle, Student Trustee Karina Dubrovskaya, Student Trustee

Angela Gauthier, Director of Education 80 Sheppard Ave. E., Toronto, ON ∙ Website: www.tcdsb.org