Dear Parent/Guardian,

As Parent/Teacher interviews are upon us, we encourage you to take

this opportunity to find out about

your child’s progress, not only by

reading the Progress Report, but by coming in and

seeing the teacher, at least once during the year and

more frequently, if necessary. You can, and are encouraged to meet with the teacher at any time

during the school year by contacting the school or

your child’s teacher directly. Even if your child is

doing well, it is important for your child to hear all

the positive feedback because they are working hard and need to feel that their accomplishments are

celebrated by everyone – the school and home

included. Even with an excellent report, there is

always room for growth and next steps. The

Elementary Progress Report Cards will be sent home

on Monday, Nov. 14th. Interviews are scheduled for Thursday, November 17th in the late afternoon and

evening and on the morning of Friday, November

18th. November 18th is a PA day for the students.

Regular parent-teacher communication is an

important part of student learning. Parent-teacher interviews are scheduled throughout the year, after

report cards are sent home.

Talking about the need to celebrate student

success…Wonderful news! Join me in congratulating

Nishtha P. ( Grade 6 ) who participated in and stood first in the Mathletics contest which was conducted

by the Professional Engineers of Ontario. This contest

took place on Saturday, October 22, 2016 at the

Scarborough Civic Centre. Mathletics is a competition

designed by engineers to demonstrate the application of mathematics in everyday life. The questions show

the significance of mathematics in science and

engineering. The contest is for juniors (grade 4-6) and

for seniors (grade 7-8).

The new Student Leadership Council (SLC) for 2016-2017 has been formed. Congratulations go to our

new student executive: Erin P. (President);

Mohammed A. (VP); Venkat M. (VP); Samuel C.

(Treasurer); Sohail P. (Treasurer); Jonathan S.

(Secretary); Evelyn W. (Secretary).

Below are some questions and tips that you may find

useful for the interview. Interpreters are available if

you need one. Please indicate your requirements on

the parent-teacher interview form which will be sent

home in early November.

Great Questions to Ask

What skills does my child need to work on? What activities can we do at home to strengthen

those skills?

Does my child complete his/her work and

assignments efficiently and conscientiously?

Is my child facing any struggles in class not related to his/her schoolwork?

Interview Tips

Speak with your child about school before the

interview. Ask how they think they are doing and how the teacher can help them meet their goals.

Get an idea of what the curriculum is like, the level

your child is working at and areas where they are

struggling.

Make a list of what you want to know before you go

into the interview. You can even prepare questions

ahead of time if it will make you feel more at ease.

Knowing what you want to know and writing it down

ensures that you don’t forget anything and that you

C

Churchill Heights P.S. Newsletter November 2016

Message from the

Principal

Co- & Extra-curricular Activities

Mondays Music Practise—lunch Tuesdays Wednesdays Music Practise—Lunch

Thursdays Fridays Music Practise—Lunch Please see the attached school calendar for other upcoming events.

749 Brimorton Drive, Scarborough, ON, M1G 2S4

Principal T. Dillinger / Vice-Principal J. Stamatopoulos 416-396-6160 / Fax 416-396-6164

Superintendent S. Chan 416-396-9178 Trustee D. Smith 416-393-8809

School Website http://schoolweb.tdsb.on.ca/churchillheights School Council Email ChurchillheightsSC@gmail.com

Toronto Public Health

get the information you need.

Be open and honest. Feel free to add your own observations around your child’s behaviour,

strengths and weaknesses.

Find out what they’re learning. Ask curriculum

questions; find out what your child has learned and

what is coming up in the term ahead. Know the skills your child will need to be successful in the term

ahead (i.e. knowing how to multiply and divide

fractions).

Ask about strengths and weaknesses and possible problems. Find out about problems before they

happen. This information will allow students to get

help before they fall behind.

Find out how often and how much homework is being

assigned as it relates to the TDSB’s Homework Policy. Also ask if your child is completing his/her

homework regularly, how long the work assigned

should take to complete and does the teacher check

the homework regularly and provide feedback. The

answers to these questions will help you better monitor your child’s work habits.

Ask what you can do at home to help your child.

Make a commitment to support your child’s learning.

Staff Changes

We have had some new allocations to our classroom

organization. We obtained a new grade 5/6 teacher, a

grade 1 teacher, and a .5 prep teacher in the

afternoon. Mr. Jackson Ho is our gr. 5/6 teacher, Ms. Aida Su is in grade 1 and our home school teacher

and afternoon prep teacher is Ms. Neomi Majmudar.

Ms. Smith is on leave. Her substitute is Mr.

Christopher Cashman. Welcome to all our new

teachers!

In addition, we were able to obtain a new allocation

for a lunchroom supervisor. Her name is Mrs. Nahar

Ashrafun, who has also moved to our community.

Welcome to her as well!

Unfortunately for us, but mixed emotions for her, Ms

Nadia Allen, our SNA in the morning, has obtained a

full-time position at another school as an Education

Assistant. We would like to thank her for all her hard

work here at our school and wish her all the best at

her new school in the west end, Second Street Junior Middle School. We’ll miss her dedication and

commitment to not only our students in the primary

gifted class, but to all the students in our school. All

the best in your new position, Ms. Allen!

The School Council meetings are underway. Do come out the first Thursday of the month, at 6:00 pm in

the staffroom, to find out all about the school

activities that are going on and how you can support

the Council’s initiatives. See you on November 3rd! If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to call the

office at 416-396-6160.

Happy Hallowe’en, everyone…

Sincerely,

T. Dillinger

Free Flu Shot Clinics

Scarborough Civic Centre 140 Borough Drive

November 10th

2:30—7:30 p.m.

Agincourt Mall 3850 Sheppard Avenue East

November 18th

1:00—6:00 p.m.

For more information and

locations, go to Toronto.ca/health.

Practise Hand Washing

Q: What’s the best way to wash hands with soap and

water?

A: Wet hands with warm water and apply soap.

Lather for 15 seconds. Scrub entire hand, including

back of hands, between fingers and under nails.

Rinse well under running water. Dry hands well with

paper towel or hot air blower. Turn taps off with paper towel, if available.

Q: When can I use hand sanitizers instead of soap

and water?

A: Hand sanitizers are very useful when soap and

water are not available. If your hands are not visibly

dirty, then alcohol-based (minimum 70%-90%) hand

sanitizers, gels or rinses will reduce germs. If hands

are visibly dirty, wash

with soap and water. People who are

preparing food should

wash their hands using

soap and water rather

than using hand

sanitizers.

Ms. Siva’s class enjoyed a day at Whittamore’s Farm

along with Mrs. Burch and Ms. Allen.

“My trip to Whittamores' Farm was exciting because

who doesn't like a farm. I liked the trip to the farm

because I picked a pumpkin. The best part of the

farm was the strawberry slide because it was big and slim. I saw the robotic chicken show at the farm. I

learned about pumpkins. I learned that pumpkins

grow on vines. One thing I didn't know was that

pumpkins grow on vines.” Tristan G., grade 2

“ “My trip to Whittamores' Farm was fun because I got

to play on a playscape. I liked the trip to the farm

because I rode pretend horses and played on a

hayscape. The best part of the trip was the playscape

and the pretend horses. I saw the robotic

chicken show. I learned about pumpkins. I learned that pumpkins have vines. The most interesting part

of the trip was the wagon ride. One thing I didn't

know was a pumpkin vine was prickly. At the end of

the trip I was sad because the trip was over.” Graham

F., grade 3

This fall we had 75 students from grades 2-8

participate in the East Area Cross Country meet at Thompson Park on October 14. Of those students, we

had 25 students move onto the East

Finals! Congratulations to Alexandra Boyadjieff who

is moving onto the City Finals at Centennial Park this

week, good luck! All of the runners showed

perseverance and a commitment to their sport by practising regularly. They showed great

sportsmanship while representing Churchill Heights

at the meets.

On September 29, staff and students at Churchill Heights (and around the country), participated in the

annual Terry Fox School Run to raise awareness and

funds for cancer research. It was a wet and chilly

afternoon, but our school

persevered through the wind and rain to show our

support for this

cause. Thank you to all

those who participated

and brought in

donations. Our school raised over $1000 to go

towards cancer research,

education and support for

those fighting this

disease.

Ms. Mui and Ms. DeGuzman’s class had an adventure at Evergreen’s Brickworks.

Brickworks

Cross Country

Terry Fox Run

Whittamore’s Farm

On October 19, 2016, Mrs. Ifejika, Mr. Woodrow, and

a few other students attended WE Day at the Air

Canada Centre, representing Churchill Heights

Public School. WE Day is an amazing event, all about

empowering youth to take a stand on what they are passionate about, and to change the world. Today,

there are countless issues that people in Third World

countries face. WE Day encourages youth to be

leaders, and to lead with compassion to transform

people’s lives for the better. Together, we can strive to impact the world both locally, and globally.

The whole day was filled with inspiring stories about

how remarkable people made a change in the world today. Some of these people included famous

celebrities, Youtubers, and social activists such as

Jason Derulo, Macklemore, Zendaya, Lily Singh,

Spencer West, and many others. They did a great job

keeping everyone entertained and motivated at the same time. They discussed alarming social problems

that many people face today, such as cyber bullying,

poverty, discrimination, and many other important

issues. Entertaining events also took place, such as

the WE Day dance, which really brought everyone

together, and gave us something we could all connect to.

WE Day was an incredible and inspiring experience.

It taught society to embrace their differences, and

work together to solve social problems. It also taught

youth that no matter what your age is, everyone

should take the opportunity to make a difference in

the world. As fortunate individuals ourselves, we should give back to our communities. Afterall, a little

goes a long way at Churchill Heights Public School!

Sabriya H.

Congratulations to our own Erin P., our

SLC President, who presented a speech

in front of all the people at the ACC

about how she is living WE at Churchill Heights P.S.. Great job!

Writing Club Tackles NaNoWriMo

This November students in grades 6-8 at Churchill

Heights are invited to join the Writing Club. This

year’s focus is NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month). Our team will be joining over 431,626

participants, including 80,137 students and

educators all over the world. This is a fun, creative

writing event where the challenge is to complete the

first draft of a novel in 30 days. It's sort of like sport or a marathon for writers.

The novel-writing season begins November 1st and

ends by midnight, November 30th. Adult participants

in this program write 50 000 words during the event, but children choose their own age appropriate goals.

Members of the writing club will chart their progress

and have weekly writing sessions together.

There is an online component at

http://ywp.nanowrimo.org/. Students are not

required to participate online but this is a fun place for students to read pep talks by professional authors

and learn more about writing.

I have participated in NaNoWriMo before and think it

benefits anyone who wants to learn how to write better or develop a growth mindset. Participation

helps build skills in planning and time management.

Students will cheer each other on as they persevere

with this challenging project.

Happy writing.

Mrs. Wentz

The next School Council meeting will be held on

Thursday, November 3rd from 6:00 – 7:30 p.m. All

parents/guardians are encouraged to attend.

Babysitting will be available.

School Council will be hosting

our annual fundraising bake

sale on Thursday, November

17th from 3:00 to 7:30 p.m.

Please see the flyer for more

information and how you can help.

We Day

School Council

Writing Club